I fixed the last chapter, so I suggest you read it before proceeding.
He Who Wears the Crown
Once again, things were peaceful in Welindar. Lupin had successfully won over the city, leaving the Pack high and dry, and Noah was putting his experience to good use and helping Lupin improve the quality of life for the people and develop new sources of economic wealth. There were numerous untapped resources, and he was implementing measures to harvest them without destructive industrialization or cruel working conditions.
He developed special fertilizer to help crops grow abundantly and nourish the soil, used magic to locate deposits of ore and valuable minerals, improved living conditions and health and safety standards, and even gave his sexual wellness lecture. The profits of these endeavors went into funding social programs, infrastructure projects, and other common goods.
Unbound by greed, Noah put the needs and well-being of the many above the desires of the few. With everything he fixed and improved, he left behind knowledge and warnings about how assets were to be appropriately and responsibly utilized for future generations so that what fixed problems in the present wouldn’t be allowed to cause problems in the future.
He had lived in numerous societies that evolved past wealth inequality, blind consumerism, and environmental defilement, as well as countless worlds that had fallen prey to these evils. Though he could not force people to make the right choices or change their thought processes, he could, at the very least, give them the means to improve themselves. With every project he worked on, Shannon and Valia were there by his side, helping wherever they could.
Much of the winter was spent outside Welindar, fighting the Profane and searching for the main base. Though Carthace’s prison was gone, new fiends were still being produced, and it was an ongoing fight to cull their numbers. Both tasks required armies, but to operate large numbers of troops left them restricted to the territories claimed by Uther. Going out further would trigger retaliation from unconquered beastman tribes and states. Lupin had halted expansion to fight the Profane, and there weren’t enough men to fight a war on two fronts. Doing so would just drive up Pack recruitment and produce even more fiends. That said, there was plenty of action to keep them occupied.
On one frosty day in early spring, Noah, Valia, Shannon, and a small army of soldiers and knights were attacking a Profane hideout, where they had tracked down one of the specimens from Noah’s lab. Dradam, the ghoul encased in bone armor, was fighting for his life in the ruins of the old dwarven fortress. Noah and Valia had cornered him in what was once a mead hall while knights and soldiers were battling fiends outside.
A blizzard was raging, having initially concealed their approach, but now making battle difficult. Blood steamed as it met the air, and the snow-laden wind smothered all shouts of combat. Shannon was perched atop a crumbled rampart, raining arrows. Fortunately, these fiends were still vulnerable to Noah’s poison, but many newer ones weren’t.
Noah and Valia attacked Dradam from opposite sides inside the great hall, rending bone and hacking through flesh. Sunlight streamed through holes in the walls and ceiling, and though the winter storm dimmed the luminance, it was still enough to char the ghoul’s white exoskeleton. His great power came at a significant cost, and between the sunlight and the two warriors chipping away at his defenses, he was running out of space and options. Whenever Dradam tried to retreat, Noah would hurl a throwing knife, burying the blade in the ghoul’s healing wounds. Upon impact, the explosive material in the handle, created with alchemy, would detonate, gouging open Dradam’s armor.
Snarling in fury from one such blast, Dradam charged, swinging his one good arm. Valia blocked the hit on Noah’s behalf, fending Dradam off with her magical strength while he zoomed around and attacked the monster’s damaged side. Targeting the wounded shoulder, Noah bypassed the armor and drove his sword down into Dradam’s ribcage, piercing his heart and lungs. Noah twisted the blade and yanked it to the side like pulling a lever, using his sword to rip the ghoul open from the inside.
Vomiting blood and badly wounded, Dradam tried to knock him away with a swing of his arm, but Noah dodged the attack and retreated just before Valia kicked Dradam in the back with enough force to send him crashing through a brick wall and into the storm outside. Exposed to the sun, the ghoul howled in pain and rolled around in the snow as if wrapped in flames. Still, he could not extinguish the smoldering ruin creeping along his body as his armor turned to ash.
“It’s a real shame about my lab,” said Noah, approaching the writhing ghoul. “Without it, I have no reason to keep you alive.” A swing of his blade separated the head from the neck, and the painful convulsing stopped.
A few fiends remained, and he and Valia worked together to finish them off and end the battle. Next, they scoured the base for information. Unfortunately, the Pack and Profane had become more focused on covering their tracks and destroying anything that could be of use, including their magical tech, meaning Noah couldn’t rebuild his lab. He still had all of his curse research data and notes all written down, including his counter spell and how to make the anti-fiend poison, so the destruction of the lab wasn’t a complete setback, but without the tech for computing, his progress had ground to a halt. At this point, solving his curse without the lab was like trying to perform quantum physics with an abacus.
After searching the base, they made the long journey back to Welindar. However, when they arrived, they found Lupin despondent, sitting on the throne of Welindar with bleak eyes, inconsolable. Beside him was Nell, worried and heartbroken for him.
“Your Highness, what’s wrong?” Noah asked as he, Valia, and Shannon approached.
It took a moment for Lupin to answer, and his voice was as dry as sand when he spoke. “I just received a letter from Colbrand. My father is dead. He was assassinated.”
Noah was stoic, but Valia gasped beside him. “The king has been slain? What happened? Who did it?”
