A weary traveler, who has recently crossed the Southern Empire, travels north into the Holy kingdom, governed by the Grand Templar, Lucious—leaving behind his village and all the connections he has made. The Southern border of the Holy Kingdom is surrounded by mountains making travel difficult. Not only that, but the rigid mountains were also packed with wolves and goblins who had made it their home. The traveler, who has already crossed the border a few times, knows that the Holy Road is under constant maintenance and does not have monsters nearby. Darkness has finally begun to cast its shadow upon the land, says the traveler to his daughters, and claims that they need to find a shelter right away, luckily for them, a small cottage surrounded by a dense forest of decaying cider trees is in sight, and they decide to approach it. “Alright, we are finally here. Let’s see if anyone’s home. Rhea, I suggest you take your younger sister to the campfire and try to light it while I look around the house.”

“Yes, father, I’ll do so right away. I find it strange that the land is rotting away. I think we ought to leave here. I sense sinister energy radiating from this area.” From the moment she put her foot into that house, Rhea felt a sinister presence from upstairs that made her feel like throwing up, yet she kept it to herself, thinking that she was exaggerating.

“You might be right about that, but your sister is quite sick due to all the movement we have been through lately. How about you go and try to find something for her to eat? I'm also somewhat starved myself, but whatever you find, you can have.” The traveler proceeds to look around the house. He inspects one of the bedrooms to find two rotten corpses lying on the floor. He sees a young boy sitting in the corner in the next bedroom, yet he does not know what he is doing. He approaches the young boy and says, “Young man, what happened here?”

A sense of danger went up the traveler’s spine. He felt as if he was about to faint. He began feeling exhausted and nervous and began to back away slightly while keeping his composure. A long silence befell the room. Finally, he gathers enough courage to talk to the little boy once again. “Well, you must be hungry. Why don’t you come down? My daughters are lighting the campfire as we speak.” Again, another long pause, yet this time with slightly more confidence, the traveler spoke once more. “What's your name? What are you doing here?” To his surprise, he finally got an answer, for the little boy decided to respond.

“My name is Daemon.” After hearing an answer at long last, the traveler begins to feel less tense and continues to converse with the boy.

“Daemon, sorry for barging into your house unannounced. My name is Farhid. I come from the Southern Empire.”

“I do not mind. I offer you whatever hospitality my home may possess. However, I’m slightly busy with my affairs in my room, and I currently feel disturbed. Please, go to your children. I will join you later.” Says Daemon, slightly annoyed.

“Very well then.” Farhid exits the room, closing the door behind him. “What a rude kid. I wonder why he acts as if he isn’t a child. I’m probably overthinking it.”

After waiting for Farhid to leave the room, Daemon pulls a mystical orb out of a small portal in the air and sneers into the orb. The surrounding goblins in the region are keen on sensing magical power, and Daemon, by activating his orb, lures the goblins near the house. Still, the goblins are too scared to enter, not only because he is inside but also because of another power source that is strong yet much weaker than his. Daemon, through telekinesis, begins to converse with the goblins. “I have two guests at my home. I know your kind is attracted to power. However, you must leave here and begone from my presence.” After giving the goblins an ultimatum, Daemon gets bored looking into his magical orb and decides to take up the offer Farhid gave him. As Daemon goes down the stairs, Rhea notices a powerful supernatural force radiating from him with the most malicious intent. This force is so strong that her body breaks out in cold sweat when she lays eyes on him. Luckily, she was able to calm herself down, and by the time she regained her composure, Daemon stood in front of her for introductions.

Daemon, in the back of his mind, thinks to himself, “although I stand here right now, I was slightly conflicted about whether I should have eliminated these stupid fools who came into my house unannounced, but no matter, it’s too late to complain now, perhaps this might lead to some sort of amusement for me later.”. After finally deciding to talk with them he begins with a simple introduction “Greetings fine travelers, I would’ve personally invited you to my home, but it seems you have done that already without consulting me. No matter, may I have your names?”

Farhid still felt a sense of danger from the kid himself, and thus he chose to introduce his children to him. “This is my daughter Rhea, and the one next to her is Christiana. We apologize for barging in unannounced and won’t stay here for long. We will travel once again in the morning.”

“You may stay if you would like. You should know that I do take a toll on staying. I hope you won’t mind,” Daemon said with a smile on his face to make the travelers feel a little more at ease. This didn’t work as he planned and not only made Farhid uneasy but also made Rhea question what he had just said.

