ã€ŠPerceived Fateã€‹


 Prologue, part 1

    ¡°The God of Good¡¯s¡±

    A mystical pressure spread about the main hall of the Silver Palace. Bliss was felt every person present, from the silvery-silk draped messenger to the heavily over-geared guards standing on duty behind the sturdy throne room doors.

    ¡°Mind your words Trent, you inexperience does not allow for such a trivial error...¡±

    Grim faced, the crowned man sat on the throne caused the messenger to take a deep gulp. The messenger quickly composed himself, taking a deep breath, before he continued on his reporting.

    ¡°Emissaries of the `Good Church` have asked for permission to settle the Lands of Silver. This coming with the rights to propagate their `Truth` to the commoners as well.¡±

    The King showed no expression. The Kingdom of Silver had just recently kicked out its Patron God and so the hungry eyes of the other churches were now seeking to gain some fresh followers. Offers such as these had been common lately, although they usually came with some sort of gift to incentivise their specific faction.

    A smile. The King had known many of the `Good` Priests and followers and he liked none of them.

    ¡°Rejected, next.¡±

    Another scroll appeared as a ring on the messengers hand shined a dim blue. He then read:

    ¡°The local merchants have asked for more permanent buyouts for the spaces in the market square.¡±

    A moment of silence spread around the throne room.

    ¡°They do seem to hate renting.¡±

    Feeling through his beard the King searched his vast mind library for any idea worth presenting.

    ¡°Give them a high number for a lease of 20 years, it secures them the same store for a long time, and I haven¡¯t been favourable to some of their matters recently.¡±

    The emissary nodded his head and sent someone with the recorded response to someone down the in the kingdoms Finance department. He then pulled the most extravagant scroll seen so far.

    ¡°The final matter for today my King: another invitation by the Alliance. This time they hint at something more.. forceful if we do not oblige.¡±

    The King simply stood up; a deep frown did not hide itself on his face.

    ¡°Bastards, we clean up their own mess and we are rewarded with this.¡± The King then looked off in a different direction, clearly his mind distracted. ¡°For now, you¡¯re all dismissed. Trent, I¡¯ll speak about the matter with the Queen, we shall come to a conclusion together.¡±

    ¡°Right, good day my Liege¡±

    Emissary peeled back into his own shadow and disappeared. A cheeky smile however did not escape the eyes of the King.

    Such pleasantries, whilst common in court, was strange considering the King had known the emissary since their days in basic education. The memory managed to create a smile before his mind refocused back onto the grave task at hand.

    `The Alliance` the King thought.

    They held a quarter claim to the Eastern Half of the Divide and that roughly translated to 1/40 of all land known in all the Realm. It was maintained by sects of each different element, and this allowed them a diverse set of strengths that no other Eastern Land could equally boast.

    It was strength that he and his dear wife could never hope to stand against, not even against the weaker elders of the group. The Land they ruled was so large that kingdoms such as his own were grown from small settlements only be taken under their wing after reaching a certain threshold: and they had already far surpassed that.

    Trying to take his mind away from such thoughts the King focused more on what he saw around him. He had already left the throne room and was now slowly walking past a corridor named the Walk of History. On its walls were many significant historical pieces that celebrated how the Kingdom had come to how it was today.

    The King ignored some of the Older relics, most were simply false, or they held to little evidence to be taken with full seriousness. To the end of the Hall the King finally came across some history he could relate to.

    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

    A portrait of his grandfather, the one to reunify a splintered Kingdom after a period of decline by a litany of poor rulers. A man of great charisma and great strength, enough to wipe a city in a single spell. A role model for many, but also a mystery to all. His disappearance shook the Kingdom and not a verifiable word or rumour had spread about him ever since.

    It was then that his lineage separated from power and another tyrant rose to the throne. This time, with a unified kingdom to rule over. He was greedy, power hungry, but he was also future thinking. He invested heavily in industry and imported several metal Apprentices to lay the foundation that made the Silver Kingdom what it was today.

    The King¡¯s thoughts of his late predecessor were mixed. In the future he hoped to be everything good about the man, without the evil it hid behind its silvery veil.

    The portrait of him was grander than any other, gold carved into a frame where a man with silver hair and silver eyes stood. Calloused hands held a pure silver sceptre and he posed with the intent of looking authoritative. He portrait was simply named, `King` and it was history the current King could not help but recognise for what it was.

    Those hands, no matter how much blood they had spilt, had also carved the kingdom he currently ruled. Morals in ruling were greyer than any other job, this King however hoped to be a whiter shade.

    Coming to recent history and the King saw a face he knew all too well. A man he had seen beheaded, the previous ruler. Unlike his father he believed ruling was in his blood, clearly he had not seen history and such it repeated itself. His wife was the revolutionist and with her strength and the Kings own legitimacy, they claimed the throne and became the rightful rulers.

    Now their portrait was on the wall. Smiling slightly, the King thought about how the corridor would change in the future. He had and his wife had great plans for their kingdom, time would decide if they were good or not.

    Passing through another set of ornate double doors, the King walked past the gardens and through a series of bends before coming across a beautiful building laid in greenery and decorated modestly. This building was less so about appearance and more focused on results. The shimmering sign on the building named it, The Imperial Hospital.

    The King walked up the steps into the building and past several royal Guards before coming across the room he was looking for. The Guards here were decked out in the best the Kingdom could afford, those that were hired were all nobles and were trusted to keep the Queen¡¯s life intact at all times.

    Although it was questionable whether she needed it or not.

    She was the strongest person in the entire kingdom after all, but, one could never be too safe.

    The King nodded to the Head guard, Jameson was his name, and they were technically Cousins. On his uniform the King could sense a small silk doll inside of the Guard¡¯s pocket, that reminded the King of his Guard¡¯s child.

    ¡°How is she?¡±

    The Guard face come quickly out of its stoic expression and instead transformed into one of jovial happiness.

    ¡°She is my pride and joy who only grows better by the day.¡±

    The King knew his Head guard was a very family orientated man, it was part of the reason why he was hired. His wife was the Queen¡¯s Lady in Waiting (Assistant) and such they lived on the property, that meant guarding the Queen was likely the best bet for the Head Guard to also protect his family.

    The King smiled at his own genius and after speaking of children for a small time the King finally decided to enter the hospitals finest room. One reserved for his wife only.

    The King¡¯s marriage was something that had been thrown around ever since he was young. Always told he would marry some other noble, or perhaps a princess, but the King was never one for that. He was a romantic, and he was looking at the woman he called soulmate. Even better, he could see a small bundle of joy he could proudly call his son, tucked inside his darling wife¡¯s arms.

    Her sleeping face together with the small sounds of his child¡¯s voice made the King barely able to keep his composure as he sneaked over to take a better look.

    The man who had sat on the throne with a stern complexion, managing the fates of millions, was now making strange faces, and weaving complex spells just to see his child giggle one more time.

    ¡°Stop using your concentration on such spells, your hopeless sometimes.¡±

    His wife, her voice as smooth as silk, spiked at the King¡¯s heart. He forgot sometimes how sensitive his wife was to magic.

    ¡°Sorry, but look at him...¡±

    They both looked at the adorable child fiddling with a small blob of metal as it changed from a blunt sword to a big hammer, at the same time, both experienced a joy only parents could feel.

    As the moment continued, the Kings eyes shifted to seriousness as he looked at his wife in the eyes.

    ¡°Right, sorry to ruin the mood but now your awake the Alliance demands we surrender. It seems we have no choice except to accept.¡±

    The Queen of the Kingdom, the True ruler of the throne, simply gave the King a warm smile.

    ¡°We knew that it was inevitable from the day we learned of our puppet like nature. We must only send a few resources every year and that is all. Cheer up my love, after all our honeymoon is soon and I think you know exactly what that means.¡±

    A suggestive glance sent the King away with the child in his arms. It was his turn for babysitting tonight and for her that meant she would finally get a full nights rest. Magic could cancel out the noise but as a mother she could never even think of doing that.

    She would already wipe half the people out of her own kingdom for her son and sacrificing a few nights rest was nothing in comparison, although one was certainly more draining that the other.

    The joyful figure of her juvenile husband disappeared down a long hallway as the guards closed the door.

    Ever since she was a child, Tianna had always just wanted to live a happy life. A good husband and a few children was everything she wanted. Now, her eyes gave away her fatigue as she felt the heavy responsibility of an entire kingdom weighing on her shoulders.

    She looked around the room, now empty of her family and gave out a long breath.

    She had a family to protect now, there was certainly no take-backs. Tianna was young once, but now she was the true Queen of the Silver Kingdom.

    Her eyes began to fade as her resolve stood firm.

    As darkness enveloped her sight, she made one last promise to at least give her child the childhood she wished she had received herself.

 Prologue, part 2

    A manifestation of ones desires and fears, that was what the old head Servant had taught Tianna about dreams when she was young.

    In a classroom made up of little more than two blocks of wood (chairs) and a single plank (something to lean on) Tianna had learned about the world from its greatest achievements to its greatest failures. All of it because the Head maid had taken a liking to the orphaned servant.

    Actual knowledge, on subjects such as economics, mathematics and history were kept only for nobles so Tianna had learned only simple literacy and manners but that was enough for her to become the personal servant for a young master of the house.

    She was treated like any other orphan servant, like dirt.

    Tianna hated this past of hers, but she did acknowledge its contribution towards her future self. It made her relentless in her studies and her desire for knowledge, and also gave her a keen look into how power was the only important factor in this poor world of hers.

    She grew, talent and hard work mixed into a powerful concoction that was success and thanks to the unfortunate death of the young master, she was transferred, in due part to her studies, to work on the business side of the House.

    Further she took up her chances and learned the way of trade. Not long after she made enough money to buy her freedom, and with it, promptly escaped from her childhood era.

    Memories from that moment forward were truly like a story, and yet her dreams never seemed to linger on those happy moments. It focused on when she was weakest, and hunted her mind like prey.

    This night was different, unlike usually Tianna could feel something inside the dream. Almost like the particles that gave her magic, mana, was actually inside the dream. If it was true it was a phenomena that even Sages would interested in and as a fanatic herself she studied it with glee.

    Space itself seemed smaller here. Like it was compressing into a small ball except she was in the middle of it. A fascinating feeling that had Tianna enraptured in its profound method.

    Yet, as she looked longer she felt something amiss. Her sensations felt odder and as time moved on she noticed some lighter objects disappear from the room. Space itself seemed to fold toward inwards and then it popped and was gone.

    Dangerous, Tianna immediately awoke. Mysterious moments with Dao were never to be taken with anything other than with utmost seriousness, otherwise only peril would await.

    For Tianna it seemed Peril followed her from the dream. The phenomena had not just affected her dream but also the real world as well.

    And that meant...

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    The hospital immediately shook as an object going far too fast to see broke through the walls and speed directly into the Palace. Never before had her own security measures so annoyed Tianna as she brutally emptied her conscious reserves to get to her child as quick as possible.

    The distortion of reality around her, like a watercolour painting, did not hinder her movement as she burst through into the room of herself and the King. Inside, she found her husband frantically focused on creating a magical array to end the distortion, but Tianna knew such efforts were pointless.

    They were getting focused by a higher power; one Tianna had only barely scratched the surface off. Anger, fear, and everything else were all pointless. She had a single task, to protect all that she had.

    Space magic was rare, far more so than even the rare metal magic the Silver Kingdom had built itself up on. That meant not many had ever faced the magic, and such they had never created counters to the spells they could create.

    Tianna was lost, and as the space the space further collapsed inwards, and the surrounding palace started to disappear, she took the resolute decision to hide her son inside a special barrier that would block all outside elements.

    It was a poor plan, but she had nothing else to do. Every struggle she had endured had been nigh pointless, not unless she saved just her child.

    She met the eyes of her crying husband. The King was never a King in heart, inside she liked to think of him as a lucky child who just happened to be born a Noble. That was why she loved him, unlike every other noble he felt innocent, his actions were straightforward and in the messy world of politics he had come at a time where she needed some stability the most.

    They held hands as Tianna began to chant a spell. The soul was basis of all magic, it was the authority that moved it around and allowed the person to create spells. Sages had pondered for millennia about what a soul actually was but Tianna herself had managed to eke out an inch of an answer over her many years of study.

    Soul magic was what she called it, and it was what allowed her to break from the hierarchy of the Kingdom and raise herself to the Queen she was today, this was her greatest secret and her greatest strength.

    Soul magic was the best offence any sentient being could ask for, but today she had to bend it to become an absolute defence.

    She started by seeing how resistant her soul was to the power that was affecting her surroundings. A Silver ball appeared past Tianna chest as the spatial anomaly folded and collapsed around her. The ball itself seemed to ripple and condense but apart from that seemed fairly strong.

    Tianna nodded and then began to expand her soul, enough to fit her child. However, as she did the damage done to the soul began to worsen and by the size requirement the ball had begun to form an irregular oval. She needed more, and she found more by looking at her husband¡¯s Silvery soul flowing out of his body as it came to comfort her own.

    She didn¡¯t need to ask, for it was obvious for both of them. Love had made them fools, but as they felt their last sliver of consciousness not a single ounce of regret came from the pair of foolish lovers.

    The parents now lay soulless of the floor, their faces, scars, and regal uniform bended and stretched into a beige colour before disappearing entirely. Above the lost bodies was a beacon on light, emit by a ball of soul energy, inside, lay a child with bright yellow eyes.

    The souls were now entirely hollow, with only a crying child inside.

    Time passed and eventually even the palace fell into nothingness. Barron wasteland was all around, what was once a thriving capital was now, forever gone.

    No warning, no way of knowing whatsoever, just gone...

    The Soul energy of the two strongest parents of the Silver Kingdom maintained the child¡¯s hunger as it cried for attention and yet nobody came. The sun rose, the sun fell, and as time passed the child slowly began to grow quiet.

 Chapter 1

    ¡°The God of Evil,¡±

    *Whack*

    ¡°Don¡¯t say a true title so lightly in this house. Now, you either man up and go to school or I¡¯m dragging you there!¡±

    Malum hated when his Uncle was like this. School was so boring, and his classmates annoyed simply because he was an outsider. But, Malum knew he had to go anyway.

    He took a breath, unclenched his closed fists, and stormed out the creaky wooden door.

    The mud road was being brutalised as Malum released his final pent-up anger. Thoughts about running off and exploring the woods tempted Malum mind, but he choose to conform knowing that becoming a scholar was a decent direction for a future job.

    He already worked helping out his local hunters because he had nothing else better to do and making a side income was never a bad thing. Malum liked to think he was future thinking but that didn¡¯t mean he enjoyed the present.

    The village was as small as you would expect for one with less than a hundred residents, which meant it took no time for Malum to arrive at the town hall where basic education was taught.

    There was a good reason Malum wanted to become a scholar, and looking at his teacher explained it in full. Mr Davis was a scholar, but he also was the Mayor of the small village. It was by far the most well-respected job in the village and easily the most powerful.

    Malum wouldn¡¯t say he was obsessed with power, but wouldn¡¯t deny it played a role in him wanting to become a Mayor in the future.

    As he was always early, Malum sat alone in the classroom for quite some time. Looking around, he saw no change: a large rickety wooden table with 20 or so stumps being used as the chairs, natural lighting was used to save on firewood, although during the winter months Malum had seen the fireplace light up more than once.

    Heat mainly came from an emphasis on clothing, which was thick shirts and regular trousers made from the villages finest farmed wool. Unlike many of the villages Malum had travelled through this one had a good clothing situation thanks to a pen of sheep which provided enough wool to both clothe and feed most of the village.

    Malum had seen far worse, and a few better in the many villages he had come across. If he had to rate this one he would give it a 7/10, minus 3 because of flooding and the annoying classmates.

    Speaking of, Malum was joined by the worst offender of the group.

    ¡°Morning Eric.¡± Malum spoke, he found being overly nice tended to help.

    ¡°Don¡¯t speak to me Alien, wouldn¡¯t want people thinking were friends.¡±

    He was a black-haired boy who in many ways looked similar to Malum. Except Malum was better built and had yellow instead of blue eyes.

    Leaving the speaking Malum decided silence was the better option and it stayed that way until an older girl entered the room.

    She was in her final year in basic education, so she was 14, and unlike Eric, Malum maintained a good relationship with her. She had 7 siblings, Eric also having 4. It was one of the reasons he stood out in the village.

    Around the large, crooked table, she sat next to Malum, and they both began speaking about topics they found interesting. She wanted to be a pharmacist and with the village being surrounded by forest she was in an ample place to learn.

    ¡°Yesterday I found this wonderful blue Andria Flower, if I only I had some Blue Jaulit Berries then I could mix the two in a 2 to one ratio, boil it, then I would have a fantastic health tonic.¡± It was clear to Malum how much she enjoyed her hobby, her face made zero effort to hide her enthusiasm.

    Malum complimented her knowledge, and asked a few mundane questions. He found testing her knowledge were the ones she enjoyed the most. It was similar to how merchants liked questions on how expensive their coats were except hers came from joy over her own hobby rather than some twisted form of pride.

    Malum wished he had something to be so enthusiastic about. He wasn¡¯t goalless per say but he just didn¡¯t have that fire that she had. When he was younger he wanted to be like the Gods he heard about in myths. A few times he had heard bards sing their tales, killing demons and monsters and to a young mind that seemed possible.

    Monsters did exist, and Malum had even seen his Uncle fight one. Demons also were known to exist although Malum couldn¡¯t say he had seen one of those. Now those tales revealed themselves to be lies from the churches, logic had seeped into Malum mind and with it came wisdom as he questioned the knowledge he learned.

    Breaking his train of thought was the teacher entering and beginning his lecture on woodworking, Malum paid close attention and remembered everything he could.

    6 hours later,

    Walking out the classroom and Malum breathed in the first breath of sawdust-less air. It felt nice not to have those tiny specks agitating and annoying his throat.

    Instead he was swapping that for his lazy Uncle. Coming home to his shack of a house and his Uncle was indeed starring at the sky again. Malum asked him a few base questions to gauge which persona he was currently.

    ¡°Yo Uncle how¡¯s the sky today?¡±

    ¡°Blue.¡± His voice monotone answered Malum''s question.

    Seemed it was the fool tonight. Malum was not one for mystics, but he knew two mind¡¯s occupied the body of his Uncle: the fool and the wiseman. They would come and go, as far as Malum was concerned they both saw him as his son, so it mattered not to Malum.

    He spoke nothing more to his Uncle and moved to the kitchen which held a loaf of bread and fruits, enough for a fairly balanced meal. The loaf he held was already half eaten, so he put a reminder in his head to buy another tomorrow.

    The dining table was non-existent, and cutlery was even further from feasible. He had been taught of their usage however, as his Wise Uncle¡¯s knowledge seemed truly endless, if only he had an ounce of sympathy then Malum may have been able to look up to him.

    ¡°Dinner!¡± Malum called, as he laid out the food on the small rug they used as a table. He sat legs crossed as he waited for his Uncle and once he arrived Malum noticed a certain glimmer in his eyes that reflected the change in his Uncle¡¯s personality.

    A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

    ¡°Seems you have moved on from our fight this morning.¡± Malum slightly shrunk back, ¡°A good decision, petty acts of revenge are just that: petty. If revenge is what you seek, strike once and with full conviction making sure they never cross you again.¡±

    Malum watched as his Uncle took a bit out of an apple, he gulped at the idea of even trying to get revenge on his Uncle.

    They ate in silence, something that was common when the wiseman ate with his son. The Fool was more loose lipped and Malum had learned far more about his past from him than his counterpart.

    As far as he knew his family was some noble, perhaps even royal, line, his Uncle was their guard, and they were currently on the run. He knew not why they had to run he just knew they had to; from people the Fool called the Alliances¡¯ Scientists.

    It was a mystery he would surely find the answer to later, for now they had finished eating and so that meant it was evening training.

    Malum¡¯s body was not built because of his Noble birth it was born from his sweat and his grit. They used their small backyard, one which held a large bush that flowed in all of their neighbour¡¯s backyards as well.

    The overgrown grass was his task for today, and that meant his first task was a jog towards the blacksmiths. The cool night air provided relief to Malum''s lungs, but this was only the warm-up.

    The scythe was borrowed from the Mayor office as the village held no blacksmith of its own. And with it in hand he continued his warm-up back to his house. The weight of the scythe was like an added two arms, the lump of metal at the end in particular added a challenge not only in its weight but also the balancing.

    Home was never too far, and the overgrown grass soon became familiar with Malum''s technique. His arms were focused heavily now, holding the elongated weight with precision was no easy task especially considering there was no child-size scythe and such Malum had to lift the weight even adults struggled with at age 12.

    His Uncle provided feedback in the form of military style shouting. The abuse was something Malum had grown used to, but some attacks still dented his younger heart. It did lead to his technique of soft and methodical sweeps that were mesmerising to the eye.

    Swapping hands to do the same facing towards the house, Malum continued his practice as he built up experience. He had done many, many tasks similar and so was adept at all the weapons Malum knew of. That left the question in Malums mind, what would come after?

    Today it seemed he would learn the answer to his question as his Uncle began clapping his hands.

    ¡°Well done son,¡± Malum¡¯s skin crawled at his Uncle strange behaviour, his Wise Uncle had never called him son and it felt wrong. Ignoring his sons reaction he continued nonetheless,

    ¡°you have impressed me greatly with your talent, it seems you have truly inherited your parents fantastic genes. Today you learn more, about your past, present and future. Listen closely, I do hate to repeat myself.¡±

    Enraptured, Malum starred at his Uncle as he finally prepared himself to learn more about his fantastical past. He wished of being some lost Prince whose crown was only one small journey away. He hastily gave a prayer to the God of Luck.

    ¡°Let¡¯s start with your parents, as you know I was their head bodyguard and I¡¯m also your cousin via your fathers line. An event I cannot describe caused their kingdom to collapse, I was safe because I was coincidentally inside my ancestors grave. You survived due to your parents sacrificing their very souls to protect you, although how they did it is truly a wonder.¡±

    Malum could not help himself, ¡°Souls? They even exist?¡±

    His Uncle could not help himself, ¡°Yes boy and so much more. Your journey in cultivation will be long and arduous but I shall help you as much as I can, however, do know you cannot truly begin before your soul matures which usually happens around your 18<sup>th</sup> birthday however due to rough upbringing I may have played a part in it has grown faster than normal and should come to be around your 17<sup>th</sup>.¡±

    ¡°...¡±

    Malum''s mind struggled to process those words. Stories of Gods and legends usually did feature cultivators and local legends to seeming superpowers were not too rare, but they were supposed to be tall tales the bard had spun together for cash. Not the truth hidden behind a wall of ignorance.

    It was then that his mind latched onto something else revealed from his father words.

    ¡°Wait, you were a bitch because it was good for my soul?¡±

    The Wise man looked at his son in sympathy, as far as Malum knew that wasn¡¯t an emotion the old man could feel.

    ¡°Sorry, yes it¡¯s something most noble families implement to foster a child of a higher calibre. Its cruel but that it the way of this world, the Dao may look fair and to some degree it is, but it holds not a morsel of emotion. You can hate me, but I want revenge and since I can¡¯t do it, I have raised you.¡±

    Malum decided to walk away for a moment. As he walked his mind began to process how he felt about this revelation. Purpose was something Malum had always lacked, he just never felt such strong emotion to anchor himself down with such a responsibility. Finding out he was a tool, by the person who had raised him all his life...

    That hurt.

    Crying was pointless, it never achieved anything and instead ruined fancy things like one¡¯s own image. Hidden behind a house, near a row of bushes, Malum crouched down and gave himself a moment to let his emotion rush over him.

    It was all so complex.

    Malum''s mind wanted to understand it all, why did his Uncle want revenge, why could he not do it himself, was the revenge the only reason he raised him? Question, upon question, and crying wasn¡¯t going to do anything to answer them.

    He felt angry at his juvenile brain, at the stupid emotion called sadness but that did little to stop the salty beads falling down his cheek.

    To find answers he would need to ask questions, so he cleaned his face and returned to his home where he found his Uncle was sitting on the dining floor drinking some tea.

    Malum joined him, and began his interrogation.

    ¡°Revenge for what?¡±

    ¡°I can say little as to what actually occurred, again I was inside my ancestors study but the capital which we were inside of seemed to have disappeared.¡±

    Alright, to Malum that made little sense, but he sketched that up to cultivator nonsense. Some spell of sorts if he were to take a guess.

    ¡°Why can you not take revenge yourself?¡±

    His Uncle looked slightly guilty on this one.

    ¡°I¡¯m old, you know when I was younger I fought my best to become the successor of my household and then I had just began my assignment protecting your parents and it all went puff, like smoke. Everything I had done was gone, and worse, those Alliance bastards which I reported back to decided they cared little for my plight.

    I told you before that the Scientists of the Alliance are the reason we move and all that over just a small fraction of curiosity over our bodies that may hold remnants of the anomaly that occurred to the capital. Do not speak of this, to anyone, ever, for any reason in the slightest.

    They are stronger than you can even know. Which is why the tiniest of their whims are so dangerous. Continue with the questions.¡±

    Alright Malum pledged to hold these words to the grave. The next question he decided would be, ¡°Was revenge the only reason you raised me?¡±

    That question elicited his Uncle to look at him with a surprising amount of sadness.

    ¡°Of course not, hell I wasn¡¯t that bad was I? I would have, not only do I love children, but I hold more of a responsibility to your parents than you might think. Both saved my life, and I owe them for that more than this simple task.¡±

    Those words were like bandages to Malum''s mental wound. They made him feel far better although still could not get used to his Wise Uncles new emotional range. That actually made him want to question,

    ¡°Why are there two of you?¡±

    ¡°Ah, yeah.¡± The wise man looked outside for a moment as he steeled his will. ¡°I will not speak of this long so listen closely, we were taken into the Alliance after I reported what had happened to the capital. Torture, unbearable brutality just to see if I was lying. I had just lost my family and then I was subjected to that caused serious mental damage.

    As a cultivator I held far more durability than mortals, but the damage was by no means small. even now some horrendous memories are purposely lost between the two. Don¡¯t ask that to the Fool, he holds less of the mind techniques I do that allow me to speak of this. You were spared as I told them you were a lucky servant of mine.¡±

    That was, interesting to Malum. Anger against the Alliance had now sprouted in his mind and revenge for his Uncle was on his future agenda but for now he decided that was all.

    It was already growing dark when he was returning from his outing but now he could hardly see in the room. He said his goodbyes to his Uncle although he promised to continue the next day. He was happy to learn of his past, but the content was far less so.

    He had his entire life to think for what he wanted to do, all he knew now was that he wanted to be a cultivator, and that the Alliance were going to pay for their actions.

    The moon rose, white and bright over the dark sky.

 Chapter 2

    Rivers flowed, the sun rose and fell. 4 years had passed since the day Malum had learned of his history, of the world, and of the universal truth.

    He was now in a new village, this one a 4/10 because most of the villagers were insufferable. The hunting party was alright, and that was the only reason it wasn¡¯t contending for the bottom of his list.

    In particular there was a single man whome Malum had come to recognise and his first proper mentor.

    ¡°Johan are we hunting today?¡± said a taller Malum, knocking on the ragged door of his hunting mentor.

    Waiting, Malum looked at the flowers around his mentors hut. He could name most of them and could tell that two were poisonous. The rest were rather mundane, but it did make a nice pop-quiz for his waking mind.

    ¡°That yu Malum?¡± said a face poking through the door. It held messy brown hair, matched with the man¡¯s clearly well-tanned skin and the gleaming smile revealed the man¡¯s polished white teeth.

    ¡°Of course it is, or has age finally caught up to your eyesight.¡±

    ¡°My eyes have seen eagles from mountains away, it¡¯s just yu have an uncanny ability to look just like Angela¡¯s dog.¡±

    Imagining the sickly rat of his neighbour Malum laughed as he walked into the man¡¯s house. Part of the reason the two got on so well was that they constantly bickered with each other, like an old married couple.

    Regardless of the nonsense coming from both their mouths, they collected their equipment and got on the road toward the local forest.

    Picking up bread on the way, they finally decided to land on a topic that wouldn¡¯t erode both of their shared brain-cell.

    ¡°Talking about rabid cats, today my young protegee shall take on a family of panthers. I located them during the last weekly hunt but saved them just for yu.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, any tips or am I going in with just that?¡± Malum checked to see how many arrows he had, 14 would be enough for 2 grown panthers considering he hit them and didn¡¯t recycle any of his arrows.

    ¡°Where would the fun of that be? No, today you take them on blind with just your hope and my best prayers.¡±

    ¡°How kind of you...¡±

    Starting with the easiest part, Malum took a second and laid his bow on the ground. He got out a knife and pricked his thump on his knife. A drop fell on his bow and Malum said his prayer,

    ¡°Let my hunt be fruitful, let my arrows find my mark, let me wander you domain. Amen.¡±

    After that, Malum got pointed into the right direction and the two began to split up as Malum got locked in. Journeying through the forest required that he maintain constant awareness of his surroundings. Ambushes were rare, but vigilance didn¡¯t hut, and ignorance certainly did.

    That required all of his senses, but most importantly sound.

    The sound of his breathing dimmed as he began to feel his surroundings. The birds that never ceased to chirp, the swaying of the leaves, and the small breaths of a rabbit hidden behind the tree.

    Malum needed to know of these, and he had honed them with help of his teachers insight and his Uncles helpful hints.

    Ensuring he made as little sound as possible, Malum moved closer to his destination as he made sure he kept close to natural covers. Finding a muddy bog, Malum covered his face and clothes in a fresh layer as he had heard about the panthers incredible sense of smell.

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    It was still daylight and their black fur had yet to wield their natural advantage. They were nocturnal creatures that slept in trees, but Malum hated complete assumptions. For instance he was a diurnal creature but that did not mean he couldn¡¯t be awake at night and when his life was on the line he would never take that risk.

    Deeper and deeper Malum went, his eyes slowly darting to wherever sound was created. The smell of pine was about as much he was receiving from one of his senses but luckily his eyes caught something laid atop a tree.

    Black and surprisingly large, Malum quickly checked to see if there were any more in surroundings. If he could pick them off one by one then he certainly would take that offer.

    A family of panthers meant a female protecting and hunting for their young, and a male would sometimes continue to linger in the surroundings.

    Considering the size of the beasts Malum could safely guess that it was a male and such Malum decided to take it out here and now. He slowly tiptoed his way towards the panther, and only stopped when he was around one hundred steps away.

    The bow he held was a medium sized bow without the power needed for long distance shooting. He wanted to end it in a single shot through the eye into the brain, he just needed to prepare alternative plans in case his aim failed him.

    Checking the tree to his left, Malum felt the bark to see if it were safe to climb. It wasn¡¯t wet but it wasn¡¯t bone dry either, that gave Malum the confidence to climb onto a high branch. The panther was pretty high up, and he needed the right angle to better his odds of penetrating the brain.

    First he slung his arrows onto the large trunk, he then strapped his bow to his back and everything else unnecessary by the stump. He then hopped and caught the branch with both his hands. The sound created was no doubt fairly loud, but it was mostly the leaves at the end of the branch clashing against each other: a sound that wouldn¡¯t alert the predator.

    He then pulled himself up using his core and his flexibility before he re-attacked his quiver to his belt. Pulling out his bow, he now only had one last step to go.

    He took a breath, ensured nothing around him had changed, aimed...

    And shot.

    Overthinking it was stupid, and Malum quickly reloaded ignoring whether or not he hit the beast or not. Considering the yelp, he could assume he did.

    With another arrow in place, Malum pulled and began to see the beast still alive eyeing up his surroundings looking for his attacker.

    Malum took a breath, made a rough calculation as where the beast would move next and aimed his arrow to land there. He then released and began the cycle again.

    As he began to aim again he noticed the beast had fallen. He shot one more arrow, this time looking for any response but found the beast continuing to lay still.

    He shot one more arrow and checked around him to see if it was safe to secure his hunt. It seemed so. With that, he double checked before climbing down and checking out his score.

    Happy with his small achievement Malum checked the beast for size before looking at its other features for future reference. They held small heads, which noticed he had managed to secure an eye shot, and exceptional achievement which he was sure to brag about later.

    Next was it body which was sleek and held Malums 3 other arrows. Checking its organs really quickly, Malum saw it punctured some sort of liver or something, Malum was no expert on animal biology but if it made the creature die he would note down the location of it. The other two, Malums safety shots had pierced the beasts skins, clearly they weren¡¯t the killing blows.

    Happy with his achievement, he retrieved his arrows, placing back in his quiver before continuing his hunt.

    Next was the female whome should be around half the weight of the male.

    Malum found her pretty quickly, she and her young were in a larger tree and Malum could not help but brag that he was 2 for 5 out of real shots, hitting the eye today and that was it for his hunt.

    ¡°Good job my young protegee it seems I have taught you well.¡± Said his master appearing from behind one of the nearby trees.

    Ignoring his masters talent at hiding Malum continued unaffected. ¡°Sure, what you¡¯re looking at is talent. Certainly not the result of your lousy lessons.¡±

    Malum caught a jab for that one, but he thought it was well worth it. He was proud today, and his smile was going to endure more than just a small jab.

    ¡°Arrogance is the poison of the talented, but if that¡¯s for you drown for all I care. Now we move onto what you did wrong. Firstly, your second shot on that first panther was nigh all luck. Whilst I do believe you could have killed it before it got to you, I must remind you: head, heart, legs. You got me?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I didn¡¯t want to aim for those skinny legs, so I shot the chest and hoped for the best.¡±

    Happy to hear one of his sayings be used the old man got unusually happy, ¡°What wise words, except for the fact that the legs were a much better objective choice. Yur aim is never the issue Malum as much as I hate to admit it yu are one of the best shots I¡¯ve ever seen, and yu won¡¯t get better by limiting yurself. This is a lesson, so learn as much as you can.

    Right old boy, pack those two into bag and we¡¯ll head home. Tonight we shall eat some panther meat!¡±

    Malum could only laugh as he began to pack his prey. Today had been successful and now he needed his reward.

 Chapter 3

    An hour later, and Malum was sat around the old man¡¯s outside campfire eating meat as they forever bickered. They were comparing their best and worst hunting stories, and it was mostly the old man talking.

    ¡°8 feet that bear was, and that was when he was on all fours! I¡¯ve never seen anything like it, but with me, my old bow, and 6 shots, It was down for the count!¡±

    Malum had heard about these six shots far more than six times.

    ¡°2 in the eyes, and 4 for each leg, a miracle that I continue to spread each day. Come my prophet and inform the masses of my divinity!¡±

    With that the old man began attempting to stand, however the alcohol caused issues with the man¡¯s balance, so Malum was forced to catch him before he fell.

    ¡°C¡¯mon old man, can¡¯t have the mighty hunter falling to death can we.¡±

    The night began to rise to a peak as Malum dragged the old man to bed, he forever mumbled about his glorious past, but Malum knew the truth.

    Behind his small giggles and false bravado, was a man who had lost far more to beasts than Malum could fathom. His parents, his wife, and then his three youngest children. One by one, 6 incidents of separate beast ambushes had slowly left the man alone in this cold world. The demonic wastes had caused the surroundings to be much richer in prey and yet also predators.

    Although Malum called him worn down, or washed up, he also deeply respected his mentor and held his lessons in high regard. He was this villages chief hunter and for good reason. Those 6 shots were very impressive, and although Malum had done something similar in the morning that was when he was alone and under reduced pressure, not when the teammates were slowly being massacred under his watch.

    Looking at the sleep talking man, Malum wouldn¡¯t have guessed such a past from his appearance but then again the man did everything in his power to hide his past.

    Leaving the man alone, Malum headed home for his Uncle. Whilst he wouldn¡¯t mind him staying late with his mentor, he would mind if he didn¡¯t show up at all.

    The dead of night provided a soothing walk for Malum as the cold air gave his mind a small boost. He could take the time to reflect, but starring at the stars all he wanted to do was admire their beauty.

    Many of the Gods Churches claimed the stars to be different things, some said they were lives of every being in the realm. The brighter they were the stronger they were, and when they faded, well, their story came to an end.

    Others thought they were God¡¯s eyes, forever looking down on the mortal plain.

    Malum liked the idea that they were the eyes of the deceased because that would mean his parents could forever look down on him. He liked to think they would be happy with who he was, he had tried his best to make them proud.

    Catching himself before he got too emotional, Malum walked back home in silence. Only looking at the stars again through the small cracks in his walls as he laid in bed.

    Those very same cracks were the reason Malum woke up today. A blinding light seemed to miraculously find the very sliver to which directly pointed into his eyeballs.

    Now awake, Malum did his morning routine and prepared himself for a far more boring day. Unlike the hunt yesterday, today was just basic education.

    He had around 4 months left of lessons and Malum could not wait for them to end. He had to maintain an attendance of 70% or higher else he would automatically fail, how that was fair? Malum questioned that every day.

    Sighing as he walked out the door, Malum simply had no choice. Alice (the alchemist girl) had already graduated 2 years ago and that marked the end of Malum trying at all. Now he just sat there and thought about training all day, usually whilst he held a squat under the desk.

    Power was just so alluring, far more than a promise of an endless dawn to dusk lifestyle. Walking down the dirt road and Malums mind was searching for any excuse to not go. He didn¡¯t hold any bad injury; he was feeling fine, and all of his relatives were already dead.

    As a middle ground Malum decided to buy some bread on his way there. He was slightly hungry, and he needed to restock anyway. As he was always early, he had the time, so he walked towards the plume of smoke coming out a particular building.

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    The smell of fresh bread was truly otherworldly for Malums enhanced senses. He couldn¡¯t help but swallow his saliva as he walked inside the building. The bread shop was always open and during the day it was the main hub of chatter in the village, it was obviously replaced by the tavern at night.

    That meant loud chattering emanated from the place even as early as the crack of dawn. Malum checked his pockets and found 3 silvers and 5 bronzes. With that much he could buy around 3 and a half weeks of food, with the silver being worth a week and 5 bronzes being enough for half a week. The currency system was rock solid, with each copper being pegged to a load of bread.

    There was issues with this, especially during poor harvests but there were solutions to these temporary issues, so the kingdom used it anyway.

    Malum therefore placed a single copper on the countertop and asked for a single loaf of bread. Mrs Flora looked at him, and said, ¡°Its two copper for you.¡±

    Disbelief, disappointment, and some degree of astonishment was painted onto Malums face as he thought about how dumb this charade was. The laughter of the other bigots only caused Malums further anger as he pulled out another copper and placed it on the countertop.

    It was only the single copper; the fight simply wasn¡¯t worth it. He had dealt with this unfair pricing before and fought against it far more than once. All it tended to do was lead either to a fight, or to even higher prices.

    So he sucked it up, and consolidated the event as further proof of the saying might is right. They had the numbers; they had the backing of the Mayor. At the end of the day Malum was an outsider and such could be treated poorly because people simply knew him less, that meant distrust and people could exploit that.

    He took his bread from the smirking woman and sat just outside next to the shutter windows. He had the time, and since news only came from the Mayor then these town folks were the ones who would be discussing it.

    After some further remarks about Malums apparent strangeness, they then talked about some more interesting topics.

    ¡°U heard about John¡¯s ex-wife? Apparently she¡¯s caught a demonic disease.¡±

    ¡°A demonic disease, I heard they are the most painful thing a ¡®uman can experience. Lucky for us, they don¡¯t spread. Poor woman, she was a pretty one too.¡±

    Listening into a different conversation...

    ¡°Yu guys gunna sign up to that expeditiony thingy that the mayor put on the notice board. I ¡®eard it¡¯s on the ruins of a lost kingdom.¡±

    ¡°Nah, not my thing. I prefer me cutting wood, and drinkin alcohol.¡±

    A lost kingdom, Malum could not help but wonder if it was perhaps his parents Kingdom. However that is also made little sense as his Uncle had described that there was no trace of it left behind so how could there be ruins?

    ¡°You heard in Stromard Village they finally had that bandit hanging. Heard it was 16 on the gallows, what a sight.¡±

    ¡°Wish I got to see that. Filthy bastards deserve more, its why you rough em up in jail beforehand.¡±

    As that conversion continued into sadism, Malum waited another minute or two before he set off on his way to school. The bread had filled his stomach and now he was ready to learn.

    An hour later, and Malum was ready to die. How could learning be so boring? Malum could swear he was an innately curious person and yet somehow Mr Mahogany manged to make his favourite subject of mathematics boring.

    The issue was he would stray of topic on nonsensical rants about either his ex-wives, or about lost career as the Mayor. This village had two scholars, who had passed the Imperial Examination, and one of them was this clown whilst the other manged to secure the Mayor position. That left his teacher forever bitter, and he took it out on his students.

    Ignoring the teacher as he went on a tangent Malum starred at the ceiling as he could not help but dream of a time where he controlled his own destiny. Where he could be truly free from anybody and anything.

    His dreams came to a holt as he felt a small piece of wood ping off his head.

    Malums eyes darted round the classroom to see who bothered him.

    `Ah, it¡¯s him` thought Malum as his eyes came across a sniggering group of boys all around the same age as him. A group of three, headed by someone Malum was all too familiar with, Eric.

    3 years after they had parted the rodent had by some miracle ended up at the same village as Malum. That meant the second Malum had entered the village, his school life had been ruined by that bastards smear campaign.*

    Malum had forgiven him before, as he had done to everyone before but now Malum had pledged to get some form of revenge. A broken bone was too harsh, but Malum reckoned he could find some form of revenge by the time he would leave this village and he could hardly wait.

    The day continued ever more; the passing of time ever painfully slow in the miserable aura of Mr Mohagany.

    Malum, sat at his desk, with his head in palm of his hand, was trying his best not to fall asleep. The teacher was the one who decided when the day ended so Malum could only hope that the chatterbox was tired.

    Thankfully, just as Malums eyes were coming to a close he announced the end of the day.

    ¡°Thank the Gods.¡± Malum could not help but mutter as he picked up his bag and dashed out the door. Freedom had never tasted so sweet.

    Usually he would go and check if hunting was an option but today was Saturday so that meant the weekend hunt would leave his old man out with his buddies.

    With nothing else to do Malum decided to check out the notices he had heard about this morning. The town hall was home to the Mayor, and occasionally the kingdom would recruit willing people for odd jobs. It was also open to business¡¯ and Nobles; these would then be placed on the notice board with a description and information on the pay.

    The only thing they didn¡¯t put up notices for were conscriptions, but Malum always avoided those vias his Uncles endless supply of money or through just running.

    Walking there, Malum found the streets to be fairly empty. Usually he would see the occasional gardener or overhear some people chatting in their paper-thin-homes, but strangely all he could hear were the birds.

    Coming to the village centre, Malum saw several people clambering around a metal armoured man on horseback. Malum could not help but think the words conscription which soured his day immensely.

    It was just so much hassle. Malum quickly turned and ran home to find his Uncle, his afternoon and evening plans all but ruined.

 Chapter 4

    Returning home, Malum expected to find his Uncle starring at the sky but strangely he wasn¡¯t there. Malum walked further in and continued to find no evidence of his Uncle at all. Not in his bed, not at the dining area, not even in the kitchen. `Where was he?` Malum could not help but question.

    His Uncle never left the house, unless they were leaving he just didn¡¯t do it and yet, he had.

    `Why? Where?`

    As Malum slowly thought about where his Uncle could have gone without any notice his mind came to one of the notices he had heard about. ¡°Lost Kingdom¡± Malum said, in realisation.

    That was why he had left. But even then no note for him, seriously? He had raised him but not a single word of goodbye. What was Malum supposed to do now, join the army?

    `Oh shit!`

    Malum just connected the dots, if his Uncle wasn¡¯t here that meant joining the army was a very real possibility and considering the bigotry of the villagers Malum could hazard a guess that it was nigh guaranteed.

    He needed to hide, he packed his hunting gear as quick as he could and set off for the forest. Ensuring nobody spotted him on the way.

    Malum fucked up. Somebody did spot him entering the forest and now he had an entire search party looking for him.

    Inside a tree, huddled up and breathing low, Malum could hear the sound of shouting not to far away.

    He held hope, if he found his mentor then he could be saved but as they grew closer Malum knew his hopes were dwindling.

    Running further was suicide, beasts of real strength, known as monsters, inhabited areas away from civilisation and Malum would better his odds in the army then against one of those.

    Looking up at the dawning sun Malum wandered where he went wrong. How had life fallen just so quickly? From a peaceful life studying in a classroom to being hunted down in a forest to be sent off to the army.

    His Uncle was obviously the reason. Him running off without so much as a word of warning. How could he do that to him? Emotions of grief and anger slowly festered inside Malum''s heart.

    Tears began to block his eyesight. He heard the villagers closing in. He remained in a ball, his emotions like a storm until he heard somebody say,

    ¡°I found him!¡±

    The orange light of dusk had given him away, nightfall was so close and yet so far. Malum knew he probably could have escaped if he really tried. But emotions had clouded his judgement, in some way, he wanted to be caught.

    A childish revenge, something he sworn he would never do. If he died it would teach his Uncle a lesson, to never leave like that again. It was shortsighted, fantastically so, but even clear-minded-Malum would agree it would be effective.

    He obviously fought back against those trying to take him. His years of training managed to give him some extra time running through the forest and whilst he was being hunted down, whilst any wild beast could come out from any tree and kill him, for some reason Malum felt jubilation he had never felt before.

    The wind against his face had never felt so fresh, his heart had never beat so loud in triumph, he looked at the colourful sunset and for the first time he felt free.

    Through the swirling storm of hatred, sadness and confusion, came a blazing fire of happiness.

    Yet all fires must come to an end, and whilst this one burned the brightest it also lasted the shortest. It came from a net, used to hunt beasts. It looped around him and no matter how much Malum struggled, he couldn¡¯t find the knot to untie himself.

    He could see the villagers, that strange look in their eyes like they are looking at some miracle medicine. A mix of greed and happiness as they dragged him back towards the village.

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    The square now held all those except the hunters. The clambering of voices as they hugged their loved ones.

    They parted ways for the search party and Malum was dragged up towards a small, raised stage. On it was a tall but skinny man, a man with the authority of Mayor.

    ¡°Congratulations Felix, it seems assigning you as lead on this search party was the right choice after all. As a reward you shall hold the authority to pick whome this young man shall replace for the conscription quota.¡±

    His voice was clear, and better expressed than those of the villagers. He slurred no words and spoke with a certain level of Gravitas that made all those listening find his words to be law.

    Felix was a bulky man whome Malum recognised was the villages builder. Village politics¡¯ was something he usually ignored but he still knew some things from living here for a while.

    5 main families, Mayor, Builder, Baker, Butcher, and Hunter.  The first three were part of one faction whilst the others were part of another. This was the Mayors way of strengthening his own. The votes he did now he had semblance of fairness.

    `Being a pawn does feel fantastic. I¡¯m like a replacement lamb in the sacrificial ceremony.`

    The Builder obviously choose his son which left the Mayor with one more thing on the agenda. That required Malum to be dragged off towards the Town hall where he found a chair with straps on, and some lovely tools prepared for him.

    ¡°Now boy, you running off certainly made life harder so why not choose the easy option this time. Tell me where your Uncle is and this all won¡¯t be necessary. I am a fan of torture, but you must recognise the importance of saving a life, do you not?¡±

    ¡°Fuck you.¡± Malum said as he starred at the man¡¯s tools. Clippers, axes, shears, all made of iron.

    The world was unfair, the Kingdom laws cared not for Malum. He was about to be entered into its death pit, so Malum laughed at the idea of bringing his injustice in front of a minister.

    ¡°Now, don¡¯t be like that to me young man.¡± He kicked the youth in the shins as wandered where to start.

    As he picked up the axe the young boy had to ruin his fun.

    ¡°He left, the expedition you posted on the notice board. He went there.¡±

    ¡°Logical, and it fits what we have gathered. Well young man it seems you got abandoned just at the wrong time. I¡¯m really sorry to say, but I¡¯m still going to have to check to see if you¡¯re really telling the truth.¡±

    The smile on the stick figured demon did not show sympathy in the slightest.

    Pain, so much pain. Malum had felt pain from his schools cane before, but nothing could even compare. The smirky smile of his torturer only made it worse.

    The sick bastard enjoyed it.

    Malum had heard of no previous incidents similar to his, in fact, the mayor had a very good reputation in the village. His teacher had cursed the man for stealing his job but even he thought the Mayor a good man. `Wait, no,` Malum could think of one event he had heard about. The village had recently had a few dogs go missing.

    It was assumed that the occasional beasts had caught them but now another answer fit just as well.

    He had even learned of why he picked it up from the devils own lips.

    ¡°I used to be a spy you know. For some rich guy called Count Riveria. Those were the days, every night I would get to peels someone skin off or rip one of their nails off. Oh, it was just heaven.¡±

    How was this man human? Was he a demon in human skin. Malum swore the worst curses he could fathom onto the devil. Yet, none of his pleas were answered.

    Gods were beings that were known to exist, there powers held by the upper clergy of each church. Proof of the divine was in the Gifts they gave to humanity. Malum had seen none but heard of the ten thousand walls, cultivation proficiency, and Monster dens.

    Ten thousand walls in the largest inhabited cities, cultivation aptitude was apparently gifted by the divine although Malum had heard from his Uncle that it was laughably untrue and Monster dens where places where the stronger monsters whome could wipe cities were locked inside.

    They claimed several other things, like they had made the seas and skies, but worship of the Dao was too ingrained into culture for such lies to become truth.

    For all their majesty, all their apparent benevolence, they certainly did not come to help. Any speck of belief he held disappeared. He was even begging to like the God of Hunting, but it seemed today he was destined to be the prey. There was clearly no saviour for him.

    Time was his best ally, as it soon turned night and the Mayor had until then to send of his conscripts.

    He was washed of his blood, sweat and tears and dressed in decent garments. No lasting damage was done to his body, the bastard was indeed an expert. The only lasting damage was that to his mind, those scars would stay for as long as he lived.

    Now he wanted power, more than anything and oddly his head start came from the demon himself.

    ¡°You were such a fun one, truly your screams will forever be immortalised in my most favourite memories.¡± His face burned red, he looked orgasmic, much to Malum''s utter disgust.

    Coming out of dream of utter pleasure, Malum saw as the Mayor reached into his belt. His mind began to collapse even further.

    ¡°A knife, just for you. I am not blind; you seek revenge and I do love a good challenge. This village is far too boring for myself and so I give you this in hopes you come back, and slit my throat.¡±

    He was demented, Malum hardly fathomed how such a being blended in so well. He had seen him before in the market and elsewhere but never had he seen this side to him.

    It was impressive, although Malum still shuddered in fear. The man¡¯s constant smile now always giving him a fright.

    He tucked the knife in his own belt, trauma would have to wait. Malum''s mind carved a path of serenity as it thought of a way forward. In the army he would not die, he would thrive and then he would kill this demon, become a cultivator, and live forever.

    Getting dragged out of his cell, Malum chuckled to himself, `Okay maybe I¡¯ll just work on doing one step at a time.`

 Chapter 5

    Taking a breath Malum watched as the mist coming from his house slowly spread out into the cold nights sky. The marching of newly recruited men and the steady jog of the horse leading them was all to be heard.

    His emotions had been on a rather extreme roller-coaster today and so Malum was beyond exhausted. The Knight in front had informed them that the march would take a week with 2 intervals of collecting other people from villages and obviously the nightly rest.

    Malum expected some form of chatter to be constant throughout the journey but luckily for him it seemed the Knight in charge preferred silence. The men around him all were looking fairly depressed, somewhat like men walking up to the noose.

    Dead eyes, a stumbling bodies made their journey far harder than it had to be. Malum was supposed to be in this category, but his training had beaten into him proper form and so his marching was far more efficient than the others.

    It did help that he was also far more physically fit than most of the other men and it was all men. Woman were exempt from forced conscriptions and though a few signed up themselves, war was no desirable job so most accepted such a role with glee.

    Malum''s mind wandered further off into pointless topics. It was mostly to distract himself from the pain he felt from his mind and body.

    Solace came soon, as the Knight slowed to a halt as he looked at one particular tree. Malum looked closer, the cold wind burned his eyes as he saw a carving inside the tree. It looked like a word, Malum wiped his eyes and found it to say `Danger`. Malum expression turned against, but it changed once he saw the Knights happy reaction, the words he said next caused his heavy body to momentarily turn light.

    ¡°The closest cave is not 200 steps away, 5 of you will go and locate its exact location here is a torch.¡± Malum saw the skinniest quarter of his group get passed a torch, which they lit, and then wandered off into the forest.

    ¡°The rest of you shall collect firewood, any of you hunters?¡±

    The weekly hunt massively reduced the number of hands that went up, it only came down to two: Malum and someone Malum recognised from school.

    `His name was Trent?`

    ¡°A little low, no matter, we shall hunt in the morning before we set off. A good meal will allow us to move further. For the risk you take, you will get extra portions and you¡¯ll get extra army credits. They are the things which allow you to be sent home.¡±

    That was all Malum needed to hear. He rejoined the group of firewood collectors, who were mostly taking the time to talk to each other, and began to find some dry sticks.

    With his hands full, Malum walked towards the caves¡¯ entrance where a small bonfire was being made. Giving it to one of the recruits in charge of keeping it alight, Malum finally got the chance to sit down.

    His muscles ached, his brain was beyond tired, and sleep was knocking on the door. His eyelids slowly fell as his brain began to shut down. With his last thoughts he wandered how his mentor would take his forced conscription, that man had influence in the village and could have probably saved Malum. Alas, fate had already decided. His doom already inevitable.

    He awoke to a soft push against his shoulder, his senses snapped into protection mode as he hastily pulled his knife from his belt and held it towards his attacker. His eyes made contact with the target moments before the knife would have plunged into their throat, that would be if the knife was not kicked into the dirt.

    It was the Knight. The gleam of his metallic armour, and the sight of his worn face made Malum quickly straiten up. Luckily, he didn¡¯t look angry, Malum could only see mild curiosity on the man¡¯s worn eyes.

    ¡°Nice dagger, guess hunters should have a few tricks up their sleeves. Now hunter boy, you and your pall need to feed the group. Come back only when you have completed our hunt and don¡¯t take too long, got it?¡±

    Malum nodded, he then looked to the side where he saw the same solider from yesterday doing the same.

    They all said a prayer to the God of the Hunt before they split of into different directions.

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    As he began to make distance from the camp, Malum assessed his situation: he had no bow, his best weapon being the metallic dagger the psychopath had given to him. Traps were likely his best bet and so he began to collect the fundamentals of which he was sure the lush forest around him would have aplenty.

    Rocks (for the weight), strong plants (to tie together the frame), and some wood (`the frame`) were enough to make some basic cages that Malum hoped could capture some dumb prey.

    Sady he would need bait first and for that would need to spend some time either collecting berries, fish could work, or if he found any leftover meat from a corpse. Whatever Malum found first he would use.

    Dawn provided enough light for Malum to check the foliage where collected a few Bungil Berries and then laid out his first trap, he marked a tree near it with a large gash and then set up trap using a simple twig that would trap the animal inside once moved, it wasn¡¯t perfect, but Malum had heard of worse getting results, so he left it at that.

    He had made 4 in decent time, but the sun was begging to climb so Malum rushed to finish the rest. He ended with 3 being berry traps and one being a fish trap. Whilst he was waiting he decided to reuse the stream where he had found the fish to see if he could just collect more of that.

    Using a stick which he had tied his knife to the end off, he spiked the fish in the stream to collect a decent amount of food. Rethinking his plans, he should have just done this, but he was going for a balanced diet. His Uncle had said to much any one thing was poison, no matter what it was.

    With the sun growing high in the sky Malum called it a day and collected his bounty and stored it inside of traps. He had food for around 12 people for about a day, which should be enough for his quota considering there was 20 troops.

    Finding the camp was fairly easy as the smoke on the horizon gave it away. Here Malum placed down his hunt and spoke with the Knight in charge.

    ¡°Good timing recruit, I was expecting to wait a little more, but you seem to have found yourself a stream. A rabbit is a good catch, those traps also look fairly well made. You will make a good soldier one day; now go and wake your comrades I have all the water so I will call the other hunter and then we will have breakfast.¡±

    Malum didn¡¯t know how to reply so he just went about his task, he did however hear his Knight saying, ¡°Just say Sir yes Sir to about anything those above you say. Got it?¡±

    ¡°Sir, yes Sir.¡± Malum said as he walked off.

    The Knight prepared his lungs as he thought about the new recruit he had just spoken with. He worked well but his discipline was lacking.

    ¡°HUNTER¡¯S RETURN!¡± He shouted deep into the forest.

    He probably did the recruits job of waking up the soldiers as well, but he still needed him to gather them towards him for breakfast anyway so it¡¯s not like his task was pointless.

    He walked towards his horse as he checked the water supply laid on its back. Clean water was limit to all wars and nearly all travel, food also limited the distance one could wonder but that took weeks whilst water took days.

    He remembered his time when he was younger, a soldier who travelled from front to front. Ungodly luck was the reason he was still here, and he had also made friends with someone who climbed the rankings and that managed to secure him a cushy training job.

    Looking at the tired faces of his new recruits he wandered how many of them would live. That hunter before was fit and his skills as a hunter gave him a leg up on his competition. He shrugged to himself as thought about all the comrades he knew, skills were helpful and improved the odds, but at the end of the day they were odds.

    Life on the battlefront was a gamble and no number of skills could save you if the Dao fated you to die. He prayed for all their lives, as he did to all the ones he had taught before.

    Malum was tired.

    The trail seemed never-ending. Every corner he expected to see the end, and yet once they crested the hill they found just more forest.

    Talking was a rare oddity, those at the back only managing to whisper out of the earshot of the Knight. Hunting this morning had really taken it out of Malum, and the added weight of his traps were not helping.

    The views were impressive, but were sadly growing common. The endless green of the forests could only be appreciated for so long.

    Looking at the sun above, Malum reckoned nightfall would not take to long and so he wandered where they would be staying for the night.

    Everything ached and so he hoped to the great Dao that there would be a bed of straw waiting for him.

    The marching had done damage to his body, but his mind had healed from the trauma it experienced before. Blame on his Uncle had been locked away, and weakened by simple logic.

    The torture only fuelled his motivation to grow stronger, and with the army coming as an opportunity to fight the strong then in a way Malum could count himself lucky.

    He almost chuckled to himself, sometimes he was a hopeless optimists, but he found it pointless to be pessimistic. `Prepare for the worst, hope for the best` his Wise Uncle had spoken many times in his days as his head of household.

    Had enough with his own thinking, Malum tuned his eyes to listen to the whispers at the back. The village folk were his comrades and so gaining some favour would certainly never hurt. He already carried a few bags for some struggling folk, but it never hurt to try to gain more favour.

    They spoke of fear of the front-lines, horror stories by those that had returned. Beasts of colossal sizes killing tens of men before they fell. Bodies scattering the ground, and blood forming lakes. An outsider would think they were speaking of hell, and in a way, they were right.

    Malum hoped to catch these beasts, to fuel his growth to his first cultivation stage. Which considering his age should be coming in around the next year. He would need to prepare his body and mind for the occasion, and his Uncle spoke of a catalyst being needed for the transformation.

    He would prepare his best, for now he would just hunt, train, and do all he could to ensure his survival. At the end of the day, as long as he lived, revenge was still possible.

 Chapter 6

    The night came to and end and sadly no straw mattress was waiting for Malum as they arrived at another cave. The Knight spoke of picking up another group on the morrow, so Malum was asked to hunt for more prey in the morning.

    To prepare for this Malum set his traps earlier than usual, and let night guide the beasts into his traps.

    His sleep was poor, the cold ground not providing comfort in the slightest. At least his mind was healthy and so sweat dreams allowed for a much better rest.

    Morning came, and hunting was back on the agenda. The traps had time to work and so Malum started with 2 bodies to his basket. Malum pondered on finding a stream to just fish the rest, but he decided to use the dead bodies to catch some more valuable prey.

    When they came across their next village their pelts could sell for bread and perhaps some sleeping gear, both of which Malum desperately wanted.

    With that in mind, Malum reset his traps and began his hunt for either a stream or a beast he could ambush.

    Mud covered his scent, and Malum used it to hide behind trees and catch a deer off-guard. Holding his breath whilst ensuring his heart beat remained quiet was tough but the rewards spoke for themselves. Malum then returned to his traps where he found only one had managed to claim a prize.

    Overall, he had a full-grown deer, 2 rabbits, and a squirrel. That would be enough for a group of 10 to last the day and once they reached the village Malum reckoned he could use the skins to bargain for anything extra he would want.

    After a morning meal, Malum and the group went back to marching.

    The sun remained high in the sky as Malum, and the group crested a hill. Usually they took the flatter valley route to save on stamina but the small path they took changed this pattern here and after seeing the view Malum could guess why.

    It was hilly, everywhere there was rolling green hills and in the basin Malum could see the village where he assumed the next pick up was. The small wooden wall surrounding the village could be seen even from here, and Malum also spotted a medium sized river not far from the village: he noted that down for hunting later.

    By now he was familiar with most of the group and whilst some held continued dislike him for being an `outsider` that entire thought process was slowly falling apart. They weren¡¯t in the village anymore; they were in the army and in a place like that having strong friends was a good asset to have and so far two people had differentiated themselves as the strongest people of the group. Those obviously being the two hunters, Malum and Trent.

    Malum had kept an eye on him, and he seemed to be forming a faction of his own. The other faction appearing was based around a louder chap called Brick. He was a construction worker who had spent his days lugging around trees and bricks, and so he had the muscles and physique that even Malum couldn¡¯t compare to.

    He looked strong, but Malum knew behind that muscle wasn¡¯t any fighting techniques and so he would likely still win in combat. Not like that would be necessary as so far Malum had stayed in the good graces of both sides, he planned to make a small fraction of his own, but he wanted talented and loyal people for that, and time was needed to observe both qualities.

    Keeping his eyes observant, Malum and the group settled just outside of the village as the Knight went to pick up the other conscripts. At first, Malum wandered why they didn¡¯t just enter but at the thought of appearing like bandits it seemed wise to have the Knight be the only one to enter and it doubled as a much-needed break for the marching soldiers.

    For the first time since they set off, the Knight was no longer looming over their heads and so they began to speak freely. By now, most of the recruits were past their depression and had focused more on their hope.

    Sitting down, Malum reached to massage his aching legs. He had realised that his arms were not receiving the same attention as his legs so he had began to use his baskets as mock weights to ensure an even training regime. Some in the troop called him a monster, Malum liked to think he was just smart.

    Because it was monsters they would be soon facing.

    For now though, Malum took a breath. He stopped all his training and settled down to release his heart of the strain. Never before had been under such constant pressure and it beginning to weigh on Malums mind that a heart attack may be his downfall if he pressed on too hard.

    Some soldiers in the group had been preparing their lunch, and a fire was quickly made to cook the meat which Malum and Trent had caught beforehand.

    Eyeing the other hunters catch, Malum assumed Trent was some sort of sword fighter. Wolves, boars, and other aggressive beasts were all the man seemed to catch and lacerations down their pelts, Malum had covertly taken some of these `garbage` leftovers and with his haul he discreetly snuck away from the group.

    The Knight had said that they would be here until nightfall, after all they had to have the time to pick out their conscripts like Malums village had so with that in mind, Malum entered the village through a small hole in the wall.

    A fox or other beast had likely made it, and Malum had seen them countless times in nearly every village he had been inside off. They weren¡¯t to block humans, mostly, they were for roaming beasts.

    Looking at a few houses Malum was unsure if he had lived in the village before. At some point they all looked the same, shabby houses, with dirt roads and perhaps a few other buildings for specialities. Then they either farmed or hunted, that was about it for variation.

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    Malum walked around the city centre as he looked for some sort of butchers or hunting den. He followed the small of blood to one particular hut and knocked on the door.

    *Bang, bang!*

    ¡°Hello, I want to sell some pelts.¡±

    Malum listened through the door for any movement and was happy when he heard someone move closer to the door.

    The door swung open to a tough looking woman,

    ¡°What¡¯u want?¡±

    Malum indicated to the pelts in his trap turned basket.

    She smiled at the sight of new goods, and after a pleasant, ¡°Come in,¡± Malum entered the house.

    Inside the smell was far worse. Skins lay on small racks as they dried out and the bare dirt floor had a certain moisture Malum found extremely concerning. Laying his goods on a bench Malum took them out one for the woman to inspect and give a price for, whilst they did that she struck up a conversation.

    ¡°I ain¡¯t ever seen yu round here kid, yu new?¡±

    ¡°Just passing by.¡± Malum didn¡¯t really want to get sold out to the Knight. He doubt it was that much of a crime, but Malum always preferred the safer side.

    ¡°Well aren¡¯t u yung for a little traveller. Yu should be careful; monsters are getting more and more common nowadays. Just last week there was news of some Noble dyin on the road. Bastard probably deserved it, but at¡¯s not the point.¡±

    Malum just nodded to her warning. He had yet to find someone from a village who actually liked the nobility, as far as they were concerned they took their taxes and did little with it except party and feast.

    There was more to it, but that was the general sentiment,

    After the inspection was complete Malum collected 21 bronzes, a decent hall, very good for the amount he had given in. It was because of his exceptional slaughtering of the beasts that left the fur in very good quality after the death that allowed him such a good price.

    With his coin Malum asked for where he could buy the things he wanted, and he got pointed towards the local bakery and the Mayors hut.

    Back on the road, Malum eyed into the central area of the village to see his Knight still there speaking with the Mayor. It surprised him that the Knight had stayed so long, after all he didn¡¯t spend much time inside his own village but perhaps they were friends or something. For Malum that just meant increased odds that his disappearance wouldn¡¯t be noticed.

    Entering the Bakery, Malum ignored the odd looks of the people around him and bought himself 4 loafs of bread. Not wanting to place the heavenly food on his blood-stained basket he then spent another bronze on a sack.

    Leaving, Malum then walked into the Mayors hut, and decided to take a look at the notices whilst he was there.

    Hunting Mission: Monsters

    Pay: 10 Silvers per eligible person.

    Issuer: Marlinton House

    Extra details: see clerk.

    Exploration Mission: Kingdom Ruins

    Pay: 5 Silvers per eligible person

    Issuer: The Crown

    Extra details: see clerk.

    Bounty Mission, Bandits

    Pay: 1 Silver per Head

    Issuer: Merchant Union + Crown

    Extra details: see clerk.

    Only three was a surprise but Malum had never seen more than 5 up at once. These were the jobs that paid the most in the Kingdom and it was a way of sourcing high quality workers. It was expensive but it was also effective.

    The exploration mission put a frown on Malums face, but the Hunting mission found the Tanner Woman warning to have been justified. Such care was rare in the Kingdom and so that managed to put a smile on Malums face.

    Putting that aside Malum found the clerk half asleep at her desk and spoke softly to wake her up.

    ¡°Hello?¡±

    ¡°AH! Yeah, sorry. Yes Sir, how can I be of help to you today?¡±

    ¡°Actually I have a list: 1 sleeping bag, a pillow with that and a rucksack would be good. I have 16 coppers so just get the best I can afford.¡±

    ¡°Alright...¡± She said as she disappeared into the back.

    Malum took his seat as he began to chew on his newly bought bread. It was a familiar texture he had missed so much, the soft taste in his mouth brought more memories than he could comprehend.

    As he finished up on his bread, Malum noticed that the woman was no longer making any sounds. The door to the backroom was open and so he decided to take a peek inside.

    Shelves off goods were piled up and Malum could not help but want to permanently borrow some of the things he saw. Still, he could not hear the clerk, so he decided to just take the things he wanted.

    He was in a rush and it¡¯s not like he hadn¡¯t already paid for them. Finding the closest things available to the things he wanted, he added a little to the cost as he was doing the service himself so he figured he could add something extra for his self-service.

    With his goods secured inside he newly acquired rucksack, he finally heard someone coming from the lobby where he was waiting before. Curious, Malum snuck a look to see several armed people talking to the clerk.

    ¡°He was just here; I swear he must have left.¡±

    Letting the cogs tick, Malum decided it was time for him to leave the village. The woman was selling him out; to fill the quota of able age men they were going to have him take one of those places. Malum wanted to laugh that this was the second time the exact thing was happening to him.

    Was his luck just that bad, or were humans just that predictable.

    Finding a backdoor, Malum slowly moved his way out of the village, and he managed to do it undetected so as he made his way to the camp he called his little venture a success and patted himself on the back.

    Taking a breath, Malum found a small stream to drink from and took a few sips before he continued to look for the camp the soldiers had begun to set up in the morning. Looking for smoke on the horizon, Malum managed to find it and after reusing his toilet excuse he managed to enter unnoticed.

    His loot though would catch attention if seen so Malum was forced to hide them inside of his sack for now. When it was night he reckoned he could get away with his sleeping bag and that was the most important part.

    The soldiers were chattering away, using the spare time to do nothing except rest and banter. A few of the men had brought with them leather balls and were using them to play some games. Usually only kids used them, but on long trips even adults found their entertainment value was needed.

    Malum thanked himself on creating a loner esk image as it had allowed him to get away unnoticed and continued his day relaxing against a tree. The shade, the breeze, and the falling sunset made Malum serene as he enjoyed the moment.

    The future was full of worries, and Malum was sure he could spend this time endlessly calculating what would be best to do next. But, he thought it was more worth it to take his time.

    `Life is a Marathon, not a sprint` were wise words from his Uncle although even the thought of the man soured Malums good mood.

    The sun fell as it always did, the darkness slowly enveloping the land which once laid bare for Malum to see.

    The Knight came and went.

    Malum reckoned he would be back soon.

    Thinking to the day they were picked up; they would march for a little time before they rested again and then the cycle would repeat itself.

    On a more interesting thought, Malum noted how the new recruits may change the dynamic of the troop. So far, Malum had done well networking, but a strong opposition would ruin his efforts in a few well-chosen words. He had to adapt, make good friends, and stabilise his social position.

    His bread would act as a good gift for any he might give it too, and his hunting catch was always well received. The next agenda was a few close allies whome he could call friends, before that he would need to simply observe those new to the group.

    With the plan in mind, Malum rose from his seat and closed in on the campfire. He sat on a distant log, close enough to overhear anything from the major groups but not enough one could mistake his neutrality.

    Politics were a nightmare, but Malum would need to navigate it the best he could if he wanted his best odds at surviving the hell he was about to enter.

 Chapter 7

    The Knight returned, and with it another 15 people. With the 20 that were from Malums previous village and that made 35 new sacrifices to the blood machine that was war.

    A few stood out immediately, notably another 3 hunters. It would be in the morning to see who could catch the most out of all of them.

    Interestingly there were 4 woman out of the 14 that came. The conscription was sexist, but volunteering wasn¡¯t, that meant the 4 had chosen to be in their position or at least at face value  they had.

    It didn¡¯t really matter in Malum''s head. Life was unfair, he had tasted that poison, so he cared little if others had too as well.

    Continuing on as normal Malum kept an eye on the new group whilst also doing his best during the morning hunts.

    Nobody had really caught his eye yet, but maybe they hadn¡¯t been given the opportunity to show their talents.