“It was the Profane. A fiend killed her way into the palace and… ripped my father’s heart out of his chest.” Lupin slowly got to his feet but was unsteady, having lost his strength to grief. “I have to hurry and return home. General Delta is keeping everything together until I can assume the throne, but it won’t be long until the nobles make their move, if they haven’t already.”
“It’s too late and too dangerous to embark now. For all you know, this could be a trap by the Profane to lure you out of the city and kill you,” said Noah.
“I agree, Your Highness,” said Nell. “Please, at least wait until morning.”
“The document is official. I’d recognize Berholm’s handwriting anywhere. Lord Noah, while I’m gone, I have a dire request. I’m leaving you in charge of Welindar.”
Noah wanted to refuse and question Lupin’s reasoning, but he already knew how the prince would answer. He and Valia were the only gold-rank knights in the city and knew the terrain and the people. Even if Lupin could pull a high-ranking official from the front line, they lacked the experience and rapport. Lupin had earned the respect of the people, and if he installed some iron-fisted general as regent in his absence, everything would fall apart. As for ***********ing a non-military figure, such as one of his beastman delegates, no one was loyal to Uther, beloved by the public, and had the backbone to oppose the Pack and Profane.
On the other hand, Noah had ample political, military, and leadership experience, and his many social and economic programs earned him the people's respect. The last thing Noah wanted was to be shackled to Welindar and heaped with responsibility while Valon waited to be found. Looking at Valia, it was clear she shared his concerns, but neither of them could simply refuse, not while the Profane was still a threat to Uther and Sylphtoria.
“Very well. As a temporary measure, I will take command of Welindar in your absence. Still, I insist that you wait until morning to depart. Now is not the time for you to be traveling.”
“Very well. I suppose I need time to plan and think things through. There are many preparations to be made.”
That night, after dinner, Noah stepped out onto the terrace with his pipe, but Lupin arrived before he could light it. “Ah, there you are. I was just about to send someone to find you.”
“Your Highness, care to imbibe?”
“No, thank you. When dealing with grief, liquor is the proper medicine.”
“My condolences for your loss. I’ve only met the king during my knighting ceremony, but I can tell you inherited his spirit.”
“Thank you. I suppose you’ve lost plenty of fathers before.”
“Plenty good, plenty bad. I’ve indeed stood over a lot of caskets.”
Lupin turned and looked out across the city. “As the head of the family, all the weight now falls on my shoulders. My mother died in childbirth, delivering Seraph, and now with my father gone… I’ve never felt more alone. I’ll never again be able to ask him for help or advice, never again be able to rely on him or look up to him. When I return home… he won’t be there. He’ll never be there again. I’m not ready to say goodbye.”
“You never are, and you should never want to be. An aching heart is a living heart, and you can’t feel pain without first feeling love. Be glad that you have good memories of your father, be glad that you got to enjoy the time you had with him. You didn’t miss out on anything. You may not be able to make new memories, but the old ones, you’ll carry with you forever, and when the time comes, you’ll have a child of your own and those memories will make you a better father. Besides, you are anything but alone. Help, advice, whatever you need, is always within reach.”
“Every time I’ve gone into battle, I was aware I was risking my life, knowing I could die, but I did it anyway. Now it feels like Death is standing behind me, waiting to claim me just as he did my father. It could be tomorrow, it could be fifty years from now, but he’s patient. I look at myself and all I see is fragile, aging flesh, doomed to die. This is what mortality feels like.”
“It’s natural to feel that way. As long as our parents live, we depend on them. Even when they grow old and it is our job to take care of them, we still depend on them to be our rock, our foundation, our guide through the crazy labyrinth of life. They’re our example, what we’re supposed to learn from, whether they be an ideal to strive towards or a cautionary tale. As long as they live, we remain young and naïve, and when things go wrong, we can turn to them. Once they’re gone, and they’re no longer around to teach you and guide you, that’s when you truly become an adult, when you have to depend on yourself. It is painful, but also liberating.
All your life, you walked behind your father, walked the path he’s laid as heir to the throne of Uther, but now your time has come. Now the path is yours, and you decide which way it goes. Will you climb up the highest mountains or traverse the deep reaches of the world? You are bound by a responsibility to your people, but so too are you blessed with the power of the king, now free to make things however you want them to be. You are the decider, the authority, he who stands before all others, above all others. Death is not perched behind you, waiting for your time. Your time is far in the future, and you have a million things to do before then. Now is when you can finally do them.”
“I just wish I had one more chance to speak to him, to say all the things I want to say, to hear all the things he wanted to tell me.”
“Just as I have buried many fathers, so too have I raised countless children. I say this to you as someone who has stood where both you and he stood numerous times: your father loved you, and he was prouder of you than he could put into words. Whatever it was you wanted to say to him, trust me, he already knew.”
Lupin bowed his head, shoulders trembling. “Thank you,” he said between tearful gasps. After a few moments, Lupin calmed himself and straightened his appearance. “By the way, I have something for you.” Lupin then handed Noah two rolled documents bound by a knight ring. “These are your official pardon and your promotion to gold-rank. The ring belonged to Reynolds. He was just a silver knight, but it has the storage enchantment. Valon Zodiac was the only one who could make more rings, so until you find him, we have to reuse them.”
“Thank you, I appreciate it.”
“No, thank you. I wouldn’t have lasted this long without your help. You’ve more than earned them, and I feel confident leaving Welindar in your care.” Lupin smiled and extended his hand. “Lord Noah.”
Noah shook it. “King Lupin.”