After a moment, Rhea finally speaks up after feeling tense the entire time. “What toll are you talking about? We are only travelers. We cannot pay any tolls, unfortunately.” Before Rhea could continue, Daemon interrupted Rhea as if he knew what her following sentence would be. He walked around the room for a while, whispering to himself, and finally, he spoke up.

“Do not concern yourself with minor details. You must be hungry from your travels, are you not?” Daemon materializes an enormous feast and a dinner table out of thin air for the family with a simple wave of a finger. Farhid, slightly scared and bewildered about what he saw, backed away with his children behind him.

“What sort of dark magic did you just use! I traveled all over the world, and no one could create something out of nothing. What dark arts did you just use!” Upon seeing that these travelers were on guard, Daemon hastily reassured them that his intent was good.

“Calm yourself, Farhid. I suggest you not take my act of benevolence lightly. I nearly never actually help anyone, go ahead, and eat as much as you would like. I hope the food is to your liking. This is your favorite type of food. Although I summoned this food here for you, unfortunately, I will not dine with you today. I hope this won’t hold you back from eating.” Daemon suddenly vanishes into the air, and even Rhea, who has excellent magical senses, can no longer sense his presence. Christiana rushed to the table. Christiana has an intense fever and requires all the nutrients she can get. As the family fills themselves, they get ready for bed. Rhea, who was still suspicious of what had just transpired, did not eat as much as everyone else did, although she was hungry.

“Papa, I think I ate too much just now. I can’t seem to go to sleep either. My mind is all over the place. Could you tell us a bedtime story?” Said Christiana.

“Yes, of course, but what story shall I tell this time… hmmm… well, we are moving into the Holy Empire of Emperor Lucious, so I guess I can tell you a story about him.” Farhid begins to remember all the journeys he has been through his entire life and debates whether he should tell them or not. Suddenly, Christiana said, willing to listen to anything to get her mind off things.

“That sounds like a good story. Tell us!”

“Once upon a time, the world was governed by creatures of darkness, orcs, goblins, dragons, and such. The world itself was chaotic and human life scarce. God, for some reason, suddenly decided that he wanted to change the way he ruled. He weakened the evil races greatly to give us a fighting chance and appointed a village boy with insanely high magical aptitude with even greater powers. It is also said that Lucious can directly communicate with God himself, a privilege that no one else has.” Now when most people hear this, they just think it’s cool. However, Rhea knew that to do such a task would require so much to accomplish. This was so impressive that she couldn’t help herself but wonder in awe upon hearing it.

“No way... I heard that it takes an immeasurable amount of magic power just to stand in the presence of God, but to talk with him is an honor most grand.” However, Christiana did not learn the arts of magic and thus was utterly oblivious to how grand an achievement it was to communicate with God.

“That’s awesome! Lucious sounds like a total badass.”

Farhid thinks to himself why he even brought along Christiana, considering this has nothing to do with her, feels terrible for involving her in his affairs, and says, “Quite observant Rhea, yes, the power is immeasurable to wield, and thus the strain the power he uses has left its mark on his body, although he cannot die, he has grown old. If I was to estimate, Lucious has lived around 600 years, the decay on his body keeps getting worse to a point it has not only blinded him, but he cannot even walk without magical enhancements.”

“I wonder if all the sacrifices Lucious made were even worth it.”

“Well, Lucious never had any word on the matter. He was randomly picked from a group and given his powers.”

“Seems like a ruthless thing to do, to take away someone’s sight just to allow him to talk with you.”

“At the end of the day, who are we to challenge what God should do?”

“I doubt I can sleep now after this story. It’s messed up.”

“Well, you both better do so right away. Tomorrow we must head out early if we are going to catch up with the caravan.”

The day ends as they sleep for the night. A sinister red moon lurks in the sky; however, all ends well as morning comes. Morning comes, and Farhid, along with Rhea, awake from their slumber only to realize that they are no longer in the home they slept in. They checked the date, and it seemed as if they had slept for two whole days. Right away, they realize that Christiana is no longer with them.

“Father, where is Christiana, and what was that dream?”

Farhid didn’t have an answer to that question. He was also confused and said, “I’m not sure... it seems we are still in the south. What happened? What was that weird dream?” Farhid and Rhea go back through the same route they saw in their dream. Everything happened once again as if they were reliving the same memory, only this time without Christiana. They once again got to the exact location where they saw the house, only to see it was burned down. The same small boy stood in front of the house. Farhid ran up and approached the boy once more. “It’s you again! What did you do to us? Where is Christiana?”

Daemon, slightly amused, tells the travelers. “Oh, you took the same path back again, strange. How did you enjoy the food I served yesterday? Did you like the flavor?”