    This time they came through a thick bog before they found the last village in their journey. Malum thought of selling his goods again, but decided against as he didn¡¯t really need anything. Instead he decided to use the time to create himself a bow.

    Well, he could buy one, but he thought the skills of creating one would be a valuable lesson, so he stuck to it.

    First he needed a good piece of wood, that wasn¡¯t too hard as the village was situated in a woody area. These fallen sticks however could not be bent in the right direction, so Malum had to think of how to get a stronger piece.

    He thought of what he knew about wood. It came from trees and didn¡¯t taste great. It could be eaten although should be boiled first and it also was flammable. Though it was more flammable when dry.

    None of that was useful for the task at hand, so he decided to do some fieldwork tests.

    Perhaps he needed a darker wood, or perhaps he needed one from a larger tree.

    After some tests, Malum found a piece with the highest results from his tests. It was a darker wood, and the piece was somewhat wet from the rain. Malum didn¡¯t know what kind of wood it was exactly; he knew they had different names but that was for agricultural scholars to know not some soldier sent to die.

    Anyway, Malum bent in into shape and used some self-made rope to create the string.

    Next on the agenda were arrows, Malum didn¡¯t need iron tips, and made do with some simple wooden ones carved by himself. At least he no one to blame except himself when they snapped on impact.

    With his gear in hand, Malum decided to hunt some extra pray. It would add to his social goals so with the sun high in the sky he set off.

    The squealing of a rabbit allowed for Malum to return his next arrow back to his belt. He had forgotten to create a container for them but his belt, whilst uncomfortable, did work as an alternative.

    He packed his prey into his rucksack and started to head back. Whilst hunting he had realised that he could bring the rucksack to light, as questions wouldn¡¯t asked as long as they were eating well.

    The sun began to glow a warm orange as Malum returned to camp with his prey. His extra efforts were praised by all who fed on his food and the rucksack was simply seen as good karma for his good deeds.

    He could now say with certainty that he was universally liked, or at least accepted as part of the troop. Some other hunters found his efforts threatening, but they still enjoyed the feast Malum had prepared.

    The Knight ate as well, even thanking Malum for his extra effort. Every piece of favour he could get was good, so Malum sat down that evening a happy man.

    He had also eaten more than his fill and a full belly was a need for a hardworking individual. Some marching would need to be done, Malum looked to the side to see the Knight climbing onto his horse, but that was easy and so he decided to rest his eyes a little. Small nap for the journey ahead.

    He worked, he rose, and he marched.

    The new group had another 24 people join the soon-to-be-afterlife. None were woman this time, it seemed 4 was an outlier. Malum thought it was likely the Mayor, there prejudice tended to trickle down as he had seen so many times in the different villages he had lived in.

    A sad amount of 4 were hunters, although that was still double the amount Malum had offered up. Feeding the group was not an issue, the thing Malum was interested to see was how the four merged into the troops social dynamic.

    He would need to keep an eye on the big players, and follow his plans to the letter.

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    The Knight had said it was 2 days before they reached the boot-camp.

    Personally, Malum could not wait.

    The forest parted a few miles ago. Malum had seen endless green slowly turn into dead woodland. Brown bark was half of all the things Malum could see, the leaves had fallen to the floor and created a carpet of death for him to step on.

    The crackle of the trodden leaves filled his ears, the 60 people (including the Knight) made their way towards a large wooden gate.

    Above the heads of those in front of him, Malum could see guards on sentry huts. A glimmer of metal coming from the arrows on their backs.

    The Knight shouted to those behind the gate,

    ¡°New recruits!¡±

    And with it, the large doors began to slowly open. Apart from a few wooden blurry buildings, Malum could not see inside so instead he focused on listening into the Knights conversation with the guards who opened the door.

    ¡°Michael, oh how I have missed you.¡± Said one of the guards towards the Knight, Malum noted his name as they began to hug. After, the guard turned to inspect the newbies.

    ¡°So these are the new recruits are they? They look a bit green; how many can hunt?¡±

    ¡°9 of 59, so a 1 of 6.¡±

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s shit. Well we can only hope that some gems can be found in the rough, if not, I wish them the best of luck.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s all we can do.¡±

    The two parted from the depressing conversation and the Knight began to lead them deeper into the encampment.

    As it was getting dark, and even the Knight was looking tired. The huts were the first location Malum was showed to, here Malum was assigned a dormitory with 7 others with 4 bunkbeds at each corner of the room.

    Being the child he was, he obviously choose the top bunk. Height was a territorial advantage, that was basic strategy.

    The others in room included 1 of the woman of the group, and Malums villages other hunter Trent, the rest had no notable information that Malum had gathered.

    Everyone was far to tired to talk, instead they all opted to get into their pants and climb into their beds. The march was finally over, and yet they had only entered another training nightmare.

    Waking up early to the sound of the waking rats, Malum stashed his pillow and extra comforting sheet back into his sack. He then climbed down and found 8 new sets of clothes just in front of the door.

    They were each identical, being a blue coloured cloth top, some more firm fabric black trousers as well as a distinctly brown cap. It didn¡¯t look great, but they were just food for demons so...

    Depressing realisation aside, Malum put on his new uniform and then quietly exited his room. Sneaking around wasn¡¯t quite the phrase he would use, he was more so scouting out his future training areas.

    Looking around, the camp seemed to be fairly large, and Malum guessed it could train around 2-3 hundred recruits at any one time. It held several obstacle courses which all looked hellish, and there were also several other buildings Malum did not know the use off.

    There seemed to be a central area, one centered around a flagpole showing the Kingdom of Britania¡¯s beautiful 4 colours.* Malum had not been to any other Kingdoms, but his Uncle had warned Malum against unfounded hatred to other Kingdoms and people.

    He had said the Kingdom was insular, it hated outsiders and such outsider hated them as well. That gave a good cover against the Alliance as little information flowed in and out and it was the reason his Uncle had chosen that particular kingdom.

    Demi-humans were something universally hated in all parts of the Kingdom, but his Uncle had said they weren¡¯t that bad, just humans but with different stereotypes. Malum would see for himself to judge, but he was at least willing to keep an opened mind and it didn¡¯t hurt that some of the things he had heard were absolutely absurd.

    Side thought aside, Malum had little to do except wait so he decided to return to his room and try and catch as much sleep as possible. Sadly, just as he was about to fall asleep again, the door came swinging open.

    ¡°RISE AND SHINE RECRUITS! MEET BY THE CENTRAL FLAG AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, IF YOU ARE LOST, FOLLOW SOMEBODY WHO¡¯S NOT!¡±

    Malum was extremely tempted to swear. Just his luck.

    Getting out of bed as quickly as he could, he put on his uniform as he began to stumble outside. People from other dorms followed him as he looked like he knew where he was going so by the time he arrived it didn¡¯t take long before everyone had lined up in neat rows beside the pole.

    A few were sneaking a few words to each other, wandering what was gong to happen next but that was quickly answered when the deafening shouting returned.

    ¡°WELCOME, GOOD MORNING RECRUITS!¡±

    A strange silence overhung the recruits. Before a brave few eked out a,

    ¡°Good morning Sir.¡±

    The shouting man whispered something to his colleague next to him, before returning in a normal voice.

    ¡°Alright boys and girls, today I will you turn you all into men and woman. From villager to solider. To achieve this change is a simple process called initiation. We will begin immediately, and for it I will only give a single order.

    Come at me with the intent to kill, if you do so then you will go home just as quickly as you arrived.¡±

    The mention of home turned the downtrodden depressed zombies around Malum into frenzied cannibals as they began scrambling towards the Troop Leader.

    Malum thought slightly more than some of his companions as he wandered what the trick was. There had to be more to it than to it then an easy way home. The Troop Leader did look built, but no normal human would last against nearly 60 desperate villagers.

    Yet as they climbed the small hill the Troop Leader spoke from, Malum thoughts turned from confusion to horror.

    Speed so quick Malum could hardly see, power so strong his comrades were sent rolling down the hill, and technique so graceful Malum thought he was dancing.

    The Troop Leader, a well-worn man into his sixties with a gruffy beard that looked similar to his Uncle¡¯s. Malum thoughts went to cultivation but that equally made little sense.

    In his martial studies he learned of the rarity of cultivation practices and how it was monopolised by those in seats of power so some small Troop Leader wouldn¡¯t be able to practice it. Especially not in such a backwater kingdom.

    How did it make sense then?

    As faces were bruised and bodies were beaten, slowly the crowd turned scared. People no longer were rushing in looking for blood, instead they circled the man like hawks.

    Minutes passed as the man continued to pummel the new recruits into the ground. Turning what was once a pleasant hill into a muddy dormitory.

    There were one way people learned that they could escape from this process and that was simple. You had to be unconscious. Running was stopped by other army personal which left people even more desperate to attack their final hope.

    Malum gave it a shot. He even used his knife, but alas the Troop Leader only caught himself a small cut on his hand.

    A clean punch to the stomach and Malum began to feel dizzy. Only now did the reasoning behind the initiation come to mind. It was a show of force. To show the new recruits that they were the authority here, and so they should suck it up or fall to their hands.

    That was all Malum managed to think before darkness called him away.

 Chapter 8

    Morning came from a loud noise in Malum''s ear.

    ¡°Rise and shine man and woman, your first hell is done and dusted.¡±

    The ragged face of the old man showed worrying levels of joy at the mention of hell. To everyone else who recognised that it implied that there would be more hell¡¯s, their faces looked much the opposite.

    ¡°As you can see we are the 145<sup>th</sup> Troop and we are currently inside training camp 9. Everyone here has passed the exact same hell¡¯s as you have, even the cleaners. That means everyone here is above you in rank and in authority. Do note that usually we would hold an execution for those who ran away during the test. I¡¯ll give that a moment to sink in.¡±

    Those that had tried to run away, those that had been pushed back by instructors looked at the Troop Leader with mixed emotions.

    ¡°You can believe me or not; you will hear about it when you meet other groups. Our Commander is nicknamed the Merciful Demon, and you will soon learn the reasons behind that nickname. Do learn though, cowards will die!

    You run away one more time and that will be it. Mercy is not naivety and the line of nooses outside have been used more than once.¡± The Troop Leader gave everyone in the room a glare. One of warning, not of anger.

    He meant his words, Malum didn¡¯t even need to verify them. Those eyes weren¡¯t lying. He just knew.

    The ragged face of the man shifted from glare to grin,

    ¡°Now enough with the gloomy messages, let¡¯s give you all a rundown of the camp.

    First, I am you Troop Leader. That is my effective term, the formal one being Seargent Smith as that is rank and name. There are three of such rank on-site and they can be seen via the two stars seen sowed onto our shirts.

    General rule, the more stars they have the more respectful you should be. Although you won¡¯t see much of the higher starred, the highest here is the three starred Lieutenant. Although you won¡¯t ever see him.

    Your effective terms will start at, Squad Members, then Squad Leaders, then Troop Leaders. There are 5 people in a squad with one being the leader. For a troop there are 12 squads.

    Second, training starts at sunrise and at ends at sundown. Everything else is free time, you can sleep, eat at the canteen, or have an orgy for all I care. You must be here at sunrise, and you will be dismissed at sundown, those are it.

    Oh, and don¡¯t actually have an orgy. The cleaner complained when some group actually did it, be sensible, not stupid.

    Third, you will be joined by another group every month so the encampment will slowly become more crowded. There was some personal changes due to the war so you are alone for now but that is only temporary.

    Fourth, all general rules are inside the credit hall where you hunters will find you already have some you could cash in. Note they can be used for going home, so use them well.¡±

    That created quite a ruckus in the group,

    ¡°ENOUGH,

    Fifth, do not speak when I am speaking. We observe strict hierarchies that are not to be broken under any circumstances, if you¡¯re commanding officer tells you to jump, you do it. You don¡¯t ask questions, you simply... jump. If the case is bad enough, or the insubordination is repeating, it can lead to execution. You have been warned!

    Right, I¡¯m sure there¡¯s more I¡¯m supposed to tell you more, but I forgot and this gloomy shit is not my speciality so instead let¡¯s move to a more interesting part.

    Troop turn right and follow me. March if you can, I¡¯m sure we¡¯re supposed to teach it.¡±

    They did try, Malum gave them that. Sadly when one of the people in the front tripped it caused a domino effect that ended with most of the troop laying on the floor in pain.

    They had a lot to learn, but it had to start somewhere and inside this hall was where Malum guessed it would all begin.

    It was a simple wooden building, with it opening up to a large open area with a simple wooden flooring. On the walls held every weapon Malum had ever seen, and best yet, they were metallic.

    The shine of iron made Malum¡¯s eyes fill with greed as he thought about the strength he could wield with such weapons. Short swords, Polearms, Axes, there was even several types of bows.

    Malum wanted them all. But, that wasn¡¯t even close to reasonable.

    ¡°Take a good look recruits, this our armoury filled with our armies standard issue weapons. Made of iron these bad boys will slice through flesh like butter, but...

    You will have to earn your weapon. However, you do get to pick what weapon you shall master during your training. Do know that you can only change in the first ten days but after that the orders for the real ones will be sent of to HQ so no changes from after that date.

    Stand beside the weapon you want to train in and shortly a scribe will come and note down your choice. They will also take down other pieces of information, so get comfortable, this will take a while.¡±

    Malum was almost giddy with excitement. Well it was a shame he wouldn¡¯t get to have an iron weapon now, but the fact he would get one at the end raised his odds of survival massively. Add that on to the extra training he could do he reckoned his hopes were looking good.

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    Unlike everyone else in the room, Malum had practiced with every weapon on display so he also knew which ones he would be any good at. For instance, whilst his physique suggested spears to be a good option he was simply not good at using them.

    He didn¡¯t use the distance effectively, and the movement of the spear was unnaturally hard for Malum to pick up. It just didn¡¯t suit his brain, even though his body did.

    That ruled some of them out, and Malum also ruled out those he was just okay at as well. That left 3 of them to choose from.

    A simple sword, nothing special just the most basic weapon mankind had created. That didn¡¯t mean it was bad though, and Malum was not against this choice in the slightest.

    The next option was a simple bow. Malum was already good at archery, so this was the weapon his most proficient at and it also came with the benefit of not being the frontlines. A good choice that Malum was leaning towards.

    The final option was small shield and short sword. It was the bets combo for a rookie fighter, his Uncle had said so many times. It had defence, and it had offence, but Malum didn¡¯t like the idea of being that the close to demon, so Malum scratched it off his list.

    The choice was obvious, so Malum walked towards the bow and sat down as he began to study its details. Wooden bows were all slightly different, and Malum had nothing else better to do so he decided to study the one in front of him.

    It looked good, but Malum could tell it was pretty worn down. Not from use but from the lack of it. The wood looked pristine but a slight odder of rot gave away the fact that it was just a show weapon and not a real one.

    Done with that, Malum looked around to see what everyone else had chosen. Unsurprisingly, the most popular option was the shield and sword option, then it was the just the sword, then the spear. Nobody else had chosen the bow, which did surprise Malum. He thought more would choose it for the survivability, but it was hard to learn so perhaps they had that in mind.

    The scholar soon arrived, and he looked faintly like Malums old Mayor: tall and thin. Malum could still feel the dagger in his belt, its cold blade providing both a sense of security but also a memory of pain.

    He moved first to the small groups, the Polearms, Daggers and then to Malum''s Bow section.

    ¡°Name.¡±

    ¡°Malum.¡±

    ¡°Do you know how to shoot?¡±

    ¡°Yes.

    ¡°You were a hunter, yes?¡±

    He nodded.

    ¡°Right then Malum, you are eligible to pick the bow, but I must warn you many demons find arrows to be just annoying and such some target archers. They do have intelligence, especially in combat. With this in mind do you still pick the bow?¡±

    That was not good news, and Malum''s reaction fully expressed that. Not only were demons more intelligent than what he knew, they also would attack more and such he could actually be the first to die.

    He spoke before he thought it through,

    ¡°Can I have more time?¡±

    The scribe looked around,

    ¡°Yes, I can fill you out last if you would like.¡±

    ¡°Thankyou.¡± Malum nodded to the polite man as he walked towards the large sword section.

    With new knowledge Malum could make better made decisions and right now he was leaning towards just picking up the sword and shield.

    His mind went towards his Uncle advise for weapons during cultivation. On that day, the heavens were angry and such the weather reflected it. Heavy rain and strong winds nearly fell their shabby housing at the time. Inside this house, both men and boy sat down as they chatted.

    ¡°The first tier is simply mortal. Here is where most living being are, although there are still strength differences. Not everyone in the same tier has the same strength, take a grandma for example, and compare her to a fully grown adult male.

    I have taught you most weapons and this is to cover your basis. The greater the foundation, the larger the building can be, and cultivation is exactly that. Building on your strengths and removing your weakness¡¯.

    There are infinite paths to the Dao, but only one can be travelled by you. Your goal is revenge, keep that in mind in which path you choose to take.¡±

    Revenge, what weapon would best allow him to tread that path. The Bow was ambitious, but Malum doubted he could survive war with it. The sword was an interesting choice, and Malum found it right that he take out his enemies with them knowing he was responsible.

    The sword and shield was the clearly then the best choice, it held both survivability and it fit his revenge ideas. With nothing else but lingering doubts, Malum stood and walked over to the sword and shield area which was noticed by much of the group.

    It didn¡¯t really matter to them, although was still sure he would be asked why he moved by many in the following days.

    Here there was actually people to talk to and the scribe seemed to care less about them chatting as long as he could converse with the person he talked to so many were chattering about their choice and others as well.

    In his group, Malum asked for the names of all 3: Alicia, Jake, and Gerald. They were smart enough to recognise this weapons potential so Malum would keep an eye of them for his faction formation and perhaps some friendships to keep him company.

    He recognised Gerald from his dormitory, his built was rather distinctive. He was massive, and since he was in his physical peak, Malum estimated that if they were to fight he would probably lose from just sheer strength.

    They talked, and Malum found out that he came from the third village they came across and he was picked because his parents had committed a minor crime a few years ago. He claimed they were innocent, and that the Mayor had framed them for the crime.

    At the end of the day, it didn¡¯t actually matter. He was here, and such he focus on surviving first. Malum''s advise was harsh, but it was true, and it removed some of the anxiety on the large man¡¯s brutish face.

    By the time that conversation had run dry, the scribe had managed to finish up on the Sword and Spear groups and was coming towards them.

    ¡°I see you picked this ey?¡± He looked towards Malum with a smile, to which Malum returned his own one explaining,

    ¡°Yeah, I figured defence plus offence and its not to hard to pick up the basics so its kinda the obvious choice out of all these.¡±

    ¡°You speak like a practical man. Mots martial artists focus on flashy moves, my advice, keep it simple and refine the basics to mastery. I read it in a book somewhere and that stuck so take an experienced man¡¯s advice.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll keep it in mind.¡±

    The scholarly man seemed to enjoy his advice being appreciated and after some mundane questions about his age and origin they moved towards his parents or his guardian location. Malum asked why they needed to know that to which he learned it was for death compensation.

    All could think of was the last house he lived in, so he named of the village and his Uncle¡¯s name and appearance.

    ¡°Do you know how to ride a horse?¡±

    ¡°Yep, I learned it from my Uncle.¡±

    With that the questions were over, he moved onto to Alicia and Malum returned to chatting. It was only when the Scribe had done the entire room that the Troop Leader returned. In his hands were what Malum assumed was the list of weapons his troop had chosen.

    ¡°Decent, shame there¡¯s no ranged personal but they don¡¯t tend to last anyway. Now Recruits we shall be measuring how good each of your fitness levels are. Get ready for your second hell, actually you just chatted for an hour. No break, get up and follow me.¡±

    Everyone just starred at him.

    ¡°Was he joking?¡± Malum whispered.

    ¡°I SAID FOLLOW ME NOW!¡±

    `No, he wasn¡¯t joking.` Malum thought as he quickly got up and shuffled back into some messy formation. This time he and Gerald placed themselves next to each other, at least they now had someone whome they could suffer with.

 Chapter 9

    ¡°Kill...

    Me...

    Now...¡±

    Malum barely said as the Troop Leader finally blew a whistle marking the end of the endurance test. For the first time since the tests had started, Malum actually managed to come first.

    The strength test he came 4<sup>th</sup> and for the speed test he came 3<sup>rd</sup> which together put him at the highest rank among the new recruits.

    He was happy with his score; he just wished his lungs would stop burning.

    Sadly, he couldn¡¯t lay down instead he had to maintain good posture for the ranking ceremony. It was exactly as it sounded, with the Troop Leader giving out a badge with the Recruit rank etched on the back. It was used as an identity token and the Troop Leader had explained how it was used when trading in Army Credits.

    Thankfully the night had come to save Malum from any more training, so they allowed to wonder the base.

    He was with his new buddy; Gerald had not done bad himself landing 2<sup>nd</sup> in the strength test decent in the endurance but slightly lacking in the speed. It placed him on the higher end of 12<sup>th</sup> of the Troop.

    ¡°You monster, how could you run for so long?¡± asked Gerald as he inspected the legs of the monster in front of him.

    ¡°You ran for 4 and a half hours straight, and you can still, move.¡±

    Gerald was limping, as was most of the troop. Some had even landed proper injuries straining their bodies, and yet Malum was walking as if he was going on a normal stroll.

    ¡°Okay, it was bad. But it wasn¡¯t THAT bad.¡±

    Gerald just looked at him like the monster he was.

    ¡°Sure... You did get first place though, that should be a lot of credits right? I wonder what other things you can trade them in for.¡±

    It was exactly that question that led Malum and Gerald towards the Exchange centre. It was a decently sized building that looked similar to the Town Hall of Malums old village.

    There was man at a desk, with several boards around the reception area. A few seats were dotted around, in case it was busy, but those didn¡¯t interest the duo as they instead eyed up those boards.

    ¡°Woah look, you can even get servants. The amount I would trade for a maid, actually even just a message would do.¡±

    Gerald dreamed of his sore body getting healed by the heavenly hands of a masseuse. He had gotten one a few times before from his villages doctor and every time it healed his aching muscles.

    ¡°Hello? Gerald?¡± Malum then clapped two times in front of the man before he snapped back to it.

    ¡°Yeah, what?¡±

    ¡°Look, it¡¯s there.¡± Malum pointed at one board in particular, this one didn¡¯t hold many options, but each was more expensive then the last, but it was only the one the two actually cared about.

    Relieved from Duty ¨C Cost ¨C 10000 Credits

    ¡°Ten thousand eh? We need to check how much we have; you were also a hunter right?¡±

    Malum nodded to his friend.

    ¡°You should have way more than me then, should give us a good scale as to how much work it would take.¡±

    They both walked to the worker at the desk, and they handed in their badges to see how much points they had.

    It didn¡¯t take long, after all the workers had been asked by this group the entire evening of how much credits they each had,

    ¡°Gerald Boxer you have 25 credits and Malum you have, oh, 250 credits. You must have done well in those first few days. To explain both of those, you got 10 points for coming in the bottom 10 of your Troop, 25 for anything up to top 10 and then it ascended all the way up to 100 for first place. The other 150 is from the hunting help Malum completed on the way here.¡±

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    Having seen what they could trade in for that amount both were rather underwhelmed by there respective scores. For reference Malum could trade in his amount for roughly 2 and half silvers or two and half weeks¡¯ worth of food. It was alright but both were expecting more.

    The goal of escape was still far out of reach.

    As they both walked out of the building in silence, it was Malum who spoke up.

    ¡°Could have gone worse. I mean at least we made some progress.¡±

    A small smile crept onto Gerald face, ¡°Yeah, guess your right. Of course you¡¯ve made ten times mine but for a monster that makes sense.¡±

    Malum actually smiled from that, ¡°Well this monster looks on the bright side of life and so I¡¯ll take that monster comment as a compliment. Now, being sad doesn¡¯t look good on either of us so let¡¯s head back and at least dream we have a good number of points.¡±

    ¡°Sure.¡±

    Gerald and Malum walked back to their dormitory continuing to speak of their fantasies. Gerald wanted to become the greatest fighter the Kingdom had ever seen, with audiences chanting his name whenever he fought in a ring.

    Malum spoke of unlimited strength, becoming strong enough to fight those that had hurt him. Crushing them under his grasp untill there was nothing left but dust.

    Both were rather brutish men, but they bonded over their love of strength. They fell asleep that night far to tired to even approach a dream. Strength was something both did not have yet, but tomorrow they would take their first step into becoming truly powerful.

    ¡°Martial Arts, now recruits what do you know about it?¡±

    The instructors voice could be heard clearly inside the lecture house of the encampment. He was on a stage, before several rows of chairs which the recruits were sat on.

    A few put their hands up, their answers were listened to, but they didn¡¯t hold an answer satisfactory to the Troop Leader. Malum wasn¡¯t going to say his answer, as he knew he such information was kept quiet for several reasons.

    ¡°Body Arts, that¡¯s a more basic explanation. It refers to moving the body in certain way to create desired outcomes. Take a simple stab.¡±

    On the stage the instructor took out a knife and simply stabbed it forward.

    ¡°All I do is create movement in my arm and thrust it forward. Martial arts are just more complex versions of exactly that. Creating the greatest attacks with the least amount of effort, that is the greatest rule of our Kingdoms martial arts.

    Each of you have a book under your small desk, take it out and begin reading it. You will not understand half of what is written but practice will enlighten you of their profound meaning.¡±

    Malum did exactly that, and as he was reading he thought about his Uncles ideas on martial arts. Actually, he called them just Arts, but Malum thought little of that detail.

    ¡°They are ways of making humans better unleash their latent potential. After a few levels you can create energy but at the beginning you are just better at unleashing what you already have.¡±

    He did continue for around half an hour, but Malum had zoned out at the time due to being terribly tired. He was awake now and went back into the Martial art in front of him.

    It spoke of several movements and stances with the sword and shield, each separately were fairly easy to understand but it spoke about combining each move with transitions that could allow fast changes from attack to defence, or from attack to another attack.

    That was a major simplification, but that was about as much as Malum could read into these transitions. They were hard to imagine, Malums mind simply refusing to think up the image of a continually attacking form.

    It seemed he would have to ingrain those movements before he could begin to match them together, like those jigsaws Malum had seen before.

    Done with his reading, Malum looked up to see how everyone else was doing. Most held confused faces with the occasional realisation of what a single line might look like.

    Another thing Malum noticed was that some books were different sizes to one another. Looking further Malum spotted the pattern that the people who sat in the same groups, as in same weapon groups, also had the same type of book.

    It seemed each martial art was specialised to focus on a single weapon type. Malum wandered if they were any different, they had to be made by different people after all. Perhaps a cultivator with a long-lasting lifespan had dedicated some time to pass their wisdom to the younger folk.

    It was an interesting thought, but not much could be done to verify his thoughts.

    Breaking out of his focus, was the booming voice of the Troop Leader who busted through the doors without an ounce of sympathy.

    ¡°You done yet Troop? Well, either way we are moving on. Now from paper to practice we shall separate into your weapons groups where some instructors will teach 5 of you at a time.

    That means find 4 of your closest pals and buddy up for some group suffering, I meant learning, you get the point, now MOVE!¡±

    He didn¡¯t need to shout twice; everyone jumped from their seats and began to head for the door. Malum was beginning to dislike the new troop leader as he seemed to enjoy the suffering of him and his troop.

    His opinion, sadly, meant absolutely nothing so he sucked up hatred to let it stir and moved towards the open mud squares where the troop leader was leading them.

    Once there, groups were quickly made with factions becoming clearer for Malum to see. The inner circles were being formed here although Malum had yet to see any real difference in how they would affect his soldier experience. Any more analysis Malum wanted to do was cut when the loud voice of the Troop Commander returned again to Malums eardrums.

    His own group had shaped up to be himself, Gerald, Alicia, and Jake they all had the same weapon so was fairly intuitive however the final person was some loner called Jerome. They needed another person, and Jerome needed a team.

    Malum had seen him before as he had come from his own village. If he could remember from class he was some quiet kid who sat at the back. Didn¡¯t speak much, and Malum gathered from rumours that his parents had left him in the village to fend for himself. A sad story, but Malum wanted to survive, not live like a saint so he would need to pull his own weight.

    ¡°Right that seems about done. You have another 10 seconds to pick a squad leader...¡±

    A scramble ensued as groups without clear leaders had to decided extremely quickly. Malums group looked at each other and mainly thanks to Malum¡¯s achievement as first overall soldier he got voted to be squad leader.

    Malum could only nod at his group as he vowed to do his best.

 Chapter 10

    Alicia looked at her new Squad Leader, she was someone who she had noticed as they had been marching towards the camp.

    He was hunter, one of the better ones and not only that but she had seen him do well against the instructor during the first Hell.

    She kept close to Jake, her boyfriend, as they both agreed that he would be the best choice. They both knew that she wouldn¡¯t be allowed to be leader and Jake was to lazy to do it properly so for them it was an easy choice.

    She looked closer into his eyes. He seemed focused, in fact, every time she looked at him he seemed to be thinking. He was never idle, always doing and for a leader being motivated was a good start.

    Her mother had always praised motivated people, they tended to do well in life.

    She refocused back onto the instructor.

    Gerald was fiddling with his ear. Some wax had been bothering him lately so he was trying to fish it out.

    The vote for leader was an easy choice for him as Malum was the only person who he reckoned he couldn¡¯t beat. Might was right, that was his fathers way of living and it was the correct way of living.

    Therefore Malum was the leader. Simple, easy, done.

    He continued to try and remove his earwax, but he soon gave up and instead looked towards the true Leader of the encampment and the man he respected most,  the Troop Leader.

    Jerome was thanking his lucky stars that a group had accepted him. He was worried he was going to last picked again and would then have to go through the embarrassing situation of being randomly assigned a team.

    This group luckily had pulled him in as they needed one more and so Jerome continued to pray to the God of Luck.

    Even luckier was the group seemed strong. Malum and Gerald especially seemed like one of the stronger people in the group. He had seen Malum fight in the first hell as he had been knocked out so early he had woken up to see the end of it.

    He fought smart, not hard. Something Jerome found to be extremely cool.

    He voted Malum as he everyone else was doing so first. He didn¡¯t want to single himself out to create any conflict. For now, he would just stay out of their way and train as much as he could.

    He wanted to survive, to prove to his brothers that he wasn¡¯t expendable and they had made the wrong choice sending him away.

    ¡°3, 2, 1 and done.

    Now the instructors are the lovely people you see standing by that small hill over there. I¡¯ll give you a hint, the nice ones are the ones are the right the first squad leader to tag them gets them their instructor...¡±

    ¡°...¡±

    A few smart people quickly dashed towards the right hill as Malum was hastily trying to get himself a lead.

    He knew once a race started maintaining a lead was far easier than catching up on lost distance, so he tried his best to break out from the group as one of the people at the front.

    Being both one of the fastest, and one of the ones to pick up on the lacking `start` he managed to secure himself second with just one person ahead of him.

    Oddly being strong helped as many were playing dirty, but Malum wasn¡¯t one to fall by a small push and so many who tried to knock him over at the start ended up on the floor themselves.

    The distance remaining was quickly falling and as the faces of those teacher came into Malum¡¯s view he saw the goal he seeked.

    First was quick, and was taking the `nicest person` but Malum reckoned second was his unless he tripped or something.

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    The small hill provided a small obstacle as Malum trudged his way up ignoring the mud he was flinging below himself.

    At the feat of the man Malum did a small dive to tag him on his ankles when he naturally looked up to the man who would soon be teaching him.

    A scar ridden face, a clean-shaven face, and an angry expression as he stared at Malum''s muddy hands that had ruined his spotless boots.

    `That¡¯s not a man whose kind.` Malum looked more to the left and saw several `nicer` looking people.

    `It¡¯s in reverse order isn¡¯t it.`

    With the fakest smile on his mouth, Malum went back into the dirt as he began to scream.

    ¡°Fu************************************¡±

    For once in his life, he wished he was slower.

    He was right, and the next 8 hours of Malum''s life was spent repenting for his mistake. His squad didn¡¯t blame him for picking the rightmost available person, but some bitterness still managed to seep through.

    ¡°C¡¯mon ladies, my grandma could do more push-ups than you!¡± His jokes were terrible, offensively untrue, and yet all of his squad let out a small laugh.

    They had to because if they didn¡¯t the training would get even more severe.

    Malum didn¡¯t know so many sadists were present in the realm, either that or for some reason he was now attracting all of them towards himself.

    To be fair, the hellish training was far better on him than some of his squad. Gerald was hardly breathing, and Alicia, Jake and Jerome were all face down on the floor unconscious.

    Malum had heard from his Uncle that training was best done in small amounts over a long period of time, sadly in this situation they were lacking the time part, so they decided to push up the other part of the equation.

    His heart was beating through his chest, every muscle in his body felt like they were rebelling against him and yet he managed to do another push-up.

    1 more.

    He needed to be stronger.

    1 more.

    For his revenge.

    1 more.

    For his strange Uncle.

    1 more.

    And for his family.

    As much as Malum pushed on his arms, as much as he tried to get his body away from the mud below him, his body finally caved in.

    The mud wasn¡¯t even cold, so he just relaxed for a moment, before

    ¡°Well looks like Mr stamina here is finally done. Well only two of you are conscious so you better carry your friends here to the canteen before you hit the sack. For your first day,¡±

    Malum could swear he was hearing things, perhaps it was the exhaustion, it almost sounded like he was going to get complimented.

    ¡°I have seen worse.¡±

    What kind of tough love was that. It was like his Uncle all over again, Malum didn¡¯t even care enough he was tired of thinking, in fact, he was tired of all doing. Still food was needed so he grabbed his friends and got them up with the sweet news of finish.

    ¡°Were done?¡±

    Jerome said to which Malum looked at the loner with a smile on his face. Today Malum had seen that the skinny boy had put in his all and so he could ask for nothing more as a squad leader.

    ¡°Yeah, were done.¡±

    ¡°Ah, thank the Dao.¡±

    Malum helped him up as he found his other squad members to be slowly reviving from the dead. As far as age was concerned, Malum was actually the youngest in the group being barely 16. Gerald was little into his 17<sup>th</sup> year, and Jerome was only a few weeks of his birthday. Alicia and Jake were a little older being 19 and 20 respectively and Malum also learned that they were dating and been for years.

    Malum  would slowly learn more about his squad mates through his training course, what was on his mind now was just 2, four letter words: food and rest.

    Luckily, they didn¡¯t seem to skimp of the meals. Oats and fruits were what they had for breakfast, and lunch had been had a generous 3 eggs with bread on the side. Malum could hardly say he had eaten so well ever since his baby years.

    On the menu tonight was some potatoes with a few vegetables on the side. A heart meal, although the taste was rather bland. Malum was no noble, he ate he good food with a smile on his face. He needed the energy that this food would provide and to heal his sore body.

    Roll call was done to ensure no soldier had run away, they had begun from breakfast this morning and although it was a menial task the dark thoughts of why such a task was done was rather depressing.

    To cheer himself up he thought of a quote from his Uncle. Malum searched the wide selection he could choose from and picked out a good one, `the best medicine is a healthy diet` with a belly full of food Malum was sure no illness was going to be his killer. His Uncles endless wisdom was truly a marvel although considering his age it was sort of to be expected.

    168, and he was completely physically able when Malum had last seen him. That gave Malum a guess that he would live until his two hundreds, cultivation was truly an enchanting mistress, and it gave Malum a small smile all the way until he climbed into bed where his dreams picked up where he left off.

    ¡°So thoughts?¡± said a voice, it was clear and well spoken. There was only one man on camp other than Malum who spoke such clear tongue, the Troop Leader.

    The other instructors sat around him at different chairs at the table, each with differing expressions. A man whome Malum would recognise as one of the kinder instructors spoke first,

    ¡°My lot are pretty decent, not strong but they work hard.¡± Next to speak was one of the stricter ones, just before Malum''s.

    ¡°I deal with the opposite issue, there good but some have pretty much given up.¡± The commander spoke next,

    ¡°Well that is what you will be trying to fix in the next month, I trust all of you to do your best after all word from command is that the fronts are only growing worse.¡±

    Starting with the word front put faces of despair on each of the instructors faces, even the Troop commander looked solemn as he spoke. Sadly despair wasn¡¯t what they needed, so the Troop commander said with pride,

    ¡°As citizens of the Kingdom it is our duty to protect our homeland, to protect our families at home we shall do the best we can. Is that clear?!¡±

    ¡°Sir yes Sir!¡± Spoke the group in far better synchronisation than the recruits.

 Chapter 11

    As the meeting adjourned Malums instructor walked towards the Troop Leader,

    ¡°Sir I wanted to speak to you about my group.¡± Surprise entered the Leaders face, before anger arose,

    ¡°Those recruits haven¡¯t been giving you issues have they, punishments are never too harsh instructor.¡±

    ¡°No, no, not that sort of issue.¡± Surprise re-entered the Leaders face, ¡°Instead I think my recruits have real potential, Southern potential.¡±

    The Leader faced turned grim over the words Southern, it meant the Southern front and of the 2 cardinal directions in which they were attacked: it by far the worst one. Stronger demons, even more casualties, if the Eastern front were hell then then the southern was the Abyss.

    ¡°Southern worthy, high praise from you Paul. Depending on the coming test results I will see what I can do. I¡¯ll see you at the tournaments, good day instructor.¡±

    ¡°Good day Troop Leader.¡±

    Walking out the door the Troop Leader muttered to himself, ¡°Southern front ey, that brings me back. Only time will tell if they are worthy.¡±

    He stopped tapping his fingers and focused down on his documents. The work wouldn¡¯t complete itself, although sometimes it did make his old soul miss the adrenaline it had once felt.

    The training continued, with instructor Not Funny continuing his hellish lessons day after day. Sometimes they would get a few hours of Martial study, but the rest was all training, training, and even more training.

    Malum was slowly becoming a stamina machine, now lasting any exercise all the way up untill the sun went down and with this growth in stamina allowed Malum to further grow and develop his muscles. That and a growth spurt had made Malum into quite the physical beast.

    Standing at 6ft¡¯4 his physique could be described as a built however he was certainly not too big. Muscles too big, restricted movement and those were simply hindrances.

    His silver eyes, black hair and built figure made him attractive enough to be a Noble¡¯s bedwarmer. Malum was sure those parasites would pay gold for his servitude but sadly death in the war was going to his fate.

    Thinking about it, Malum wandered which path he would rather. Perhaps being a solider wasn¡¯t so bad after all, he could still have been a serf or even a slave if some foreign army captured him.

    In an oddly good mood Malum started his day with a smile. He was up early, as he always was, and he used this time to begin some stretches.

    Soon, his companions awoke and joined him in this `strange ritual`. That was what they called it when they first noticed his odd movements. It didn¡¯t take much convincing to make them join him, and soon every member joined Malum in his morning routine.

    ¡°Morning squad, today we have another assessment.¡± Such news brought frowns to everyone¡¯s faces.

    Their first assessment was when they arrived, and when they also got their rankings.

    ¡°I have heard that all 3 attributes will be tested again, but this time they will include another subcategory of `Martial Strength`. I assume this will have our groups be separated and then faced against each other in a tournament-based layout. That¡¯s a guess but considering the facilities unless the instructors decide to rank us I have no idea how else they would do it.¡±

    This predication came with nodding from the group, Jerome shared his thoughts,

    ¡°That seems reasonable. If so, please go easy on me Leader.¡± He sounded less meek than before, Malum had seen how training had put some confidence in the boys voice.

    ¡°C¡¯mon Jerome only in public do you need to address me as Leader, stupid titles mean nothing. I am called Malum, and such would like to be addressed as what my parents named me.¡±

    Malum would have gone easier on the sleepy head if his mistake was not so common. Malum didn¡¯t want to become arrogant, pride was a deadly sin for a reason.

    ¡°Jerome only looks up to you Malum,¡± Alicia said, ¡°still Jerome it shouldn¡¯t be every time. Now, I think we should spend the rest of our morning on practicing martial arts against each other. If our group comes first overall I heard we would get a bonus.¡±

    The entire group woke up slightly from the mention of that bonus. It was something the Troop Leader had let slip during one of their morning roll calls, he didn¡¯t say what it was, but hope was scarce inside the camp and that bonus was about as close to hope as they were going to get.

    They voted on what they wanted to, with Malums vote counting as 3 because, well, he could. It didn¡¯t really matter here because the only good option was training, the other was Jake¡¯s lazy option of extra sleep but who needed that when strength could be gained.

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    They arrived and trained, Malum acting as the groups mentor as he had already learned most of the basics and now just passed them on. Basic stances with regular attacks were simple things but they were necessities to mastering a weapon.

    His Uncle described them as the basic colours of paint: red, yellow, and blue. By themself and  they were nothing to special but mix them together and you could create any portrait.

    Actually now that Malum thought of it, the martial art he learned built a lot on that concept as well.

    Thinking deeper he continued to cross reference the analogy to see how the martial art would play out. There were 12 stances and 6 basic attacks/defences with the sword and shield inside the book.

    These were his basic colours, say he matched forward attack, with slash and you had a fairly basic attack but if you came from top defensive, hold, and then moved your blade into a slash you had a combined defence and an attack at the same time.

    It was simple, laughably so, but it was choosing the right colours at the right time and applying them to perfection that created the perfect painting. Malum was still no master, but now he was on the right path. All it took now was effort and time, and he had both, at least before his debut on the battlefield.

    For the martial tournament, not so much.

    Jake couldn¡¯t help but feel impressed by Malums training knowledge. His basics in sword and shield techniques seemed beyond the level of intuition to the point he felt like he had already done some sort of training before.

    Nobody had asked because there life before, this, was seen as a touchy subject especially with so many having sensitive stories behind them. Himself and Alicia included.

    He looked at his girlfriend, her determination as she swing the sword. She looked strong, determined... She looked hot.

    She seemed to notice his gaze and gave him a stink eye to get training. She was always so sensible, sometimes he wandered if he was really the older one.

    She meant well, she always did. He got his sword back into position and continued to practice. That endless laziness he felt attracted him towards rest but he knew now wasn¡¯t the time.

    Those tests were coming up and so he put in something he rarely ever did, extra effort.

    ¡°The martial test will be two tournaments 1 will be an individual tournament and the other you will be split into your groups. No killing and no going for the eyes either. You all know the basic rules, now the instructors will monitor each fight and they will call you when its your turn. Good? Great.¡±

    Climbing down the podium and Malum had to admit his troop leader truly was lazy. He imagined the top brass to be all mean looking with a serious stern tone constantly, but the Troop Leader spoke like he was half awake most of the time and Malum had a sneaking suspicion he was also chronically drunk. Not like that made him any less terrifying, if anything it made him more of a monster.

    Apart from that, Malum was happy over his successful prediction. With the information already provided it wasn¡¯t that hard, but still, it had given him an advantage in practice over the overs and that wasn¡¯t to be understated.

    Now he just needed to perform.

    The group shuffled their way over to the training squares which were essentially just square patches of dirt surrounded by grassy walkways. An instructor stood in the centre of each and was occasionally shouting two names.

    ¡°Joseph and Troy!¡±

    ¡°John and John!¡±

    ¡°Malum and Sera!¡±

    The John situation put a smile on Malums mouth but hearing his name upped the pressure in his brain enough to completely evaporate the humour.

    He wanted rank 1, so winning was his only real option.

    Hearing it was a girl gave him good odds. His Uncle had warned him of stereotyping in the upper bands of strength but for mortals the difference in strength was stark.

    Still, outliers always existed and just because they weren¡¯t strong didn¡¯t mean they weren¡¯t powerful. Speed factored in as well, as did several other factors the Dao had used the balance the sexes.

    They stood opposite in the dirt as the instructor asked them to shake hands.

    They did and Malum used it to see how strong his opponent was. She was stronger than expected but still weaker than himself. She held a simple sword so Malum began to predict what kind of style she would likely fight with.

    Speed based combat using her small but agile frame would bring out her strengths, with that in mind Malum thought of counterplay. Except the kind of stopped there, he didn¡¯t know what all speed-based people usually attacked like, Jake was his closest frame of reference, so he thought of his opponent as Jake and continued on.

    At the end of the day this was Malums first fight and so he began to overthink things.

    It started whilst he was still strategizing which immediately costed him the initiative. She used it well to land a few goods hits against a blocking shield, but the pressure of attack still wore down Malums shoulder.

    Looking for counterplay and Malum over extended over his shield so his head was poking out o much, this opened himself up to an attack which the woman took and landed a solid blow against Malums hastily placed defensive sword.

    Wanting to take a step back to think, Malum did so but found himself giving up too much space as he realised how close he was to the edge of the square.

    He did gain a second to think, but it was spent thinking about how to take back the space he had just lost.

    Closing in, she attacked simply but effectively, using her full strength to attack for his chest. Unluckily for her, it was a move Malum was familiar with as Gerald enjoyed full on attacks and such Malum was used to guarding against them.

    He parried the blade with finesse and used his shield to nock the weapon from her hand. In battle he would have gone for the head, but it wasn¡¯t, so he didn¡¯t.

    She looked to her blade and clearly thought of retrieving it.

    Malum didn¡¯t need to say anything, he just moved his blade towards the woman¡¯s neck.

    ¡°Okay, okay I get it. I lost¡±

    The instructor wrote down the result and moved onto the next battle, before Malum rejoined his group he turned to Sera.

    ¡°You fought well. Don¡¯t go for all out attacks like that without knowing it will cause you to win, it leaves you far to open when if it doesn¡¯t go through.¡±

    She seemed to appreciate his advice as she thanked him and moved back towards her group. Malum saw who they were and noticed Trent, who was his villages other hunter, and gave him a nod.

    If he remembered correctly he ended around 5<sup>th</sup> overall in the previous tests, he was a contender here for sure and Malum was not looking forward to fighting him in the slightest.

    Thinking about it, pain wise that was true, but Malum found that fight extremely enlightening. Pressure had ruined the lessons he knew previously; it was like he had never learned them. He needed more experiences and tougher opponents would give him exactly that.

    Perhaps he did want strong opponents then.

 Chapter 12

    Malum regrouped with his squad as they talked about their second fight. Malums second fight was sadly extremely easy as he got one of the giver-uppers who had decided death was inevitable.

    ¡°I get why there doing it, but still I would at least put up a fight. Give it a try knowing that I had done the best I could.¡± Malum explained his feelings to the group, some bonding never hurt.

    Alicia said her opinion, ¡°Yeah, I think there no point in wallowing in self-pity. I want to die of old age, with cute grand-kids and children I can be proud off. Not rotting on some battlefield.¡±

    Jake blushed at the mention of children to which the group could only smirk about. Except Gerald, he loved poking fun at Jake for any reason at all.

    ¡°Look at you so cute.¡± He said sounding like he was talking to a baby.

    There ages would make you think that Jake was bigger than Gerald, but that nothing close to the truth. Although Jake was 2 years older, Gerald was almost a foot bigger. That was part because he was massive, and Jake was just a little below average.

    For the trade off, he was faster and Malum would add that he was smarter as well. Though his laziness hid both of those attributes as much as it could.

    Breaking them up, Malum spoke next of weakness¡¯ in their coming opponents. With only a quarter left, there group had already done well but Malum wanted to come first to fifth and for it he needed his group to win them all.

    ¡°Eric, he has a terrible habit of only using his right hand. He cannot use his left, so if you attack his right hand he is essentially weapon less.

    Fredrick is simply weak, use it to your advantage and just beat him to a pulp.

    Bear is strong, the strongest in our troop but he is also pretty dim and has lacking speed so dodge and poke. Repeat until he gives up.¡±

    Malum gave his advice that he had been collecting since he had joined the camp. He didn¡¯t spy on people; he just kept his eye peeled for any weakness¡¯ he could spot.

    By now only reasonably strong people remained so the final fights were between people Malum had spent extra attention on when he was looking, and he hoped his efforts would provide rewards.

    As far as other squads went, Malum''s was one of two to still have all 5 remaining. The other squad was headed by some hunter from the second village, his name was Vigor and he placed third overall. Second was a guy named Sun who was the last on his team remaining.

    These were his main competition and Malum looked at them with glee in his eyes. The second opponent had proved his theory right, experience was rapidly improving his technique and these people would provide the best possible teachings.

    He hoped he was placed against one of them, actually as long as it wasn¡¯t someone just mediocre he¡¯d be fine.

    Blocking a far to heavy axe strike downwards Malum hoped his shield wouldn¡¯t shatter from the impact.

    ...

    With a smile, Malum felt as the opponent tried to pull their axe back but to no success as Malum turned to strike with his sword he stopped moments before he hit the man¡¯s body.

    ¡°I surrender.¡±  He said, to which Malum then provided his advice.

    ¡°Honestly, just practice your chop. If you had the strength and technique my block just wouldn¡¯t have worked, and I would have been cleaved in half.¡±

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    The gruff man nodded as he retrieved his axe from Malum''s shield. His opponent was just above his expectations and Malum was feeling his arms ache from the beating his shield had taken. Thankfully his opponents had a terrible habit of being to inpatient and going for finishing blows.

    Considering Malum''s stamina, perhaps they were right in choosing so but Malum still would have given them better odds of winning after 3 hours of beating his arms to shreds but for his sake he didn¡¯t mention that in the advice.

    As rank 1 he got universal respect mostly from them witnessing his absolute madness during the endurance test.

    Even thinking about that upcoming test made Malum depressed so he shoved that idea in a box for later and instead moved around the training area.

    He spotted one of his squad mates and decided to watch from the sidelines.

    It was Jerome, and his opponent was...

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s not good.¡±

    It was Trent.

    Pushing ahead in the small crowd gathered around the square and Malum began to spectate his squad members fight.

    Jerome fought like Malum, with thought behind each of his actions and changing to match the situation.

    Trent fought head on, attacking whenever possible even when taking minor damage to achieve it. He clearly wasn¡¯t afraid of picking up a few wounds on the way as long as he won.

    Their expressions could tell a lot about who was winning. Trent looked like a hungry hyena, ravenous and eager his eyes full of vitality and energy.

    Jerome eyes darted around, observing every aspect of his opponent and yet even when he did so his wounds kept racking up. This caused his actions to speed up, to look for more.

    He was facing the problem Malum was, overthinking.

    The rules behind the tournament said that spectators couldn¡¯t interfere in the match whatsoever, so Malum decided to have a completely unrelated talk to somebody next to him.

    ¡°Yo dude, you¡¯re in Trent¡¯s group right?¡± He spoke loudly, enough for Jerome to hear him.

    ¡°Yeah.¡± The goon was surprised Malum was even talking to him.

    ¡°Trent¡¯s fight well ey, you think he is going to win?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Shame really, if only my guy stopped overthinking I reckon he would stand a chance.¡±

    He got an odd look from the goon, probably thinking about how odd the conversation was. Starting a fight wasn¡¯t an option so all he could do was nod continually and it¡¯s not like Malum had disrespected his Leader yet.

    Malum looked back to the battlefield where he saw Jerome sneaking a glance at him before refocusing back on the battle. The effects were clear, with Jerome gradually fighting at his fullest potential.

    Both fighters were worn down by now, almost an hour had passed and Malum was beginning to think that the instructors would call it a draw.

    Jerome however used Trent¡¯s fatigued form against him and began to build up a fierce attack. Close shaves against his head, and chest made the audience refocus back in the battle as Trent put up a desperate defence.

    Although desperate, Malum found no weakness¡¯ that could be exploited for victory inside of it so he expected Jerome to not find one either however it seemed today that he would be destined for surprise as a good bash with the shield shook up the stale movement leading to a great opportunity for an all-in attack which Jerome did not miss.

    As Trent staggered from the shield back he raised his sword in a protective manner closer to his chest, Jerome then closed in with his sword and shield. Trent went for a wide attack to the right of his incoming defender, using his strong arm against his opponents weak arm.

    Wood met wood, and tension flew into both parties already tired bodies. Jerome was good, but his stamina began to hinder him as Malum noticed his next response was slower than it should have been.

    An attack from Jerome¡¯s free right hand towards Trent¡¯s open body, an attack which was perfect if the opponent didn¡¯t know how to respond. Because it was slower, or perhaps because Trent had planned it all along, he managed to prepare his sword enough where he could send it towards the incoming blade.

    Jerome did not have the time to block it and his sight was blocked by the shield anyway.

    With his wooden sword outside of the field, Jerome spent the next minute charging down his opponent, but a good swing managed to ruin Malums hopes of a complete top 5.

    As great as that would have been, Malum was still proud of Jerome¡¯s efforts and for one of the lowest ranked recruits at the start of the month he could say nothing ill against the man who had clearly put in his all.

    Jerome and Trent¡¯s fight had held up the tournament as the instructors didn¡¯t want a finalist on one end whilst the other bracket was still in its quarter finals, so they decided to run it from tier to tier with both sides having the quarter finalists fight at the same time then the finalists.

    3 rounds had been completed with 59 recruits so that left 8 people yet to be eliminated. Malum''s group reconvened after all emerging from Jerome fight, it had been so tense that they had no recognised each other in the audience.

    It turned out that Alicia had also lost her match against Bear which was fair as it was just a bad match up. Malum reckoned if Alicia and Jake, then Jake and Jerome all swapped he reckoned they all would have won. Some fighting styles just had poor match ups and alas Malum could do nothing against fate so he could only accept it.

    There were now 5 others which Malum, and the rest of the group could fight against and that was enough to begin to strategize against the opponent. The instructors had disappeared for an assumed lunch, so they had time to think.

 Chapter 13

    Alicia looked angry more than sad at her loss.

    Jerome looked disappointed, he even looked around for signs of others disappointment in him.

    Malum had already got both of their personalities and so he said some words to get them back on track. Being a Leader came with some responsibilities, Malum just hoped the words came out right.

    ¡°Alicia, look at me. Bear was strong and you stood no realistic chance. You did all you could, stay angry and focus it on training. You got it?¡±

    She looked at Malum, she looked deep into his eyes. Once she saw they were sincere she said, ¡°Fine, but I¡¯m beating him up next time.¡±

    Good it had worked, Malum thought.

    In response he said, ¡°Of course you will.¡±

    Next up was Jerome, ¡°Jerome.¡±

    He looked down, expecting harsh words. Looking at the shaking fist of the boy, Malum patted his shoulder.

    ¡°I¡¯m proud of you, your opponent was strong and you did your best. Hold your head up high, Trent is no easy opponent and you basically removed him from the tournament with how much you have worn him down.

    Now look at me and say I did well.¡±

    Jerome looked astonished, he looked happy, he shouted with confidence he didn¡¯t know he had

    ¡°I did well!¡±

    Malum laughed, ¡°Good, but maybe not so loud next time.¡± Jerome realised he shouted and crawled back into his shell. Soon Malum would get rid of his shell, Jerome was a good man he just needed to show it more.

    ¡°Right¡± With his team sorted out he moved onto, ¡°now onto our next opponents.¡±

    In order of strength Malum began to describe them,

    ¡°First is Bear, strong as his name his weapon is essentially decoration as he uses his family made techniques to wrestle his opponents to the floor. With wooden weapons we have the disadvantage but a good whack to the head would knock him out so give it your best.

    Second is Trent, again a strong opponent but his strengths have been subdued massively by Jerome efforts. He is now tired and so use that, chip away at his naturally passive style of fighting and winning should be easy.

    Third is Gloria, she is one mean woman and none of you better look down on her strength. This month has seen her train diligently and her beating Eric is proof of that, he was a top contender and yet she won. She uses dagger and is quick to boot, she fights like Jake so use that as reference.

    Fourth is a man named Davidson, he is a hunter I recognise as a faction leader from our travel days. Factions haven¡¯t really cemented themselves as they had no real reason to so instead they formed close friendships, Davidson has breezed through this tourney through his friendships so expect an easier fight but go easy on him for your social sake.

    Finally, we have Bob who has secured himself a free win every round so far. His luck part skill and honestly we are all mere mortals in comparison. I have heard nothing about him but be careful a man with such heavenly luck may be some legendary secluded master¡¯s disciple, so I expected top vigilance from all of you.¡±

    Ending on a high note Malum let the group do a hands in middle, ¡°Go Team!¡± shtick and after separating Malum went rest as much he could for the next round.

    He wanted Bear or Gloria; Trent was the reluctant third choice as the other two were moreso joke options. He respected Bob, as luck was a skill in some way, but it was Davidson whome he found to be slimy. It was people like that he hated, but he no doubt had things to learn from then. If it made him survive he could become a slug if need were, he would do anything so he would learn as much as he could.

    Closing his eyes even though the sky was pale blue, Malum found his brain continuing its endless analysis of who his opponents where and how to beat them. Fighting styles weakness¡¯ and their strengths, at some point he just wanted himself to shut up for once.

    Malum prided himself in his intelligence but sometimes he wished he could clear them completely for a few minutes, to just breath.

    Anxiety and stress, his fear of death, all were corroding his young mind. He pushed that fear, that stress, that anxiety, all into his training and now he was seeing the result of all of that.

    He was stronger, faster, and his sword techniques had developed immensely. If the old Malum could see where he was now, Malum was sure he would not believe it.

    Yet here he was, with his newfound strength, his newfound friends, in this new environment. It almost felt surreal looking back, like some fever dream. The relaxation allowed Malum to reflect for once, and that allowed him a better perspective of how much he had grown.

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    A certain sense of pride began to introduce itself to Malum¡¯s body, but before he could stop to smile he heard his name be called for the next match.

    Fuck fate, he smiled anyway. The fight was going to be fun, after all he heard his next opponent was Gloria.

    Stepping into the outlined training square, Malum scanned his eyes over his already present opponent. She was heavily built, wore light leather armour, and held a dagger in each arm.

    With his sword and shield Malum already held the advantage in open combat, he just needed to turn that advantage into a victory.

    Without thinking too much, Malum entered his initial stance and let the instructor start the countdown.

    ¡°3, 2, 1, Fight!¡±

    She immediately dashed towards Malum to close the distance, whilst Malum prepared himself for a large swing of his sword.

    That forced the woman to not close in too much, but she remained just in front of Malum, her eyes focused heavily on the drawn back weapon.

    Malum began taking steps closer to the woman to gain himself the distance he lost and because the woman couldn¡¯t get to close to him, less she force herself to block a fully powered attack, Malum was able to gain the ground he had lost.

    Bring his sword out of its drawn back position, Malum instead chose to put it into a defensive stance, he wanted to gain some information on the way in which his opponent attacked.

    She did not deny his opportunity and she closed the distance in seconds, pouncing on Malum and rapidly attacking the open spaces in his defence hoping to hit some painful areas.

    Apart from a few jabs to his chest, Malum was fine as he had protected his head as main priority. One of the odd factors of the duel was the wooden weapons, as long as you didn¡¯t tap out of get knocked out then you would remain in duel so an attack with a steel weapon that would have carved Malum¡¯s insides now just gave a slight bruise.

    Now having an idea of how she attacked, Malum went back in the offensive and used the closed distance to whack her with some full powered both sword and shield attacks. That allowed for some painful joint attacks, but it left the woman with a weapon down and a seriously battered leg. It helped that Malum had Jake as frame of reference, so he attacked her as he usually trained Jake.

    Gloria had already known that the fight would be hard, after her opponents basic stats were so much higher than her own. What she didn¡¯t know was how weak her weapons were in this wooden mode. With nothing to gain but more bruises she called her defeat, much to the sadness of her opponent.

    ¡°Eyes, crotch, and some places of the stomach. Look for where to attack, right now you just hope its somewhere of importance, but you should really just learn where that place is.¡±

    Gloria¡¯s eyes seemed full of hatred after her loss, although they eased after Malums lack of boastful nature and kindness from his advice. She wanted to prove her father wrong, that she could become the strongest fighter and although she didn¡¯t win today, someday she vowed to make her dream of a reality.

    Malum turned away from the strange mix of emotions that was his previous opponent and went to see what the other fights had in store.

    Bob had sadly gotten paired up with Bear which led to a depressing smack down. Gerald fought a worn-out Trent and won fairly easily and that left Jake with an easy match against the politician Davidson.

    Malum was now watching that last fight although annoyingly it had started to rain. It was around Spring so Summer was soon and that meant the war would be fought with good weather, although perhaps it would be too good. Malum would have to see although he was confident in his endurance.

    The fight was pretty boring, Jake was just slowly whittling down Davidson. He used his shield to get close to his victim and used his speed to launch small attacks on his opponents.

    Malum had to say it was extremely annoying to face. Davidson was promising several boons for Jake¡¯s surrender but the nothing could beat the points towards going home.

    The rain only made the match longer, and it ended when Davidson finally gave into an all-out attack. Jake had practiced for exactly that moment and so when it came he took the opportunity and with it he claimed his victory.

    Malum was extremely happy with the results, knowing that his squad had started strong being at least 3 of the top 4 in individual martial strength and if that was any indicator then the group stage would be a breeze.

    They gathered up on last time for a few words before the final fights,

    ¡°Remember squad, we are comrades, but we are also competition. I don¡¯t want to see you doing some arm wrestle, you better put in your all! We will not only survive, but we will also thrive!¡±

    `that sounded better in my head`

    His comrades saved his speech with their enthusiastic ¡°Survive and thrive¡± chant. With smiles on their faces they walked towards the final arena¡¯s where Bear was already waiting.

    Without the instructor Bear decided talking smack was a good use of his time,

    ¡°3 to go ey? I just hope you put up a better fight then that lucky dude.¡±

    Gerald was weak to taunts, ¡°Better fight? Mate those demons ain¡¯t gunna need to worry about you once you met Fistio and Fistia over here.¡±

    Malum had forgot he named his fists, no actually he had purged it from his memory out of shame. He said it with such gusto as well, how were they friends?

    Well it turned out bear was just as bad, and their taunts continued untill Malum finally ended their playground antics.

    ¡°Both of you shut up, and before you go `yu first` the instructors are coming down now so why don¡¯t you speak with actions rather than words.¡±

    The brutish men answered with a grunt as they continued to have a stare off.

    Malum was expecting the instructors to begin the rounds as always but found them slightly on edge as they starred at Malum and only his group.

    `What is that in their eyes, it almost looks like pity but it¡¯s different somehow.`

    The instructors soon stopped looking over the new potential northern recruits and instead focused back onto their task of moderating the martial tournament.

    ¡°Rules are the same, the fixings shall be...

    Jake vs Malum

    Bear vs Gerald.¡±

    Malum looked over to Gerald to see his goofy grin widening a bit too far. Seems the action part of their talking would come sooner than Malum expected.

    Jake looked depressed, Malum was equally so. He knew he would win; he always did. It just took forever and relied on his broken stamina to just win.

    This was perhaps the one fight he wasn¡¯t looking forward to.

    Well, he had to do it anyway. Malum shrugged off his displeasure and walked over to his square. The rain had settled somewhat, and the previous shower had now seeped deep enough to create a muddy terrain.

    That would benefit him, after all Jake¡¯s tactic focused around speed and so he would be affected by mud moreso than Malum''s adaptation approach.

    Malum took a good look at his opponent. Jake was 4 years older than Malum, but that wasn¡¯t visible to the eye. Malum was both taller and bigger than him which would only grow in the future. Jake was like a fairly large stick, still a stick but the training had put on some muscle on his figure.

    He was lazy, although he wasn¡¯t dumb, so he trained like hell. Death was one hell of a motivator.

    With that in mind, Malum shrugged of the pondering and entered his battle mode. He entered his stance and waited for the whistle.

    The instructor held two fingers to his mouth, and blew.

 Chapter 14

    Jake was thinking through his several options here. He could fight the Leader but he both didn¡¯t want to go through that and because the result was pretty obvious.

    He looked at Malum, and remembered his words. Surrendering may give him some extra training but Jake knew deep down that was for the best.

    His Leader was looking at him. Those yellow eyes were looking at him so seriously. Jake sometimes wished he held Malums resolve.

    In his mind, hope led to despair so he lived with as little hope as he could. Expectations were poisons but Jake still wanted to survive. Now he had Alicia, he couldn¡¯t so lazy.

    With some resolution towards his future extra training, Jake announced,

    ¡°I surrender!¡±

    `...... Oh thank god.` Malum thought.

    The instructors looked at Jake and then at Malum and nodded. It was good strategy actually, if they wore each other out and then ended up losing first place because of it then that was simply dumb. They were better of sending their best combatant in the best condition.

    Malum went to go hug his comrade, he didn¡¯t want to ask Jake to throw the match especially because the points were related directly to being sent home. The fact he did so anyway spoke highly of his intelligence and his teamwork.

    After a short chat, they both walked over to the other match where Malum could see his other team member fighting as best he could.

    Bear was big, at 26 he was around 6 foot¡¯ 6 and whilst Gerald was also a pretty big lad, he wasn¡¯t as big as the Bear. However, Malum observed the fact that Gerald was far better with techniques than Bear and seemed to have more experience in combat.

    Bears moves were also flashy, as Malum noted his hand-to-hand techniques were unlikely to have been sourced from the army and were instead some family legacy.

    The sound of fist meeting shield and sword resounded throughout the training ground. The loud beating between opponents caused many in the crowd to grimace from imagining the pain, let alone feeling it.

    Except both sides refused to show any sign of weakness, instead they continued to bicker even inside the ring.

    ¡°Using that little shield of yours you little bitch, where¡¯s all your confidence gone?¡± Bear chided.

    ¡°Is your brain mode of stone? Genuine question here. You do know you have one yourself. Or did Mr Stonehead lose it! Haha, it happens to the bets of us buddy.¡±

    ¡°I DID NOT LOSE IT!¡± Screamed an enraged Bear, who continued to pummel Gerald with an endless barrage of attacks.

    Behind his defence, Gerald continued to rile up his opponent, ¡°Don¡¯t be mad, like I said it happens to all of us. Although I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever seen you with your weapon, don¡¯t tell me you lost it on your first day. Haha¡±

    Bear was only getting madder, and his attacks only grew in strength but at the cost of what little technique was binding them. They were now just mindless hurls of brute strength and that was not a good way to punch.

    Gerald waited for a right moment before he launched a counterattack. It would need to be quick as some sense would be knocked into his opponent once he started getting hit so he wanted to win before he could recover.

    Slash, bash, defensive block into a stab. Malum saw fundamentals before him come together into a masterful counterattack. It left Bear out of the ring, stumbling down onto his arse.

    Was Gerald going to accept his win as an adult, hell no.

    He shoved his hips forward in a thrusting motion whilst he said,  ¡°LET¡¯S GO, HAVE THAT BEAR!¡±

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    Malum was both proud, and ashamed at the same time. Well, he would just need to sort out his rowdy teammate in the next round. Before that, congratulations were in order.

    The instructor announced the victor for the crowd to cheer before Malum and his group reconvened one last time as Bear was being dragged off to the infirmary.

    ¡°That was a fantastic counterattack, with some great taunting it was really a good fight.¡± Praise was something Gerald was weak to, so his reaction consisted of slightly blushing and saying,

    ¡°Thanks Leader, it¡¯s because of our daily sparing that I grew so strong.¡±

    Malum could have pushed back on the praise, saying it was due to his own effort or something of the sort, but he decided against it and just accepted the praise. To change the topic Malum decided to show a grim face,

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid Gerald that I won¡¯t be able to spare any mercy in our next match although I hope you treat it the same. Unlike Jake, I want you to go all out, and who knows perhaps you¡¯ll win.¡±

    Gerald looked at Malum, ¡°Yeah right, monster, as if. I¡¯ll give it a good go though, one day the monster must fall, perhaps today is the day.¡±

    Hope was good, in war even moreso. Malum would still have to crush it, but it was all in an effort of making him stronger so feeling bad would be pointless. `It¡¯s all for his own sake` Malum thought, his grin growing slightly too twisted.

    The group waited a little longer before the match was announced. The rain had now completely died down and the sun had come through the clouds for a short while. Sundown would be soon and both Malum and Gerald wanted to end the fight before complete darkness.

    With that in mind, one the instructors arrived they wasted no time in getting on opposite corners of the square. With one final look in each other¡¯s eyes and with the crowd around them turning silent, the match began.

    As with every fight prior, Malum began with testing out his opponent attacks. He liked to get an idea of whome he was fighting against and how they fought. This gave him an idea on how potentially he would win, and also how he could lose.

    This phase consisted of Malum getting a full beating. His defence was rock solid, but the muscles behind every blow he took could only handle so much. He also needed to check his opponents defensive style, so he transitioned into attack using an opportunity that presented itself.

    Gerald was good, and although he sometimes act like it, he did have a brain which allowed him to win against objectively stronger opponents. He also used his speech to wind up his opponents to better create opportunities. What Malum would say was wrong with Gerald''s style was that it was too reliant on the opponent making a mistake.

    To be fair, every opponent Malum had faced so far he had won by the exact same method but the different between Gerald and Malum was that Malum was an objectively stronger opponent and so if neither made a mistake then he would win by default.

    He knew all of Geralds both good and bad habits and had only lost on a few select occasions when he had made a mistake. He didn¡¯t need to go through the testing phase, he already knew what he would find but that would not be the case in an actual fight.

    Forming bad habits early was a good way to ruin long term success, that wasn¡¯t even a quote from his Uncle but something Malum knew from his days of hunting.

    Continuing to attack, Malum kept at his advantage for as long as he could. A mistake was sadly inevitable as he was only human although he did hope that one day he could eliminate them entirely.

    That ended up with Malum back on defence where they two sides entered a repeated cycle. Attack, mistake, defence, mistake, repeat.

    Malum had more stamina and like that he would likely win although a key mistake on defence and he would still lose. That was what Gerald was looking for, and what Malum was defending most against.

    The crowd around them had grown bored after a few cycles and had been long dismissed so they went to do their own thing. Only a few ambitious folk stayed to get a better idea of their competition.

    Sundown was nearing and Malum was back on the attack. Both sides were sweating, and their clothes were starting to dampen. Dehydration was becoming the larger threat, and the lack of food was causing issues as well.

    If before the tournament fight had been like a 200-metre sprint, then this fight was a marathon. With fatigue building up mistakes became more common although this really only effected Gerald as Malums stamina was seemingly endless.

    A few mistakes on Malum¡¯s defence had costed him a painful chest, and legs which had been battered by the side of a sword. Both sides now held injuries to their bodies but neither had enough to call it quits.

    Every hit they took, they got back into the fight immediately. Almost like they were ghouls from myths.

    Finally as the sun began to glow a dim orange, Malum spoke.

    ¡°Oi, Mate. This needs to end.¡± He breathed heavily after every break, his muscles aching with the stress.

    ¡°Monstrous. Bastard. Fine, one more good hit, and, it¡¯s over.¡±

    ¡°Fine.¡±

    The deal had been set and with it Malum went on a full out attack. Gerald showed what last reserved he had but Malum was still running around like he hadn¡¯t been fighting for several hours compared to the ragged Gerald and the outcome was obvious.

    A hit to Gerald''s thigh and the fight was over.

    Promptly, Gerald fell unconscious it seemed he could hold back sleep not a moment longer. Picking him up to take him to the dorms, Malum noticed the strange beast still had a smile even as he slept.

    Malum said a thank you to the instructor and headed back. He had discreetly told the rest of his team mid-match to go have some early rest as they would need it for the next day. The group phases were going to be tough, but Malum still reckoned they would come out on top. Especially with himself and the sleeping idiot he was carrying.

