Eros’, Elas’ and even Eris’ eyes went wide; they were all surprised by Fryr’s amazingly stupid move, which shockingly, he made while laughing and filled with pride.

“That moron!” Elas said while materializing his bow, ready to stop Fryr and Hagu with his strongest blow. However, he was too late; Hagu was so fast, that in an instant, he slammed to the ground in front of the House of Marx creating innumerable cracks as he roared out loud.

“Their stupidity doesn’t end.” Elas said worried. He knew that those two will have a hard time defeating the guards, so he actually had a plan that could increase their chance. However, the two suddenly acted like idiots and rushed in openly as if not even wary of the strong enemy.

“Who’s stupid?” A familiar raspy voice suddenly came from behind them. And when they all turned around, they found Fryr standing there which caused Elas to frown.

“ So that was an illusion..” Elas said.

“Yes. I am not stupid to rush there myself.” Then he paused and looked at the direction of Hagu, then continued. “That is the real Hagu though.”

Everyone went silent and felt a headache. All of them thought of the same thing. “This goblin can be really stupid at times.”

Fryr noticed everyone’s reaction, so he said with passion. “Do not worry! That illusion of myself, I sent over is there to cast a curse and create an opening. Also don’t forget that Hagu is an immortal so he won’t die.”

“That was just a title…”The three thought, but didn’t voice out any word. They just looked at Hagu creating havoc which caused the apparitions to be stirred.

Fighting broke out, and Hagu started the unbelievable bout. A single orc fighting outside a noble’s palace was unthinkable for Eros, Eris and Elas. However, strangely, Hagu wasn’t losing. Even though those apparitions are weaker than those who chased them at the Stints Covert, each one of them was still at the level of a khalkos wizard which if grouped together should be impossible for Hagu to even hurt.

Booms resounded outside the House of Marx, which caused explosions and sparks. However, even with all the disturbance, the illusory Fryr behind Hagu was unmoving maintaining his weird stance. But,on a closer look, he was casting a spell!

“Foolish!” A voice echoed out from within the House of Marx, as a man floated out, thin and old, yet emanating air of power which displayed his importance.

Everyone recognized him when he got closer. It was the very man who fought with the king on the desert of Rawn! The man who Eris and Eros freed to help themselves regain freedom!

“Why is he here..” Eros murmured.

“How dare you attack this place.” The man said to Hagu. “You have escaped from that fat fake king, yet here you are again to be killed. I have killed that king, and made him into medicine; do you think you can defeat someone like me? State your reason for being here!”

Hagu did not respond and simply roared, but the illusory Fryr behind him smiled and said. “We’re here to help a friend.”

The man snorted and pointed at the illusory Fryr. “Kill him!” With a single order, the apparition in the area attacked the illusory Fryr!

Fryr did not even put up resistance, and died instantly as his real self was smiling on a distance. The illusory body which was stabbed by the apparition suddenly turned into a liquid similar to blood but crimson. The liquid entered the ghostlike body of the apparition causing it to also turn crimson, then shrieked and twisted, banged its head on the ground as if it lost all reason.

It wasn’t long before the apparition stopped moving, looked at man in the sky, and suddenly exploded causing crimson liquid to cover the surrounding. Those apparitions who were touched by the liquid also turned crimson and also shrieked, in not long also exploded into bits.

It was a chain reaction that caused a major commotion, ending the lives of many apparitions.

Eris, Eros and even Elas was shocked, it was something they never thought Fryr could come up. Elas then said. “Blood Curse.”

Fryr laughed, but he seemed slightly weakened. “Yes. How smart. But it is no simple Blood Curse, It is specifically made for apparitions so its effect is multiplied significantly, however, those apparitions aren’t dead, they are just reduced to that state in the moment, and will soon reform and rise again on their feet.”

The face of the man in the sky twitched, he never thought that Fryr would be capable of such curse that can make the advantage switch. So quickly he descended to try and stop the curse, however, Hagu blocked his way with a punch of indescribable weight. When he blocked it he was thrown away, which he never expected things would play.

Booms rang out as Hagu’s punch never stopped. The man then thought. “What is this monster!”

“Quick! Let’s enter while Hagu is buying us time.” Fryr said as he shot towards the door of the House of Marx, followed by Elas, Eros and Eris.

“You have no qualification to enter!” The man said in fury, but Hagu was keeping him busy. Even though Hagu was weaker, for some reason, he could not beat Hagu who for him was like a monster.

