“Alright, thank you… Alright… Wait, you’re losing me… Ah, you mean tour? Yes, it’s been going well. Don’t worry. Mmm… Good… Oh, that? We might be compelled use the Queen’s Dragnet… I agree, the other representatives must know… Well then, may Ieso keep you.”

“End transmission, Honorable Governor?”

“Switch it off, my good man. We’d soon be out of coverage anyway.”

The radio was turned off. It makes a few blipping sounds before the tiny lights serving as its indicators slowly fall into darkness.

“My lord, I can’t thank you enough for fixing my radio. It’s the only thing that keeps me up during these long trips! Um, my lord…?”

“Shh… there, hand me some of the paper. I’d try an old trick that’ll surely wake him up.”

After being given a piece of paper, the governor makes some quick folds that transforms it into a peculiar looking trumpet. Then, immediately after winking, the governor snaps the paper with a strike in the air. It produces a loud, exploding sound that almost mimics fireworks, but without any flames. The noise stopped the horses on their tracks, neighing wildly as they raise their two front feet and kick it around out of their surprise.

Meanwhile, the sleeping person springs up, ignoring the bump of the head on the carriage ceiling, and salutes, “The motto is always ready for service! Sir, yes, sir! The call sign is Alus, reserve lieutenant, Dalreida Cavalary Corps, Unit Number…!”

The two other people with him laughed hard, their stomachs almost in pain out of their fun.

“Wait, Kayapa, is that you?”, the soldier asked as he begins to feel the bump he just had on the head, “I thought there’s an explosion! What’s happening?!”

Still reeling from laughter, Kayapa tried to reply as clearly as possible, “You should really be suited with these kinds of tricks. Bayan would be having more of these in their sleeves.”

“What unbelievable power, Honorable Governor,” the other man, who appears to be a soldier also, said while stifling his mocking smile, “How can such a small piece of paper produce such big noise?!”

“Science sure has its wonders, my good man,” the governor responded with a feigned grace, “Now then, we’ve no time to waste. Check on the horses and if there’s no problem, let’s get a move on.”

The soldier crisply saluted, and after a few minutes, he was able to make the carriage move forward. Apparently, he did not have much problem dealing with troubled animals, particularly horses.

“Forgive me for a little joke,” Kayapa continues after he hides the radio under the carriage seat, “I believe the journey through Aramathi has been quite monotonous for you.”

Since leaving Pasco, the landscape was quite similar across the entire province. Small towns and villages dotted the peripheries, few of which have become recently affluent only because of their natural resources, but otherwise, the rest of the province displays poverty at its finest, exacerbated by the recent incursion against the capital. So much about the legacy of the Horden administration, but if any, the republican government ought to share the burden for the Aramathian hardship.

Alus tries to reassure him, “Not at all, Governor. Perhaps my exhaustion is just a bit stronger than Aramathi’s… uh, unsatisfactory… roads. If I may ask though, what was your discussion about?”

Kayapa puts one of his hands on his cheek, “Some routine communications with Zandoc. Nothing much. But my attention was caught by two paramount concerns. First, Rabka.”

“I see… It’s been quite a time. Has he been caught yet?”

“Unfortunately not… He’s got a knack for elusiveness, I’m sure. He did hide for three years before setting up his cult in our province. Zandoc says the borders are secure, but I can’t take any chances. We must use the Queen’s Dragnet if necessary to keep him within the country.”

“Queen’s Dragnet?”

“They named it after the last Queen of Miarza, who was said to have popularized the policy. When she took over, there was mass migration to the south of Miarza, then an independent country, out of discontentment. To stop the movement of precious manpower away from the country, she instituted the Queen’s Dragnet. It was successful in keeping the people in their place, but it also formed a fifth column by the time Dalreida set eyes on the famous Queendom of the South. As for Rabka’s case, we’re planning to use it to trap only a single person, instead of whole populations.”

“Sounds like a harsh plan to implement regardless.”

“Only because Rabka’s so potent. Even if he’s not accepted in Aramathi after this, he can still convert to his cause hearts and minds elsewhere. This is how much the republic’s messed up.”

“It doesn’t really appear much when you’re in the capital.”