 Chapter 15

    The group woke early the next day to a universal vote of extra sleep. For once, Jake had finally convinced the group of his lazy idea. Although considering what they did the day prior calling any of the group lazy was beyond logic.

    Malum was relatively okay, Jerome wanted to die, Alicia was weak, Jake was dying, and Gerald was already dead.

    Not exactly, but his still body would give you the impression. Although that goofy smile forever persisted.

    After a half hour of more sleep the group finally went down for roll call and breakfast. They found the meals less tasty than usual although Malum felt it was more filling than the meals he had grown used to.

    Once the meal was eaten, the pointless chatter exhausted, and roll call completed finally did the Troop Leader decide to show up.

    Decked out in his fancy outfit, medals strewn on his chest, he began a long speech about the importance of teamwork and collaboration.

    ¡°In the army you are one singular Troop with the sole goal of taking out the enemy. That means you shall corporate with your members to best achieve your objective. The singular tournament was for you to see the best and brightest and for what most of you should yearn to achieve.

    However some have thought that others in the competition have slighted the other, or perhaps you were jealous of someone¡¯s luck.

    Grow the fuck up. If you want to survive the frontlines than you better suck your hatred down to your soul because if you decided to act on your revenge and one of your fellow men die because of it well that is a life lost for absolutely no reason.

    The more there are of you, the less demons you each have to take out.

    Factions, politics all of that crap mean absolutely nothing if you all die. Don¡¯t make complaints again, I am neither your mother nor your father, so I really don¡¯t give a shit.¡±

    That ended the rant.

    ¡°...¡± And it left the whole hall silent.

    The warning was a bit to direct, and it left no room for any negotiation. It was a show of power, but it spoke of facts that would be needed for the troop to survive.

    It left eyes darting around to particular faction leader to see what the responses would be, although realistically there was only one available option.

    Surrender.

    Malum didn¡¯t think the factions would really dissolve, instead they were more likely to hide themselves more thoroughly than before. If the troop really wanted to unite they would need a strong dictator and Malum couldn¡¯t be asked to take such a role and he was the only obvious candidate who could receive it.

    Strength ruled, that was the universal law of the Dao. Everything else was just petty tactics.

    The hall was eventually dismissed, after the Troop Leader reeled back in the soldiers with promises of freedom and wealth. Carrot and stick was how these people were manipulated and Malum was hardly different.

    Knowing you were being manipulated and not, either way you were being manipulated but Malum couldn¡¯t do anything about it. Running away meant a bounty and forever anxiety and that was if he could escape.

    Too much thinking put Malums mind back into disarray and it led to a headache which was sure to stick around¡­d for a few days.

    It didn¡¯t really matter much at the moment as it was currently the team tournament. They had already completed the first round and the second was going to be a walk in the park.

    To make things challenging they were doing 1 vs 4 or 1 vs 2, otherwise nothing was going to be learnt. Jake had made quick work of the first group and now it was Gerald and Jerome chance to take on the second group.

    They had some potential, one of them was quite quick and had good reflexes but apart from that they clearly hadn¡¯t put in enough work. Potential was great but hard work was needed to uncover it, so Gerald and Jerome barely had to pull out any of their moves before their opponents surrendered.

    ¡°Cowards!¡± Gerald said, to which Alicia told him to calm down.

    ¡°At this rate they are going to die because of their cowardice. I¡¯m doing them a favour trying to break them out of it!¡± Rebuked Gerald, and Malum had to say he agreed with him.

    Well they had begun to walk off now and so Malum¡¯s group decided to leave them be. They weren¡¯t their parents; it wasn¡¯t their jobs to bicker them into training.

    The troops strength was important, but Malum doubted it would affect his own survival that much. Afterall as long as he could kill the demon in front of him then he would guarantee his survival, his group only served to compliment that fact.

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    That was his logical thinking, no matter how floored it actually was.

    The group tournament lasted no longer than a few hours. Most of it was taken up by a few weakling teams taking forever to take themselves out. Then it was time for the losers to see who was the best looser and that took even longer.

    Malum was bored.

    Waiting for all these peoples fights to end had left him with free time he had never had before and with it he decided he would do exactly nothing.

    Starring at the top of a tree, Malum lay directly below it as he watched the swaying leaves.

    It was calm, peaceful and yet Malum was anything but.

    Ever since he was dragged out of his village a fire had been set in his heart. It constantly muttered in his ears. `Get stronger` `weakness is death`

    And so his relaxation time had been mostly spent in discomfort as he tried his best to ignore the thoughts in his head. Alas, after a few minutes he gave in.

    Swinging his sword, he did a very basic motion. A simple slash. It wasn¡¯t very taxing, and it took little thought. It was just enough to be called training and that meant he could finally relax.

    The sound of his sword going through the air, the sound of tree above him swaying the wind, and the feeling of the sun against the back of his neck, for once Malum actually felt relaxed. The thoughts of death were no longer plaguing his mind and so he breathed freely.

    Untill one dreaded thought came through his mind.

    `Fuck I¡¯ve got the endurance test tomorrow.`

    Despair was the only word that could accurately describe his emotional state.

    `The sky is, blue?

    Yeah its blue, so why does it look orange?`

    Malum¡¯s dazed eyes lingered on the sky. His body kept on moving though, one leg forward at a time. He didn¡¯t know why he had to continue moving, after all it hurt like hell to do so, he just knew he had to.

    Perhaps it was dehydration. Or perhaps it was hunger, boredom, or about any of the other several thousand reasons why he could be hallucinating.

    He was dancing with death, but sometimes humans could be unbearably durable.

    `How long has it been since I started? Wait, what did I start? It was a race! Yes, that was it! I don¡¯t know how long it has been. Am I okay? My thoughts feel blurry, no that¡¯s not the right word. Almost like the paint is smudging, does that even make sense?`

    He walked onwards, the sun above him staring at him like he was a monster.

    2, days. 48 continues hours, some ungodly number of minuets and he was still going. It wasn¡¯t even stamina anymore; it was just insanity. Gerald had been proud of his day of labour but looking at this, well he could only think that this achievement was nothing.

    Gerald had heard some of Malums backstory: a travellers son who had lived in several villages and was by all standards pretty normal and yet he was doing this.

    That didn¡¯t make much sense to him. Or anyone to that matter.

    The crowds around the dirt track had thinned ever since the first day but now they were slowly coming back to see the madness first hand. It wasn¡¯t the sun looking at him as if he were a monster it was the 50 other troop members and instructors whose eyes were judging him.

    It had even gone so far to bring out the Troop Leader who was sitting on a small hill, with his eyes analysing Malums every movement. His thoughts, every person on the field would have given lots just to catch a small snippet.

    `Interesting` Thought the Troop Leader, `That is some will for someone so young, and it doesn¡¯t even look like its sprouted from fear. Just pure drive, to achieve their goal. Look at him, he¡¯s bloody smiling.`

    A small smile escaped from his lips; the young man reminded him too much of his younger brother. Driven, and full of potential. `If only he¡¯, no, he had told himself not to think those kind of things.

    He straitened up, gave a nod to the instructor, and told him to end the race. The recruit had already shown enough, and first place had been secured hours ago, at this point they were just harming him.

    `The Southern Front, he sure would have a chance but` he thought back to his brother, he had gone to the Southern front as well. `I would prefer it if he lived.`

    Persistence had saved Malum from even worse hell.

    Hell was still his destination, and all it took was one poor mistake and it would be over. In life you get no second chances, perhaps Malum would be able to quote if he was not passing out from exhaustion.

    When somebody told him to stop, he thought he was hallucinating. So instead Malum was knocked swiftly out. Finally, his thoughts went away.

    He woke up inside of the encampments infirmary. On a small bed, Malum starred at the wooden ceiling as he thought to how he got to this position.

    `Why did I try so hard?`

    He thought to himself, and the answer to that question wasn¡¯t as clear as Malum had hoped. Revenge for his Uncle played some part, so did getting back at him, and then there was his basic fear of death, then his ambition to grow older.

    There were far too many reasons to single it down to one, but all of them had something in common. He would benefit from doing the bets he could in the tests, to get those army credits to leave the hell he would soon enter.

    With that, at least, somewhat cleared up, Malum focused back on his injuries and found nothing to terrible with his body. Flexing his muscles hurt, but it seemed nothing too detrimental. There was one thing however, he was hungry, really hungry.

    ¡°Hello, anyone there?¡±

    The room was empty with only his bed inside of it. Actually it was odd that he was alone, usually when he came to the infirmary he was inside some sort of dorm with beds all around him but this time he seemed to have secured himself a private room and not only that his bed actually felt more comfortable than he remembered them to be.

    `Why the sudden upgrade.`

    Was it his efforts in the exam? Or perhaps his domination of the top ranking? Whatever it was Malum was not going to complain but he really did need food, so he continued to call out.

    Finally, after a few calls someone came through the door.

    ¡°Be quiet, what do you want?¡±

    `Ah finally the doctor.` Malum thought, then replied, ¡°Yes I¡¯m super hungry can I get some food please.¡±

    The doctor was a young-looking man, his hair drooping low beneath his face. That would make someone think he was shy, but they would be wrong.

    ¡°Oh yeah, by the way its been 2 days since you fell asleep. I felt you would want to know that. Okay, I¡¯ll go now.¡±

    ¡°Wait, what?¡±

    `2 days? God he really did just run away. I mean yeah I worked hard but 2 days of sleep, that has to be a record or something.`

    Malum didn¡¯t feel regret over not training in that time. After all sleeping was one of the most productive things he could do. Although he did wonder what they did for the speed and strength trails. Both could be timed and done with set weights, so Malum assumed they did it that way.

    For now, Malum just relaxed his body as much as he could. He had food, he had shelter and he had water. As long as he breathed, he would be alright.

 Chapter 16

    With time, that statement grew to be true. It took a few days for him to be dismissed but once he was out he was back to normal. A few pains here and there but nothing that could harm him long term.

    The speed test was done fairly quickly, a 100-metre dash and then a dodging test using a few leather balls. God did they hurt.

    Malum secured himself 4<sup>th</sup> which although it was lower than the first month, what that didn¡¯t include was the fact that many chose to specialise in speed and Malum simply didn¡¯t, so he was happy with that result.

    Strength came next and after pushing himself to the max he managed to secure a new personal best. He got third for his troubles and as it had risen from the last month, Malum gave himself an extra pat on the back.

    It didn¡¯t really mean much; first place overall was still guaranteed but it nice to see his efforts realised.

    The tests, unlike the endurance ones, didn¡¯t take that long so with most of the day left Malum got to spend it however he liked. He first checked on his group members and found them at the mess hall where Malum decided to grab a plate himself.

    ¡°Look who it is.¡± Said Gerald, pointing towards Malum, ¡°The Endurance Monster!¡± He announced it like he was some brawler in some underground fight. Sadly his group members on encouraged his antics by letting out a few laughs.

    Malum only smiled at them, he would pay them back later. In training.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t anyone tell its rude to point?¡± Malum said as he sat down.

    ¡°Me, hell no. My dad always said it was a good way to get your point across, ensures that they know your talking to them.¡± He pointed directly at Malum, ¡°And only them.¡±

    ¡°Move that finger or your find it in a place where the sun don¡¯t shine.¡± He didn¡¯t find pointing polite.

    Luckily Gerald diffused the conversation by saying, ¡°How do you know I don¡¯t like that kinda thing.¡±

    That got looks from everyone on the table, and a few around them as well.

    ¡°A joke, a joke, god all of you are so lame.¡±

    After a few more questions about Gerald''s preferences, the conversation shifted towards the overall rankings where Malum learned what his group had secured. Gerald got 3<sup>rd,</sup>, Jake came 7<sup>th</sup> and Alicia came just behind that at 8<sup>th</sup>, and finally Jerome came an even 10<sup>th</sup>.

    Considering the singles tournament, Malum expected higher, but it seemed he hadn¡¯t drilled in the basics enough. There was still 2 months left for that, and he was sure they would enjoy the ride.

    Talking about the future, Malum learned that they were shifting the focus of training away from person vs person to person vs beast.

    Demons were their actual enemies and most came in the form of mutated beasts although the myths spoke of their forms looking more human like, but they were extremely unlikely to see any that.

    That also added to the schedule a class on demons and their specific weaknesses, habits, and usual behavior it was called Demonic Studies and Malum was sure it was going to be interesting.

    That was about it, apart from another bomb of a speech from the Troop Leader and some recruit exchanging his points for some erotica Malum had missed nothing.

    It was now back to the grind

    Back inside of the camps lecture hall, Malum was sat at his desk twirling his pen. Demonic Studies had turned boring after the first few classes and the overall content could have been summed up in a couple sentences, but they just had to be dragged out over hours.

    Take todays lesson for example, it was about a certain demonic beast called Variant ¨C 004 which meant it was the fourth most common variant of demonic beasts. Generally the rarer the variant, so the higher the number, the more powerful the demon but obviously there were several exceptions.

    004 was a massive creature, about the size of your average village house. It had three spikes on its shield-like face, and using its massive size and strong skin it was a tough opponent for anyone to face.

    It weakness was its slow movement and its inability to quickly change direction.

    It was definitely one of the stronger earlier sequence variants and they were told of a few ways to defeat the beast.

    That was it, for the main content and yet the class was still going on. For some reason the lecturer felt compelled to speak about every scenario going into far too much detail.

    Malum had complained but all got was a pat on the back and a pity filled smile.

    He still listened; the content wasn¡¯t completely pointless, but Malum felt his time was slowly ticking away. 45 days untill he was sent off, he hoped he had prepared enough.

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    Another day meant another lesson and today was on something more interesting.

    Demonic Waves.

    Demonic Waves were the most important thing they had learned about in demonic studies. It was where demons desires were amplified and it caused them to enter human territory to satiate those desires as it was where those resources where most plentiful.

    This caused many demons to rush out at once and it was how the demonic army gained land. This phenomenon happened every month and its source was the God of Evil.

    This was how he was likely going to die, everyone in the room for that matter was equally the same. Untold casualties had fallen to this phenomenon and in all of human history.

    The figure was too much. A moment of silence was done for those that had fallen prior. Malum just hoped that soon he wouldn¡¯t be joining them.

    40 days untill he was sent off.

    Alicia and Jake had decided to tie the knot. Instead of waiting for after their conscription they decided to not take the risk and just do it now so they could die as husband and wife just in case they did.

    The ceremony wasn¡¯t much, they planned to do a larger one if they did survive, but it included all the guest they cared about so just Malum, Jerome and Gerald.

    They spent a few of their points on a pair of copper rings and Malum spoke as their priest.

    The actual ceremony looked more like a ritual, but they were on a budget, so Malum just spoke the words that were known by everyone.

    ¡°Will you, Jake Flounder take Alicia Gresthall to be your forever fated Wife.¡±

    Jake looked so nervous. His hands sweating like no tomorrow and his fidgeting never ended. His smile never left his mouth however, as he starred at his soon to be wife, Malum could tell that he was madly in love.

    ¡°Yes I do.¡±

    ¡°And do you Alicia Gresthall take Jake Flounder to be your forever fated Husband.¡±

    Even though she only wore her usual military outfit, somehow she had managed to make herself even more radiant. Unlike her worrisome husband, she looked firm and delighted as she confidently said,

    ¡°I do.¡±

    ¡°Then under the Dao, I pronounce your fate entwined forever. Let your happiness be everlasting and your love eternal. You may now kiss the bride.¡±

    They locked lips and Malum saw how both of their eyes shone a bright happiness he had never quite witnessed before.

    Gerald didn¡¯t hesitate to cheer on his buddy and even Jerome joined in his antics. Today he would allow their childish banter. Tonight he had planned a few activities meant only for fun. Death was going to scare them, but it wasn¡¯t going to stop them from enjoying the life they had left.

    The sunset over the camps distant horizon. It called for the end of their training, although none of them showed any signs of stopping their duels.

    Wood met wood, as a game of strategy played out inside each and every one of their minds.

    Malum was losing, unusually, but that because he was trying to do something new. He had swapped what hands usually used the sword and shield to see if he could learn anything new.

    At first he was terrible. Could barely even swing straight, but with time and practice it began to show him the benefits of his idea.

    First of all it trained his control over his weaker arm, this allowed to move his sword/shield with greater freedom. It also allowed him better options for defending, in particular parrying was something that took a lot of skill and importantly a lot of control.

    Parrying was one of the best ways of defence, as it put the opponent off balance and could turn a bad situation into a solid victory.

    For beasts, this worked less often but was applicable in certain situations.

    If Malum were to be honest the thing that would most likely add to his winning odds against a demonic beast was simply to pack on the pounds. There were two things his Uncle had said that created how much effect an attack had.

    The speed of the object, and how much that object weighed. In this case, the demonic beasts favoured high weight with low speed creating an effect with a lot of power.

    Malum didn¡¯t really want to choose that option, although he had bulked up significantly since the second month had begun. Instead he preferred the idea of, `It didn¡¯t matter how much power an attack had if it didn¡¯t hit the target.`

    In other words, speed was what he needed and so his training slowly transitioned towards that. This morning he had done his sprints to find himself on track to his self-made targets. He was happy with where he was, now he just needed to train his control to better make use of his existing speed.

    The sound of wood clashing continued untill there was no light left in the sky. It was then that the group began to pack up. A torch was lit, and they made their way back.

    Gerald spoke, his face illuminated only by torchlight.

    ¡°Have any of you heard of the ancient tales of the God of Evil?¡±

    Malum was tired, tired enough to leave Gerald to his antics.

    Jerome played along, ¡°No I have not, tell me more, oh wise one.¡±

    ¡°Well young one, the God of Evil is a vicious murderer who slaughtered the Ancient Gods and brought about the end of the Age of Monsters. This you have heard, but what you haven¡¯t learned about what his endless lust. Most living beings bare his blood as he spread his desires all over the realm. These poor fools have married and yet secretly they are related!¡±

    Jake couldn¡¯t listen anymore, ¡°Right mate, so you¡¯re telling me that round about 500 thousand years ago we have a common ancestor. Gerald, I don¡¯t know how to explain to you that there¡¯s probably cases of that earlier. Probably even a few hundred years ago, that just how villages work.¡±

    Gerald looked sad at his friend, ¡°Yeah, but that doesn¡¯t sound so mysterious does it. No Evil god just sad lazy people sat in a village for a few hundred years, also, isn¡¯t their laws about that.¡±

    Jerome spoke next, ¡°Yeah, my family got moved a few years back because of it. Called the Travellers Act or something.

    After a few murmurs of mild curiosity being sated, Gerald couldn¡¯t help himself from speaking.

    ¡°Bet those noble families don¡¯t follow those laws. I¡¯ve heard of crazy stuff about their interfamily breeding.¡±

    Alicia didn¡¯t want the image in her head, ¡°Don¡¯t use the word breeding with humans. But, yeah there was this bastard in our village who was the village chief and he spoke many times about how fucked up his family was.¡±

    By the time they reached their dormitories they managed to turn the conversation into a straight rant against the nobility. How they stole their hard-earned food, their money, and now they had taken their lives as well.

    Malum found their hate all very justified, even though technically he was the pinnacle of nobility being of royal blood. Not like he would see the benefits of his privilege. All he got was a hunting party he had to be careful of, and a strange Uncle who left him.

    Jolly stuff, thankfully tomorrow they had a hunting trip with demonic beasts. It was a training exercise they would be introducing every fortnight after tomorrow and it was something Malum was looking forward to.

    Finally he would put information from textbooks and lectures to reality. His fighting was going to be put to the test and he wanted to see how he would do. He went over some basics before the group called it a night.

    The moon hang over their dormitory, it was beautiful blood moon tonight. It¡¯s red light covering the realm.

    35 days untill they were sent off.

 Chapter 17 and 18

    The sun replaced the dim red, as morning came Malum and the rest of the group rose like clockwork. By now conversation wasn¡¯t even needed as they moved like robots towards their clothes and weapons.

    The first word spoken was about the vote and after the usual result came through it was training grounds they shuffled off to.

    After working up a sweat, the group went down for roll call.

    Overall, it was mundane, average, monotonous and every other word for a boring morning.

    However, making the day more interesting was the hunt which the Troop Leader was reading off some warnings about. Stuff like don¡¯t leave your group, call for a help when needed, safety first, and other stuff Malum honestly thought wouldn¡¯t affect him.

    As long as he remained calm, and took out the opponent in front of him then, every other problem either didn¡¯t affect him or didn¡¯t really matter that much.

    His safety was top priority, his team members next, and then everyone else.

    The group by now was close, but Malum was forcing himself away from them becoming true close friendships. It was for both of them. Selfish or not, he needed to live and that was the end of it.

    They performed a group prayer to the God of Hunting and received some of their iron weapons from the Troop Leader. Everyone was happy to see them, it gave them hope.

    Marching was never really taught as it was seen by the instructors as a waste of time, so instead they walked in their groups. Martial society had always prioritised self-strength over group strength but that didn¡¯t necessarily mean that groups were never formed.

    Malum had heard of Clans after all, Sects were deeply imbedded into folklore and tales bards would spin on the odd occasion. The only issue was finding the truth in between the exaggeration and the flat out lies.

    The green forest hang over Malums eyesight, hiding the piercing sun above them. Summer was getting closer and closer and with it the sun grew brighter and stronger. The air grew dense with its own sweat and that made breathing only tougher.

    It was a far better situation than the march towards the base camp, but Malum could still see slackers hanging around the back, their groups practically dragging them by their arms.

    Malum was proud of the group members he had raised. He wouldn¡¯t claim their achievements as his own, but he could certainly say he helped them on their journey.

    Jerome had gone from barely achieving to one of the top trainees. Gerald had only grown stronger, from dense rock to a gemstone. Alicia and Jake had not only married but they had also both grown in rankings, and both had put in just as much effort as the rest.

    They were now around halfway to completion. Now they got see what they would be up against and what all that training had done.

    Not today though, much to Malums disappointment. They packed a few days¡¯ worth of food, so it seemed that the opponents were further away then what Malum realised.

    It did make sense, if the frontlines were so close to home Malum would have felt more unease than his slight annoyance at an extended hike.

    Mountain after mountain, over a river and a small marsh. They finally arrived at what the Knight called the frontlines and looking out into the distance it was pretty clear why.

    Demons ate pretty much everything. They were an incredibly diverse species and that left whatever territory they conquered pillaged beyond belief.

    Trees, shrubs, fish, grass, even some types of dirt wasn¡¯t left off the menu. So when entering demonic territory you were really entering baron land because it was exactly that. Baron.

    Forest turned into a dirt desert. Such an uncanny sight left most of the troop speechless. This was the enemy they would face, a natural disaster worse than any other humankind had ever faced.

    Thankfully for mankind, demons did eat everything and that included their own brethren. So infighting was common and such most of its resources were spent wasted on itself rather than outwards.

    For the little kingdom Malum was in, this was the main reason they hadn¡¯t been eaten yet.

    Fear was emotion everyone around him radiated. Seeing such destruction and realising that you would be the focus of its creator was terrifying.

    Malum sucked that feeling into his bones. He needed his heart rate up, he needed his reactions as fast as possible, this fear was his weapon and he would need it.

    The Troop Leader spoke some words. Calming the fears of the troop, and reminding them of the punishment of cowardice. Die for your country, or die for your cowardice. In other words, be a martyr or a traitor.

    Everyone in the troop choose to martyr themselves, and they marched forward into the Baron wasteland.

    Because of demons endless desires, teaming up was beyond rare and the only being which did were of the strength where the knowledge wasn¡¯t going to help you escape. The book they had raid simply suggested to say your prayers, as you would soon return to the Dao.

    Thankfully as impossibly strong they were they were also impossibly rare. That meant that it would be one fight at a time during times away from waves.

    Speaking of the Troop also learned of their deadline to leave. 2 days before the next wave which also correlated to their 32 days left until their deployment.

    The group marched on, looking for their first sight of a real demon.

    The Troop Leader was looking around with as strange sense of unease. He was usually found with a dumb grin and yet now he looked serious.

    This affected the entire troop as they themselves followed suit. In the march they were talking and joking, now they were silent and starring.

    This was all they had worked up for. So much anxiety had built up towards the demons and now they were finally going to see one.

    It didn¡¯t take long. The Leader spotted it first, calling upon Malums squad to deal with the threat.

    Variant ¨C 002 known by soldiers as the Titanoboa: old language for Large Snake. It was as long as 50 tall human, and the iron weapons they had were known to only leave scratched on the beast.

    It had good offense and good defence. For a first opponent it was incredibly strong.

    Malums and his group however were convinced of their victory and as the beast slithered towards them they thought of their plan.

    Marching wasn¡¯t all they did and as much as Gerald liked to joke around Malum preferred productive talk and strategizing against variants was what the group liked the most.

    In terms of weakness¡¯ the beast had a weak point below its jaw. This was where the scratches would instead penetrate and so this was the target.

    To get it into that position, Jake and Alicia would distract the beast with their speed whilst Malum and Jerome would deal some annoying scratches to the beasts skin. Gerald would land the final hit and that was essentially the plan.

    Certainly wasn¡¯t perfect but none of them knew how the beast would react exactly so the plan would have to do.

    Rearing its head the beast finally grew close enough for the group to get a feel of its sheer size. It was as thick as an oak tree and its eyes were alone were as big as Malums head.

    The beast starred at them. Their eyes, a bewitching red.

    They felt it in their bones. These were the eyes of a predator and they were they prey.

    A battle wasn¡¯t completely physical. Seeing such a beast made Malum want to run away. He doubted himself, he doubted his group. How could they kill such a beast?

    But they had to. It was either of them, or it. So they charged forwards.

    Jake and Alicia broke ahead of the pack and began by splitting up towards either side of the beast. Ideally they would circle the beast as they dodge its attacks this would leave the other distractions some more breathing room whilst Gerald went in for the final hit.

    The Snake choose Jake as its opponent and slithered towards him first. Alicia maintained distance with the snake as Malum and Jerome closed in further. Jake himself was sweating immensely as he ran away from the beast.

    Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    He was faster, but stamina would favour the beast and especially in the desert dirt environment it held the advantage. Luckily for him, Malum and Jerome had finally closed in and with the Snakes low range of vision it only noticed the group once scratches began to etch itself onto its body.

    Feeling the rough skin against his sword. Malum could not help but curse. Reading about its defence was not as impactful as feeling the sword barely penetrate the beasts skin as the force instead vibrated back into Malum muscles.

    The recoil hurt but Malum continued to slash further. The sharp edge of the blade quickly becoming duller as it wore itself against the skin.

    The beast began to slither back onto itself, to see who dared to attack its body. Jake now turned back to help distract the beast further. Alicia caught the eye of the beast as she purposely waved to get its attention.

    Seeing its prey act so audaciously, the Snake let out of hiss as it went full speed towards Alicia. This knocked Jake and Jerome of the beast where they were continuing their assault.

    Gerald meanwhile was observing the beast and trying to find and opportunity at the beasts neck. It was aware of its own weakness so it guarded it more than its armoured body. An opportunity would be needed as stamina was slowly drained from the group.

    Axing away at the beasts iron like skin, Malum felt his stamina quickly draining away. As the Leader he would need to adapt their strategy and he felt now was around the right time.

    Right now they were going nowhere, they needed to force the opportunity rather than wait it out.

    He needed the beast to rear its head, the opponent would need to be close. With that in mind Malum shouted to Jerome as he updated him. And the two went closer to the head as they adapted to their new plan.

    Instead of itching the beats they would instead go for the head. Its eyes were also weak points and so that was their target.

    Alicia was running like hell, as the crumbling dirt below her was quickly pushed against so she could make distance from the incoming beast. The air, at least, was fresh and the temperature was fairly mild.

    How they were going to fight in the peak of summer was still a haunting question she would soon have to face. As she continued she felt the beast stop for a moment and turned to see Malum and Jerome had caught up to the head.

    At first, she panicked as that was not the plan but seeing the expression of her Leader she knew that the situation was alright.

    As she ran back to the beast, Malum and Jerome had updated Jake and all three were focused on harassing the beasts head.

    Gerald had found an opportunity to climb onto the beast and as he slowly made his way towards the head. The group slowly felt the situation turn for the better.

    The beast had its eye of all three of the rats who were attacking it. The small metallic sticks they held were the only part that itched him and yet their speed was shockingly fast.

    They were like flies and so at first it wanted to escape but they just wouldn¡¯t leave him alone. Another fly joined them and that only made it worse, so instead of running the beast focused attacking the first fly that had attacked him. Jake.

    The beast slithered towards him. Holding his sword Jake thought of ways he could finally create that opportunity. Seeing the beast, an idea came to his head. It was madness but he reckoned it would work.

    He was getting tired and his brain was on overdrive to end the situation so he could continue his restful pleasures. This was it and so he turned to face the beast, then he ran at full speed towards it mouth.

    Seeing his mad squad member, Malum questioned Jake¡¯s sanity but quickly tried to find reasons behind his strange change in movement. So far they had been avoiding its mouth, afraid of the sharp teeth it held but now Malum found the reason why Jake was running towards it.

    He signalled to Gerald that his opportunity would soon come and also joined in as they all ran together.

    Jake took a deep breath as he continued to run towards the beasts mouth.

    Closer and closer Jake thought of his next movement with as much detail as his brain could fathom. He was going to turn, as fast as he could, using the beasts blind spot to hide his change and then stab the beast in the eye.

    Closer and closer, his heart beat rising faster and faster. All into the moment they met.

    Jake felt the beasts speed, faster than expected. Rushing towards him, he doubted but didn¡¯t have time to hesitate so he moved as fast as his body let him.

    Muscle strained against the order, adrenaline pushing his body to limits it didn¡¯t know. The movement wasn¡¯t hard, like a simple sidestep. It was the speed at which it was achieved which allowed him to plunge his sword into the beasts eye.

    Jake felt some of his leg muscles give up on him. Luckily the beast was rearing its head and didn¡¯t noticed his wounded figure in its now far larger blind spot. Out of energy, Jake hoped his teammates would finish of the beast. Now it was time for him to rest.

    The beast was overjoyed that the fly seemed to give up. Running towards its mouth, the beats opened its jaw to swallow his annoyance whole but instead of human flesh it tasted he instead saw the human side step its mouth as it saw a sword flying towards its eye.

    As a snake turning was hard, its body simply didn¡¯t do the movement as easy as other predators. It hadn¡¯t faced this fly¡¯s kind before and seeing it move so quickly sideways had surprised the beats to no end.

    Feeling its eye bleed. The metal stick slowly bleeding his vision into a pure red and half of all the beats could see faded into blood.

    Afraid, the beats began to curl up. Protecting his weak points with his solid skin. Turning into a small mound, the Snake felt safe as darkness surrounded itself.

    Gerald was inside this black abyss. He had managed to sneak inside the ball of snake by hitching a ride on its back and thankfully the Beast had yet to notice him.

    He could hear the beast breathing. The rise and fall of the lungs, the steady and rhythmic heart beat all only enhanced by the pitch-black darkness his eyes could see.

    The neck was his target, and the beasts glowing eyes would guide him there. He could see them, the red eye reflecting off its impenetrable skin. He could see where the head was, he could smell the blood from Jake¡¯s wound.

    He closed in slowly, making sure he wouldn¡¯t be noticed by the beast. His smell was covered, now it was just movement he would need to mask.

    Slowly he moved down the beasts skin, but the beast had closed its eye. His source of light was gone.

    Careful not to panic, Gerald thought back to where its head was. He visualised where he would need to go, and began taking steps towards his objective.

    He slowed his breathing, making sure his heart wouldn¡¯t give him away. It wasn¡¯t fear that would be give him away. Feeling his own smile, excitement would the perpetrator. Never had Gerald felt so thrilled. Sparing was fun, but this was a different level of fun.

    One step, two steps. Skin turned to dirt, as he found himself closer to the head. Then, he pulled his sword, aimed and slashed as hard as his body allowed him to.

    He felt the blade hit something, then thankfully it managed to push through. The smell of blood erupted and Gerald felt the small abyss he was in release as small gabs appeared within the snakes position.

    With its body no longer forcing itself closed Gerald once again saw sunlight.

    Slowly climbing out, Gerald and the squad rushed together as they felt the immense joy over their victory.

    A demon was dead and they had killed it.

    Luck had certainly played a large role in the win but Malum didn¡¯t care. At that moment all he felt was joy. Hope that he wouldn¡¯t survive became more certain he saw mighty demon fall at his own efforts.

    As the group celebrated their victory they saw the others watching from a hill nearby come closer. They as well were happy at seeing the demon eliminated but the Troop Leader was full of criticisms.

    ¡°Tell me again the basic rule of Demon Subjegation.¡±

    Like a flock of birds they chirped the rule, ¡°Safety is priority number 1.¡±

    ¡°Right then so did we forget this before or during your risky kill.¡±

    Malum did have to admit that Jake took an unnecessary risk. He had not seen clearly his sidestepping of the Snake but from the weakness of Jake¡¯s movement Malum could guess the man had strained something to hard.

    ¡°And not only that but you also left too much to luck. You better say your prayers to the God of Luck because the actions that got you the kill were mostly that.¡±

    Jake wanted to defend that but Malum nudged him enough to get him to be quiet. The Troop Leader was clearly more experienced in this regard and such his judgment was going to be better than some kid who had only fought once.

    Intelligence was a good asset, but sometimes it made Jake think he was the most knowledgeable person in the room. Experience wasn¡¯t something Jake usually faced against.

    Removing the tension, the Troop Leader spoke again.

    ¡°However, as lucky and reckless you where you did kill the thing so congratulations. No deaths or even severe injuries will get you a reward once we are back as base camp. Your plan whilst flawed still worked in the end so again, well done.

    The next group will be the opposite end of the spectrum, Doom n¡¯ Gloom it¡¯s your turn. Once we find the beast and I set you off remember that safety is priority number one.¡±

    ¡°Sir, yes Sir.¡± The Squad let out.

    The Squad Leader had long given names to the squads and they based mostly off the tournament rankings. Their nickname was Stars because they were all doing extremely well in the rankings and were only rising higher.

    The joyful mood continued for a short while as the group felt universally relieved that their objective was even possible. So much had they heard that demons where this unbeatable enemy heard only in legends and the fact that they had seen one die really let these expectations come to reality.

    That happy mood. Talking about how perhaps they would return home, dimmed immediately once the Doomed came back from their hunt.

    At first, everything seemed to be going well. They were faced against another Variant ¨C 002 and Malum watched as they turned into smaller figures as they closed in.

    Their tactic remained the same as Malum¡¯s group. Afterall, they had succeeded doing it so why wouldn¡¯t they.

    Reality hit them harshly. The Snake used its tail to knock a distracted member to the ground and with surprising speed, Malum watched as he saw that same tail knocked the ground where the member now laid stunned.

    Again. It smashed the member its tail, again, and again, and again.

    He saw the tail reflect red. He heard the Troop Captain roar as he ran down to help the group but it was too late.

    The death of one stunned the others and by the time they had realised that running was their best option another two fell.

    The Troop Leader made quick work of the beast, his sword ignoring the tough hide and cleanly built up enough deep wounds to end the beast.

    It was only a few minutes, yet the group of 59 had soon become 56.

    Malum would be lying he said he didn¡¯t think they were going to die. But on their first hunt? To a beast not even of a higher variant.

    The Snake was deadly, but that was only if you let down your guard. Otherwise, the matchup between human and beast just favoured the human and yet the beast had managed to half wipe a group.

    A single demon.

    3 lives were lost.

    Patrick, Edward and Ronny. They were gloomy and depressing but each held a personality, a story. To be lost to something so avoidable hurt the troop and worse was the Troop Leader¡¯s words after.

    ¡°Honestly, I thought more were going to die. With that speed, that strength, the fact that two survived was a better result than I expected.¡±

    He was interrupted by Bear, ¡°You knew they were going to die?¡±

    ¡°Oh, of course not. I didn¡¯t know they would die; I just expected them to. They just didn¡¯t put in the effort needed to survive and this is the result.¡±

    Silence... never had it been so deafening. The Troop Leader didn¡¯t so much as reveal his true colours as he never really hid them in the first place. Their lives, here, were worth nothing.

    Even in the Kingdom, they weren¡¯t worth that much but they weren¡¯t thrown away like that.

    In war though, in the battleground they stood. Their lives were worth a few words of sympathy.

    People protested the Troop Leader actions, but he could simply kill them at that moment and nothing would be done about it. Insubordination and although he would have to write up a report, and he could kill everyone here.

    Who would care? Their families, they already knew them to be dead. Nobody else in this realm would care and that realisation weighed on the group.

    All throughout the hunt. Other variants were met, and two more soldiers died.

    Authur and John.

    All the bodies were carried with the group. To be sent to the underworld in due time, although for the group they just acted as a fearful reminder of the consequences of single error.

 Chapter 19

    They left far different then when they entered. And it wasn¡¯t only the 5 people they had lost during the mission.

    What was once used to joke now became sensitive subjects. Malum also noticed that many had trouble sleeping.

    The march back was unusually silent although a few continued to make small talk and joke. People handed grief in different ways.

    Malum eyes remained stable as he stared at his sword. Up and down, swing after swing. Inside his head the emotion that once clouded his judgment became more stable. Reason had to be above emotion.

    He swung harder and harder, blood and bruises brought back the cool head he was always proud of.

    He questioned sometimes if it was healthy, sustainable. No was answer, but the other choices could lead to his death and Malum would rather be a heartless lunatic than a dead martyr.

    His goal was revenge, and more answers.

    For it he needed to stay strong.

    His grip remained stable and he continued to swing.

    Alicia had long noticed the squads pain. She was sensitive to when those around her were feeling those kind of things. Experience told her some words would do them all well.

    The only exception was Gerald. He was pretty insensitive anyway but today he seemed moreso than usually. Unlike everyone else, his eyes were full of happiness. Almost obsession if she was correct. It looked like when her local priest talked about his God, those kind of eyes.

    She left him with that, she wasn¡¯t sure at all how to fix whatever issue it was, if it even was an issue in the first place.

    Her Husband was perhaps the easiest one to do. Just talking to him tended to brighten his mood. Something she had noticed in her many years of being with him, was that the man hated to be admonished.

    She didn¡¯t know exactly why; she had met his family and they seemed fine but Alicia had known enough abused children and their habits to know that Jake had clearly walked out that house with some scars.

    Nobody was perfect, and Jake was at least kind and so she took what she could. In the Dao where most wives were abused as much as the children, she had chosen to ensure her safety first. Her mother¡¯s advice was never wrong.

    With some kind words, and a hug, Jake was back to his usual self. Next on her list was Jerome.

    Jerome personally knew a few of the fallen, she had seen him occasionally speak to them from time to time. Seeing the deaths had weighed him down so much Alicia said some words of assurance.

    Alicia saw how Jerome put on a brave face and smiled her away. She knew her job wasn¡¯t done but she also knew that she could no longer be the one to do it.

    She looked to the man she knew, Jerome looked up to the most, Malum. The Leader was swinging as always. Although this time blood was slowly falling from the blade. He clearly was far to immersed in his training and hadn¡¯t noticed the damage he was doing.

    She rushed up and patted him on the shoulder, he swung around to hit her but managed to stop before he hit her.

    Alicia sighed in relief seeing Malum was looking at her realising what he had done.

    ¡°Sorry, I was to focused. I nearly hit you, here take a cloth.¡± Malum reached into one of the pockets his belt had and noticed when he took the cloth out that his hand had already dyed it red.

    ¡°See why I stopped you now?¡± Seeing Malum had noticed the blood, he nodded and thanked Alicia again for stopping him.

    He wanted to walk away; Alicia knew this. He was the kind of man who didn¡¯t share at all with others. In fact, he purposely limited his own relationships. Alicia had noticed that habit he had but it was such a rarity she didn¡¯t know why he had picked it up. She could guess but that could do more harm than good.

    She pulled him back in and gave the quiet guy a hug. He felt pain, she knew he did, and so she gave him a shoulder to cry on.

    Obviously he didn¡¯t cry, it was the dust.

    After the hug, she told him to cheer Jerome up. He looked at her with thanks and she thanked him back. Malum had trained her to a level she never thought possible, he was a surprisingly good teacher and he always pushed her to the limits.

    He was a lot like her father and he was a man who Alicia had nothing but respect for.

    They parted ways, and Alicia soon returned to her tent.

    A day or two more of hunting would be in order but with the wave soon so they would have to get in as much experience as possible.

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    By the time they returned the third month had begun to count down. 30 days untill the frontlines called and another 10 before their next outing.

    A tournament would be held tomorrow, and Malum was looking forward to seeing the advancement of his Troop.

    Before all of that, they had death ceremony to do.

    Authur, John, Patrick, Edward and Ronny.

    Their weapons were first returned and then they were stripped down to their naked bodies. Malum learned that the Troop Leader was actually a priest of the God of Rain and such he had the authority to call upon a Reaper.

    Malum had seen the ceremony a few times and it explained the afterlife almost entirely.

    The bodies were placed on a wooden alter and after the Priest offered a drop of blood and called upon the Underworld then soon its Reapers would arrive.

    These were not Gods, they were soldiers. The Afterlife was written about in many books and his Uncle often spoke of his theories about it.

    A different realm, under the Dao, one which mortals and cultivators alike would go to after death.

    Black hands appeared from the now burning wood. Orange and black merged as the hands began to cover the bodies and they soon dragged them into their world.

    Nobody left the Underworld, so nobody knew truly what it was like there. All that was told in bibles were that it was the place where souls were purged and the clean souls then returned to the Living Realm.

    It was strange when Malum first saw it, but now the ceremony was like any other. The reapers were uncanny but repetition brought about normality and everyone got used to it.

    Some saw it as a proof of God, same as disaster such as Tsunamis and Hurricanes. As far as Malum was concerned it was as natural as the sun rising. A bit like the marriage ceremony, it was too embedded into culture for anyone to see anything strange about it.

    Some legends said about a God of Death but their churches never grew large enough for their stories to become mainstream.

    The spectators partied around the pyre in an effort to reenact an old tale. It went that a terrible king had once died and as they sent of the kings body, the party was so enjoyable that the Reapers joined in on the activities. This gave the damned one last day to enjoy their life and it had happened to one of the people least deserving of the gift. At least the tale told of the misery of the reborn king.

    Alas the party clearly wasn¡¯t happy enough, Malum watched as the Reapers slowly left. Their boned hands slowly returning to the Realm they belonged to. Perhaps there was more to it, but Malum had neither the strength nor time to care. Life came first, death was for after that.

    Another round of tournaments came and went, a strength, endurance and speed test followed. Overall, Malum was still ranked first and the others either increased in rank or remained the same.

    It took 3 days for those tests to be completed and after another show of his monster endurance Malums notoriety continued to increase.

    Another group of pigs entered the slaughterhouse. The recruits getting their first hell was quite a sight for the Troop to enjoy.

    There was not much intermingling of Troops, as far competitions went they didn¡¯t interact at all. It made sense, considering cohesion between the groups but Malum wouldn¡¯t have disliked beating down some newbies to relieve some of his stress.

    People had now learned more of the consequences of slacking and so entering the final month everyone began to put in their all. Instructors fully capitalised on this increased motivation and put them to work through all the tortures their minds could think off.

    By the time the second hunt came around Malum had seen significant general improvements in the entire group. No longer were people half-arsing their training as they realised the stakes behind their deployment.

    That led to far less deaths then the first, only one female was lost to an unfortunate mistake.

    Lara.

    Her sword was returned and she passed onto the next realm.

    After 10 days more of brutal training, Malum had but two single days before him and his Troop were deployed.

    They were in the mess hall where they were enjoying the nutrient rich cardboard they were now being force-fed. The taste was best left unmentioned but the effects were profound. Malum felt energised from less sleep and his endless stamina became even more endless.

    Malum even questioned if they drugged the food, considering the poor taste of most herbal mixtures and Malum felt he was heading in the right direction.

    Nevertheless, he chewed on and chatted with his squad members occasionally. They were talking about the frontlines, and how they thought it would be organised.

    ¡°A long wall which we defend. Different troops protect a certain amount of wall and we swap every few hours during a wave.¡± That was Jake¡¯s rather hopeful theory.

    ¡°You think this kingdom could afford walls? What, made of straw? Nah I reckon we hold between certain small mountains and the troops have to swap between each other during a wave.¡± Gerald opinion was quite the opposite, pessimistic but Malum still reckoned it would be closer to the truth.

    They would find out soon enough, after all, they were getting a few more lessons from the Troop Leader himself.

    After they ate, they went to exactly one of those. The first of many.

    ¡°Alright sit-down soldiers.¡± That was the first time he ever called them that. He moved swiftly on,

    ¡°Today I am chatting to you about your chains of command. So as you have probably learned by now I will be joining you on your march towards hell and for your knowledge I have completed 8 tours of the Northern Front and 3 tours of the Southern Front.

    That won¡¯t mean too much to any of you, a tour is known as 6 months on the frontlines and completing two of those gets you enough to leave this godforsaken place. I haven¡¯t, for several reason you will never learn, so do not ask.

    I know how to survive, listen to me and you should live. That¡¯s if you don¡¯t make any mistakes in combat. Above me I will be getting orders from some Barron kid but that shouldn¡¯t really do anything as nobody has ordered an advancement into demonic territory for decades.

    So, listen to me. I tell you to retreat and you retreat. I tell you to advance and you advance. Got it?¡±

    ¡°Sir, yes Sir.¡±

    He continued on about how the military functioned, and Malum learned more about the Southern front.

    ¡°Imagine Hell in Hell. If the Northern front has a survival rate of 2 percent than divide that by ten and you¡¯ve got the Southern one. You won¡¯t be deployed there as you weren¡¯t trained close enough, as long as you don¡¯t sign up to it then you¡¯ll be fine.¡±

    Malum found the stats lining up the number of tours his Troop Leader had been on to the survival rates was revealing as to how qualified he really was. Why he didn¡¯t leave and why he wasn¡¯t some higher-up Malum guessed it had something to do with how frank his Leader was.

    In nobility where flowery words were everything Malum could quickly see why his Leader disposition wouldn¡¯t match well.

    That was all well and good, but the countdown towards deployment was really getting on Malums nerves. Sleepless nights now became more common and he found his heart beat never calmed down.

    Death was really getting on his nerves. The afterlife was supposed to be something 40 or 50 years away where was his wife, his kids, his ambitions.

    He could do nothing but breath and train to get his mind off the disturbing thoughts.

 Chapter 20

    `Worry really is horrid.` Malum thought as he and the rest of the Troop, including the Leader, was stood in formation as they waited to receive one of the higher ups.

    That Baron kid the Leader had spoken off before. He was going to give some pep talk, and a rundown of his general defensive strategy.

    It sounded about as boring as it actually was.

    The Kid looked 14 at best, and whilst his suit looked great everything else about him screamed immature and dumb.

    He didn¡¯t even stand up for the address, he had ordered one of the guards on duty to fetch him a chair.

    An hour later, and everyone woke up again to the Leader voice.

    ¡°Wakey, wakey troop! We¡¯ve received our orders and our now making our way towards Southern Section number 17 so get your bags we march in twenty. Your swords are at the gate and... Nope that¡¯s it...¡±

    Was this really some war veteran. Malum wandered if he was some senile grandfather.

    ¡°Well off you go then!¡±

    Running back, Malum noticed the Baron had some complaints about the Troop Leader words. Everyone else in the camp acted subservient to the Noble but the Troop Leader didn¡¯t change a single bit. He even looked to argue back.

    Considering that the Baron was of the 3-star rank of Lieutenant then this kind of insubordination could get him killed yet the Troop Leader didn¡¯t seem to fear this pushback.

    Thoughts of his Leader¡¯s origin went round again in Malums head. No answer stuck out however so he and the group returned to the dormitory they had once arrived in.

    Looking around, memories of the place came to his head.

    Once Gerald returned from one of his showers at night, and because he thought it would be extremely funny he brought a bucket of water with him. Needless to say, waking up to a cold shower had everyone in the dormitory running after him with murderous intent.

    Another time, Alicia and Jake were having a serious lovers quarrel when Jerome spoke up to say a few words his parents used to get over their conflict. It worked and the two soon got married.

    Another time the group was just getting to know each other and Gerald had suggested a game of truth or dare. The truths told, and dangers completed were to be taken to the grave by all who had played.

    Malum didn¡¯t want to get closer to these people. He hated the fact that they would likely die in the coming few months. They were funny, good-hearted, amazing people that he didn¡¯t want to see die.

    All he could do was try his best. That¡¯s all he could do even though he wished he could do so much more.

    He breathed out a big sigh and continued to pack the memories he had made.

    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

    The march there wasn¡¯t anything special, just more of the Dao¡¯s endless beauty. Nobody had the heart to look around, instead most talked between each other or simply starred into the ground.

    Depression onset a few people. Malum couldn¡¯t say he was surprised.

    He felt it as well. That feeling of despair, the weight on his heart.

    It made everything seem bleak, even when beauty was in plain view.

    They marched on regardless, becoming a coward now seemed like pointless decision. They already had done all the training, might as well give hell a shot.

    The Troop Leader was surprisingly chatty. Mentioning more of his experiences in the front lines. Seemed Gerald pessimistic opinion was indeed closer although Jake did get the rotation between two Troops correct.

    It was more of a fence then a wall. After all it got moved nearly every wave and it was a far more feasible cost to the kingdom then some mighty wall.

    Instead the kingdom was rich in villagers, so it choose to use those instead. It made an annoying amount of logical sense but that didn¡¯t mean it was moral. That childish naivety was slowly peeling away as he found the world was more and more disappointing.

    Life continued anyway. And arriving at the outpost, Malum looked at his new home.

    It wasn¡¯t nearly as large as the encampment, but it held wooden walls that Malum thought looked somewhat stable.

    Entering through a gate, Malum watched as the Leader disappeared into one of the buildings as another Troop Leader came out of the same hut.

    ¡°Welcome fresh blood, good to see some new faces it been far to long. My name is Sun but you can call me Sunny. If an officials here my name is Troop Leader Sun.

    There are 3 buildings you care about here and that is the food hall to your left, the dorms up that path, and the equipment store to your right. In times out of waves we usually visit the nearby city to collect resources but obviously someone¡¯s got to protect the Line so as you¡¯re the newbies that privilege is yours.¡±

    A moan from the crowd managed to get the good news out of the situation. ¡°You can use your points for money to get pretty much anything delivered back by those going on the trip. As we all suffering together, we don¡¯t even take any fee.¡±

    That was good news, that meant new foods, new bedding, and anything other luxury they could want was available.

    He next pointed to the building he just exited from. It was the nicest of the surrounds shacks as it looked like it didn¡¯t leek.

    ¡°This is the administration building where you can check those very points. You should also see the conversion rates to the goods in the nearby city. Many come here saying that they wouldn¡¯t buy a thing but please do. Moral is so much more important than you think so don¡¯t keep yourself depressed.¡±

    Malum didn¡¯t completely agree with that. It did seem somewhat true but it also accounted for his interest in recruits remaining here. It wasn¡¯t right or wrong, it was grey.

    He continued on with his speech and went on and on about teamwork and unity. Unlike their Leader this one actually felt like a Leader or at least he spoke like one.

    He ended his spiel once their Troop Leader returned and after dismissing them, they got to exploring.

    Everything was like the encampment but worse. The benches in the mess hall more crooked, the beds in the dorms more creaky, the showers somehow colder.

    Since they arrived early, they had a few hours before sundown and with their time Malums squad decided to do some extra training. Many others choose to enjoy some traded goods from the store but Malum cared about one thing and one thing only, survival.

    Alicia and Jake at first wanted to join the Troop but Gerald and Jerome had sided with Malum. Ever since the demon hunt, Malum had noticed Gerald enthusiasm towards fighting had increased and with it he had grown to be a better fighter.

    Whatever had happened when he was fighting that snake, seemed to have really changed the way he thought about fighting. Now he enjoyed it, like it was a hunt. It wasn¡¯t anything bad, at least in Malums opinion, he just found the change to be interesting.

    Jerome usually voted on Malums side. Ever since he had joined the group, Malum had noticed Jerome tended to copy whatever he did and he rarely ever argued against him. Perhaps he was just a good subordinate and Gerald and Jake had messed up his idea of normal.

    A few good hours of sparring led to pitch darkness where the group then shuffled back to their dorms. The wave would come the next day and from what they had been told the first Troop would show them how it was done.

    His heart rate grew to new levels, no sleep managed to find Malum.

 Chapter 21

    The sunlight coming over the horizon managed to break Malums thought process. His eyes darted to the gaps in the sealing where the light infiltrated.

    It was hot, summer had come at full swing.

    Getting up because he had no reason to stay down any longer, Malum put on his clothes and equipped his star. The creaky wood woke his comrades from their shallow slumber, and soon they joined him in early morning training.

    Nobody else was awake, so just their grunts filled the practice ground. In reality it was just a dirt patch but that¡¯s what people used it for.

    As morning settled and the sun began to rise, sounds of others waking and moving towards the mess hall gave Malums Squad a reason to stop their training.

    Inside the mess hall, Malum found the other Troop eating their fill with only a few member of their own eating at the rotting tables.

    The nutrient paste was quickly eaten and the Troop Leaders soon entered. By that point, Malum had forced the paste down his throat and the members of his troop had dragged themselves in.

    The joyful Troop Leader, his name being forgotten by Malum, began to speak.

    ¡°The first of many, today some of you shall face your first wave. You have all hunted a beast now you will be the prey. During waves the beasts are more aggressive and many can be found in the same place.

    You will be grouped with another squad where they will teach you the ropes. As long as you remain calm and everyone works together your chances of survival are quite high. Now, before it reaches midday everyone must be in position. I wish you luck, Glory to the Isol Kingdom.¡±

    After a repeat from the crowd, mostly the other troop, everyone parted ways and began to exit the mess hall. After exiting the squads paired up.

    Malum decided to choose the group with what seemed to be the weakest people. In his eyes this outpost hadn¡¯t received reinforcements for 2 months which meant they were stronger than they looked or that they knew something.

    The skinny but tall man leading the Squad was called Tim and he had three squad members.

    Agatha was short and skinny woman but interestingly she held a bow on her back.

    Introducing himself as Roger, he was the strongest looking man in the group. He held a iron sword on his back and was solidly built. The only strange about him was that he wasn¡¯t as tanned as everyone else. He looked to be of Noble blood, although he had clearly not seen the benefits of his heritage.

    Finally, there was Trout. A man to fat to be on the frontlines but he was here anyway. He had a mace on his back and considering Malum would struggle to wield it, perhaps the fat hid the muscles.

    They seemed cheerful at least, and accepted Malums group with hugs and handshakes.

    ¡°We are section C, so follow me. Occasionally you¡¯ll see the direction etched on trees but for now just try to stay close. The fighting talk will wait till noon for now let¡¯s talk about each other. As said before my birthname¡¯s Tim and second is Gertrude.

    I come from Willow Village and I have 6 siblings, that I know off. My dads a bit of a ladies man and he¡¯s a merchant so he can afford it.¡±

    Malum couldn¡¯t help but speak up, ¡°I¡¯ve been to Willow village. Couldn¡¯t have been 4 years ago I reckon.¡±

    Tim looked at him in a new light and said, ¡°We must have met, Malum right...¡±

    He seemed to think before his eyes lit up, ¡°I know you! The strange travellers son, damn you¡¯ve really grown kid.¡±

    As Malum and Tim caught up the others talked amongst themselves as they formed a for combined troop than two separate groups. They mixed surprisingly well, with Alicia getting on really well with Agatha and Gerald getting on really well with Trout.

    By the time they crossed the line the nerves of everyone in the group had calmed consideringly, but the sight of the demonic wasteland brought them all back.

    ¡°This is your new home. For the next 30 ish hours you¡¯ll see demonic beast, soil and the sun. If any of you believe strongly in any God praying now is customary.

    None of Malums group were that religious but it didn¡¯t do any harm. So many choose between the God of Luck, the God of Hunting and Tim said one for the God of Nature.

    Willow Village was a farming community, one thar heavily relied on the yield of their crops such the village was dominated by the belief of Nature. They even had a priest if Malum remembered. It was a Good God so nobody found a problem with it.

    After they had said their words of hope, the combined troop walked deeper into the Wasteland where they found a few huts surrounded by torches.

    Fire scarred off a few demonic beats, but the shacks had clearly seen their fair share of warfare.

    ¡°This everyone is our Beacon. These are what we will defend and the torches are mainly to attract wave beasts and also to keep our vision during the night. Now take a good look around as this is where you will be defending very soon. Especially the terrain, getting lost during the wave is death sentence so study even the soil around you.¡±

    Malum could see no reason not to, the advice was sound so he got to work. There were twelve torches equally separated in a circle around the small shack. The dirt was fairly flat but clear evidence of previous battles had left many scares in the dirt that could act like markers.

    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    He also looked into the distance. Where hills looked from certain areas would give a good idea in which direction he would be facing. If he were to get lost, at least he would like to know which direction was deeper into demon territory and which one led to human civilisation.

    There were a few hills in demonic desert around them and their shapes allowed for Malum to get a better idea of which way was home. He could study the stars, but it wasn¡¯t always nighttime and he wasn¡¯t the best at star navigation.

    Trout, Agatha, Tim and Roger where all spending this time to reinforce the shacks. Inside their backs they had brought with them wood, a rusty saw, and some strong binds weed. With them, they repaired the shacks and built what looked like a fence.

    Malum had to admit they were good builders, Trout especially seemed adept at building and Malum guessed he did it before he was sent here.

    Malum had not stopped his investigation as to why this squad seemed to survive and with this he had found his first lead.

    After the dirt had been analysed, the group reformed and Tim set the next task as massive feast. Eating during the wave was dangerous as demons were attracted to food more than they were to fire so they rushed through the torches and tended stamp them out as they came.

    This led to many complete annihilations of squads and so rules were set on eating. It was a bit like a fast that many churches did, one big meal before the wave and one right after as well.

    Malum¡¯s group prepared a fire as Tim¡¯s squad went to hunt the food. Demonic beasts could be eaten but rarely were as it was seen as bad luck. They had done it before on their hunting trip and they were doing it here because bad luck wasn¡¯t enough to stop them doing it.

    ¡°What is it going to do, kill us?¡± Trout said as he laughed. Gerald joined him and most smiled at the joke. It helped relieve some of the pressure, it would only be an hour or two before midday came.

    With the demonic corpse now here Malum studied the wounds for his investigation as it cooked. As Trout and Gerald continued to banter, Malum found slices down it neck that were clean and precise.

    It was variant ¨C 001 otherwise known as the Ankylosaurus roughly meaning armoured lizard. Considering the hard shell on the lizards back, this was an aptly named creature. It held a club on the back of its tail, and held several horns on its protruding face.

    It had good defence and decent offense with lacking speed and mobility.

    One wound meant one strike. Malum took another look at Tim. He was stronger than he could have guessed.

    With only one wound that meant Malum had nothing to infer so he listened into the banter to relieve his stress. As the sun rose to a peak, the banter wasn¡¯t enough for Malums heart beat to rise with it.

    The sun rose to its peak.

    At first, nothing changed. The precise moment it became midday was lost to everyone so the little moment where the unfathomable power activated was unknown.

    Instead it was the effects that they witnessed.

    Immediately, a variant crested the nearest mound and charged towards the fire. Variant ¨C 11, a Carnotaurus was a large beats with great hight and great speed. With its strong tail and speed, it was a threat to any mortal human.

    Malum and his troop watched as Tim and his squad moved out to face the Beast.

    Agatha took a small vantage position and fired a few arrows at the beasts legs. Although it didn¡¯t stop the beast it slowed the beast down to where Tim could meet the beast in open combat.

    Power was weight and speed this was something Malum already knew and used methodically to strategies. What he saw next gave him another idea towards the concept of power.

    As the Tim met the charging beast, he dodged the heads horns easily and went for the legs. He heavily damaged one of the two legs of the beast which would severely limit any movement from that moment fourth.

    Incapacitated the beast was as good as dead and with a clean slice of the blade the shining red eyes grew darker and darker untill they faded to black.

    He didn¡¯t use his own speed. Tim didn¡¯t swing his sword that fast, and yet the leg had come cleanly off. The enemies movement had worked against it when the blade met the leg.

    It ran into the knife and its speed met the blade but how did the blade best the leg. The leg no doubt would have weighed more, and it clearly was going faster so Malum struggled to see how it made sense.

    He took his sword out of its sheath and gently hit it against a nearby rock. As expected, the blade failed to penetrate the rock and instead the blade recoiled back.

    Malum pondered upon his sword and shield training. He thought back to the words of his instructor and to those of his martial book. Even as far as his Uncles many words did he think back to.

    Iron was stronger than that demons leg. However it was also stronger than the rock he had just hit. Material wasn¡¯t the answer but Malum couldn¡¯t think of what it was.

    After a few more ideas that turned to disappointment, Malum shelved the idea and focused back on the wave. Survival was priority number one so he looked back to see what he could copy from Tim¡¯s squad.

    Tim was fast, almost inhumanly so. If Malum hadn¡¯t seen his Uncle do some sprinting, he would have been the fastest person he had ever seen run.

    His reflexes as well, were trained to a degree which made Malums look slow.

    Roger was strong and acted as good support whenever more than one demon arrived. If Tim was the butcher, Agatha was the doorman, Roger was the assistant and Trout was the delivery man.

    Whenever a demon strayed from it path, ignoring Agatha¡¯s assault, Trout would reel it back towards the Butchers hand. The system they created put a lot of pressure of Tim to make quick concise kills and Tim certainly did not disappoint.

    6 hours later, and a small mountain of corpses lined the back of the Outpost. Agatha had to recollect her arrows and it was good not to clutter the battlefield so a neat pile of demon now acted as Malums Squad view point.

    Malum had learned more than he could have imagined. Learning about weakness¡¯ and seeing them exploited first hand was enlightening towards Malums warrior prowess. He now felt confident in taking a few more beasts on and he would soon get the chance.

    Midday had turned into evening and that signalled to Malum that his group was up next. They had already adapted their plan to try out the Tim method of killing beasts.

    Malum was obviously the butcher although he was joined by Gerald and Jerome. Alicia and Jake were going to be the delivery men. If it didn¡¯t work they would change it, but giving it a go especially under the guidance of Tim and his squad was the best idea everyone could think off.

    Walking out into the field, Malum sat down and waited. Resting during idle periods was something Tim stressed, he would be here for 6 hours he would need to rest while he could.

    It didn¡¯t take long before Alice and Jake had brought their first prey. A version of Variant ¨C 001 that looked small and clearly ha less defence but also looked incredibly fast. Alicia and Jake were fighting the beast off as the ran towards them and an issue arose as they weren¡¯t faster than the beast.

    With the human size demon going to scratch her legs, Alicia had to roll to doge the beasts incoming attack. She quickly went back on her feet but the demon recovered faster, it dived again and before Alicia was about to sustain an injury Jake slashed the Variant with his sword.

    Somehow the beast dodged mid-air by moving its body but the time it gave allowed for Alicia to dodge the Demon. Malum sent Jerome to help them as he realised that the demonic beast would be a pain to deliver so he sent a butcher there instead.

    It didn¡¯t take long once he arrived for Jerome to find an opportunity to cut one the beats legs. With it slowed, the beast soon died to Jerome¡¯s sword.

    Malum thought about how he could adapt his team to avoid future problems but couldn¡¯t think of anything; that Variant was simply too quick and the only way that could be solved was for Alicia and Jake to be faster.

    More variants came and soon they were facing up to 4 at the same time. Many dangers were narrowly avoided with death being a real possibility many times.

    Blood was spilt, tactics were changed, and tribulations were overcome.

    With the help of Tim only twice, they managed to survive the first six hours.

 Chapter 22

    With a scrap piece of cloth, Malum pulled it around a particularly nasty cut on his leg. It wasn¡¯t deep but the pain was starting to drive Malum mad.

    The person who came out with the least injuries was Jake and he was using his healthy body to nurse the rest of the team back to health.

    Bruises were common, muscle strain even moreso. Whether it be arms, or legs both looked like they had been tortured of everything it had.

    Malum watched as everyone around, the people he cared out most wept from their injuries. Having the cloth being pulled as tight as possible around the wound made even a grown man cry.

    The sky was cloudy over the dirt desert. The fires had long become the only sources of light and Malums group huddled around the shack.

    He could hear Tim¡¯s group. With Trout using a torch to lure beasts as Tim stayed around the 12 corners. Agatha was somewhere, in the abyss of darkness. Occasionally an arrow would find it¡¯s way on demon.

    This was the safest she ever was, demons mainly relief on sight just liked humans and other senses were easy to mask.

    The bow being a target wasn¡¯t so much of an issue at night when that target was hidden so well. Seeing it be used to it¡¯s maximum potential, Malum had to admit that this group was on a different league of efficiency and skill.

    Malum had tried to kill the beasts quickly but desire never quite matched reality. He would end up cutting to shallow, or not getting the angle right leading to barely cutting the beast in the first place. He had to do better.

    Sadly, he needed to rest now. Overwork wouldn¡¯t do him any good so he sucked it up for when he woke up.

    Jake couldn¡¯t sleep, and neither could Jerome.

    Alicia, Gerald and Malum all managed to doze off but the two never managed to catch any sleep. At some point they gave up and instead decided to talk.

    The sounds of beasts fighting behind them soon became white noise as they began to chatter.

    ¡°You really do tend to copy Malum don¡¯t you.¡± Jake wandered sometimes why he looked up so much to Malum. In Jake¡¯s eyes Malum was too ambitious, it would end with him achieving whatever goal he wanted or he would die trying. Why would somebody want to copy that?

    Jerome looked at Jake, ¡°Have you always felt that their was meaning for your life?¡± He let Jake think before he continued, ¡°When I was younger I had several siblings. Our family was always about results and it was why we were successful.

    The family house was large, the vault had several golds locked inside and the business we ran was doing well.¡±

    Jerome looked away, towards the sky.

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t like the rest of my family. They wanted the money, the woman, the house. You know I¡¯m the oldest son, I would have gotten everything if I had wanted. Yet, I didn¡¯t.¡± He looked back at Jake.

    ¡°Care to guess why?¡±

    Jake¡¯s mind went into overdrive. Several ideas sprouted and were eliminated however no answer was guaranteed so he found the most likely one.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t want it. You lack the motivation and was likely cast away here because of one of your siblings.¡±

    Jerome smiled at Jake, ¡°Your partly right. Yes I lack the motivation, but I wasn¡¯t cast here just by one of my siblings. It was a family decision to send me here. My father, mother, other siblings, I was there for the vote. Who to send on the death mission.

    I hate them. Sending me to death, I by right should be the next head of the family and yet I¡¯m here soon to die. The reason I look up to Malum is because he holds the same desire as me, survival. He is my role model, if I follow him because by doing so I increase my odds of returning home and claiming what is rightfully, mine.¡±

    Jake found Jerome confidence to be astounding. Never had he seen the man so determined in his words before. If before he was meek, he spoke now like a lion. Once he was done, Jake began to tell his own story.

    ¡°I feel like I should start by saying I¡¯m an only child to a father who I¡¯m pretty certain isn¡¯t actually my father. Our looks are too dissimilar and whenever I ask he always moves to my mother.

    Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    He¡¯s a crook. He man of lies, and yet I¡¯m supposed to believe in only his word. Luckily his family was pretty well off as they had some horse business so he managed to avoid the gallows more than once. After a particular incident he was exiled to live in the village we lived in.

    As many of the children in the village, I wanted to be a scholar. I did the screening test and passed with flying colours and not a year later I went to do the Scholars test expecting the same results.

    I failed, with a score not even half of what you would need to pass. I have never failed in anything knowledge based and yet I didn¡¯t even come close. Many would accept their own stupidity but I know my own intellect so I researched into the Scholars examination.

    That year, those that did pass had a strange correlation. Every one of them had an already qualified teacher or was linked to a certain organisation, whether that be nobility or a merchants company.

    I looked deeper; the whole thing was rigged. At some point it wasn¡¯t even hidden. Offers of jobs came with the benefit of getting a passing grade and with-it years of labour would be needed in service.

    At the time I figured this all out me and Alicia, finally decided to get together. I moved away from all that and took a job and as a mail runner. I can ride a horse you know, real fast as well.

    I won¡¯t go into why I was drafted; me and Alicia were a package but it¡¯s her story to tell. That my life,¡± He chuckled, ¡°soon to end by one of these demons I¡¯m sure.¡±

    Jerome and Jake continued to talk about there best memories and aspirations. Death made embarrassment fade, and pride shine as they talked about what made them, them.

    They talked for several hours, untill they found Tim and his squad return to the outpost. Something they quickly noticed was that Trout had suffered a heavy injury and even Tim had caught himself a few bad cuts.

    As Jerome went to get the first aid, Jake asked Tim, ¡°What happened?¡±

    Leaning on Roger¡¯s arm Tim looked at Jake and showed a rare frown.

    ¡°Variant 28 was what happened. Get your friends up they should cover us while we get healed up. We¡¯ll cover whatever time we have left.¡±

    Jake looked to the sky for the time and found it to be around 4 ish, the sun was about to come up and he could see its first sliver of light around the horizon. That and his mental clock was always about right.

    He quickly followed Tim¡¯s words, gathering the rest of his squad and quickly getting out into the field. By right, Jake had realised long ago that he could have forced Tim back into the field, but friends were always better than enemies especially when they were surrounded by Demons.

    He had informed Malum of Tim¡¯s words and surprisingly Malum reacted positively to the news. He didn¡¯t understand why, but he trusted his Leaders instinct.

    Jerome was searching the outpost for the medical supplies. `What bag are they in!` he thought as the rummaged through the bags of the other squads.

    He found several interesting items that clearly came from the city, but he hadn¡¯t the time to judge them when he felt that wasting time could lead to a bad infection.

    Not finding anything in their bags, Jerome looked through his own squads and found them in his own bag. He knew they were carrying supplies but next time he swore to find this out beforehand.

    With the entire bag in hand, he ran over to the bleeding trout where he found Agatha holding down a cloth on his wound.

    He looked for his squad but found them all to be protecting them from the demons. He soon ignored that fact and focused on treating Trout¡¯s wounds. Looking at the injury, Jerome guessed he would be there for several hours. Instead of panicking, Jerome focused and began to work.

    As the sun rose Malum found himself waiting on some of Tim¡¯s group and Jerome to do the rest of their time. Occasionally he looked to see what they were doing but with demons at his heals he couldn¡¯t exactly go and check up on them.

    He assumed the worst at times and stamina was really starting to cause issues on the battlefield. If Agatha hadn¡¯t started providing covering fire, Malum guessed that they wouldn¡¯t have seen the sun begin to rise to its peak.

    Malum was tempted to go and ask her but found the demons never gave him a chance. He had to give it to Gerald as the man had really begun to find his element.

    Even compared to himself, Gerald was starting to become a demon slaughtering machine. The man had a talent and Malum could only thank the Gods that the talent was on his squad.

    With demons blood now colouring his clothes, Malum looked up to see the Sun rise to its peak. He laid back onto the dirt as he gave his muscles some rest.

    He couldn¡¯t sleep there though, demons still roamed the outskirts after all so he dragged himself back to the outpost where he found the rest of the squad gathering up.