Hagu was thrown away several times by the man, but he stood up and attacked like mad. It was as if every time he was thrown away, he could get up even stronger in every way.

Even Eros and Elas were shocked to see Hagu hold the man in place, since he never did show the same strength in the thormos’ base.

“How can Hagu fight like that!? He seems to get stronger at he gets thrown away.” Elas asked bewildered and shocked.

“I told you, he’s an immortal.” Fryr said chuckling. “Although, I don’t know how, but he could always fight stronger opponent like that when push comes to shove. I previously told you that he beat an Arguros Wizard, but that’s the strongest opponent that he fought so far. As for the thormos king, he seem to be more intrigued about ripping the king’s legs rather than beating him.”

“Insolent!” The man shouted in fury as he tried to fend off Hagu to stop the advance of the four. His hands glowed with the green blade which can cut the life force. However, as the blade hit Hagu, it simply vanished, failing to damage Hagu in the least.

Boom!

The man and Hagu again collided; however, the same thing happened. When the four was only several meters from the door, the man then shouted, “How dare you! I am Albeus, the Sculptor of Life serving the House of Marx. All of you shall not pass!”

A blinding green glow suddenly radiated from the man, from afar, one would think it was a green sun. Everyone was stopped by the light; it felt as if they were being drain of life.

The grass touched by the light suddenly withered and dried. Even the trees started to shed leaves as its trunks started to have cracks. However, suddenly the man’s eyes widened. Below, the three wasn’t affected, and only Fryr seemed to have slightly weakened.

“What are those three kids.” He murmured filled with shock.

Before he could even think of his next move, Hagu pounced at him again and grabbed his hands tightly which he could not remove. It was as if the two of them were glued.

With the man held in place, the four bashed the gigantic door of the House of Marx which spans five meters in height. Even though the door looks sturdy, in only a few attacks, it opened immediately.

Albeus roared in fury, but his face flashed with worry. He could do nothing to stop the four. Hagu would not also allow him to get near the door.

Inside, Eros and the group did not stop running in the castle’s foyer, in their feet was a carpet – red and without a trace of dirt. And In front of them, a gigantic staircase span high filled with elegant design. Gold covered the rails, and various gems were imbedded in the balusters, the scene was like something only told on tales.

However, even with all the majesty, Eros and the group did not bother be awed by the castle’s beauty. They were worried that something might come out more terrifying than the man outside.

They ran through the stairs ignoring everything as they were focused on their goal – to reach the center of the House of Marx, to complete the task given by Elas.

“This is odd; no one is blocking our way.” Fryr said anxious. “This is the House of Marx, so I expected more resistance.”

“Do not worry about the small details.” Elas said serious and staring ahead. “Once we reach the hall where the throne lies, I will take care of everything and give you the reward you’ve been working for almost a year.”

Fryr simply chuckled and said, “Seems like I was right; there is something going on the House of Marx. That was why you asked someone like us to assist you without even gathering more allies.”

Elas did not say another word and continued running without pause, his face grew more serious as the hall drew close.

“Is that it?” Eris said while staring at an entrance to a hall not far.

“Yes.” Elas said increasing his speed.

In a short amount of time, they traversed the distance and entered the hall without resistance. It was wide, spacious, and more luxurious. The ceiling was like a dome, which spans so high and made it look like a giant’s home. It was unreal, but it does seem very real, not an illusion and not even close to any hallucination. A throne sat in the center of the hall, with an altar beside it which was more alluring than the throne. Surrounding the throne and the altar were numerous crystal stones two meters in height. It made the place seem like a treasury that would make many man covet it which would end up in a fight.

“Who are you people?” A voice resounded in the whole hall seemingly coming from the throne.

The group looked at the throne which previously, they were sure was empty. However, this time, a young lady sat on it, delicate and alluring, even though her face looked young, she was filled with an adult charm. Her hair was black and flowed down her waist, and her gaze made everyone tremble as if she could see one’s soul and everything on its deepest recess.

“Why did you come here?” She continued.

Everyone went silent, and could not speak for a moment. But Elas was different; he walked forward and said with contempt, “It is not important who we are. I know what happened to the House of Marx and nothing could stop us.”

The woman glanced at Elas and murmured. “An elf..” Then her face had a slight flash of hatred as she said. “You know? I can’t believe there is still someone from that clan who survived.”

“Yes, I am here to take back what you took from us! You eradicated our clan, but you suffered the same fate and ended up in this miserable state! The almighty House of Marx is now reduced to nothing where a mere group of wizard and mages could enter without a single one dying. It’s laughable!” Elas said walking forward without fear from any possible attack.

