“Are you certain you wish to go out there?”
“You said the situation is under control now, isn’t it?”
“Yes, but.. your arms..”
I was standing in front of a Sun Priest, in what appeared to be an infirmary inside the MIS headquarters, somewhere on the second floor.
Earlier, the armored vehicle seemed to have entered some sort of underground garage, likely through a hidden back entrance (well, perhaps it wasn’t hidden, as I simply never circled to the building’s northern side).
The short man did not linger, driving back outside as soon as we got off. As for us, I followed Alrox through a few corridors, and a set of spiraling stairs (both requiring his token to access, with the latter also requiring fresh blood), reaching the small hospital.
“Let it go. As long as his legs are fine, he’ll be fine, too.”
Alrox was leaning on the raised backrest off the hospital bed beside me. Unsurprisingly, his right forearm arm was broken, and his left shoulder-bone had received a fracture from the blight’s mighty strike.
“But.. should he stay here to give his report?”
“It’s fine.”
The man who has been my partner, up until this moment, waved his left hand, dismissingly.
“We already gave the urgent report to the chief, on scene. I’ll write up the full report later. As for you…”
He turned his head towards me.
“Visit HQ tomo- no, two days would be better. Ask for ember Alrox. I’ll leave instructions at reception to let you through.”
“Alright.”
I slowly stood up from the bed, both hands encased in splints and bandages.
“Get well soon, Alrox.”
There was a short pause before his reply.
“Thank you, Seb. Listen, if you need anything – you know where to find me. And don’t you dare forget about it – I hate leaving my debts open for long.”
I flashed him a tired smile.
“Alright. I’ll see you in two days, then.”
“Take care.”
With those words, I exited the field hospital. To my relief, there was still a guard outside, who agreed to escort me to the exit.
Unsurprisingly, there weren’t many guards around during our short walk.
The plaza outside the massive building was no longer pristine – dozens of black stains and cracks could be seen on the white stone surface, with vines and branches (mostly their smoldering or withered remains) still littering it.
I quickly estimated my routes – Stormcloud’s stables were 3 kilometers away, the temple was 6 in the other direction.
‘Might as well pick him up later… Wouldn’t want anything to happen to him on the road, in any case.’
With that in mind, I began making my way through the familiar street.
“Tensor’s Avenue.”
For the first time, I took the effort to check the street's name, something I never truly cared about before.
It was the long street that connected Ordolion’s plaza, the one where the MIS HQ stood, to the Enclave of Faith, stretching over more than 3 kilometers.
‘Never seen it like
this
, though.’
Aside from the smoldering wines, which likely once formed a similar barrier to the one I saw earlier, the street itself looked… Rough.
Along the fences, I would spot more than one bloody stain. Often, those stains would be at the end of bloody trails, leading to nearby buildings.
Two times, I even saw bodies – one man, one woman, with nobody nearby to take care of their remains. And, speaking of remains, I saw at least half a dozen vine and branch piles, two finely chopped, most of the rest cleaved through, one way or another.
Haa…
As the fighting was behind me, the charred and iron scents have become much more distinct in my mind.
Walking alone through the once-bustling street, illuminated by the soft yellow light of the self-igniting lanterns, hanging from the lamp posts, with occasional shouts, whispers and sobs reaching my ears, the true extent of the bloody desolation finally descended upon me.
‘At least we prevented it from getting worse.’
The thought didn’t bring much peace to my mind, so, instead, I decided to find something else to occupy it.
【Name】Sebastian (Ǎ̸ͅḷ̷̆ê̴͕̳x̷͎̪̎ ̵̭͗͐S̸̞̒̉m̴̝̙̈͠i̶̟͖͐t̷͔̣͗̌h̷̝͘͝)
【Path】Spellblade (1)
I slowly started scrolling through the familiar panel. I noticed my level was finally reflected near the Path, yet, I chugged it up to my own perception – after all, this was somewhat similar to what happened back when I ‘decomposed’ [Charge Thrust] into its two ‘sub-Skills’.
[Soul Contamination] - Your soul shall be corroded in 1014 days
Unsurprisingly, the number didn’t change since this morning – a morning which felt so distant.