The moment was broken by the sound of whistling in the distance. It was coming from the city gate, where soldiers were sounding the alarm of an attacking force. “What in the world?!” Lupin exclaimed. Answering his question, the gate was ripped open in a thunderous explosion, and fiends swarmed in. These were not the typical fiends seen before, the bipedal hulks with weapons and armor; these were great monsters moving on all fours, beastmen who had adorned their animal forms and been engorged with the power of the Profane in the ultimate surrender of their humanity.
House-sized bears, boars with meter-long tusks, wolves that could snap up horses like rats, and all matter of mutated creatures were now running amok in the streets, slaughtering soldiers and leveling buildings. Leading them was Kaisen, now with a head like a sabretooth tiger and dark gray hair and complexion from joining the Profane. He was flanked by his elite troops, all of them radiating a destructive aura.
“People of Welindar! I gave you a chance to join the winning side and take your rightful place, but you refused and sided with the outsider like loyal slaves! You chose wrong and will be punished for your betrayal! If you will not serve me willingly, then I must teach you the meaning of fear!”
He raised his hand, wrapped in a roaring torrent of black mana, and then slashed the air. Crescent-shaped blades of dark energy, each one thirty feet long, surged from his fingers and ripped apart everything in their path. They gouged open the street, hurling dirt and stone in all directions, and tore through buildings like cardboard boxes run over by a wheat thresher. He then opened his jaws, forming a bomb of malevolent power, and sent it smashing through another row of houses before exploding and shaking the city.
“All soldiers, to arms! Repel the invaders!” Lupin shouted from the terrace.
He and Noah then rushed down to the ground floor, with Valia and Shannon joining them. Every soldier in the palace was retrieving their armor and weapons and preparing to go to war. The rest of the troops across the city were flowing towards the scene of destruction, but they needed to be led. With Noah riding Shannon and Lupin and Valia on horseback, they raced to the front gate, bringing every knight and soldier available.
The two forces met and stared each other down in the middle of a sea of flames. “Kaisen, the last time I saw you, you were fleeing with your tail between your legs,” Lupin scoffed. “Now you’ve become one of the Profane and given up your last shred of dignity. You’ve fallen so far.”
“Do not get all high and mighty with me, boy. You cheated me out of my rightful authority last time we met, but this time, no silly tricks are going to save you. If I can’t have Welindar, then I will reduce it to ash.”
“I’m going to finish this, once and for all, and put an end to your madness,” said Lupin.
“Your Majesty, with all due respect, you had your chance,” said Noah as he climbed off Shannon. “Now it is time for me to make him pay. I’m going to turn you into a rug, Kaisen, and you’re going to be alive the whole time I’m skinning you.”
“Ah yes, the Wandering Spirit. As much as I would love to rip you limb from limb and feast on your entrails, there is someone here who has a bone to pick.”
Then, out from behind Kaisen appeared Tysinger with a cold scowl. “Noah, you and I have unfinished business. I don’t know how you escaped me last time, but I will end you.”
“Valia, would you be a dear and please entertain our guest?”
The elf sighed. “How many times are you going to ask me to fight someone you don’t want to deal with yourself?”
“He and I are a bad matchup, but you’re better suited. Do this for me and I’ll make it worth your while.”
“Backrub?”
“As a start.”
“All right, you have a deal.” Valia got off her horse and stood beside Noah. “Tysinger, right? I’ve heard good things about you. Noah may not believe in honor or the warrior path, but I do. I want to see just how skilled a ghoul can be.”
“Valia Zodiac, I’ve wanted to fight you for quite some time. Very well then, you die first.”
“Not here, follow me.” Valia then darted off with Tysinger chasing after her.
“Shannon, go help with the evacuations. Get the people to safety. The knights and soldiers can’t focus on the fight if they’re protecting everyone.”
Shannon bowed her head. “Yes, My Lord,” she galloped off, putting her faith in Noah. Deep down, she wanted to refuse, afraid of leaving his side in the face of such fearsome enemies, but she trusted him, and more than that, she trusted his skills and strength.
“All of you, deal with the interloper,” said Kaisen to his elite fiends.
“Yes sir,” said a juggernaut with the head of a bear.
He and almost a dozen other fiends approached Noah, each one towering over him and outweighing him from a couple hundred to over a thousand pounds. They embodied various animals, overflowing with dark power and sporting swelled muscles, long claws, and sharp fangs.
“This won’t be like last time, human!” exclaimed the goat-headed man with black mana swirling around his horns. “You faced us when we were weakened by the sunlight, but now, we have the darkness on our side!”
“Then, by all means, come and get me,” Noah said, having yet to draw his sword.
Answering his challenge, a man with the physical characteristics of a gorilla charged towards him. More than ten feet tall, his limbs were like stone pillars wrapped in fur, and his long fangs were ready to tear into Noah. Yet Noah didn’t move from his spot or show concern, even while the ground shook with each heavy footfall. The fiend raised his arms, ready to crush Noah into paste, only to be ripped open across the chest as if gutted with a chainsaw. Left stunned by the wound, a horizontal slash severed his arms and head before the fiend could understand what had happened.
The other fiends stared in shock as their comrade’s lifeless body collapsed in pieces, brought to ruin by Noah’s attacks, which seemingly came so fast that even their augmented eyes couldn’t catch his movements. Even Kaisen and the prince were shocked.