    He could now see Tim and his group, Jerome seemed to be doing something but Malum was to tired to care. Who would stay on lookout, who would lead the group?

    All were questions Malum couldn¡¯t care about as he fell sound asleep in the safety of the outpost.

    Tim looked around to see Malums group had crawled back in. Looking up he noticed that the wave was already over.

    He breathed sigh of relief as he continued to look over Trout. The injuries of that man was directly his fault and Tim wished nothing but the man to survive.

    He had taken a blow clearly meant for him and so Tim owed him immensely. Jerome¡¯s help was invaluable and so now Tim would also owe him considering how Trout¡¯s life might have been saved in most part due to his actions.

    For an ambitious man like Tim, owing so much bothered him to no end and because he was also injured he also owed something to Malums squad for covering his Squads shift.

    He held his hand to his head.  Then he looked down to his torso where he found a large cut going across his peck. Tim could only thank the Gods that Trout had given him enough time to get this little of an injury. If the variant had succeeded in it¡¯s attack he wouldn¡¯t have come back in one piece.

    He was alive, that was the important part and with it his debts would be repayable and his ambitions could be fulfilled. First he needed to heal, so he assigned Roger to stand guard and let everyone else fall asleep.

    Everyone rested from the disaster of a day. Considering none had died it count as a wildly successful first wave although it would take them until they returned back to camp to realise how much that was true.

 Chapter 23

    It took 3 days for them to return. With injuries healing and exhaustion to work on, they didn¡¯t march until they were fully restored.

    They got a week until they had to return; this time was covered by previous training camps going on their hunts.

    The Outpost¡¯s atmosphere was depressed. They got a return speech from their Captain and Malums group got an explanation as to why they hadn¡¯t seen him.

    The Troop Leader had the authority to mix, match, and join any group he deemed fit. He left Malums group because they were likely to survive and didn¡¯t change any group as that¡¯s what they had trained towards. What he did do was join the groups who he thought had the potential to survive.

    From 59 at the very start. Now there was 36 of them left. More than 15 lives had been lost in a single 24-hour period and even that was extremely good.

    Oliver, George, Harry, Jack, Jacob, Charlie, Thomas, William, James, Henry, Alfie, Joshua, Freddie, Archie, Oscar, Leo, Amelia.

    The ceremony was held and Malum noticed that this alter was made of stone. Looking around it was the highest quality item Malum had seen in his time in the military.

    Considering its amount of use, it was certainly justified.

    Sadness was the wrong word for what the atmosphere felt like. Now they looked at the bodies in apathy, or guilt.

    There was 1 other body that was with them, a Veteran who had died protecting some of the new recruits. His ceremony was extra special, with candles and flowers and hymns.

    Malum only managed to question the wastage of them. His mind was too used to cold hearted logic that he could only see waste in the ceremony and he soon found the reason.

    When you died with extra points the state didn¡¯t reimburse the families with their loved ones points for them to use. Of course they didn¡¯t, instead they used the points on these things and the rest followed disappeared with them into the afterlife.

    Humans never failed to let Malum down further. The world grew a darker shade of grey.

    To try and cheer himself back up, Malum went with the group to check his points situation and to see how close he was to escaping the hell he resided in.

    Relieved from Duty ¨C Cost ¨C 10000 Credits

    Looking back at the ticket home, hope managed to crawl back into Malums heart. If he got that, he could then begin his journey into cultivation. He just needed to bide his time and get there.

    Now to look at his points, he handed his badge into the receptionist and she soon returned.

    ¡°You¡¯re the group from Section C, Tim¡¯s group right?¡±

    ¡°Yes¡± Malum replied, not seeing how it was relevant.

    ¡°Then to explain your points, I must explain that Tim personally transferred some points into each of your badges. Is Jerome here?¡±

    He was, and he raised his hand. ¡°Here.¡±

    The receptionist showed a yellow grin, ¡°Then your lucky because he gave you extra.¡±

    Then he explained each of their points,

    ¡°Malum you had received 500 points by the end of your training period, that means you got every point you could outside of special situation. And for your first wave you¡¯ve received 1 thousand points and Tim sent your 250 points leaving you with a very impressive 1750 points.¡±

    Malum thanked the man for his fast calculation. To do such mathematics at such a high level, Malum guessed the receptionist was a scholar.

    It was also a very impressive amount of money. 17 silvers and 5 bronzes was enough for 4 months of food and a little on the side. It was the largest amount Malum had ever had access to but it was unfortunate that he couldn¡¯t spend any of it.

    His life came first so the ticket home was his first priority.

    He stepped back and let the rest of his squad decide what to do with their own points.

    Gerald was thinking about where to use his points. He had long realised that this was what he was made for and had decided to make this warzone his home.

    He ended up with a good cotton bed, and a bottle of the cheapest liquor. He would start slowing and eventually work his way towards buying a cosier battlefield life.

    He looked to see the reaction of his teammates. The purchases were a clear indicator of what he was planning to do and he wanted to see who would spot it.

    Looking at Jake he seemed unsurprised, Alicia looked shocked, Jerome was equally shocked, and Malum wasn¡¯t even paying attention.

    Gerald could only smile, it seemed about right that his troop was so strange after all he had just decided to life his life on the battlefield and if that didn¡¯t make him the strangest person on site then Gerald wouldn¡¯t know what would.

    He would bathe in his strangeness, hunting as much as he could, chasing the thrill that only those beasts could provide. Gone was his problems, with only the hunt left to worry about.

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    A simple life. Something he had desired since young had appeared and Gerald was going to see it through to the end. He smiled to no end as he relaxed in his fate.

    Malum stopped looking outside to notice some very strange expressions around him. Jake was giving Gerald a strange look, rightfully so as the man was pulling an expression of serenity or even bliss. In this war-field Malum wandered if he had traded in for drugs.

    Alicia looked beyond shocked at something, and Jerome was trying to do figure out what was going on.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go train!¡± Said Malum, knocking everyone out of their previous train of thought and back towards normality.

    Gerald happily agreed and everyone else followed suit. The training went well and everyone used the time to let Gerald explain his previous actions.

    Words were exchanged and ideas passed. Judgment was done but silently inside of their own heads. Malum thought Gerald ideas where masochistic but that didn¡¯t mean he wouldn¡¯t wish the man well.

    Considering how much they had made in a single day, Malum would be lying if he said he hadn¡¯t considering the option but his priorities were set in stone so the risky but lucrative job was sadly going to be passed up.

    Time soon passed and they returned back to Section C.

    Malum could hardly believe that hunting demons had actually begun to get boring. It got to the point that Malum actively went to hunt them with Gerald to pass the time.

    He had learned some interesting news of Tim¡¯s team. Trout had begun to make a recovery and apparently they got bonus¡¯ whenever they killed a rarer demon so with that extra points Tim had paid of most of his debts and so Trout had been able to afford the ticket home.

    It was great news, for Trout. For everyone else that meant a strong combatant was walking away and the demons now had 1 less person to fight.

    Tim¡¯s group then become a group of three and with those numbers, Malum reckoned even Tim would struggle.

    They would get fresh numbers in the form of new recruits before the next wave but their usefulness was severely limited especially if they were bottom of the rankings.

    They had gone to the city to get better weapons and equipment for the entire Outpost and with Malums group potentially helping both teams were still optimistic about their success.

    The Troop Leader also came round for a chat. He gave some hints about their location and told them to move the outpost a few hundred meters to a better position.

    His strategic advice was soon to be invaluable as Malum realised as they practiced how much these new position could increase their demonic slaying efficiency.

    He also sparred with each member and gave them rough advice as to which direction they should be heading towards.

    For Malum he simply said, ¡°Break your style down further. Deepen what each stage does and overall just get better at analysing and adapting. It¡¯s a good path and you should do well.¡±

    Malum thanked him and he soon went on his way. His help was needed far more in other areas, so the Squad sent him on his way.

    Malum followed his Leaders advice but didn¡¯t quite understand what exactly he was supposed to do. Practice made perfect, though, and with ample practice dummies he soon made progress.

    He was starting to learn some patterns. Like humans, demons equally followed similar behaviours. During a wave they were aggressive, every attack they could do, they did; even at the cost of taking some damage to inflict it.

    With this in mind, Malum could make counterattacks more thorough as he could spend longer thinking about what would happen after action Am (The demon attacking), instead of thinking of action B (The demon retreating) or action C (The demon defending).

    This allowed for better plans for more likely scenarios. In the of chance the demonic beast broke this pattern, then Malum was in more danger, that was the trade-off however with patterns being more likely than the occasional injury was better than a constant beating from demons.

    Most of it was subconscious, experiencing predicting what the demonic beast was going to do. Malum was trying his best to not only gain more of that subconscious prediction but also to bring it into his conscious where he could better utilise it to whatever he wanted.

    He spent the better part of the entire time he had left trying to perfect this new idea of his and by the time the next wave was coming up he felt better prepared then he had ever done before.

    As another hunting group went out for their last run, that meant they got the chance to return to the base camp and here they re-met the other partners in their Outpost.

    Tim, Roger and Agatha all had brought with them some more equipment and looking over the new items Malum could only say he was very impressed.

    Each member would now have a copper chest plate and new weapons and maintenance equipment would allow their blades to remain sharp.

    Tim had essentially plunged himself back to the start of his point journey by paying of his debts and yet Malum felt the man wasn¡¯t disappointed in the slightest.

    With this equipment the next 10 months were going to far easier to survive then before and with newbies reliably coming in every month that meant success in their eyes was guaranteed.

    They soon met their new group of 5 and they were mid-range in the rankings. They also met their Troop Leader where the same strategy was implemented yet again, defence, defence, defence.

    After that was reiterated, the new Outpost members caught up as they marched down. The new members were called, Jane, David, Troy, Trever and Blake.

    Malum put himself at a distance to these newbies as their likelihood of dying was to high and so he learned as little as he could.

    They soon arrived back and began their construction with the time they had gained. Since they had moved, they had already done most of what was needed but it was never enough and finding something to do was not hard.

    The schedule agreed upon was Tim¡¯s group helping the newbies to try and survive, whilst Malum covered the other six hours as they wanted extra practice time. Everybody won, now they just needed to get started.

    The sun never failed to rise, and soon it reached its peak. Celestial mechanics called forth the innate desires in all demons as they soon began to descend onto their new position.

    This new position allowed for far greater natural barriers which funnelled the demons far better than before. This allowed for less time delivering and more time butchering, meaning more dead in less time.

    By now Malum¡¯s group had dealt all the way up to Variant ¨C 012 which was a strong demon called the Velociraptor, a fast and ferocious beast with speed being its main strength.

    Today was not their lucky day, as just as Malum cleaved through another Triceratops, he found himself looking at the head of a much more dangerous sequence beast.

    032 ¨C Pterodactyl in other words the most common flying demon there was. Any flying demon was highly dangerous as it could surprise attack any resting soldiers.

    Malum needed to alarm the newbies as quick as possible. He shouted.

    ¡°A FLYER!¡± Gerald and Jake noticed what he said and they also shouted.

    ¡°A FLYER!!¡± Their voices managed to reach Alicia and Jerome.

    ¡°A FLYER!!!¡± Finally Malum saw some movement inside of the outpost.

    He saw the beast eye him, before it turned towards the torches around the Outpost. Sometimes attracting them away wasn¡¯t the best of ideas and the demon soon disappeared above the clouds as it made for the Outpost.

    Malum wandered if he should rush back. Perhaps he could help them. But he knew that wasn¡¯t his job. He trusted Tim to take care of the demon and he knew Tim trusted him to keep the demons away from the Outpost.

    He signalled to his Squad to stay in position and whilst he got some glares he was happy to glare back. A solider couldn¡¯t abandon his post unless the entire formation be destroyed. It would lead to more deaths and chaos in the battlefield lead to complete annihilation.

    He focused on the demon in front of him and put all of his anger into his blade.

    The poor Ankylosaurus never stood a chance as Malum cleaved it¡¯s neck to brain. Blood covered the fear Malums once felt. Now he had become the hunter, and these demons were his prey.

 Chapter 24

    A few hours passed and the handover was soon arriving. Darkness had long set in and as they returned Malum got to see Tim who was looking down.

    He looked into the darkness to see the newbies missing an outline. Malum didn¡¯t look anymore as he would soon get the chance to see the body.

    The Outpost suffered some clear damages and Malums group spend a small amount of time clearing up the broken wood spread across the ground.

    The strewn corpse of the demon had several more cuts than it needed to have and Malum guessed that the fury of the bereaved had been inflicted onto the demon.

    The demonic bird was massive, its wingspan alone covering the same areas as half the camp. That gave it speed that no human could match and in the air the beast was closer to the strength of the higher 50s. On the ground however, the beast was slow. It main attack was its feet and it¡¯s strong beak but on the ground both had severe restrictions.

    Considering the placement of the body, the fallen had taken the role of bait to get the beast to land. Malum didn¡¯t know if Tim had planned the strategy or if it had taken place naturally. Jake also realised this from the bodies but Malum didn¡¯t want to see conflict arise so he moved the corpse into shelter and burned the demon back to whatever hell it had spawned.

    He discreetly told Jake to keep his intuition to himself and after everything had been cleared up was when the group finally got some sleep.

    Tim had been thinking to earlier. When he was fighting against the winged beast. Thankfully his he had been given some warning otherwise even he thought he might have fallen to that beast.

    It was fast, to fast. Like a blur it moved and Tim couldn¡¯t even begin to see the beast attack before he already felt some blood moving down his torso.

    He remembered his panic. A rare emotion for him nowadays but one he had felt far to much recently. The beast needed to land, it needed to lose that speed that made it such a threat.

    A plan formed quickly, although Tim didn¡¯t have the time to think of the consequences. He let one of the newbies slowly drift from the group. He said that grouping up could lead to it finding them and that better safety would be found dispersed.

    He pointed them in different direction and one he heard a cry he knew one of his bait had been taken. The demon was feasting on his flesh when his blade fell one of its wings.

    It¡¯s pitifully easy, Ike cutting through dry grass. The second strike hit the beasts body before it went through into the other wing.

    It was long dead before its body slumped to the ground. It crushed the soldier as it fell.

    That¡¯s when his brain caught up, realised what it had done.

    Trever had died and it was his fault. The guilt hit like nothing ever before. It was his fault, his plan that had got him killed. Never before had he been so responsible for someone and yet the second he had been in a leadership position he had sacrificed one of his own so quickly.

    He had been chasing perfection, and had just realised that his efficient tool was coated in blood.

    Yet he couldn¡¯t¡¯ even allow himself to feel the guilt. He knew others who fell into despair and that outcome was something Tim couldn¡¯t allow. He had ambitions and so he ignored his emotion as much as he could. He would do better, that was his promise. Nobody else would be allowed to die.

    Malum woke to the sound of crying. He opened his eye to see the rising sun illuminating several soldier around the corpse he had previously stored.

    Except this time he noticed another lying down with it.

    He looked to see Tim standing by the door. Never had Malum seen him so angry. Blood dripped from his knuckles, and Malum saw that his eyes had grown sore from starring.

    His mind was to focused and Malum went to help him snap out of it. It was so easy to fall into pits of emotion, the battlefield seemed littered with them.

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    ¡°Hey Tim, you doing good?¡± Malum tried to sound cheery.

    Tim looked dazed at Malum, then snapped back and said, ¡°Oh, Malum, yeah I¡¯m fine. Thanks for asking.¡± He seemed to think for a second before he looked at Malum again, ¡°Good luck out there.¡±

    He got patted on the back and Malum was forced to leave. He didn¡¯t want to make their relationship awkward and Malum confirmed the man was clearly feeling something for his plans so he left it there.

    He woke his squad and went for another shift.

    Iron, blood, dirt.

    3 words, and that¡¯s how Malum would describe the battlefield. Constantly was he looking at his sword, constantly was blood clinging to his clothes and erupting from wounds, and the dirt acted not only as a backdrop but when he rolled or ducked it always found a way to get into the most uncomfortable of places.

    Hands, eyes, shoes, the worst was when it affected his grip, or his movement. That was when the dirt got deadly, as a single slip meant assured death.

    It was like a dance on a newly polished piece of wood.

    The similarities to dancing and fighting was no coincidence. He had learned from his Uncle that dancing was just an evolution of fighting. It was everything beautiful about fighting taken out and used to amuse the masses.

    The spoke of theatres and colosseums, and sometimes Malum dreamed himself to witness some of these spectacles. His Uncle spoke so vividly of the bloodthirsty crowd of the colosseum. The spit in their throats as they roared for more blood. Nothing, his Uncle said, was similar.

    In theatres they were much more refined gentlemen. The merchants, the Nobles, the higher classes of society. They were unlike the barbaric masses and instead opted for the more elegant dancing as their preferred choice.

    As Malum cut through yet another demon he wandered what a Noble would think of his actions. His movements were elegant like a dancer yet the blood that spilled onto his face would excite only a barbarian of the colosseum.

    He cleaved through another; it was a good question. After all, those houses and those theatres and that large colosseum all needed soldiers protecting them from demons.

    Malum left the question to the endless abyss of his mind. he focused on his predictions and continued to work on his craft. Someday his martial art would be called a dance, its grace and eloquence unquestionably enough for any theatre to marvel at.

    It was just a stray thought but an ambition, nonetheless.

    Tim couldn¡¯t allow himself any rest. To much was his mind, plagued by guilt.

    `Joseph, Ross, Trever and now Blake!`

    He wanted to punch something. To release the anger that he felt, against the world, against those bastard demons!

    `No, I can¡¯t let anger ruin me like this. That¡¯s how section B got wipe out before, you said that you would learn and never repeat that mistake.`

    He looked at his fists and at the indentations that his nails had left.

    Instinctively he reached for his cloth. Wounds to the hand could lead him to the grave, and he didn¡¯t stop himself from wrapping a patch around his hand.

    `Live. Be angry later.`

    Logic couldn¡¯t overseed reality. A dream never managed to find its way into Tim¡¯s hut that night.

    Malum had caught a few injuries but it wasn¡¯t anything that time wouldn¡¯t heal. His eyes drifted as sleep wasn¡¯t knocking yet and so instead he found himself looking towards Tim¡¯s squad and the newbies fighting together.

    He looked over at Jane, Davis and Malum guessed that the last one was Troy. He knew that Trever had been the body he recovered but the other two names weren¡¯t sticking in his head and to be honest Malum thought that both were likely going to be dead before he remembered.

    The nameless recruit looked aright but a mistake or a tricky demon was going to end him. To survive you had to be either exceptional enough where your mistakes can¡¯t be punished enough or you don¡¯t mistakes.

    A few minor ones had already put a few bad slashes on him and if not for Tims exceptional efforts towards the man, he would have already found himself by the Reapers side.

    Following Tim, Malum noticed the man moved around more and killed far less than usual. As the battlefield progress Malum noticed how well-placed Tim¡¯s kills were.

    Like a true Squad Leader, he observed his members and saw who was lacking he would get them back on track and repeat untill the shift was over.

    No longer was he a paddle on the boat but a wheel on the deck. This brought about benefits as much as it did negatives.

    It fit the title better but Malum pondered if it was the right decision. He looked longer, took a few more notes and left Tim as he was. The deaths had clearly affected him but at the end of the day Malum wanted the two teams separate.

    Tim had his team manage, and Malum had his own. How they did it, was up to him and Malum would keep it that way.

    It wasn¡¯t long before Tim group finished of the last of the wave. Thankfully nothing eventful occurred no deaths happened. Malums group came next and apart from a few injuries everyone made it back okay.

    The second wave they had to face was over and they had yet to lose a single member. They celebrated with some of Geralds leftover alcohol and toasted the burning corpses of demons they had slaughtered.

    The trip back was as arduous as always but this time they all had a small skip in their step as they thought about the city that they would soon be visiting. For many, including Malum, this was going to be the first city they had ever seen and everyone was exited to see it.

    Tim¡¯s group had often talked about the high walls and stone buildings, the soldiers marching around and the glass windows.

    They could hardly wait and marched like it.

    They decided to break paths from Tim as they rested and recuperated from the losses of the new team and decided to just merge teams as Malums group was still holding strong. That left Tim¡¯s group with 6 and Malums with 5 so the next newbies were going to split between the two if not taken to other Section where they were needed more.

    As he passed through the hills, Malum for once got a good look at the sun and the scenery. It was beautiful and for once since he entered this hell he felt at peace.

 Chapter 25

    It took a week to arrive at the city. They took a horse and carriage from the camp to the city and to say that carriage was a sweaty pit was a severe understatement.

    Breathing was hard, and your sense of smell was basically lost to the odour.

    Malum even took the initiative to run beside to the carriage at a few points just to take a few breaths. It was good exercise and the views were truly something.

    The size of the realm was a widely talked about myth. Some said it was endless, and that you couldn¡¯t be able to stop walking If you went a single direction whilst others said eventually you would reach an endless wall.

    Either way, none of them had seen the end of it and even Malums Uncle said that the continent was larger than a human would ever be able to walk or see all of it for several thousand lifetimes.

    At some point people just got the idea that the realm was larger than they cared for and focused instead on buying their next pint.

    Eventually, the carriage had to come to a stop and Malum found himself climbing out to see pure stone.

    60 feet tall and more than 20 inches thick the wall was built for defence, not against demons, but against humans.

    Malum could see humans heads bobbing around at the top. Shiny metal helmets reflecting the sun gaze back at him.

    It was unlike anything he had ever seen. It was so large and majestic; it spoke of security and wealth. Things Malum reckoned the nobility that built it, had never earned.

    Jealousy was the main emotion Malum felt from the soldiers, not intimidation, not wonder, neither excitement, instead they felt the whole thing was unneeded. They fought monthly against an assured target and yet the wall was here for an uncertain, unnecessary one.

    It wasn¡¯t like they could do anything about it. So they shuffled their way inside after the Troop Leader verified their identities.

    With his squad, Malum first went to exchange for some coins.

    The inside of the city was bustling with stalls being seen in every corner, their colourful tarps all covering the baking son above. Wading himself through this crowd and Malum went to the central most building to find the Town Hall.

    The polished wooden doors opened up into a large wooden labyrinth. Tall ceilings and long corridors along with the amount of people shuffling around overwhelmed Malum where for a second he just followed the crowd.

    The floor didn¡¯t creak, instead Malum could only hear the tapping of leather shoes on wooden floors and the hassle and bustle from outside. Eventually he found a sheet of paper with direction on it and like a captain he guided his lost crew.

    Now in the wanted location, the squad looked at the notices first, finding nothing of interest apart from the ruins exploration mission to have been taken down. He wished his Uncle the best and then gave him the finger before he continued towards the receptionist.

    There was already a que of soldier so Malum and the troop joined and as they chatted about what foods they were going to try, Malum saw out of the corner of his eye the guards at the door moving to salute.

    He looked in case he would be forced to and saw his Troop Leader. Immediately at attention, the Troop Leader gave everyone a nod and they fell to rest.

    As other soldiers from other camps were here Malum and the squad soon asked around for the Troop Leader information. They heard some from a man in front, he was actually called Jameson Smith and he was a technically a Baron although he had lost his land so he was called a Fallen Noble.

    He turned war hero with his achievements but the same enemies that caused his fall from grace ensured that he would remain fallen. It explained a lot for Malum but he would ensure to double check the information with a few others to flatten out the facts.

    With his curiosity peaking, Malum shuffled his way closer to the front desk where he tried to overhear whatever the Troop Leader was asking.

    ¡°... report please.¡± He saw the receptionist nod and hand the man a stack of prepared papers.

    He looked over a few of them, and then left.

    Now Malum had to know. A report on what? The Northern Front, his particular Section or perhaps the war in general. Malum wanted to know, and was prepared to steal the papers to find out.

    He gave his badge to his squad and asked them to pull out some money for him, they asked a few question but Malum responded that he was only going to look around.

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    Slipping out the well-polished door, Malum followed the man whilst he tried to blend into the crowd.

    Past several houses and far too many stalls to count, the man seemed to find his destination in a building older than those around it. The red cross on the door suggested it was some medical practice and after walking into the front door it became clear it was a hospital of some kind.

    The receptionist simply nodded at him and he was allowed in which confused Malum to no end. He couldn¡¯t show it though, so he just nodded back and went in the direction where the Fallen Baron went.

    A few nurses walked past and they each gave him a smile. Docters that passed gave him looks of respect and never had Malum felt so seen by those around him.

    Past a few rooms, he saw several bloody sights, but a common feature was the clothes of the men. Each wore stars on their hospital clothing and it finally hit Malum that it was a military hospital.

    With the actions of those around him now making sense, he went into a few of the rooms on the way and asked a few questions.

    Torn limbs became amputees and if they were no longer `combat ready` then they could choose to come here. Recovery was rare as medicine was rarely not disguised poison and these people each were suffering more than the last.

    They wanted to die. Malum got that from 4 of the 5 people he talked to. They were all so eager to talk to him as well, loneliness had affected each of them and that killed them more than the drugs did.

    It was interesting, in a sick way, Malum found the interactions he had made where some of the most meaningful he had done in several days. The journey here was so full of meaningless chatter, that such conversations with his potential futures were all so interesting.

    Regret was something Malum rarely got to experience but here it was rich and since death was so close they spoke so clearly about it that it allowed to study it so much more.

    Sometimes Malum wandered if he regretted any of his actions. Like could he have returned home earlier to have seen him Uncle, or perhaps would he be able to save those recruits on the hunts and in the wave.

    He did, he also didn¡¯t. These people, however, were so sure of their regrets that they could no longer live in reality. Instead they lived in the maybe, or what would have happened if.

    Malum never wanted to live like these, his actions were his own and even if they came with consequences then he would force himself to live with them. Regret was a poison he would never take. His goals wouldn¡¯t allow it.

    He left the men in their beds and found the Troop Leader sitting on a bedside. Next to him was a sleeping man, Malum could see no injury on him but considering where he was the bedding was surely covering something horrific.

    `A family member? Or perhaps a comrade?`

    Malum could see the report, it was inside the mans bag that was hung over the chair he was sitting on.

    The man was sitting solemnly, his eyes on his sleeping companion.

    Malum waited as the man continued to stare. He would have paid to have seen the mans face, was it guilt that placed him on the chair or duty.

    He was interested, sadly he wasn¡¯t interested enough to risk insubordination for it. The Troop Leader wasn¡¯t someone he could offend and stealing that report was already beyond illegal.

    As more time passed, and no opportunity revealed himself Malum decided to give a small prayer for the men and walked away from the hospital.

    Fate had decided that today he wouldn¡¯t walk away with that report but Malum was happy with what he had gained. Those dying men had given him more than enough and learning more of his Troop Leader had satiated more than enough of his curiosity.

    They clanked beers cups as they smiled in joy. Finally, Malum could let himself relax for a short while. Everyone on the team needed it and they even decided to make it a bi monthly occurrence.

    Worries drifted away with the sweet taste of the poison. In actuality, it tasted terrible but it wasn¡¯t for the taste they drank it. The numbing of the mind, the removal of intelligence, they wanted to be ignorant for a moment because ignorance was bliss.

    The Pub had lively atmosphere, people all around taking sips of joy or chugging with delight. The black fingered coal miners, or the worn-down looking sewers, everyone in the City of Hillside came to one of 14 pubs to rest and rewind from the tiresome day.

    It was a folktale: the 14 pubs. Each was a gift from a different God and this one was the Lucky Tavern apparently blessed by the God of Luck. Malum believed that as much as he believed that the alcohol was wasn¡¯t watered down. ¡°Fat chance to both!¡± He said.

    Having explained his theories to the group, it was time for Gerald to pitch in his ideas. Everyone looked to him, but as always the man was distracted and as they turned to see what he was looking at they saw a good-looking woman.

    They turned back and evil smiles made their way onto all of their faces.

    ¡°Oh Ger-ald.¡± Malum sang to which Gerald finally noticed.

    ¡°Yeah, what?¡± he scratched his neck but maintained eye contact.

    ¡°Looking at something perhaps?¡± Jake chimed in.

    Gerald smiled in return, ¡°yeah desert.¡±

    That got a whack from Alicia, ¡°presumptuous idiot! Go on then, walk the talk. Let¡¯s see if your really that charming.¡±

    ¡°How dare you question my charm. Watch ye idiots as I win over the princess!¡± He bowed out and skipped towards the woman.

    Malum wished him the best of luck, but also really, really, really wanted to see him fail.

    Malum watched from a distance as Gerald made contact and initiated conversation. He seemed to have smoothly entered whatever conversation she was having and then Malum saw the man say something and the woman laughed.

    The squad cursed their luck, ¡°idiotic Lucky Tavern my ass. Bet this shit¡¯s watered down as well.¡± Malum continued to drink as the squad let out annoyed murmurs of agreement.

    Jake spoke out in hope, ¡°He could still squander it. Let time show his true colours.¡±

    The squad returned to looking but when they found the two again they were already on the dancefloor, looking to be having a hell of a time.

    ¡°Why did I even speak?¡± Jake questioned.

    As the group murmured again, Alicia asked Jake to dance as it did look fun and that left just Jerome and Malum sat down by themselves.

    They had terrible alcohol; they were miserable from Gerald unlikely success but that set up well to do some good talking. Although Malum may not have danced the night away he did have a good conversation with Jerome and came out far more understanding of where the man had come from.

    As they stumbled out the pub, they looked for places to rest. With each of their stumbling bodies barely remaining upright, they managed to eventually find a place to stay for the night.

    Alicia, Jake and Gerald, well they could find their own way home.

 Chapter 26

    Awaking to a banging headache, Malum found himself repeating his new routine. He immediately went to take shower and the cold water managed to take some of the edge off. Then a hearty meal and plenty of water would finally make him back to functional.

    The squad had reunited soon after their first night and choose the best inn for them to stay at. They then continued their unproductive lifestyle for a few days before training re-emerged in their brains.

    The only reason they had woken up hungover today was that it was their last time to and so they had taken the final night in stride.

    The training area they used was jointly used by the guards around the city. Since they were starred military men they had access to several training grounds and they choose the hardest one to sharpen themselves with.

    Jake couldn¡¯t express his sadness enough when the group went back to their insane regime but sadly his wife and his life were on the line so his laziness had to take a step back.

    With the sun falling down, the group packed their bags and left the walled city they had once found so impressive. It had served them well, and they would return soon but sadly duty called.

    Gerald was giddy with excitement at the fact that they were retuning. His smile could hardly be wiped off his goody face as he thought of the hunting grounds they were going to return to. So rich with prey, he didn¡¯t even need to go and find them. They came to him!

    Laughing at his own wonderful circumstances, Gerald provided himself as the annoyance to everyone. They had to hate something and Gerald¡¯s goofy grin acted as a challenge for anyone to wipe it off his face.

    Insects didn¡¯t work, neither did any sort of danger at all really. The second somebody jumped, Gerald was ready to leap at what scarred them.

    He was just a different species sadly, so the group gave up on him and focused back on themselves.

    Malum worried about improvement, Alicia was worried about her and teammates survival, Jake was worried about his sore feat and Jerome was worried about whether he was good enough.

    The sun rose again. Malum had to admit that it never failed in the beauty department. The tinge of orange strewn across a line of fluffy clouds, across a landscape of green forestry and Malum had to say that it was like looking at art.

    He always wandered why Nobles would have artists bring pictures of landscapes to their own homes. If they wated to see it why didn¡¯t they simply go and look? They clearly had the money.

    The wanders of the nobility always baffled the common man. That was from one of the smarter teachers he had learned from over the years. `He was a good teacher that one.`

    Breaking his line of thought was his morning schedule. The wood he stood on creaked and the bed he climbed off was damp but still was fairly decent.

    The camp was where he opened his door to and with his now awoken squad, they soon went to look at their newbies.

    They lined up in the training grounds of the camp and watched as the fresh batch slowly waddled their way in.

    After a gruelling speech from the teamwork-Team Leader, the newbies were left to pick who they wanted to join.

    Malum was looking at something else however, he was looking next to him at the other lines. He had heard a lot about the other teams and the usual death count of Outposts came to 2 every month. There were also situation where there was a complete gap in the line where another team should stand.

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    They were called annihilation as the death of one tended to cause the deaths of others.  Section F was looking fairly empty with only three people stood solemnly. Malum wandered if they would make it this round, and he wished them the best with a prayer to the God of Luck.

    Soon a group wandered over and they even looked pretty good. Higher ranked definitely as their physiques alone would certify them for the higher ranks of the strength tests.

    They got to chatting as the admin guy came round to note the new teams. Short introductions led to casual conversation and it only stopped when the administrative person looked at the group and turned to the Team Leader.

    `A reassignment` was Malum¡¯s first idea and it quickly came true. The Team Leader walked over and took a look at the paper the admin person was holding and after a few moments of contemplation he told Tim, Agatha and Roger to move over to Section F.

    Words of sadness came out, but protest wasn¡¯t going to be an option. Questioning the commanding officer was never a great choice and so they could only pack it in.

    Malum knew it was likely to occur to little people had died and their section was growing too strong. Conspiracies about them wanting to die sprouted in Malums mind and whilst to some degree he reckoned it was true, he didn¡¯t think that poorly of humanity that the officers moved them around so that they would die.

    Perhaps he was still na?ve, but Malum at least wanted something to keep his mood high.

    Hugs and waves were done but they parted the same regardless. Malum was going to miss Tim advice, Agatha¡¯s covering fire, and Roger reliable presence. Instead he got a shuffling body of newbies. Ones whose names Malum didn¡¯t even try to remember, instead he went with nicknames.

    The sun was high and demons were as bloodthirsty as they could get. Malum was making short work of one Triceratops as he guided the newbie he was assigned to.

    The squad had decided to do split themselves into 2 groups with Malum and Jerome with 2 newbies and the remaining squad of 3, Troy, David and Jane.

    Gerald had also helmed a group with Jake and Alicia and the four other newbies.

    This was the split that they agreed upon, and they agreed that they would reunite once they had ironed out some good soldiers from the recruits that had just joined.

    Pushing against a charging demon with his shield, Malum returned the favour by slashing the demons head clean off. He cleaned the blade of blood with his sleave before he saw one of the newbies struggling against a stronger Variant ¨C 001.

    ¡°Pretty Boy you¡¯ve got to do better than that,¡± Malum dive kicked the beast for mostly enjoyment as he let the newbie finish it off with a slash to its neck, ¡°stay strong and charge at them with no fear.¡±

    Pretty Boy nodded but Malum reckoned it would take more than a dive kick for the kid to get over his fear of the nasty little critters.

    Demons were no longer providing the challenge that Malum used to feel. Some of the stronger variants still caused damage and the odd mistake on a weaker one still hurt but no longer was Malum counting every second.

    The terrain change was a large part in the help towards that as no longer were they being overwhelmed and instead could focus on the one on one.

    It wasn¡¯t so much about himself as it was his teammates. He dodged another beast as he moved towards Troy who was dealing with a stronger Variant ¨C 002. Troy had already gotten himself a few cuts and so Malum ran up to surprise the beast and end the fight before Troy got hurt too much.

    With the snake distracted, Malum indicated to get an opportunity and when Troy delivered Malum managed to get his blade deep into the brain of the beast.

    With its weight falling on the blade Malum quickly pulled it out before it got stuck and turned to see Troy beginning to collapse.

    Malum rushed over as his mind caught up to what he was seeing.

    `Blood loss?` was his first thought but he could see that the wounds were not nearly big enough.

    ¡°H.e..lp me.¡± Troy managed to croak out as Malum watched his muscles relax and his eyes slowly close.

    ¡°Stay with me!¡± Malum shouted, he needed him awake. He had no way of dealing with any poison and the damn snakes weren¡¯t even supposed to be poisonous in the first place.

    All he could really do was watch as he felt Troy slowly turn colourless and cold. He still tried, his hands searching for any information at all about why he died. There was nothing in the wounds, no stringer of any kind just blood and cuts.

    Malum looked around for Jerome but saw him fighting with another demon. His medical expertise were better but with him distracted and time running out, Malum slowly put Troy back down.

    No longer in his arms, Malum called over the squad members of Troy and dealt with their demons for them.

    David kept himself calm and seemed to quickly move on from his friend after a lengthy prayer. Jane shed a few tears and said her goodbyes.

    They brought the body back to the Outpost and continued to fight.

    Injuries racked up but nobody else fell during the first shift. With a wave, Malum set Gerald off and wished him luck with his own team.

    He watched a short while to see his leadership style and it followed an expected `figure it out yourself` style with Gerald demonstrating and the rookies attempts at copying.

    Malum left Gerald to his own team and after a short re-sharpening of his blade he fell asleep

 Chapter 27

    He awoke to panicked, ¡°Flyer!¡±

    The darkness didn¡¯t help as Malums eye wearily tried to find something to focus on. The dim moonlight showed the entrance of a figure.

    It was large, and what was worse was the sound of the air moving through it large wings.

    A Pterodactyl, the variant who had put pressure on even Tim. Malum stayed quiet and moved to keep his squad in safety and to rejoin to kill the beast.

    The news was that it was landed and such wasn¡¯t as big as a threat but it wouldn¡¯t take long for its good night vision to pick up on his teammates.

    He pushed Jerome awake and nudged the newbies awake as well.

    He kept his voice quiet, ¡°Jerome you¡¯re with me. You guys sit tight, you should be safe in this hut as long as you stay quiet. Got it?¡±

    They nodded in return as Jerome found his sword n shield.

    After they were kitted up, they slowly exited the hut and found the beast eating away at the dead corpses that had yet to be burned. `Troy¡¯s corpse!`

    Malum¡¯s eyes ran towards the hut that it was stored in and found it to have been crushed. Malum hoped for the best but focused on his task.

    He signalled to Jerome to flank the other way and the two slowly closed in as the beast¡¯s jaws dripped with blood.

    The sound of bones crunching, the beast feasting on its own species were covering the sound of Malums beating heart. He needed this to go well, just one good stab.

    Closer and closer, Malum cursed even the small size of the camp. Every footstep was a danger and Malum practically stopped breathing when he heard something,

    ¡°Thud!¡±

    Malum¡¯s eyes, as did the beast¡¯s immediately turned to see the source and Malum heart dropped as he saw Jerome body fall as he slipped on an unsteady patch of dirt.

    Malum reacted before the beast did as he held back his sword and charged for the where he thought the beast would charge.

    Luckily the beast didn¡¯t take advantage of Jerome fall to charge at him, instead it focused on taking fight. It flapped it¡¯s wings but before it managed to fly to high, Malum had changed his direction and managed to get himself a small cut in the edges of one of its wings.

    It wasn¡¯t much but it would restrict the beasts flight speed to a more moderate level. The demon continued to take flight, and into the dark sky it flew.

    With it no longer in sight, Malum went to see if Jerome was okay and found the man¡¯s ankle to have been bent the opposite way it should.

    Jerome was reeling, but he tried to keep his cries quiet as Malum dragged him inside the spare equipment hut.

    He sat him on a bench as Jerome let out more muffled cries.

    ¡°Leave, me!¡± Jerome manged to get out as Malum wandered if he could heal him with bandages or the like.

    ¡°I¡¯ve got to do something!¡± Malum protested.

    ¡°Look at me! Leader LOOK! Kill it, I¡¯ll be fine.¡±

    Malum reached for his bandages but pulled them back.

    ¡°Fine!¡± he left the hut and didn¡¯t look back. He pulled back his blade and searched for the bastard that had caused Jerome¡¯s injury.

    He hand clutched strongly against his swords hilt, yet anger wouldn¡¯t allow him to see the Variants figure anywhere in the skyline.

    It was still too fast, so Malum kept his guard up.

    He waited for anything to catch his notice. Any sound, any sight, and he would flinch.

    His heartbeat became audible. It bounding inside his chest, pumping his blood to his body.

    A sight, a small screech and sound of tearing. Malum quickly reacted but not in time as the beast claws found blood and Malum felt pain ripple through his shoulder. He had been injured, the cut down his shoulder looked fairly deep.

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    He kept his guard up and swapped the hand in which his sword lay. His shield had hardly done much anyway, he needed to focus more.

    Past his heartbeat, past the sound of fighting in the fields outside of the Outpost, he listened.

    A small but rising sound, like bug flying closer to his ear. Its was small, faint, but its distinct pitch made Malum focus on it. It was like a whistle, growing louder and louder.

    He found which direction it was coming from and prepared to swing his blade.

    Moments passed as Malum focused entirely on his senses.

    In milliseconds, Malum found the sound to reach its peak as he saw the outline of the demon appear in the sky.

    He swang with as much speed as he could muster and just as quickly as he saw the demonic beast did he find the claws to be upon his body.

    Thanks to his sudden movement whilst he attacked, he saw the faint claws of the beast miss and felt as his sword pierced through the beast and it came crashing down into the dirt.

    He had cut through the wing, removing the beasts ability to fly.

    It shrieked in anger as it realised it greatest power had been stolen from it. It blood red eyes focusing entirely on Malum.

    Yellow eyes starred back. Instead of anger on his face, glee was what he felt as he slowly closed the distance between himself and the pest.

    His arm reeled back as he drew himself into a charge and as he met the beasts attack head on. It was hardly even a fight. Even without his main attacking arm, he still managed to cull the beast without substituting another injury.

    It bloody jaw slowly bled into the earth. It¡¯s main body, several feet away.

    Malum fell down the second he decapitated the beast. His legs fell to the earth as he felt the pain from his arm reach his brain. Before he died of blood loss, he needed to get some help.

    ¡°HELP!¡± He shouted as he felt his consciousness begin to falter. Darkness infected his vision as his mind grew slower.

    Sleep had to be pushed back, he needed to see his comrades before he went out. Then he could rest in peace.

    As he lay in the dirt he remembered Jerome. `He needs help!`

    But Malum couldn¡¯t even feel his lips, how could tell anyone to help his comrade. He wished upon every God that they found him before he fell. Jerome was strong, he would be fine.

    Perhaps it was just hopeful thoughts but despair wasn¡¯t something he could take on right now. Especially as he felt sleep dawn on his horizon. The figures of his teammates coming out of their hut.

    Malum didn¡¯t remember anything after that.

    He awoke a terrible pang of pain, feeling returned to him as he began to open his eyes.

    As he pushed strength into his arm, that feeling quickly returned and as his eyes opened he noticed the ceiling wasn¡¯t collapsing.

    Instead it was of the Camp near the Outpost. That meant the wave was over, even the travel would take more than 24 hours.

    With his head he turned to see other parts of the room, his body ached as he pushed himself up and as he looked around he saw his original squad sat around his bed.

    Each on a single chair, Jake and Alicia resting on each other¡¯s head. Gerald opting to instead just lay on the floor. Malum looked for Jerome but found he wasn¡¯t there. His room had only 4 members inside of it and that made his heart sink.

    He needed to ask, but some part of him didn¡¯t want to know. The confirmation hurting to much for Malum¡¯s weak heart.

    Sadly, he couldn¡¯t allow himself that pity. He wasn¡¯t weak, and even if he was he would force himself to grow out of it. He pushed his body as he slowly got of his bead and used his alright hand to push on Alicia.

    His voice was as dry as the desert but it still managed to eke out, ¡°Jerome, Jerome!¡±

    The second time woke her and she looked up to see him and exclaimed, ¡°Malum! Oh your up, you can¡¯t do that, sit down.¡±

    Malum only continued to say, ¡°Jerome!¡±

    Alicia face crumbled as she clearly pulled back with emotion. ¡°He didn¡¯t make it.¡±

    Malum fell backwards. Into his bed his body lay. One injury to his shoulder, and now one to heart.

    A wave of emotions rushed through his mind. Overwhelming him, Malum instead shifted towards pure logic.

    His goal, his goal, that¡¯s what he needed to think about. Memories of him and Jerome infected his mind, or was that perhaps what he really wanted to do.

    He needed to grow stronger, he thought of him and Jerome when they met. He looked so alone in the crowd.

    He needed to survive this hell. Malum remembered the pride he felt as he saw Jerome first working so hard and when he achieved the ranking on the day they were announced.

    He couldn¡¯t forget his emotions; he wasn¡¯t strong enough.

    All the memories of himself and Jerome appeared in his mind. This was his friend, his comrade and his subordinate. It was his fault that he died, how could he just forget the grief he felt.

    He finally allowed his emotion to get the better of him. On his poor hospital bed, he sat and mourned the loss of his ally.

    With his eyes sore and his mind exhausted from the endless emotions, he finally managed to fall asleep.

    His teammates spoke words of comfort. It wasn¡¯t his fault; his logical mind knew this fact and yet his heart refused to accept that he wasn¡¯t responsible.

    Time passed as Malum sat in the hospital. Several people visited him, the Troop Leader being one of them.

    He talked about regret, about responsibility and as he had seen him in that hospital in the city Malum found his wors to be comforting. Unlike many, they actually had substance behind them. Genuine compassion was hard to find but Malum found it in a strange place.

    Obviously his teammates were the best doctors he had. His shoulder had mostly healed but it would always remain sore to use. His dominant arm was rendered weak and so Malum would have to make some serious changes to his fighting style.

    He spent each morning practicing this new style. The desire to grow stronger could no longer be held back and so he was back to swinging his sword.

    He would have to return for the next wave, sadly the military was anything but generous.

    At least the newbies were getting better, they had also visted and thanked him for his actions. Malum felt strange emotions of hate towards them. In some way he blamed them for Jerome¡¯s death. It was unfair, but that¡¯s what he felt.

    He continued to train, every day. His teammates had stayed to practice as much as possible as well but they were now at the outpost so he got into a flow state of training and time soon passed.

 Chapter 28

    Gerald couldn¡¯t describe his feelings when he had heard Jerome had died. It was him that left the demon in the camp but never did he think that his friends would die.

    Anger, sadness, for once he questioned his love of hunting. One of his better friends had just died and it likely wouldn¡¯t even be the last. Malum had taken a large hit and with that their group had weakened quite severely.

    Gerald had put all that responsibility on himself. He would need to grow stronger to fill that gap. For once, he didn¡¯t fight the demons for fun. Instead he was desperately looking for way to grow stronger.

    He hated seeing Malum in that bed, a person stronger than him. Someone he knew to be the Leader, was taken to down to just a hospital patient.

    A man so strong should never have looked so weak. Jokes were out of the window and Gerald become considerably more serious. He spoke less in general and instead hunting more and practiced more.

    Alicia and Jake had taken the news far worse than himself. Jake especially, the man was surprisingly emotional to the death.

    The funeral was done without Malum because law dictated that they must return to the other realm as quick as possible and so that left the entire ordeal a mix of shock and grief.

    They had adapted much like him and focused on growing their strength to fill the gap. The three focused as much as possible, never would they splinter the team again and never was somebody else allowed to die.

    The sun rose on another day in the realm. Trees swayed and birds began to chirp. Malum woke to these loud bastards and after cursing them to death, he got changed and went down to the training yard.

    It wasn¡¯t really a training yard, moreso a garden for the patients but the greenery gave space for swinging a sword so Malum used it as he liked.

    The summer sun had long gone and instead came the cold breeze of autumn. Winter was coming but they still had a few weeks of heat left before it began to affect them.

    It took a few hours before one of the nurses came with some food. Some brown sick looking sludge was provided but as bad as it looked, it was nutritious so Malum was forced to gulp it down. Somehow he never got used to the taste.

    After the tree had finally received its final beating, Malum decided to pack up. Usually he would stay until nightfall but today was the day he would be discharged.

    He left his lunch for whatever poor rat found it in the garbage and walked towards the Town Hall. The hospital was located not in the city but instead in a fairly large town closer to the Outpost.

    Wooden instead of stone, the wall around the town was still a marvel of creation. Malum could see it over the wooden houses scattered across the muddy roads.

    It wasn¡¯t busy so nobody managed to knock into Malums shoulder. Still, he kept a distance just in case. Gentle movements didn¡¯t hurt but anything to strenuous or sudden would still provoke a reaction.

    The Town hall was again, the best-looking building in the settlement and inside Malum found the interior to be reflecting that very fact. He asked the receptionist for his arrangements and found that a horse had been prepared for him.

    Surprised at the luxury, Malum went to see his steed and found his horse in a nearby set of stables.

    Flounder¡¯s Horses was the name and Malum eyed the carved horse on the sign. It was a great piece of artwork and the detail was fascinating.

    He picked up the horse from a kind person who looked a bit like Jake, but ignoring the resemblance Malum fed the good boy and then mounted the animal.

    Patting its neck, he held the reins as he drew back his lessons on horsemanship with his Uncle. Riding was a skill just like any weapon, and so it was included in his early year lessons.

    He was given a prepared bag of food and a map before given a deadline to arrive to the Outpost. Malum wandered who they knew he rode before he thought back to when he choose his weapon. It was one of those questions.

    Still, that was when he had both working arms and so he soon learned that perhaps he wasn¡¯t as good as he remembered.

    After a few close incidents that threatened another broken limb, Malum managed to get into the hang of it and on the road it only got smoother.

    The sun went down as Malum enjoyed some horse riding, an activity he found painful and relaxing at the same time.

    A few beasts met him on the journey towards the Outpost, none were as threatening as a demon so they were quickly sorted out.

    It did provide Malum some practical experience of how his arm would function in battle and it was pretty much just for balance.

    The shield he placed on the arm couldn¡¯t be used properly so instead Malum used it to balance out some extra strong swings.

    It wasn¡¯t a perfect arrangement by any means, and Malum would train his arm to eventually return to normal but it was a far better situation then it could have been.

    With optimism making it¡¯s appearance Malum found himself returning to the gates of hell. The Outpost, in all its rickety glory.

    Past the gate, Malum passed his horse to some messenger looking fellow. The bundle of papers practically overflowing from his sacks helped in that observation.

    He wished the man luck and got some luck wished on him in return. He then went deeper into the Outpost where he checked out the training ground to find his squad.

    His eyes softened when he saw their training bodies. He instinctively looked for the other but remembered he wouldn¡¯t be seeing him again.

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    He wished Jerome the best and wiped the sadness from his face. He drew his sword and charged down the hill.

    ¡°GERALD!¡± Malum screamed.

    Gerald quickly turned to see who said his name, and saw the figure of his team Leader running at him with his sword drawn. He nearly laughed but after seeing him not slow down he prepared himself to defend.

    He knew Malum got weaker, but he still reckoned the man had some fight left in him.

    And after their blades collided Gerald was happy he had thought so. Somehow the swing was stronger than normal and after a short he realised the attacks came quicker.

    Loosing an arm had shifted Malums style from defence to offense, after all, as his Uncle would say `the best defence is a good offense`.

    After a few more attacks, Malum left off the fight and decided to call it quits. He didn¡¯t want to be fighting for an hour with Jake and Alicia just standing there.

    ¡°Sorry Gerald, can¡¯t be fighting all day can we?¡± Gerald gave off a knowing nod before Malum turned to see Alicia and Jake surprise written over their faces.

    ¡°You can fight?¡± said Jake.

    ¡°Not even loosing arm makes the monster weaker!¡± Malum joked as he moved his shield arm around.

    ¡°You can use it?¡± asked Alicia, in even more surprise.

    ¡°Oh hell no, hurts like a bitch if I ever even try to use it. But, for balance and other weak things I can still use. Deflecting is also possible. Yeah, so my style will really need to change but it¡¯s not nearly as bad as it could be.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear.¡± Said Alicia as she patted him on the back. ¡°Good to see the monster still walking.¡±

    Malum felt relieved for some reason that his teammates thought little of his fall in strength. Doubt always managed to sow seeds inside Malum¡¯s head and thoughts of abandonment caused him a few nights of unrest.

    The banter continued until they reached they mess hall where Malum had some slightly better nutrition paste. Sitting around the table, chatter always remaining loud inside the hall, Malum group talked about their new roles in combat.

    Gerald was taking more of a butchering role and Malum would stick back more and deal with the leftovers. Jake and Alicia would shift from delivery to butchering depending on what was needed.

    It wasn¡¯t perfect but until Malum had sorted out his new style, or until his arm healed it was what was best for the team.

    Looking around the hall, whilst Gerald swayed onto less important topics, Malum saw several Troop Leaders entering the hall.

    It wasn¡¯t code for people to salute on entry in a private space but eying them up in unease was still common practice.

    They skipped the que, because of course they did, and Malum overheard some of their talking as they got their meats and fruit.

    ¡°That idiot is going to get us ...¡±

    ¡°How do ... implement ... it?¡±

    It thankfully had quietened down once they entered or Malum wouldn¡¯t have manged to get even that. A few more mutterings was heard and Malum picked up on the fact that they were unhappy about some change implemented likely by a higher up.

    Perhaps it was training. The demonic trainer Commander was perhaps changing something to his regime but Malum had caught onto the fact that he was popular, not some `idiot`.

    What other changes could they even make. Changing teams was something Malum would rather die than doing but that made no sense unless you wanted to fragment teamwork and get even more killed and whilst subtly Malum reckoned they could do that they certainly couldn¡¯t blatantly do a reshuffle before a wave. That was just murder.

    They weren¡¯t popular, and they changing something. Malum thought back to the only unpopular higher up he knew. That Baron who did the terrible speech. The one who wanted achievements.

    Okay, that was better it was likely him who did that change but then what would he even change.

    Its wouldn¡¯t be the defensive strategy, that was too dumb. Changing of equipment wouldn¡¯t be hard to implement, changing of food rations the exact same. But then what could it be?

    Malum needed to think more but he hadn¡¯t the clues to figure it out.

    With the unease left with no answer, the day continued as preparation for the wave continued. Food rations were stocked and people shoved down as much paste as they could into their bellies.

    Sharpening swords could be heard nearly all day and even into the night the sound of metal meeting metal didn¡¯t end. Malum couldn¡¯t sleep, partly because of the sound but also the unease brought about by those Troop Leaders.

    As time passed and the moon shone threw the ceiling, Malum decided enough was enough and went to see his Troop Leader in his hut. The nicer huts were located together, closer to the administration building and after a brisk late-night walk, he knocked on the door of his Troop Leader.

    Malum waited for a response, after a short minute he heard footsteps then an undoing of a hook. The door opened and the Troop Leader stoic face brightened when he saw Malum standing outside.

    ¡°Thank God you¡¯re not one of those pale faced twats. Come in solider.¡±

    Malum walked in and saw a table to sit at, he pulled out a chair and sat and so did the Troop Leader. A fire made up the lighting of the room, it also provided a fair amount of heat against the autumn night.

    ¡°You¡¯ve healed well, your muscles remain as good as when you entered. It¡¯s a good you know, many who go on sick leave come back looking like there¡¯ve gone to a temple of the God of Eating and never left.¡±

    Malum smiled at the compliment and thanked him for his words. He was proud of his hard work, if nothing else it¡¯s the best he could do.

    The God of Eating was an interesting comment. It wasn¡¯t something any village would hear about; it was a God exclusive to Nobles and wealthy merchants and so commoners heard little of their exploits.

    With that in mind, the Troop Leader strayed away from that and asked the question, ¡°So why are you here?¡±

    Malum started to explain, ¡°I heard this morning about an order from a higher up, they talked about how it was stupid and hard to implement but I didn¡¯t catch what it actually was.¡±

    Now that got some movement on the Troop Leader¡¯s face,

    ¡°Heard about that early did you? It¡¯s the change of strategy from defensive to offensive, under the barest of that fat child you heard a speech from a while back. The chances of any squad member and leader surviving the next 3 months, I wouldn¡¯t expect more than 10 to live. Although your group stands better chances, if that helps.¡±

    ¡°Fuck!¡±

    Malum said, his body not even moving from his chair. He could smack every object in the room and it still wouldn¡¯t express his anger. Jerome was gone and now his other friends were likely to die as well.

    And again, what could he do about it?

    `I just have to accept it. Die for someone else¡¯s ambitions!`

    He cursed the realm, the Dao unfair nature and especially the Baron bastard who had set the whole scheme up.

    ¡°Calm down Malum. Anger won¡¯t do you any good.¡± He spoke with serenity in his voice. Malum looked over with his anger fuelled eyes. He didn¡¯t want to be told what to do, but luckily logic prevailed.

    `Right, I need to calm down. Breath.`

    As he calmed he listened into his Troop Leader words,

    ¡°I¡¯m going to do my best to keep our position as good as possible, there will also be large change in the teams as they split down into smaller groups. Instead of around 10 you should be expecting to see 6 or perhaps 5 per group. Your original team, I will ensure that you stay together and I will also try to get others from my Troop into your squad.

    Otherwise, there¡¯s not much I can do. I will have to visit many frontlines to report the situation and help out so I will see you but except my luck I can offer you nothing else. It¡¯s a shit situation made by an idiotic child, sadly that child was a born with reputable parents.¡±

    They both looked down in sadness and anger.

    Malum thanked the man and wished him luck, in turn he received a payer and they then shook each other¡¯s hand.

    ¡°You tried your best Malum, from start to finish I have seen nothing but your all. I commend you not only as a solider but as person as well. If you do not die in the coming months then I wish we meet later in life to share a few drinks. Name¡¯s Jameson Smith.¡±

    Malum shook his hand and said, ¡°It would be a pleasure Jameson. I will see you for drinks anytime.¡±

    With that done, Malum walked out the door and waved his hand around a bit.

    `God that hurt.`

    He shook with the wrong hand but didn¡¯t want to ruin the moment.

    After looking back, he turned and walked down back his bed. Sleep was needed now as they had a long day ahead of him.

    `The situation may be beyond terrible and I may die in the next day or two, but at least I¡¯ve met a few good people along the way.`

    It was a nice thought, although for someone as young as 17 it wasn¡¯t something that should have been said so young.

    The sun fell and soon it rose again. A mortals life worth nothing more than the plants they ate.

 Chapter 29

    Waking up, Malum rose out from his bed and went to get dressed. He called the others awake and they had a vote about what they wanted to do in the morning.

    Training was the answer so they headed down to get in some morning work.

    Malum was trying to blend in his new style, making it muscle memory took more than a months practice. What he really needed was practical experience and so sparring was what he did.

    Gerald was up for the challenge, always wanting some early morning thrill he bashed into Malum and took the danger head on. Never afraid, always exited.

    Alicia and Jake fought whilst they did. Greif had only made them closer but that didn¡¯t stop them from tearing each other apart on the training grounds.

    It was a good morning of training, Malum only wished it lasted longer.

    Alas food was needed so they headed down. During the meal, Malum pondered whether or not to tell his group about the change of strategy but decided against it for their own sake of mind.

    Knowing didn¡¯t really do much except give him dread, preplanning was pointless that wasn¡¯t their job so he opted to withhold his knowledge.

    Jake and his observing eyes clearly noticed something off about Malum but considering his injury, he thought it was related to that.

    Gerald continued his banter, and they all slurped down the slop they were provided. A hearty meal for a group of likely dead solider. Malum looked around at the stuffed canteen. He wandered how many would live in the next 3 months.

    Most would die, and looking at their joking faces only to turn gloomy after eating their paste, Malum began to feel sad for them. They didn¡¯t deserve this.

    Nobody did really, except for that bastard Baron kid. Malum would happily send that men on his own mission.

    Soon even that was over and with that done nothing else remained except the stregtdhy meeting held before every meeting. Usually, it was just empty time. This one however was going to be different.

    ¡°YOU BASTARD!¡±

    ¡°YOUR SENDING US TO DIE!¡±

    The crowd did not respond well to the news. Malum joined in, because he agreed with the thoughts and who didn¡¯t find venting fun.

    Even better was the one who announced was the murderer himself. Little shit had the audacity to be sad about his soldiers deaths. And yet, he was still going to send them.

    It showed which he cared about more.

    After the crowd got muted down with threats of violence from the team leaders, the finally continued the speech.

    ¡°Your sacrifices are for the good of the kingdom. You will lead it to a brighter future, for your families and your descendants. Your are not soldiers but hero¡¯s leading our country to a brighter future!¡±

    It was a good speech, sadly it was said by a kid who couldn¡¯t out the oomph behind it needed to be make it exceptional. The message was still, `We are sending you off to die` so being unhappy was beyond a reasonable response.

    Somehow it wasn¡¯t getting louder but Malum could feel that the tension was getting worse. As people thought over their deaths, or their friends deaths, they slowly began to feel more angry and as it couldn¡¯t be expressed through noise it got shown other ways.

    Some held their fists, staring adamantly at the Baron. Others looked towards their friends, and others looked towards the sky. Some prayed to their god, others cursed them.

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    ¡°Hold your heads high soldiers, for you are bright beacons of hope leading your families, your friends to a brighter future. The Gods will hold your actions highly, your actions clear devotion of patriotism and kindness.¡±

    The reminder of their families caused many to simmer down. Insubordination could lead to actions against not only the offender but also the parents and a few pious ones found logic in the God¡¯s reaction department. Malum couldn¡¯t care if those Gods found his actions heroic, if they wanted to help they would have done so years ago. He was insignificant, and now he was being sold off for someone¡¯s achievement.

    Malum solstice in promises of future action. If he came out alive, what would he do as revenge. He would rise to be a cultivator then shove that Baron into the frontlines.

    His teammates weren¡¯t taking the news to well. Gerald was perhaps better off, but ever since Jerom died that excitement had been muted down considerably. Now he looked to the friends around him and sadness could be seen in his eyes.

    Alicia hugged Jake and the two whispered to each other false hope. The chances of one of them living was already a miracle but both, that was nigh impossible.

    If any two were to survive though, Malum would want it to be those two because if it was only one of them, well Malum didn¡¯t even want to see that result.

    It speech ended and soon came more news about how the aggression was going to take place. They were going to be split up into groups of 5 and each had an area they would need to capture and clear. This area was going to be marked out with flags and each wave they were going to push forward the camp.

    That meant that the burning of bodies, for example, was going to be done on site instead of taking them all the way back. It would also cut down on time in the city as they got further away.

    There goal as far as advancement was between two mountains. It wasn¡¯t particularly important the takeaway Malum took was that it would take three months of successful pushes to get where they wanted to be.

    The only good news was that the points they were going to receive during the advancement was three-fold so if they survived they were going to have enough to get themselves out of the hell pit that was camp.

    They also got equipped with some better sets of armour and a weaponry. The Baron wanted success as much as Malum did.

    Except instead of his life on the line, he had his honour and reputation and for a Noble that was nearly the same thing.

    With his new heavy equipment on, Malum, his teammates, and the new recruit all received their backpack of supplies and were set off to their new location.

    As a traveller Malum had read maps since he was young and so he got assigned to get them to their location. They trudged through the rest of the human domain and soon entered the baron desert of the demonic.

    The sun was steadily rising as the group got used to the new weight.

    ¡°So, heavy.¡± Panted the new recruit, his name was George and whilst he wasn¡¯t exceptional and was fairly meek, he had manage to keep up so Malum took on the extra backpack.

    They may have took his arm, but that endless stamina had been beaten into him since his youth.

    ¡°Thanks!¡± said the rookie as he stood straight for the first time in a few hours.

    His smile was nice, and the sun made the sight something an artist could only strive to replicate. Malum didn¡¯t like his odds of surviving, but the image of his smile would remain in his memory.

    `And who knows? Maybe, he could live.` It was those hopeful thoughts that kept Malum marching.

    ¡°Are we there yet?¡± Moaned Gerald. The child began his antics the second he had grown bored enough and from there on out the journey had grown unbearable.

    ¡°Thankfully,¡± Malum looked down again, ¡°Yes, I think we are here.¡±

    The group let out a breath of relief as their legs were starting to crumble.

    Malum dropped the two bags and began to forage through their content. He took a bite out of some food and then began to study his map.

    The starting position was where the camp was and from their there was three points. Helpfully named, A, B and C.

    The goal was to clear from A to C of demon and B was going to used as a meeting points for two different groups. This was in case of fallen men, and to get a better idea of the progress of each group.

    Knowing where they had been wiped could allow for the Troop Leader to sort out any high sequence demons and for survival and continued success, this change was key.

    Malum continued to study the map as he looked for distinct locations he could use as reference. The amount of knowledge of the demonic domain that was contained in the map was shocking but considering it was just lost human territory it was likely made from older maps.

    He warned himself that the map could be outdated but still continued to note down anything else he could use as reference to guide him when they marched.

    After he informed the group of his analysis the squad took one final shot of alcohol before the attack started.

    The sun rose to its peak soon after, and another wave had begun.

    They then spread out into a small line like formation and then after a nod they began to march. There goal was simple, just keep moving and keep on killing.

    The newbie was in the middle, as it was the safest place, and Gerald and Malum was placed on the sides. Jake and Alicia had wanted to do differently but Gerald and Malum had already made up their mind.

    As Malum pulled out his blade, he began to repeat one single word.

    Live. It was everything he wanted, and was all he needed. Everything else came later.

    With his creed, Malum marched further and further into the abyss.

 Chapter 30

    Demons, upon demons, upon demons. Somehow it was growing worse as they continued to move inwards.

    It wasn¡¯t worse because there were more demons, no it was their growing sequences that added to the danger.

    Deling with two 001 demons was fine, but two 007 demons and Malum had to really focus.

    It¡¯s why he had accumulated so many injuries, and also why the newbie had died 2 hours ago.

    Night was setting in, and a stray 009 Raptor had managed to sneak up on the rookie and without even a second of warning it pounced and bite the rookies head off.

    `At least it was a quick death. may he rest in peace.`

    The body was shortly buried before a flag was placed above it. During the coming month they would recover it to send it off properly but for now they a target to reach.

    Good progress had been made, shedding their blood had paved the way for a land expansion and whilst it took several decades for greenery to spread back into demonic land, it was possible.

    Regardless, it didn¡¯t stop Gerald from his endless complaints. The formation usually kept them at a distance but when situation demanded it, and they got close enough to speak he would always begin a hate speech.

    ¡°Those bloodsucking,¡± He took a breath to cut down on his demon, ¡°leaches!¡±

    ¡°Always taking our hard work.¡± He moved to dodge an attack, then shifted his feet and cut back at the aggressor, ¡°And for what? We get nothing!¡±

    Blood had already dried on his face, his arms with several cuts and bite wounds kept his arms wet. That¡¯s if the sweat didn¡¯t do that already.

    Malum smell had almost disappeared. Sweat and blood were now just common smells. Like cut grass or the heavenly bakeries.

    With the perfect smell of bread in his mind, Malum decapitated another demon. A smile on his face, as he relieved the memory.

    The amour was helping, the blade was good as well. He checked on his teammates to assess their injuries and found nothing terrible on any of them.

    A few bandages covered them all but each of their movement seemed fairly unrestricted. So with nothing left to worry about, Malum continued his endless massacre of the demons who blocked their way.

    A variant 011 caused a few annoying injuries but by that time they had already nearly reached the B on the map. With that goal so close, their determination and their experience allowed for the quick departure of the strong demon.

    As Malum looked for any sign that this was the right point, Gerald, Alicia and Jake all began to talk about the past 11 hours.

    ¡°You got any spare cloth?¡± Alcia asked as she found her pack empty.

    Jake looked but found none in his but thankfully Gerald had some he could spare.

    ¡°Sure take these milady.¡± Gerald bowed and passed the bandages like it were some crown.

    ¡°Give me those!¡± she snatched the bandages from Gerald figure as he sniggered at her embarrassment. It always surprised him how badly she responded to flattery; well it was hilarious so Gerald wasn¡¯t going to complain.

    Jake decided to speak, ¡°How many did you guys kill?¡±

    ¡°You counted?¡± Gerald asked in disbelief.

    Even Alicia gave him a strange look.

    ¡°Yeah, I figured it was useful information.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t even see how that¡¯s possible, but okay how many did you count?¡± asked Gerald.

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    ¡°1874, although I lost track of what variant they each were.¡±

    ¡°At least your somewhat human.¡± Added Gerald

    ¡°I agree, but more importantly everyone noticed how their variants were growing higher as we got closer right?¡± Alicia continued, ¡°That means the next point will be even worse.¡±

    Malum returned to the conversation, with his agreement. ¡°You talking about worse demons as we go, yeah that Variant 011 is the perfect example. If were seeing that every couple minuets then we are in some serious trouble.

    By the way there doesn¡¯t seem to be some marker around so just set up camp here and I¡¯ll place down the flag. Gerald, for everyone¡¯s sake I¡¯m gunna give you the responsibility of keeping any demons at bay whilst we set up the camp. I¡¯ll go scout out the surrounding area in case a high variant comes and are forced to retreat. Got it?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Everyone said, only Gerald added a ¡°Sir.¡± Just to annoy Malum.

    Sadly, Malum only ignored his actions as he wandered off into the night.

    It was calm on the early winters night. The cold was blocked by the beefy armour he was wearing and just left the calming sound of the wind to cool of his mind.

    He met a few demons as he climbed the small mountains but nothing his sword couldn¡¯t handle. Looking in the distance Malum tried to spot the other group that was supposed to rendezvous with them but across the horizon he could only see the endless brown of dried out soil.

    Looking back down at his teammates he saw their shadows move as they set up the camp. Gerald light was moving as it was attached to its backpack but he was to far to wave to him.

    He breathed for his worried heart. `I¡¯m already halfway there. Just one more march and that¡¯s it.`

    Walking down he noticed that he couldn¡¯t see Gerald light anymore. He got to higher ground before he looked around again and still didn¡¯t see the light.

    Had he returned to camp, or had his light been extinguished. Malum decided to air on the cautious side and decided to run back to camp.

    `Not again` Malum noticed his heart began to speed up and sweat began to run down his head. His mind created realities of nightmares, he needed to get back quicker.

    Into the camp he ran and inside a small hut they had created he found his teammates. All of them.

    His mind fell into relation.

    ¡°Ah thank the Realm.¡± He walked towards Malum who was helping put up the roof and he gave him a soft punch in the shoulder.

    ¡°You bastard, your light went out and I had a heart-attack.¡±

    Gerald looked down at Malum with eyes of annoyance. ¡°Not my fault that Jake here couldn¡¯t do the roof. How am I getting the blame?¡±

    Malum eyed Jake for a response and with the eye contact avoided he assumed that Gerald was speaking the truth.

    ¡°Don¡¯t scare me like that team. You¡¯re killing me.¡±

    Alicia spoke over her working, ¡°Relax Malum. Worry is good but don¡¯t let it get to you. Stay calm, always.¡±

    Malum wished he could but perhaps he was affected by Jerome¡¯s death but nowadays he couldn¡¯t be so relaxed as he used to. Serenity was so far away; he must have left it at the village.

    With his heart back to normal, he heled out making the small shelter. If it rained then this would help immensely and considering it was winter if it snowed it would be even more helpful.

    Malum lit a torch on the roof and kicked Gerald back to his duty. With the child back hunting monsters, Malum talked strategy with Jake.

    ¡°Singles didn¡¯t work out so well. Some of us were overwhelmed whilst others couldn¡¯t advance, I think we should team up in twos for safety and for strength.¡±

    Malum liked Jake¡¯s idea but he didn¡¯t like the connotations of the parings. If they were split into two¡¯s it would mean Jake and Alica were split into two groups and for Malum goal of their joint survival that didn¡¯t exactly work.

    Instead he managed to convince Jake of a more effective version of the horizontal format. With idle members helping their furthest right/left if they needed any help.