‘Well, I think I managed to break through with some of my Skills, at least.’
[Arc Slash] was in its early 2’s this morning, while [Charge Thrust] was nearly mid-way to level 4, with both [Charge] and [Thrust] around 80% of their way to level 3.
‘Lets see. Maybe I managed to to jump a whole level with Ar-’
Even my thoughts were cut off, as I silently stared at the translucent symbols that only existed in my mind.
【Skills】:
[Charge Thrust] - Lv4 (3/100)
|__ [Charge] Lv4 (12/100)
|__ [Thrust] Lv3 (3/100)
[Arc Slash] - Lv4 (12/100)
[Arcane Meditation] - Lv1 (4/100)
‘...’
I even did a double take, scrolling to the (unchanged) Attributes page, and returning to Skills. However, the numbers remained the same.
‘That’s… a lot.’
While [Thrust] ‘merely’ jumped by 23%, bringing it just above the threshold of the next level, [Charge] basically skipped Level 3 (or, rather, it probably got there during the 1st fight), and was now sitting at over 120% progression compared to this morning.
Together, the two ‘sub-Skills’ also brought their combined Skill over a quarter of the way towards complete mastery.
But the real shock was seeing [Arc Slash] jump not one, but
two
levels.
‘I guess.. realizing its versatility, finding the way to use it either as a fast or a heavy swing, was one of the major milestones towards mastery.’
Now, thinking about it, even this Skill wasn’t as simple as it seemed.
‘Seriously, I should try to unlock more memories of his father. There may be more important stuff buried there.’
Regardless, didn’t this mean I was actually close to jumping straight to Level 3?!
‘They say desperation is the biggest drive of innovation. If this was because of those near-death battles, maybe I should try them again sometimes.’
‘...’
‘Nah, fuck it.’
I wanted to grow more powerful, and quickly, but throwing myself into battles with less than a <10% chance of survival was not the way. After all, all of this effort would be for nothing if I simply died at the end of it.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
‘Well, that last level is harder than the rest, and [Thrust] is gonna need a lot of work… but still..’
This was an insane level of progression for just a single day. Even if I wouldn’t be able to swing my sword for a week, this was still more than worth it.
This reminded me of that conversation with the Slayer trainer, about some adventurers ‘stacking’ their Skills early on, then advancing a bunch of levels in quick succession.
‘Actually, if I get a decent reward, I might pay for a few more spars with him. If this helps me get to Level 3 faster, it’d be more than worth a hundred gold coins.’
After all, even though I survived one encounter with the High Druid, this was nowhere near the full extent of the threat.
‘Although I might actually end up leaving soon… but still. Gotta at least stay until the MIS rewards are granted. Plus, I really wouldn’t mind studying magic a bit more…’
Really, with access to Anne’s knowledge (not to mention her library, and Central, in general), leaving as soon as I could wasn’t a foregone conclusion anymore.
While considering my next steps, I’ve already reached the Enclave. Not much later, the Plaza of Devotion came into view.
The sight here was marginally better than the water facility plaza, but not by much. Although all bodies had already been cleared, the blood suggested that this packed public square saw its fair share of tragedy.
Well, perhaps, with all the major temples around, including the paladin orders, bigger casualties were still avoided, and all non-critical injuries were treated in time.
The most dramatic evidence of this the past battle was the statue at the center of the plaza, with Theodor’s head (the original city ruler, not the MIS chief) missing from his cracked stone shoulders.
The few charred or withered remains of what seemed like extremely thick vines, twice as much as those used by the Elder Druidess, suggested a similar avatar manifested here.
“Hey, ar- Sebastian?!”
Out of the few people patrolling the plaza, one, a Solar Paladin, recognized me.
“Erm.. Sederick, right?”
This was the paladin who escorted me from the Eastern Watch headquarters a few days back, which felt weeks away.
“...Roderick.”
“Yes, sorry.”
“Forget it! Are you alright? What happened?”
“Got in a fight. Survived. Got some healing, came here.”