Farhid slowly realizes from the tone Daemon has with him and, out of sheer anger, yells, “Cut the crap already. Where is Christiana?” Once again, pure silence fell, and Daemon, upon realizing that Farhid will not try to solve the riddle, finally tells them.

“You humans are so boring, fine, I’ll tell you.” Farhid knowing what he was about to say, begs him to tell him it isn’t true.

“For the love of God...” Finally, Farhid realizes the truth, yet he cannot imagine ever doing such a thing.

“Yes... for the love of God... The truth is that you were consuming your daughter last night.”

“What nonsense?”

“No, no, it’s quite the truth, you see, the price for having a meal in my home unannounced was your daughter’s life.”

“And who are you to put such a price on my daughter?”

“Well, you never asked what meat it was, so I thought you wouldn’t mind. You seemed so hungry that you ate most of it.”

“You can’t be serious… surely this is but a jest. Just return my daughter.” Farhid, by this point, thinks that all of this is a joke. Yet Daemon, with the certainty of an absolute tyrant, kept giving him the truth, laying on him each sin he has committed, like a mason building a wall suffocating him inside by each fact. Finally, a light for Farhid approaches. Rhea, who was left behind when Farhid started running, catches up with her father and asks.

“Father, what’s going on? Where is Christiana?”

“Rhea steps back. This kid here is a demon!”

“Well, I’m not sure if I’m meant to feel insulted or not. It was you who came into my home unannounced and ate my food.”

Farhid grabs a burnt piece of wood from the floor and runs to attack Daemon. As he runs towards him, he remembers the decomposing bodies that he saw inside the house are now burnt to ash. Upon trying to take a swing with the wood, Daemon again disappears. Farhid begins to start sweating and vomits vigorously on the grass. Since he also was the main person who ate the food, he got food poisoning due to eating human flesh and died. Based on the rules set by God, cannibalism is an act punishable by death. Rhea survives with teeth and nails thanks to her magical powers. Because she also ate Christiana’s body, she began to feel sick, and eventually, she collapsed on the floor. The group of goblins who were in the area recently realized that the sinister presence they once felt was no longer there. They tried to steal Rhea and take her back to their hideout. However, as they were about to take Rhea, a company-sized platoon of Holy Paladins leading an army of twenty thousand of the most elite soldiers of the Holy Empire happened to be marching down the Holy Road to the Southern Empire. Upon hearing the Battle drums, the goblins realized that they would all be slaughtered if they stayed any longer and thus decided to leave her there. As the Holy army marches south, they find Rhea, who has collapsed on that same road, and decide to take her with them, not knowing her background.

“Oh, it seems you are finally awake. What is your name, traveler, and why have you collapsed on the road in such a manner?”

The holy paladin talking with Rhea was Alinta. She was a very large-statured woman with a magical great sword that radiated divine energy. Her armor was even more luxurious, for it was made of holy gold, a material that was most rare in the world she was in. Holy gold is told to put fear and terror upon their enemies, whether evil or good. Holy gold is also a very durable material, not like standard gold, and to forge it into such exquisite armor, requires an artisan of the highest caliber.

Rhea begins to cry at the holy paladin’s feet. “I. I don’t know what I’m doing anymore. My entire family was slaughtered at the hands of that evil kid. I knew that we should have left the moment we entered, but he didn’t listen! Why didn’t he listen!” The holy knight, slightly bewildered by the sudden crying and from a sense of concern, asks.

“What evil kid, what are you talking about? What happened here?”

“Me and my family, we were traveling north, and we stumbled upon that house, it burned down now, but when we entered, there was a little boy inside who could create food out of thin air. He treated us and let us rest for the night. When we woke up, my sister was no longer with us, and we were transported back. Long story short, once we got back, everyone I knew died.”

“Created food out of nothing, you say. Perhaps you should talk with Lucious. If it comes to the magic, he must know what it is. Only he can help you.”

“Lucious, you mean... your Emperor?”

“Yes, the Grand Holy Templar, Emperor of the Holy Kingdom, Lucious.”

Rhea takes a moment to think for herself. “So far, none of what I heard about Lucious is any good, but I don’t know which way to go from here. I might as well follow these knights wherever they are going. Still, though I should be most cautious with them, they don’t seem to be on friendly terms with southerners.”

After thinking further about this, Rhea finally realizes that this must be a sign sent by God to help her in her struggles, for most certainly, she would have died if the holy knights did not arrive. Although they were holy knights, she again thought it would be better if she remained cautious of everyone.

“I would be most honored to meet with Lucious if you can take me to him. I would appreciate it.”