The woman laughed when she heard Elas’ words, and she replied icily, “Suffered the same fate? We were merely injured! But now, I have recovered enough from a medicine that my servant brought back and it would be not hard to kill you all in a flick of my hands!”

Eros, Fryr and Eris at the back were silent and decided not to move, even from a distance, they could feel that the woman could really wipe away their existence. They do not know why Elas was so brave and how he could resist the woman’s energy at such a short distance. But, they were worried about Elas who might be acting out rage; unfortunately they could do nothing or provide any sort of assistance.

“I won’t die, until I take that thing on that Altar!” Elas said decisively.

“It’s impossible for you!” When the woman uttered those words, the crystals surrounding her glowed and became transparent. Inside the crystals, bodies of people became visible and everything became apparent. Numerous apparitions appeared which came from the crystals that showed humans inside.

“So those are the injured people you were talking about.” Elas said still filled with confidence. “They would not be able to stop me.” He then glanced back and said. “Fryr take care of those things, after that your mission is complete.”

Fryr’s eyes shone with delight; suddenly, an illusory form walked out of his position and flew to block the apparitions. The illusory form exploded when it collided with the apparitions causing the same effect as it did outside, a chain reaction occurred wiping out the army of apparitions.

The woman’s face flinched, “How are you capable of such curse.”

Fryr did not answer, but obviously from such a curse attack, his energy drastically weakened and his face showed signs of aging. It was apparent that casting a curse of such degree was not that easy.

When every apparition turned into crimson substance in the ground the woman lifted her hands. Her expression turned serious and she murmured an incantation which Eros’ group could not hear.

Her hair turned blue, and the temperature of the hall dropped below zero. In her arms, strands of blue energy floated while swirling around, and in an instant it shot towards Elas freezing everything on its path causing Elas to frown.

Boom!

Fog covered the area where Elas stood. “Even if you are an elf, it is impossible for you to block an elemental magic of that level. As for your friends, they will also die here.”

The woman then shifted her palms towards Eros’ group and the same energy swirled around her arm, however, before she could direct the attack towards the group Elas suddenly stepped out from the fog free from harm!

The woman frowned; she could not believe how Elas survived. However, when Elas’ image became clearer her eyes went wide; her body trembled from anger mixed with fright.

“You!!” She said glaring at Elas who was walking towards her. Above Elas was a form of a man, it appeared to be a spirit, and from its facial features one could tell Elas and the spirit were from the same clan.

The spirit, even though without physical form, emitted energy far above the norm. The energy the spirit of the man was emitting was slightly weaker than the woman, but, as every second pass, it was rising fast. As his energy increased, another spirit appeared, then another one, until there were more than ten appearing in the same instant filling the entire room with spirits that aided the boost in strength of Elas.

It was a shocking occurrence; nobody knew that these spirits resided inside Elas’ body. Even Fryr who was always acting all wise and mighty was shocked of this crazy ability.

“We are here to take back what is ours.” Elas said, but this time, his voice was different. Hundreds of voices of elves resounded while mixed together, but it wasn’t any bit incoherent. Instead, it the words spoken pierced through each ones soul as if the words were not meant to be heard but instead meant to be felt; carrying with it indescribable weight.

“So you did something unbelievable for the sake of taking back the treasure we took.” The woman said with laugh, but this time her face was obviously filled with shock. “Magic inheritance is common but soul inheritance is a taboo for the elves, and you even did it for hundreds of souls. Your clan really did something unnatural. Do you think the nature will still be on your side?”

The spirits above Elas then replied, “It doesn’t matter if the nature does not provide us any support. We can still kill any of you with our strength!”

The woman then lifted up both of her hands, instead of talking back; she decided to take the initiative to attack! The crystals glowed and showed signs of cracking, giving unbelievable amount of energy to the woman who was now laughing. “Die!” She said.

The whole room started to freeze, and a gigantic orb of cold energy floated above the woman’s hands. If the orb descends, everything will freeze and shatter wherever it lands. There was no way for Eros group to avoid the attack so they simply stared while shock filled their minds.

In an instant the orb started descending! The air froze, and even Elas’ body showed sign of freezing. However, before it fully descended, Elas lifted his arms, materialized his bow, and fired an arrow. The arrow whistled through the air, it wasn’t grand and spectacular, but it pierced the orb easily without fail causing it to disperse into the air.