“You aren’t the only ones who reach their peak in the darkness. Like you, my sword isn’t too fond of the sun.”
He held a black scimitar made from one of Carthace’s bladed legs. Lightweight, tougher than steel, and razor-sharp, they were the perfect weapon material and had been enchanted with some powerful abilities, courtesy of the line of runes crawling up the blade, inked with Carthace’s own venom.
“This blade comes from your predecessor, Kaisen, a lovely spider I had the pleasure of knowing. It’s enchanted to inflict extra damage to fiends and negate Profane resilience, so not only are the wounds far worse, they don’t heal. I prepared several blades for you filthy monsters, and now I will feed you to them.”
“Kill these humans!” Kaisen roared.
“All troops, charge!” Lupin ordered.
The two armies swarmed towards each other, soldiers and knights vs. the fiends. Kaisen’s elite troops all converged on Noah, but he was ready. As he charged, the goat-headed man lowered his head, producing a massive field of dark mana in front of him, smashing through soldiers like they were being run over by a train.
Noah conjured an illusory machine gun and sprayed the charging fiend with bullets, each one disrupting his mana and chipping away at the oncoming rampart. By the time he reached Noah, his attack was withered enough for Noah to simply step to the side and bifurcate him. The fiend collapsed, ripped open like an old pillow with blood spraying. Lying there, he found himself unable to move, with his wounds refusing to heal. He was just bleeding like a simple beast.
As he lay dying, his comrade, a cobra-type fiend, attacked. She had no legs, only a long tail that could change its length. The powerful appendage writhed like a firehose and smashed everything around her with destructive force. Every time her tail stuck a knight or soldier, they were sent flying like a baseball hitting a bat, while the surrounding buildings collapsed like houses of cards.
Her tail coiled around Noah, ready to crush his bones, but before it could touch him, he severed it with two lightning-quick slashes, making her scream in agony. Blinded by pain and anger, she lunged towards Noah, her hood flaring and her jaws open, ready to sink her fangs into his neck. “Ah, a snake woman. You would have been fun to play with. Oh well.” Noah effortlessly cut her down, his blade not slicing her flesh so much as causing the tissue to disintegrate on contact.
From above, a fiend with black wings descended, aiming for Noah with his talons. At the same time, the fiend with the head of a bear charged on all fours, locking Noah in a pincer formation. Both of them were attacking with black mana swirling around their claws, capable of ripping apart steel, but unperturbed, Noah stood his ground, and when they were finally within reach, he lashed out. He avoided their attacks with graceful agility and gentle steps and dismantled them with masterful slashes, hacking through flesh, muscle, and bone. Fountains of blood sprayed from the warriors as they collapsed, the two of them trying to understand where they went wrong in their lives to end up Noah’s victims.
Kaisen and Lupin watched as Noah cut down the fiends one by one. Each was superior to a silver knight, but he reduced them to piles of bloody chunks and spilled viscera. It was more than just the blade helping him do this; it was his skill and power. Half the time, his movements appeared so fast that they couldn’t even be seen. Noah would simply wave his sword like a wand, and his foes would erupt into geysers of viscera.
Lupin had heard stories of Noah’s abilities, about the Night of a Hundred Heads during the last Red Revelry, and how Noah served up a mountain of death to the knighthood. He remembered Noah mentioning how he had bested Aithorn and several knights in combat. Now he understood how it was done. True, Noah wasn’t the most powerful warrior, but he was perhaps the deadliest.
Soon enough, the last elite fiend was reduced to bloody pieces, leaving just Noah, Lupin, and Kaisen, while their armies battled throughout the area. “All of you are useless,” Kaisen growled. “Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless!”
“You shouldn’t speak ill of the dead, especially when you are soon to join them,” replied Noah.
“This is the end for you, Kaisen,” said Lupin as he stood beside Noah. “You won’t live to see the sunrise.”
“You two think you can kill me? Fine, try it!”
Wrapped in black mana, Kaisen lunged for them both. Noah stepped forward to intercept, but before he could swing his blade, Kaisen had already leaped over him and was lunging for the prince. Lupin cracked his whip at Kaisen, but he merely batted it aside and brought down his claws. Lupin jumped back to dodge, and Kaisen’s attack ripped apart the ground, tossing Lupin through the air.
Charging through the smoke, Noah slashed at Kaisen’s neck. Kaisen dodged the attack with his superior speed, but was shocked when he felt a blade slice his chest. He had followed the sword's arc closely, but Noah’s attack somehow got through, and it was far more painful than it should have been.
Kaisen opened his jaws and fired a blast of black mana, but Noah rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding annihilation. Getting back to his feet, he tried again to cut down the fiend, but Kaisen jumped. With his foe overhead, Noah once more conjured an illusory machine gun and riddled Kaisen with bullets, each weakening the dark aura around him. He couldn’t use his invisibility and guns at the same time, but switching between them was easy enough.
Landing nearby, Kaisen launched a barrage of claw waves, ripping apart the earth like a plow as they surged toward Noah. Noah stood his ground and parried one of the mana blades with his sword, sending it into the sky. Before Noah could close the distance, Kaisen once more went after Lupin. Lupin was swinging his whip as fast as he could to build a charge, and once Kaisen was in range, he sent one end of the chain forward, glowing with enough mana to rip through stone like it was fallen snow. Kaisen avoided the attack and reached out with his claws. A bullet from Noah struck the back of his hand, weakening his attack, but Lupin was still slashed across the chest. Fortunately, his armor had protected him.