“Very well, you may follow us. We are currently marching south as a part of a campaign mission. If we return alive, I will get an audience for you with Lucious.” Alinta seems to notice that Rhea has strong magical power on her own. That serves to be the only reason she promises such things to a stranger.

“What campaign mission are you talking about? What business do you have traveling South?”

“That is a matter that does not concern you, stranger. However, if we are successful, you will get what you seek, so leave it at that.”

Another holy knight approaches Rhea and Alinta. He begins by introducing himself. He claims that he is a Grand Inquisitor of the Holy Kingdom. His name, Varis, another name like Lucious, from God, to Lucious to Varis, all these names, due to their God-given nature, sparked terror in the hearts of their enemies. This Varis, however, unlike Lucious, seemed to be half-blind. Labeled also as the Eye of God, Varis can see the mortal world through his eyes, yet his faith blinds him into committing evil acts and thus half-blind.

“What is going on here, Alinta? You know we are currently in a hurry, and who are you speaking with?”

“This is Rhea. She is traveling North, it seems, with her family, but she seems to have been under quite a lot of misfortune; thus, she has collapsed on the road.” After saying this, Alinta begins to Whisper to Rhea. “Do not tell him anything. This man will kill you if you talk about the dark magic you just spoke of.”

Rhea wipes away her tears quickly and stands up to answer. “Greetings, my lord. I am Rhea. I am a simple traveler who is traveling north. However, as Lady Alinta said, I have been through a rough time. Sorry for this, but I would rather not discuss my situation further.”

Varis being a very understanding and civilized person, leaves the conversation at that and speaks. “That is fine with me, so long as you are not of the forces of evil. I have no qualms with that.”

“Thank you for understanding the situation, but I would like to request your aid due to my current circumstance. Before our meeting, my family and I were traveling north, but I have nowhere else to go now that they are gone. May I please travel with you to wherever you are going?”

“Are you…”

Varis interrupts Alinta from speaking and speaks in an enthusiastic tone. “Very well, young one, you may travel with us until our journey brings us back to the Capital. I must warn you that you must also carry your weight and not drag us back because of incompetence.” Varis, sensing Rhea's power, decides that it might be good to keep her around.

“I appreciate it.” Said Rhea with deep gratitude to Varis, who was very understanding.

“We must get moving now, Alinta. Look after her.”

“Yes, my lord.”

Varis takes his leave. Rhea sees the large coat of arms drawn on his cape upon turning around. It was a red cape, which had a symbol of a broken skull with a snake coming out of it. The skull itself looked rather horrific, not of human races, and the snake coming out was drawn as if it had eaten the inside of the skull. The Cape itself was blood red, the same red Rhea saw before going to sleep a day prior. The Grand Inquisitor also didn’t seem to wield any weapons, but he did have a book, as most fanatics do. The book itself was covered with holy gold. This confused most soldiers because it seemed like a waste to use holy gold to cover a book.

“Finally, that beast is gone. He gives me the creeps. If you ask me, there is nothing holy about that man, and there is nothing holy in that book he spends his days reading.”

Upon hearing such negative comments about the Inquisitor, Rhea asks. “What do you mean, that book is the holy scripture your people read, is it not?”

“Don’t tell anyone, but one night as I was passing by Varis’s tent, I saw him looking into the book. He closed it immediately the moment I entered, but I saw a pure dark shadow coming out of those blank pages of that holy gold-covered book.”

“What do you mean, dark shadow? Are you suggesting that he is aligned with the forces of evil?”

“I don’t even know what is good or evil anymore, I joined this group to make the world a better place, but all we have done is kill the innocent in the thousands to justify our cause. Even now, we march to the Southern Kingdom through the village of Hupu and siege down Castle Gremont. The number of people who will die throughout this campaign will be unimaginable. Well, never mind that. I better get going, just follow the rest of the soldiers, and you will be fine. I’m telling you this because you are coming with us, so be prepared for the journey.”

Alinta leaves and joins up with the Grand Inquisitor and the other Paladins. One of the holy soldiers told Rhea to follow them in the side rank. Logically, if they were ambushed, a stranger they didn’t know and didn’t contribute to their efforts would take the brunt of the assault. She had no room to complain, but the thought of the holy soldiers going through her village terrified her.

After everyone leaves, Rhea begins to cry deep inside, both for Christiana, who she deeply loved as a sister, and she cried for Farhid due to him being the only father figure she has ever known in her life. “I don’t seem to have any other choice on the matter but to go with them now. I just want to sleep on a comfortable bed again! When will all this injustice end? When will the person who murdered my family repent for his actions? I wonder if any of these questions will ever be answered.”

