Immovable Mage

– Era of the Wastes, Cycle 216, Season of the Rising Moon, Day 84 –

“Who are you?” A dwarven man was kneeling on the wooden floor with his hands and legs tied up. “Why are you doing this?”

Near the wall of the badly illuminated building, there were a dozen more people tied up and gagged.

“Heh.” A seemingly middle-aged, human woman was sitting cross-legged in front of the dwarven man. She was wearing a dark leather coat and a black headband. Behind her were three other people wearing the same outfit.

The woman put a sheet of paper on the floor and then slid it across the floor towards the dwarven man with two fingers. “This is a list of cults that have conspired to sabotage Arcana’s barrier. Take a guess why I’m here.”

“What is this?” The dwarven man stared at the list and his face became ashen. “No, no, no. The Circle of the Bright Lady would never. We would never. This can’t be right. I can assure you that—”

“You can assure me of a lot of things.” The woman cut off the dwarf. “That does not mean that I will take your word for it.” She leaned slightly closer and stared into the dwarf’s eyes. “We have already verified the veracity of this list.

“I’m speaking to you, because your mana signature carries the most intense traces of the creature you call the Bright Lady,” said the woman. “I presume that you have the highest authority here. Do you have an official rank in your cult?”

The dwarf shook his head.

“Then I hope that you will provide the required information so that we can find someone more appropriate to talk to.” The woman spoke in a tone that made it clear she was looking for acquiescence. “I want to find a Bright. If you can’t lead me to one, I hope that you can lead me to someone who can.”

One of the gagged people started screaming while glaring and shaking their head.

“Let me tell you a story first,” said the woman. “My grandparents once fled from the Lich Kingdoms. Have you ever heard of someone escaping the Lich Kingdoms?”

The dwarf furrowed his brow and shook his head.

“That’s because it practically never happens,” said the woman. “Even if you manage to leave the border, the worst is still ahead of you. The lich kings have a dedicated unit to deal with those that attempt to escape their clutches. They call themselves the Hounds and they’re among the most ruthless scum that walks the earth.”

The dwarf looked at the woman with incomprehension. He did not understand what she was getting at.

“The evil martial sects may skin you alive, drink your blood, and refine your soul,” said the woman. “But they leave the core of your person intact. The Hounds, by contrast, will break what makes you you.

“They don’t kill you.” The woman tapped her index finger on the floor. “They infect you with the karmic soulrot so that your mere presence will kill everyone close to you.”

“They don’t kill innocents to threaten you.” The woman tapped her middle and ring finger on the floor. “They will use drugs and mind magic and let you be the one to hurt the innocents in your path.

“They don’t draw blood to torture you.” The woman tapped her pinkie finger on the floor. “They will starve you and then prepare a feast in front of you every day. All you need to do to dig in is to betray whoever is close to you. Share their secrets, little things at first. Get you used to the idea of betrayal, make the idea a part of who you are.”

The woman tapped all the fingers of her hand one by one. “Until you hate yourself with every fiber of your being. Until all that gave you meaning and comfort in life has been torn down. Until you either want nothing more than to die or turn into a beast that can only thrive in the Lich Kingdoms.”

The dwarf’s mouth opened, but he did not know what to say.

“The reason that my grandparents were able to escape…” The woman gestured at the people behind her. “The reason that their descendants are free to walk the earth was the help and charity of Arcana. My grandparents made sure that every member of our family understands the grace that we have received.” The woman’s tone became solemn. “Even on their deathbeds, the last thought of my grandparents was with Arcana.”

“My parents, aunts, and uncles, joined the army. Me, my siblings, and most of my cousins have chosen other professions, but…” The woman clenched her hand into a fist. “As long as we draw breath, threats to Arcana will not be tolerated.”

“Please, we know nothing,” begged the dwarf. “We would never…”

“I’m telling you all this to make you understand that this is personal,” stressed the woman grimly. “Not between you and me, but between us and your cult. See, if it was just another organization, then it would be one thing – kill the head and be done with it.” She sighed. “In the case of cults, however, we can’t know for sure if the threat originated from a wicked person or from the vile creature in control of your minds.”

“The Bright Lady would never—”

“Save it.” The woman cut him off again. “I’m not enjoying this.” She scowled. “Normally, my siblings and I are getting paid to hunt down people like the Hounds. Curse mages. Evil sects. Mass murderers. Insane necromancers. The scum of the earth.” She clicked her tongue. “Aside from your cult membership, I’m not convinced you qualify.”