“How..” The woman was shocked. The magic she released wasn’t a simple attack.

“You are still weak, and could not match us. Even though you managed to recover your life force by probably using the medicine Albeus created from the fake pig king, the damage you received from fighting our clan is not even half healed. “ Then Elas took a step forward and said strongly, erupting with pressure that no one would be able to resist easily. “So do not move!”

The woman trembled and was actually rendered immobile. So now Elas walked towards the Altar and filled it with his energy.

“Stop!” The woman shouted. However, Elas did not even glance at her and continued what he was doing to get what he wanted. Suddenly, a strong cracking sound could be heard, and an invisible shield in the altar suddenly materialized in quickly shattered!

When the shield broke, a crystal appeared near the size of an infant’s fist. Along with this, several enraged roar resounded causing the crystals surrounding the altar to be shattered, revealing people who were filled with hatred. However, like the woman, they were unable to move, riddled with injury, and still on the process of recovery. The only thing they could do was glare with hatred to Elas who was about to take the crystal which they fought with their lives.

When Elas touched the crystal, it floated in the palm of his hands. It was like a diamond and filled with ancient markings incomprehensible for humans or more likely all mortals.

“This is a treasure our clan has protected for generations. You who took it should all be punished. However, the first thing I will do is fulfill my promise.” Elas then pulled out the small branch of the tree of life from his pocket and sent it flying towards Fryr who was filled with excitement.

“At last.” Fryr said greedily as he held onto the branch tightly.

“Eros.” Elas said. “For you to reach the plane of Chorias, you will need to get a similar crystal to this one. There are four crystals like this, which is the key to controlling the entire plane of Eunos. They are called the King’s Crystals. I am unsure of the full ability of the first crystal I am holding, but with my current power, I can use it to control the space in the plane of Eunos. The third crystal however, can control the space outside the plane of Eunos. Nobody has ever found it, or that is what I know. But, I think, it is the only way you can get out of the plane of Eunos and travel to the plane of Chorias. However, the path you will need to thread to accomplish this will be extremely difficult and might be filled with blood. There are many who covet these crystals, and my clan was a victim of the fight caused by it. Legends state that if the four crystals are merged together, one can control the plane of Eunos at a whim, and possibly reach a power equal to the Gods.

“I urge you to not seek the crystals and instead find a peaceful place to live where you can forget about revenge and enjoy your life in the plane of Eunos.” Then Elas pointed at Eros’ group and said. “I will send you to a peaceful place along with Hagu using this crystal, so think about what I said before you seek for the third crystal.”

Eros’ vision blurred, and everything around him twisted and contorted. It was as if he was suddenly being sent to a place far away from their position, a place away from any disastrous fighting or commotion.

“No!” Eros shouted, but there was no voice that could be heard. He have now a good relation to Elas which he does not want to end this way, so he tried to stop him, but it was impossible to step out of the teleportation magic Elas was using.

When he was trying to struggle more, a hand touched his shoulder and he heard Fryr’s voice inside his head. “Eros, Elas is trying to save us. His body would not be able to maintain using those spirits for long, so he is sending us to safety before he loses his power.”

When Eros heard Fryr’s words he stopped shouting and allowed the magic to transport him. Along with the teleportation magic, he felt a warm sensation at the back of his palm, which he was certain Elas was giving. And in an instant, their group disappeared without a trace, as if they weren’t even there in the first place.

Outside, Hagu who was still fighting with Albeus, roaring and punching like his life depends on the line, was suddenly covered with a light and he twisted as if a small hole was sucking his whole body, until he disappeared ultimately.

“Major Teleportation?” Albeus said face filled with worry as he shot towards the interior of the House of Marx in a hurry. “Were they able to take hold of the crystal?”

…

On an area filled with greenery and gigantic trees, Elas, Eris, Fryr, and Hagu materialized. When they looked around, there were only the sound of wind and chirping of birds, but oddly, killing intent was directed at them, not only one, but many!

“Who are you!?” A male voice said from above.

When they heard the voice, they instinctively looked up at the direction where the voice came from. There they saw several elves on the branches of the tree aiming at them with magical attacks of different form.

“We are not here for trouble, we were sent here by an elf named Elas.” Eros voiced out, since Fryr and Hagu were both worn out.

“Elas?” An Elf suddenly leaped down from the tree, landing in front of them causing the grass and dried leaves to scatter on the lea. He was handsome with a skin without flaw; he has a mature demeanor and a manly aura that can fill everyone with awe, but his face showed slight femininity and beauty which could cause women to envy. However, his looks did not cause Eros to be shocked since Elas actually has the same facial features, and only the mature demeanor was what he lacked.