“That’s true. But of course, I’ve another thought that’s been stuck in my mind for some time.”

“What that might be? Your governorship?”

Kayapa paused, removing his hand and turning his head to watch the scenery go past. His sudden silence allowed the soldier to think of a number of options which the governor would ask, but none of them seems to be the right answer.

He then answers, “You.”

Alus kept his calm, “What about me? There’s really nothing much to…”

“Exquisitors usually return to the capital after their audit is done, but you didn’t… You’re not a real exquisitor now, are you? Tell me the truth.”

“K-Kayapa, what are you…?”

“What is Lord Piso planning with Bayan for him to send a lowly reservist like you?”

The soldier makes a nervous laugh, “Hey! That’s very uncalled for!”

With a blazing stare, the governor then faces him, “What’s your mission?!”

Alus looked at his interrogator, and then fixed his gaze to the carriage floor, as he put his sweating hands together, wherein crackling sounds can be heard as he goes.

“That… That’s classified information, Governor…”

Kayapa’s eyes narrowed, “Aha! It just proves that you’re acting under orders higher than mine. But hear me out, Alus. Aramathi’s in the frontlines if… when Dalreida comes to a head with Bayan. I have to know what the republican government plans to do.”

“But Lord Piso and Lord Hundo strictly…”

“So, even Hundo’s involved. You’re not really bright for someone entrusted with this mission.”

Alus slapped his face with two hands, and screamed, “Okay! Governor, please don’t! I’d be under duress!”

“Hmm… You know I can just drop you anywhere in these barren parts. Let’s see if you can walk to Bayan with these punitive conditions. I’d also be under duress deciding about it…”

Alus’s mind raced to come up with yet another story to placate Kayapa’s curiosity.

He sighs, “You’ve got me, governor. I’m no exquisitor. I’ll tell all…”

Kayapa smiles, “Calling me by name would be fine, as long as you speak the truth. Let’s keep things casual.”

The lying soldier grinds his teeth before speaking, “I’m actually sent there to… retreat.”

“A retreat while bearing Lord Piso’s seal? His tasks are getting weirder by the year.”

“Yes. At least that’s what they call it. In reality, it’s training. There’s a story about Bayan having a center of all martial arts styles. Your family’s from Bayan. Maybe you could share it to me…?”

“Training? As part of your studying Lord Piso’s technique?”

“Ah, y-yes! That’s q-quite right. He f-figured I’d look suspicious if I don’t have his seal, so yeah.”

Kayapa makes a tight smile, “Lord Piso’s got eyes and ears everywhere. Even these horses can do the job for him… I can understand why he wants you there. Indeed, there’s such a place.”

Amazed at how his bluff seems to be working, Alus raised his eyebrows, “Wait, really?”

The convinced governor slightly nods, “Kanlong Mountains. It’s a perilous area in the extreme north of Bayan, and many Bayanis believe it’s a myth. But in keeping that belief, they’re gravely missing out.”

“A-alright, that’s g-great… I guess, how can I get to Can Loan?”

“It’s Kanlong... I doubt Piso’s seal would get you anywhere once you’re in Bayan. It becomes a double-edged sword, and believe me, nobody there would be as gullible as Zandoc.”

“You seem to hold Bayan in high regard.”

“I do. Just as my father and my grandfather before him. But don’t get me wrong. My allegiance stays with Dalreida, and if it comes to fighting Bayanis in a future war, I’ll readily fight them.”

“Oh, no. I’m not doubting your allegiances. I only observed that even when people are abroad, whether for a short time or their whole lives, they still hold dear to them their homeland…”

“It depends. Besides, for large countries such as Dalreida and Bayan, both of which expanded so much with the expense of erasing entire cultures and nationalistic tendencies, the conceived identification with the nation blurs. Look at our moral standards. Peninsular Dalreida has been trying to enforce their own for a century, and still you can see how morals differ for each of the nine provinces.”

“Nine? We added a new one?”

“Yes. Zandoc informed me of Bereta’s integration as Dalreida’s newest province. Lord Piso himself led the campaign. It was lightning fast in my view. It’s as if he’s rushing something...”