“I’ll be upfront with you.” The woman leaned closer again. “The only way for us to ascertain if this was just the sin of a few cultists or the sin of the otherrealm creature itself is to find a person that has opened their mind far enough.” The woman stared into the dwarf’s eyes. “You can point me in the right direction or we are forced to go with the uncharitable interpretation, which means you will all die. We will make it quick and painless, but you will die unless we get an answer.”

“...” The dwarf seemed conflicted and his expression changed repeatedly.

“Cousin, look at this.” A man in a dark leather coat walked up to the woman from the gagged hostages. He had been rummaging through the people’s belongings and handed over a sheet of paper.

The woman looked over the piece of paper. “A bounty?” She examined the dwarf in front of her and then slid the paper to the dwarf. “What can you tell me about this?”

“This person helped murder a Bright in Libra City,” growled the dwarf. “A wasted dump in the northwest.”

“Wanted ‘dead or alive’?” asked the woman pointedly.

“Better dead,” grumbled the dwarf with a dark expression.

The woman looked at her cousin.

“We’ve checked and while there is a corresponding bounty from the Tiv branch of the Guardians, that bounty has been contested from Arcana,” said the man.

The dwarven channeler scoffed quietly. “Bigoted blasphemers.”

“The Bright in question was actually that woman called Willow,” continued the woman’s cousin.

“Oh?” The woman looked over the dwarf and the other followers of the Bright Lady. “So you are bounty hunters? Looking to kill this ‘Terry’?” A cold glint entered the woman’s eyes. “Let me get this straight. You are looking to kill an Arcanian citizen for being part of a group that killed Willow – the woman that was one of the main conspirators against Arcana’s barrier?”

“What?” spat the dwarf. “Lies! A Bright would never—”

“I believe we are done here,” the woman stood up. “I don’t know if this Terry had already figured out what was going on or if there was another reason behind his actions, but I won’t allow you to threaten a fellow Arcanian for getting a head start in avenging Arcana. Your hunt ends here.”

The woman nodded at her cousin, who then gagged the dwarf. “Make it quick and painless. Afterwards, cut out the channeling anchors and burn the flesh. Nail a list of the involved cults outside before we leave.”

“““Understood.”””

The woman walked outside where more of her relatives waited. “Which of the culpable cults is next?”

“Nearest is a group from the Divining Eye,” said a short human woman. She handed a map with marked locations to her leader.

“Divination?” The woman that acted as a leader scoffed. “Pretentious, aren’t they? Scrying the mysteries of the present is challenging enough but divining the future is a mess of probability distributions.” She stepped forward and handed back the map. “I wonder if they’ll see us coming…”

***

In a sparse forest, Miguel was crouching and examining the traces on the ground. “Folks have been here not too long ago.” He pointed at several twigs. “These sharp snaps are from boots.”

Terry frowned.

“Doesn’t have to mean anything, right?” interjected Siling. “I mean we are walking here, too.”

“I like your optimism,” said Calam and grinned.

“In this case, I don’t,” said Lori with a furrowed brow. “Hope for the best but prepare for the worst.”

Terry nodded. “We’re avoiding the main road because I have a bounty on my head.” He looked at Siling. “What are the chances that we’ll get along with the next person in a similar situation?”

Siling shrugged. “Spells ready, got it.”

“Can you show me the map?” asked Lori. After Terry handed it over, she read over the notes from Matteo and the Guardians.

Lori returned the map to Terry. “The road runs between major trade hubs. Remember the bounty hunt introduction?”

“Primary target for bandits,” muttered Terry while nodding.

“Clean up the area while we’re passing through?” asked Miguel.

Terry made a conflicted expression and then shook his head. “Not unless a confrontation can’t be avoided. A confrontation would take time.”

Miguel nodded.

Next to Miguel, Calam frowned but also nodded slightly. “Can’t be helped.”

“Let’s keep an eye out and continue at a comfortable pace,” said Terry. “If we don’t encounter anyone, then they are probably just avoiding attention just like we are. If we find someone waiting in the bushes,then…”

“Spears ready,” finished Lori.

They continued to walk for an hour and then, they sensed several folk signatures among the trees in the distance. The people were waiting.

“What now?” asked SIling.