This was much simpler than trying to recount all of the things that happened on this day – not to mention, my meeting with the High Priest, assuming it was still in-force after this attack, would take place in less than an hour.
The paladin did not ask any more questions, likely reaching the same conclusion.
“Come. His Eminence shall see you soon.”
***
At night, the Sun Temple - specifically, the main complex - wore a different appearance from that of the day. I have once heard about this from Amelia, yet, until now, I had no reason to visit it at such hours.
When I entered the main hall, what greeted my eyes were hundreds, perhaps thousands of tiny orbs of light, spread across the high walls and ceiling. I knew the same type of tiny sun-specks, which were, in essence, not much different from my Light Orb, illuminated the whole building, including its many public rooms and corridors.
As I followed the paladin, I saw many people filling the benches of the hall, some standing below the many murals, whispering their silent - or not-so-silent - prayers.
Even without my senses, I could guess many of those prayers wished for the health and safety of friends and loved ones, some in different parts of the city, others laying in the hospital, in the same building that served as my temporary respite for those last few days.
“Aren’t we going up there?”
I was surprised when the armored man turned right at the spiral staircase at the base of the spire, heading down rather than ascending.
“Too long. There is no need to ascend the entirety of the Dawn Tower – not to mention, his Eminence is waiting for you at the peak, anyway. Would take some time to unlock all the gates.”
I was a bit confused by his choice of words, yet, upon descending to the 2nd basement layer - which, like the hall and previous corridors, was illuminated with the same artificial sunlight - I understood what he meant.
Beyond a large gate, guarded by one of his peers, was a chamber, right beneath where the center of the spire would have been.
Inside, no furniture, murals, or objects of worship could be found – only a large golden circle on the floor, its inner surface covered with a different type of stone than that of the building.
Following Se… Roderick’s wordless motions, after giving him my sword, I stepped into the circle, reaching its center.
“May the light guide you, Sebastian.”
His solemn voice, no different than usual, sent a chill down my spine for some reason.
“Thank you, Ro-”
I didn’t get to finish my sentence, as I felt the world around my shift – as if, one moment, I was in the driver seat of a car, and the next, I was flying out through the front windshield.
“Gha..”
In instinctively closing my eyes, I swallowed the acidic bile in my mouth, barely resisting the urge to vomit.
“Forgive the hasty nature of those summons – I simply hoped to save you the lengthy ascension.”
Upon hearing the High Priest’s voice, I slowly opened my eyes, once again.
The circular room I was in, illuminated by soft, yellow light, was even less spacious than the one where we last met. This was understandable, of course, given that the spire - which, turns out, was called the Dawn Tower - narrowed near its peak.
Beside the stairway, leading downstairs, two particular things in this room drew my gaze.
First were the murals on the floor, depicting ancient temples under the sun, sitting in the floor’s center. Those illustrations initially entered my vision by virtue of me leaning forward, trying to resist the urge to puke.
The second thing was the massive, light-yellow crystal, emitting a soft light, like that of the early morning sun, floating near the center of the curved ceiling.
“I see this terrible day has left its mark on you, as well.”
I turned around, facing the old man, still wearing his gilded light-yellow robes, the color of which perfectly matched that of the large crystal.
“Tis’ but a scratch.”
I saw the wrinkles near Tristan’s mouth curve, ever-so-slightly, even though he had no way of knowing the otherworldly reference.
“Then let us begin at once.”
I felt slightly strange at the priest’s thinly veiled urgency, yet, on the other hand, given the avalanche of urgent problems this day must have created for the Temple, it was understandable.
Following the motion of his hand, I approached the luxurious armchair behind him, its light-brown frame made of wood and lined with gold, and the velvet cushions, making up both the seat, the backrest and the armrest padding, showcasing its extravagance.
“This ritual will help us inspect your soul. In there, lay the answers to both your questions.”
After a momentary pause, I nodded.
In truth, I was a bit worried about my passive activating, but then again, there was no way this ritual was less powerful than that Elder Druidess’s spell, and as such, I could simply choose not to resist it.
“Now, prepare.”
As the High Priest raised his hands, I could feel the Tides in the room suddenly bursting into rapid motion, as if I was amidst a storm.