Alus began tapping his feet, “Ah, well, Lord Piso’s always the fast one, isn’t he?”

“And surprisingly uncharacteristic of him. If he’s the type to rush things, he’d be dictator when he was 56. There’d be no Rodrik Turelo, and no Crespos Milios.”

“That’s all speculation,” the indifferent soldier shrugged, trying to let loose as Kayapa apparently believes him.

“Alas, you’re correct. But had he ascended then, my family would’ve… No, the past is history.”

“Lord Piso does seem to keep a different moral code than most Dalreidans. Even I don’t get how his mind works at times… Okay, many times. But he did talk to me about an Ieso guy…?”

Kayapa leaned forward and shook Alus, “What did he say about Lord Ieso?”

“W-what the…?!”

The soldier calmly attempts to remove Kayapa’s hold, and he only succeeds after a few moments, and some bumps along the way.

The governor regains his composure as he coughs, “I mean, I apologize. But surely you’ve noticed how we all worship Ieso.”

Alus fixes his tunic, “I get it. This Ieso is huge.”

The governor ignored his rather distasteful remark, “Lord Piso is probably the only living person in our age who has personally met Ieso. All of the disciples of the Way who have been with Ieso in the beginning, including my own father, was killed during the purge of Crespos Milios. That’s why the church in Pasco had to be disguised as a lecture hall. It fronts as an educational center, but we do worship during ungodly hours.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. But really, he didn’t talk much about Ieso in public. In private, Lord Piso only gave me his story with Ieso when I was about to leave the capital.”

Kayapa rubs his chin, “Hmm. I can sense that you’re not a believer.”

“Of course not! Forgive me, but I think these gods and goddesses aren’t worthwhile anyway.”

“Even when Lord Piso gave you his word? Alus, Ieso is not like any Bel you can see anywhere.”

“You said it yourself, Kayapa. There are different moral standards for each province, for each nation. We can’t say that there’s one universal set of morals to govern our lives. Not the ones given by these gods, nor the ones handed down to us by our ancestors. You only live once.”

“Look at you, suddenly getting smarter by the minute. This issue does hit something in you.”

Alus crosses his arms and looks away, “Hmph! You’re always attacking my character. Is that how a believer of Ieso should behave?”

“It’s my bad, of course. None of us are perfect. Not even you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Kayapa slightly raises his hands in front of him, “Every person has his or her own conception of right and wrong. Or right and left. Okay, understand? What is right for me might be wrong for you, and vice versa. Even when we do find someone who agrees with us on one right thing, the combinations of morals are endless. However, I didn’t imply that a certain sense of morality can’t be universal. Just as many stories are born from one story, so are many moral codes born from just one code. Therefore, the very problem of Dalreida, and the world, is the lack of a moral compass to direct them towards it.”

“What’s your evidence that all came from one instead of one coming from all?”

“Why not look for one act that can be considered horrendous for everyone? Say, murder.”

Alus was struck by the governor's example, “Are you saying that… killing is a moral taboo for all?”

Out of all instances, Kayapa touches on such a topic. This piqued not his interest, but his disgust. Was the governor thinking that it would be apt given their backgrounds as warriors?

“It should be. Whether or not you’re a believer, it is imperative for humanity not to kill each other. Otherwise, the lack of self-preservation endagers us. We’ll be wiped out in no time.”

Alus looked at him intently, “What then is the justification for us soldiers? When you kill a person in the city, you’re a criminal. You kill a person in the battlefield, you’re a war hero.”

“A tricky one right off the bat, and I understand where you’re coming from. What can be the deciding factor is the motive. If you kill your neighbor out of a whim, then there’s no justification. But if you kill an enemy in the frontlines, you’re acting under your commander’s orders. Ieso tells us that we should obey earthly authority, just as we do heavenly authority. God has instituted that authority for a reason, and therefore, your obedience is justified.”

“But you didn’t kill anyone during the Aramathi Coup… They’re not just enemies in the political sense, but also in the religious. Won’t your god like you to crush the cultists with an iron fist?”

Kayapa shakes his head, “We prayed about it, and no reason was given for us to kill them.”

“You can talk with your god?”, the soldier asks as he recalls the prayer of Zandoc and his troops.