“Probing,” murmured Terry. “They haven’t sensed us yet. Let’s circle around and see how they will react when we enter the range of their sensors..”

They distanced themselves further from the road while moving further forward.

“They have cloaked their mana,” said Terry.

“And their life signatures are moving,” said Siling. “From what I can see, they’re all gathering and separating into two groups. One to our front, the other in our left flank.”

“I’m sure they have only the best intentions.” Miguel spoke with sarcasm.

“Let me test something,” said Terry. He stopped cloaking his mana.

“They’ve stopped moving,” said Siling.

“Probably getting second thoughts.” Miguel snickered with a glance at Terry.

“Avoiding flies…” Terry muttered to himself.

“And they’re moving again.” Siling frowned.

“Looks like their greed overcame their good sense,” grumbled Miguel.

“Ambush them first?” suggested Lori.

“Eh…” Calam grimaced. “It’s still possible that they’re not bandits, right?”

“They’re definitely not random citizens,” retorted Miguel.

“Still…” Calam fidgeted with his hands. “It’s possible that they’re like Terry and are afraid of bounty hunters themselves.”

Terry slightly shook his head while biting his lips. He recalled the mana signatures he had sensed. “I can probe them.”

Lori frowned instantly. “What do you mean ‘I’? How about ‘we’?”

“They reacted to my mana signature,” said Terry. “Which means that I have their attention. If they’re bandits, then they should jump at the chance to take me out. Less so if everyone is with me.”

“I don’t like this,” grumbled Lori. “Couldn’t I approach from below at least?”

“You can’t cloak your mana signature,” reminded Terry.

“Hmph, I hoped you would forget that detail,” grumbled Lori.

“What’s the plan?” asked Miguel. He glanced at Lori. “We can still object after hearing him out, right?”

Lori shrugged.

“If they concentrate their attention on me, then I can try and lead them to a proper spot,” said Terry. “A clearing where my items for large groups work better. I can act as if I was scouting ahead.”

Terry glanced at Siling. “We have the benefit that we can sense each other. Also, they should not have caught on yet that we sensed them before they sensed us.”

“One adjustment,” said Miguel. “I want to go with you for the first part. Just far enough to verify if they have masked their physical presence as well. I would like to know if I can aim properly or if I need the thermal scope.”

***

Terry walked slowly while maintaining his mana detection field. He pretended to examine traces on the ground while adjusting his position in order to guide the hidden people that were encircling him.

Terry dashed forward towards one person that was further apart than the others. He hit the person with a palm that carried a disruption discharge and then placed his inscribed dagger at the person’s throat in one fluid motion.

“Wh—”

“Silence,” barked Terry. “Why are you following me?”

For a bystander, it looked as if Terry was talking to the empty air.

A scar-faced, elven man appeared where Terry had detected a person before. “You can see me?”

“Are you trying to bullshit me?” retorted Terry. “You’re not alone. Why are you and your friends following me?”

“Hahaha, how interesting.” The scar-faced man snapped his fingers and two more people became visible.

“Still trying?” Terry spoke with emphasized disdain. “Four more next to you, two more on the left over there.” Terry pointed with his eyes.

“Hm…” The scar-faced man frowned.

“Why are you following me?” repeated Terry.

“My, you are insistent, aren’t you?” The scar-faced elf smiled. “See, we were only worried about you and your companions. Don’t you know that carrying so many magic items with you can attract disaster?” Unrestrained greed entered into his eyes. “Fortunately for you, we are good people. We are willing to free you from that danger and take those troublesome items away. Your lives will be much safer afterwards. How about you show some gratitude instead of threatening one of my subordinates?”

Terry smiled mirthlessly.

“Hahaha, look at him.” The scar-faced man pointed at Terry. “He seems to be happy that we are offering to help.”

To his surprise, Terry noticed that he did indeed feel a touch of relief after the bandit’s words. Terry briefly wondered why and the words of the Preacher’s helper, Clarence, echoed in Terry’s mind. The words from the time they had encountered the guard from the Black Arachnid organization.

The world of beasts.

Terry’s gloves emitted a blinding light. He burst his mana and cut the throat of his bandit hostage. He hurled a small, heavy item towards the group in front and dashed towards the two bandits on the left.

The arrows and bolts that the enemies shot at Terry were transfixed in the air.