    They would reduce the distance between these two members to help with that. So it was close to two pairs but one on each pair would automatically take on more demons so Alicia and Jake could take up the safer positions.

    It was still dangerous; god knows it wouldn¡¯t matter if a high sequence demon showed up. Then all it amounted to was who ran the fastest and spotted it before it killed them.

    Sadly the only strategy Malum could do to prevent that was pray to the God of Luck.

    Time passed, and soon Malum felt it was far past the time the other group should have arrived. He left the shelter with the torch remaining on the roof and a note for the other team.

    They more than likely dead, but Malum hoped that they were just slow.

    They still had a target to reach so they continued on their march. The relaxing had been nice but it had allowed the cold to reach their bodies. The winter morning was brutally cold and not even the fancy armour they had could resist it¡¯s wrath.

    Malum got talking with Jake, who was his assigned pair and they were guessing what caused more deaths, the cold or demons.

    Shaking of some shivers, Malum excessively dodged a triceratops and did a few extra star-jumps as the beast ran off to turn around again.

    ¡°I think it¡¯s the cold, I mean demons aren¡¯t universal right but the cold is universal.¡±

    Jake responded, ¡°Yeah but demons must go through something like quarter off all adult males in the bordering town and cities and the cold is so easy to avoid. Are we counting uncivilised humans because that would add to the cold side.¡±

    Without the normal technologies Malum enjoyed everyday he thought of what life would be like without them. He noticed the demon was coming back and did the same dodge but in the other direction.

    ¡°We have to count them, but demonic attacks have always been on the rise. As their borders grow so do their kill counts.¡±

    Jake nodded as he continued to think of the minor details of the cold and demons.

    Malum finished of the poor triceratops and they continued there night of marching.

 Chapter 31

    With much more blood staining their clothes, and there weapons far more blunt than they used to be, they finally hit the half way point.

    The growing sequences whilst causing more injuries wasn¡¯t enough to keep them from moving.

    His sword arm in particular was beginning to give up on him. Aches were now constant and a dose of pain was the price of every swing.

    Nothing to high sequence had attacked them. Another 011 had managed to hurt Jake but his reaction time allowed for any larger injuries to have been avoided.

    Death was constantly close, but they had managed to avoid her grasp so far.

    Malum looked over to see the other two and saw their lights a little while back. With some time to spare, they reached higher ground where they could canvass some more terrain. The early morning sun gave enough light to see some faint idea of where they were going. Malum just wanted to see if he could spot any really dangerous demon.

    Variant 054 otherwise known as the Titanosaur was exactly how it sounded. A titan among beasts it was large as any good mountain and whilst it wasn¡¯t quick with how much it weighed any good attack was going to immediately end Malum journey. No matter how much skill was in the block.

    With nothing like that in sight, Malum and Jake climbed down to see a torch running towards them. Jake had a smile on his face, Malum¡¯s held a frown.

    They both went to see what the team member wanted and as they got closer Malum saw tear running down a distraught Alicia¡¯s face.

    Malum couldn¡¯t even ask what it was as she mouthed !RUN!

    `No, no, fuck.`

    He could turn around and he could help. Whatever it was Malum knew that Gerald would stand a better chance with his sword by his side.

    With Malum¡¯s running becoming slower he got another message from Alicia.

    It was her hands.

    She held up seven fingers.

    Then she held up another 4.

    Malum didn¡¯t even think about turning back again. Screw helping, his presence would do nothing but give the demon another lunch break.

    That wasn¡¯t a strong demon that one of the strongest demons. That was a level even his Uncle would have to have to think about let alone his team leader.

    `Gerald is dead.`

    Malum finally realised it. Over his shock of the high tier came the realisation of what it meant.

    It didn¡¯t make sense though, Gerald dying just didn¡¯t make sense.

    Gerald was strong, and his love of fighting and compassion for training had made him into the bets soldier Malum could ask for. Sure he was a massive knob but in the field Malum had no complaints.

    Him, dead?

    How?

    Why?

    Fuck! it never made sense. This time he couldn¡¯t even see the body. Malum¡¯s mind struggled to even think about it. The consequence didn¡¯t even compute.

    He just continued to run. Taking his anger and confusion out on any poor demon that got in his way. Blood met tears as Malum continued to fight.

    But as they continued to run, Malum saw something over a small hill. A face, with glowing red eyes.

    It weight was the first thing they felt as they ran away.

    It sheer weight against the earth made the earth quake as it ran towards them. That 74 hadn¡¯t given up them, it was just relaxing after it¡¯s starter.

    It was faster than them. Malum didn¡¯t even need to think to know that fact. The being called 74 was in every way superior to humans, the only thing Malum had over the beast was the useless intellect telling him how dead he was.

    `Wait dead.

    I¡¯m going to die. Shit.

    Really?`

    Malum looked back and continued to feel the earthquaking as the demon grew closer.

    `I¡¯m going to die.`

    He tried to run faster but couldn¡¯t. He wasn¡¯t stronger than the beast, any comparison was laughable. The only real way out he saw was killing his two teammates for extra time and never could he do that.

    Whilst he may not have been a good person, Malum prided on the fact that he wasn¡¯t a bad person. Never did he hurt someone with foul intentions. But was his pride worth more than his life.

    To Malum. Logic said no, and yet his answer remained yes.

    For every quote Malum could provide from his Uncle¡¯s endless sayings, never could he put into words because his pride was worth so much.

    It was him.

    So his goal switched. His mind focused on how he could live his final moments. He wanted Alicia and Jake to live. And whilst he may not have the power to kill his foe, Malum would be damned if he couldn¡¯t slow it down slightly for even a moment.

    He thought about his parents, then his Uncle. His goal of revenge became pitiful as Malums legs began to slow.

    He saw how Jake and Alicia turned to give him one look of surprise, then gratitude before he looked one last time at the rising sun.

    The demon grew ever closer. Its body slowly shading Malum from the light.

    He drew back his sword and gave his best battle cry. He was never one for those antics but with his emotions running high and no fucks left to give, he said why not.

    074 looked as one of it¡¯s pray turned to face him. Sad that the chase wasn¡¯t needed anymore, he decided to kill this one extra slowly.

    If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    Chases were so much fun and this stupid meal had ruined it. Closer it stomped before he could reach the food with it¡¯s claws.

    The small bug tried to fight back but its shiny stick didn¡¯t even pierce through its skin. It kept trying though, which the demon found fun.

    It was missing some meat on it¡¯s body but that didn¡¯t matter, if it were really hungry it would have had some fun elsewhere no it here simply to relax and eat some these small treats.

    One of it¡¯s claws smashed through one of the arms and the bug let out a cry. It smashed both legs and the bug continued to let out its screams.

    Having fun, the beast showed the bug what a real scream was a was saddened when it¡¯s prey finally fell dead.

    The sauce had left the meat but before it went bad the demon quickly licked it up. It got some yucky soil in it¡¯s mouth and it had to spit that out but the taste of the human was very good.

    It looked at the sun and decided to not chase down the other bugs he had seen. It¡¯s small vacation as already running late and it certainly didn¡¯t want dad to come and get it.

    074 shivered at the thought of its dad.

    Black.

    Not actually a colour as he had heard. In fact, it was simply the absence of it. His Uncle had described the idea when he was younger. It was a stray thought that got Malum thinking.

    Then he thought about where he was.

    He had died, and whilst he knew that it didn¡¯t help in finding where he was.

    He felt his body, touch provided the sensation of being underwater and when he breathed that seemed strange as well.

    Moving was even odder, he tried to look for his hands and when he brought them to his eyes he noticed that his hands didn¡¯t exist.

    Or maybe his eyes didn¡¯t exits.

    He pressed on his own body and felt small pockets of pressure where it should have but his sight revealed nothing of the sort.

    Trapped, Malum tried to think of ways out.

    He tried everything. For how long, Malum didn¡¯t even know all he did know was that nothing worked.

    Instead of that, he thought of his life.

    From his lost parents to his lost Uncle. He truly was good at loosing.

    Now he had even lost his life.

    Although, looking at his actions Malum didn¡¯t regret a single one of them. Everything that went poorly was out of his control, and he always tried his best.

    He lived a miserable life but he didn¡¯t regret any of his actions for a second. He tried and what else could he do.

    That didn¡¯t mean he wasn¡¯t angry. But he already dead so cursing would do nothing. He was powerless, he always was.

    If Malum had any regret it would be that. He should have grown stronger faster, so that he wouldn¡¯t be pushed around anymore. So his freedom stayed intact, and so then when something went poorly at least he could blame himself.

    He hoped Alicia and Jake got out freely, at least then his life had some impact. Perhaps they would name one of their children in his honour.

    As he sat back and relaxed. He was trapped and there was nothing better to do other than relax so he did exactly that.

    No longer did he feel the need to train, no longer did he feel the need to get revenge. No, he could close his eyes without any regrets.

    Okay he was getting bored now. Malum was expecting somethin to change but nothing had happened and worse was the fact that he didn¡¯t even know what time it was. Had it been a few days or a few seconds? Did time even work here?

    It was these questions that burned panic into Malum.

    He tried to keep calm; he knew panic would nothing to help but as time continually passed without anything changing he couldn¡¯t stop himself from begging to feel agitated.

    He thought of his death. To the enemy he couldn¡¯t even scratch, the thing probably ate him like a snack. That meant he was never going to be sent to the underworld.

    `Does that mean I will remain here forever?`

    His soul couldn¡¯t help but shake after that thought.

    What was the point? In life, it ended all the same so why did he even bother. He should have just skipped straight to the end and get it done with. At least then he probably would have been sent off.

    The only good news he had received was his now extremely limited sight. The words to describe it didn¡¯t really exist. Even sight was a bit of a stretch. He could feel himself and he was a ball.

    It stretched and moved when he willed it and through the ocean he could even move slowly. He thought about trying to roll back to a nearby funeral pyre but he didn¡¯t even know what dimension he was in let alone trying to find his way back to a particular location.

    It was his soul, Malum knew that much. His Uncle had talked about the damn thing enough to transmit that much.

    This was all he was. The centre of everything.

    The world might not revolve around him but all he would ever experience was around him so what was the difference?

    Malum was over madness. He had done that a couple years ago, or maybe it was yesterday. He didn¡¯t know.

    Now he was just left doing simple queries in his head. Things like the winter or demonic death count thing. This time he was doing what would he do it he had a second chance.

    `I¡¯d live like a coward. That¡¯s for sure. I¡¯d check up on Alcia and Jake, wish them well. Then maybe find my Uncle and give him a good whack. Then a big hug.

    Everything else is just kinda pointless. Maybe try again on the immortality thing. I never got to cultivate and that sounds fun.

    Not like I¡¯m not used to being alone for long periods of time.`

    He found that funny, far too funny.

    He just hoped that something would happen. Even true death. The silence of his thought would be enough. Even dreams weren¡¯t enough of an escape. At least nightmares didn¡¯t provide him with a horrible feeling when he got up.

    He waited.

    And waited.

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    Until something happened.

 Chapter 32

    Ireana hadn¡¯t been this bothered since before she ascended. The removal of emotions tended to make her heart a block of iron and yet today she felt it beat once more.

    Even with her heart disagreeing she had already signed an Oath and so she could do nothing except comply.

    She felt her law as she began to try and find the right soul. The Abyss wasn¡¯t a place she liked to visit, so full of past resentment and madness even herself suffered if she had prolonged exposure.

    With Her senses, it didn¡¯t take long. She found the target slowly rolling around the deep nothing with a pace as slow as a snail. Her brow raised at the man¡¯s ability.

    After all, not all souls managed to get moving before they perished. This one hadn¡¯t even been here for that long, She looked over and saw several dimmer souls as still as rocks.

    She had a job to do, so She gathered the soul and returned to her realm. Putting the mortal to sleep was child play but as per the agreement She had to gift the child something.

    Her strongest Lich passed her an eye. Around it, the air bended and even the Lich skins contorted per the items Law.

    It only calmed in effect when in Her hands.

    First the seals. She drew upon her energy and drew some simple seals on the eye. It didn¡¯t damage the object; the seals method of creation was too simple.

    The energy it carried however, that could seal even some Gods.

    Replacing the eyes was just as easy. Her mind overflowed with useless information but sometimes her earlier studies had come in useful.

    With the body now done, she placed the soul inside and set it back to where it had died.

    She had now completed her agreed upon actions. She wished the child the best and promised herself that she would give him solstice if he returned.

    She didn¡¯t why He wanted that child revived but He was strong enough for Her to not ask questions. Her realm was Her home, and as long as she wasn¡¯t disturbed then a few actions every millennia was a cheap price to pay.

    She just wished they weren¡¯t done to such young children.

    Malum felt like he was bending and stretching. Every fibre of his being, from his brain to his stomach all worked together at once to create a sensation so uncomfortable Malum couldn¡¯t even move.

    He tried to be sick, but couldn¡¯t move the right muscles. It had been so long since he had used a body, the best could do was roll over to his side and slowly get rid of the liquids from his mouth.

    Rolling away from those, he then tried to gather his limbs back. First his legs, from his toes to his knees, and then up to his hips.

    From a viewers perspective, Malum imagined he looked like he was possessed. Like a ghost learning how to walk. Although, he found his situation not far from his analogy.

    The arms were next, from his fingers going up and down, to his wrists moving side to side, then his forearm and then his upper arm. Not only did his slowly gain control of his limbs he also realised that his once wounded shoulder had healed.

    He awkwardly pushed himself up and tried to control his balance using his legs. Sadly, he quickly fell as he couldn¡¯t properly control his body.

    One thing he did know was that he was hungry. The saliva dripping out of his mouth told him enough and the pain in his stomach was another obvious clue.

    He remembered: to look! He opened his eyes once again and dragged his eyeballs around to see the outside world yet again, so use was he to the dark that he forgot his vision.

    It¡¯s green! A lovely, beautiful colour and the dark brown on the trees around him was just as beautiful. The sounds of birds came back to his mind and the fluttering of the trees registered as he remembered what sounded like what.

    He felt his smile muscles slowly want to work and as he pushed his smile he felt his mouth cure and then awkwardly laugh.

    He couldn¡¯t¡¯ even imagine how manic he looked.  With his strangely curved mouth spitting out spit as he made sounds similar to laughs but not quite right.

    Still he had never since his death felt such rich emotion. It was like a dim light went back to full power; his soul must have limited what he felt but with a body he could Live back the experience.

    With worldly experiences, Malum, after a period of juvenile discovery, went back to his mortal ways. He had his regrets and now he wanted to go and solve them.

    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

    Good news was that he was in human territory, bad news was that he didn¡¯t know where. He searched back in his mind for his Uncle¡¯s words, at one point he had tried to list them all and he couldn¡¯t find anything so he tried his own tips from hunting.

    High ground, that was what he needed and would give him the best shots at finding other humans.

    Malum couldn¡¯t help but think how long he had died for. He hoped those he knew were still alive, otherwise his regrets would go unanswered.

    Slowly making his way up the hill, Malum was quickly gaining back his prowess at walking. It didn¡¯t sound so hard because he had learned it as a child, but now he was learning it as an adult it was much harder than it seemed.

    Balance was so hard. Especially when every muscle had to second guess itself if it was the right one, and if it was to hard or to soft. He would constantly under, or over do his pulls or stretches and chuck himself back on the dirt.

    And pain was an odd one. Even the sensation was quiet fun to Malum.  For so long had he felt nothing that this bad sensation didn¡¯t even register as bad, it was something and therefore Malum liked it.

    Obviously he preferred the happiness he felt when he discovered he was alive but no longer was pain a limiting factor for him. He thought about how this might affect his fighting style. Then he thought about how death would affect his fighting style.

    He didn¡¯t want to die again. Hell, there wasn¡¯t much he wouldn¡¯t do not to die again. Even when he stumbled he ensured that no spiky rocks were near and that the dirt he landed on held nothing that could seriously harm him.

    His life was the most valuable thing he held, above even his friends and his family. Without it he couldn¡¯t enjoy or suffer anything, and that was true misery.

    With his mind continuing to think, he managed to reach the top of the hill. Here, whilst he looked at the beautiful sky for perhaps to long he also didn¡¯t see any human like traces so he looked for the next highest point and began to walk in that direction.

    Along the way, he found himself studying the foliage a whole lot more than he usually did. He wandered if plants had souls, and if so could they suffer the same fate he did.

    Death wasn¡¯t something he wished on anyone. Nobody he may, not even the Baron who killed him deserved the punishment that he received. An Eternity of nothing was something perhaps only the God of Evil deserved or at least he would be the closest contender.

    His eyes went back to the greenery as he wandered what they were. Never had he really bothered to learn about any foliage as really he found it very boring information.

    However, now he was interested in what they did. How did they live? What was their purpose? He found himself questioning just about everything.

    He thought back to the information he learned from his old friend back during his younger years. Her name was lost to in his memory but he remembered her love of nature and it¡¯s effects on humans. Some few details came back to his mind and with them he found a few berries that were good to eat.

    There had some other effect he couldn¡¯t¡¯ remember but considering their many uses in her mixtures; it couldn¡¯t be that bad.

    Stuffing his face of them, Malum re-experienced taste for the first time and the strange texture and taste of the berries soon became an interesting ordeal for his brain to figure out.

    What humans liked and didn¡¯t like was something that baffled scholars ever since they picked up their quells. Eventually it was decided to be a topic related to souls or a query of the mind.

    Liking the sensation, Malum ate more and more and found himself extremely happy over the taste. Whatever those berries were tasted better than even his favourite baked bread.

    Or was it just because he hadn¡¯t ate anything in a while? Malum cared not as he scoffed them down. Juices spread on his face as his jaw remembered how to properly eat.

    If his Uncle had seen him a whack over the face wouldn¡¯t have been the end of it. He was always such a stickler, or at least the wise man was.

    He walked on continuing to think of his old man, their travels had been one of the parts Malum enjoyed the most about the traveller lifestyle. The scenery was something great, even though he got used to it and whilst his Uncle was several things, he could tell a good story when he wanted to.

    The only issue was trying to get him to stop once he had started. Sometimes the stories diverged into rants about a particular event, one time they got talking about Malums aunt who was from his dads side.

    She had apparently been totally crazy and it was clear his Uncle absolutely despised her. How Malum father was related to the woman, baffled his Uncle to no end. Yet, because of her position as sister of the King he didn¡¯t have the station to tell her off in anyway.

    His favourite story was about her humiliation at some party. It was after Malum¡¯s parents had just taken the throne and they were at the height of their power. His aunt was enjoying her new status and was flaunting around with some young Counts and Barons and it wasn¡¯t until she tried to get a Duke¡¯s son into her bed chambers that Malum¡¯s father called her out on it.

    His Uncle couldn¡¯t stop grinning thinking about that story and Malum used it occasionally to cheer the old man up.

    Malum what his own fondest memories were. He had likely already listed them by tier back in his death but had long forgotten that and so he could only do it again.

    His death would strangely be up there. His decisions at that time were something he was immensely proud of and whilst he didn¡¯t like the result and would have modified the plan slightly if he could the actions themself cemented his own idea of himself in his head.

    He was a good person. His life was proof of that and now he had evidence to back that up.

    Perhaps because he was young but always questioned himself. Was he really a good person or was it just because friends were beneficial and being nice tended to be a good idea.

    Now it wasn¡¯t a question. He could hold his shoulder high knowing his action weren¡¯t fake and his words held truth.

    Perhaps that¡¯s why he could stay in his own presence for so long. He had nothing to be ashamed of, if anything he was proud of himself to no end.

    Still, remaining humble was always a good idea so he sucked back his ego and realised again that he was a powerless little mortal. He would gain the strength to back up his words and then he would spread them with pride.

    He reached the top of the cliff and found himself looking over the edge to even better view then before. Higher now he could see further out into nature¡¯s endless garden and it truly never did let him down.

    How he got used to this, even as a traveller Malum didn¡¯t know. It was just so enchanting.

    Even better was the sight of what looked to be a set of houses near to a river nearby. The smoke rising from that direction acted as evidence of his thoughts and with that confirmed he went to see humans again for the first time in what felt like eternity, he just hoped they spoke the same language.

 Chapter 33

    ¡°Hello, my name is Maluma and I don¡¯t come meaning harm!¡± Malum shouted across the river at the bow drawn guardsmen looking back at him.

    He wished they spoke the same language.

    ¡°This is Riverwheat village, what do u want?!¡± They shouted back.

    He had no clothes on, Malum just realised that as he jumped in joy that they were speaking the same language. If he wasn¡¯t trying to look crazy, he was doing a fantastic job anyway.

    ¡°Clothing, food and a way back to my friends!¡±

    Malum saw the guard speak to the others around him and after a few nods he got another shouted reply.

    ¡°Boat will get you soon, wait, we can talk more!¡±

    After a thumbs up back Malum waited as he saw a boat get taken out of the village and placed on the rather large river.

    From a distance it didn¡¯t look that big but next to it, even Malum would struggle to swim across it. Fast and deep would mean the boat was necessary for anyone who wanted to cross it and here one was now.

    Getting on he got a few odd stares from those around him and the spears pointing in his direction clearly showed that suspicion clearly remained.

    The boatman however didn¡¯t seemed bothered in the slightest. He was talking to everyone like it was just another day out fishing

    ¡°Bet you¡¯ve got stories to tell kid. Good, the Mayor would do anything for an ounce of a good one.¡±  That made Malum think. Was he talking about myths, or was he talking about his life story.

    Well the boatmen got shushed by the guards so he couldn¡¯t ask to find out. If he said anything the guards would just responded by hushing.

    The only reason the boatmen seemed to have avoided this was his drunk demeaner. The fact he also controlled their lives as they crossed the river also seemed to play apart. His goody smile as he did so showed how skilled he was even whilst he was intoxicated

    He reminded him of Gerald, and with him in mind Malum sent him a prayer. He wished the boy had received the same chance he had. Perhaps he would even see him again.

    They arrived at the other end of the river and got out to be received by what looked to be the Mayor. Just his clothes gave that fact away, he was wearing tanned leather whilst everyone else was wearing the cheaper cloth.

    ¡°Here he is. The interesting stranger that has awoke me this morning. Come, we shall chat in private and you can tell me your story. You said you wanted to reunite with your friends yes?¡±

    Malum said, ¡°Yes.¡± He needed to get his image closer to that of a civilised human. His clear pronunciation would work wonders.

    ¡°Good, if your story is good enough I¡¯d even be willing to send you on horseback. Follow me, and Eric and Haris you will come as well.¡± Malum looked at him with questioning eyes, to which he responded, ¡°I need some level of safety, can¡¯t except to just be alone in the same room as me.¡±

    ¡°Fairn enough.¡± Malum said as he walked with the man.

    Initial impressions were pretty good. Although since his small torturing debacle with the old Mayor Malum still didn¡¯t trust this one. Although the torture now really seemed laughable.

    He walked into the Mayor office with his expectations extremely low. The office though did give him some hope. Some lovely child-drawn-paintings were hung on the walls and a bookshelf holding a few books spoke very highly to the mans love of stories.

    Books were extremely expensive. Especially proper ones. Paper alone was expensive enough, but printing and cover making. That was another league and this man had 12 of them.

    The Mayor saw Malums eyes widen at the books and he immediately began to speak about them, ¡°Ah my lovely children. These are my treasures and my saviour from boredom. Do you know how boring paperwork is, and as a Mayor do you know how much I have to go through. I¡¯m afraid without these I would be mad.¡±

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    `Pretty sure you¡¯re already mad, but at least you¡¯re not crazy mad, just... eccentric.`

    ¡°Now,¡± The mayor pushed aside the papers on his desk with a smile perhaps to large and said, ¡°Tell me your story.¡±

    Malum had wandered as he walked up what he should say. He could lie, easily in fact, but as he talked to the Mayor he began to wander why he would bother.

    He didn¡¯t seem like the kind of person to tell others. In fact, he would probably appreciate his honesty and reward him for it.

    So, with the risks in mind Malum decided to tell the truth anyway. Well, mostly the truth. However, before he did he needed some conditions met.

    ¡°First, only me and you. Second I want you to promise that you won¡¯t tell anyone about what I tell you. Next, I need that horse and finally, I want a map. I have only the clothes on my back, the threat of me killing you before they hear a commotion outside is minimal and even then I would still need to get out the village and what do I even gain from killing you?¡±

    The man looked at Malum like he was a diamond.

    ¡°Oh, you must be holding a very fun story if you¡¯re asking those. Sure, you seem normal enough. Harris and Eric leave.¡± They two guards looked back but didn¡¯t contest the mans decision. Considering their attitude on the boat it seemed the Mayor had some reputation.

    Now then, we are alone and I promise whole heartedly to never tell a soul about your life. Now stop teasing me and speak.¡±

    The man was almost falling of his chair.

    Not wanting to kill the man, he spoke of his story from beginning to end. With the only modification being around his death. This story, he didn¡¯t die but was heavily injured but eventually healed and escaped.

    Considering his body was wrapped in scars anyway, it was pretty easy lie to sell.

    ¡°So many questions, but I get what kind the main point so I will respect our deal. Your horse will be prepared for by the morning.¡±

    He stopped and thought for a while without dismissing Malum.

    ¡°I like stories so much because I think they provide lessons to me so I can grow. Yours is an interesting one, far more interesting than most. I wish you luck on your journey and before you go I feel as though I should give you advice.

    Look outside at the village. Its market time so most should be out buying their goods needed for the week.¡±

    Outside the shutter, Malum poked his head out and looked down the street to see roughly a hundred people shuttering around stalls. The smell of food made him almost salivate but he kept his attention on the mans words.

    ¡°Cultivation provides you the opportunity to kill everyone you see within seconds.¡±

    Malum almost interrupted him but waited for the sentence to end before he said,

    ¡°I would never do that though.¡±

    The man looked at him, ¡°Nobles are humans just like us, yes?  Yet I have seen many of them burn villages far bigger than this for their own ambitions. They do this because they think of themselves as better than then those they burn.

    Now imagine yourself as cultivator and your actually are better than them, Would that not threaten your moral compass. The Dao is the perfect example of power becoming heartless and you say you wouldn¡¯t follow that trend.¡±

    Thinking back to his death and Malum hesitated. Perhaps when he was stronger and his life was threatened he would put a mortals life as lower than his own.  Even now he would do many crimes to keep his life yet alone when he grew stronger.

    ¡°I¡¯d hope I wouldn¡¯t, but if my life were to be threatened then I don¡¯t know what I wouldn¡¯t do.¡±

    The man almost laughed but held himself in and kept his expression to a smile.

    ¡°I¡¯m not asking you to sacrifice your life for other people. That¡¯s for hero¡¯s of myths and legends and we are simply humans. I¡¯m asking you to value life, even when you could wipe them out in heartbeat.¡±

    ¡°Of course I will do that.¡± Malum didn¡¯t think himself a bad person, although he didn¡¯t think about how that could change as he grew stronger. He hoped he didn¡¯t change much but from his death he knew that change was inevitable, even when there was no change from outside sources he still managed several different phases in death.

    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear, now go outside and ask Eric to take you to the guest house. It was good seeing you Malum, now I have some more paperwork to do.¡±

    The change from smile to frown was sad to see, Malum wished the soldier well and after asking for direction he got pointed towards the guest house.

    It felt good telling his story to someone else. Even if he was constantly worried about whether or not the man would rat him out. By now he reckoned he could eliminate the possibility. Just his words of advice spoke about the mans own moral compass and selling him out would break that.

    With his worries eased Malum slept like a baby as his first sleep since death, he finally thought of nothing for a while.

    He woke up again and immediately went outside to see the rising sun. The view of the sky was as amazing as he had remembered and it confirmed the fact that wasn¡¯t dreaming and that he was definitely alive again.

    Gone was that hell, he had returned to the living.

    Next on his agenda was his horse so he went to what smelled like the stables and found an attendant holding the reins.

    ¡°Leave him at your destinations closest stable. It had it¡¯s home location inked into it¡¯s skin so they will send it back.¡±

    To Malum that sounded awfully convenient. But if each stable did the practice and the right rewards were given for returned horses the system would work fairly well.

    He looked to see if it was the same stable company as before but it was a new one so he assumed it was a group of merchants working together.

    With that query over, Malum hoped on his horse and picked up a bag of food and the map he needed. His leather skin was refilled and with that he was ready for the road.

 Chapter 34

    Malum forced his eyes even in the blinding sun to see where he was again. He was lost, again.

    He had been on the road for 2 months now but for his work he was now getting fairly close. His destination was the city he had visited once upon a time. There he decided to ask the Mayor office of the status of his friends.

    Considering the time already spent travelling he assumed a large change in personal and he would make sure he would go during a time where now soldiers that could have remained would still be at the frontlines.

    With his hair growing longer over his journey and the lack of anything to cut it with, he guessed the receptionist would have little chance of recognising him.

    Beasts had been something he had been forced to fend off. Even with no sword, he still managed to fight them off mainly because there attack patterns were so obvious and they weren¡¯t strong enough with purely physical attributes.

    The few villages he had stopped at to gather more food and wash himself, thought he was a madman and the stained blood on his clothes along with his ragged appearance was helping little in that regard.

    Right now, Malum cared less about how he looked and more about where he was. The map said that this was an area near to two hills, and looking around that description seemed right, and yet when he crested the hill to move to the next landmark he saw a landscape different then what the map said.

    Had the map been wrong, had the hill he climbed been wrong, or had the two hills he had used at the start been wrong. He didn¡¯t know but he would spend the next few hours finding out which one was.

    Turns out it was the two hills, they in fact were the wrong ones and so he had to double back and start again from the right ones this time.

    Crest the hill, see the right landscape and move on.

    As Malum had travelled he wasn¡¯t idly admiring the landscape, instead he was focusing on his plans for the future.

    Cultivation was his main, general goal. The revenge came next, but those were to long term he needed to break them down into step-by-step goals.

    For cultivation he needed...

    A potion? It was something like that. His Uncle had been vague such to keep him from running of and trying to do it himself so he knew he needed some catalyst to awaken his soul.

    That was a thought, Malum had already spent so long with just his soul he could move it so he wandered if he had already completed this part.

    He felt deep within himself and tried his best to feel the soul he had once been stuck with.

    Next to his heart, just a little bit below he felt the very centre of himself. It didn¡¯t take long, neither was it very hard but apart from sensing it Malum couldn¡¯t do much else.

    Worse yet, it seemed as though it was still inactive. When he was inside death, the soul seemed to push against the sea, now it seemed locked inside its body. No movement was given out, it laid still, asleep.

    The catalyst would wake the thing up. Malum needed to find what was needed to make the catalyst and then craft the thing.

    Luckily his goals aligned. He needed to see if his friends were alive and whilst he was inside the city he could check the library, although he would need money to enter.

    With that figured out, Malum had been trying to pick up some alchemical skills. Every village he entered he asked for some knowledge and occasionally he had read a few books.

    The success rate of creating working potions were beyond miserable and the ingredients were even rarer then finding gold, but with several months of travel, Malum had manage to find a few rare herbs to pick up along the way.

    He used them to hone his craft and also to make some money for his resupplies. He also made a few mundane poisons to help with his beast fighting. A good spear with it coated on the spike could take out a beast far quicker than his usual beatdown.

    With his journey going well, Malum continued to march forwards.

    Looking at the walls, Malum couldn¡¯t help but fell nostalgia for when he first arrived there. That was with the whole gang, before it had been splintered.

    He hoped again that Alicia and Jake were alright before he entered the que to enter the city. This time he wasn¡¯t here with a band of soldiers and with a wave just beginning Malum ruled out using his solider identity.

    Instead he would slip a potion to the guard. It worked at every village and it didn¡¯t fail here.

    A few words and a showing of the potion had the guard letting him in with smiles on both parties faces.

    Malum was impatient to go ask about his friends but he knew for his sake that he should wash up a bit first.

    He needed to keep some of the rough but the dirt down his pants had to go at some point.

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    Cleaning everything, now Malum looked like a clean beggar. At least now he would be allowed in the building and with access he could get his reward.

    With his hopes high he went towards the Mayor office. He ignored the polished door, and walked into the que for the receptionist. This time it wasn¡¯t soldiers making up the que but instead what looked to be wealthy merchants and a few officers here for their battle update.

    The merchants were here to complain about a new law that had just passed. Something about a tax which was about as predictable as a wasp sting. A few stragglers asked about random topic and soon Malum also got to ask his question.

    ¡°Next.¡± She said, sounding bored.

    ¡°Can I ask of the location of two conscriptions please?¡±

    She looked up, slightly more alive that before.

    ¡°Names and relation please.¡±

    ¡°Jake and Alicia, they were recruited in the same batch and I¡¯m from the same village as them.¡±

    ¡°Okay let me check the back for them. Was it recently they were conscripted?¡±

    Malum had found out as he had travelled here.

    ¡°Yes it¡¯s fairly recently, only around 5 months ago.¡±

    With three months of travel time, a month on training and a month at war. That left Malum holding the answer as to how long he had died for.

    Zero time. Death was truly for an eternity, a place where time wasn¡¯t even present.

    It was good news, but also worry news. Malum had always wandered how long he would have bene trapped there and without whatever had revived him, the answer was likely eternity. Or untill he managed to find a way to kill his own soul.

    He dragged his mind away from the subject as he found the receptionist coming away from the back. A stack of files in her hands.

    ¡°What was the name of the village they were collected from?¡±

    Malum had already guessed this question would come so he answered with no hesitation.

    ¡°Stromard village.¡±

    The receptionist began scanning through the files and soon came to a stop.

    ¡°There are two Jake¡¯s here and one Alicia. One of the Jake¡¯s are dead but that could very well not be your friend. The two were relieved of duty a month ago, that is where the records end. Next?¡±

    Getting pushed out the way, Malum had to quickly stop himself from jumping in jot. His friends were alive!

    He went outside before he did a little shuffle of joy.

    The eyes around him meant nothing, their judgement on his actions did nothing to stop his body from grooving to his good mood.

    Untill he heard one voice from the crowd,

    ¡°Malum?!¡±

    His mind went into overdrive as quickly as possible. He looked around for the voice as remembered people who could know him.

    The voice was to deep for Jake, to masculine for Alicia.

    He only remembered one man whose voice matched and as his eyes looked for the resemblance he found a middle-aged man looking at him in the crowd.

    ¡°Team Leader, is that you?¡± Malum walked over quickly and gave the man a hug.

    The hug was reciprocated but her certainly didn¡¯t do it in silence.

    ¡°Where have you been?!¡± He hushed his voice, ¡°Your team thinks your dead! I thought you were dead!¡±

    After Malum ended the hug he pointed to a nearby inn.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go somewhere more private, I can explain it to you there.¡±

    The men walked over and soon began Malum interrogation.

    His revival was a process he had already decided not to tell a soul about. With the only witness to his death being a demon, all he needed to do was say he was injured.

    There was a problem with his story however and that was his healed shoulder. To cover for this, Malum used his new expertise of alchemy to tell a story about meeting a famed healer.

    Taken in as an apprentice, Malum learned his art and got his limbs healed. It was a good story covered by his new expertise in the alchemical arts.

    Wandering doctors whilst rare weren¡¯t unheard of. It was common for developing new medicines for doctors to seek out new patients in different places and the discovery of new herbs allowed for new experiences to be had.

    It was risky though, with beasts roaming the roads, many avoided the practice due to the danger. Which is why many choose to simply set up a practice in a village. Still many continued the practice despite the risk and most famed healers in the kingdom were from the more rewarding path of danger.

    That background, whilst not airtight was enough for Malum to ease of suspicion and it was enough for Jameson to ease on his interrogation.

    Next were questions about what he was going to do next. With cultivation as his next step, Malum didn¡¯t have any good ideas about what he wanted to do.

    He got his mind back to thinking and with the help of some cheap inn booze, Malum followed a good direction.

    To reach the bottom of the cultivation ladder should he not at least start at the top of the mortal one.

    The top of the mortal ladder was nobility, some of which Malum was sure had some connections to supernatural strength.

    The easiest way to gain nobility was something Malum had seen. Back in the army when he was looking for things he could trade in for, at the near top was exactly that.

    Knight titles and Lord titles. Although both were well beyond anything he would be able to afford normally. Perhaps if the attack had lasted longer but even then it was a stretch.

    He bounced his ideas of his friend and from it he gained the idea of the more dangerous and yet more lucrative Southern Front. Whilst he got many words of warning, Malum¡¯s resolute goal was not going to stop due to his friends warning.

    ¡°I have to do it Jameson. With my ambitions, I cannot take the easy path. Risk and reward come hand in hand and you know that just as much as I do.¡±

    Even though he could think of numerous exceptions, Jameson nodded his head. He had seen to many soldiers with those eyes, and arguing with them led to nothing but sour friendships.

    Onto a lighter topic, Malum realised that his Troop Leader perhaps had a better idea of where his friends were, and it certainly wouldn¡¯t hurt to ask.

    ¡°Those two, I remember they always kept close. A rare couple of the battlefield, yes we talked at yours and Gerald mock funeral. Sorry, I was drunk that night and it was quite a while back.¡± He held his head as he tried his best to think back.

    ¡°They kept on crying, and Jake practically knelt at your grave. The priest said his words and the eulogies began. Something about funny, but an idiot and your was a good leader. Then it was more drinks and I¡¯m sorry but everything past that is blank.¡±

    Malum didn¡¯t give his friend a hard time but instead grilled him on what the two had said about him in their speeches. Praise was something he always loved so he got Jameson to think more.

    ¡°Strict, hardworking, quiet. There was that story about getting that harsh instructor. Guess your hard work did pay off though, your alive at least.¡±

    The words to brighten up Malum¡¯s thoughts instead did the opposite. He knew very well that hard work did not mean results at all, but this time he would try to do it right.

    He continued to smile nevertheless and gave his friend some laughs for his effort. At this point they were to drunk to care whether or not it was reasonable.

    It was only around midnight that Jameson realised he actually had a job to do and whilst his title would loosen his restrictions, it didn¡¯t make him free from their grasp.

    He was a fairly functional alcoholic, at least he could get himself up and walking that was.

    Malum on the other hand, he was suffering from both controlling body and then there was his mind. With his body barely listening at all, he manage to somehow get into one of the inn rooms and clambering on the poorly stuffed bed it still felt as comfortable as a cloud for Malums senses.

    Falling asleep, he noticed a pain was slowly coming onto his eyes and whilst he wrote it off as simple alcoholic nonsense, in the morning he would soon come to another conclusion.

 Chapter 35

    He woke up feeling a specially horrendous headache. Not only his head hurt but even his eyes hurt from whatever pain he was feeling.

    Luckily for him he had the perfect distraction. Finding his teammates was a goal beyond pain so whilst he got dressed he planned out a reasonable course of action to find his friends.

    First he would search their old village, try and find family or friends alike. Then go from there.

    It was a simple easy plan, perfect for him as it meant he didn¡¯t have to stress his brain to think up another one.

    Easing of the braincells, he turned to action as he walked downstairs to get prepared for the journey ahead. He regretted sending the horse back but that just meant he had to find another.

    Money wise, he was good to hire another one as long as he got a good sale on the potion he had cooked up before. It wasn¡¯t anything to rare but it should fetch him some good silver if he found the right buyer.

    He headed towards the market to see what other similar goods were going for and to check out the market in general.

    Potions were expensive goods, reserved for nobility and merchants. Peasants like Malum had little chance of getting themselves the money to afford a good one and even then, it could come with some serious side effects.

    Lose of limbs, lose of senses and even death could come from the consumption of poorly made potions so people tended to avoid them anyway. If it wasn¡¯t for their miraculous effects then nobody would buy them at all.

    Looking around the market and he saw a few mixtures here and there. Some looked okay-ish but others looked like a mishmash of herbs and water mixed together.

    Fakes plagued the industry and gave it a pretty bad reputation. Nobody dare scammed the wealthy as they could fight back but a poor peasant who had nothing but a few bronzes to their name. They were easy pickings.

    He was looking for someone with a keen eye, perhaps a good potion marker themself as they could better distinguish his good product from a bad one.

    The one he found was at the centre of the market. A wealthy looking woman with the smell of herbs permeating from her hut.

    She sold herbs and medicinal teas, but Malum could see a potions in the back. Nothing to fantastic but unlike the other he had seen they were in glass containers which spoke well of their quality.

    Malum pulled her aside and whilst she was resistant, once she saw the product she calmed down considerably.

    After a few tests, feeding it to an animal, checking its purity, then a small taste herself, she gave turned to Malum with a wrinkled smile.

    ¡°You have talent child, better than my own spawn that¡¯s for sure. Next time you should peal the Yutra berries, the skin does nothing but worsen the quality. I¡¯ll give you 8 silver for the potion. That with your promising to sell to nobody else but me when you come back to this city.¡±

    Malum shook her hand and left with a smile on his face. The potion itself would go to a gold and a bit for the right buyer as it was one that effected performance in bed. For Nobles that was an area of particular interest as heirs played a large role in their duties and honour.

    He was expecting slightly less for the potion as he didn¡¯t have time to spare to get the right price but with his promise he had a gotten a deal better than expected. Now he had the money to rent the horse and pack his back with decent food.

    He also decided to pick himself up a weapon, sword and shield with a spare version of each. That and a sharpener would do him well.

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    It came to the time of departure and whilst Malum had packed his bags he found he hadn¡¯t the right amount to hire a horse properly. Instead he would forced to get it back himself but that wasn¡¯t too large of a deal, just an annoyance.

    Speaking off, his headache still had yet to let up. He had taken a few drinks to take the edge off but it continued to annoy him to no end. He was beginning to think it wasn¡¯t to do with his bad drinking habits and instead something to do with his death.

    He searched his soul for anything out of the ordinary but with it still asleep it didn¡¯t seem related.

    The pain seemed to come from his head and his eyes so he tried to sense their but couldn¡¯t sense that area well enough to come to any proper answer.

    He left the city with haste. Finding his friends came first then he could deal with whatever ill health he was being plagued by.

    At least it wasn¡¯t anything to do with his teeth. Dentists were more feared then any other man in the mortal world. At least reapers would send you to the other side.

    He shivered as he got his horse to go into stride. His goals clear, now all it would take was time.

    Time would soon pass. Village after village, Malum made potion after potion.

    Some were pretty bad; some were better than alright. He drank a few himself, once he was sure the effects were good and other he sold for coin.

    His health was his priority, now more than ever. That headache managed to ease up with a few mind-numbing ones but it never quite went away. He searched his books but found nothing like it. Thankfully his body was growing used to its annoyance so as long as it didn¡¯t flare up he could ignore it.

    Along the way, he had sent a few letter so his old Team Leader. The corporation of the man had given Malum a much better idea of what the future was going to hold and his help would be invaluable.

    As he rested his horse and entered the village. Malum hoped his friends were well.

    First, he asked around with some of the local villagers. He had asked the same questions again and again because he had asked about the duo every village he had visited.

    It didn¡¯t hurt and whilst he didn¡¯t get any answers he liked to be sure he wasn¡¯t going to miss them as he moved.

    Immediately, he saw results.

    ¡°Alicia, that poor woman. What do you want with here?¡±

    Malum panicked slightly and asked frantically.

    ¡°Is she alright? Did Jake get hurt?¡±

    ¡°Calm yourself boy!¡± he got a whack on his stomach. ¡°Young¡¯uns these days are so impatient. She got taken away months ago for an army enlistment. Her family got caught doing somethin with bandits and whilst the parents got off easy with the noose, she got sent off with the Knight. There was that boy who went with her as well. Daren¡¯s child I think.¡±

    Malum asked for where Daron lived and went there to find out more. Hearing Alcia¡¯s family had been doing business with bandits was a surprise and a half, never had she come off as the scummy type but he didn¡¯t judge her for the actions of her guardians.

    Malum like the fact he was nothing like his Uncle. That miserable old man was one of a kind, in both good and bad ways.

    Getting him out of his thoughts was the pain and so he stopped thinking back and instead focused on finding his friends.

    The old man she was talking about was found always in the tavern and today wasn¡¯t an anomaly.

    He was drooling on the rotting wood table, and whilst his old and ragged appearance may made him pitiable to some Malum couldn¡¯t care less.

    ¡°Rise and shine old man.¡±

    Malum patted him on the back and continued untill he woke up. The fact he was in the tavern 24 hours of the day and the fact that Jake wasn¡¯t here helping him told Malum that he wasn¡¯t a very good father so respect was out of the window.

    ¡°Ough, why u pokin me!¡± Finally he got a reaction and it was the old man slowly rising and trying to tackle Malum to the ground. He didn¡¯t take into consideration the table in the way and so instead whacked the table with his legs.

    ¡°Bastard, my toe!¡±

    ¡°Where is Jake?¡± He asked simply.

    ¡°Him, that traitor. I raised him and this is what I get. Like my family, he casts me away.¡±

    Malum interrupted him and asked again, ¡°Where is he?¡±

    The old man stopped his rant and looked at Malum. ¡°You his friend or his enemy?¡±

    Should he lie. Considering what he said before Malum was tempted to say enemy but said friend because worse come worse he could beat the answer out the old man.

    ¡°Lucky boy has a strong friend. I could¡¯ve used some of those, teach those heirs whose really a shrimp.¡± He spat out every word, his gums already free of his teeth.

    Malum was about to ask again, but got an answer instead. ¡°Check Avery Town, the boy used to talk about it when he was a smaller boy. He talked about it later when he planned ahead in life.¡±

    With that Malum left the tavern. The old man looked at Malum hesitantly before he looked back at the bar. As Malum went through the door, the old man shrugged himself back up and headed for some more of the good stuff.

    Malum followed the mans words as he seemed a bitter but good man. Not a good father, he was sure but perhaps it was because he was sober but the words he said seemed genuine.

    He packed a small amount more of food and ate them as he rode. He checked his map and found the Avery Town not far from his current location.

    A week or two and he would finally arrive. The long journey looked like it would soon come to an end.

 Chapter 36

    The town was average, the walls too nice, the streets full of people, markets bustling, the sky was clear, the sun was bright.

    Malum couldn¡¯t care less about what was around him. He was so close.

    He asked around.

    ¡°Alicia and Jake, does anyone know an Alicia or Jake.¡±

    He asked the stall owners, he asked the tavern keepers, he asked everyone who even listened for a second until he heard the words he had been listening for.

    ¡°The couple?¡± Malum turned towards the voice, an man who had been working on a rooftop had shouted down.

    ¡°Yeah!¡± Malum shouted back.

    ¡°Down the street,¡± He pointed, ¡°Number 52¡±

    Malum ran as fast as his balance and feet could take him. The odd sensation was fairly new but soon remembered the old sensation.

    Up and down, his legs smashed against the dirt road.

    `52, 52, 52` he spoke like a mantra in his head.

    He saw as the house numbers slowly rose, from 30 to 35 from 40 to 50.

    Then he looked up, the number on the sign said 52. The door looked nice, polished even. It seemed the two had done well.

    He ignored a rising feeling of anxiety and walked up to the door.

    He raised his hand and knocked.

    He heard a voice from the other side.

    ¡°Who is it?¡±

    Malum called out, ¡°Your friend!¡±

    He listened in as he wandered if his voice was recognisable enough. He heard how the door got unlocked then he heard a voice as it slowly opened.

    ¡°Which one?¡±

    Malum simply smiled as he watched Jake slowly realise that his friend wasn¡¯t dead.

    ¡°You, you,¡± He turned around as he continued to mutter. He then turned around again and pratcially jumped on Malum.

    ¡°Your alive!¡±

    Feeling the dirt behind him, Malum ushered the man back to his usual self. Although it was good see Jake again, and as the grown man cried into his shirt did he realise that he missed his smart friend.

    Death had been lonely.

    Alicia soon came down the stairs and she soon also jumped then further into the dirt.

    ¡°How did you survive? Am I dreaming?¡±

    They started to ask questions to which Malum wanted to do out of the dirt. He got up and talked as they walked into the house.

    ¡°Yes, Ill answer everything inside and no Gerald is not alive as well. As far as I am aware.¡±

    He decided to say that before they got their hopes up.

    Still they had Malum before them so they didn¡¯t¡¯ let their sadness show. Already had they received a gift so they just let themselves appreciate what they had.

    The story of his near death came from Malums mouth, then his story about alchemy and his teacher.

    Lying didn¡¯t feel great but Malum was beyond guilt for his actions. In his mind, it was for both of them that they didn¡¯t know the truth.

    Who knows what would happen if people learned he truly revived. The churches would go mad, doctors even moreso.

    Instead some mundane story would keep everyone happy, so that¡¯s what he told.

    Seeing the two happy, Malum could not help but feel happy for them. Especially when he learned the news that the couple were trying for a baby.

    They were young, they had both secured jobs and managed to afford a house so the next step for them was to start a family. Considering it was one of their goals, Malum congratulated them to no end.

    It was great seeing them do so well. Some part of him was worried the two would still be hung up about their deaths but it was good to see them cope so well.

    Malum did have feelings of jealousy and envy over the couple. Being dead for so long, being near emotionless did give him great insight as to his emotional state so feeling these things was obvious to Malums brain.

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    He understood why he felt some anger at the couple. But at the end of the day it was just plain idiotic. They never forced him to sacrifice himself, and that had done nothing but make his sacrifice worth it.

    They chatted about their future plans and Malum got an invitation to the couples actual wedding. This time an actual priest would be there and proper rings would be exchanged. That wasn¡¯t going to be for 8 months though, as they had to save up for the ceremony after they had blown most of their money on the new house.

    It soon got late with how much they talked. Malum didn¡¯t really want to stay the night and the couple weren¡¯t going to force him.

    It was good seeing them, but it was almost strange seeing his friends in such a different environment. No longer were they soldiers but freemen and no longer were they fighting for their lives.

    They seemed happy, there smiles never left their faces and in the army Malum had hardly seen them smile a few times.

    He was going back, his ambitions demanded it but some part of him wanted what they had.

    A simple life, with a nice woman and to create a family.

    Perhaps before his death he would have taken that path. Revenge was a flimsy goal and cultivation was just a childhood fantasy.

    Now though, it promised everything Malum wanted. Death was now cost he could no longer afford to pay and so as he got back on his horse, he began to stride back to his warzone.

    With a sting ringing through his head, he also decided to pick up some good numbing herbs as he rode.

    He arrived back at the stone walled city and after returning his horse he arrived quickly at an inn. It was the agreed upon meeting spot that they had chosen via letters and with it Malum would soon rejoin the army.

    The plan was fairly simple. Jameson was going to recommend him for the Southern front and the army was always looking for lambs for the slaughter so he acceptance was guaranteed.

    Thankfully due to the recommendation he would be able to skip the training course usually required.

    He sat down at the inn bar and ordered himself a drink. Alcohol was slowly becoming a habit as his headache proved itself to be permanent.

    The potions sometimes helped, but they always wore off. He had done just about everything he could think of and perhaps the only somewhat successful thing he found was meditation.

    But that was just like sleep, he couldn¡¯t fell it but then he also didn¡¯t feel much else so what was the point. What he needed was a miracle cure, and yet sadly he was finding cures with bad side effects.

    There was nothing else he could do so he drowned himself in the terribly bad tasting beer. The meeting wasn¡¯t scheduled until tomorrow so he had some time to burn and with money spare he decided to drink the night away.

    Being drunk was quite a fun feeling anyway, but for a man stuck in his own thoughts for god knows how long it was feeling he loved more than he healthily should.

    For the night, he indulged himself. The ride had been anything but nice so he enjoyed the warm bed, and the good food.

    Morning came to the drowsy Malum and he found his headache had of course not left him. He had dreamed of it shutting up for once but reality was never that nice.

    Dragging clothes on himself he went to shower but quickly avoided that pit and decided to find a nicer one that didn¡¯t look quite so mouldy.

    Next door had decent ones so he used those for a few of his coins. His Uncle had told him to stay clear of them as mould were carriers of disease, same with rats and the like. His word was good enough for Malum to follow the advice.

    Clean, he put on some clothes and sat back at the bar. He wandered about a morning drink but decided some morning training would be better for himself.

    He knew alcoholics, and he didn¡¯t want to become one. The sweat drunk feeling was for occasions and Malum swore to keep them to a minimum.

    He worked off his treat and then some by refining a new style.

    He was a coward, and he had learned this as he had fought against beasts on the roads. No longer did he take risks and this led to a loss of efficiency but he also sustained far less injuries for his effort.

    Having two arms was a game changer and he had decided to pick up two swords as dual wielding held benefits that someone of his prowess could exploit. It started because of his spare but soon found the option an attractive one. He still kept his dagger as a last resort, or perhaps as a memento of the past.

    Swords could block just as well as shields, considering they could parry, Malum reckoned it could achieve more than any normal shield.

    It did take some getting used to, the coordination between the two was especially challenging. Both wanted to take the lead but sometimes that wasn¡¯t an option and when the two swords collided it caused nothing but pain to Malums hands and arms.

    The poor tree outside was left with deep scars but for it Malum had learned more about his fighting style.

    It was good because, by the time he had finished he saw someone standing next to a nearby tree.

    ¡°Jameson! Don¡¯t tell you¡¯ve standing there for hours.¡± Malum said as he wiped off some sweat.

    He leaned of the tree he was using as a rest and replied to Malum, ¡°No I¡¯ve only been here a few minutes. Dual wielding ey?¡±

    Malum sheathed his swords before he explained, ¡°Yeah I felt it could better me as a fighter. More swords equals more killing.¡±

    Jameson grinned, ¡°fine logic. Make sure you don¡¯t switch every time you feel a barrier, you¡¯ve got to pick something to master eventually or your be a journeyman at everything.¡±

    With his experience in battle, Malum took his words to heart and decided to focus on making himself really good at dual wielding. He looked at the two swords in his sheaths and swore to take them all the way to the top.

    With that done, Malum and Jameson spoke about a few mundane topic before they talked about their plan to enter back into deployment.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be signing up today and I¡¯ll put you under my name. With my authority they won¡¯t even question me about it. My title alone makes me nigh untouchable to most.¡±

    ¡°Of course milord, your reputation knows no bounds.¡±

    ¡°Cheeky prick, where¡¯d you even learn how to bow like that. That was like, good.¡±

    ¡°My Uncle was quite the teacher. Anything and everything, I¡¯m at least okay at it.¡±

    ¡°Alright bet, 1 silver for a poem recital right this second.¡±

    Malum looked at him and said, ¡°My honour¡¯s worth more than that. A beer, at least!¡±

    Jameson laughed and shouted for a beer. Taking it as a queue Malum began his poem in earnest.

    ¡°The God of Good, in light adorned,

    Spreads warmth and hope where dreams are born.

    The God of Evil, cloaked in night,

    Sows fear and doubt, a chilling blight.¡±

    Malum breathed again as he thought back to the words,

    ¡°They dance as one, in endless fight,

    For neither thrives without the other¡¯s might.

    In every soul, their struggle stays,

    A balance struck in dark and blaze.¡±

    With his joyful voice he ended the poem and Jameson nearly stood up in applause.

    ¡°Bravo, a bard talent is stuck in your soldier body!¡±

    His poetry was alright, not worth the applause though so he shut down his enthusiastic friend. He took his drink from the coming waiter and downed his embarrassment in that.

    He swore never to speak a poem again. Even in the eternal misery of death.

    They enjoyed the rest of their time before eventually they dragged their bodies over to the Town Hall where they signed themselves up for death with grins of their faces.

 Chapter 37

    They woke up sat over the tavern table. Mugs still clasped in their hands, Malum could tell he had one hell of a night. Still, he had done what was needed and now there was no going back.

    The quiet life was officially closed off and he couldn¡¯t be happier about it.

    The path to immortality was littered with death traps but Malum preferred the known threat of demons which he could also face with his friend, over some merchantry bullocks or political meandering. He was best suited for fighting that was simply a fact.

    Still, he would prepare as much as he could.

    It didn¡¯t take long before an army runner came to deliver the news of their deployment. It was only a small boy but Malum had to admit that his legs were something else.

    The letter he delivered contained news of tehri departure and where they would be expected.

    The city of Roosevelt was their destination and with nothing left to do they picked up their supplies and began their journey.

    It was going to be the longest he had ever rode, but at least this time he had company and unlike usual Jameson was talkative as they rode.

    The sun rose, the sun fell. Time passed as it always did as Malum slowly went towards the hell of hells.

    The City of Roosevelt was named after one of the founding fathers of the kingdom. The family was now at the levels of Dukes and the centre of their power was the very city Malum now stood inside.

    The walls around were thicker, stronger, and older than those of any city wall he had seen before. The houses protected by these walls were just as impressive.

    Stone was used everywhere and no longer where the houses made of cheap wood and the smoke rising from the city was something else entirely and that wasn¡¯t to mention the mountain range surroundings the entire city.

    At the centre was the Manor of the city, the house of the Duke, was something else entirely. Glass was used for windows and seven chimneys lined the houses expansive roof.

    The gates around were made of metal, and Malum as well as the rest of commoners could only look in envy.

    Malum cared little for the little show of wealth, what he wanted was above the golden plated crest hanged on the gate. He wanted pure power and here was where he would begin.

    Before they signed in, Malum sold his alchemical goods although he kept many of the more practical ones for his upcoming battles.

    Healings balms were going to be a large part of his new strength, he just hoped that his headache would finally phase away.

    The constant need of numbing agents was becoming a large and constant expense of both his time and his money but with no solution in sight Malum could only swallow down his anger.

    He sold them quickly to a company he had begun to gain some reputation with. It was part of a merchants household by the name of LGS which stood for Louis¡¯ Goods and Services.

    They gave him a small bronze emblem which inscribe on was his expertise and credibility. That was a guess, what was on it was numbers but with them rising every time he sold to them he felt he was correct in his prediction.

    He thanked the kind man who he had sold to and walked back to where Jameson was setting them up inside of an inn.

    ¡°U got rooms?¡± Malum asked Jameson as he began to sat down.

    ¡°Course I have. It was 2 silver for the night.¡±

    Malum flicked over three silvers to the man and told him, ¡°For the beer.¡±

    To that Jameson smiled as he ushered over the innkeeper. They ordered themselves the cheapest they could provide and with it Malum smoothed over the constant pain he was in.

    They didn¡¯t continue and kept it to a single one. After they felt a small buzz, and their jokes run dry they walked themselves over to the Mayor office where they signed themselves in.

    An office clerk then handed them slips of paper which they looked to see there new deployment location and Malum also received his new rank and clothing.

    His rank was the same as a team leader but in the Southern front that equated to team member. With his star, Malum would have to respond to Jameson who was a Team Leader in the Southern front instead of Troop Leader.

    It showed the strength of the usual officers expected here, but also showed the lack of expectations of people escaping the hell of hells.

    Malum looked at his uniform, this time it was a darker shade of brown. He wandered how many had died in the clothing. He gave them a solemn prayer,

    He gave the map to Jameson as he went to go and get changed in the Town Halls bathroom. The smell was better than most, but he still expedited the process.

    With his new clothes on and his nose no longer being assaulted, Malum and Jameson set off towards their new deployment. He kept both sword sharp, and tried his best to ignore the pain in his head.

    They arrived at the Outpost not to long after. The sun had only fell once which showed Malum just how badly the front was going.

    Nobody in the right mind would risk the safety of the city, the amount of money it printed everyday would mean its value was immense.

    Resources must have been taken by the cartful into defending the frontlines. Malum looked at over the horizon to see the Baron Sands of the demonic plain, that meant even with those resources they still fell against the beasts.

    The walls of the camp were better than some of the towns he had seen. Still wooden, but thicker and stronger than the other walls he had seen. It was dark oak instead of a cheap birch, a denser but far better wood for making walls.

    Malum felt the tough surface as he walked inside the camp. The guards saluted Jameson and gave Malum and interested look over.

    Malum looked at them in return and had to admit that they looked strong. Dense muscles, worn hands, and even the way they held their balance spoke highly of their skill. Their hands always resting by their sheath.

    They were good, and they were also just guards.

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    Walking in, the conditions of the camp were as nice as the walls outside. Sacrifices they were but they lived far better than what most would ever be able to.

    The people who lived were people who could afford noble titles so the level of treatment was to be expected. Malum felt his head ease at the thought of a comfortable bed but before he could test that he got dragged into the admin hall by his friend.

    ¡°Is that you Jamesy?!¡± A massive man said at the front desk of the hall. The sword on his back looked larger than Malums entire hand, and it made Malum question if the man was superhuman to even lift the thing.

    And that was ignoring the fact he called one of the strongest people he knew a pet name.

    ¡°Shut your mouth you Ape. I¡¯ve come to save you, yet again, and this is what I get in return?¡±

    The `Ape` looked back at him and laughed, ¡°Save me? I think you mean save u!¡±

    The two men looked at each other and laughed as they pulled each other into a big hug. Words of ¡°Good to see you¡± and ¡°Who you been old friend¡± were exchanged.

    Malum was thanking the fact that he wouldn¡¯t get be collateral in a large fight before Jameson introduced him to the Ape.

    ¡°This is new meat I¡¯ve dragged in. He might look a bit weak but he¡¯s decent and he grows quick as well.¡±

    `Weak, I¡¯m not weak looking!` said Malum in his mind, but not wanting to have his words tested he decided to keep them as thoughts. Against both of these people, he¡¯d accept the words weak.

    ¡°Decent you say, well time will tell. Grow strong kid, I don¡¯t like sending of good men. Now I¡¯ll assign you your huts and I assume your gunna have him on your team.¡±

    Jameson nodded, to which the `Ape continued, ¡°Right then the rest will be a one newbie and I¡¯ll give you Carl.¡±

    ¡°Sounds good, see you in the field big guy.¡±

    ¡°Good seeing you Jameson, I¡¯ll be sure to save you when I can.¡±

    Both laughed as Malum followed Jameson out of the hall.

    He couldn¡¯t help but ask seeing Jameson¡¯s smile, ¡°You seem good friends.¡±

    Jameson looked at Malum and grinned. ¡°Yeah out here, after a few life or deaths fights together you tend to grow closer. Me and him, we¡¯ve been through to many to count. He¡¯s a good man and one hell of a soldier.¡±

    That was praise if he had ever heard it. To get such compliments from him, he wandered how strong that man really was. Perhaps he had reached the limits of mortal strength, if so Malum would set that as his goal.

    He was passed a small wooden token from his friend and it had the number 47 written on it. AS they were walking towards their huts, he assumed it was the referring to the hut which was his.

    He and Jameson split of to see their huts and planned to meet after they had done. This left Malum to view his own room by himself.

    The small huts lined the Outpost and Malum looked past each one to see if his own was among them. They looked fairly well made, with no big leeks showing in the ceilings and no large cracks in the walls letting in cold air.

    He found his near the base of a small gathering of huts. He pushed through the door to see a room which but his standard was pretty nice. The inns he had stayed at where slightly better but considering where he was it was beyond alright.

    Clean bed, no leaks, no cold air, peace and quiet, this wasn¡¯t hell; it was heaven.

    He laid down on the sack of fur and let himself rest for a bit. The journey had taken its toll on his body and mind, and whilst his headache remained at least now he could sit still.

    Not wanting to leave Jameson waiting he left his hut and went to the mess hall where they agreed to meet. Here they ate some pleasant food and chatted about the coming waves.

    Digging in to a fresh carrot, Malum asked, ¡°So and I expecting anything above rank 10 to come every wave?¡±

    Replying, Jameson swallowed down some mash, ¡°Yes, every wave you expect to see something around 14. Unlike the waves in the Northern front, these ones are more like armies and each time they bring a commander. Occasionally, you will see the appearance of upper ranking demon. Something around what you got injured by before. In those cases, we bring in our Commander.¡±

    Malum swallowed down his carrot after he heard about such ferocious beasts being even close to a common occurrence. His curiosity made him ask, ¡°how strong are these commanders?¡±

    Jameson grinned through his mouth full of chicken.

    ¡°If you me, or Davidson are strong then the commanders are a different league. Each are Nobles and they all are practically superhuman. They say it because of their blood, that noble strength run through their veins. I call bollocks, something to do with alchemy or demons are the reason they are so strong but don¡¯t tell others this. The Kingdom would have us both hanged.¡±

    Malum face turned to a frown. `Cultivation perhaps`. It would mean that the kingdom was stronger he thought, or perhaps mortals could grow beyond normal via other ways.

    The standard way of cultivation was exactly that, a standard method. Not the only one, there were several others that perhaps this Kingdom had touched upon, or perhaps they had even found an original method.

    Malum would keep a look out but for now he continued to ask more questions about the threats he would face. After they ate, he continued to hone his strength by sparring with his friend and whilst the beatdown wasn¡¯t pretty, he learned much more than expected.

    As moany as he was as a Troop Leader, he was one hell of a teacher. Perhaps it was the way he shouted at him that got it through his head. Whatever it was, it was effective and in the two days before the wave, Malum was happy that he had grown to his strongest right before they were sent off.

    ¡°Meet Carl and Horus, your new team members.¡± Said an admin officer. Leading in one battered veteran and one decent built youth.

    ¡°Is that Jameson is see, old man I see you¡¯ve been dragged back here. Good to see you, whose this fella you¡¯ve got with you?¡± Although he held many scares, the built tanned dude seemed to have no issue with speaking casually.

    ¡°Hey Carl, this is Malum a decent fighter I¡¯ve brought from Hillside. Good to meet you, Horus I¡¯m your Team Leader.¡± He shook the newbies hand and Malum saw how the two tested each other¡¯s strength.

    Jameson won, but Horus lasted longer than Malum had expected.

    ¡°Pleased to meet ya!¡± Horsu replied. His complexion was slightly darker than most which made Malum guess he wasn¡¯t from this part of the Kingdom.

    `Gues they took sacrifices from everywhere.` Malum thought, as he looked at the newbie. His weapon as that of the sword, and Carl wore a large axe on his back.

    Jameson used a thin sword made of a strangely strong material. When it should have snapped against the counterforce it instead managed to hold strong. It looked light as well, Malum was pretty envious of the weapon and had asked around for anything similar but found nothing.

    He guessed it was some legacy item from his Noble background. Obtained via chance by an ancestor. It left questions but Malum wasn¡¯t going to ask them as it seemed a sensitive topic for the Fallen Noble.

    After introduction, they got a rundown of general strategy. Unlike the North, the South was forced to always be defensive. The waves were so strong that anything else was suicide but the meeting did include several mentions on strategy and some new information on higher sequence demonic weakness¡¯.

    It soon ended and after a few prayed they were sent off. With nothing else to do the Team Leader began to discuss their strategy.

    ¡°We were assigned to Section B, this is an area is one with two chokepoints between two cliffs edge and steep hill on the in-between. Two rivers slow down these areas which provides the obvious team layout. 4 defensible zones which will be ordered via strength.

    Because of the areas terrain, expect small beasts as the chokepoints tend to dissuade larger demons from entering the area although it also acts as a funnel for the weaker beasts so expect more of less strong units.

    Use your weapon wisely, making sure it doesn¡¯t blunt to much. Wear light armour for extra stamina because the biggest obstacle of this area is endurance.¡±

    Malum nearly laughed in happiness and the grin he saw on Jameson face as he looked over to him confirmed that the happiness was shared between the two.

    ¡°4 areas needing constant attention means no rest breaks, 24 hours of non-stop fighting. I¡¯ll let Carl finish off with anything extra.¡±

    Carl gave a nod to Jameson as he said, ¡°This area is both one of the worst and the best. Weak means that your unlikely to see a higher sequence beast that you stand no chance against, but the amount of them has seen many of our greatest fall to minor injuries.¡±

    He held out bandages, ¡°keep your supplies close to yourself as the time to apply them will come in short bursts that you¡¯ll need to use wisely, and even then sometimes they just don¡¯t come so always keep emergency ones in your pockets or even on the floor.

    That¡¯s about it really, food and drink apply to that as well. Especially drink, but that¡¯s all pretty obvious.¡±

    His face turned from a serious tone, to a playful one.

    ¡°Now do any of our newbies have any dating experience?¡±

    `Sorry?` Malum questioned in his head. He looked to Jameson to see if he could explain this change in persona but his face showed no surprise and even a hint of a smile.

    Carl was disappointed to hear of Malums lack of good stories but found a treasure trove in Horus. Turns out before being conscripted he had slept with a Noble¡¯s daughter, then he got conscripted the next day.

    Coincidence? Malum and everyone else on the team would bet that it wasn¡¯t.

    Then he heard more stories of Horus¡¯ previous wives and girlfriends, for a man who was 24 he had experienced far to much success in his love life and Carl was there to complain about it.

    ¡°if only I wasn¡¯t stuck here I could bathing in my charm.¡±

    Malum couldn¡¯t decide if he was joking because he seemed serious about it and yet whenever Malum looked to Jameson about he was smiling the entire time. Was it a joke? Was it not?

    So he stopped thinking about it, and just laughed it away. Soon they would arrive at their destination so perhaps some last moments of relief would do him well or the marathon he was about to endure.

 Chapter 38

    They splint first into twos and then again to just themselves. Malum could see Jameson over the river but the crossing was a few hundred metres back so helping was off the table.

    They walked down further where they found the narrowest point on the choke. Malum then saw how Jameson began to set up his supplies so he did the same.

    He checked for the time and saw he had little over half and hour left so he got to laying out his gear and seeing what he would need in the next 24 hours.

    Two sword strapped which would need their sheaths to be hung around his belt. His amour was light leather which wrapped around his entire body leaving spaces in only areas where he wouldn¡¯t need it, for instance under his armpits. With a few metallic plates sown on important areas, on his chest, on his forearms and in his knees.

    It had several pockets which he placed as much of his alchemical potions as they could hold. Once he ran out of potions, he placed in first waterskins, then a few dense foods, then some bandages.

    He left out a sharpener for his swords and then began to place around him some torches. Daylight would soon leave him and that¡¯s when the difficulty spiked.

    Lighting those he left a few unlit torches in case he needed to set up anymore. He then ate whatever was left and drank a few spare skins of water.

    He didn¡¯t overdo it, but he had to make sure that he didn¡¯t underdo it either.

    A few stray demons came in whilst he set up but they only acted as a warm-up. The real thing was only a few minuets away and with the time he had left he tried to calm himself down.

    His heart was beating, and sweat was well beyond his brow. A marathon was a daunting task, but Malum had already done similar and stressing about it wasn¡¯t going to help.

    He took a breath, and then breathed out.

    He cleared his mind of all the clutter. All the worry about his future plans, all the worry about his potential death. All that was left was calmness.

    He was interrupted by a demons growl, Malum smiled as he pulled his sword and began to swing. Blood was shed and with much more soon joining it, the land was sure to be stained its crimson colour.

    Dancing, he moved from right to left. Swaying as he moved.

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    The sword was a extension of his arm, and such it danced with him. The flow, the rhythm, Malum was trying his best to master the skill.

    What used to be diagrams in a book, they were slightly tweaked to match his change of equipment but the essence stayed.

    The poses could be seen as he danced from diagram to diagram.

    Mistakes were slowly becoming rare, Malum found himself no longer having to spend so much time fixing them and now he could work on mastering them.

    Mistakes however rare, were adding up eventually. Cuts became hindrances and if accumulated became a worry of blood loss.

    With a calm in the storm, Malum pulled a potion from his pocket and drained the bottle. He felt strength return to his body and his wounds slowly lost their painful feeling.