As he staggered back, Lupin cracked his whip, causing it to wrap around Kaisen’s head while he grabbed the end. He yanked on the chain, pulling Kaisen’s head forward while he jumped up and raised his knee to strike his chin. Kaisen blocked the attack and grabbed Lupin, lifting him above his head. Before he could slam Lupin into the ground, an acid arrow struck his back and released its payload. As his flesh dissolved, he staggered and dropped Lupin, and Noah charged towards him.
Kaisen gathered his strength and jumped out of range, narrowly avoiding the blades, yet somehow receiving a deep cut on his leg. That was the second time he had received an unseen attack. He didn’t understand how Noah was doing it, only that he had to keep his distance. Arrogant though he was, watching his elite followers getting slaughtered was a learning experience he wasn’t going to waste.
Lupin scrambled to his feet and cracked his whip, directly hitting Kaisen. However, a thick layer of mana radiating from his skin protected him, leaving Lupin unable to even wound his foe. Kaisen circled the two warriors, running and jumping across buildings. As he ran, he opened his jaws and launched a barrage of mana bombs, each one exploding like a mortar round. Noah and the prince were sent running for cover as shrapnel and corrosive mana filled the air. Buildings were obliterated by the shelling, with Noah and Lupin forced to wait out the continuous explosions in the wreckage.
“Here, take these; they’ll make your attacks more effective,” said Noah, handing the prince a pair of daggers identical to his sword.
“My thanks,” replied Lupin as he went to work attaching them to the ends of his whip.
He then handed Lupin a small capsule. “This is a smelling salt. Crack it open, snort the contents, and it’ll speed up your reactions and reflexes.”
There was a lull in the volley, so Noah left his clone behind and stepped out to scan the area. He spotted Kaisen, still circling as he waited for them to reveal themselves. Noah drew his bow and launched an arrow loaded with the same explosive he added to his throwing knives. It struck Kaisen’s shoulder and detonated, nearly ripping his arm off, but his flesh began stitching back together.
In response, Kaisen was about to launch another mana bomb, but Noah pelted him with bullets, disrupting the flow of power and preventing him from forming the attack. Kaisen once more went on the move, trying to escape the continuous hail of bullets so he could respond with his own attack. Unfortunately, this was the best Noah could do at the moment. Even if he could attack while concealed, Kaisen was too fast to get close. Invisibility was useless if he couldn’t reach his target. He needed Kaisen to stop long enough to land a hit.
“Lupin, you ready?”
Lupin stepped out from behind cover with the two Carthace daggers affixed to the ends of his chain. “Yeah, I’m ready.”
Seeing Lupin, Kaisen launched a barrage of claw attacks, surging towards them like a runaway semi. Noah and Lupin were forced to split up to dodge, narrowly avoiding annihilation. Kaisen dropped into the street and rocketed towards Lupin, but Lupin cracked his whip, sending it swinging towards Kaisen.
Kaisen jumped to avoid it, unaware of the other end of the chain closing in on him. He spotted it in midair, with Lupin flashing a smirk, but by twisting his body and exuding his mana aura, Kaisen managed to dodge it. He landed on the ground and pounced, but the prince was not helpless. With both ends of the whip still under the effect of their momentum, he pulled on the middle of the chain, redirecting the force and causing both ends to snap back and strike Kaisen with full force.
Kaisen was tossed through the air by the blow, now sporting two deep gouge marks in his flesh. He narrowly stuck the landing, skidding back with his claws carving trenches in the ground, and as soon as he stopped, an illusory RPG exploded against him, extinguishing his mana. Before he could recover, Lupin cracked his whip once more, slashing Kaisen across the throat. Kaisen staggered back with blood pouring from his neck and his wounds refusing to heal. His acid burns had mended easily, but every slash of the Carthace blades was whittling him down.
“Show me the parasite, Kaisen! I want to see it!” Lupin shouted. “I want to see the disgusting worm feeding on your blood that you sold your soul and dignity for!”
Kaisen covered his neck wound with his hand, trying to maintain the pressure in his windpipe so he could speak. “My parasite? Oh no, you misunderstand,” he said with a gravelly chuckle. “I don’t simply have one parasite; I have millions flowing through my veins, each smaller than a grain of sand. You would be horrified to know how many others have them and don’t realize it, but mine are unique. Mine were explicitly cultivated for my body for a perfect union. They are a part of me, providing maximum power while fully stable and deformity-free. For all intents and purposes, I am a true Profane, not one of these simple hosts with a leech on their back.
Truthfully, I was supposed to be recovering for another month, but your father’s death came way ahead of schedule, and we had to speed up our plans a bit. No matter, I feel amazing, and if I had to wait another month, I would have gone insane. Now I can finally kill you like I’ve always dreamed.”
“Is all the blood you’re losing part of your fantasy?” Noah asked.
Kaisen once more laughed, throwing his head back and revealing the gory smile carved into his throat. “You really think you’ve seen the best I can do? Oh no, no, no, no, no, I’ve been taking things slow, savoring the kill. Cats love to play with their food, after all. But I think the time has come. Let me show you what true power looks like!”