“We always do. You see, worship is first and foremost a relationship, not religion. If you see gods and goddesses as a set of rules to follow, then you made religion your god or goddess. This is exactly what the cultists have done. They focused on the creation, rather than the creator. Perhaps the reason why you don’t worship any god or goddess is because you don’t relate. And just like any relationship, there has to be constant communication. It’s a two-way street.”

“What does it have to do with murder being a moral taboo?”

“Without a directing authority to justify, everything you do would only be rationalized by you. But even your internal authority deceives yourself. Say, I’m going on a diet this week because it’s the right thing to do. You end up not doing it. Then you rationalize why you didn’t take that diet. As a result, neglecting the diet becomes the right thing. Rather than reasoning for it later, why not reason for it at the start? This is the difference of justification and rationalization. In the latter, you regret. In the former, you accept. As I said, each one of us has a moral compass, but it doesn’t mean each compass is correct. When it’s wrong, if it doesn’t point you to the right direction, the compass has to be recalibrated. Besides, going back to our case in point, we seem to have a similar view on murder. You didn’t kill Rabka that time, even when you can…”

Alus blinked, “I just don’t feel like doing it… I don’t have anything against him anyway…”

“Don’t you think I can tell? You demonstrated for me Lord Piso’s technique along the way, but I can’t sense any lethality in your blade! Someone weaker than Rabka can still survive from a direct hit of your Twelve Disciples. In my view, you haven’t killed for far longer than any average Dalreidan soldier. If you’ve last killed anyone, it might be by accident.”

The frustrated soldier covers his eyes, “You know what, you’re too clever for your own good… I hate it…”

The governor taps his valued hat, “I don’t wear this Kwan for nothing. You’d know when you get to Bayan.”

Alus does not respond for a while, keeping his trembling hands on his eyes.

“I did…”

Startled by Alus’s sudden answer, Kayapa asks, “Did what?”

“I killed her… By accident…”

“Her? Who’s she? Your mother?”

“No! Why would I kill my mother?”

“I’m just guessing. I’m no fortune-telling sage anyway. But believe me when I tell you, a listening ear is with you. As I’ll keep your retreat to Bayan a secret, so will I nurture your story in my heart.”

“You just ridiculed my level of intelligence. How can I know you’d really hear me out?”

“It may sound very cliché like the fabled Dalreidan in Distress, but you did save my life there. Helping you in my own small way is the least that I can do.”

It took a while before Alus removes his hands, revealing red eyes and tears spread around them. He beats his chest a few times, and then begins to speak, albeit with a cracked voice. Alus narrates how he was recruited under Piso’s personal command after graduating from the Dalreida Military and Constabulary Academy, also known as DMCA, for his excellent combat ability. This is despite not being among the brightest students to have emerged from his batch. It was, of course, an honor even when he was no epitome of brain and brawn.

At the time, Piso has not yet assumed the dictatorship, but he was already considered a living legend, the Benefactor of the Republic. Alus’s first assignment under his command was in Cerana, where the Benefactor crushed a revolution to remove the Dalreidan-sponsored government in the protectorate. There he meets the love of his life, a girl named Kimiya, who returns with him to Dalreida. It turned out to be a whirlwind romance. After a year, they got engaged. It did not take long before the soldier was assigned to another mission. When Alus was sent to Carga, Kimiya insisted on going with him. In a surprise encounter of his unit against bandits and highwaymen, he decided to try out the sword style Piso has taught him, even when he has not yet completely mastered them.

However, for some reason beyond him, Kimiya threw herself in front of Alus as he was about to conduct the Twelve Disciples. Unable to control the swiftness of his blade, Kimiya falls right on the spot, her blood showering the ground. The enemies were repelled, but the deed has been done. His lover was no more, and there was nothing else that can be done to save her. From then on, Alus decided not to pursue learning his master's style. He also vowed not to kill anyone ever again. Soon, he left active duty and became a reservist, wherein he was fortunate again enter Piso’s service, this time as his attendant.

“But here you are,” Kayapa said after Alus becomes silent all of a sudden, “Are you being forced by Lord Piso to inherit his technique? Because if you don’t want it, maybe I can volunteer!”