    He threw the glass towards the chokepoint and continued where he left off.

    The headache, which had been plaguing him for months, had calmed down. Fighting was now his meditation. His focus completely on the dance and not on the pain.

    Malum could not help but smile. Life had been returned to him, and whilst death lingered around him always he still managed to get back on the path to immortality.

    Now he just had to tread it.

    The dance become more minimal. The extravagance switched for efficiency and the melody lost in favour of harsh awareness.

    His eyes became strained as he starred for enemies. Blood acting more as moistener than his own eyelids.

    The blades that once carved through opponents now only went half way through. Such effects had to adapted to and the dance took it into account.

    A few bigger opponents had caused some injuries but nothing his potions couldn¡¯t numb. Bandages were applied when he could, and sharpening was left to whatever time he had left.

    Corpses were now becoming the large issue. They were thankfully being eaten by its own brethren but those that weren¡¯t created obstacles and that caused issues with his dance.

    The flow couldn¡¯t stop, it was like a river. Malum avoiding these bodies caused more issues as he found himself back peddling towards demons who had made a run for human land.

    His muscles ached. His eyes ached. His brain ached. It was a better question to ask what didn¡¯t and that came with the easy answer of nothing.

    Even his nose wasn¡¯t spared, having to breath nothing but blood and raw meat for the last 8 hours.

    At least the sun dimming. That meant he was onto the next stage of the fight. Now he had to worry about the torches. Not only that but his eyes would also have to strain themselves even more.

    He took a breath, and then breathed out.

    ¡°I will adapt, I will overcome!¡± He shouted the last part as he cut down another demon.

    Darkness fell and soon torchlight was all Malum could use to fight against the endless swarm. His endurance was taking a beating and a half but there was a reason they called him the endurance monster.

    The dance could never end and slowly Malum felt that he had got something about the flow.

    He understood something and it was slowly showing itself in the way he fought. Enemies now moved so predictably that he could just guess where they were and he was correct.

    His senses always agreed with him, in fact they even seemed to be the cause of it.

    But it wasn¡¯t any particular one, it was the combination of all of them and his memories of previous battles.

    It allowed for Malum to take his mind off of everything for a second or two and in the hell of hells, then those previous seconds were worth everything.

    He focused on honing this combined sense, he felt the skill was the next step on his path and he would always move forward.

 Chapter 39

    The headache was starting to feel different. It was so strange, the only reason Malum even felt it was because he was so sensitive to just about everything that he could even feel it.

    Blade met bone, as Malum continued the dance even as the moon stared down at him. His predictions were becoming better, more accurate even if they were based on less senses.

    It was wrong sometimes, but with failure came lessons and Malum learned them every time.

    His body ached, but now he didn¡¯t even feel it. Instead his mind was so occupied with this feeling that it didn¡¯t notice the red blood slowly seeping from his wounds.

    Initially, that wasn¡¯t such an issue. Such was the reason that an hour had passed like this and he still had yet to realise the problem.

    It was only when he went to swing for a demon and he missed did he realise something was wrong. Missing was fine, but every calculation demanded that the blade should have hit.

    The damage he received from his failure made the blood loss even worse.

    He looked around dazed slightly as he thought of the problem. Checking his body, and realising his error took only moments but the demons only needed that to escape Malum¡¯s senses.

    He dropped a sword and used the spare hand to relieve the problem. Bandages might not solve the root of the problem but it would help stave off death for now.

    The sword wielding hand culled through the demons that had escaped his senses but more energy was wasted to kill them than usual.

    This was the problem with errors, they always followed one another making each one more dangerous than the last.

    He needed a break; he needed a moment to heal.

    Instead of letting fate decide his life, Malum was going to force it.

    `How do I give myself some time.`

    Malum looked around to see torches and darkness, and he heard only demons and the river.

    A fire would need something flammable. And the only option in the department was either his supply bag or the demons bodies.

    The river would be a good way to calm it down if it got out of control, otherwise Malum couldn¡¯t think of anything else.

    With his decision made, Malum searched for something to light to the fire and his senses guided him towards the torches he had yet to light.

    The demons followed him, using the night as cover they dove for his back their jaws open and their mouths dripping in saliva.

    Red eyes gave them away. The head was the destination of his sword, and even though the blade was fairly dull, it still managed to hack through their neck.

    With the torches obtained Malum flicked them against each other and with it he now had two roaring flames to set some bodies alight.

    He followed his previous footsteps, using the flames as a guard and his sword as his offense. Even though his fingers ached as they held two torches, he forced them closed.

    One hand held his hope, the other cut away at the demons that had heralded his death.

    With bodies now lining the floor, the sounds of its own brethren eating themselves, Malum began the fire as he got out some of the extra food he had laid out.

    The demons had nowhere else to go, with the front blocked by fire, one side by a raging river, one a cliff, and the other by its own furious brethren. They stopped for moments as their raging eyes figured out any ideas.

    Wrapping his bloody arms, Malum rewrapped on his sword. One hand would remain free but the other, his more dominant right hand, would be better at defending him any situation like this occurred.

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    With the little rest, and the snack and drink. Malum felt slightly better as he waded back into the fray. The demons instincts wouldn¡¯t let them just wait out the flames.

    Thankfully some jumped in the river. Killing themselves as swimming didn¡¯t come naturally and the rocky path would finish of those that managed to float.

    Some jumped through the fire, gaining themselves a new danger Malum had to prepare for but at least the burns had restricted some movements on some demons and the ablaze demons couldn¡¯t exactly hide from Malum now that they were walking torches.

    They fast and they came furious. The pain seemed to numb even their logical reasoning as some turned against each other but some charged at Malum with greed in their eyes.

    Malum stood, then he slowly began to sway.

    He began to hum a tune, one a baker used to sing.

    It was slow, simple, but all Malum needed was to get back into the flow. Initially, it felt wrong. Forcing the dance wasn¡¯t something Malum had the ability to do.

    Instead he went back to what his roots of fighting where.

    Simple stabs and simple slashes.

    Heads were removed as injuries slowly returned to his body.

    With his attacks came the movement to enhance them. To add weight to his attack to increase the power.

    When he had questioned why the blade had bested the demons leg, he had left himself a large query. In death, such queries were treasure troves of useful time spent thinking and the result of that thinking was his answer.

    The demonic beast had been charging toward Jameson its speed and weight vastly out numbering Jameson own. But, it¡¯s weight was focused on it¡¯s leg. Towards the earth at its feet.

    Not on the joint that Jameson had cut. With this in mind, the joint no longer had the weight part of the equation and such was weak even if it was far faster.

    All that meant was that Malum needed to hit the right places, at the right time. Weak points where exactly that. Some parts had to do with the areas weakened skin, such as the Titanoboa but for the triceratops those legs were the perfect example.

    With this confirmed theory, Malum now began to put it into practice. With his style sorted out and effort being useless to advance his flow he decided to put on the agenda his new theory.

    Joints, legs, arms, necks, heads, chest, even the demonic beasts hips. Malum tested everything, for every variant he spilled more than enough blood to prove his ideas.

    Results showed Joints and Legs as good targets. Chests generally worked the other way around, but for arms he found even though they were weak and he could slash them the rewards outweighed the effort.

    Joints and legs removed movement which made them easy prey. With a demonic beast, if it had one arm it still had it maw full of teeth to kill him with not to mention the sharp claws on its legs and the sheer weight it had as an advantage.

    Malum wanted consistency. With regular results he could further narrow down weak areas to improve on rather than irregular results telling him only that improvement was needed.

    Blood continued to seep into the desert, as the wave continued to attack.

    If before he was getting tired, Malum now felt like he was running on scraps.

    Every movement felt hard, such every move he made became more thought out.

    He wanted to lie down. Laze around on a bed, feel the lovely nothing of sleep. But death wasn¡¯t an option, especially not in front of so many demons.

    His combined sense was getting more deadly, and combine that with his solid style and effective theories and Malum was a walking demon slaughterer.

    The ground he walked on was already becoming a muddy terrain. Now it was pretty much a bog, it weighed down on his legs and that wasn¡¯t even mentioning the smell.

    He praised the Gods above for the two pieces of bandages in his nose. They had likely saved that sense singlehandedly.

    All he had to do now was continue. Swing his sword, again, again, and again.

    Muscles could ache as much as they liked, Malum had to leave this place alive so as the sun rose up the sounds of his battle continued.

    Malum leaned on his left leg as he swung again. He didn¡¯t even look at his sword cleaving the demon in half, instead he looked towards the ground.

    He wished he could have fell to that soft ground. To let the pain end.

    He couldn¡¯t, he couldn¡¯t, he couldn¡¯t.

    But that didn¡¯t mean he couldn¡¯t want to.

    He looked up as he straightened up before he turned slightly to the left. Letting a claw cleave where he once was, he impaled the beast to the ground before he looked up to see the sky.

    The sun, it was so close.

    Just a few more, no just a demon or two more. It was lies but it was lies his body wanted to hear.

    He just continued to cull the beasts; the end was in sight.

    Just a few more.

    An 001, an 004 and what looked like a winged one at the back.

    The 001 got a slash to the throat. The blood left on the blade was flicked onto the 004s eyes before Malum stabbed through the eyes into the brain.

    Finally the winged bastard.

    He was lightheaded. He was exhausted. But he could kill one more.

    Especially one which had killed his friend.

    For Jerome. Malum held out his sword before he felt everything around him and then reeled back and breathed.

    He watched the beasts inhuman speed.

    What was once invisible was now easy to see.

    He watched as the beast circled round. The red eyes turning into streaks in his vision as it reached top speed. It then reached its pinnacle before it fell down and prepared to attack.

    Malum felt his sword in his hand.

    He didn¡¯t even need to look. Sound was his friend as he slightly tiled to the side and cut with his sword where the demon now flew into.

    Malum¡¯s body reeled back from the force of the beast going against the sword. He fell back but didn¡¯t mind as he felt blood run down his sword.

    Now on the ground, with no demons left to kill him, he could rest.

 Chapter 40

    Malum awoke to the sound of Jamesons voice.

    His head hurt again, but this time Malum felt it was different from his usual headache. He was just tired, so he looked to see why his friend had woken him up.

    ¡°There he is.¡± Jameson said as he saw soul return to Malums eyes. With it he brought his friend into a hug and said, ¡°Good to see you alive my friend.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m tired.¡± Malum said, as he rubbed his eyes.

    ¡°Yeah, I feel that mate but we can¡¯t sleep here, can we?¡±

    Malum looked around and realised the fact that it was indeed a terrible idea. He hadn¡¯t even thought about the roaming demons.

    ¡°Fine, fine, I¡¯ll get up.¡±

    Malum groaned as he felt his body click back into activity. The pain wasn¡¯t as bad as it was before but it was hardly much better.

    ¡°Pass me a water.¡± His throat was as dry as a desert.

    Jameson passed him one as they both trudged over to see how Carl and the recruit had done. Honestly, Malum couldn¡¯t care less if they lived or not.

    He hardly knew them, but still it would lighten the load on himself and he wasn¡¯t a bad guy so he wished to see them okay.

    Eating one of the last food items he had, Malum and Jameson made their way towards the centre of their Section. The agreed upon meet-up spot for when they finished.

    It didn¡¯t take to long, and luckily Malum saw two figures in the distance closing in.

    They went over to see Carl dragging a limp Horus. They quickened to see if they could help save him but getting closer they saw how little of him remained.

    An arm was gone, and the stomach looked even worse.

    Malum heard Jameson whisper, ¡°Unlucky bastard.¡±

    Thinking, Malum realised why he had said it. The only reason he wasn¡¯t completely gone meant the wave had likely almost completely finished before he died.

    Perhaps that could have even been himself if Jameson didn¡¯t arrive at his sleeping body so quick.

    They didn¡¯t talk much. They were far to tired for that.

    How they even had enough to carry the body, left Malum in surprise. He wasn¡¯t a monster here and he realised that on his first day.

    They moved as quick as they could to get back. The sun was still high and beat into them mercilessly.

    `My tan is coming along nicely`, Malum thought to cheer himself up.

    It didn¡¯t take long for them to arrive back at base. They saw others as they came in through the door and it seemed 3 in a section was a good result.

    Malum and Carl could now go to rest but Jameson, the poor sod, had to go and report on the battle. Carl gave short version of his side before he was sent off and Malum was already long gone.

    Jameson walked into the admin building and he saw his friend sitting at the desk.

    ¡°Long day?¡± the brute asked.

    ¡°Easy work, but you still have to clearing up to do.¡± He grinned back.

    The brute looked back before he said, ¡°So am I clearing up after any of your lot. Your newbie didn¡¯t die so I¡¯ll give him that.¡±

    ¡°He did well in fact. Dumbass slept right after but I didn¡¯t have to help once and you¡¯ll be happy to hear that the lost fell before he could make any mess.¡±

    Considering that was expected for vets to do after recruits even the Gorilla looked back at Malums information.

    ¡°Impressive, shame about the recruit but what can we do. Are u and your friend going to the city for your month?¡±

    ¡°Course we are! I¡¯ve got pubs to show him round! And Davidson¡± They met each other eye, ¡°Your free to join anytime.¡±

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    The Ape smiled, but rejected the offer. He stated to many teams had made a mess and so clearing up was going to take up to much of his time.

    Jameson didn¡¯t push and he was also exhausted so he thanked his friend and went back to his tent.

    Inside, he placed down his prized sword and cleaned it before he fell asleep. Even when his eyes couldn¡¯t stay open habits always died hard.

    He looked at the cleaned blade and held it close with care. In his eyes, red blood slowly overcame his vision. The hut slowly fell into screams and mayhem as his mind fell into an abyss.

    He snapped, his vision returned back to him and he returned the sword to his sheath.

    The bed felt great, he just wished his dreams would let him rest.

    Malum woke to his body feeling sore.

    Pain ran through his neck, his legs, and especially his arms.

    He opened his eyes to see the room around him. Seeing the wooden ceiling he assumed it was his own hut. His memories told him that was where he had dragged himself to.

    Feeling immense hunger and thirst, he crawled from his bed towards the mess hall. He ate, drank, and returned to his sleep.

    He awoke again, this time feeling far better than before. His mind actually flowed out clear thoughts and with it he could begin to plan out his actions.

    First, he got more and water because his body was again in need of them. Out of the small cracks in his hut he saw the light of dawn and assumed he had slept for a day and bit. He tried to remember what the weather was like when he went for his snack but couldn¡¯t remember anything but the food and water hitting his throat.

    Reliving the experience, Malum looked around the mess hall as he ate.

    People were eating and chatting. Somehow even smiles were shown as they joked around.

    If they were sad they certainly did well in hiding it. As far as Malum could see the whole experience had done nothing to them.

    He thought to his friend and ate with haste. Jameson would want to see him and Malum missed having a friend to talk to so he began to speed eat everything on his plate.

    ¡°Woah there bud, don¡¯t die to some lettuce else I¡¯ll have trouble holding my laughter at your funeral.¡±

    Malum looked around, his faced stuffed with greens.

    ¡°Ameson¡± He managed to muffle out as his brightened to see his friend.

    He let Malum finish as before he spoke again.

    ¡°You slept for far to long. A whole 28 hours, not a record but you got close.¡±

    ¡°Sorry I was dead inside and what¡¯s the record?¡±

    ¡°Well you could say its 17 years but coma¡¯s aren¡¯t counted so 52 would be the record in this Outpost.¡±

    That was nearly double his sleep. ¡°Was it a rookie?¡±

    Jameson sat down as he explained, ¡°No it was actually a veteran who covered his dead recruits shift. So 24 hours in a zone where your supposed to only do half that.¡±

    ¡°Damn!¡±

    ¡°Damn indeed, even I couldn¡¯t do that. He did live though, and now he¡¯s one our commanders now hold on as get some food.¡±

    After he went and returned they continued to chat and soon the topic turned productive.

    ¡°So where are we going next?¡±

    ¡°The city we arrived in, Roosevelt. The carriage leaves tomorrow so now we have nothing really to do.¡±

    ¡°Talk to me about the city.¡± Getting a blank look he clarified, ¡°Like its history, culture, people, industry. General stuff.¡±

    ¡°Well I¡¯m no expert but I can do general. I have no idea how it started but it began its rise to prominence once spiritual ores were found in the mines close by. You know my sword, its made of that and its valuable enough for Kingdom to rise on it which our kingdom arguably did.

    Culture, you¡¯ve got miners there and loads of merchants. The whole smithing industry is pretty much located entirely in the city so there¡¯s that.

    My god, their tagline you will hear from every guard or knight who gets the chance, Chivalry comes before all. There like a religion I swear. Never start a conversation with them, they will go on and on and on...

    Right, the other people are split into commoners, merchants and Nobles with each having a certain areas they congregate in. We can visit them all if you want but the Nobles hub will see us both broke in minutes if we plan to buy anything.

    That¡¯s about it. Everything else is just city stuff like its walls and stuff.¡±

    Malum nodded along as remembered the mountain range around the city. It was beyond a gold mine considering the metallic gates and golden crest. Rich nobles were in a different league of wealth, good thing they only used it to flatter their own egos.

    Malum and Jameson headed out to train as felt the sudden urge to punch something. Their muscles still ached so its wasn¡¯t anything heavy but some light sparing didn¡¯t hurt.

    The headache he once felt had calmed considerably, instead he had gained a somewhat mystical ability to predict an opponent¡¯s actions.

    Having spared Jameson countless times during their travels, Malum already knew quiet well how he would attack but now those memories were shifted into action.

    He saw how he would attack, his muscles, his smile, his balance, everything was telling him of his opponents next move. Acting on them caused Malum to land more hits then he usually would. Jameson noted it, and asked, ¡°You¡¯ve improved. You shift before I land my hits, it like you already know what I¡¯m going to do.¡±

    Malum smiled and the spare continued. It changed quickly as Jameson began to double bluff, or change his attack last minute. Malum could see those changes but in those split seconds he had before the first changed direction, he hadn¡¯t the time to change his defence.

    This was an enemy that could adapt to his strengths, and it was clear to see why Jameson was stronger than any demon Malum had ever faced.

    After getting his payback Jameson let Malum up and gave him words of comfort.

    ¡°Better, that ability is something else. It does wonders for your strength but don¡¯t rely on it too much.  It was only a light spare but if you want to win them, get your body trained more and develop your technique.¡±

    Malum thanked him as he rose. He then headed back with his Leader towards the huts. They split of before Malum forced himself back asleep.

    He wasn¡¯t tired, the sparing had been somewhat tiring but a light spare was exactly that, light. Still, it was better than sleeping on a carriage so Malum focused down onto his soul.

    Here he stayed and tried his best to remove the senses around him. Finally left with nothing he managed to sooth his body and mind into a slumber.

    The sun rose to the sound of Jameson on the door. He got up and dressed as he shouted down, ¡°Wait a sec!¡±. When he was done he opened the door and after breakfast the travel back on the agenda.

    Another drive with 40 sweaty men. All of which looked like barbarians with the amount of shown muscles.  It couldn¡¯t be that bad, right?

 Chapter 41

    Malum took it back, it was worse. Optimism was wrong again as the buffoons decided to make the carriage a brawl area and with side games including Piss Shot, Finger Wars and who¡¯s got the largest.

    It seemed war had reduced their dignity to nothing, at least he had Jameson to claw back his sanity else Malum was afraid he would lose it all.

    They arrived eventually, the walls looking as grand as always.

    They entered through the special gate and soon found themselves inside of a pub. The first item on their agenda was celebration. A toast to their lives and a toast to the ones lost on the wave with them.

    They laughed, some cried, most went to the brothel next door after they had finished their drinks.

    Malum would have joined them, but Jameson was strictly against it because he wasn¡¯t allowed to. The Nobles who had forced him here didn¡¯t want him to have heirs, such a ban on all sexual activities was put in place to ensure his progeny didn¡¯t ever spread.

    Not wanting to leave his friend Malum could only stay with him. Instead they toured the city, moving from pub to pub.

    Malum learned far more about the Nobles that had dragged his friend down and he learned the last name of his friend.

    ¡°Jameson Smith, head of the Smith Barony. We used to have thousands of crafters under our house. Forging weapons for even the King. Then my dad passed away when I was young and because I was to young to take the mantle my mother who had never even thought of running an entire household was forced to take charge.

    She tried her best, but when I came of age it was already a shell of what it once was. Competition had taken the decision that we had outlived our stay and I couldn¡¯t do anything about it.

    She blamed herself for my ruined future and she passed of depression not a month after my birthday.

    I swore revenge, and I even got some. Against some of the merchants, I killed their leaders and got some of what I wanted.

    I lost my title, became a Fallen Noble and ended up here. The house remained.¡± He looked off into the distance, ¡° and my sword stayed with me as well.¡± He then looked down at it with such emotion. Pride, sadness, Malum couldn¡¯t quiet discern.

    ¡°I fought again and again and again. Became as strong as I am but the merchants who lived bought titles and even titled families don¡¯t want to see my grudges return to court so they agreed that I should stay. I have so many points I should be able to return back with glory but because of the agreement the purchase would never see the light of day.¡±

    Malum pat him on the back. He thought about many things to say but decided to just keep his mouth shut.

    ¡°Sorry for leaving that all on you. I¡¯ve been wanting to tell somebody for years but my friend all end up dead or there just not the right type.¡±

    Malum expressions showed confusion so Jameson explained.

    ¡°Take Davidson, he¡¯s a man who friends with about everyone. As a long-term vet he¡¯s seen it all so its left him on the rather strange side. He¡¯d tell me to just do it anyway, he¡¯s a very simple man and it shows in his fighting. He¡¯s strong enough to not care about that thought, like the gut from your training, Bear.¡±

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    ¡°Fair enough and thanks. Mine not nearly as interesting though, just a traveller set off by a village who hated just the sort. My Uncle who raised me had disappeared on the day so here I am.¡±

    Lying didn¡¯t feel great. Especially after the reveal Jameson had just told him, but Malum kept up his usual excuses. It would hurt him to learn the truth, so he told the lie.

    Jameson asked more questions about his earlier life and Malum asked similar ones back to him. There drunken adventure ended with them both resting on the table, mugs still in hand.

    Sadly they couldn¡¯t sleep there as the pub turned into a late casino so they were pushed upstairs towards there beds and they exchanged one last wave before they climbed into each their beds.

    Their friendship had grown closer, and during the month it would only continue to grow.

    Malum was searching for something to get his old friend for their upcoming wedding. It was still far off but he didn¡¯t want to leave it last minute so he decided to search every store for something special.

    The gleam of mundane gemstones came to his eyes. Their beauty made them attract some decent coin, merchants usually bought this kind of stuff and Malum was only looking at them because he hadn¡¯t found anything else.

    The jewel dealer behind the counter was a professional as he explained the background of each piece that justified there outrageous prices.

    Malum looked closer at a few and could tell they were actually pretty poorly made. He had never done jewellery but he did learn basic crafting as his Kingdom was built of the back of crafters and his Uncle made sure that he was at least competent on the subject.

    The one he was looking at was just inches away from a shattering, the pressure built up on the gem was insane and the metal band holding it in place was only going to slowly break in the pressure.

    Interestingly, as he closely observed another he found his sixth sense begin to heat up. He looked again and felt the item was bad. Red, coarse, disgusting, putrid, every one of his senses agreed that the item was terrible.

    Interested, he looked at another and found after some inspection that the feeling slowly returned. This one made less sense however as even though his initial findings found a average item it showed on his sixth sense as a great item.

    He tried again and found he got the same response from his sense. The amber locket was interesting but Malum failed to see how it could get that reaction from his own senses.

    Wanting to find out more about his new sense, Malum bought the item and brought it home. In his hands the item felt even better, like he was holding a pot of gold and yet logic told his brain that it was just an ordinary item.

    At his inn, he inspected the item for anything he might have missed but initially didn¡¯t find anything. Trying other methods he found little reaction with the gemstone.

    So he turned his attention away from it and instead onto the chain. His good feeling was for the item in general so perhaps it was hidden on the necklace.

    It was small and hard to see but Malum found letter carved into the little chain links holding the necklace together. He got out his sword and carved the letter one by one onto his sleeve.

    CAVE, R CITY, 4000 PACES N.

    A pace was the standard metric for a second of riding on horse. So it was an hour and 7 ish minuets. R city was obviously Roosevelt city which left N meaning North.

    What was in this cave, and why did a necklace lead it¡¯s location. His good feeling seemed to say it was a good thing as even his shirt now felt good as the inscription was carved into his sleeve.

    Malum wanted to think treasure, but he didn¡¯t completely trust this sense of his. How could it have known about the coordinates, even if Malum had unconsciously seen them how did it know what was in these caves wasn¡¯t dangerous?

    Greed fought against fear as Malum weighed up the two ends. On one hand it could lead him to a fortune and on the other was death.

    He decided after thinking to give it a go. His sense had helping him tremendously during his wave so he hoped it carried over into treasure hunting.

    Jameson was out doing his own thing, but they had plans to meet tonight for drinks. Malum left a note in case he was late which he left in his room.

    If he died at least then his corpse would be found, and he wouldn¡¯t suffer a true death.

    Renting a horse was easy and with only an hour ride Malum went off with only some food and water on his person.

    North was easy to find using the stars so he followed it towards the destination. He still had n hours ride so he got himself comfortable.

 Chapter 42

    The area he came across quickly deviated from the road. Here it was pure wilderness with several bugs flying around the place and trees covering everything he could see.

    He was looking for a cave and whilst the trees looked nice they also blocked the view of the stars with their canopies so that left him with only his memory to go in the right direction.

    He trusted his instincts and his senses felt right about the direction he was walking.

    The further he walked, the better the feeling became.

    A few creatures had to be warded off but the travel was otherwise uninterrupted. Malum came across a clearing where he saw several vines coming down what looked to be a cliff.

    Malum tried to find a way up but strangely he started to feel bad whenever he walked away from those vines. He walked back and investigated the area.

    Cutting down the vines, he revealed a cave entrance to which Malum felt a rush of happiness.

    Whatever mystical ability he had gained, was clearly beyond human and thinking back Malum could only link it back to his death. He had been given a second chance and a gift as well, and Malum wasn¡¯t one to deny gifts.

    He remained cautious. Whatever was in this cave was valuable and someone carved it into a necklace. Perhaps it was stolen goods that couldn¡¯t be fenced, or even an inheritance meant for a worthy finder.

    His Uncle had long told him of Inheritance Graves, places where cultivators left their legacies toa tested few. Because cultivators had for more trouble reproducing than most they tended to keep their inheritances in their graves where they would test those who tried to claim it.

    Perhaps he was to hopeful, Malum tried to dim his own hopes in case of disappointment but in his heart he wished for it to be true.

    He pulled a torch from his belt and used it bright flame to guide him inside the cave. He kept his senses sharp and moved with care.

    The cave opened up to a larger system, where he found 3 separate routes. Malum searched each entrance and found the second one to be the best.

    So kept his eyes peeled and entered deeper into the cavern.

    The rocks were uneven and it made walking even harder as the cave held a certain moisture in the air that also clung to the rocks.

    Looking at where to stand and his ability did flair up. Some areas spoke badly whilst others seemed fine.

    He looked closer at where his ability deemed dangerous and where it deemed fine and found himself agreeing with its conclusion.

    He noted the results and continued to walk further. Through the darkness he continued to travel downwards when he found himself coming to the bottom of some underground hill. He continued to walk where it was deemed safe when suddenly he felt a shiver go down his spine.

    Immense danger was felt at his current location so Malum quickly dived as far as he could towards a safe area.

    He felt himself bash against the rocks he landed on, but once he turned around to see what had happened, he was happy that he had only came out with a bruise or two.

    Arrows with drops of liquid coming off their heads had whacked against the rock in the direction to where he had once stood.

    He moved back closer to test his ability and now found the trigger to the trap he had stood on. It seemed like some weight plate which clicked down whenever it was set off.

    Malum chucked a rock and saw how soon after the click a set of arrows would come flying out from a wall in the darkness.

    He walked closer to that and found a gap in the rocks where he found crossbows automatically reloaded via a complex mechanism.

    Malum tried to shift the rocks apart to get a better look at the mechanism but couldn¡¯t budge through the rocks. He looked for another way to enter but found nothing.

    Keeping his intuition sharp, intuition being the new name of his ability, he continued down the cavern.

    Every now and then he would see another gap between rocks and during those Malum remained cautious. Through a few he could see the glint of a steel tipped arrow, he continued after noting their location.

    Walking slowly, and Malum focused on his intuition. Every sound was heard, every smell registered and his sight remained keen.

    Several more arrow traps later and Malum came across a new one.

    He could hardly see it, but thankfully it was one of the few he was familiar with. A thin line of rope was held across the cave with it setting on something on the ceiling.

    His ability had managed to catch it, which allowed him to avoid the danger entirely.

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    His new ability was turning to be as strong as Malum had hoped. It was life saver, but it could also be a fatal weakness if he relief on it to much. He didn¡¯t know if some attacks didn¡¯t set it off, and he would only learn if it was already too late.

    He closed his line of thoughts and focused in on collecting his reward. He stayed vigilant and passed the many traps ahead of him.

    Eventually the cave began to narrow and with it coming to a close Malum felt his senses heighten.

    Walking slowly forwards and Malum noticed the torch light slowly was blocked by a steep cliff. He looked up and saw the cliff only continued to rise.

    Before him and his treasure was a cliff, one he would need to climb.

    Malum attached his torch to his mouth and with it having only limited time left Malum forced himself to get going.

    His footing was decided entirely by his senses and ensured that each time he checked for any floor traps. It was slippery but every step he took was firm.

    Confidence in his ability only confounded upon its effects.

    Higher and higher he climbed towards the top and towards his goal. Up every ridge, and every mossy stone, he climbed higher and higher.

    He looked down to see the darkness below him. The abyss he had once been lost in, now he had surmounted it.

    With torchlight in hand, he turned to see the top. Was it a mountain of gold, or perhaps the ancient inheritance of a Martial Sage. No, it was a door.

    Inside of which Malum found a pillar of stone with a hand print painted on.

    Malum held his hand up to it, expecting a reaction. There wasn¡¯t any.

    He looked around the small room and found nothing but the pillar and the strange torch. He inspected the latter and found it¡¯s kindling to never seem to cease.

    It was a never-ending torch. Something Malum was happy to bag as a treasure. It would save him thousands of coppers but he continued to look for better.

    The hand print confused him. Why was it on the pillar?

    He inspecting further wanting his ability to help answer him in his question. Sadly all he got was slight distaste for the sign.

    He walked out the door where he then looked around. At the top of the cliff, it bordered the edge of the cave. The door was a cut out from the cave leading into endless rock.

    He looked at the cave wall and noticed a small hole above the door. Smelling a delicious feast, he climbed up the small ridges in the cave wall and with a torch in hand looked into the small hole.

    He could barely see anything but he could swear that there was some empty space there.

    With a good feeling he got his sword form his sheath and used the back end of the handle to widen the whole so he could see more. What he didn¡¯t expect was for the repeated bashing to fold the wall entirely. With the falling of rock, Malum dodged out the way.

    After the dust cleared, Malum climbed again to see what awaited him and the gap indeed lead to an empty area. Inside Malum saw several carvings on the wall that looked almost like a language. The similar etchings hinted at repeated words and one in particular was different from the rest.

    It seemed to be a name. Considering it was perhaps a grave it made sense, Malum just needed to know if there was treasure. It was damp and he was bruised and he would also need to climb back down.

    He scammed through the text before he stopped at one point in the carvings. It was small whole. Malum tried to look through but found the end quickly cut off. He looked through his pockets and shoved a coin through it.

    It fit surprisingly well and Malum heard how it fell surprisingly far before it stopped around where his feat was.

    Considering he had dropped it around waist height Malum now doubted the hole was a coincidence.

    Malum tapped deeper into his intuition and tried to ask it what to do. He found the answer lacking, so he tried to enhance it even more.

    He folded his legs and laid down. It was a simple pose his Uncle had taught him, one which allowed him to focus more. He felt down to his soul where he tried to find the source of his intuition.

    The ball remained closed but whips seemed to follow a path away from the ball. They travelled up to his head where Malum struggled to see where it arrived to.

    He decided to push on his soul to release more of the whisps. As they travelled up into his head he opened his eyes again to see colour brighten up the room.

    No longer was darkness here, instead Malum could see a lot of grey and a few red and green areas.

    He quickly checked the green and red areas and he found a coin sized whole on each one. He tried to know what to do exactly but got no answer so instead he put a coin down each green one and hoped for the best.

    At first he placed inside coppers as he didn¡¯t want to waste his precious money but once he ran out he was forced to place a silver into the last slot.

    After it fell he heard a click and rush of pleasure ran through his body. He quickly returned to the other holes where he place a silvers down each one.

    Every click made him euphoric and the final one made him have to lie down.

    It was like a message to all his muscles, and once he heard the sound of stone moving he knew he had struck gold.

    Light peeled back into the cave and Malum felt a rush of pain fall into his skull. Green and red escaped back into darkness and with it Malum felt his entire brain overheat.

    He forced out a potion from his backpack and drank the potion with haste. He clutched his head with agony as the pain thankfully eased away.

    Whatever he had done, had flared back the pain he had once been plagued with. Malum just hoped to god that it went away.

    First though, he would need to see if it was worth it.

    Walking into the lit room, Malum found himself looking upon several chests and a pedestal with a book laid upon it.

    Above was a carving that radiated a certain message.

    He put his hand closer and from his soul he felt the words, ¡°My Legacy, Khan Manaman.¡±

    With his hope running high Malum opened up the book and founds its label to radiate, ¡°Sword of Poison¡± Inside he felt the words meaning both ¡°Mortal¡± and ¡°Apprentice¡±

    He couldn¡¯t stop smiling at such a sight. That meant this book was a step on the right path towards his immortality as Apprentice was the official name of the next step.

    He checked to see if it went higher but after the first few pages mentioning the first steps of training the pages began to lose their radiating meaning to eventually just being scribbles.

    Malum only felt it was because his soul was perhaps to weak to get the meaning so he left the book for later and checked out the chests.

    Inside he found several glass bottles filled with a variety of liquids. In one he found a book which radiated, ¡°99 Poisons to Kill a God¡±

    A rather ambitious title but Malum had heard they were rather extravagant, if his Uncle was any example than that idea remained true.

    Inside he felt the words had much stronger radiation than the book and it seemed to hold 99 recipes for several different poisons. As an alchemist he found some to be similar but most of the ingredients he had never even heard off.

    He put it in his backpack and kept the bottles that flared up his intuition. Considering how long they had remained idle, most had lost their potency and whilst Malum would usually pockets the bottles, he wasn¡¯t wiling to risk his life over it so he just took what seemed good.

    With his gains being already so high Malum cared little for the small waste.

    With his pockets more than full, Malum worked his way slowly back. This time finding his pace to hold an extra skip in its wake.

 Chapter 43

    Returning to the large wall and Malum felt an increasing anxiety as he made his way inside. Fear of the guards searching him and stealing his treasure unendingly clogged his brain but no matter how much logic his smothered his brain with he still found their gazes to be extra piercing.

    His loss of the intuition ability only added to the feeling. Instead all he felt was that headache and it wasn¡¯t letting up with just a few hours¡¯ time.

    His fear were indeed unwarranted as the second they saw his badge they all but rolled down the regal red carpet, with the soldiers looking at him like the maniac he was.

    Once he entered the fear dripped away and instead happiness took it place. He quickly shuffled his way back to the inn where once he reached his room he finally let out his urge to dance.

    ...

    Once that was over he retrieved the loot from his bag and began to read through them again.

    The Sword of Poison was the technique he was going to practice and it held two separate parts to its Mortal section. Mind and Body. To reach the pinnacle of the mortal stage he would need to reach the limits of both.

    For mind, was the creation of poisons both the 99 ones and new ones it profoundly restated was needed to reach the pinnacle. It stated the need of 50 new poisons, 40 of the lower tier and 10 of the middle tier.

    Poisons in the book were ranked via tier, with lower killing small animals or humans with enough doses, to middle tier where it could kill humans in dose to higher tier where it could kill bears and a herd of cows.

    There was no certain line, and just because it was low tier didn¡¯t mean at all that it was a `bad` poison just that it was weak. Sometimes weak was what you wanted.

    It was also much easier to make but still the idea of 50 poisons worried Malums mind. Still, he was up for the challenge and it wasn¡¯t even the mind part he was most bothered by.

    The body was to be augmented through a ritual of poisons. Taking regular doses along with strenuous exercise. It looked like hell even to Malums deranged standards luckily he still had to make the poisons before he could start it so he some time before it was possible.

    He formulated a plan on his future actions and then began to get to work. There was no time like the present and he still had a few hours left of sunlight.

    Malum woke to the sound of knocking. With the headache returned Malum rose with a sour smile on his face. He got the bare minimum on and opened the door.

    ¡°What¡¯u want?¡± He said as the door opened.

    It was Jameson and Malum saw his face shift into worry.

    ¡°Is your headache back?¡±

    Malum nodded. He had complained about it to no end on their travels. His frown probably looked familiar.

    ¡°Poor bugger, okay then you got what, 10 days left before the wave so lets lay off the drinking on focus on you getting rid of it before your face the demons. Meditation works to soothe it right; I¡¯ll get you your food and you can have a day of that. Sound good?¡±

    ¡°Thanks mate.¡± Malum said as he watched the man go down to get him some food. He waved back a don¡¯t worry about it, but a twitch of pain made him recoil back into his room.

    He didn¡¯t come near to sleeping it off, in fact, Malum reckoned it had gotten worse.

    Jameson was right about the meditation part so Malum coiled onto his bedding and tried to calm his thoughts.

    He imagined a serene lake. The sun shining down reflecting off the surface. Perhaps a lone fisherman on a small fishing boat.

    A calm seen. One that hardly changed at all as the hours past.

    He opened his eyes rarely, only to the sound of knocking and when he ate.

    He slept as easily as baby. Considering he was always centimetres away from sleep, it wasn¡¯t hard to dip in and out.

    The day passed as quickly as it could, and Malum woke the next day feeling far better than before. It was still there, and when Malum tried to use his ability he found no response at all.

    No that he had some time, Malum visited the library as he wanted to check out some of the ancient sounding herbs he couldn¡¯t¡¯ recognise from the 99 recipes.

    He met the nice librarian whome guided him towards the right area before he began to trawl through the books. Jameson thought he was still meditating which left him a few hours before lunchtime before he had to return.

    With much left to do, Malum got to work.

    Word over word. Page after page. At some point they started to blur. His mind was beyond tired and the content of the pages did nothing to help.

    Why couldn¡¯t alchemists sprinkle in a joke here and there. Instead they were about as comedic as his plain white shirt. He closed the book he was reading as it held nothing of interest and looked at the time to find that he should start packing up.

    He had two piles, one which had useful information in it and another which didn¡¯t. The second was much larger but at least Malum had a few which turned out well.

    He dropped in the books as he planned out buying of few of the herbs he would never be able to collect himself. Rare ones which grew in deserts, for instance, he was never going to be able to get himself such he would need to fork over some pretty golds to get them.

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    For now though, he just needed to head back and act calm.

    He returned and continued his stance. Entering again back to the peaceful scene. The fisherman was laying down as usual, only waking to a pull on his bait.

    It never seemed to bite, so the fisherman slowly fell deeper and deeper into his slumber as his skin caught the sun.

    His wrinkled face showed only a smile on the lake. For it was the only place he found peace.

    It was Malums ultimate idea of peace. Manifested through his thoughts, Malum spent his time here and bathed in the sun with the fisherman.

    The gentle swaying of the boat. The soft feeling of the sun against his body.

    Until it was interrupted by the knocking of the door. Malum opened his eyes to see the cruel world around him and opened them to see his friend with a plate of food.

    He thanked his friend and took the plate. A few good words of conversation before Malum closed the door again and began to scarf down his food.

    Whatever cook made it was competent, the eggs just right, the bread lovely and soft. It was gone within 5 minuets and with hours left until the next meal Malum waited before his friend left the inn before he snuck out the back.

    He went towards the herb market, with a his savings in his pocket he hoped to buy a couple good ones to begin his cultivation journey. He headed in with good thoughts and his hopes ran high.

    It didn¡¯t last long, hope died as quickly as Malum saw the price. 3 gold! Were they mad?! It didn¡¯t do anything but heal sunburn and feel nice on a warm die and yet it cost it that much.

    Malum could attest to its medicinal properties but that was besides the point. He couldn¡¯t afford that and that was only one of the herbs.

    Malum needed money and his first idea was his military points. His old ones could RIP but now he had cleared a wave he would have 3000 to his name. That was roughly 3 gold which was enough for one herb.

    Only the one though and that was if he was willing to trade it all in which he most certainly wasn¡¯t.

    He needed another way of raising cash and with his strength he reckoned he could make a quick buck. Heading back to the inn, Malum thought of several criminal activities he could try out but as he arrived back to his room he realised he had treasure he could see for more than enough money.

    The unlimited torch was cool and would save him much money but Malum¡¯s eyes remained focused and with them he packed the torch into his backpack.

    Progression was his goal and he needed the cash up-front. He headed to an auction house of which the city had many to choose from.

    The one he decided on was one on the nicer side of town as he reckoned nobles would have field day with his unique item.

    To avoid being scammed he purchased the finest suit he could with the 3 gold, that and a nice mask and now he gave off a persona of a rich noble wanting to spend some money.

    He entered the auction hall and ordered the front desk to receive his item at once. He set the beginning price of ten golds after he explained the niche product. The eyes of the man at front practically glowed as he heard of its fantastical properties and accepted his offer with gratitude.

    Malum then asked for VIP room for the coming event and was led towards a booth before he could even ask for the mans name.

    Inside a small wooden box, Malum sat down as he saw out of a large whole out of the box. Large candles illumined a circular ring of similar boxes and at the floor was stone ring with a whole running down the middle.

    He could see a few others waiting in their boxes, their hushed murmurings putting Malum on edge. He fought against beasts but these people¡¯s eyes were more focused than the demons.

    Roosevelt had an underbelly just as ugly as any other city, perhaps its wealth making it perhaps worse than others.

    At least these slaves had golden chains. Malum could only wish them the best.

    They would all die anyway, Malum was more focused on becoming the exception.

    It didn¡¯t take long for the empty seats be filled, and once that task was complete a man came out form the hole under the centre stage and announced with a jovial voice.

    ¡°Welcome ladies and gentlemen to the 143<sup>rd</sup> monthly auction of Prestige House. Today we have curated the finest selection of goods all that is last is for them to find a home. Enough talking, now onto our first item!¡±

    Malum looked at the item slowly rising from the same hole the speaker came from. It seemed to a sword and the mans words confirmed his suspicion. Apparently it was an ancient relic from a Fallen noble, considering how spotless it was Malum doubted it immediately.

    Perhaps if his eyes told him it was treasure then maybe he would have purchased it but with nothing but a empty purse and a mild headache he wasn¡¯t willing to bet on the ancient sword.

    Prices rose from 10 gold to a hundred, it seemed the novelty of the item was higher than Malum expected. He opened the catalogue a read about the fallen household. It was from one of war hero who had taken down a couple countries and more than his fair share of demons.

    He could see now why they wanted it. If it was the hero¡¯s sword than it was beyond priceless, even the story alone was worth the gold.

    Once gold got to heavy to move they moved up to the higher form of currency, it was mainly used by the upper classes and it was Malum first time seeing it. They were called Promises and were essentially papers which could be exchanged for whatever was written on the front.

    It could range from a hundred gold to a hundred thousand gold, technically you could even buy a kingdom with it. How a small piece of paper could be worth so much lied behind the credibility of the one who wrote it.

    It was an ingenious concept that the kingdom had initiated a couple hundred years ago. If paper wasn¡¯t so expensive and the country wasn¡¯t half illiterate, they would have rolled it out down to even the smallest of bronzes alas here they were.

    Several items of less value went by. All auctions started strong, had a decent few in the middle then ended strong, it was like since ancient times and it was for good reason.

    Slaves, sword, potions and even knights were sold to the highest bidder.

    Eventually, the finale came around and whilst Malum was somewhat nervous he knew his item was special. For it to be a finale, well that would just mean he would fetch a higher price and once it was revealed and explained he wasn¡¯t disappointed.

    ¡°700 gold!¡± shouted an bearded man at the back.

    ¡°900 gold!¡± croaked an old lady from the front.

    ¡°1500 gold!¡± said a cleanly dressed person sitting in the VIP seat next to him.

    Malum looked over, and so did most of the crowd. 1500 gold was 150000 breads and a ludicrous amount of money to spend on a torch. Perhaps if it was learned then it was easily worth it but if not then it was just a novelty item.

    Nobody said another word until the announcer counted down the bid before he struck the gavel. He said a few words of goodbyes and good lucks before he disappeared from the stage.

    People began to fan out as they discussed the mans extravagant purchase. Malum was beyond confused as he thought it was going to only be a few hundred gold but to come out with more than a thousand was more than large shock.

    He got given a hundred up-front and a promise of 4 hundreds and 1 thousand. With his money earned Malum headed towards the herb market as he continued on his plans.

    A few curiosities made him want to tail that old man but he decided to stay on task and get his training up before he indulged in them. Strength would always come first, once he was immortal he could satisfy every need he ever could have so he focused up and ensured he wasn¡¯t tailed.

    If he was robbed, Malum was going to break a couple walls so he ensured he saved his fists the pain. After he had dodged through a couple alleys and changed his entire more than twice, he was happy to get shopping.

    He checked the time to find the auction had taken longer than expected but he still had an hour to get himself acquainted with the market.

    He met the suppliers and cross-referenced the prices. He checked a few of their products quality and he paid a little to hear the history of each store.

    Waling back, he reviewed what he learned and decided upon Louis¡¯ Goods and Services. They the same ones he started with but now he was sure they were the best option. They had a good reputation and charged slightly higher for higher quality goods.

    If it was something Malum would digest on a regular basis, he needed to be sure that the ingredients weren¡¯t going to slowly kill him. Happy with his investigation, Malum rushed home before his friend arrived back.

 Chapter 44

    Calm lake, serene sailor and sunny sun. It was nice, relaxing, but Malum couldn¡¯t stop wanting to go out and but his goods. He wanted to grow stronger, faster and now!

    He reeled back in his energy and shushed his energetic voices. It was just a few minutes of waiting, so he focused back in.

    The sun felt nice.

    The breeze was lovely.

    The rocking of the boat, clam and methodical.

    `Okay` Malum opened his eyes, `It¡¯s been hours now and Jameson is still not here. He wouldn¡¯t have forgot, so something wrong has happened.`

    He jumped up and walked outside. There, he asked the coachman outside if his friend had been taken anywhere to which he heard a resolute no.

    That meant he could walk there. If Malum was Jameson he would get a snack on the way, so he checked around the local stores and found a small bakery to which recognised Jameson from description.

    With that he gained the direction he was heading and Malum followed it towards the centre of the city. The streets gradually got cleaner, and the roads began to become more polished.

    Every step he took, he got closer to the Noble district.

    Feeling a headache coming on, Malum searched every store on the way and asked as much as he could. Nobody recognised him but the smith reminisced over his family.

    ¡°Good employers those lot were. Mi dad used to work there and I did me apprenticeship there before I did mi own thing. Heard only good things from mi old man, wish the young Sir good luck, on both mi own and mi dads behalf.¡±

    It was nice to hear to wasn¡¯t what Malum was looking for. Although it did give Malum an idea as to where he could have gone.

    The old estate of the Household was in the Noble district and Jameson never sold the place. The business they could steal, but the house was a gift from the King so nobody would risk their head over land but house prices had raised since then so Malum decided to check it out.

    He rushed down the streets and asked for direction where to go. Street to street slowly he entered the upper ends of the Roosevelt city and slowly Malums rushed figure was becoming more noticeable among the fine suits and dressed of the Lords and Ladies.

    Thankfully, he worse decent enough wear to not get stopped. His plain clothes made him look like any others runner, delivering news to and from the city.

    He continued to run until he came across the right road, named Coal Road it was a place where only Nobles lived and the use of glass displayed their wealth.

    Malum gulped slightly as he moved on closer and slowly he tapped on the door.

    He could hear an argument inside, it seemed heated and it was definitely loud.

    The sound grew louder as the door was opened and the sight of a cleanly dressed butler came into view.

    ¡°We have not ordered any mail today.¡± He said, shooing Malum off like he was a dog.

    ¡°I have news for Sir Jameson Smith¡±

    He got slapped, ¡°That¡¯s Baron to you boy!¡± Malum looked up at him with some rage on his face, `how dare he.`

    The butler continued, ¡°Adress them properly if you want to keep your head.¡± He said in a much lighter tone. Malum rage reduced considerably.

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    ¡°Thanks.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t thank me, tell me the news and I can deliver it for you.¡±

    Malum could only shake his head. ¡°I¡¯m sorry sir but I was told to only tell the Baron.¡±

    The butler nodded, not at all offending by his actions. Instead he guided him in and took him towards the Barons office.

    Whilst they walked, Malum was just happy he had correctly guessed the right place whilst the butler continued to chat about his boss.

    ¡°Today some people came and so the Baron isn¡¯t in the best of moods. Say what you need to and then leave. I hope your news isn¡¯t anything so bad he would force you to stay.¡±

    Malum nodded to the man¡¯s words and he saw some slight relief appear on the man¡¯s face as he thanked the fact that alums hadn¡¯t brought more bad news.

    Malum was interested alone by the fact his friend had a butler but to be fair, someone had to maintain the house when Jameson was elsewhere and it wasn¡¯t like he was poor.

    Past several sword pedestals as well as a few portraits Malum noticed his friend in several of them. He looked so young; his scars were non-existent and his smile was far brighter.

    Then at some point it turned. From little boy to grow man. His smile wiped off his face, and instead he saw the Baron.

    The butler saw his eyes but didn¡¯t say a word.

    Malum followed him until they reached the office where he knocked on the door and announced his entrance.

    ¡°Your butler brings a message boy!¡±

    He gestured Malum in and Malum entered into an office. He couldn¡¯t see his friend behind several books, they stacked his desk so high they almost seemed unstable.

    The butler than left after saying his goodbyes and it left Malum and the Baron alone in the room.

    ¡°Message then?¡± the Baron said.

    Malum peaked behind the stack of books to make sure it was his friend. Same eyes, same nose, he thanked the Gods that he was right.

    He was still adamantly reading and Malum read the cover and it stated `Residential Law`. He moved closer to see if his friend would recognise him but found instead that the Baron was to focused on reading his book.

    ¡°Message!¡± He shouted again, still not looking up.

    Malum, now behind him, announced with as much gusto as he could.

    ¡°The Duke of Malum land desires yours attention!¡±

    Hearing the word duke, Jameson snapped out of his line of focus as he automatically pulled his suit together. He then processed the words and turned to see the messenger.

    ¡°The duke of what?¡± he exclaimed.

    Malum just smiled at him and Jameson could only look at his friend as his mind slowly processed things.

    ¡°You¡¯re here? How? Wait, what time is it?¡±

    It was only then that he looked outside to see the darkening spring sky.

    ¡°Oh,¡± He pushed his hand to his head and groaned. ¡°Sorry mate, I¡¯ve been trying to sort out something that came up. Did you eat?¡±

    ¡°Yes I did Lord Baron.¡± He even bowed slightly to add emphasis.

    ¡°Fuck off with all that. Even the butler calls me Lord... Well I am starving and I owe you more than a drink. Grab me my coat and I¡¯ll change out of this formal crap.¡± He moved over to a separate room but he didn¡¯t stop talking.

    ¡°You know I went on this meeting today. Baron Hildenborough he offered me a mountain of gold for the estate and because he¡¯s my boss¡¯ boss I actually had to hear him out. Bastard got so much ambition he practically begged me for the location.

    You know the houses next to this one house are owned by Viscounts and even the Count of Arms lives three doors down. Bet that pig wanted to go around the whole neighbourhood giving out his name and forcing them to shake his spotless hands.¡±

    Jameson walked out in more casual clothes but he still didn¡¯t stop talking.

    ¡°I guarantee you he¡¯s never even touched a sword, perhaps not even a practice one. I could have sliced the man in half in heartbeat. You could for fuck¡¯s sake and yet he¡¯s a Barony based of their strong defensive sword play.

    At least I still remain a decent smith. He¡¯s lost the most important thing of all, the damn reason he even became a Baron.¡±

    Malum only looked at him blankly. To which Jameson could only say, ¡°Sorry for venting, right pub, eat, fun. Got anywhere you want to go?¡±

    ¡°Not really, heard the Golden Goose had good eggs but that¡¯s about it.¡±

    ¡°To the Golden Goose it is, today Malum you shall dine on the finest of eggs.¡±

    As they bantered, the butler heard them down the hallway and could only second take what he had seen.

    The message boy seemed to have made friends with the Lord, and not only that but he could make the Lord smile!

    As a butler, he only wanted the best of his Lordship so to see him happy made him happy as well. He made sure to note the name, Malum, before he got back to doing what he did best. Cleaning, repairing, and ensuring the mansion was prepared for his Lords next stay.

    ¡°Hold me Malum.¡± Jameson blurted out. His shirt barely able to hold back his belly.

    ¡°They were goooood.¡± Malum said, to which he turned his thick neck to see Jameson nodding.

    The golden eggs had filled them both up. To the point they had to lay down to cope with the food.

    Only when one of them sat back up did they decide that leaving was their best option. They slowly waddled home and once they did they both fell into a food coma. Jameson had experienced a day of hell, and Malum had also had one hell of a day.

    Still, they both knew that it wasn¡¯t the hellish work they would remember. Instead it would be those eggs, because they were goooood.

 Chapter 45

    He stood up from his bed as he stretched his arms. He yawned, before he got dressed and went to find Jameson.

    Opening the door he found the man already dressed and doing some simple sword practice.

    ¡°Morning. What are your plans for today? Malum asked.

    ¡°I¡¯ve got to sort out that offer with the idiot. I need to find some official way to deny his offer other than, nah prick its my house.¡±

    ¡°Sounds like fun. I¡¯m feeling better so I¡¯m going to be doing some light training. I¡¯ll see you at that egg place for dinner?¡±

    Jameson smiled, ¡°I¡¯m already salivating.¡±

    Malum smiled back as he walked off back to his room. Today he was going to train but not his body, today he was training his alchemy.

    He waited for Jameson to leave before he met up with his herb dealer and purchased what he needed. They updated his mark and told him that he could now enjoy a 10% discount on all goods and they would offer slightly better prices for his own potions.

    Who didn¡¯t like to hear free benefits, Malum was immediately put in a good mood.

    It would make him more, and cost him less. His smile grew and wider as he thought about it.

    He carried his good mood, and his new materials back to the inn. He lugged them onto his bed as he found his travel bag. Inside was menial things he used when he travelled, like his old sleeping bag and pillow.

    Also inside was what he used to practice his beginner alchemy. A head sized metallic pot was the main tool and it was by far the most expensive piece of kit.

    Luckily it was durable and would last a lifetime of normal use. Alchemy used extremely hot and cold temperatures on their potions so the pot was built with this mind, still it put a strain on the large chunk of metal so in heavy use it would only last 10 ish years.

    That was more than enough for his plans, so Malum set his pot over the fire place and poured some water inside of it.

    Water was in mortal potions such to dim the strong effects of the treasured herbs, for most of the potions on his book, he would need something called Pure Water but he hadn¡¯t heard of what that was before the book had explained it so getting it was for another day.

    Luckily for what he wanted to make he wouldn¡¯t need it. After he set the fire he got the water to a boil before he pulled out 4 herbs from the pile.

    He first added some Calming Leaves, which not only had a healing effect but also helped with headaches and other injuries. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact it also soothed muscles making many immobile during its effects than it would have been a best-seller. Mortals usually chewed them for a reduced effect but Malum was going to need it to counter affect what he was about to add next.

    A Thistle of Purification was a nasty little thing that hurt as much as it helped. The small poison it stung with helped with fevers of other illnesses but the cost of extreme momentary pain. When it cleared the system it did with no exception. Your bowels were emptied whether you wanted them to or not. People who took them were not only crying from the pain, with snot running down their noses, they were also taking a number 1 and 2 at the same time.

    Needless to say it wasn¡¯t as popular as the Calming Leaves but it had some use cases although nobility wouldn¡¯t be caught dead taking them.

    After they were added he needed to bring down the temperature so he added the cooling herb of Frozen Touch. It was a small berry that¡¯s liquid would bring anything it touched to a freeze.

    Humans never ate them for obvious reasons but a small amount of the liquid could be used on a hot summers day in many drinks or wines and so Nobility loved them.

    The fire still ran but the liquid was now frozen. In this state, Malum added in the last ingredient of Demons Oak.

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    It was from a very rare tree that when touched brought about a feeling of burning to the whole body. Malum hadn¡¯t heard of its second effect but the book said that it cleared the veins and arteries of the body for faster blood flow.

    Malum believed in the book, and its effects were also dampened not only by the Calming leaves but also the fact that it was a watered-down product. He was not going to enjoy the process and this was the weakest potion but it was start on a journey Malum was forcing himself to take.

    He waited for the wood to begin to fall apart in the water before he took it out and then strained the water to take out any remaining pieces. He was left with a bowl of slightly red liquid.

    Never one to hesitate, Malum held the bowl to his mouth and began to drink.

    At first it was still cold. The Frozen touch had kept it cooler than he expected but the feeling of coldness did not last long. A fire raged in his body, whilst he felt pores on his face and body opening up.

    His skin screamed and Malum felt his mouth follow to copy. Sadly, he couldn¡¯t afford to bring attention to himself so he bit his tongue down and swallowed the blood.

    Thankfully his body began to feel more loose as the calming leaves brought about its effects. He was on fire and being purged form the inside out, but he was getting stronger.

    `Power!` Malum told himself.

    Every pain was for a stronger punch, and every sweat he gave out was for a stronger kick. His body was going through a reformation and he would be reborn a stronger man.

    So he pushed through.

    Pain was simply weakness leaving him, and Malum swore to never to be weak again.

    He had died, been lost in death for an uncountable amount of time and survived a horde of demons that didn¡¯t end until the sun came back to its peak.

    He wasn¡¯t going to lose to simple pain.

    His eyelids slowly fell shut as his muscles relaxed even more. He began to feel the pain begin to numb as the concoction reached his brain.

    As it did, so did the fire.

    His senses began to fail. Everything he thought began to change into heat. A burning sensation above all, reached every fibre of his thoughts. No longer could he even cheer himself on, now all he could do was burn.

    The unfamiliar feeling was the worst pain Malum had ever suffered.

    Yet, he as everything slowly turned numb, as he could feel himself drifting into sleep, Malum felt a feeling of success he had never before achieved.

    Sleep and death was so similar and yet so different. Dreams were something he never really thought about but he heard over the years about many priests calling it divinity and others calling it simply idle thoughts.

    Malum had no idea what dreams really were and he reckoned neither did nearly everyone who existed on the plain. Perhaps the Gods knew what they were, the Dao definitely did at least.

    Now he was awake and with his senses returning he felt his muscles contract. They were strong, Malum could feel that just from the tension running down his arm.

    Then another feeling returned to him. Smell... and the waste products of his body immediately made themselves known.

    He would have been sick if he had anything left to throw up, instead he just gagged and ran towards the shutters.

    He opened them and smelled clean air.

    Then he closed his nose again and rushed back into the room.

    Laying where he once was a puddle of human waste and if Malum wanted to sleep in the room anymore he would need to clear his own mess.

    First he removed his clothes and ran towards the communal bath.

    A few eating in the inn saw his naked figure running off but none of them had the confidence to make fun of him. Naked he was, but it also showed his physique and after the enhancement it wasn¡¯t anything they would want to fight.

    He got to the showers and cleaned his body as best as he could. He cleaned his clothes as well, rinsing them to roughly, a few wholes formed on the thin fabric.

    Now dressed and clean, Malum went back into the diner of the inn and asked the woman behind the bar for a brush. With a promise of returning it he secured the brush and with it he went back to his room.

    The dried brush soon became wet and Malum emptied its contents onto the lawn outside. He then repeated until there was nothing lest on the floor.

    He then cleaned of the brush using water from his waterskin and mopped the floor again. After he squeezed that out, he went back into the showers and cleaned of the brush one last time and refilled his drink.

    The experience was anything but fun and there many lessons to learn from it, but at least now it was over. Now all he had to show for the experience was his stronger muscles and slightly enhanced senses.

    He didn¡¯t notice it before because he would have smelled only waste anyway but now that it was gone it was more evident that his eyes, ears, nose and skin were more sensitive than they were before.

    Its effect was more profound in the book, but because of his sixth sense he already had strong senses to begin with. He wondered if it would affect his Intuition ability but with his headache still remaining he wouldn¡¯t know before it returned.

    Happy with his day, Malum returned the brush and went back to his room.

    To best make use of his enhancement he would need to first get used to it so he first stretched before he began to do some shadow fighting.

    The sword was lighter, he could swing it faster, and his movement made him hard to even see.

    Malum¡¯s grin only grew wider and wider as he tested out his new prowess. He set new records for nearly every exercise he knew and Malum couldn¡¯t have been happier.

    Finally, he felt like he was on the right path. SO much had he struggled and now he had finally begun to take steps on the right path.

    He have the Gods a prayer and one to parents, then he gave his middle finger to his Uncle as he moved outside to sort out a newly found need.

    Food, he needed food!

 Chapter 46

    He went to the golden egg inn where he munched down on a few of the heavenly gifts. He checked the time and found that his scheduled diner would be in an hour.

    So he stopped his actions and went outside again for training.

    Stances melded into forms which collected brought about a martial art. With the enhancement his movement became more fluid and his attacks displaced more air.

    His speed had increased, such his power had been brought to a new level.

    He only stopped when he heard the voice of Jameson calling over.

    ¡°Malum, now that was some fine swordplay. Since when where you so quick ey? Maybe I should do some meditation.¡±

    Malum laughed and said jokingly, ¡°Sure mate, inner peace had brought about my inner strength.¡±

    Jameson followed Malum into the restaurant and they both joked and ate for the whole night.

    By the time Malum returned to his bed, he couldn¡¯t help but think of a time when he was happier.

    Sure the painful reformation of his body hurt, but it fulfilled his purpose and then his dinner with Jameson was anything but miserable.

    He was happy but it couldn¡¯t help but bring a frown to Malums face.

    `It can only go downhill from here.`

    Such a thought ruined such a good moment and instead left Malum sad and angry. Sad because it was true, and angry because it had ruined his mood.

    He considered the pessimistic idea and where it¡¯s flaws lay.

    When he got to the fifth one, he yawned and realised he was supposed to be falling asleep. He ignored his own argument and decided to leave it for the next day.

    Still, he couldn¡¯t help but frown as he drifted off into a dream.

    With not long left until there second wave, Malum got to work trying to set himself up as best as he could. Enhancements could only be done 5 days after one another otherwise the effects would be diminished and his likelihood of survival free-falled.

    So he kept it to the recommended amount on the recommended schedule. He was willing to gamble basically everything, but there was one exception: his life.

    His thoughts turned stormy but they soon relaxed as Jameson entered the room and a smile crawled onto his lips.

    ¡°Are you ready?¡± He asked.

    Malum replied, ¡°As I¡¯d ever be.¡±

    And the two pulled up their packed bags and walked out the door.

    They crawled back onto the carriage and experienced another lovely trip back to the Outpost. At least the views were good on the way, every other sense however had experienced another dose of trauma.

    Getting off with an aching back, Malum felt his head again to see if he needed to take another potion. The ride didn¡¯t help in his diagnosis but he decided to take one anyway.

    Intuition had yet to return but his headache had pretty much disappeared, only occasionally would he get a sting of pain.

    At least now he was on standing on the ground breathing in fresh air. He looked over to Jameson who looked as miserable as ever.

    His resting face didn¡¯t do him justice at all.

    Malum joined up with him and they then descended into the mess hall. The big feast before the big day.

    They ate, ate some more, and then ate some more on top of that. By the time they were done, everyone was feeling as stuffed as one could be, nobody complained though, they all knew how valuable the energy would be tomorrow.

    Once done, they went to sleep for the night. Any and all rest would be good, and with his bed now familiar Malum manged to get some quality hours of sleep.

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    He awoke to the sound of the morning bell. Usually he would already be up by now but it seemed his sleep last night had truly been fantastic.

    Quickly getting his gear on, Malum headed out to see the troops already lining up.

    He joined Jameson who gave him a glare but they had a newbies to receive so they changed focus to that.

    In they came all toned as any good miner would be, with callouses on their arms like weavers.

    Unlike the Northern front the Southern fronts training scheme lasted 6 months and aimed at producing far better soldiers rather than sacrifices.

    They were many reasons why that had been the decision but the main one was that 3 months just meant another died man at the end of the month, and they died to quickly to make it worthwhile.

    These were premium sacrifices, one that would last mostly through the hell of hells.

    They quickly got assigned and the newbies joined there new groups. Some took in many and some only took in one. With only one dead last month they got themselves a replacement and because there were a few left over, they also got yet another one.

    Daris and Harris were brothers and Harris had begged the commander to put him on this Section. Considering the 4 subsections, strategically there were likely better places but turning down a begging man you were sending off to kill didn¡¯t exactly raise moral.

    They hugged like they hadn¡¯t seen each other in years and Malum looked to see Carl practically bursting with joy.

    He could swear he heard the man mutter, ¡°Double the newbies, double the stories...¡±

    Malum turned off his ears as Carl properly voiced his questions about the two¡¯s dating life and sadly they didn¡¯t end at `none`.

    In fact it never ended.

    They even ate before they left and yet still by the time they had arrived Harris was still talking about his 8<sup>th</sup> girlfriend.

    Or was it his 9<sup>th</sup> by now. Malum didn¡¯t care and thankfully reaching the crossroads meant that they could split up. Now he just had peace and quiet with his own friend.

    They waved off the other three and continued the short journey to their battlegrounds. Jameson continued to stare off into the endless sea of nothing and Malum didn¡¯t do much different.

    Both enjoyed the views, and on their travels they had learned quickly to enjoy the silence.

    It came to an end not soon after. Coming onto the narrowest point in the river and Jameson crossed over. He gave Jameson a prayer and a playful salute before he split off and went downstream to where he had set up before.

    He laid down all the things he would need and sharpened his swords as best as he could. He had medicine spare, he had snacks, and he had a new Martial art ready to test out. The demons weren¡¯t going to be hunting him, today he was going to be doing the hunting.

    As the sun rose to its peak, another day of blood began.

    Jameson pulled his sword from his sheath to match the coming demons pace. It charged as fast as a horse and yet when Jameson met the beasts horn with his blade, it wasn¡¯t the horn that won.

    Instead, his blade carved through the horn and through the head of the demon. It¡¯s eyes gave him one last glare before he saw the life drain from the demon.

    He looked down to wipe the sword of its blood when the thought of time came to his mind. An hour had past since the wave had began so that left 23 hours of murder left to carry out.

    He flicked his sword of its blood which revealed it familiar metal gleam. Jameson could only smile as he remembered the first time he laid eyes upon it.

    As the first and only successor of his house, he had received the sword when he was only a young child. Once he was healthy, and his parents had decided to only have a single child, the sword was given as a sign of his inevitable rise to head of household.

    It was a marvel of creation. As sharp as a demon tooth whilst also light enough for even an untrained man to hold. What it truly exceeded at though, was its durability.

    He had sharpened the sword 2 times in his life, once every 5 years of his consistent use. He was only small but he remembered parts of the ceremony as if they were yesterday. It was one of his last memories of his father.

    He spilt the blood of another demon. His mind however continued to reminisce.

    His smile, his hair, his armour, his sword. The words were lost to time, but the image was all he needed. His father looked strong, mighty, righteous; he was everything Jameson aspired to be.

    The Baron, and yet he never lived up to his title.

    Instead he was here, culling demons to protect his enemies.

    He sword grew more violent; he inflicted more pain then was needed and he went for the heart in particular.

    Jameson let fury overcome him as he became the devil of the battlefield. It may have costed him more stamina than what was needed but Jameson had more than enough to afford it.

    The whole charade of his house, one of the last shreds he had left and yet they couldn¡¯t allow him to have that anymore. Next they would be coming for his sword, and such a thought brought only wrath to Jameson eyes.

    Thankfully, he caught onto to his emotions as he began to make movements to irrational for his brain to ignore. As an instructor such form would have him condemn them to extra harsh training and yet he himself was no doing exactly that.

    He breathed calmy and let himself calm for a second. He cut down to his left as he knew the demons wouldn¡¯t give him the rest but he certainly could if they were dead.

    He fought on and remembered his house remaining in his possession and whilst they could send him as many threatening letters, they couldn¡¯t actually force him to see it, neither could they just take it.

    He smiled at their grief and continued his battle. Occasionally he would see his friend on the other side fighting he own set of demons and he would smile at his success.

    Jameson let his emotions run cold as he then turned back to the demons he faced. No longer would they bleed for his fury, now they would bleed for death and death only.

    Jameson looked over to the other side of the river. Burning flames had erupted once again and Jameson wandered why Malum did it.

    He could always ask him.

    Night had was beginning to fall which meant he was going to need to adjust his focus. In the dark his eyes weren¡¯t of much use because the torches range was frankly terrible so sound was his sense of choice.

    His years of hard work paid off though, as he could now tell exactly where a sound came from the second he heard it.

    The flames would help with some limited vision and he wandered if that was why his friend did it. A light-source?

 Chapter 47

    `How many demons have I killed` Jameson thought as he carved another pound of flesh in half. It was definitely in the thousands, perhaps even the tens of thousands.

    He was forced to wander how the demons could afford such losses. They must reproduce as fast a ants to keep up those numbers.

    He had heard that they were spawned from eggs. Was it from the clergy he heard that, or another Noble, he didn¡¯t know but it gave him a moment of interest in the endless slaughtering fest that was a wave.

    It was hard, and a mistake would cost him. But death wasn¡¯t something he was to afraid off. He had no family left and it was going to stay that way, revenge was something he had pretty much completed so why did he hold onto his life. Why did he fight so hard?

    `Spite` Jameson guessed, if he died that would end the scheme of his enemies and seal their victory. At least if he was alive he had the hope of a different outcome.

    Jameson looked over the river again and saw the flames had been snuffed out. They likely had done hours ago; he just wasn¡¯t focusing on that.

    At least he couldn¡¯t die for his friend. He had long felt the grief over loosing a fellow friend in war and he wasn¡¯t going to put Malum through that just because he could not bother fighting.

    That would be poor of him. An action his blessed mother would never forgive him for.

    So he fought on. For the sake his enemies and his friends.

    Finally, the last hour had come. Jameson looked at the sun and smiled as his eyes reeled back from looking at the ball of fire.

    His dad was a believer of the Sun God, and he had read many books that his father had bought and kept in the library.

    They described the Sun God as the source of all life, and benefactor of all of humanity. Jameson thanked the Sun for its light bit the fact it hurt to look at told him that the God wasn¡¯t as kind as others.

    Darkness did hurt to look at, neither did the earth.

    True believers would have you know it¡¯s because the Sun God is to powerful, but Jameson didn¡¯t believe that. Otherwise it would have ruled for longer than half of the day.