Black mana once more surged from his body, but with far greater intensity and volume. It wrapped around him like bandages, forming layer after layer of expanding mass. Kaisen was lifted off the ground as what was originally a dark aura broadened to become a new body. His energy had taken the form of a massive black lion, more than a hundred feet tall at the shoulder, with sabretooth tiger fangs and a mane that burned like dark fire. This form was more than simple mana; it was dense and solid, almost becoming real flesh while retaining its phantasmal properties. Looking at this new threat, all the blood drained from Lupin’s face as his courage left him, while even Noah was left struggling to think of a plan.
Kaisen gazed down at them from within his monstrous new form. “So tell me prince, what say you?!”
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Elsewhere in the city, a similarly intense battle was taking place. Every second, Valia and Tysinger’s blades were colliding over and over with showers of sparks spraying in all directions, courtesy of their mana grinding like saw blades. They were zooming in all directions, running and leaping with superhuman strength and grace, unbound by distance, as they fought across Welindar. They were like two bullets endlessly ricocheting, and every time they leaped forward, their dismount would crush wood and rend the earth. So focused on the battle, they offered no thoughts to any obstacles around them. If a building was in their way, they smashed right through like walking through a cobweb.
Valia took the lead in this battle only because she had maxed out her enhancements. Speed, strength, endurance, cutting power, balance; if she slacked in any category, Tysinger would get the upper hand, but doing so exacted a heavy toll on her body. She had even tried her sundering spell to destroy his sword, but it didn’t work on enchanted weapons. Tysinger was receiving the brunt of the injuries, but they all healed as quickly as he received them. His natural ghoul abilities astounded Valia, now understanding why Noah had struggled against him.
Repelled by their last collision, Tysinger was sent skidding backward past a cluster of terrified civilians. Without looking at them or slowing down, he held out his sword and cut them to pieces as if they were nothing. Their blood soaked the blade, creating a burning aura of crimson mana. “Sanguine Wrath!”
He dropped his sword with a mighty swing, launching a mana blade towards Valia. She cut through the incoming attack with her sword, dispelling the wave, then charged towards Tysinger. Tysinger parried her attack, and she slid past him, then leaped for an attack at his blind spot. He blocked her swing and countered with a kick, which she twisted her body to avoid. She launched herself forward again, aiming for a stab, but he sidestepped and raised his sword, charging another bloody attack.
Caught in the path of his swing like a criminal at the chopping block, Valia touched the ground with her foot, using her balance enhancement to convert her forward momentum into rotational. She pivoted on her foot, swinging herself out of the path of Tysinger’s roaring blade as he brought it down. She narrowly avoided annihilation as Tysinger’s wave obliterated a whole row of buildings. She swung at his neck before he could reform his stance, aiming to take his head. He leaned to the side, narrowly avoiding her sword, and this time, when he countered with a kick, the blow landed.
Valia was knocked by the force, and Tysinger chased after her, once more bringing down his sword as though to execute her. Spinning around, Valia kicked his sword aside and retaliated with a slash to the leg, cutting deep. As he staggered back, Valia got to her feet and pounced on him, swinging down her blade like a hammer. He blocked the attack, and the ground buckled from the force. The moment her power waned, Tysinger disengaged and jabbed Valia in the stomach with the hilt of his sword. Even with her endurance boosted, the blow still made her buckle, but she grabbed Tysinger by the collar and pulled him forward, bashing her head against his.
Disoriented, he staggered back, and she slashed him across the chest. Roaring in determination, Tysinger dragged his sword across his open wound, wetting the blade with his own blood, then slashed the air and hit Valia point blank with a burning wave. The explosion knocked her through the air, her clothing torn, and her body covered with lacerations. She narrowly stuck the landing, and the two warriors faced each other.
“You really are as powerful as the legends say,” said Tysinger, panting like her.
“High praise, coming from someone with your abilities.”
“The Wandering Spirit is indeed skilled, but he doesn’t have the strength or speed to keep up with me. You, on the other hand, are providing the fight I’ve always dreamed of.”
“You as well. I regret that such a wonderful opponent is an agent of the Profane. You would have made a great ally.”
“I still can be. Noah refused my offer, but I now realize you are a far more deserving candidate. Let me pass my venom on to you, let me make you a ghoul of the highest class. Join the Profane and you will reach your full potential. Your powers combined with Profane strength, you would become the greatest sword master in the world, past or future.”
“After everything I’ve seen since coming here, all the horror and destruction wrought by your kind, you really think I would let myself become one of you? No good can come from siding with the Profane. All your power brings is misfortune.”
“I noticed you aren’t with your brother. I met him, you know, when he and my comrades engaged in a relic trade. Just from a glance, I could tell that his powers were beyond de***********ion, far superior to yours.” Tysinger’s words made Valia tremble, and a lump formed in her throat that she struggled to swallow.
“For the famous Zodiac Twins not to be traveling together, one must have betrayed or abandoned the other. If I had to guess, he’s the one who went rogue, and you’re looking for him, aren’t you? I don’t know if it’s revenge or reconciliation you’re after, but tell me, what do you hope to accomplish in finding him when he outclasses you in every category? Whether you want to kill him or save him, I can give you the power to do it.”
Valia struggled to maintain her composure, but her hand trembled against her will, causing her sword to rattle. Tysinger was right. When she fought Valon on Kisara Island, Valia realized she wasn’t strong enough to subdue her brother. The gap between their strength wasn’t just painful; it was humiliating. How could she help him when she couldn’t stop him? How was she supposed to help him when she couldn’t make him sit still and listen?