“It’s not funny, Kayapa,” the soldier replied in a serious tone, this time with a voice firmer than a while ago, “What good is it to become a killing machine when we can’t even bring forth life?! We’ve become instruments of torture and death… Nothing can bring her back… Not even your god…”

The governor's weak smile faded, “No, Alus. There is reason for everything that happens to all of us. I believe in my heart that if Ieso intends for her to live, she would be. Ieso has resurrected, he has overcome Death himself. If he can do this to his own body, how much more for ours? When we die, we die with him. When we live, we also live with him.”

Unable to contain his melancholy and rage, Alus loses all respect and grabbed Kayapa’s tunic, “Then why does Kimiya have to die?! What purpose does that serve, huh?! Tell me! We could’ve lived happily ever after, just me and her together! I don’t care about the world falling into chaos!”

He almost choked at Alus’s sudden move, “Aku! Calm down! Calm down, I say!”

When he saw Alus continue his blustering, the governor placed his fist an inch, around a finger's length, from the soldier's belly. He then gives it a quick yet powerful strike, pushing Alus back to his seat with so much force, it felt like he was about to break the seat itself.

The soldier coughs, “W-what was… that?!”

“Something you might learn in Kanlong,” Kayapa calmly responds, “Good thing you’ve got some armor on. Otherwise, you would’ve joined your beloved just now.”

“All the better, your governorship!”

Kayapa shook his head, “I also lost loved ones, Alus, but I didn’t let it hinder me from the purpose Ieso has set apart for me. You know I was ready to die when I fought against Rabka, but look, we’re having quite a lengthy chat today.”

After a quick laugh, the governor continues, “We don’t know what happens in the future, but it’ll be alright in the end, because I know Ieso is in charge. God doesn’t need you to believe in him for his very existence, just as the wind blows even if you don’t feel it, or just as the stars shine even if you don’t see them. They don’t need you to validate their purpose. The same goes for you. I don’t know what purpose Ieso has given for you, but that doesn’t change anything. Not my opinion, nor Lord Piso’s, can dictate your life, because it has already been plotted out. It’s already validated by the one who purposed, and the one who purposed our lives is god.”

“What does it have to do with the morality of killing…?”

“Everything. If your purpose is to kill, who am I to judge you? It has been justified. If my purpose is to rule, who are you to judge me? It has been justified. Having a moral compass isn’t a popularity contest. Even if the world doesn’t recognize your own sense of morality, it’s still your sense of morality. For us, the authority of our moral ascendancy is Ieso, and we have confidence in him for he is the same always. Yesterday, today, and forever. How about you?”

“Are you trying to persuade me to worship Ieso?”

All that talk ignited a sensitive topic, and Alus was just about to drop it at this point. The governor took a pause, trying to assess the soldier's look to know how he should proceed.

“I won’t deny it,” he then replies, “I’m a teacher of the Word, after all. But hear this, if you keep on following yourself, you’ll never find peace. For as the sands easily shift as the winds blow, so does our desires as the trials of life come. Who knows? What’s right for you today may not hold tomorrow. This is why you still can’t move on from Kimiya, but when you do move on...”

“What does Kimiya have to do with this?! Ieso’s dead! I think you’re the one who hasn’t…!”

“You don’t kill because of her, correct? I applaud you for that.”

“And…?”

“That’s it. What else do you think I’d say?”

“Like, you’re not going to convince me to become a good soldier and kill for my commander?”

“Why should I? It’s your life. Live it. You don’t see Ieso altering hearts to force people to believe, for he knew already where their hearts are. Not like those cultists who seem to thrive from the adoration of others, he sees our being, even the parts which neither you nor Kimiya knows. The world god only knows.”

“Say, you’re not quoting some famous lines now, are you?”

Kayapa smiles and places an assuring hand on Alus’s shoulder, “Guard your heart, for it’s where your guiding moral compass lies. We all want the morals of this republic to change, but what they don’t realize, the path towards moral recovery begins with us as individuals.”

He slaps away the governor's hand, “You talk as if I’m an immoral person!”