    He looked over to see his friend. Blood covered the man and he looked like a red and brown haze as he dashed around the battlefield.

    Malum was doing better than last time. His movement remained fast and strong whilst last time Jameson saw how he slowed down to save on energy.

    His friend had clearly experienced great growth over their month off and Jameson still wandered how he did it. One day he was fine and the next he was more toned. He thought about different drugs which were said to hold such effects but with his friend being alchemist he would know better than to take those.

    He would ask him later. For now, he slashed, pierced and stabbed his way through the horde.

    At last the sun reached its peak and Jameson felt a wave of relief flood through his bones. Every wave still threatened his life, and a wave completed marked the start of another fruitful month.

    He didn¡¯t waste time and rushed to see if his friend had yet again fallen asleep. Running down the river he found the last land bridge and crossed before running back up stream.

    Several discoloured corpses littered the ground but it wasn¡¯t human bodies, instead he saw a standing figure standing on the field. Blood dripped from his clothes and sword and the radiating sun against the crimson red made for the quite the image.

    Jameson was even tempted to get a painter to save the image.

    Alas he looked closer and saw Malums eyes barely open. Jameson walked closer before he saw several muscles on Malum contract.

    The once steady blade shot forwards towards Jameson and barely had time to pull up his sword as the blade clashed against his.

    ¡°Malum!¡± Jameson shouted.

    He saw as the mans eyes went from half closed to open and clear. And he muttered a question.

    ¡°Jameson?¡±

    ¡°Yes that¡¯s me. Now we need to go back to rest so let¡¯s get a move on.¡±

    He patted Malum on the back and began to walk back to the Outpost. Malum took a second to realise where exactly he was and what time it was before he rushed back with a smile on his face.

    `Its already over?` thought Malum as he was walking back.

    He looked up at the sun again and yet again saw the sun at its peak. The last time he checked it as coming nightfall and then everything had been a bit of a blur.

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    It took a second to get use to his lack of Intuition but after he did it was just a question of endurance. He moved his hand and squeezed his own muscles.

    Last time such an action would have caused pain but now all he felt was strength. The body enhancement was far more miraculous then the book mention and he even started to wonder if it really was only to Apprentice. If he had gains like this every time he drank the potion then how strong were the upper tiers.

    Not wasn¡¯t even mentioning his new Martial Art.

    He couldn¡¯t¡¯ stop smiling. The silly grin on his face just couldn¡¯t disappear and after receiving the news that Harris and Darris had both survived.

    The five continued on their way back and Carl continued the interrogation onto the two¡¯s love life. Malum wondered if he would ever get bored of the topic but looking at Carl intrigued face he doubted that day would ever come.

    Jameson and Malum therefore went a bit ahead as they wanted to get away from the conversation and it also meant that sleep would come sooner.

    Not much was said but Jameson did ask a few questions to Malum that he had been thinking about. The fire turned out to act as not only a lightsource but also as a moment of respite from the endless killing.

    He asked a few more that had come across his mind and Malum asked a few that he had thought about.

    He asked about his sword style, to which Jameson answered that it was the one taught in his academy. Nobles couldn¡¯t exactly apprenticeship each other¡¯s so instead they set up academies which taught them everything from manners to the matters of land management.

    Jameson offered Malum the same style to which he learned but interestingly his friend decided against it. `Is he trying to make his own style, perhaps build upon the one he received as a recruit.`

    If he succeeded then Jameson had nothing short of a genius as a friend. He offered one last time and after another dismissal he decided to not bring it up again.

    If he came later to change his decision then he would be more than happy to give it to him. Really, he should have done it earlier but he forgot sometimes that recruits got mediocre techniques not the higher tier ones he received at his school.

    They talked about little else and soon arrived at their location. The human world was bright and green but Malum and Jameson were far to tired to take in the view.

    At the Outpost, Jameson left Malum to go and report to his superior and that left Malum to wonder back into his tent.

    He wasn¡¯t as tired as he was last time but he still felt like he had ran a marathon. The amount of potion he had drank as well would mean he would need to hold off on taking so many in the next few days. Taking to many at once could upset the human system and the best way for it to clear itself was rest and excretion.

    He went to the outhouse, then to the showers and then finally entered his bed. A successful wave meant he was closer to his goal of Nobility all he had left was a couple more tens of thousands of points. At least he could use the time to grow stronger.

    Malum and Jameson soon returned back to the city of Roosevelt. As the city churned ore into iron, Jameson focused on his Barony whilst Malum focused on his body.

    Until the waves were no longer of a threat to him, a strong body would keep him safe and that would gave him the opportunity to focus on his mind later.

    Creating another potion wasn¡¯t to hard, he already had the ingredients needed but this time he ensured that the waste created in the process was far easier to clean up.

    In a tub made of wood, he drank the potion and soon fell into agony. Perhaps because it was his second time, it didn¡¯t hurt to much and neither did his body release so much waste.

    After a cleaning up and doing a few tests he found the results had diminished in comparison to before. Considering how strong he would have been if they remained constant, it made sense but Malum heart was still disappointed.

    As Malum processed his gains, he and Jameson still ate the golden eggs every night and so Malum learned more of what Jameson was doing. His friend had come out of that wave strangely motivated and found he was more active and happy then he usually was.

    He spoke about plans to turn his House around and the two schemed ways he could try and take back what had been stolen from him.

    The two thought of several schemes over their several drinks and the more alcohol that entered their system, the stranger these strategies became.

    ¡°I¡¯ll seduce the Duke¡¯s daughter and with their support my enemies will not even know what hit them.¡±

    ¡°Sure, how are you going to seduce the Duke¡¯s daughter?¡±

    ¡°My charm of course! Can you not see my devilish looks, my impeccable manners and my fantastic taste of food.¡±

    Malum could only really agree with the last one but he still showed his friend some support with a big thumbs up. Perhaps he would have said something if he wasn¡¯t eating a heavenly egg.

    Jameson laid his hands back down and laughed a little.

    ¡°I know Malum. I know it¡¯s pointless...¡±

    Oh no, Malum regretted not saying anything as the drunkard had clearly not seen his thumbs up or his big smile.

    Sadly, he still had an egg in his mouth!

    ¡°You know I¡¯ve already gone through everything. My mother did everything she could when I was a younger. It seems I am doomed to die in the battlefield.¡±

    Finally Malum swallowed the egg, ¡°Oi you little miser! Nothing is ever hopeless. You will find a way to get revenge on your enemies because you¡¯ll never give up on looking. Now you repeat after me, I will find my answer, I will get my Revenge!!!¡±

    Jameson looked at him and smiled, ¡°Fine, I will find my answer and I will get my revenge.¡±

    ¡°Say it with more heart man!¡±

    ¡°I will find my answer, I will get my revenge!¡±

    ¡°MORE!¡±

    ¡°I WILL FIND MY ANSWER, I WILL GET MY REVENGE!!!¡±

    Jameson felt nothing but euphoric as he said those words. Hope ran through his body and for once ins several years he felt alive again.

    He saw the inn around him give him several stars and even worse was the incoming owner of the inn.

    Jameson quickly sat down and put on a nonchalant expression. He even sipped on his bear.

    ¡°You gunna have to keep it down eye lads. Good to see soldiers enjoying themselves though, most just lounge around in misery. Have a good one eye, and keep it down.¡±

    The man walked off and Malum and Jameson smiled. They thought that perhaps their precious egg eating was going to be cut short but thankfully the man seemed sympathetic to soldiers.

    They finished what was on their plate and left the inn. Malum was still fairly ludic but Jameson was off his head.

    Malum could hear him slowly mutter, ¡°I will find my answer, I will get my revenge.¡± He lulled the sentence like it was a lullaby but it still brought a smile to Malums face.

    Considering his situation, he wasn¡¯t surprised Jameson wasn¡¯t exactly in the best place mentally. With a sick Uncle he understood the subject a bit more than others but he still wouldn¡¯t call himself an expert.

    People needed goals. As he grew up he finally began to understand why his Uncle had stressed the need for his own revenge.

    Would Malum be able to suffer through the pain of body enhancement if he wasn¡¯t motivated, if death hadn¡¯t scared him so much?

    He needed his friend to find this goal and it wasn¡¯t hard to find an easy one. Of course there was a way for Jameson to get back his house. There was answer to everything, one just needed to look hard enough.

    For his own goal he would keep on training and when resting he would think about creating new alchemy potions. Before he did the though, his bed was calling to him, and sleep was just around the corner.

 Chapter 48

    Training was fun.

    Malum had come to that realisation long ago and it was part of the reason he did it so much. It wasn¡¯t fun because it was strenuous, no he liked training because it fulfilled him.

    Every sweat that dripped down his shirt, every muscle ache he felt as he fell asleep, those were reminders that he was walking in the right direction and that made him happy.

    Today he also received another piece of good news. He noticed it when he was training, a slight blend of green following the path of his sword.

    Intuition was back!

    Malum thought to how long it had been and found it to be around a month. 30 days for a potentially life changing opportunity, if that wasn¡¯t a deal, then Malum didn¡¯t know what was.

    Now with his ability his training reached the next level and with 15 days having passed since he last took his potion he could now safely take another.

    That night he prepared the materials according to his extra sense and prepared his bath before he down the drink.

    He felt the fire rage but nothing but smiled held onto Malums face.

    Now it was just a matter of time before he perfected his body, then his mind would soon follow. At the peak of mortality, could he begin his next step.

    `I spoke to soon.`

    Malum thought as he felt the iron clasp around his hand. Around him was 4 soldiers and each were looking at him with pity.

    Malum looked to puddles on the floor and wondered why it was raining in summer. Perhaps even the Gods were taking pity on him.

    Yeah right.

    He got pushed into barred cart and was driven towards the cities jail. Inside the cart, he wandered how Jameson was doing. Perhaps his poison had been a bit much.

    ¡°ALL RISE!¡± Announced the judge. Malum wasn¡¯t paying much attention to his surroundings and was instead looking at how white the man was.

    `Has he ever seen sunlight` he pondered.

    ¡°Malum you are here today on suspicion of committing the robbery of the Bank of Roosevelt. Do you plead guilty?¡±

    Malum looked at the judge, then around him.

    He could see a few people sitting on the rows behind him. One looked like a student, on was a runner from some gang of merchantry, and other was the Butler Malum had seen inside Jameson house.

    On the prosecuting side was a Knight who had just completed a rather riveting speech. Malum would make fun of him but he was right about most of his accusations, Malum just didn¡¯t see anything in terms of proof.

    Oh, and the judge was in front of him on a raised stand.

    With his mind set Malum said, ¡°I am not guilty your honour, frankly I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about.¡±

    The judge looked at him, then sneered.

    ¡°Really now? You just happened to be the single person the Knight identifies as the perfect match to the culprit. I¡¯m no fool, and this court most certainly will not stand for your lies! Malum you are hereby detained for execution. Your will be interrogated before you confess your co-conspirators and perhaps if you give enough names you will get off with life in the mines.

    You are dismissed.¡±

    Malum looked to see two guards coming to take him away to the jail cells.

    Strangely though, he was smiling as they were taking him away.

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    Several suns before then, and Malum was about finished with his enhancement. He cleaned of his body and felt strength run through his veins.

    He clasped his hand and pushed. Feeling his fingers contract against each other, he smiled.

    Now done, he went to go and eat and thanks to some good timing it was about time for Jameson to join him inside the lovely inn.

    He walked down and sat at their table and whilst he ordered himself and Jameson some seats he looked towards the entrance to see his friend rushing in with sweat on his brow.

    Going back to the table, he asked Jameson, ¡°You good mate?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve done it?¡± He said, he looked happy yet confused at the same time.

    ¡°Done what?¡± Malum asked and they both sat down.

    ¡°Revenge. I managed to find something which could do it.¡±

    ¡°Great news!¡± He patted Jameson on the back but he looked towards Malum with a guilty smile.

    ¡°Not exactly.¡± He pulled out something from his bag and looked around. Once he was happy no one was looking in their direction he laid out something on the table.

    It was a piece of paper which read the lines, ¡°Roosevelt Bank Celebrates 1 thousand VIP customers!¡± and it was an invite directed towards Jameson to attend.

    ¡°So what about it?¡± Maluma asked. Confused to how that was relevant.

    ¡°You see every single enemy of mine will be at that party. In fact nearly every Noble in the city has an account with the bank. Now with all their money inside that vault, I manage to steal it not only will we get insanely wealthy but I will also have gotten my revenge.¡±

    ¡°So we¡¯re thieves now?¡± Malum asked, not too happy at the idea.

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°So let me get this straight. You want steal from one of the most secure vaults in the kingdom. Risk the entire kingdom looking for you, just to get revenge on a few of the effected nobles. Aren¡¯t you allies with a few?¡±

    ¡°First, those bastards let our house fall without a single piece of assistance and second it¡¯s not about the money. I could bury it for all I care, revenge is all I want, I just thought money would entice you into joining me.¡±

    Malum thought about it. The risk it involved was too much for him.

    ¡°I tell you what. You give me a foolproof plan and I¡¯ll join you, but so far all I¡¯ve heard is hopes and your only getting this much because it¡¯s you man.¡±

    Jameson looked at him confusion having left his eyes. ¡°Of course, I¡¯m going to make a perfect plan. In fact, I¡¯ve already got a decent idea for how we get in.¡±

    ¡°Man you better not get me executed.¡±

    Jameson smiled at his friend and said, ¡°Tell you what I¡¯ll give you a small role. Something you¡¯ll never get caught with. You good with that?¡±

    Malum felt relief pour over him. He got the best of both worlds, not only did he not let down his friend, but he also had little risk to death. He was only giving the idea an iota of thought because he trusted his Intuition to make sure he got away. Jameson on the other hand did not have such a wonderous ability.

    He breathed out his relief and the two continued to talk about potential ideas of the robbery. Keeping their conspiring voices low as to make sure those around them couldn¡¯t hear their devious schemes.

    Even as the moon rose, they continued to chatter on about their plans.

    Malum went back to training as usual. He had left Jameson to conspire on his plans so Malum was left to his own devices until the plan was complete.

    Doing nothing towards the planning of the heist, it felt wrong to just do his usual training regime so he instead opted to learn some generic skills a thief might need. Even if the plans fell through, they were still skills he wouldn¡¯t regret learning.

    Many times had he been the prey of the slippery shadows and he had to admit that stealth in fights could allow you to hit above your weight class.

    That meant higher risk, but it also meant higher reward.

    So far he had copied some of the movement he had seen from the stealthy demons but nothing except some quiet footwork was achieved.

    If he was to beat cultivators he was going to need more than mediocre. With that in mind he looked towards his savings to see gold leftover from his forever torch sale so he went towards the Town Hall to see if anyone would sell him there technique.

    He set a small notice up on the bulletin board which was like the nationwide one except it was just for the local town and city it was located in. It was far cheaper, and matched Malums demand well.

    He placed a price of ranging from a single gold to a hundred and set the time limit to a single day. He named it and gave it a brief description before he headed back to do more training. He had left his location on the notice so anyone wanting to sell him there technique would have to go to him.

    Little did he know just how much traction his notice would get.

    Not everyone in the city had a stealth technique, perhaps 1 in a thousand had one. Yet in a city a few hundred thousand  and then suddenly Malum had 2 hundred visitors in a few hours.

    Needing to analyse each piece took time so Malum got to work and studied each martial art as quickly as his mind could handle.

    His intuition played a large role but ultimately Malum had the final say. One of them wanted him to reduce his presence by cutting of every one of his recognisable features. From his face to his hands, to even his third leg.

    His intuition said it was pretty good technique but Malum wasn¡¯t half willing to make that kind of sacrifice just so he got noticed less.

    He decided upon three. One was a silent step technique; another was a silent breath technique and the last one was an odd one that was called Shadow Self technique.

    It was full of strange movements and the merchant who brought it seemed to think it was a scam. He even offered a reduced fee for it in sympathy.

    Malum, having read the nonsense was inclined to agree and yet his Intuition said otherwise. It wasn¡¯t nearly the same level of euphoria as the poison body technique but it wasn¡¯t too far off.

    He took the merchants deal and was happy with what he had gotten. With his new gains he needed to consolidate them and that meant extra training. But, it could wait untill morning. All that bartering was hard work and the studying in between didn¡¯t help.

    Tomorrow he would begin practice.

 Chapter 49

    Silent Breath forced Malum to breath in slowly and steadily. His mouth needed to remain open as he pulled in the warm summer air.

    The trick lay in only his lungs moving. In and out, with everything else laying still.

    When in a calm training environment it wasn¡¯t that hard to do however the difficulty rose when not only was your heart beating as rapidly as a drum but you also had your mind clouded by fear.

    Not only would have to breath less, but you would also have to do it as carefully as possible.

    Malum chosen environment was the streets of Roosevelt. A place known for its hustle and bustle and definitely not for its clam and serene environment.

    ¡°ONLY 4 COPPERS!¡± said the shopkeeper behind her vibrant tarps

    ¡°Where is the nearest tavern?¡± said a tourist asking a local.

    From the distance he could hear shouting in a nearby tavern, not to mention the ringing of the nearby bell towers.

    The shuffling of the crowd never ended, the tip-tap of the horses riding around carriages of the wealthy.

    The arguing of a couple in a nearby house, exposed to the world via an open shutter.

    Sound, sound, sound, sound, sound...

    Malum wanted to drain it all out, but the feeling of passersby as they barely missed him as they pushed passed.

    ¡°Move!¡± they said, not expecting someone to be standing still.

    Everyone needed to move and Malum could only stand still.

    He didn¡¯t take his breath, for he didn¡¯t have the time.

    Instead he just stared walking. Straying ahead of the flood-like crowd. They moved so predictably, Malum didn¡¯t even need to think to find the nearest gab and weave through.

    He meandered like a log in a stream and he did it untill he felt relaxed.

    His heart was beating from the quick calculations and the demanding movement, for whilst it wasn¡¯t quick, it required instantaneous decision making and smooth dodging.

    Through and through, he walked and weaved.

    Then he began to slow his breath. He felt his muscles complain and his heart ache.

    He ignored them.

    In... and out.

    He tried to relax. Through every shoulder, past every slow person. He breathing began to slow.

    It took more and more out of him to keep up his movement and actions but as he did he got quieter and quieter.

    Untill he longer heard his own breath.

    It wasn¡¯t for long and it certainly wasn¡¯t perfect. Yet as Malum wandered through the crowd he was happy at his success. No all he needed to do was perfect what he had already done.

    And with the rest of the sun still high, Malum continued his antics for the rest of day.

    The morning sun rose from the horizon, and today Malum was up bright and early. With a foundational understanding of his Silent Breath Technique Malum now decided to focus on the Silent Step technique.

    Thankfully, for the start of this technique he could do it inside of his room so he got started almost immediately.

    First he kept his footwear on. They were muddy boots he had received all the way back when he first joined the military but he got a fresh pair when he joined up again.

    They were heavy boots, made of leather.

    Against the wooden floor of his inn, it made walking a loud activity. To reduce this he first had to understand why the sound was being made in the first place.

    It was quite simple for Malum to understand. His boot was heavy and moved towards the floorboard at decent pace. When they met the power of the boot was forced into the wood and the sound came off that interaction.

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    The boot was to blunt to slice and acted almost like a hand in slap. It was a dreadfully inefficient blow that Malum would never use in combat but for creating sound he had to admit it was fantastic at its job.

    So how could he minimise the sound created.

    He couldn¡¯t do much about the weight, although he could shift his balance away from his foot so less weight was held on as he stepped.

    Speed was the one that was going to make the most difference. All he needed to do was slow down. He slowly placed his heal down first then rolled the front of the shoe onto the floor.

    It made far less sound however it wasn¡¯t perfect. Malum looked outside and gave himself until lunch to get some results with nothing else to distract him, Malum got to work.

    The sun rose to it¡¯s peak and inside Malums room was a walking figure. His yellow eyes and built figure would draw attention to those that saw him but if they didn¡¯t see him, they certainly weren¡¯t going to hear him.

    His steps looked slightly strange if someone were studying them. He looked like he was almost gliding across the floor, and with his silent breath the sound made even less sense.

    If it wasn¡¯t for the sound of chattering outside you would think you had become deaf.

    Malum¡¯s face was one focus. Every step had to be thought out and even then his breath had to remain slow. It was several tasks at once where if even one failed then the entire point was lost.

    Having a small break, Malum studied the techniques again to see the next step was to seamlessly walk without looking strange.

    You had to blend in. Stealth wasn¡¯t always about never being seen, sometimes it was about being normal enough to where someone¡¯s attention on you would never linger.

    It was something Malum wanted to learn but for the heist it wasn¡¯t going to be terribly helpful so he instead focused on trying to master the initial part of the techniques.

    He walked outside and joined the lunch rush as people got off their shifts at the workshops and went to the street vendors for food. After Malum himself picked up a meal, he got to practicing with his silent techniques.

    He wouldn¡¯t stop untill he was sure he could always remain silent.

    It didn¡¯t happen on the first day. Any slight interference or mishap made Malum create a sound. Perhaps it was a bird flying to close overhead or a passerby hitting him of balance.

    It wasn¡¯t until the 4<sup>th</sup> day where Malum had a 6-hour steak with several interferences and yet he didn¡¯t make a sound once.

    It tested Malums stamina more than he thought it would but he had reached a point where he was happy.

    Next on Malums agenda was seeing what outfits tended to blend in the most.

    Around the city there were woodworkers, blacksmiths, miners, cooks, merchants, stall vendors, and they all wore what was essentially the cheapest they could get. That was what commoners like him looked for in clothing, cheap and if they could afford it, then came functionality.

    Most clothes were weaved of cloth leaving white to be the colour of most clothing. Originally that is, Malum looked around and saw little white as he gazed over a crowd.

    Instead it was dyed black by the coal, or brown wood had slowly rubbed onto the woodworkers, the stall owners were a bit more colourful with most have several fruit juices stain their clothing.

    They likely cleaned their clothes once a week, some perhaps less. Malum smelled his own and they seemed alright, he still had 2 days from his weekly wash.

    He played a small game with the crowd and slowly pointed out the most recognisable ones. Or at least the ones that caught his eye the most.

    Fruit vendors were the highest, then it tended to be short people, or tall people, then it was people limping or simply older folk. The person he ignored the most was the basic average male 20s worker in workers clothes.

    Interestingly it was also one of the most common types of people he saw. That was what made it stand out the least.

    Malum could have found his own clothes but decided against it and just walked up to one of the mining workers who had the same build and offered him a gold coin for his clothes.

    The workers didn¡¯t even think about it. He immediately got down to his underwear and after Malum gave him the gold coin he passed Malum the clothes

    Malum felt better in the clothes but felt something was missing. He dropped down and smeared some mud on his fingers before he rubbed the warm dirt on his face.

    After he had created a thin layer of muck he wiped his hand on his shirt and looked back into the crowd.

    His disguise was complete. Now he walked as average as possible and looked as average as possible, all he needed now was to change the way he spoke.

    Unlike the formal way his Uncle taught him or the way Jameson spoke, most of the common folk spoke in a far more casual way. Malum needed to practice his responses if he wanted to act the part so he went to the nearest tavern to solve this issue.

    ¡°U ¡®eard about the races last Friday?¡± Malum said to a drunk man at the bar.

    ¡°Horses?¡± He questioned.

    ¡°Nah the rabbits... ¡° Malum watched as the man¡¯s face turned sour. He always loved the strange feud between the animal racing. ¡°Course it¡¯s horse, now I ¡®eard at Silver Snake at one of the richy sort put 8 big ones on Rapid Radish.¡±

    The drunk man eyes became clearer, ¡°U sure?¡±

    ¡°Never been so sure in my life, part from the time I left my wife!¡±

    Malum laughed away from the man before he left the pub and went to another. He had been doing this for several hours and had the joy of joining Jameson and having tea with him. Malum would have paid several gold to experience his fluttering again.

    Jameson had managed to negotiate his silence so sadly Malum wouldn¡¯t get the joy of spreading his tale.

    It was now well into the night. He had about the story from a drunk 2 taverns back and he found many people were willing to talk to him if he had good information to tell.

    The first thing he picked up on was that everything could be shortened. Heard became eard simply because it could. If it didn¡¯t became another word entirely, then it likely was shortened.

    Some did it far more than others and drinking helped the language slowly become full of slurred words.

    However for his trouble he had gained a very useful skill. After Malum went through one more tavern he finally called it a night and went back to his inn.

    Jameson had likely long fallen asleep. Days of planning was taking a lot out of his brain so even at their usual dinner, he looked exhausted.

    With only a few days left until the banquet, Malum couldn¡¯t wait to hear Jameson¡¯s plan, for now he would simply hone his skills. The heavens were the limit, so Malum wouldn¡¯t remain idle.

 Chapter 50

    It didn¡¯t long, just 2 days later and Jameson was knocking on Malums door just as the morning bells began to ring.

    Malum got dressed and then greeted Jameson.

    ¡°Morning Mr Mastermind, you wouldn¡¯t per chance have a plan for me?¡±

    Jameson was smiling anyway, the bit only acted to widen his smile.

    ¡°Oh what a coincidence. Follow me good Sir and you shall see a plan made by the Wisest in the kingdom.¡±

    Malum chuckled a posh chuckle and then the two headed towards Jamesons Mansion.

    The Butler greeted them and Jameson didn¡¯t excuse the man when they entered a room filled with more paper then Malum had ever seen in his life.

    It reminded Malum of the fact that his friend was rich, and not just merchant rich but Noble rich. Well it was a Fallen household but clearly they kept the most important parts of their legacy.

    Malum read a few covers and found most to do with Roosevelts History, the city not the household. The bank after all was nearly as old as the city itself and such the vault was designed all that time ago as well.

    Obviously it would have been updated but plans needed to start somewhere.

    Jameson spoke up,

    ¡°First, I should explain why Florence is here. You should know I trust him more than I trust you, that sounds harsh but Florence here has been serving the family ever since he was a boy. He served my grandfather, father and now he continues to serve me.

    He agrees with the plan of revenge as frankly we both desire it more than anything.¡±

    Jameson was speaking clearly and purposefully. He smiled towards his butler as he described his loyalty and the butler smiled back at hearing his achievements be voiced.

    Malum didn¡¯t exactly like hearing that his friend had better friends but he realised that Florence was less so friend as he was family.

    It was the slightly sad look his butler gave to Jameson that sold Malum of his character. Revenge was a decent goal but one that wasn¡¯t healthy. His butler had the wisdom to see it, and even against his own desires he still put Jameson well-being before it. He looked at the butler in a new light and Jameson continued to talk.

    ¡°Florence this is Malum, a friend who I thought was dead at come point. Needless to say he came back to life and we¡¯ve fought on the fronts ever since. It¡¯s not his combat that makes us friends, its his clear mind and kind heart.¡±

    `Kind heart?` Malum looked at Jameson thinking to times he had been kind. He couldn¡¯t think of any of the top of his head so he shrugged it off as a joke, although Jameson did seem serious...

    Wandering how he gave of that idea, Jameson didn¡¯t stop for Malums thinking and instead continued.

    ¡°Now that you two know each other¡¯s lets focus on the masterful plan that I have conceived.¡± He pulled out a scroll and rolled its contents onto the table.

    ¡°Perhaps the most important item to see is this bad boy.¡±

    Malum eyes followed to the map and on its surface were several lines forming what Malum recognised as a building map.

    ¡°Is that for the bank?¡± Malum asked.

    ¡°Why yes it is. A slightly out of date one, only a hundred years old, however it should have most of what we are looking for. This was obtained by Florence here after we found the right architects.¡±

    Truthfully, Malum had never heard that last word before. It wasn¡¯t included in his general education and his Uncle had never said the word but he assumed it was some sort of building designer like an artist.

    He had focused on the wrong thing, he shook his head and looked down at the map to study the artists design. The Bank had 3 floors, 2 above ground level and one basement.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    He looked to the basement and found the designs for the vault. The security was simply yet effective, armed Knights at the front of the vault at all times not to mention several more on the first floor.

    And that was before the updates. Who knows if they had placed in a few traps since then, although Malum hadn¡¯t a single idea as to how he would add a trap to the block of iron that was the vault.

    He looked closer at the entrances, there was the main one and then there were two at opposite ends at the back of the bank. All were going to be protected as the bank would be closed in time for the party.

    He dragged his eyes away from the map and said, ¡°Well it¡¯s a good start. Now how exactly are we getting in and out without having a heads cut off by the Knights?¡±

    ¡°Good question my friend. Now the only advantage in terms of skills we have is certainly not thief like skills. We know how to draw blood from demons but these Knights know how to draw the blood of humans. Not to mention there top-class armour leading to an all-out offensive being a bad plan.

    We don¡¯t have the skills to sneak past them, in fact I don¡¯t even have their patrol routes but what do we have.

    Jameson pointed over to his butler, ¡°Florence here is master in terms of everything to with cleaning and most management processes. I am not only a damn good soldier but also know several useless noble skills. Malum you¡¯re a hunter and a good solider, and you do some alchemy on the side.

    So our strengths lay in combat, that¡¯s obvious. If we can¡¯t fight the Knight¡¯s heads on that just means we¡¯ve got to twist the environment to our favour.¡±

    Jameson dragged out another map, this one of the city of Roosevelt. He pointed down to the street the bank was on and continued.

    ¡°The first part of the plan will begin with a fire. Knights are known to be brainwashed fools who believe in honour and all that jazz so I am more than sure that most of the available Knights will rush off to go and help.

    With some already gone to the guard the party, that will leave far less guards to deal with that usual.

    Our second trick comes from Malums poisons. I have seen the bodies of the demons you¡¯ve killed and that stuff doesn¡¯t look pretty. I wouldn¡¯t want to kill every guard so if possible I would want one of the ones that puts the target to sleep. If you can¡¯t,¡±

    ¡°No I can do it.¡± Malum said, he had more than enough recipes and with his money and free access to an abundant market. He would have a strong one cooked up by the time the sun rose if Jameson demanded it.

    ¡°Great news!¡± Jameson said as he mouth formed a smile. Malum even saw Florence on the side breath a sigh of relief.

    ¡°That means we will essentially be hunting down every single Knight before we try to enter the vault. Let¡¯s talk about that first, then we¡¯ll move onto the vault.

    Malum, since this isn¡¯t your revenge I frankly better suited for the position, I¡¯ll be the bait and you can be the trap. You said you have practice your sneaking skills, this will see if they are any good.¡±

    Malum nodded at his friends idea. They would have to iron it out but for now they were just doing brief plans.

    ¡°Once we have removed the guards from the equation we can begin work on the vault. Malum you will be in charge of any traps and Florence here has been busy working for the local locksmiths. He may not be a master but he is handy with his hands.¡±

    Florence nodded and Jameson continued,

    ¡°That is the plan barebones. The time it will start will be after I sneak away from the party, so just before the sun sets. If anything goes wrong, they trigger an alarm, or perhaps they call for help, we simply run. With the fire set it could be covered up but we are taking no risks. As much as I want revenge, I also don¡¯t want to see you two getting hanged with me.

    Now we have 2 days before the banquet, Malum we¡¯ll need to practice our ambushing and I¡¯ll give you a more thorough rundown of the entire bank.

    Florence can continue his work at the locksmiths an if possible find out information about the vaults particular design. We know its there, but risking a heist just for that isn¡¯t work it.

    So, Malum are you ready to do a heist.¡±

    It certainly wasn¡¯t foolproof, but Malum was happy that the risks were low enough. He could see Jameson determination; his eyes were already set.

    Malum shook Jamesons hand, ¡°let¡¯s rob a bank.¡±

    And so the final preparation began to take place.

    Malums sword slithered towards Jamesons neck. He had never showed someone his Martial technique and it was the first time Jameson had experienced it.

    ¡°What is that?¡± He asked.

    ¡°New technique I found. Like it?¡±

    Jameson looked surprised, ¡°You found a technique like that on the market? My god the merchant must have gone blind. Do I like it, it¡¯s perfect!¡±

    Malum did have to agree that the technique was well suited to ambushes. He had found in the latest hunt that he stayed further away from the simple head on fights and focused more on assassinating big targets.

    His poison needed time to work and so he usually went for the opponent before it could find him. Fires worked a great distractions and the feasting on previous demon corpses gave Malum several opportunities to get his sword coated in poison and into the enemies neck.

    For such a heist it was the closets to perfect he was going to get. It always made him wonder if that was why his Intuition guided him towards that one specifically. Or perhaps why that one shined so bright.

    He had seen a few dim lights during his training but he didn¡¯t want to risk loosing his ability. He would need it in full force for the heist so he noted their positions down and left it as is.

    Malum and Jameson continued their ambushing practice using a hired worker from a company. They would use him for a few days and then the worker would assigned another task.

    They wouldn¡¯t see anything to incriminating, just two soldiers practicing their combat techniques.

    Once the day was done they dismissed the man and Jameson went to sleep, Malum had a few potions to brew before he could get some rest but with their vital importance Malum remained on full focus, not matter how tired he was. They had another day of training before the fateful day would occur. They would certainly make the most of the time they had left.

 Chapter 51

    Florence bought three outfits for the robbery from a back-end merchants store. They were nothing fancy just your three average clothing for three average workers.

    They were going in posing as construction workers. It would give them a decent excuse and all they really needed was an opportunity to get closer.

    He picked up a few scrap tools for cheap and then obtained three sacks which would store the money. A cart to help with moving the money and then he hired a horse so they could move the money around.

    They were going to burn it, but the search for the money would save them previous time and would distract the police and nobles to no end. It would turn a bloodthirsty manhunt into an eager search party.

    The weapons were harder to obtain, instead of getting new ones Florence decided to recolour the ones Jamesons and Malums could stay the same.

    Once every weapon looked bland and basic Florence had completed every task on his checklist. The matches would be bought on the day and that was the last remaining purchase they were going to do.

    Now all they had to do was steal and with the sun rising for another day, it would only be daylight before the heist would begin.

    They day started like any other. Malum got up, got dressed and then went to have a shower. He had moved into the mansion for convenience sake and Jameson had relented into moving in himself.

    He didn¡¯t like living in his childhood home but for the sake of the heist, and his revenge, he was willing to change his old ways.

    They met inside the dining room where Florence served them a meal, then joined himself. They spoke little but their eyes told a lot. Jameson looked resolute, Florence looked nervous, and Malum was fairly relaxed.

    He wasn¡¯t worried about himself and he had now resolved himself to Jamesons revenge. If there was any chance of him in danger, then he was sure Jameson would understand his choice.

    After the meal, Florence went for his final lesson whilst Jameson and Malum walked outside together. Today they were going to the bank.

    They ensured that they were looking as normal and then walked down to the right street. It was well lit by the rising sun and the gold encrusted doors were already wide open. The pillars held the bank heavy roof up, and it allowed Malum and Jameson right under its strong arches.

    Knights in iron stood right in front of the entrance. They held their sword between their legs and stood like statues looking towards either side of the doorway. Two Knight were on each side, and it led towards the front desk of the bank.

    The ceilings were tall with the marble building holding several chandeliers to light up the room. Window panes also helped with natural lighting but with such a vast building light couldn¡¯t find every corner and so candles lit the rest.

    Such extravagant uses was a pain to Malums heart but he walked in acting more formal than usual. Jameson walked up to the oak wood front desk and asked the gentlemen seated there, ¡°Excuse me, but I would like to speak with the Director?¡±

    The gentlemen shook slightly at the name of his bosses boss, but he kept his tone clear, ¡°Of course and what would your name be?¡± he smiled like a cockroach, but Malum looked around, considering how clean the floors were he was sure every person in the building had to be slimy in some sort of way.

    ¡°Baron Smith, he knew my father.¡±

    The Gentlemen closed his account book and put the quell back. Now he knew that the person wasn¡¯t joking, he stopped his activity and went to find someone who could accept the Barons request.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°Let me find the right person, it won¡¯t be a moment.¡± He said what would please a stuck-up knob, and even bowed to sell his skit.

    Malum and Jameson gave each other a slight look before a man with a golden necklace came around the corner. He held a top hat of the finest quality and his leather coat was probably worth the same as everything Malum had ever owned.

    ¡°May the Gods bless you, Baron Smith what a pleasure to meet you. I have heard many things.¡±

    That was clearly supposed to be an empty compliment but for Jameson it was more like a hurtful punch. The idiot didn¡¯t even know what he had done, he was lucky that Jameson wasn¡¯t here to make fun of him.

    ¡°I need to meet with the Director, I hope to speech with him before the party.¡±

    The eyes of the man glinted s the hearing of the party, greed showing on his eyes.

    ¡°Yes I have heard of the party, I will take ou straight to him.¡±

    He bowed slightly then walked s gracefully as one could. Jameson followed him and Malum followed just behind that. They both kept their eyes wandering, keeping an eye out for everything they could perhaps remember.

    They walked several rooms and saw a staircase leading upwards. That was the offices of the desk slaves who did the actual work, the people on the main floor, at the reception were the successful slaves who had rose up to become better of slaves.

    A few offices of the well connected lined the halls before they came across the head of the bank and a person sworn to the House of Roosevelt.

    Carlton Honours was the name written on the door and it opened up into an office as perfectly arranged as any office be.

    Books lined the shelves all neatly arranged. None poked out more than the others and if one looked closely you would see they were arranged in perfect alphabetical order.

    The pencils, the papers, even the arrangement of the room was optimal.

    Sitting on the perfectly placed chair, was the Director.

    Carlton wore a suit that looked formal yet comfortable, his hat lay on a stand by the door. He was thin, but not malnourished, Malum would rather guess that he simply didn¡¯t eat because he had more work to do because affordability was definitely not the issue.

    He didn¡¯t were anything flashy, no chain, and no jewels, just a simple gold wedding ring around one of his fingers.

    Malum found this type of nobility respectable, the hardworking kind.

    After they entered the room the Director continued what he was doing and seemed to finish his sentence, then he placed it back inside it¡¯s ink jar and looked up.

    His voice followed; his tone was serious ¡°I had no meeting planned. Why are you inside my office?¡±

    ¡°My name is Jameson Smith, a Baron who you will see at your party later today. I am here to view my account; I have never had the opportunity to access it so I would like to see it today.¡±

    Malum remembered the whole story from when they were practicing there ambushing. The truth was more like Jameson had been barred from his account during his earlier years on account of his age, but then only he could access it due to his position as Head of Household.

    Usually they would just let it slide, and let either the guardian use the account or the young heir could take a certain amount however because of the pressure by his enemies the bank chose instead to be a sticker to their rules.

    There wasn¡¯t a fortune inside the vault anyway, the money would have delayed the fall but certainly not stop it.

    The Director seemed to think for a second before he pulled out a book from his desk.

    ¡°Smith, I remember that name.¡±

    He opened the book and read along several pages before he stopped and spoke,

    ¡°Yes here it is. Seems you haven¡¯t touched it for quite some time.¡±

    Because you wouldn¡¯t let him, Malum wanted to add but he reckoned the Director had long forgotten his misdeeds.

    Whilst he let them chat he tired to find a place to relax and Intuition guided him to a desk which held little but a vase of fruits laid on it. He took one and put his weight on the desk.

    Jameson continued as Malum ate, ¡°I would like to view my possessions if that is possible.¡±

    The Director nodded, ¡°Of course you may, Davidson take them down to the vault, it¡¯s container 872.¡± Malum chewed on his apple, and it he could see the Director fidget whenever he made the slightest of chewing sounds.

    Davidson bowed slight, the golden chain around his neck flailed slightly in the air.

    ¡°Of course Sir, Baron if you can follow me.¡±

    The Director pulled back another sheet and whilst leaving Jameson said one last thing, ¡°See you at the party Director.¡±

    To which a pair of reluctant eyes rose from the desk, ¡°See you then.¡±

    Malum stood up as well but as he rose he felt something snap on the bottom of the desk. Nothing fell over but it seemed a leg had snapped. It wasn¡¯t anything major, but Malum could see the Director twitching in anger, ¡°Leave, and David get someone to fix it.¡±

    Weirded out that his Intuition had made him break something Malum decided to keep away from any other weird suggestions he got, less more attention got directed towards him.

    They got escorted out the room and after David passed on the message they move down several corridors before finding the stairs. Malum eyes his friend a few times and wandered how his friend would have done as a Noble.

    He had to admit that his fake smile really did look convincing. `Perhaps it ran in the bloodline...`

 Chapter 52

    The halls went from natural light to just pure candlelight. Knights returned and 2 were stationed at each end of the stairs.

    The basement wasn¡¯t large, only a single short corridor leading to a massive wall of iron. The tint of silver showed the door to be at least 10 inches think. It was circular, which confused Malum.

    He had heard of the circular door but seeing was believing and now that he looked at it he realised what a colossal task Florence had in front him.

    He was supposed to pick that?

    Malum only wished him luck.

    The corridor wasn¡¯t made of iron, neither was it made of marble. It was like the clay mix used upstairs but Malum guessed they had put more of the dense material inside of this one. Its seemed darker and gave off less sound as he stepped against it.

    He intuition felt rather strange as he walked across the short corridor, it was like danger but even as he stood past it nothing dangerous happened. He noted it down and moved on. At the end of the corridor was something like a hatch on the roof, Malum notes the strange feeling his Intuition got, neither opportunity nor danger and left such information recorded for later.

    They found another two Knights sat inside of the vault. The clean iron surface where they stood reflected several rows of metallic boxes, these were what the Nobles paid for.

    Some kept jewels inside, others kept deeds to land. There were many reasons why a house might need a safe place to store wealth and this was where they did it.

    Davidson was continuously talking about the vaults history, past users and the sort. Malum zoned him out and instead focused on what was around him.

    The seemed to be two sections, split off by a pillar in the middle of the vault. The first section was for single boxes used by Nobles, and the second was the storage of the city itself. Gold lined the floors and Malum couldn¡¯t help but stare in greed.

    However something attracted him slightly more and it started with a question.

    Why did a heavy iron box need a pillar?

    Malum hadn¡¯t a clue as to the answer but his Intuition gave him an idea.

    The room for him was not just shiny from the tint of Iron. Instead the whole room was practically glowing in the opportunity and the brightest in the room was clearly coming from the pillar.

    Jameson distracted David as they opened up his box and whilst they were doing that Malum wandered slightly as if he was in awe.

    In reality, not only was he looking at the security around the vault but also at the pillar. From where he was standing the pillar looked perfectly normal. It was made of iron, and it seemed to have etched into several details of the vault. He read a line, ¡°Roosevelt founded the bank¡± and stopped their as the rest seemed like a repetition of the books he had already read.

    Malum looked away and focused back onto the security. For as much as he felt the glow from the pillar, and from the room in general, Malum felt danger radiating from each one.

    He walked calmly back and rejoined Jameson who had finished looking at what he had inside his box. Davidson was calmy explaining,

    ¡°These boxes were created by the expert smith and creator Alvert Blake. Each had a secure set of numbers that opens its locking mechanism, those numbers are known only to the upper staff of the bank. Not only does it require a 4-digit code it also requires a key, again which each upper staff has access to.

    The bank of Roosevelt is truly ahead of it¡¯s time and you can be assured that everything you keep here is best looked after.¡±

    Jameson was nodding along, and Malum peeked over his shoulder to see the box inside of David¡¯s hands. He was showing of the lock at the front but both of their eyes were looking at the key.

    If they could remember it¡¯s shape they could potentially help out Florence with his lockpicking! They scanned it with their eyes and then focused in on the number part of the locks.

    ¡°So these numbers, are they different for each one. Their design truly confuses me.¡± Jameson said.

    David smiled, ¡°They are quite simple really, you twist each rotating side to match the right combination of letters and that allows a pin to open up the second stage of the lock. Here¡¯s yours, I¡¯ve scrambled it into a random set of 4, the real combination is 1250 try it yourself.¡±Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    Jameson certainly didn¡¯t deny and so once he got ahold of the lock he quickly turned each number so that the correct one lined up with the small arrow on the side.

    Once 1250 was showing, he heard a click and like that the lock was open.

    ¡°Impressive,¡± Jameson said, ¡°But is it really necessary in such a secure vault?¡±

    Davidson nodded, ¡°Your right, I do think they are a bit much but you can never be too secure.¡±

    Jameson nodded and handed the lock back. He had already memorised what it looked like, he just hoped Florence would have an answer as to how he was going to break through it.

    To be fair, Jameson looked closer at the lock as Davidson put it back on the box, he then then looked at his own sword.

    He reckoned his heirloom would  be good enough if Florence couldn¡¯t find a good solution.

    Malum noticed Jamesons eyes and agreed with him in his head. He had seen the strength of the man¡¯s sword and he reckoned no normal metal would be able to hold against it.

    They thanked Davidson before they escorted towards the door. They heard many other praises and more useless history. After one more roam through the corridors they arrived back at the entrance where they came in.

    ¡°It was a pleasure meeting you Baron Smith, the Bank of Roosevelt always accepts its patrons with open arms.¡±

    He bowed and Jameson gave him a handshake as they left. Just as a gift, he slipped the golden chained man a gold coin as he indirectly helped them steal thousands of them.

    ¡°It has been a pleasure.¡± He said, and Malum and Jameson walked out the door.

    They had now finished scoping out the bank. Now they needed to adopt to the new information and they until nightfall to get all finished.

    They rushed back with haste to remember the key and padlock designs that they had tried to remember perfectly. Jameson sent a runner for Florence as they headed back so he would soon return to get a better idea of how to pick them.

    They also noted down each of the Knights they saw as they ventured through. 6 were how many they saw with 2 at the entrance, 2 at the bottom of the basement stairs and 2 just inside of the vault.

    Malum noted down the few sets of particularly dangerous areas in the vault, as well as any other interesting pieces of information he had manage to glean from his Intuition ability.

    He wanted to learn more about the pillar and what could be inside of it. The Roosevelt family history was likely where he was going to get such information so he left Jameson to his drawing and went to the library.

    He picked up several books before he went to a desk and sat down. The window provided enough light so with that he got to reading.

    The Roosevelt family had a fairly boring history. No wars were needed for them to rise and perhaps the only interesting war they were in was when they were conquered by the Kingdom.

    They were good at making weapons and selling weapons but they weren¡¯t good at using them. That made Roosevelt city so wealthy but no special events had occurred which gave the idea of a treasure being collected.

    Perhaps if a strong Beast had laid warfare on the city and it¡¯s eggs were inside the pillar, but nothing even close had occurred. A wandered cultivator could have provided them a manual but Malum reckoned his own one he had currently would be better, perhaps he was mistaken.

    Or it could simply be a large chunk of spiritual ore, it was the most boring answer there was but Malum wanted a better sword anyway so for him it was still a massive gain.

    It wasn¡¯t like they were going to parade around the fact they had a priceless treasure so Malum closed his books and returned back to the war room.

    Outside the sun was had long begun to fall now only an hour or two remained until the party begun.

    Florence was inside the room talking to Jameson, Malum came in listening to their conversation.

    ¡°It¡¯s unlikely I¡¯ll be able to find a weakness in such an innovative design, I¡¯ve failed you.¡±

    ¡°Have you ordered those key¡¯s I gave you?¡± Jameson asked, it seemed pressure was getting to them both.

    ¡°Of course, under a fake name we will get them in an hour.¡±

    ¡°Good job, it seems my blade will do the picking for us.¡± He looked slightly and saw Malum come in from the corner of his eye, ¡°Malum good of our to join us. Everything is ready apart from the final stages of planning. So, as we are all here I reckon we do a complete rundown of ahead of us.¡±

    Malum nodded at the idea a so did Florence, so as the sun slowly fell Jameson begun to explain the plan.

    Under the cover of the night sky Malum and Florence roamed the streets near to the bank.

    Malum felt inside his dirty trousers, in his pocket lay the feeling wool and tinder.

    He looked towards the end of the street with anxiety in his eyes. Then at the cart standing nearby to the bank¡¯s entrance.

    His eyes wandered back down to the pavement, then he continued to roam.

    Jameson was dressed to impress, with the one for the best suits money could buy along with a perfectly crafted top-hat he walked into the party with a smile on his face.

    Usually at these events, his smile would never be real but tonight, it couldn¡¯t get more real.

    Revenge was today, but before that he had some people to greet.

    Baron Axeton and Count Iron-Borne were both people who greatly effected the way his house fell. He greeted them with smiles and they did the same.

    They had made his house bleed, now he was going to make the whole city bleed.

    His eyes had never been so clear, his mind only focused on a single task.

    He greeted, and greeted, and greeted untill nobody in the party had yet to see his face. Even the four Knights at the doorway had learned of his name. He tracked such information and with his task complete he spilled a drink of his suit and went to the back to get himself cleared up.

    From the bathroom he spent little time clearing himself up before he walked back out and went out the front door. If anybody had asked, he was going to get himself a new outfit and it wasn¡¯t a lie.

    Down the street and taking a left he walked into a darker path where he got out a sack of clothes. He got undressed and changed into his new outfit, but instead of another fancy suit it was the clothes of the common worker.

    With no intentions of returning to the party he walked towards the bank and once he was down a nearby street he met up with Malum and Florence and that set the next part of the plan in motion.

 Chapter 53

    Malum pulled the fire kit from his pocket and moved down the street. Several houses with doors passed before Malum came across what he wanted to, several sacks inside of a container.

    The rich mansions certainly couln¡¯t be smelling like the common streets so they opted to through their trash in containers, Malum pulled out some wool and kindle before taking a flint from his other pocket and took a stone from the garden.

    He striked the stone with the flint, sparks immediately dispersed into the surrounding area but dissipated before they hit the wool or kindling.

    He striked again.

    And again.

    The flames appeared in an instant as a hot spark hit the wool. It burned quickly and brightly as it then hit the kindling and burned even hotter.

    It spread as fast as Malum back off, as the flames grew he knew his part had been completed. With trash surrounding the flames it was just a matter of time before they began to burn as well.

    Then the houses wooden frames would start, then their gardens soon after.

    A fire was the most dangerous threat inside a city, Malum had heard of several disastrous ones and yet every time they did little to fix the root of the problem.

    Malum left his thoughts and ran back towards the bank. He signalled to Florence who was standing on a rood nearby, he then saw Florence¡¯s hand only show two fingers.

    Malum did a thumbs up in return and he then went towards the entrance of the bank.

    Jameson was waiting for his leaning on one of the pillars, a smoking pipe was hanging out of his mouth and he and Malum started a casual conversation.

    They talked about mundane news and passed around the pipe before they looked over to the side to see red flames flickering above the houses.

    ¡°Help, there¡¯s a fire!¡± Jameson shouted into the bank. He could see the two Knight sitting down in the waiting chairs but they quickly rose to their feet.

    They placed on their helmets as Jameson¡¯s knocking got louder, before they opened the door and asked, ¡°A fire? In what direction?¡±

    Jameson and Malum both pointed to the right place before the Knight quickly rushed to go and help. Perhaps if chivalry wasn¡¯t beaten into their bones there would have focused on keeping the gold safe...

    Malum and Jameson weren¡¯t going to complain, they walked in through the doors and got to work sweeping the area.

    The main lobby was fairly empty, the waiting areas and desks were both completely baron. They signalled through the main door for Florence to come in and once he had arrived they started to sweep through the banks first floor.

    The Knights wore iron armour from head to toe, and whilst this made them near impossible to cut with normal weaponry it also made there footsteps as loud as a Beasts.

    ¡°Clink, Clink¡± Malum and Jameson heard from the halls. They spotted the guards soon after and Florence and Jameson quickly got into character.

    Jameson was sorting out the tools on his belt as he wandered down the corridor.

    `I am your average worker` he repeated in his head and with it came ideas as to what an average worker would do.

    Hearing the strange sounds he would call out, so he did, ¡°Hello who¡¯s there?¡±

    The Knights held there silver like swords out and shouted, ¡°Who are you?!¡±

    They kept each other close as they assumed battle formation. They got the targets in sight before they heard,If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    ¡°We¡¯re the repair workers you asked for?¡± Jameson did his best confused and somewhat flustered face, he then pointed to where the lobby was, ¡°The Knights at the entrance let us in.¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t hear about any repairs, did you?¡± asked the one with a small bit of hair coming through his headpiece.

    ¡°No I didn¡¯t.¡±

    The guards kept up their stances as they let the moment sit. Both were undecided as to what to do, Jameson decided to help them come to the right conclusion.

    ¡°Can we just get our jobs done. Its already late.¡±

    The guards looked them up and down seeing their tools and their plain workers clothes they seemed to come to have arrived at answer.

    ¡°Your right, its late. You should get your jobs done quickly; we¡¯ll escort you whilst you work.¡±

    They did relax their guards considerably but they swords remained exposed and they still kept one another close. More importantly their vigilance remained up and Jameson didn¡¯t want the ambush with them still alert.

    He thought to places he could fix, anything anyway where he had seen a place that needed to be fixed and found one where he could go and make a few repairs.

    ¡°It¡¯s the desk inside of the Director¡¯s office. We were told it was at the end of the corridor.¡±

    Malum remembered to when he snapped one of the legs. `So that was why it was brighter. My Intuition really managed to predict such a scenario, how? Is it some sort of sorcery?`

    He snapped back to reality as Jameson and Florence were escorted towards the Directors office. It was then that an opportunity presented itself, one Knight went in to observe them and the other kept guard outside.

    Malum was watching at the end of the corridor. It was dark, but candle light allowed for some vision across the dark hallways.

    Malum pulled out his old dagger and coated its blade in a blue liquid. He wasn¡¯t confident enough to throw the weapon which meant he would need to cross the distance.

    So, he walked out with his dagger behind his back and called, ¡°Guys? Where did you go?¡±

    He made sure only the guard outside would hear him and the Knight held up his sword at the sudden sound.

    He let Malum walk into his view and once he saw he was another worker he dropped his guard again, ¡°your guys are already working on the repairs. There just in here,¡±

    The Knight turned around to open the door but Malum couldn¡¯t let that happen. He rushed to close the distance and planted his dagger between the gap of the helmet and the chest plate.

    He didn¡¯t do it to deeply, after all he wasn¡¯t trying to kill the man he just needed his drug inside the Knight system. If he hadn¡¯t turned to open the door, he would have needed to use the dagger at all.

    Letting the mans falling body to the floor, he tried his best to keep the clattering of metal to a minimum. Blood came out the wound and Malum took of the helmet to deal with the worst of it.

    After some minimum first aid, he hid the body in the office next to the Director and then opened the door into the room where Jameson and Florence where doing `repairs`.

    ¡°You bastards, I was just taking a whizz and you lot disappear!¡± He said as he opened the door.

    The Knight was situated by the window, looking out onto the street. Jameson and Florence were huddled next to the broken desk.

    Jameson and Florence rushed to talk before the Knight, ¡°David! Good to see you, come here and help us.¡± Florence turned to the Knight, ¡°It shouldn¡¯t be long now.¡±

    The Knight nodded and after gazing more at Malum and then outside he turned his attention back to the window.

    Malum huddled down and explained the plan.

    ¡°I¡¯ve got one, you just need to put on this glove and shake the Knight hand. The poison should go through the skin and into his blood. If the Knight also has gloves on make sure to grip it tight and play of the liquid as sweat. Jameson he¡¯s the bottle.¡±

    They then played off fixing the table, which they essentially just forced the old leg back into place and then let kept Florence there to keep the weight off the broken joint.

    Malum and Jameson stood up and walked towards the Knight. Malum kept his dagger coated in case Jameson¡¯s method didn¡¯t work and in position Jameson spoke first,

    ¡°As good as new. It was good meeting you Knight?¡± He acted as if he wanted to make a connection, considering Knights status it was something common for a commoner to desire.

    ¡°Knight Brightford¡± He then reached for Jameson hand and shook it with his own. Through his cloth glove he felt the sweat of the worker and nearly pulled his hand back but he respected the worker for such a quick job so he continued to shake it even whilst he could feel the sweat spread onto his hand.

    ¡°Right,¡± Jameson turned and said, ¡°We¡¯ll get out of your hair then.¡±

    The Knight nodded but as he eyes moved he focused on Jameson hands. They were wearing gloves as well, and it was the tougher ones which woodworkers usually used. How could sweat go through that?

    He felt his brain confusion and then he felt his gaze begin to falter. The glove turned blurry and his heavy armour felt even heavier. His muscles relaxed as he was falling he saw someone wave as he fell to the floor.

    ¡°Clash!¡± resounded the sound of his fall.

    Jameson nodded to Malum, ¡°That was like 10 seconds, what kind of poison does that?¡±

    Malum laughed, ¡°The ones I make of course.¡± In fact it was recipe number 14 of his 100 poisons.

    Jameson eyes him slightly then turned back to Florence, ¡°Let¡¯s go to the vault shall we?¡±

    With 4 guards gone, it was safe to say that most of the security was gone. With some at the party, it left at maximum two down in the basements corridor.

    They walked out of the room and closed the door behind them. They then walked the same route they had before towards the vault. In fact, they had walked pretty much the same journey from start to finish as when they had toured the place.

    From the lobby to the Directors office, and now to the vault.

 Chapter 54

    Standing before them and the steal box, was the basement corridor. Malum and Jameson peered down the corridor and were relieved to see no Knights standing guard.

    Malum went forward but kept an eye on the wall at all times. Candles lit their journey but Malum didn¡¯t make it far.

    He stopped after his second step, his eyes darting towards the danger on the wall.

    He looked closer, the poor lighting revealing a very small but silvery piece of string. It was tightly stretched across the entire corridor.

    It looked like silver but Malum knew silver couldn¡¯t be made so thin, and certainly not into such a small wire.

    If it was not silver then what ore could it have been. Such a question could only lead Malum to one conclusion, it was a spiritual ore, taken from the mountains that surrounded them.

    Malum wanted to test the ore but he didn¡¯t have the time and neither did he want to risk it. So, he warned his colleagues and they simply hopped over the thin stretch of wire.

    They came across a 2 more wires at differing heights and only then did another type of trap appear. This one was more similar to the one Malum had already encountered inside the cavern.

    A pressure plate leading to a danger of death. It burned a dark red, and yet all it took to avoid such danger was walking on a different tile.

    9 more come before the final stretch of the corridor revealed another trap. This one was different, as it featured a living being.

    Not a human, Malum eyes instead revealed a figure of a den of bats.

    And unlike in the day, they were awake and the hatch on the roof was open. That meant a simple disturbance was it would take far the swarm of creatures to disperse like an explosion, they shrieks giving away the current robbery.

    It was quite an ingenious idea. If only Malum hadn¡¯t been in the possession of such strong poisons. For the little creatures needed but a single smell of Malums poisons for their restful naps to continue. Malum closed the hatch before they fell and with it the final obstacle on the corridor was complete.

    Now onto the vault, it was Florence¡¯s turn o shine.

    He breathed and got to work. Not to moment later he had his ears against the vault as he fidgeted with his picking tools.

    He was listening, for a click, for a scrape, for just about anything.

    He looked at the mechanism and saw three separate key holes. Malum and Jameson hadn¡¯t been able to take a good look at the door but now he could see what he would be up against.

    He continued to move ever to slightly, searching for change when he found a small ridge and pushed down against it. He felt a small movement as it was pushed down but instead of a click he heard nothing.

    With another tool he pushed inside the lock again. If one wouldn¡¯t do it, two certainly would.

    He searched around for the second point and found it soon after. With both points pushed in he cleared the lock and gave those tools to Jameson.

    For the door to unlock he would need all six points to be pushing inwards so he had to make sure they stayed in place. Jameson could hold one lock in one hand so he got to work making sure he secured the second.

    His master looked at him with pressure in his eyes. He had to succeed now, for the boys parents and for himself as well.

    He listed and moved, pulling another pick from his pocket as he found the third pressure point. The sweat on his brow was wiped and soon he found the fourth.

    He was making fast progress but he found the third key whole was far different from the other two. Inside it was much larger, so he got to work.

    Pressing releasing, he stayed sharp and aware at all times. Never to much or the pick could snap and neither to little nor he could false move past a pressure point.

    With time on his side, and with his newly learned skills, he managed to pull the three different pins in the last lock. He heard a click and without anything left to unlock he began to turn the wheel of the vault.

    It was heavy but with his jubilation the weight felt much lighter. The metallic lock finally came undone and so he called over the rest of the crew to pull open the vault door.

    Malum rushed over to help as he felt his expectations rise to a peak. The thrill of the heist had set his mind alight and the bonfire had reached its hottest moment.

    Light poured into the room as the vault was always lit by several rows of far brighter torches.

    Its peeled into the hallway, first it spread on the wall and as they dragged it back further it lit up the entire hallway.

    They walked past the door, and starred into the bright vault.

    They overcame their greed and got to work. Pulling out a sack, each of them went towards their respective areas. Jameson went to `unlock` the Nobles metallic boxes whilst Jameson and Malum went straight for the gold.

    These weren¡¯t gold coins, these were gold bars meant for holding value or to be smelt down into their coins. They weighed far more than expected but their value kept Malums muscles moving.

    Until the bottom of his sack was no longer visible did he fill it with the golden treasure. He kept his eyes on the pillar and then at his next target.

    From gold bars to gold coins he began to take them by the handful and dropping them into his sack. Until he could barely lift the sack did he pull out another fresh one and begin filling that.

    More and more, his bag quickly became heavy. Once the gold coins ran out, he moved onto to the silver bars.

    Metal hitting metal was a loud affair but with an entire floor separating them and the guards who might not even be in the building (instead they should be at the fire) Malum reckoned he would be fine. He sense remained on his Intuition, ready to run at any time.

    Once the silver was pillages, Florence went to help Jameson and Malum moved towards the pillar. He had spoke of his interest to the pillar during the meeting and with it being the cherry on top to his plans Jameson added it to the plan.

    Malum wasted no time and with the blunt of his sword he began to smash the pillar. It wasn¡¯t like the ceiling was going to fall on him although he did have to make sure he didn¡¯t damage whatever treasure was inside of the pillar.

    The first thing that was obvious was the metals hollow nature. The sound gave it away as much as the reduced recoil on his shoulder. The metal dented inwards but Malum was going to need better if he wanted to find whatever was inside of it.

    He banged around the pillar to see where the hollow parts ended, and found the hollow parts to be all the way around the central part of the pillar. He looked for anyway to open this area but found nothing but smooth metal and historic recounts.

    The only slight difference on the entire pillar was the bottom of the pillar was just a little bit of the floor: they weren¡¯t connected.

    He looked at the top and found the same thing, the pillar seemed unconnected to the entire vault. That begged the question of how the damn thing managed to enter the vault.

    Malum couldn''t find the answer and his intuition wasn¡¯t helping in the finding the answer. It didn¡¯t help that he was surrounded by riches so all he got were glowing recommendations to steal the surrounding objects.

    To open it, he either needed to find the proper way in or slice the metal to force his way in. With his sword that wasn¡¯t possible but with Jameson¡¯s, he reckoned it was possible.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    He looked in their direction to see Jameson slashing locks and Florence taking the loot of the opened ones. It had only been 2 minuets since they had entered the vault and the deadlines they wanted to leave with the first haul was 10 minutes.

    Malum really wanted what was behind the pillar, but asking for the sword from Jameson would be going against the point of the heist: revenge.

    It was better that they got hurt more Nobles than they hurt the Roosevelt clan. So, Malum was left with his only other option. To find the actual way in.

    He reckoned that the pillar was pushed in. A whole was cut through the top of the vault and the pillar was dropped in through the roof.

    A treasure was inside said pillar and for it to be retrieved perhaps it had be taken out through the same way it came in. Malum therefore focused his eyes towards the roof.

    He looked carefully at the spotless ceiling but with both his eyes and his Intuition he found nothing out of the ordinary.

    Stumped, Malum sat down on a sack of loot. He realised that loose metal wasn¡¯t very comfortable so he shifted down to the smooth floor.

    He thought of all he knew of the vault, it¡¯s history, it¡¯s reason for being and then to it¡¯s schematics. If he were to align the first and basement floor he could get a better idea of where this pillar would be taken up to and perhaps that would give him the answer.

    He thought to the stairs, which connected the two floors and then traced it back to the lobby of the first floor. That was where the vault pillar would lead to, and that was where Malum was going to go.

    Taking a bag of loot with him he made his way on his first trip. Jameson and Florence only eyed his movement for a seconds before focused back on their task. If there was danger, he would have said the code word.

    Malum rushed upstairs and back to the lobby. Here he was exposed to the guards return far more than before but with his ability he reckoned he would be able to get away.

    He dropped his loot by the hallway leading towards the back exits and then stood in the centre of the lobby.

    It was massive open areas, with waiting areas making up the first part, a partition, then a section for the clerks much like the one Malum and Jameson had spoken to before they had been directed to the man with the golden chain, then at the back was more chairs and desks where other bankers worked.

    Throughout the room where several pillar holding up the tall roof above them. Each was as thick as a horse¡¯s chest, and each of them could hold the key to Malum treasure.

    Outside of the vault, Malum could now use his sense more accurately to pick up danger and opportunities and in the large lobby there were only a few areas which were detected.

    Several of those dim lights were located on paper at the desks of workers. They likely contained sensitive information, but Malum passed up reading those a focused only on the brightest light.

    The light came from a small unnoticeable whole in a central pillar. Even stranger was the fact that it wasn¡¯t head height, instead it was located near Malum foot and he had to crouch down to see it.

    If it was noticed, it was easily passed of as a small dent but with the amount of light it exuded, it not just a dent. Malum peered in and second guessed his idea of it being a key whole. It was deep and Malum guessed the key would have to be significantly larger than the one needed to unlock the vault and not only that but it would have several more pins needed to unlock the thing.

    But a key whole needed a key, and the only one Malum could think of was the ones that the top management could use to unlock the vault.

    He thought about calling Florence over, but that was against the deal also picking at such height at such a strange angle seemed like something that wasn¡¯t possible and if Malum were to create such a device himself he wouldn¡¯t allow something as simple as a lockpick ruin it all.

    With that in mind, Malum went on the hunt for the special key. As he went he did pick up some of the lighter opportunities, during which he learned more information about the Nobles in Roosevelt.

    Some were in heavy debt, spending just as much as they earned on the interest alone.

    Others had wealth far above their status.

    Such information in the Noble world was worth it¡¯s weight in gold. If Malum ever needed money, a letter to the right person would be enough for him to earn several hundred coins.

    Some mundane information was included, for instance the light had guided him to the drawer of an office worker who kept several letter inside of his desk. Each contained words of love and with the love revealed the information that the man was already married.

    All in all, Malum was gaining several pieces of information that he could use to blackmail people such earn a decent amount of money but nothing nearly as important as the key.

    Once a few rooms had passed, Malum decided to call it quits. For as much as he wanted the treasure in the vault, did he also know when it was time to give up on a hopeless dream.

    The key wasn¡¯t in the bank, in reality it was probably in the Roosevelts own family vault. Hell it could even be related to the royal family in some way and they kept the key in their own super secure vault.

    Malum rushed back to get his gold and decided he would drown his disappointment in gold coins. His mind was distracted, and fate didn¡¯t waste it¡¯s chance.

    A small linger of distaste etched it¡¯s way onto Malums mouth. A small ringing tone started to harass his ears.

    He only noticed it when a prick of numbness was felt on his skin.

    He turned, and saw two Knights starring back at him.

    ¡°WHO ARE YOU?!¡± They demanded, drawing their swords.

    ¡°WHY ARE YOU IN HIS LORDSHIPS BANK?!¡± They moved closer as Malum struggled to find an answer.

    He stood their like a scarecrow, the dim moonlight slightly revealing his face. Then he snapped back to reality, he cursed his luck and ran towards the right side¡¯s back exit. The real one Jameson and Florence planned to use was the left side and Malum wanted to get these two away from them as much as possible and for as long as possible.

    Running for the stairs his mind went into overdrive and soon his intuition revealed the danger of him going outside. He couldn¡¯t for some reason, but he trusted his ability and instead followed a path towards the second floor.

    Of course! The guards couldn¡¯t tell anybody outside. If the greater police forces arrived then they were as good as executed, he needed to isolate them away from the heist entirely.

    The two were quick, but with heavy armour weighing them down they couldn¡¯t catch up to Malum lightning speed. He purposely slowed down just to make sure they continued to chase him.

    On the second floor, Malum was trying his best to get the two guards to split up. He ran around loops in corridors until finally they decided to take two different directions.

    Malum calmy walked into a nearby room where he found a place to hide. A single guard had seen him enter and Malum wanted to take the fight back to him. The best-case scenario was that he took out both guards before they caused any further issues.

    He felt a dagger ran on the palm of his hand and he hid it behind his back, on its metallic surface was a small layer of poison.

    Now he just needed to fight back.

    It didn¡¯t take long before the doors where kicked open, the shout of the guard ringing through the room.

    ¡°WHERE DO YOU THINK YOUR GOING?!¡±

    Malum felt a scan of dread flow through his veins as the guard looked around the room. If he spotted him, death would be the only outcome.

    He felt it. The rich taste of blood at the back of his throat. Whatever idea he had chosen, it was far more dangerous than he initially thought. Perhaps he had already made to much bad choices, his moment of inaction had left him with so little opportunity left to live.

    He had to grasp; he couldn¡¯t die.

    His breathing became soundless, his steps slowly following. The heavy knight couldn¡¯t copy such actions as his heavy armour gave away his location instantly.

    Malum didn¡¯t want to head for the door, as the second knight could come bursting in at any second and yet the light in the room came down from two directions.

    One from the door, the second from his dagger. Two options, escape or take the fight back to them.

    Malum didn¡¯t hesitate to make his choice, as quickly as his techniques allowed him he made for the door. Occasionally, the guard glanced back as he searched through the room but with his Intuitions warning Malum managed to hide just in time.

    He felt adrenaline rushing through him but he managed to get through the door without getting spotted.

    Relief, in its purest form felt like ice down his sweating body. Yet, something didn¡¯t add up. The second guard was nowhere to be seen. He hadn¡¯t taken the other direction; he had headed towards the stairs. He was either checking on the vault, or he was going to get help.

    Both as disastrous as the other.

    He bolted down the corridor as quickly as he could. If Jameson and Florence were already dead then Malum wasn¡¯t ready for the grief that would follow.

    They needed to be alive. He had enough of those around him dying. He needed to see them breathing, even if it meant he had dodge the entire police force of Roosevelt city.

    Down the stairs, down the corridors and down the stairs again. Into the finally hallway and Malum noticed Florence coming in his direction, loot heavy in his hands.

    ¡°Where were you?¡± He asked, to which Malum hastily explained.

    ¡°We¡¯ve got company, get that bag to the carriage, we need to go!¡±

    Malum rushed towards the vault to tell Jameson and inside he looked around to see his friend getting a better grip on the loot bag of gold coins.

    ¡°More Knights are coming; we need to go!¡± Malum shouted.

    Jameson looked back, ¡°Okay let me get this.¡±

    They didn¡¯t have that much time but Malum wasn¡¯t going to argue with Jameson about that right now. Instead he got himself a bag with him and said,

    ¡°Its worth nothing if we get caught, get moving!¡±

    Jameson relented on his poor grip and just lugged the bag by force. Malum couldn''t help but think of the guard upstairs and the fact Florence was now by himself.