She and Noah had discussed it and agreed that they had to get stronger if they were to have any hope of healing Valon’s damaged mind, but after what they had seen and experienced on Kisara Island, where were they supposed to find that kind of power? What was she willing to do to get her brother back? What was she willing to sacrifice?
She looked at Tysinger, the warrior before her. At one time, he had just been a mortal man, a regular human, but now, his abilities surpassed any swordsman's. Without the power of Zodiac, he’d have killed her already, despite Valia being one of the greatest elf warriors who ever lived. But what would happen if she took him up on his offer?
She shook her head, trying to dispel those thoughts while thinking back to everything she had seen. How many lives had been ruined and ended by the Profane? How many snarling monsters had she encountered, once innocent people, but deformed and mutated until losing their hearts and minds? Did she really want to be corrupted like them? To become a pawn of evil?
Then again, Tysinger said she would become a ghoul like him. No mutations or deformities, just raw power coursing through her veins. She walked the path of a warrior, a noble path, but so too was she bound by her warrior ego. All fighters, no matter how disciplined, fantasized about the next level of power, imagining themselves reaching the absolute pinnacle of strength and wondering what form it would take.
What would it look like if she accepted his proposal? The power of Zodiac combined with the might of the Profane, augmenting all her skills and abilities, launching her to an even higher level. Even without her brother in the equation, it was a chilling thought, darkly seductive. What kind of warrior would she be? What could she accomplish with all that power?
“I… I…” she stammered, not knowing what she was even trying to say.
“Just say yes and all your dreams will come true,” Tysinger replied.
Valia looked up at the sky. Welindar was on fire, and the air was filled with smoke, but still, she could see the stars.
‘Someone, please, help me.’
----------
Snarling with every movement, Kaisen rampaged through Welindar, leveling buildings and pulverizing all who got in his path, whether friend or foe. Archers atop buildings were raining arrows upon him, trying to end his destruction, but their efforts accomplished little. The arrows lodged in his astral form without slowing him down or causing pain. Then, all he had to do was roar, and the arrows would be shot back out, mowing down the archers. On the ground, Noah and Lupin were likewise struggling.
Though their blades could damage the apparition and dig deeper than regular swords and arrows, they could not actually wound him. His colossal body was made of compressed mana, so there were no ligaments to sever, veins to cut, or flesh to carve. Noah was using his clone to try and distract Kaisen while he attacked his legs, but it was like slashing at water. Even if his blade cut deep, any opening immediately closed. His bullets had the same effect, causing a splash and ripple, but leaving no lasting damage in the apparition. Lupin was using his whip to try and slash Kaisen’s face, but he was fairing no better.
Annoyed by their futile efforts, Kaisen opened his jaws and fired a beam of corrosive mana, like a flood of acid pouring down into the street. Noah and Lupin were forced to flee, while anyone caught in the flow disintegrated. They ducked into an alley, as out in the street, Kaisen continued his rampage.
“Please tell me you have an idea of how to stop this,” said Lupin, wincing from a burn on his arm.
“I’m working on one, but I’ll need help and time. But mostly, I need—”
“My Lord!”
“Shannon!”
Shannon galloped over, splattered in blood from battling fiends in the street.
“My Lord, what is going on? What is that thing?”
“It’s Kaisen, but that’s not important right now. Listen, I need you to run to the palace and bring back Nell.”
“Are you trying to get her killed?!” Lupin exclaimed.
“It’s the only way!” Noah shot back.
“I don’t want anyone other than you or Lady Valia on my back, but given the situation, I’ll do it.”
“Good girl, now go, and give me your bow.” Shannon leaned down and kissed Noah, then turned around and galloped towards the castle.
“So what’s the plan?” Lupin asked.
“We can’t kill Kaisen unless we pierce that body he’s created for himself, and regular bows and arrows aren’t going to cut it. That’s why I’m going to make something that can. While I’m doing that, I need you to keep him distracted. He’s powerful and invulnerable in this state, but his size has made him clumsy and slow, probably because he’s not fully acclimated to his new power. Keep running, keep his focus on you. Don’t bother trying to wound him, just stay alive. Hide if you need to. The more time he spends looking, the better.”
“Don’t take too long.”
Lupin ducked out of the alley and ran towards Kaisen, who was searching for his prey.
“Where are you, prince?! Hiding like a pathetic little mouse! You should be ashamed!” Kaisen boomed.
“I’m down here, you mangey cat!” Lupin shouted, running around Kaisen’s legs while slashing him with his whip.
As Lupin drew Kaisen’s attention, Noah went to work. First, he prepared a strong ink and began inscribing Shannon’s bow, boosting its strength and the penetrating power of its arrows. It was rough work, but it would hopefully get the job done. Next, he went to work preparing an arrow that could pierce all the layers of mana protecting Kaisen. One of his Carthace blades wouldn’t work, simply due to size and shape, but he had something from her that would, and he just had to get it ready.
While he busied himself with runecraft, Lupin was running for his life, ducking in and out of buildings with Kaisen smashing through everything in his path like it was nothing.
“Scurry, little mouse! It’s all you can do! Fight for every breath, every moment of life! Flee, like the shameful coward you are!”
While he searched for Lupin, Shannon arrived at Noah’s position with Nell.
“Excellent timing, well done.”