“I do, all of us are. It’s only by the grace of god that we’ve actually had a real chance to redirect the broken moral compass which have brought us to our ruin. It’s by creating our own compasses that we failed to reach the correct destination.”

“Okay, but for example, when you say god’s purpose justifies murder, isn’t that Ieso guy just an excuse for you to continue doing wrong?”

“By no means should his abundant grace increase our debt ceiling of sin. He hasn’t come to destroy the law, but to fulfill it. Rather, it’s our distorted sense of morality that made it extremely complicated and difficult for us to keep the law ourselves. I told you already, there are as many morals there, but all came from the true one.”

Alus throws his hands in the air, “You know what? Screw it. Just tell me how I go to Kanlong.”

Kayapa pulls out a Kwan from his bag and hands it to the exhausted soldier, “Here. You might be needing this.”

He then explains possible routes through Bayan in order to reach Kanlong Mountains. One is to take the main road, which cuts across Bayan from the Aramathi border to the capital Barangay. While the capital might be quite safe for a Dalreidan to loiter about at the time being, it cannot be said for the rest of the country.

Bayan is significantly larger in terms of land and marine area than Dalreida or Berania, making it difficult for the government based in Barangay to keep the peace elsewhere. Nonetheless, it would be a smooth journey from Barangay to the outskirts of Kanlong. Bayan treats Kanlong as its sovereign territory for the longest time, but its geographical features do not allow a large Bayani garrison to be maintained there. Add to this precarious state of affairs the uncooperative local population. This allows Kanlong to operate more like an independent entity than anything else. Still, this would also mean that a Bayani guide to the mountains may not be the most suitable of partners because of this geopolitical situation.

Another option is to take the path that crosses through Cingis. It would mean only limited time travelling through Bayan, particularly its peripheral territories, since no major road connects Aramathi with Cingis by this time. Also, various tribes between Barba, Aramathi, and Cingis roam the borders. They may prove to not be the most hospitable people, but their dispositions tend to change depending on the circumstances. Then again, Cingis is definitely at odds with both Bayan and Dalreida for various reasons. Whether a foreigner comes from Bayan or Dalreida, he or she might be seen with contempt by the Cingis. Still, unlike Bayan, it is said that Cingis armies have relatively kept their routes safe and sound for travel, even for foreigners. In addition, they hold Kanlong in high regard despite it being officially recognized as Bayan territory, which may prove helpful if he would have a Cingis guide to the mountains.

“I’m giving you one of my family’s Kwan,” Kayapa continued, “not only as a possible disguise when you enter Bayan… See it also as a memento of my gratitude. Besides, a Kwan is worn only by ranking Bayani officials. They will give you respect as Pasco did when you showed Lord Piso's seal.”

“Are there any other routes? It’s like you’re suggesting to me to take the main street, not the wall street.”

“Not exactly. It all depends on you. After all, it’s been a long time ever since. But please, assure me, when you get to Kanlong… show this Kwan to the Grandmaster. Tell him, Kayapa has kept his honor even in a foreign land. Please…”

“Now I knew there’s a catch. But really, can’t you just enter Bayan and hand it yourself?”

The governor turns away, “No, I can’t. Obviously, I can't. So please, can you assure me of this?”

Quizzically looking at the Kwan he is given, the soldier softly answers, “Alright, I will…”

In his mind, however, Alus does not see himself going anywhere near Kanlong, especially if it is only meant to satisfy another person’s unfulfilled wish. After all, it is not part of his mission, and even if it were, it sounded like a pain to accomplish. Then again, he cannot divulge his true mission even to a governor like Kayapa simply to gain more information on the Bayan’s longevity secret. He has to gather the necessary data outside Dalreida. As the journey towards the immense nation of Bayan continues, it begins to dawn on Piso's attendant that his mission just might prove to be more difficult than he initially expected, making him wonder why the dictator assigned only him to undertake such top secret task in the other side of the world.

He did not see the Aramathi Coup coming to impede his progress, and his talk with the new governor made him wonder what kind of purpose does his mission really hold. How much more would he meet along the way? What does Bayan and Cingis have to do with the mysterious Kanlong Mountains? Why does Kayapa appear to have connections with Kanlong?