More than fifty warriors started on this expedition, but now only twenty remained. And even among them less than a handful were in a good condition. Most had sustained various degrees of damage and were incapable of fighting.

They saved a few people from the cold stone prisons, but the losses were far too great for this meager victory.

Gerald saw Blum Ogna coming their way, so he went to speak with him.

"Hey there," he said. "Sorry for attacking you, I was a bit confused at the time…"

"Oh, it's not a problem at all!" Blum smiled. "Actually I wanted to thank you for helping us, we were in a desperate situation there. But I guess we could consider it even then, he-he," he laughed.

"Good man!" Gerald returned the smile and patted the man's shoulder.

Even amid the depressing atmosphere, they could find a ray of sunshine.

"Sir?"

"Hmm?" Gerald turned around to see who was talking. It was a thin-looking man who he saved from the clutches of an Orc a few days prior.

"Please accept my sincerest thanks! If it wasn't for Sir I would have not been alive today!" The man kowtowed with his head on the floor before Gerald.

"Who is this guy?" Gerald whispered to Blum Ogma.

"His name is Warren. Both his wife and daughter were violated in front of his eyes while his village burned. This man survived almost two weeks being tortured and beaten underground, and when you found him he was hours away from death." Blum whispered back, quickly summarizing the poor guy's past.

"Damn!" Gerald exclaimed. This guy was one tough nut to crack! After two weeks of being tortured, he still had the balls to attack the Orc even moments away from death. 'Impressive!' he thought.

"Get up," Gerald gestured and helped Warren stand back on his feet. "I understand you went through a traumatic event. My condolences!"

Warren's face darkened as the painful memories resurfaced in his mind, "I lost my family, my friends, my home… All because of these damned monsters!" Tears formed in his eyes as he spoke through his teeth.

"Sigh," Gerald placed a hand on his shoulder. "I can feel your anger, your sorrow… Staying alive will probably feel far worse than being dead for a while, but you need to stay strong! Use this anger and hate as motivation to become strong, so you can protect those who can't protect themselves… Or you can use it to get revenge. Annihilate the Orcs and rid this world of their presence!"

With tears in his eyes, Warren looked at Gerald and spoke, "But how? I was just a simple farmer, my hands have never tasted battle, and my sword is frail…"

"Hmm," Gerald rubbed his chin while peculiarly looking at Warren without responding.

Thud!

Warren fell on his knees and kowtowed to Gerald once more. "Sir… No, Lord! Please accept me under your wing!" he pleaded hopefully. However, seeing no response from Gerald he became nervous, and his heart began beating faster.

"Lord is a great man, battling selflessly against the monsters and beasts." He glanced at the Pixie Gerald was carrying with him, "I'm willing to work under such a person, even if it is just as a lowly servant."

After saying his piece, Warren turned silent with his forehead still touching the floor. Meanwhile, Gerald was unsure what to think about it all. Getting another helper would be good, however, Warren was just a simple man. It would be difficult to reshape him into something completely different in a short amount of time.

"Do you hate Goblins, Hobgoblins, Orcs, and other such monsters?" Gerald suddenly posed the question.

Warren lifted his head with confidence and spoke truthfully, "I do! I hate them from the bottom of my heart!"

Gerald nodded. "Then, should you gain the strength to do something about them, what would you do?"

"As the Lord said, I would do my best to slay them all and rid the world of their presence!" Warren answered.

Gerald smiled mysteriously, "That's all well and good, but gaining such power for you would be extremely difficult… How old are you?"

"I'm thirty-one."

"Thirty-one," Gerald took a moment to consider before saying, "Warren, let me be clear, as you are now, you aren't worth much to me. So, if I want to turn you into a powerful warrior I'll have to spend many resources and it will be probably painful. Now the important question is… Are you ready to suffer?"

"Suffer?" Warren gasped. It was almost like a heavy stone rolled off his back and he smiled, "Suffering is all I have come to know. It's either suffering alone until my death or suffering under the Lord in hope of becoming stronger. Naturally, I choose the latter!"

He spoke with sincerity and even took off his old helmet to show his commitment. He stabbed the broken sword he carried with him into the ground and placed the helmet on it. "I offer my Lord all, body and soul, please accept my selfish request!"

Warren kowtowed for the third time, determined to remain so until he receives an answer.

"Very well…" Gerald said after a moment. "You now work for me, Gerald of the Black Onyx! You will listen to my orders, and carry them out without question. If I tell you to go left you shall never go right, understood?"

"Yes!"

"Good, now raise!" He gave Warren a hand and helped him up, "Welcome to the group!"

Warren became somewhat emotional. He gained another chance at life because of his new Master, and he would do his best to grab this chance!

This was his path for revenge, only by sacrificing himself could he ever hope of standing strong against the monsters that have plagued humanity for millennia.

"Ahem! Excuse me," Blum Ogma interrupted by clearing his throat. He bowed slightly and said, "Please accept me into your group as well!"

"Huh?" Gerald looked at him in surprise, "You too? Where did this come from?"

"Yes!" Blum exclaimed but then scratched his head in embarrassment, "Actually, I have been your fan for a while now…" He then went on to explain how he saw him fly, and how he fell in love with his magic.

"So you are saying…"

"Please accept me as your disciple!" Blum Ogma bowed again. He remained unmoving, awaiting a response.

"Not gonna happen," Gerald immediately rejected him. Blum's expression saddened, but before he could ask for an explanation, Gerald continued, "But I can accept you as my student."

Joy washed over Blum at once and he was just about to express his gratitude when Gerald once again added something.

"However, you should know what this means. If you plan on learning flight magic, you should know it is incredibly difficult, and you will most likely fail! And above all, the value of such magic is nothing to joke about, so…"

"I'll do whatever it takes, Master!" Blum Ogma immediately stated. He bowed respectfully once more and said, "Whatever Master Gerald demands of me, I'll do it without question!"