    Fuck, he was risking the mans life. He went quicker as he felt the sack begin to strain against the conflicting weights. His footsteps never faltered; his senses remained at their peak.

    Every step, he was closer to the escape. He felt opportunity come closer to fruition and that¡¯s when dread started to infect the corridors around him.

    He recognised it as the pattern he had felt when the guard was looking for him in that small room. If he was seen whoever caused such dread then he was dead.

    Jameson was slightly behind him and Malum went closer to guide them. He went via a different path and climbed out a shutter of an office nearby. Horses were around the building, although they could have been from the fire response they could equally be the steads of Knight coming here to kill them.

    They dragged there loot, and made distance on the bank. They then turned left towards the direction of the carriage and now they had to hope that Florence hadn¡¯t been caught.

    They turned the corner to see the carriage on its lonesome down at the side of the street. A head was poking out from the side and it was Florence showing a worried face.

    It fell into relief as they came closer and after the sacks had entered the carriage, Florence took up the driver¡¯s seat and they began to drive away.

    They all felt the sweat down their back, but now only jubilation remained in their minds.

 Chapter 55

    Jameson clenched his fists. He had done it.

    Finally, his parents could rest in peace knowing that he had kicked those bastards down a peg.

    He felt pride rise through him. For so long had he balled up his anger at those bastards, from childhood to his early adult life. He had finally managed to find a release and the catharsis was pure.

    Fuck them. No longer were they just words, now he had spited them with actions as well.

    He hoped they stayed in misery, he hoped that they suffered from his actions.

    As the unadulterated joy slowly faded into the night air, Jameson gave a prayer to his parents. He decided it would also be the last. No longer would he revel in his past and instead focus on his future.

    They were dead. He always knew that, and he had suffered from that long ago. Now though, he could accept that.

    The house must continue. Words he remembered from his mother until this day. He would gather some of the wealth created from his heist and rebuild what had been lost.

    House Smith would not fall today. It had come close, but with his trusted butler and his good friend he reckoned they still had a lot of growth to achieve.

    The soft galloping of the horses made for a secondary sound as Florence felt his heart beat rise. Such a rush had been something else for his boring life but at least it was over now.

    He wiped his sweat from his brow and swore if his master asked for something like this again he would adamantly stay far away from such schemes.

    He could see his master but he hoped the boy had finally let the past be the past. He had once been such a beacon of joy but his father¡¯s death had ruined that light of him.

    He was a great man. Someone Florence never second guessed following and his death had hurt him a lot to. He also found solace in revenge and such why the smile on his face was bright as the moon above him.

    Whipping the horses he got move on, no matter what he would always remain the butler of House Smith until the day he died. He just hoped it wasn¡¯t so stressful sometimes.

    They arrived at the drop-off point at one of the parks of the city. Here nobility enjoyed the countryside without having to danger out behind the city walls.

    They dug a pit and chucked the more expensive of the loot inside. Everything except the silver coins which they decided to take with them.

    They would separate and store them for now until they had come to use later. Malum would use them to purchase whatever he would need alchemically and Jameson would use them to rebuild his house.

    Should they have the need they would slowly take out the coins first and then the silver bars. The gold bars were far to dangerous and even the silver ones could cause issues if they gave it to the wrong blacksmith.

    For now they took the least valuable, harder to track silver coins and buried the rest.

    Everyone expression was dim seeing there loot disappear into the earth but they all knew it was needed for them to get away with their crime.

    With that done they then returned to the mansion and acted as if nothing had ever happened. It was only a few days before another wave although the morning after the heist was sure to be an interesting one.

    Pandemonium.

    His senses spoke only of a light dread hanging in the air.

    Malum had never seen such fervor in the guards steps. Everyone was a suspect and the top brass wanted blood.

    The common man kept his head low and continued to work. Merchants packed their bags in fear of being caught in the crossfires and Knights of Nobility were constantly running around.

    People were scarred. Malum had never seen so many people cower at the sight of guards and now they were avoided like the plague.

    Every hour new people joined the jail cells and every hour more people were hanged by the noose.

    It was a hunt.

    The first to go where the residents of the house which had caught fire. Word on the street was that they were colluding with the thieves.

    Lies, and yet a family of four had died because of it. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

    Jameson had heard the news and Malum had seen the colour drain from his face.

    It had only been three days but Jameson hadn¡¯t the heart to step outside even once. Malum had only ventured out to get the needed food for the rest of their stay.

    He picked up the bag prepared at the local market. He remembered Florence had meekly asked him if he could do it this time and so here he was.

    Eyes either starred down at the street or at each other with suspicion. A gold reward for information on the thief¡¯s had set a record of thousand gold.

    That was generational wealth, enough for someone to betray their own family for.

    Malum took the bag and paid for it with his old coins. Paranoia had not missed him and so those silver coins had quickly been hidden away with the rest of the loot.

    With the goods he made his way back and only breathed when he returned back to the mansion. He only ate here now and had moved out after the manhunt had begun. If three males were found in the same lodging and three suspects had been the thieves, Malum didn¡¯t want those two numbers to align.

    He had also tried to change the way he looked as subtly as possible. Little things like where his sword lay on his belt.

    Breathing calmly, Malum rested the food on the table as he then walked over to the sitting room. There he found Jameson sat on at a desk reading a book.

    They only nodded to one another but didn¡¯t decide to talk. Conversation wasn¡¯t either ones strong-suit and they didn¡¯t feel like it either.

    Wanting to take his mind away from the subject, Malum decided to take his sword and go to the garden.

    It was a quiet place he was visiting more often.

    Here emotion affected him less as physical activity strained his mind. The Martial Art tested his limits and required every piece of his attention.

    Sword of Poison focused on deceit above everything else. Bluffs turned into deadly attacks and simple moves became complex attacks that if the defender wasn¡¯t careful, would lead to their demise.

    It made the technique that much harder, but it also made it that much better.

    During the previous wave he had racked up less injuries and came out with more stamina, this was in due part down to the body strengthening but the technique also played it¡¯s part.

    Poison came in many forms and the technique would change depending on what you coated your sword with. A slow poison meant a defensive focused style whilst fast acting one meant you had to distract them with an overwhelming assault.

    A strong cultivator wouldn¡¯t just sit there as he quickly started to lose his life. Instead he would try and take you down with him such those few seconds of fluster as you attacked him could make the whole difference before they turned into a suicidal attacker.

    Then came hallucinogenic poisons and even seduction poisons could work.

    Every style, every swing of your sword was planned out and written inside the book. If he only he could read the rest of it then he could have already mastered his technique.

    Malum cursed the book as he tried again to read the details of the later details of the technique, he could still read the important titles and even some subtitles but after that everything just turned into a blur of a non-descript language.

    He turned the pages back and focused on what he could read. He had made some progress since he had obtained the book and slowly he was carving out his own style, but there laid the problem: slowly!

    If only he could read the damn book he would have already created his own style and could then begin perfecting it but the book had ruined his plan before it even got off the ground.

    Instead he learned useless details on useless stances for useless scenarios.

    He breathed a deep breath before he began to try the set of moves again. He would have if not for the loud shout coming from inside.

    ¡°##############!¡± Malum went closer to get a better idea of who was making such a racket but found himself frozen still when he saw several soldiers at the door.

    Malum checked on his intuition and found nothing dangerous was coming from them so they weren¡¯t here to execute them, instead they were probably here just on some suspicions.

    Some danger lingered around them, and if Malum looked closer he would have seen that one of the soldiers eyes were a bright shade of red.

    After calming down Malum walked over,

    ¡°Of course, I will do exactly that.¡± Florence said to them as he came over. He saw Malum coming and introduced him, ¡°This here is the Barons docter, Malum.¡±

    That was the cover they came up with, with consideration of his alchemy skills.

    Malum waved to the group and time seemed to slow as the guard with the red eye looked at him.

    Danger burst out like a flood, the red eye turning into a disastrous event that left Malum second guessing his everything.

    He paused, frozen in his own flurry of emotions. He was half expecting the guards to immediately pull out their swords and start hunting him but found nothing to have changed.

    The guard with the red eye looked at him again, but apart from a slight twitch he didn¡¯t react at all.

    In fact, after some casual conversation, they guards left and nothing came of the situation. Malum was left standing there with a casual Florence who went back to his usual duties.

    For once, Malum questioned his ability. That danger felt like a sword at his throat and yet nothing in reality seemed to have suggested such extreme danger was even close to appearing.

    But how was the guard the catalyst of all this. He wasn¡¯t one of the Knights on scene so how could he recognise him. How did he bring about so much danger?

    Malum held his hand closer to his burning forehead. Throat turned into ideas that were quickly tried and tested through countless scenarios.

    He decided to play it safe, his life was the priority and so he needed to ensure at least that.

    No evidence of him being the same person as the thief still existed. The only possession that remained on any of the trio was the sword of Jameson but that was modified to look dissimilar.

    The only risk remaining was his own face. His full likeness seen by the two guards when he froze in the hallway.

    Malum wasn¡¯t above scarring himself. If it meant he could cleanly keep his life then he would do it in a heartbeat. Yet, it wasn¡¯t guaranteed that if he gained the scar he still wouldn¡¯t be recognised.

    His face shape was still the same, and so were his eyes. For the bloodthirsty nobles who only wanted a speck of evidence then just having those would get him the galley.

    He could kill the guard. Perhaps that would end the danger he was feeling, especially since the danger seemed to have come from his sight of him, perhaps removing that would be enough to end the danger.

    The best solution would leave him removed of suspicion and cleared of the crime. If he could obtain an airtight alibi then perhaps he could turn the danger into an opportunity.

    Malum smiled as he had the thought.

 Chapter 57

    Turning danger into opportunity was an idea that brought a smile to Malums face. It could make disaster turn into fortunes but its possibility brought about idea of fortune turning into disaster.

    If it was possible, then Malum would need to wary of the future.

    For now, he focused on the present.

    He greatest strength and ally was Baron Smith¡¯s complete backing. That in court would save him from a completely unfair trial.

    But Malum had caught some interesting material as he had wandered through the bank and whilst it wasn¡¯t a great treasure it would certainly come in handy now.

    He passed letter into three houses as he walked through the Nobles district, two were went through the doors of Baron and one was sent to a Count.

    With the seeds planted he had himself a greater chance of getting out of his danger alive. He noticed how the danger didn¡¯t subside when he passed each letter through the letter box but he did find that the negative senses became more focused.

    Instead of feeling like pins were poking every place in his body, it felt like a dagger was stabbing his neck and hand: instead of a constant ringing sound, he heard a sharp and painful whistle every couple of seconds.

    It could be interpreted that he was in more danger, after all he was feeling more pain than he was before as whilst the sharp whistle appeared less it also hurt far more on impact. Yet, those areas not receiving pain or that brief moment before another whistle came was where his opportunity lay.

    With hope, Malum focused back on his task and moved down the street back towards the mansion. After entering he informed Jameson and Florence about the danger and from it continued the plan.

    Jameson left the room and entered his own. He lay in his bed and prepared for the rest of the plan. He got into his nightwear and entered his own bed. The heat of the summer coming through the windows was annoying but Jameson was sure he wouldn¡¯t be feeling it soon.

    Soon his friend came though the doors and with him came a bottle of suffering.

    ¡°Don¡¯t delay it, just pass me my pain.¡±

    ¡°Here, but don¡¯t down it all in one go. You¡¯ll need to take around a quarter every day for the plans duration. If the plan lasts longer, ask Florence for another bottle. Now drink up commander.¡±

    Malum gave him a smile and Jameson scowled as he held the bottle. He inspected it and measured out a quarter before he took of its small cork and said, ¡°Cheers solider.¡±

    He then drank a quarter and placed the bottle onto the nearby bedside drawer.

    Malum watched as his complexion quickly paled. Florence entered with a warm wet rag which he then placed on Jameson forehead.

    The poison was called Winter¡¯s Solace and it acted like a common sickness. It left the victim weak and freezing even in the hottest of summers.

    The effects would only worsen with continued doses until they finally gave into the cold.

    Malum choose it because it had clear effects and needed more than 20 doses to actually kill and common man. For a man like Jameson he would need around 25, and whilst the poison wasn¡¯t a fun experience it was definitely one of the tamer ones he had in his arsenal.

    For the next hour, Malum and Florence both acted as one to keep Jameson as comfortable as possible. The fireplace was lit and the thickest wool hung around Jameson¡¯s body in the bed.

    The poison was also reminiscent of a certain demonic disease. If it was a potentially dangerous spreader then even as Baron he wouldn¡¯t be safe from being burned in paranoia.

    All Malum needed to do now was wait for the danger to arrive. He had set up his own part of the play, now was to see what fate had dealt his enemies.

    As a guard he had always kept his work separate from when he was at home. His wife didn¡¯t like the conversation and his brother wasn¡¯t the best listener at the best of times.

    So usually he would keep what he saw today to himself.

    But, he couldn¡¯t get the lads head out of his mind. Those yellow eyes, he had heard his brother speaking of the thief and seeing a man in his twenties with yellow eyes he thought perhaps they were the same person.

    Or was he was just overthinking things. He was a docter in a Barons Mansion, why on earth would he be a thief?

    ¡°Any news of the Thief brother?¡± He decided to ask.

    To his left at dinner table sat his muscled brother.

    ¡°No. We still have no leads on the rat, even thought we¡¯ve checked every carriage leaving this city twice over.¡±

    He couldn¡¯t help but feel bad for his brother. He was always a righteous kid but the Knight training had really amplified it to the next level. He cared so much about his job and the wellbeing of the citizens, it was part of the reason he became a guard himself, though he wasn¡¯t talented enough to be a Knight.

    He thought a bit, then decided to say anyway, ¡°On the patrols today I saw a twenty something guy with yellow eyes.¡±

    His brother almost jumped from the table, ¡°What built was he?¡± Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°Athletic, though he clearly did some training.¡±

    ¡°Which side was his sheath?¡±

    ¡°On the right.¡±

    His brother calmed but still remained energetic.

    ¡°Have you reported this in?¡±

    ¡°No, he was at a Nobles mansion working as a Docter.¡±

    His brother paused slightly, ¡°Indeed that¡¯s strange, but still bring him in. Such a criminal must be caught, remember that when your decided whether or not to take them in.¡±

    He nodded and agreed to report it in. His brother wasn¡¯t one to argue with.

    ¡°What about dessert, would any of you want some of my home-grown fruit?¡± his wife said to move onto a different subject. He thanked the Gods for his wife and decided to report it in the morning. It probably wasn¡¯t that poor docter but he could get some credits for taking in a suspect anyway.

    Honour, duty, he didn¡¯t care about most of those. He loved his family, perhaps that¡¯s why he never thrived as a Knight.

    The morning came and Malum and Florence where awoken by the loud sound of knocking. Indistinguishable shouts could be heard but Malum was to tired to hear any of it.

    That danger had kept him up all night and now it seemed to have arrived right when he had fallen asleep.

    He got dressed in his `Docters` attire and walked to the door with Florence right in front of him.

    The knocking continued and only stopped when Florence opened the door,

    ¡°What reason could you be so rudely knocking on a Barons door at such a time in the morning!¡±

    Malum cheered Florence on but knew it was a loosing battle from the moment he saw the uniform outside.

    A glowing silver, from head to toe: a Knight.

    ¡°Good morning Butler, we do apologise but we are on a task of the utmost priority. Could we meet the Baron for such discussion?¡±

    The voice was similar to the one Malum had heard at the Bank. He looked at the face to see a pair of eyes he had already seen before. He paused in terror but kept himself cool with words of encouragement.

    Florence didn¡¯t miss a step, his words following the plan to the letter, ¡°I¡¯m sorry but the Baron had recently fallen ill. Here is Docter Malum if you wish to learn when he will recover.¡±

    Malum nodded to the Knight and Malum felt as his eyes gave him a once over.

    ¡°The Docter?¡± The Knight muttered under his breath and he looked again at Malum. Focusing on the eyes.

    They did look similar, but the Knight had already signed him off on account to his identity. No docter could run that fast for so long, yet alone take down a few Knights, even with poison.

    ¡°It is a shame to hear he is sick. Well...¡± The Knight fell into thought as thought of what he should do. Taking away the docter of a patient, that of a Baron no mind, was not the greatest of ideas but his orders where to take the Docter in.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry but the Docter is going to have to follow me. His appearance is too similar to the Thief so we will need to find out if he is in any way related to the case.¡±

    Florence began to erupt, ¡°WHAT?! You want to risk the Barons life over a mere suspicion. I personally was here on the night of the robbery with him tending to the sick Baron!¡±

    ¡°I again apologize but my orders are absolute.¡±

    ¡°Order from whome!¡± Florence settled with.

    ¡°Knight Captain Gale Erving.¡±

    Florence calmed with the name. It was another vassal family of the Roosevelts, this one being the main Knight family whome had protected them for generations.

    Still, Florence had some leeway especially with the circumstances, ¡°Well then he will receive a letter of complaint before the evening. I¡¯m sure the other Nobles will also join me after hearing of this preposterous event!¡±

    Malum looked at Florence¡¯s face with surprise. He hadn¡¯t seen the calm and collected butler fire off like this, he hadn¡¯t even heard him raise his voice but it seemed the old man had some bite to him.

    The Knights face crumbled slightly, more out of resignation than annoyance. Regardless of the hassle it would bring, he collected Malum and soon the Docter had iron cuffs around him arms.

    ¡°This is outrageous.¡± He muttered, making his opinion known to his escorts.

    They guards around him looked away. They all knew the Nobility would make a stink of the occasion and they were going to be suffering the consequences.

    So once they arrived at the Knights Temple Malum was taken to a nice bedroom. He was given food and drink and about everything he asked for as long as it didn¡¯t include freedom.

    Danger still lurked in the shadows but with the good treatment and hope on the horizon Malum felt less and less anxious about the coming events.

    He was talking with the guard when a bearded man entered the room. He was a big guy, the sword on his back though was just as big.

    The Guard gave a salute the second he noticed the big guys arrival.

    ¡°Knight Captain, Sir!¡±

    Malum looked him over again and swore the pattern on the mans armour. It was a mix of leather and a shiny metal. Perhaps not a pure spiritual armour set, those were beyond anyone but the King and perhaps a Dukedom, but an alloy one.

    Malum reckoned he sword wouldn¡¯t even dent it.

    He kept to his manners when addressing the Count, ¡°My humblest greetings.¡± He even bowed because Florence had said it would sell the act more.

    ¡°Enough of that.¡± The Knight Captain starred at his eyes a little then said, ¡°Sorry for your rough means of travel, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve heard of the recent robbery.¡±

    ¡°Of course your lordship, such a travesty by such villainess fiends. The Gods will smite them for their stupidity.¡±

    ¡°If only it where that simple,¡± The bearded man grumbled, ¡°and you unfortunately match the description of the fiend whome the Knights saw the most off.¡±

    Malum shook his head in dismay. ¡°Curses. Well it explains a lot but I must remind you that the Baron is ill and I must attend to him.¡±

    ¡°Yes I have already received a runner about that. Now we will take you to be seen by the witness¡¯, you will speak and wear garments similar to that the robber wore. After that you will be free to go.¡±

    Malum nodded and they moved along. He didn¡¯t want to push his luck for as much as his situation was pitiable he was also talking to someone of much higher standing. So he played it safe.

    They walked out the cell and Malum said goodbye to the guard who chatted with him. They then followed a few wooden corridors towards a small room with just a table and chairs. On the table was an outfit which the Count pointed to, ¡°Put those on and say the phrases on the paper. You visitors will be here as soon as you¡¯re ready.¡±

    Again, Malum chose to nod and once he had left he slipped into the clothes as fast as he could. He then poked his head outside, called out that he was ready before slipping back in and into the chair.

    He looked around to see a plain wooden room. No windows sadly, but the torches on the walls made the room as bright as it would have normally been at this time anyway.

    It didn¡¯t take long before someone came into the room and Malum recognised them instantly, it was the Knight who had taken him in.

    ¡°You¡¯re a witness?¡± Malum asked to which the Knight sighed.

    ¡°Yes I was there on the night. One moment I was standing guard over my comrade and the second I had a poisoned dagger between my armour.¡±

    Malum tried his best to look away from his neck. Nobody else but the perpetrator would know to look there so Malum dragged his eyes towards the Knights face.

    ¡°You seem to have not suffered much scarring.¡± As a docter Malum played his role.

    The Knight pulled back on the cloth set he was wearing below his amour, to reveal a bandage around his neck.

    ¡°We were wearing full plate amour and the scum got me in the neck. I was lucky I lived; it was only a shallow cut.¡±

    ¡°That good to hear, but as much as I enjoy the conversation I believe we have better things to spend our time on.¡±

    The Knight nodded before heading for the door. ¡°I¡¯m confident it was not you. You will have three more until you can go though so just convince them and you can go.¡±

    Malum hmphed, ¡°Alright, get the next in quickly.¡±

    The knight nodded before disappearing out the door. With one of 4 completed and done so well Malum felt a wave of danger dissipate around him. It still remained deadly but no longer was his fate so miserable. It seemed fate was uncertain.

 Chapter 58

    Feeling a smile crawl onto his lips, it quickly disappeared as he heard the door swing open, replacing it was his annoyed smile.

    ¡°Hello second witness, I am Malum Doctor of Baron Smith who is currently seriously ill.¡±

    He recognised the second witness as the one who chased him upstairs into that small room. A fair amount of danger lingered around him, now Malum focused on diffusing that danger.

    ¡°Sorry for the inconvenience but I¡¯m sure you have heard of the good cause. Now can you read out the phrases on the table.¡±

    ¡°Fine.¡± He picked up the paper and read an interesting set of sentences.

    ¡°We are the repair workers you asked for¡±

    ¡°Can we just get our jobs done. Its already very late.¡±

    ¡°You bastards, I was just taking a whizz and you disappear¡±

    ¡°David! Good to see you, come here and help us, It should not be long now¡±

    ¡°As good as new. It was good meeting you Knight¡±

    Luckily Malum had only said one of them, being the third one and it wasn¡¯t even the right guard to recognise his voice as all of them was for that singular guard who was observing them during their `repairs`.

    He read them quickly but was surprised by the accuracy of each sentence. As far as he remembered it was spot on and even the name was remembered, although it was just a large red herring he was sure the Knights were loving tracking down.

    The Knight only nodded then asked Malum to pose out some actions. One of them was when he was frozen in the corridor, and others where simple things like how he walked or ran.

    Malum had thought of these prior and so changed most of the things he did. The easiest way was simply adding a limb to his right leg and with the prior set up done to his face and the removal after the heist his face whilst looking similar wasn¡¯t a match.

    Eventually the Knight breathed out a resigned sigh and said, ¡°Alright, I am happy that it isn¡¯t you. I will being the next one in, just give me a second.¡±

    Malum nodded a smiled as the guard walked out. A second layer of danger had been peeled of his senses and now just two more remained.

    The next one came in not a moment later. This Knight was the one he had seen at the entrance and it was the one he had spoken about the fire to.

    ¡°Hello Docter, names James Blacksmith.¡± He shook Malum hand before he asked the suspect to read of the lines. They weren¡¯t for him but he used the opportunity to check the mans habits.

    Things like how he spoke, how he sat. He needed to know when he was uncomfortable and this brief moment was a good time to do so.

    Once he had established some basic details he got the Docter to flip over the paper to reveal more lines. This time it were the ones he had personally heard.

    He checked to see if the Docter was nervous in any way, no fidgeting leg, no sweat forming, if anything he just looked annoyed and his voice conveyed it.

    ¡°Help, there¡¯s a fire!¡± he said, with mock urgency. To which the Knight asked, ¡°In which direction is the fire?¡±

    Perhaps it would have worked. Malum almost caught himself pointing in the same direction but just as fast did he say the words, ¡°How am I supposed to know? I¡¯m in windowless room, I not a robber, and didn¡¯t even know there was a fire. Now what¡¯s next.¡±

    The Knight shifted and the danger peeled away from the surroundings, even though he hadn¡¯t left he had already passed this Knights examination. After some movements with the disguise on the Knight seemed to shake his head and say,If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    ¡°Sorry for the inconvenience, the Knight Captains been on so much pressure to catch the thief so I hope you can keep that in mind.¡±

    Malum nodded to the man to get him out the room quicker. After he left he was given a moment of breath where he gathered his thoughts.

    Next was going to be the only Knight who had heard him say a sentence. He needed to keep his habits as they were and not give out any information...

    Stopping his preparation was the sound of the door coming open. Again, the silver glint of a Knight came through the door. This was the one Jameson had shook the hands of and knocked out via his potent poison.

    It was also the one that had seen him the most.

    Malum decided to get up and shake the mans hand. Not only to show his limp early but also to show that his hand was different from the one he shook before.

    ¡°The final one.¡± Malum said to which the Knight nodded.

    ¡°Yes once you have been cleared by me you are free to go.¡±

    With a smile on his face Malum started the interrogation on a high note. He wanted a relaxed atmosphere that would ease up the coming trails.

    The first came as they both sat down on their chairs. Malum was gestured to pick up the paper and soon he was reading out each of the lines.

    He said them as he always had done. With the politeness of a docter, with the annoyance slowly peeling off every time he recited them.

    The one line he had said in front of the Knight during the robbery, he spoke just as he had done before. Trying to bring as little attention to it as he could.

    He spoke every word, then moved onto to the next sentence. He hid his fear and didn¡¯t look for a reaction. He confidently moved on and soon the recital came to an end.

    ¡°Would you want me to do any poses next?¡± Malum asked.

    ¡°Actually no, for mine I¡¯m just going to ask you some questions. Answer them honestly as with as little time as possible.¡±

    Malum eyes him up. That didn¡¯t sound good but the situation forced him to agree.

    ¡°As long as it doesn¡¯t take long.¡±

    ¡°Of course. What is your name?¡±

    ¡°Malum.¡±  He said immediately.

    ¡°Good, you understand. How old are you?¡±

    ¡°17, as of a few weeks actually.¡± He wasn¡¯t his birthday was in a few weeks but it made as a good distraction.

    ¡°Well happy birthday. A docter at 17, if only my kid could do the same. Anyway, what would you use to treat a headache?¡±

    That was just general knowledge, ¡°There are several methods, the most common would-be Calming Leaves.¡±

    The Knight nodded and continued, ¡°How did you learn to become a docter?¡±

    ¡°Is this to do with your kids?¡± He deflected, but only because he reckoned he could get away with it. He also benefited from more time to think through his real answer.

    The Knight smiled but didn¡¯t let himself laugh, ¡°Sadly no, your answer?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I learned about herbs since I was a child. Loved healing, met the good Baron and joined him in warfare where I kept him in good health. We are on our leave and will soon return to face the wave if his health allows it.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re a solider as well?¡± The Knight asked.

    ¡°Yes, whilst healing is what I prefer it doesn¡¯t pay nearly as well as what my father taught me.¡±

    If he could steer the conversation to his family, Malum could go on forever without drawing much suspicion to himself. He hoped the Knight got carried away.

    ¡°What were you doing on the night of the robbery?¡±

    Damn, ¡°I was tending to his Lordship.¡±

    ¡°Finally, can you describe why you were with the Baron just days before the robbery scoping out the bank.¡±

    Blood hell, Malum nearly straight up fainted. The only thing dragging him away from the terrible atmosphere was the Intuition that it wasn¡¯t nearly as dangerous as it seemed.

    ¡°I am his good friend, and he was sorting out his old bank account. Now are we done with this charade?¡±

    He kept calm. As calm as his terrified mind could show. He prayed to the God¡¯s almighty.

    ¡°Alright I think you should be fine.¡± He kept his eyes on Malum the entire time. ¡°You are certainly a suspect but nothing incriminating has been found pointing to you. Once your dressed you are free to leave.¡±

    Malum breathed once again but didn¡¯t show his relief and instead showed annoyance. ¡°Suspect? I didn¡¯t know the Temple was so full of fools!¡±

    The Knight slipped out the room as he was shouting back. Once he left he turned the corner towards his bosses office where he met the other Knights.

    ¡°What do you think?¡± The Knight Captain asked.

    ¡°I agree that he matches the physical profile. Looks similar but he did not say anything out of the ordinary. If it¡¯s him, he is good and at that age it would be even more impressive.¡±

    ¡°It is the same thing every one of you have said. He looks right, but has no motive and his alibi is good as well. The Baron was seen leaving the party not moments before the fire broke out. If sickness did take him then having his docter around would be the immediate call.

    Keep him on the suspect list but leave him for now.¡± He gestured to the several letters he had received on his desk, ¡°I will need to sort these out before we try anything again. Your dismissed Knight Bradford, for Glory and Honour.¡±

    ¡°For Glory and Honour¡± He saluted back and moved out the room. He wished his Captain luck and continued to look for suspects. He saw the Doctor moving out and waved him goodbye.

    He waved back, the action eerily similar to one he had seen just as he was falling unconscious.

 Chapter 59

    Malum felt the danger remain even as he left the Knight temple. It seemed as though that final Knight was never convinced that he wasn¡¯t the criminal. Even as he left and waved off the Knight it seemed as though the danger had only thickened.

    Frowning, Malum touched the dagger hidden inside of his coat. Murder certainly wasn¡¯t off the table but the reaction to that had no guarantee that it wouldn¡¯t blow back on him anyway.

    He felt the cold iron of the dagger, and ran his finger across it blade. The sharp edge, giving a small cut on his finger.

    Moving towards the house, he put his thoughts to the side and focused on the present. The most important matter at present was the wave which would come in only a few days.

    With travel, he would need to leave in in two days. Jameson had already sent off a letter about his illness which would mean the Section would get a bit hectic.

    Malum wanted a delay, something to take the cities attention away from the heist for a moment and what better way to do that then one of his high-grade poisons.

    If Malum was going to be distracted, he was sure not to leave his enemies time to gain an advantage. With such thoughts in mind, Malum visited the herbal stores before he arrived home and with it coming noon the market was packed with buyers and sellers.

    A small little vial of blood was all he needed as he had the rest of the supplements at the mansion.

    Several packed roads later and he arrived back at the estate.

    Walking inside he first made his way towards Jameson¡¯s master bedroom where he found the patient with Florence sat by his bed.

    Florence shook of his lethargy seeing his partner in crime and spoke for both himself and Jameson, ¡°Malum! Did it go to plan?¡±

    Malum gave his partners a smile, ¡°For the most part. There is one Knight which thinks poorly of me but the rest are sold on my innocence.¡±

    He saw Jameson week face fall into a smile after which Florence said, ¡°So how are you going to deal with him?¡±

    Malum held up the vial of blood and said, ¡°Just about to concoct that now. Are you and Jameson fine by yourselves?¡±

    Jameson nearly glared at him. For as much as the bitter cold froze his body, behind his eyes was the fire of his spirit.

    Florence said, ¡°We will be fine. Good luck.¡±

    Malum saluted the two before he walked over to his makeshift potions room. In reality it was just a few makeshift tools with a variety of different pots, good size desks, and a good fireplace.

    It was better than his inn at least.

    Walking inside Malum first filled the pot with some mundane water before he brought it to a near boil with a roaring fire. In the recipe it said that this part made the potion spread quicker, something Malum would like to test independently as to why exactly but for now he added the main ingredient.

    The red quickly took colour and whilst it was still warm, Malum added a few Scratch Berries. Not something that would carry over great effects but the odd occasion would be reported to healers and it would act as good decoy to add some time for the sickness to be cured.

    He didn¡¯t want anything to complex so he brought the mixture down to normal temperatures and added it to a waterskin. He made sure to separate his own and the poison before he informed his friends of his outing and then made his way towards the nearest water well. The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    They weren¡¯t the nicest places to visit to Malum avoided them as much as he could. They were muddy, sweaty, and stinking places to go to a now Malum was only going to make it worse.

    He felt the waterskin and felt several spots appear on his body. They were itchy, and hot, annoying spots that took weeks to disappear.

    Called Kobalt Spots they were from the consumption of goblin blood and usually happened when one of the soldiers who had found the common Beast, slayed it, then cleaned their blade by the well or cleaned their bloody clothes with the wells water, then drank it.

    Malum shook of his imaginations images and followed his way down the street. The well was close and he quickly shuffled over and got out his poison water skin.

    A few Workers were sat by the well, having a chat.

    ¡°Those bastards want more and more: every day, I can¡¯t deal with it.¡±

    Another said, ¡°How are we supposed to get 4 loads worth in just an hour?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s impossible.¡±

    The loss of coin had put pressure on every worker to make up the difference. Jameson revenge hadn¡¯t been a clean one, Malum knew that just as much as Jameson did.

    Now he was only going to make it worse.

    Guilt wasn¡¯t something he felt often but as he poured the potion into the well and thought of their suffering he couldn¡¯t help but feel the ugly emotion run into the deepest depth of his broken heart.

    Malum shook of the emotion. It was either guilt or danger, and that choice was easy.

    He prayed for the workers, to the God of Luck, and the God of Good. Perhaps they could help them get through the day.

    The workers still stumbled off as they had finished refilling their waterskins. Their dusty faces, smiling as one of them told a joke about their boss.

    Malum turned away from them before he headed home. This was why he didn¡¯t want to go out so much. Seeing suffering was different then hearing it and whilst the workers smiled, Malum knew that even slaves could smile.

    Arriving back, Malum settled down for the final few days until duty called.

    In the meantime, a solider came round to check on the condition of Jameson and see if he was actually ill. Many soldiers had tried to avoid service with the petty excuse but the army had zero tolerance.

    If you were caught faking illness then it was a cowardice charge and only the gallows would follow.

    Malum spent the rest of the time creating potions, whether they be poisons to help with the wave or medicine for Jameson. He also drank yet another body enhancement elixir which again gave him diminishing returns.

    New strength still ran through his veins so Malum had little to complain about.

    Getting ready to leave and Malum was packing for his trip. His senses remined fairly relaxed before he felt a small pinch on the side of his arm.

    He switched to focusing on Intuition and looked around the room to see that a faint layer of danger was wrapped around quite a few herbs and some of the instruments he had left around.

    Getting closer to a few and Malum tried to find what danger could be related to such seemingly unrelated objects.

    A Black Lizards Tongue, A Green Sparrows Feather, A dirtied pair of scissors?

    What on earth did they have in common?

    Malum rummaged through his mind, but the hint that found the answer was radiating on his very belt. He only noticed it as he went to sit down.

    A waterskin, the waterskin he used to poison the well. It would certainly make sense as to why that would bring danger as if somebody found it they could link him to the crime instantly.

    That was it. Malum brain clicked and the answer revealed itself.

    Every instrument, every herb, were for poisonous purposes. This wasn¡¯t the laboratory of a docter but one of a poison expert and in the heist there had been exactly one of those involved.

    What it also meant was that the room would be searched somehow, and if that was true that meant that Knight had indeed not given up on the hunt.

    The small thread had revealed the entire web. Now Malum just had to untangle the situation.

    He had already tried to distract the Knight; another attempt was going to be hard given the tough time constraint of only a few hours.

    Or did he even need to do anything? Removing the herbs and tools would turn his poison lab into a purely docter like lab and that would turn danger opportunity.

    Malum liked such a thought, and choose it the second he had thought of it.

    He collected the incriminating herbs, and picked up the chosen tools.

    With them in hand, he then made his way towards the garden where he began to dig a whole. Similar to the one the treasure was in, he chucked in the tools and then the herbs were piled on top. With such lacking conditions, in even a day they would become worthless so Malum decided to light them on fire and slowly he buried even that as well.

    He then evened out the earth, and tried his best to mold the new flat piece of brown into the green and gorgeous garden. Even if they dug it up, they would only find a bit of dead greenery and some old tools.

    Malum felt a layer of the danger surrounding him disappear. Like a scissor cutting a string, he felt a curtain of red fall into a lighter shade of red.

    Like a weight had been lifted off his soldiers, Malum walked back in and continued to prepare. As much as he wanted to kick his legs up after such a victory he couldn¡¯t.

    War called.

 Chapter 60

    ¡°Section B, your commander is away with illness so you have been assigned Seargent Greaves as a substitute. As you already have 5 members I trust this will be enough to hold the lines.¡±

    ¡°Sir, Yes Sir!¡± They repeated back.

    Malum eyed up Jameson¡¯s replacement and found himself looking at a fairly built, bearded, tanned dude.

    He spoke casually, although his voice was deeper than Malum had expected, ¡°Morning team members, names Grieves. I¡¯ve been here for 4 waves and done 2 in the Northern Front as well. Was reassigned here from being training instructor which I did for 3 years. You want any advice, ask me anytime and speak casually, my ears can hardly stand any more shouting.¡±

    Malum smiled at the endearing man and shook his rugged hands. He respected anyone who worked hard and he was looking at a prime example.

    They chatted more and with a new member, Mr talkative didn¡¯t miss the chance to ask Grieves about his love life.

    ¡°I¡¯m married... 14 years now.¡±

    Carl almost cried, still he at least got first encounter and several other questions to keep his habit fuelled.

    It wasn¡¯t until the last Section was finished did the Commander begin to talk about the regular strategy. Except this time he added a warning,

    ¡°Information has been going around that incidents last wave were particularly high. Higher sequence beasts were concentrated on particular Sections and so casualties were unusually high. I¡¯ve been told it was a coincidence but be warned of any danger, and if something you can¡¯t handle shows up then remember to report ASAP. Clear?¡±

    Another round of shouting lead to Malum being led to the canteen. They ate their fill and Malum got to chat more with Greives.

    ¡°I reckon that¡¯s why I was transferred you know. 3 squads got wiped last wave and one of my old friends led one of them, and he wasn¡¯t a weakling. Wouldn¡¯t die to anything at least below 30.¡±

    Malum agreed that the warning seemed odd. Raises and falls in death rates were not unusual as soldiers tended to make mistakes nearly by chance. Recruits had the worse odds but at the end of the day they were odds and even the strongest commander would fall to a Demonic Noble.

    His Uncle had told him of their strength and even the beast that killed him would only be a steed in their army.

    Malum shivered slightly but calmed at the fantastic taste of the food. Perfectly cooked, perfectly seasoned, Malum didn¡¯t want to stop eating.

    Alas physical limitations soon stopped him from shovelling more into his gullet.

    Usually he would have worried about the weight he would gain but with the exercise he was about to put in, he couldn¡¯t help but smile.

    Power was what made the sword butcher.

    Behind that sword was a smiling Malum. The demons were becoming weak, which meant he had grown strong.

    Poison entered their bodies and infected their corpse. When its brethren came to feast only more bodies joined the dinner table.

    Thrill was what sped the beating of his heart, but his intellect kept him from running berserk.

    He still had perfection to reach, he still had death to avoid.

    There would be stronger opponents, and so Malum calmed and returned to his slaughter, this time every action set on improvement.

    From fast to slow, from predictable to not, his forms needed to flow as water did, from the seas, to the sky, to the rain.

    Autumn was soon on the horizon and his birthday was near enough. He looked towards the rainy sky to answer what present he would get on such a fateful day.

    It had certainly been an eventful year, so he wandered what the Gods had in mind to top it off.

    Or perhaps he was just being dramatic, again the smile on his face showed his white teeth. Against the rain falling on his shoulders and the blood clinging to his clothes, if he didn¡¯t look like madman then Malum wouldn¡¯t know who did.

    A Demon charged through its fallen, Malum could have written its fate from the moment he spotted its attack.

    He didn¡¯t care if he looked like madman, perhaps even if he was one. As long as he was alive then everything else didn¡¯t matter.

    Like bread he carved through the demon, from its glowing red eyes to its spiked tail.

    The demon died, Malum lived.

    The slaughter was as usual.

    After a couple of hours it got boring.

    Even improvement couldn¡¯t help his falling retention. Only so many times could he excitedly use a new technique and now all he could do was repeat what he already knew in hopes he could learn something from it.

    Yet all he got from repetition was boredom.

    Malum wanted to spice things up a little. For as much as the unholy sight would intrigue those around him Malum had already seen it more than a few times. If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    He didn¡¯t want to drop a sword, as he still wanted to enhance his techniques. Instead he was going to give himself a small challenge.

    He relief a lot on his senses, so he decided to close one of his eyes.

    It wasn¡¯t too risky, as his intuition would warn him if he was about to die but it was dangerous enough to where his heart would begin to beat again.

    Culling a few demons and Malum noticed the changes.

    First was the mental toll. Boredom meant his previous state was easy and this new one was the exact opposite. His brain had to learn so much and the danger surrounding him forced it into overdrive to find the answers.

    Second was the accuracy strangeness. It was such an odd feeling that when he cut in a direction as his sword got further away he felt like he was aiming at the right place but his estimates where well off.

    The beast was further away or closer to where he had thought. He struggled to compare where his sword away from his eye. The speed of the action didn¡¯t help, but it was an issue Malum wated to fix.

    Third was balance. Because he was centred around where he could see, now that he had one eye that was no longer true and that single difference caused to stumble on more than one occasion.

    Other strange differences occurred but Malum reckoned those three were the ones he was best of trying to solve. With a new fresh goal he got to work.

    Darkness overset the sky, Malum never stopped trying to improve. One less eye was far less important when both wouldn¡¯t work anyway.

    Demons never stopped in their path for greed and with no poison left to coat his blade he returned to the styles most basic technique.

    For a Martial Art named Poison Sword it was well aware that not every time the swordsman entered a battle would they have poison so it adjusted one form for that particular occasion.

    With no poison wearing the enemy down, the technique was more bloody than the other techniques and it also had more deadly blows to make up for the lack of the deadly poison.

    Malum was using it because frankly poisons were expensive and because he didn¡¯t want to use the stolen money anytime soon he was as broke as could be. He still had few spare for any strong encounter he might find himself in but otherwise he was empty.

    It was a good idea to because not half an hour later he met a variant in the 20s. He couldn¡¯t remember the name, but he remembered the beasts weakness and that¡¯s what really mattered.

    It was a large almost flat beast that stood on all fours and used its reduced weight to not only hover but also for great speed.

    Its claws made good weapons and its eyes were made for nighttime hunting.

    As quick as Malum felt the danger he ducked below a small ridge but still felt the beasts claws on its back. Poison was what he immediately reached for and he choose the most potent one he had.

    A strong numbing one that caused muscles to fall into sedation minuets after its consumption.

    He coated his blade and then stood up to find his attacker. Looking into the dark he only heard the sound of their demonic beasts eating its brethren, the sound of gnashing teeth against tough skin and meat didn¡¯t drag his eyes away from the sky.

    Intuition just told him that the sky in general was a danger, it seemed it couldn¡¯t help him in finding exactly where his attacker was from such a distance. His ability seemed restricted by range and now wasn¡¯t a great time to find such a limitation.

    The moon was to dim for Malum to get a good visual and so instead he focused on what he would do once it dove for him again.

    His surrounding terrain was fairly favourable with many places for him to duck and hide in the need arrived. With bodies stacked around him all he would need to do was duck and enter one and he would be fairly safe.

    That method wouldn¡¯t work forever, instead he used his knowledge of the demons distinct hate for a certain smell.

    Usually such a weakness would have been pointless but as Malum searched through his bag he found a set of potion that had one ingredient the beast absolutely hated.

    A Jervento Tree¡¯s Leaf was a particularly odorous plant that had a certain intoxicating effect when boiled at the right temperature. That and several other ingredients had made a potion that would make an average man foam at the mouth with his mind so intoxicated it couldn¡¯t¡¯ physically continue to work.

    Malum just needed the smell though and so he poured it on his clothes and ensured the beast would attack again. Not soon after he threw the empty bottle back into his bag did he feel a rush of danger going for his back.

    He turned to see the attacker, and kicked back with his right leg. He rolled to the side as his eyes remained on where the danger was approaching from.

    With his new strength his speed was a fast as an arrow, and he hit the desert floor with power that recoiled onto his side.

    Not moments later did Malum see a blur pass through where he once was. The desert floor flew up with the wind the beast created and Malum was left second guessing if his attack was even possible.

    If he couldn¡¯t attack the beast perhaps he could poison it.

    With an idea in mind Malum quickly ran towards the nearest body. He dove next to it for cover as he began to wipe his sword on the corpse.

    He kept his mouth shut and breathed only through his nose as he then lugged the body on his back and stood as tall as his body allowed him.

    ¡°COME GET ME YOU FUCKER!¡± He shouted.

    Seconds passed but nothing happened. Malum second guessed if perhaps the beats had continued onwards, or even gone for his partner on the other side of the river.

    Both were options he didn¡¯t like.

    Danger revealed the answer as he felt a wave of dread pass through his skull he heaved the corpse into the air and dived into a nearby mound of corpses.

    He felt the whistling of the wind and a rush of danger and wind pass by him.

    It wasn¡¯t him the demon had gone for, instead it had taken his bait. Now it was time for him to wait out his praise last few minutes.

    He hoped the demon chowed down and thankfully they weren¡¯t known to be ascetic with their desires. The danger still pervaded the air and blood still dripped down his back. Or perhaps it was from corpses he was laying with.

    With poison perhaps in their blood and with his proximity Malum could even risk opening his mouth so instead he had to force himself to deal with the stench and before long Malum had added to the pile a mound of his own sick.

    Something about the combined stench of decaying bodies with the funny smell of that tree ingredient and perhaps the poison he had used to kill the demons around him had created something truly unforgettable.

    Sticking to his position. He waited longer and longer. Waiting for the danger to leave the sky he kept on breathing the smell through his nose.

    He started to cry long ago, but now he felt it running down his face. He gagged almost constantly but finally as the danger left his surroundings he erupted from the pile like a eruption from a volcano. He gasped for air and felt the cold breeze return to his senses.

    Decay still lingered but that was just one part of being a soldier. Now he needed to find the body of that demon, because a big kill meant a bonus and that would do well with his goal of promotion.

    He was about to feel relief knowing the danger had passed when a demon pounced on him from the shadows. He turned quicker and managed to get his blade in the path of the demons claw.

    Two forces met each other and Malum was forced back.

    He arms ached from the collision but the demon didn¡¯t give him any chance to rest and immediately closed the distance.

    Malum held back his sword and prepared. Once the demon was close enough he also rushed forwards to gain some speed and as the claws came once again, this time he predicted where it was going to attack and with a simple slight change in the blade direction, and a lean to the left and Malum had sliced the demons right shoulder whilst he himself had just dodged the attack.

    He finished off the demon with quick slice along its eyes and with no sight and the amount its shoulder was bleeding, the demon was as good as dead.

    Not a moment of rest and Malum found himself attacking another demon who was feasting on its dead brethren. He kept the thoughts for later, for now he just ensured he was safe.

 Chapter 61

    As he maneuvered around the battlefield, leaving death in his wake, he eventually found the dead corpse of the high variant flyer and confirmed his kill by taking its fluffy tail.

    It wasn¡¯t as large as its claws made it out to be and was only as large as a human but it looked more like a squirrel with large flabs of skin on it¡¯s sides.

    It¡¯s muscly legs were used to gain some air and the excess skin around its chest was used as a glider. Its sharp claws were instead just sharp nails although the difference at such a speed was hard to notice.

    A deadly demon for sure, one that certainly would fetch him some good army merits.

    Happy with the secured kill he got back to work.

    Morning arrived and the bright light of dawn came to Malum tired eyes. He looked upon the fields of dead bodies and at the blood soaked desert. On top of the corpse he was sitting on he could truly see a lot of the scenery.

    His face was full of mud and dried blood, but it was scowl that unusual for Malum.

    His army commander was right. The body he was sitting on was of another high variant. 029, Diplodocus. The only reason he even remembered the demons name was its absurd size.

    It main body was as large as any house. Turned on its side and it long neck and tree-trunk legs could fit the whole block.

    Its leg were like tree trunks and Malum noticed its arrival by the sound, and its long head swaying on the skyline.

    The only reason the goliath beast wasn¡¯t a higher variant was that it¡¯s strengths didn¡¯t play well against humans. Its head was its best weapon as its used its great weight to lumber its head along its great neck to deliver powerful blows, much like a mundane giraffe but when its attacker dodged them it didn¡¯t matter.

    He was like a fly, one which held a sword and continually did enough cuts with strong enough poisons to kill the damn thing and even then it took nearly an hour.

    He took three of the beasts colossal toe nails and whilst it wasn¡¯t a pretty operation, the sweet points he would get for his efforts made the process far easier.

    Joy was met with unease as Malum thought of more high variant demons coming for his blood. 2 in a single wave was more than a coincidence. Perhaps next month it would be 5, then even higher.

    Malum needed to know more information, but his rank wasn¡¯t high enough to access such information. Jameson would perhaps know more and so Malum had to settle with that.

    He continued to fight against the demons for a few hours longer, but it wasn¡¯t long before the sun rose to its peak and the demonic wave was complete.

    ¡°Good to see you still alive Leader.¡± Malum said to a bloody Greives.

    His reply consisted of him looking up and smirking at the boy, ¡°Your looking chipper. How are you still energetic?¡±

    ¡°Good blood and whole lotta training. Used to call me Edura Boy at the training grounds.¡± Malum managed to catch himself before he gave away his actual identity. The Endurance Monster was dead, now he was another Malum.

    ¡°Training grounds? I heard you didn¡¯t have training?¡±

    ¡°Private training, my parents were a Knight and a Maid under Baron Smith so I got sponsored training.¡±

    Grieves simply nodded and said, ¡°Fair enough, I got training down at Eastwood.¡±

    ¡°How was that?¡± Malum asked, steering the conversation away.

    It worked wonders as Greives seemed to hold countless stories of his military career. It lasted until they reached back at the Outpost.

    As Greives went to report about the Section as a whole, Malum went to trade in his extra kills and to check on his balance in general.

    Several soldiers were lining up already but it didn¡¯t take long before Malum was at the front of the que.

    ¡°How can I help you today?¡± Said the scholar sitting at the desk.

    ¡°I need to hand these in, and I want to check on my balance.¡± He placed the tail and nails on the desk and the staff quickly took it inside. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    The scholar made a few notes before he said, ¡°That is a two variants in the 20s, that is 500 credits each making it a thousand total. You¡¯ve had three total waves so far which have given you 3 thousand each which makes your grand total 10 thousand. Would you like to exchange that for your dismissal?¡±

    That is what most would have done, Malum was definitely not normal.

    ¡°No instead can I look at the prices of faster promotions and titles.¡±

    ¡°Of course, here is a paper with them listed out.¡±

    Malum took the paper and stood out of the que. The Scholar nodded at his actions and asked for the next person in line. He was going to take a second, and both knew that they didn¡¯t want to waste anybody¡¯s time.

    Back to the paper and Malum was deciding what to do,

    Ranks:

    Squad Member: Free

    Squad Leader: 2000 Credits + 5 waves completed

    Troop Leader: 10000 Credits + 10 waves completed + Minimum Title (Knight)

    Commander: 30,000 Credits + 20 waves completed + Minimum Title (Baron)

    Anything above is directly appointed by the King, who can also assign any rank to any person at any time he deem fit. In times of war, Positions will also be given when needed to those command deems able to fit the role.

    Titles:

    Knight: 15000 Credits + 10 waves completed + Required at least ownership of 1 Town.

    Baron: 50000 Credits + 30 waves completed + Requires at least ownership of 3 Towns. + Character Letter (Explained below)

    Viscount: Not available

    Count: Not available

    Marquie: Not available

    Duke: Not available

    Anything above is directly appointed by the King, who can also assign any rank to any person at any time he deem fit. Land is available in other sections and in the case of any Baron and above rank a letter must be sent to the king as to why the requester desires the title. All titles are hereditary for as long as the holders continue to contribute to the Kingdom.

    Firstly, Malum cringed looking at the costs. He could barely afford to be a Squad Leader. Everything was expensive because everyone Malum knew who had those ranks were instead assigned to the position by the King or a higher up.

    Greives was granted the position with his forced relocation. Jameson was capped at the Rank by the powers at the top.

    The last line was something Malum was interested in as well. He would Jameson what it meant as he would likely provide more information than the scholar on the front desk.

    Malum had time and he needed to remind himself of that fact more. He still had body reformation that needed to be done and he still had his entire mind to expand and grow before he could even think about becoming a cultivator.

    He returned the paper to the desk and walked off towards his tent. It had been a long day, and learning how much further he had to go wasn¡¯t a good way to end it.

    At least he was alive, and with such a thought Malum refused to stay down. In death he had wished for life far more than he could even count. Being sad whilst living his dream was beyond any logic.

    Emotion weren¡¯t logic but the countless arguments that come from such a thought continued long into Malum dreams. The darkness washed him of his emotions, and also his logic. There only fantasy remained.

    Inside of the command tent and Greives went to go and report to the commander.

    He knocked on the door first and waited for the confirmation to enter. He then looked upon the great behemoth of a man before he saluted and said, ¡°Sir, my report for Section B.¡±

    The Goliath waved at him to come closer and Greives quickly did as he was told.

    ¡°Kendrich really does create such sticklers. Regardless, voice your report Squad Leader.¡±

    Confused by the earlier comment, Greives took a second before he followed the order.

    ¡°Out of 5 initial members, 4 return from combat. Me, Malum, and the twins. Carl Frey seemed to have died at around 4 PM, with demonic beasts flowing into the twins side at an increased rate from that moment forth.¡±

    Demons were attracted the nearest source of their desire depending on their senses. Weak demons had worst senses and led them to roughly where that was. Demonic bodies were a good source of those and so they choose the twins section instead of the dead Carls section for exactly that reason.

    Davidson didn¡¯t smile, but his frown deepened when he heard news of Carls death.

    ¡°Good solider that one. Do you have a body?¡±

    ¡°We do not Sir.¡±

    Davidson breathe out. ¡°Alright that will be one hole to fix, anything else?¡±

    ¡°Sir the amount of high variants increased across all sub-section. I experienced one variant 20, the twins saw 2 and Malum saw 2. Such an amount cannot be a coincidence.¡±

    Grieves paused, and thought for a second.

    He had an idea, but it was one he didn¡¯t like.

    ¡°You will see a report on those increases by the next wave. Your team did well, although you will be assigned a new one next wave I hope you learned a thing or two about leadership. Enjoy your break Greives and relax a little. Your dismissed.¡±

    Grives saluted the man on instinct but regretted it as he walked out the door. He had just been told to relax.

    But how could he relax. Higher variants were rarely recorded down in the books he had read and whilst variations did occur he didn¡¯t like even the possibility of the potential threat.

    A Demonic Noble. That was what the book said.

    God he hoped it was just a variation.

    Davidson struggled to keep his stoic face. His mind hurt thinking of the report he would hand in and his heart struggled to cope with the numbers on the report.

    Casualties were up 60% this wave. Mostly due to the raise in high variants.

    He sat at his desk and pulled out a Calming Leaf smoker and set it alight. They were expensive but the smoke filling his lungs helped his mind relax from all the stress.

    He wasn¡¯t one for alcohol, not nearly as much as his squad mates were. Finally a smile appeared on his face. He remembered the laughs, the cheers, the ridiculous scenes they would create.

    He also remembered their funerals.

    One last prayer and his mind returned to the work at hand. First they would need to clear the mess created. He pulled his heavy greatsword onto his back before he lumbered his way out the door.

    He whistled for his men, before climbing on his own stead. They met him outside of the gates and before the minute had ended he was riding down the plains looking for any demonic bastards.

    They would do 4 laps of the Sector before the task was complete. With that in mind Davidson kept his head clear, his eyes sharp, and his sword ready.

    A single demon slipping past could mean a life lost. He couldn¡¯t allow that, not as a commander, not as a human.

 Chapter 62

    Malum awoke to a dim morning. Autumn was quickly arriving and so was his birthday. He kept the happy event away from his thoughts and instead focused on his ravenous stomach.

    He got dressed first and then headed towards the mess hall. There, he collected his food and sat down in an empty space. Greives wasn¡¯t there and neither was Jameson so it seemed he would be with his thoughts this morning.

    Thankfully, there was lots to think about. From reasons why demonic variant numbers were increasing, to his return back to Roosevelt City and his cultivation.

    First on the agenda was his return. He pondered on how the suspicious Knight had acted and how Jameson had been doing with his icy fever.

    He still had the blackmailed Nobles in play and the lack of evidence would surely keep him away from the gallows. Still, he couldn¡¯t be too sure.

    He spent the rest of the day training and thinking about ways to block possible threats the Knight could bring. He also booked his journey to the city and with it leaving tomorrow he had ample time to think through several scenarios.

    Malum was packing for his departure when the door to his room came swinging open. Malum¡¯s hand instantly reached for his sword but stopped when he realised the lack of danger.

    ¡°You have good reactions Malum.¡± Said the figure in the door, Malum quickly processing it to be Davidson, the commander of the Sector.

    ¡°Good morning Sir, to what do I owe the pleasure.¡± He said, whilst still packing his things.

    If Jameson hadn¡¯t specifically told him that the commander didn¡¯t like formality, he would have been standing as straight as his body allowed it: with his left arm down his side, and right held to his chest.

    ¡°I see Jameson has taught you well. Killed two high demons by yourself, a nice achievement. But I¡¯m not here to congratulate you.¡± He pulled out something from his commander uniform, ¡°You will need to deliver this to Jameson when you return.¡±

    Malum took the sealed letter and said, ¡°Are the official channels not open?¡±

    ¡°They are but this letter is a bit too sensitive for such methods. As his protegee you should be discreet enough, the fact you live in his mansion shows how much he trusts you.¡±

    Malum eyes widened at the commander knowing such a fact. He was going to ask, but decided not to.

    ¡°For my Master.¡± He bowed and the letter went into his sack.

    Davidson nodded and left the room as rudely as he entered. Not even saying goodbye.

    Malum shook of the goliaths attitude and thought about the strange feeling he felt when he was about to as how the Commander knew he was living inside of Jameson¡¯s Mansion.

    It was danger, but one different from what he usually felt. It felt deeper, darker, then the usual red mist he was used to. It was like it was a pool of blood.

    Odd, incredibly odd.

    Was it because of the commander strength? Or was he connected to something far more dangerous?

    Malum caught himself before he fell into another pit of theories, he instead finished his packing and entered the caravan. He made sure to sit next to the window and drank a potion that relaxed his senses.

    He could fall asleep, but he could certainly try to formulate some new poisons in his head. He thought of ingredients and reactions, from products to catalysts he kept himself busy and readied himself for whatever danger that Knight had cooked up.

    As he got closer to the city, the tinge of red in the surroundings slowly grew a thicker shade. It hung over the horizon, and weighed on Malums shoulders.

    The gate was as colossal as ever. Thick iron hung over him forming a large metallic mesh that would block even high tier demons.

    Thick stone made up the rest of the wall with another iron gate on the other side.

    Interestingly, the queue to enter the city was instead replaced by several carriages riding out. Fear of potential capture had scared away the lesser merchants but the smart ones stayed to fill in the gap.

    Nobody got to the top without taking risks.

    Malum looked away from the outgoing carriages and looked to the guards at the bottom of the metallic mesh. They were heavy iron full body armour and the weapons they held were as spotless as the amour which held them. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    They gleamed like gemstones, and Malum felt his eye twitch as one beam hit him in the eye directly.

    He cursed his luck and quickly averted his gaze. Pain searing whatever senses he had left.

    The potion was slowly wearing off and Malum was starting to regret his consumption. He could still sense his Intuition but it was weaker than usual and even his basic senses had taken a good hit.

    He reckoned at the rate he was recovering it would take another day for the potion to completely leave his system which gave him a day to rest and relax before he headed back to the mansion and dealt with whatever the Knight might have set-up for him.

    They entered the city with the driver showing just a single document. He chatted with the Knight for a second before Malum felt the carriage move once again and they dropped off soon after once they had arrived at the garrison¡¯s stables.

    Not wanting to get spotted by any Knight on his arrival, he snuck out the side and headed towards the nearest inn. He booked a room under a fake name and stayed there in the bed for a good while before he got up to train again.

    With a day of freedom, he of course would use it to train.

    He was a training freak but he was also human and it was his first day back in the city. Instead of doing more boring exercise he decided to live a little and have a night of no regrets.

    For most that would mean drinking, but Malum¡¯s rational side would hardly allow such wastrel behaviour so instead he met them at the middle and decided to go on a little steal.

    He could sharpen his Intuition, his stealth skills, and wind down a bit by doing something fun.

    It was already past midday but Malum reckoned he could get himself something nice if he set his mind to it. First on his agenda then was finding himself a fun little target.

    Malum didn¡¯t usually get to do something just for the fun of it and so he decided to go full out. He bought himself some piping hot bread, and a few fresh apples to begin his little event.

    Next he walked the streets looking for something to catch his Intuition. He saw several moments of opportunity, including a Noblewoman falling from her carriage, A Noble dropping his wallet on the street and even a shopkeeper who left his shop for several moments.

    All that netted him some good money but nothing that nearly scratched his itch.

    Instead what he ended up following was a delicious smell coming from the library. It felt vibrant and so Malum followed the positive Intuition.

    It wasn¡¯t any old library though, instead it was the Noble Library. Access was only permitted to the families who held titles of Knighthoods and above.

    With the dark mist of danger hanging over the entire city, the opportunity here felt like a beacon in a storm and Malum was ravenous for a taste.

    He reeled himself in though with the thought of his body being crushed. He couldn¡¯t risk it, not now at least. It wouldn¡¯t be long before he became a real Knight and he was sure Jameson could get him access so he decided to hold that opportunity for later.

    Instead the target ended up being an old mans house. For inside his drawer Malum found himself several interesting lockets and a few gemstones to boot.

    The lockets held pictures of the man and his family, his uniform looking like that of a butler and with his wife and 4 children it looked like a happy family. Why the locket held around quarter of the opportunity of the martial art book? Malum decided to let fate show him why.

    With night setting Malum headed back to the inn and settled down. Danger pervaded the shutter and sneaked into his room. It looked at Malum in the bed before disappearing back into the mist.

    Morning came and as Malum woke up to greet the sun he felt its warm rays against his skin. His senses had completely returned and looking into the thick red smog Malum was ready to return back to the mansion.

    He walked outside with the plain clothes he had bought the day before. He stuck towards the centre of the moving crowd and ensured he kept his head down.

    Day by day, he felt the pressure of the city rising. Long hours were taking their tole and with it came a build up of resentment. Malum felt like all it would take for the city to explode was a good enough match.

    That wasn¡¯t his problem, he kept his eye on the guards and made sure he got back to the mansion safe and sound.

    Because of his plain looks, he managed to make his way back in one piece and knocking on the door, Florence quickly ushered him in.

    Malum stepped through the door and felt the warmth of the house. The fireplace was going and as Malum climbed the stairs to see Jameson he felt the house only grow warmer.

    Opening the door to Jameson''s bedroom and Malum felt like he had entered the peak of summer. It was baking, so much he almost wanted to take of his shirt.

    Jameson was sat on the middle of the floor; he had several layers on and yet still looked to be shivering.

    Malum still saw how his suffering friend couldn¡¯t help but smile to see him enter the room.

    ¡°Malum!¡± He said, as he quickly got up to hug him.

    ¡°Good to see you too pal.¡± Malum said as he felt the strange coldness of the Jameson''s skin against the baking hot third layer he wore.

    Malum did find his reaction a bit much but sketched it up to his illness.

    ¡°Any updates so far?¡± Malum couldn¡¯t help but ask.

    Jameson peeled back from his hug and got himself a chair to sit down on. Florence entered not a moment later holding not only a chair for Malum, but also 2 cups, one filled with hot chocolate and the other filled with an ice cold orange juice.

    He was an angel. Malum thanked his profusely to which Florence only replied, ¡°Its my job.¡± Before Malum could argue with him, he disappeared out the door to probably do some menial cleaning.

    Breaking his thoughts process on how he could get his own butler, Jameson spoke.

    ¡°Apart from my illness, my taking of medicine there has been two events which you would be interested in.

    The first came just a day after you left, on the day of the wave. A solider came to the door with news of a capturing of one of the thieves of the Heist. His execution was a day later and was held in the main square, Florence went to see it and it was certainly a big event.

    Obviously it wasn¡¯t one of us so it was likely a fall man for the government to relieve some stress from the other Nobles. Florence is looking into the man¡¯s background as we speak but he looked very similar to me so there is that link.

    The second event came a day after that and it came in the form of a letter.¡± Jameson paused his speech and pulled something from one of his many layers. He then gave Malum the paper and let him read the contents for himself.

 Chapter 63

    Dear Baron Smith,

    Due to the recent robbery at the Roosevelt Bank you have lost some holdings in your personal vault. Whilst we cannot replace what you have lost, Duke Roosevelt promises to not rest before all thieves are found and hanged at the main square, he puts his honour and word on this.

    In the meantime we ask you to do business as usual. Many small factions are growing in strength and whilst they still would be crushed under the foot of the city strong City Guard, it would be best that they don¡¯t grow in the first place.

    We also apologise for the incident with your House Doctor, whom had been cleared of suspicions and such an incident will not happen again unless indisputable evidence comes to light of his collusion.

    The Duke himself wishes your health the best,

    From Knight Captain Gale Erving, of The City Guard and Subordinate of Duke Roosevelt.

    Now that was interesting. Malum assumed the first two paragraphs were sent to every Noble house and large merchantry in the city. It seemed like they weren¡¯t blind to the cities ills and such wanted the Nobles to stop their greedy actions.

    Alas Malum reckoned just a suggestion wasn¡¯t going to be enough to get them to calm down. They would need benefits or their treasures back otherwise it was the commoners that would bleed for them to get them back their wealth.

    It seemed they would use the first hanging the day before the letter was sent to improve the response to the letter and Malum assumed that the pressures of the factions in the city had calmed considerably.

    This was just at the top though, at the bottom tensions couldn¡¯t be higher, hence the danger pervading through the city.

    Just how much of that danger though was part of that, and then how much was down to that single Knights suspicions. It was nice to see that he was, in writing, cleared of suspicions as of now but that lose end was causing him a worrying degree of danger, or was it?

    It came to Malums mind that perhaps the danger wasn¡¯t largely coming the Knight anymore, and instead from the growing tensions of the lower class.

    If a revolt did happen, he was inside of Barons mansion. Not exactly the safest place to be.

    ¡°Let me hear your ideas of this Jameson, you¡¯ve had more time to think it through.¡±

    Jameson nodded, ¡°I¡¯ve reached out and every Noble received such letter at around the same time. With contents similar for the first part and a specialised message for the second half. It eased many of my Noble peers¡¯ hatred and it seems the bridge between them and the Roosevelts healed for now.

    The Peasant part is interesting. I sent Florence to collect some data and I myself sent some letter for even more data and what I found wasn¡¯t pleasant. Across the board, people are working more for less and with prices increasing they are not happy.

    For now they keep their heads down. A few factions make little movements but generally people are seeing if this treatment continues. They tell themselves lies and when it becomes too much to ignore they burst out in a flurry, protests then revolt. History repeats itself yet again.¡±

    Malum forgot sometimes but Jameson was far more educated then he was. Whilst he had his wise Uncle to teach him, he wasn¡¯t a proper teacher. As a Noble Jameson would have had tutors round every week since he was a child and he likely went to a proper school with several educated Scholars answering every one of their questions. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    ¡°It¡¯s worrying. I don¡¯t like the idea of being inside of this Mansion if such events where to occur.¡± Malum said, to which Jameson gave him a smile.

    ¡°Whilst I do think lowly of many Nobles they clearly see the problem. I don¡¯t doubt they will only do something when it gets bad but when they do I expect them to do it properly. There are entire books on how to quell public anger and they would have been forced to do so during their education. We will be fine,¡± Jameson saw Malums continued worry,

    ¡°Tell you what, if it ever gets that bad we can certainly move for a week or two. We haven¡¯t had those gorgeous eggs for far too long.¡±

    Malum salivated at the thought, ¡°Good idea.¡±

    Jameson had a drink of his hot chocolate whilst Malum sipped on his ice cold beverage. Then they continued to discuss.

    ¡°What are you planning going forward, ignoring the suspension of that Knight.¡± Malum asked Jameson.

    ¡°Ah, I¡¯ve had so much time to think and you¡¯ve finally asked me. Well now that I have ample funding I will slowly begin to start building up my wealth. I don¡¯t know how much it will cost but the prison of my eternal service will eventually be paid off.

    That¡¯s part one, during which I will also slowly pull back what my house previously owned by let go to save during our fall. Many assets was let go and held by those loyal to the House so that they would no longer be targeted by our enemies.

    I will need to build back a set of Knights loyal to the house and those will come from my old army buddies. I¡¯m sure many need good jobs as they rather indulgent in their pleasures. A good lesson on discipline will be needed but I¡¯m sure I could make it stick.

    With money coming in from business, and security provided already I will have regained what I had lost before and will begin to make moves to climb the hierarchy.¡±

    Malum nearly applauded the ambitious man. It seemed almost full proof but Malum was sure issues would arise, but he was also sure that Jameson was well equipped to handle them. He was a good man with a good head on his shoulders.

    He was large reason for his current success as how he would have started back up without him practically making his current identity.

    ¡°Sounds about right. I¡¯ve already told you a few times about my plan but know that if you ever need help I can make time whenever.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t say that like I wouldn¡¯t do the same. Me and you Malum will take this Kingdom for all its worth.¡±

    They shook hands and decided to from that moment forth they would forever remain friends. With the future planned for, now they needed to take on the present.

    Jameson could now focus on recovering and Malum focused on ending his saga with that annoying Knight. He needed an end to the bastard before he could move on so he got to thinking how to end it once and for all.

    He thought and starred at the night sky. A warm cup of water helping his fingers fend of the cold nights air.

    He sipped the warm drink every now and then as he let his brain churn.

    Plans fell through, some never even getting past the initial stage.

    It took 4 days before thought of near perfect plan, now all that was left to was enact it.

    He woke early to get ready for a busy day. He got dressed and headed downstairs to see Florence already in the kitchen.

    Malum sat at the table and found himself looking at the reports on the centre of the table. Some of them were for Jameson but Malum reckoned he wouldn¡¯t mind if he read them.

    Some of them were old companies that Jameson were reaching out to, others were letters between him and high command. It seemed he was already bargaining for his freedom but looking at the responses he wasn¡¯t having any initial luck.

    The others did concern him as they were updated reports on some of the rising peasant factions. Increased membership, and events were all things that pointed towards a growing future for the revolt.

    Then it was onto the responses of Nobles and Merchants to the letters, as expected there was a universal indifference to the warning. They believed in the power of the City Guard and they themselves had several guard who would protect them if the worst came.

    They had enjoyed being in power for to long and with nothing major occurring for 200 years the kingdom had enjoyed its prosperity for too long.

    Malum then enjoyed himself a lovely breakfast, with a cup of tea of which leaves came from a distant city.

    He then opened another letter of which¡¯s content he found much more interesting.

    Monthly War Report : Commander level

    Casualties last wave are up more than 50%, with a rise of sightings of high variants from every Section.

    Commanders are advised to double down on their groups, making a few stronger and joining an Section themselves.

    Causes of the increased demonic activity has been rumoured to be an approaching Baron. However these rumours are unconfirmed and could just be a dramatic increase in a natural variation. Until a Baron has been sighted, spreading such rumours is against the law and if caught could lead to disciplinary action.

    High command has asked for increased recruits which will only arrive in 3 months, hold strong and do the best you can.

    For King and for country.