The cylindrical object that Terry had thrown transfixed in the air as well. Inside, a heavy, cylindrical object continued moving forward due to inertia. It moved outside the enchanted storage compartment, which reduced a part of its weight, and continued to compress the liquid in the front compartment.

*Squit* The liquid inside was pressed forcefully into a tiny nozzle. An effect similar to a spray water bottle was created and a fine stream of droplets were propelled towards a larger area.

Cries of pain rang out as the darkwater engulfed the largest bandit group.

Before Terry’s attack hit, a few bandits had already unleashed spells. Shortly before they reached Terry’s moving figure, Terry unleashed his prepared disruption pulse.

Terry arrived in front of one of the flanking bandits and ducked a shortsword. In one nimble motion, Terry rammed the mana blade of his dagger into the man’s kidney and twisted the handle. He punched his free fist into the man’s groin and then charged the second bandit nearby.

Terry continued channeling mana into the keen dagger and intentionally missed with a slightly slower move to draw the bandit’s attention. While the bandit was completely focused on the mana blade, Terry pulled his second inscribed dagger and stabbed it from below through the woman’s chin and into her head.

Without slowing down, Terry jumped into the air and then propelled himself towards the group of debilitated bandits. None of them were able to put up much of a fight anymore. Only the scar-faced leader still had the awareness to channel mana into a protective item that created a sphere of fire.

Unfortunately for the scar-faced elf, the item was not well shielded. Terry activated his own barrier visor, circulated his mana according to his resistance training, and then shot forth a palm to collapse the imprint that created the fire sphere. Terry’s other hand arrived with a keen dagger that took the bandit’s life.

A while later, the rest of Terry’s companions arrived.

“Damn.” Miguel stared at the haunting sights of the darkwater attack’s victims. “How many of these do you have?”

“I can refill them and the darkwater was actually a lot cheaper than expected,” said Terry while searching through the bandits’ belongings. “Darkwater does not really have any non-combat uses and apparently, it’s a byproduct of a few rituals and some weapon tempering techniques.

“The expensive part is the nozzle that needs to remain completely unaffected by the darkwater,” explained Terry. “Same for the acids.” Terry frowned slightly. “Only the acids are expensive to begin with. The acid I could buy in large quantities is normally intended for crafting.”

“The concentrated alcohol and oil were the cheapest, I take it?” said Miguel.

“Yup, but lighting them up in the middle of a forest seems a bit questionable,” said Terry. He pulled off a ring from one of the bandits and examined the mana inside. “Found it.”

“I got a live one.” A muddy Lori hurled an unconscious bandit on the ground. The man was tied up and gagged. “In case we have questions.”

“Here.” Terry handed a few rings to the group. “These should be what they used to hide their presence and mana signature.”

“Bit redundant for me, isn’t it?” Siling received the ring and grinned.

“There should be enough for everyone and it’s always better to have more options,” said Terry. “Especially for our healer.”

“Always so serious,” muttered Siling and moved her gaze over the area. “Might be due to all the blood around here.” She looked at Terry with a teasing smile. “The next time you give a ring to a woman, you should pick better scenery.”

Terry rolled his eyes.

Calam crouched down to the captured bandit with a slightly distraught expression. He slapped the bandit awake and then lowered the gag. “Why would you attack us?”

“Just kill me, little punk,” growled the bandit.

“Just for a few items?” Calam shook his head and glared at the bandit.

“Bah!” the bandit scoffed and then spat some blood and bile on the ground. “Don’t act all noble and holy in front of me.” He raised his chin towards Terry. “I’ve seen that punk’s face on a bounty. You’re not better than me.”

Lori punched the man’s temple while restraining her strength. “My brother isn’t a piece of shit that would kill people for their possessions.” She crouched down and leaned towards the man, who involuntarily shivered. “And I believe we’ve already established that we’re better at fighting, or do you want to try again?” Lori stood up and continued giving the bandit the stink-eye.

Terry was collecting his emptied spray container that had fallen to the ground.

How did it get damaged? Did they shoot another projectile that I missed? Or was that dent always there?

Terry narrowed his eyes at a barely visible dent on the container. The container was specifically prepared to contain the troublesome liquids, which had Terry pay close attention to its condition.

“Wheww.” Miguel whistled. “Terry? If you have questions, you might want to ask them before the idiot gives more infuriating commentary.”