Eros did not hesitate to repeat his words, since he knew that Elas sent them here for safety, and that using his name would not cause his effort for peace to be in jeopardy.

The elf then pointed a sword at Eros throat and said. “Don’t lie!”

Eros then firmly replied, “I am not lying.” Then he lifted his arm to show the back of his hand. There a symbol glowed which Elas bestowed. The man’s face flickered, from his expression, everyone could tell that he could recognize the symbol and that he knew that the symbol was real and it was useless to quibble.

“The mark of Elas’clan!” The man said. Then he lowered his blade and shouted.” Everyone, you can withdraw your magic now. They are not enemies.”

The man then asked, “Where is Elas?”

“Elas was left at the House of Marx, and he sent us here for safety using the crystal he got from the House of Marx.” Eros then sighed and continued. “We accompanied and help him enter the House of Marx, but at the most critical moment, when he was facing the noble, he used a skill that summoned hundreds of spirits to assist him, which enabled him to become powerful and suppress every enemy on the House of Marx.”

The man’s eyes narrowed as if he has an idea about the magic Eros mentioned. But, he did not say a word about it, instead he said, “My name is Elion. Come, I will lead you to the town.”

The other elves above did not go down; instead, they dispersed on the trees and headed the same direction which the man said was the direction of the town.

After an hour of walking, they all saw a large town surrounded by mountains. It was so large that Eros could not see its ends. There were several wizards flying around, and mages trading on the ground. It was so lively that anyone who saw it will have his spirit lifted up instantly.

The town of Orion where Eros came from could not even compare to this massive kingdom. His expression was of a country bumpkin who was in awe of what he saw.

“Sheles..” Fryr murmured.

Elion heard Fryr and said, “Yes, this is the kingdom of Sheles.”

“Elas sent us so far.” Fryr then said filled with shock.

Elion did not speak a word, but his face showed worry. He knew Elas personally. He also knew Elas’ character and that he would be willing to sacrificed massive amount of energy to send his friends to safety.

Then Elion turned towards the kingdom and led the way to a certain place filled with elves. The houses in this location were oddly different; it was made of trees that grew in a certain way to create a place the elves could stay. It was truly amazing; signifying the love of the nature for them.

The whole kingdom seemed to be composed of several races living together in harmony. Eros saw different creatures, like snake men, dryads, kobolds, and other sort of creatures that looked like half man and half beast. It was his first time seeing such large variety of creatures living in a place so he kept glancing around without rest.

Although, there were various races, Eros noticed that majority of the population were elves. It became apparent that they were the major power in the place.

As they pass by the houses made from trees, they saw many peddlers on the streets. A large fat man even approached him and said, “Would you like to buy some weapons?”

Eros was not sure what race the man belonged to, but he was sure the man was not human. Then another man followed them selling them magical scrolls, this one looked like a human, but when he spoke, his tongue was that of a snake man.

“Leave them alone.” Elion then said which caused the two to stop and look for other people to sell to.

Even though Elion did that to avoid Eros group from feeling irritated. Eros, however, was deeply interested in all the merchants he was seeing. His eyes were sparkling and it was obvious that he wanted to go shopping.

However, he realized something, something that made him feel extremely frustrated. It was that, he has no money! Eros felt down, but he could do nothing about it. Back then, he could buy most of what he wanted, since his father was the chief of the town, but in this place he was no one.

After some time of walking, they arrived at a certain building. It wasn’t so large and was not so small. It was a simply two story high structure made from trees that converged together to form one’s home. There was no door and only windows at the second floor.

“Master you have some guest.” Elion said.

When he said those words, the wall of the house suddenly parted, as if the trees were alive! And they felt that someone was watching them inside.

Quickly, they stepped in the house, and an old voice said, “I can feel the aura of the Lular clan on you young human.”

“Master, Elas sent them here using the crystal and he gave this boy the emblem of Lular, maybe to use as proof of them being friends.” Elion quickly said.

“If you people are Elas’ friends and if he sent you here. It only means that he was able to obtain the King’s Crystal.” The old man said with a hint of sorrow.

The old man then revealed himself, as he stepped out behind a bookshelf. He was carrying a book, with slightly wrinkled hands and slightly old looks. However, old as he may seem, he was still handsome and stunning.

The man then said, “Do you all wish to stay in the Kingdom of Sheles?”