“What do you need me to do?” Nell asked as she slid off Shannon’s back.
Noah handed her a freshly inked scroll. “I need you to cast this spell with every drop of mana you have.”
“What will it do?”
“The sky is full of smoke and moisture, the perfect conditions for rain. This alchemy spell is going to speed it up. Lupin told me that you’ve been sanctifying the royal wells to purge corruption; this is the same principle. The rain will be temporarily infused with holy energy and fall on Kaisen, weakening his defenses. Once that’s done, Shannon, you’ll shoot him with this.” He handed her back her bow and a special arrow with a black spike on the end.
“What is that?”
“Carthace’s stinger, enchanted to pierce Profane energy. You’re a better archer, so I’m trusting you with this. You have to pierce his real body, which is in the head of that massive apparition. We only have one shot, so make it count. You can do it.”
“I will,” she said shakily.
“Nell, come with me.”
He led Nell out into the battlefield just as Lupin was sent skyward by an explosion from Kaisen. “Your Highness!” she fearfully exclaimed.
“I’ll help him, you focus on the spell! Molecular Construction! Get in close, but leave yourself room to escape!”
Noah ran off to help Lupin, and Nell kneeled down, laying the scroll before her. She clasped her hands together and murmured a quick prayer to Lumendori, then channeled all of her mana into the scroll. A magic circle appeared around her, turning into a pillar of light that shot up into the smoky sky. Above the city, oxygen and hydrogen gathered with all the existing moisture and condensed into rain. Then, in a great deluge, a concentrated downpour slammed down on Kaisen, with every drop infused with holy energy.
Kaisen’s mana body was coming undone and losing shape. Smoke was rising as if he was being burned with acid, and he roared in pain, feeling the holy energy searing him as if it were his own flesh. He screamed and thrashed, shaking the city with every stomp. While he was distracted, Noah pulled Lupin to safety.
“Shannon, take the shot!”
Shannon had her bowstring drawn back and was staring down the arrow shaft, but between Kaisen’s thrashing and the enormous black mass surrounding him, finding his real body was impossible.
“I can’t! I can’t even see what I’m aiming for!”
Behind Kaisen, Nell collapsed, having used every bit of strength she had and now unable to run. The rain stopped, but Kaisen was still racked with pain and fueled by rage. “You sneaky little bastards! Your little tricks and schemes can’t kill me! I’m going to bring this whole city down upon your heads! Starting with the castle!”
He turned and began lumbering towards the palace, but his movements were slow and unbalanced. His apparition had not recovered from the holy rain, and was melting like a wax statue beside a bonfire. Still, he pressed on. Left in his wake, Noah forced Lupin to drink a healing potion and gave him a wake-up slap.
“Nell is over there. The two of you look after each other.”
“What about you?” Lupin asked woozily.
“I’m going to finish this. Shannon, let’s go!”
Shannon rushed over, and he climbed onto her back. She took off, galloping back to the castle. She overtook Kaisen, but with little time to spare. As the behemoth approached the palace, Noah directed Shannon inside, holding onto her as she raced up several flights of stairs.
They reached the terrace as Kaisen arrived at the castle. His mana form was coming apart and losing its shape. By now, he looked more like a slime than a lion, barely able to maintain the head and forelegs with the rest now an amorphous blob. Regardless, he heaved himself up the side of the castle, trying to reach the highest point. Noah and Shannon stared him down, and he snarled in fury.
“Wandering Spirit! You bastard! I’ll kill you!” he roared through a mouth that could no longer form teeth.
“My Lord, I still can’t see him. There is too much mass in the way,” Shannon said, looking down the arrow shaft again.
“Leave that to me,” he said as he climbed off her back.
Noah stood atop the edge of the terrace and held out his hands, forming an illusory minigun. He had never conjured something with such firepower, but if there was ever a time, it was now. He pulled the trigger and unleashed a hellish onslaught of bullets, blasting the head of Kaisen’s apparition. Already deforming, the monstrosity splashed and rippled as the bullets chipped away at the layers of mana.
Every shot took a chunk of Noah’s strength, and he was firing 6000 rounds a minute. Before Kisara Island, such a thing would have been impossible, and even now, he struggled to keep up. His mana was draining fast, and it wouldn’t be long until he had to pay the price in blood. Still, he kept firing, carving away at Kaisen’s apparition, each second bringing him closer to destruction.
Kaisen snarled and raised one of his arms, trying to crush Noah, but he, too, felt his strength failing. Finally, Shannon could see his silhouette in the center of the melting head. Noah had peeled back his defenses enough for a clean shot. “For my tribe,” she whispered before releasing the arrow. Her aim was true, and the arrow pierced the mana shroud, courtesy of Carthace’s stinger, before striking Kaisen in the heart. Upon hitting its target, a payload of acid was released, and an explosive charge detonated, ripping Kaisen apart.
The apparition halted its movement, the melting arm stopping before it could crush Noah and Shannon, and the giant mass slid down the side of the castle like a lump of tar. It was over, or so they thought. Instead of disappearing, the apparition reformed into a giant sphere, inflating like a balloon, with Kaisen’s voice echoing across the city.
“You think you’ve beaten me, but though you’ve destroyed my body, my will remains, forever unbroken! I will live on, and Uther will know my wrath! This is the beginning of the end!”
Then the orb exploded, shrouding Welindar in darkness.
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