Terry jolted from his thoughts and then crouched down in front of the bandit as well. “Have you ever heard of a four-leaved blood tulip?”

“A what?” The bandit furrowed his brow.

Terry instantly cut the bandit’s throat and spine with his dagger’s mana blade.

The color drained from Calam’s face and he swallowed hard.

“Not in the mood for a chat?” Miguel knitted his brows and looked at Terry with some concern. “You alright?”

Siling glanced at Miguel and then at Terry. “You do seem a bit different since we’ve entered Tiv.”

“I’m fine,” said Terry wearily. “I just don’t want to waste time and…”

People here are different, too.

“Nevermind.” Terry shook his head. “I’m fine.”

“I guess we’re all a bit tense.” Miguel shrugged. “We’re getting close to the Wasted Zone.”

Lori grunted shortly. “The words of a bandit can’t be trusted anyway…”

Calam stared at the dead bandit. “Yeah, but I think I’ve learned at least one thing from him…”

Lori raised an eyebrow.

Calam glanced at Terry. “I don’t think I’ll ever blindly trust a bounty poster again.”

Lori raised her eyebrow even higher. “Were you asleep during the theoretical part of the bounty hunting introduction?”

Siling giggled.

“Yeah, that’s kind of how it should be,” said Miguel with an amused expression. “We are supposed to vet the information and its sources for a reason. Didn’t you listen back then?”

“Eh…” Calam scratched his cheek. “I did listen…” He shrugged. “I guess I just did not understand completely.”

***

“Isn’t that a person?” Calam looked at the figure lying on the road.

“Careful,” reminded Miguel. “We’re basically in the middle of nowhere. Why would there be a lonely person lying on the road?”

“I can cast healing spells from here,” said Siling with a glance to Terry, who nodded.

The figure on the road shook and coughed intensely. “W-water, please…” The voice belonged to a woman.

Terry retrieved a bottle of water and then slid it across the ground to the woman.

The woman gulped down several mouthfuls of water.

“Slow down unless you want to—” Miguel’s warning was interrupted by another round of intense coughing.

“Thank you,” said the woman sincerely. “May I know where you are going?”

“You can keep the bottle,” said Terry, who did not like her question. “What are you doing here?”

“I was kidnapped from my village.” The woman’s voice quivered. “Luckily, a group of mana corrupted attacked the carriage I was held in. I managed to escape in the chaos, but I don’t know where I am. I thought I could follow the road, but…”

“What mana corrupted?” asked Terry.

“I d-don’t know their name,” stammered the woman, who appeared intimidated by Terry’s tone.

“Terry, aren’t we a bit too harsh?” interjected Calam. “She looks manaless and hardly a threat to any of us.”

“What did the mana corrupted look like?” asked Terry.

“It was dark…” The woman furrowed her brows.

Terry frowned.

“...but there were barking sounds and I believe the fur was white,” said the woman hesitatingly.

Terry looked at Siling on his side.

Siling puckered her lips. “Could have been frost jackals. If I remember correctly, there should be some in this region.”

“Then it fits,” exclaimed Calam relievedly.

“C-could I come with you?” asked the woman in a pleading tone. “I just want to get into a town or…”

Terry crossed his arms and lowered his gaze with a frown.

“Please?” Calam spoke up. “It’s only until we find an inhabited area she can reach on her own. I can carry her if we need to quicken the pace and in combat, we could hide her in one of your foldable cubes.”

Terry looked at Calam and sighed. “Alright.”

Calam approached the woman. “I’m Calam, what’s your name?”

“L-Lilith,” stammered the woman and rewarded Calam with a charming smile.

***

“See? We were able to do some good while on the road,” exclaimed Calam happily. “Just like in the stories.”

They had left Lilith near a village in the early evening.

“Mhmh…” Terry subconsciously looked back to the direction of the village.

“What’s on your mind?” asked Siling.

“Nothing.” Terry smacked his lips. “Let’s look for a suitable spot to set up camp.”

“Already?” Miguel raised an eyebrow.

Terry weighed his head from side to side. “Don’t know why but I have a feeling it’s better to stay well-rested in the coming days.” He shrugged. “Might just be that we are getting very close to the Wasted Zone.”

***

In the middle of the night, Lori was checking the surroundings of the camp during her shift.

“Hello, Lori.” A figure stepped out of the shadows.