Ba-dum
I could feel my heart pounding in my chest.
This was it – soon, I would have my answers…
Whether I liked them or not – well, I could only hope for the best.
‘Maybe I should have prayed-’
My thoughts were cut off, as, abruptly, the world was painted black.
***
Not that long ago, when Tristan opened the letter from one of his sweetest, most kind, albeit also most naive apprentices, he was surprised.
He could believe she met a man affected by a Greater Geas, yet Soul Corrosion? An affliction most- no, not just people, but even most clergymen would never hear of?
This had to be some sort of mistake. Perhaps she or the youth misunderstood.
Still, for the sake of a promising young priestess, he decided to send that token, and warn the young man of accidentally using that phrase, which someone, by a stroke of misfortune, could recognize, mistaking it for the real thing.
During his long, long life, including the century he had served as this temple’s high priest, he had witnessed countless tragedies, even if from a distance. An old Sun Priest turning to the evil god of undeath, a young apprentice getting caught in the scheme; Despite the Inquisition’s best efforts, such cases couldn’t always be prevented – he had learned of similar stories playing out more than once.
And yet, by the Goddess's grace, this time, the worst scenario has been averted. Or, rather, prevented. Even though her mortal coil had perished, at least her soul was safe.
Of course, when the young man responsible for those deeds arrived, the same day as the news, Tristan had already decided to try his best to rid him of the Geas. And, as such, he was ready to begin preparing for the Radiant Soulgate ritual, one which would allow both him and the man to search for clues, as to resolve this vicious curse.
However, once his gaze fell upon the man…
Over 100 years ago, back when he had only just reached the Transcendent realm, and was still a high-ranking member of the Inquisition, he took part in a secret mission very few would ever hear of, yet one of national importance;
Deep within the Dark Regions, below the Iron Ridge, and at the very edge of the Silverton province, an ancient Lich, who was once, presumably, an Archmage of the Thousand-Flame Empire, had been awakened from his age-long slumber.
As the vile undead's influence began to seep to the surface, the Inquisition mounted an immediate and massive response, which Tristan partook in.
Many of his junior brothers and sisters never made it out of those dark depths, yet he, along with the rest of the core strike team, managed to make it to the very heart of the deadly lair, to face that terrifying undead Wizard.
Among the many things from that mission he'd never forget, was the feeling of gazing upon the ancient, rotting soul, a perversion of the very essence of life itself.
Over a century later, the man before him… something about him gave off a similar feeling. However, it wasn't quite the same.
If the Lich's soul was frozen swamp, its edges festering and melting away to reveal the repugnant, rotting liquid underneath, then the young man's soul felt like a hurricane of unholy chaos, threatening to devour all that approached, and perhaps – even itself.
However, the similarities were undeniable.
While he did not show such emotions in front of the youth, his heart ached, and his tongue felt an aftertaste most bitter.
After saving the soul of his poor apprentice, how, exactly, was this fair? To have his own soul face a fate as terrible as this?
The next day, as the sun was at its zenith, he couldn't help but call out to his Goddess. And, to his mild surprise, she did not hesitate to answer.
However, to his even greater surprise, what she gave him was not a solution – at least, not the one he had hoped for. What she gave him was a mission – a bittersweet one, at that.
Still, it was not his place to complain. After all, devotion and trust were the essence of faith, and, to and in his Goddess, he lacked neither.
Now, ready to perform the first ritual, just as promised, he couldn't help but feel a tinge of guilt. Not about his promise, which he would fully keep, but rather, about what was left unsaid.
And yet, by now, such a feeling was meaningless.
[Radiant Soulgate] !!!
Performing the final rite of this sacred ritual, he felt his consciousness detach from his mortal shell, entering that of the young man.
Of course, he could also feel the consciousness of said young man at his side.
However, what he didn't feel was the warm light of the soul. Rather, what stretched before his proverbial eyes was an endless wall of darkness.
No. That… was not darkness.
“By the light…”
Even by the start of the third century of his life, he had never once witnessed a sight so repulsive.
And so terrifying.