Lori whirled around with spears raised. She squinted with her darkvision goggles on. “Lilith? Where did you come from?”

“I need to talk to you,” said Lilith.

“You could have done that during the daytime when everyone was awake.” Lori observed her warily while stealing glances at the camp.

“That village was not a nice place.” Lilith shook her head with a sniffle.

Lori narrowed her eyes. She stole a glance towards the camp again. Specifically, she was glancing at the figure of the bloody frogmouth soul spirit. Lori returned her attention back to Lilith and growled: “Cut the crap! Someone that is able to avoid life sense is not some weak little flower on the road.”

Lilith smiled with praise. “I knew you were smart. That’s why I chose to talk to you.”

Lori did not show a reaction on her face, nor did she lower her guard.

“Aside from Terry, you seem to be the strongest in this group,” said Lilith. “Terry also seems to trust you wholeheartedly.” She pressed her lips tightly together.

“And?” Lori lightly tapped the ground with her foot, which Lilith took as a sign of impatience.

“I was just wondering if you knew that Terry is a wanted criminal?” Lilith shook her head. “There are several groups that have issued bounties and the total sum is quite sizable.”

“I’m aware, so what?” Lori continued tapping the ground with her foot.

“It’s just a shame that someone as smart and strong as you would choose to follow such a character.” Lilith spread her arms and shrugged. “As I see it, you would be the more appropriate leader. I could help you with that and we could both get an advantage out of it.”

“Piss of,” growled Lori. “Terry is my brother.” She tapped her foot once more.

“Oh, sure.” Lilith’s smile remained unperturbed. “But there are no eternal friendships, only eternal benefits. What if I told you that there is a way to quickly improve your mana control in my possession and that I would share it with you when we split the bounty? You do want to become stronger, don’t you?”

Lori did not react and continued tapping her foot.

“All I’m asking of you is to put a little something into the drink of the criminal that is leading your group.” Lilith pulled a small bottle out of her sleeve. “I know he only takes his bottles out from his storage item to drink but I’ve seen you share a cup of that one tea flavor.”

“What kind of poison is that?” asked Lori. “Does it have to be ingested?”

“Rotting nightshade.” Lilith’s eyes glistened because of Lori's shown interest. “A cut would work too. I figured it would be less easy to hide your involvement, but I leave that up to you.”

“Put it on the ground and take a few steps back,” ordered Lori.

Lilith did as instructed.

Lori picked up the bottle. “I’ll take my leave then.”

Lilith grinned in self-satisfaction while watching Lori walk back to the camp.

*Thwish* A black arrow flew through the darkness of the night and hit Lilith in the chest.

Lilith felt numbness spread out in her body. She stared in disbelief as she not only felt the effects of some paralyzing non-magic poison but also the feeling of a part of her mana being sucked away. Before Lilith could react, she was pulled deep down into the earth, never to rise again.

Not long after, Miguel held out a hand to the muddy Lori whose upper half was sticking out of the earth.

“Thanks,” said Lori and pulled herself completely out of the liquified earth.

“My pleasure,” said Miguel. “I have to say though, when I was dreaming of a princess approaching my tent in the middle of the night, I was not picturing the hairy legs of a wiremoss tarantula.”

Lori snorted and rolled her eyes. “Good that we managed to teach Pricklybum a few tremor signals.” The moment she believed that Miguel was not looking at her, she squinted at him and bit her lip in thought.

“So what was this about?” asked Miguel with a glance at the muddy earth.

Lori hurriedly averted her eyes from Miguel and said angrily: “Only a despicable thing looking for death. Ahem…” She cleared her throat and looked at Miguel shyly. “Here, I’ve got a gift for you.” Lori handed over the small bottle and beamed at Miguel. “I believe you’ll like it.”

Miguel used his hands to fan some air from the bottle to his nose. “Some kind of mana-corrupted nightshade?”

“She called it rotting nightshade,” said Lori while watching Miguel’s face.

“Fancy.” Miguel grinned at Lori. “You believed correctly. Thanks!”

***

“Did father put you up to this?” asked Amelia. “Or were you yourself stupid enough to volunteer as a mage hunter?”

“Shut up,” barked a human man. Blood was flowing down the sides of his mouth.

Dargones hurled another human away. The mage hunter was already unconscious. Dargones looked at Amelia and talked silently.

“No, Dargo.” Amelia smiled at him and sighed. “Just like most of my family, he does not know what he’s doing.”

“Pah!” scoffed the injured man.

“Are you trying to die?” asked Amelia. “It’s not you that I need to kill, but if you don’t shut up, then— What the…?”

Amelia, Dargones, and the remaining mage hunters all turned to look into the direction where a large demon army suddenly appeared. The location was very close to the village they had all left before their fight.

Amelia and Dargones looked at each other and nodded. Amelia turned back to the mage hunters. “Go help or go to hell.” Afterwards, she teleported and Dargones followed her.

Amelia waited for Dargones to step next to her. The moment she felt his presence, she soared into the sky and unleashed several chained spells to assault the demons among the army. Meanwhile, Dargones charged right into the army to wreak havoc among the elementals.

“Who are you?” Amelia stared at the figure sitting atop the dimensional gate. The elven man was wearing a dark green cloak with an eerie aura.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a magebane.” Weran observed Dargones with a mixture of nostalgia and curiosity..

“Do you have a grudge with this village?” asked Amelia testily.

“No,” replied Weran indifferently. He inhaled and growled fiercely: “I have a grudge with Tiv.”

“Who doesn’t?” retorted Amelia while creating a rain of fire to assault the demon army.

“Heh.” Weran chuckled. “One of my grandchildren has told me about you. Amelia, right? A former mage hunter and a rising Guildhead.” He glanced at an injured mage hunter that had joined the fight. “Had a friendly bout with your old colleagues?”

“Nothing friendly about that,” said Amelia. “Finally.” She flicked her wrist and the dimensional gate was erased.

“You bought some sympathy by beating down Tiv’s dogs,” said Weran coldly. “Not to mention that you have a bounty on your head for making sure one of the people that plotted against Arcana’s barrier was put to death…”

Amelia furrowed her brow.

“But if you think that I will allow you to stand in my way, you are mistaken,” growled Weran. He resummoned the dimensional gate and at the same time, three spatial blades flew at Amelia with high speed.

Amelia teleported to evade but was immediately confronted with another attack. Dargones appeared right in front of her and punched out a discharge of nullification mana before dropping back to the ground. Cold sweat appeared on Amelia’s brow.

“You may try to face the creatures walking through, but you should not think of touching the dimensional gate I place,” said Weran. “These creatures will be brought to Tiv because it is Tiv’s fault that they are currently in Arcana.”

Amelia stared at the old elf. “If you have a grudge with Tiv, then why don’t you attack Tiv Palace or better yet, all the vile people among the nobles and Assembly members. I can point you to the estate of my family. You can start there. Go to the capital for all I care. You have my blessing. Good riddance.”

“These people…” Amelia pointed with her staff towards the village. “They don’t deserve this. These poor wasters have been facing the terrors of the Wastes the whole time. They barely have the strength to defend themselves as is. Your grudge can’t possibly be with them!”

Weran put a hand on his chin and looked at Amelia, then at Dargones who was viciously fighting against the army of elementals without flinching.

“You two can’t stop me,” stated Weran matter-of-factly. “Do you really want to try? Those pathetic mage hunters back there certainly won’t be of much help either.”

Amelia took a deep breath with resolve in her eyes. She uncorked a potion. However, before the liquid could enter her mouth, it suddenly disappeared.

“Hoh?” Weran tilted his head while examining the floating liquid in front of him. “You are ready to go that far? Even if you managed to win, this would leave you barely a step away from death.” He glanced at the town and then at Amelia. “Do you even know these people?”

Amelia frowned and clenched her fists. “We’ve stayed with a family there for the past two days.” When she realized that she was not Weran’s match, she immediately switched targets and tried to decimate the elementals and demons as quickly as her abilities allowed.

Weran pulled back his hood and watched Amelia and Dargones fighting against the demon army. After a while, he shook his head and muttered to himself. “You’ve been born in the wrong empire.”

Weran flicked his wrist and the dimensional gate disappeared. When Amelia moved her surprised eyes towards him, he spoke firmly in a loud voice. “You remind me of an old benefactor, so I’m willing to make a single exception. This is it. The next time we meet, you should not think of touching the dimensional gate.” Afterwards, Weran disappeared.

Amelia swallowed and returned her attention to the demon army. She heard the voice of Dargones in her mind and replied: “Yeah, I know. After this, we need to find Jee.”

***