The army began to march once more, but now they were going slightly east towards the village Rhea had come from. The village of Hupu is one of three villages under the jurisdiction of the noble that currently occupied Castle Gremont. The Southern Empire currently controls Castle Gremont, meaning that beginning a siege will most likely result in a total war between the two kingdoms. As tension rises once more between these kingdoms, war seems to be inevitable.

After about three days, the Holy Knights finally arrive at the outskirts of Hupu village. Hupu is a peaceful village with mainly older adults who come there for retirement. The day is sunny, and the breeze feels as if it kisses your cheek with a smile. The freshly watered grass brings a refreshing feeling to the soldiers and Rhea. The kids who visit their grandparents play a lovely melody in the distance. As the army marches to the village, two of the highest-ranking Paladins and the Grand Inquisitor meet on a hill and see the surrounding areas. The Grand Inquisitor was wearing a different set of clothes this time. He wore a bright red robe with a tall red hat. The robe itself was covered in holy gold, which was meant to protect him from all evil. After everyone was gathered, Varis spoke.

“I want this heretic scum village burned.” Slightly confused from what Varis just ordered, Alinta spoke up.

“What do you mean you want this village burned; they have done no harm.” Furious at the statement she just gave, Varis hits her with the back of his hand to teach her a lesson and smiles. Lancel, who was the Leader of Paladin, also smiles. He gets on his knees and kisses Varis’s hand.

“It shall be done as you have ordered your holiness” With a grin on his face from ear to ear, he goes and tells the troops what they are about to do. As Lancel takes his leave, so does Varis, but before Varis takes his leave, he leans in to tell Alinta something in private.

“Know your place, woman, I know that you are an accomplished knight, but the next time you speak out of line, I will have your blasphemous tongue.” Alinta, who had been reconsidering her position there, grew closer and closer to leaving the Holy Order.

Rhea notices from a distance that Alinta is looking pale, so she decides to go and ask her what just happened.

“That madman is going to torch this village and slaughter everyone here.” Said Alinta after Rhea approached. Rhea couldn’t believe what she had just heard. The people in the village were family to her. She had to stop this no matter the cost.

“What do you mean by burn the village? What purpose would that serve?” Angry at the obvious question, Alinta replies.

“No purpose, that would serve no purpose, just like every other duty I have carried out. NO, I will no longer stand here and watch them go through with this. I must stop them!” Yet the way she toned that statement showed that she was afraid of what she had to do. “I must hurry if I’m going to stop it, but the only way forward is to kill that damn inquisitor. So be it, even if it costs me my life, I will not let these people suffer!” Alinta rushes towards Varis’s tent with her sword in her hand, disregarding Rhea's presence altogether.

Upon reaching Varis’s tent, she confronts Varis and speaks up against the order. “I am a knight of the holy order, but what you are doing here is not holy. You must reconsider this!” Varis being the calculating lunatic he was known for, asks her.

“What is it you plan to do here by pointing that holy great sword at me?”

“This holy sword will cut your head off for your crimes against humanity if you do not call off the attack.”

“So, you are threatening me now, what a shame, so be it, strike me down. I will not call off the order.” As Alinta tries to cut Varis’s head off, her sword suddenly feels much heavier and thus falls to the ground. The force with which it falls shreds the environment and leaves a mark as if a small meteor had hit it. Varis looks down and laughs.

“YOUR HOLY SWORD HAS BETRAYED YOU! IT SEEMS YOU ARE A SINNER!” Varis proceeds to taunt Alinta. “No holy weapon can hurt me; I am the highest caliber of holiness! Who are you but a foolish child trying to attack the direct follower of God? Who are you to challenge my God-given name, Varis!” Alinta falls to the ground as most evil creatures would upon hearing his name. This was due to hearing the name Varis. No evil creature is allowed to hear God-given names, and since she was no longer fit to serve the holy order, hearing it caused her tremendous pain. “Do not worry. I will not kill you yet, Guards! Seize her! Take her up the hill and make sure she watches. If she doesn’t, I will have your heads!” Varis exits the tent with a sinister smile. He couldn’t help himself, for he had just seen firsthand that God was on his side.

The unsuspecting villagers begin to hear battle drums, a sinister sound that screamed “WARRRRRRRRRR!” The villagers were terrified of the drums alone and came to the head chief’s home. Over two hundred red banners with thirty different coats of arms were visible from the chief’s home. The drums began to grow louder as they got closer, it was not long until everyone there knew that they would all die. The children who were meant to be singing in the distance could also be heard. However, without the villager’s knowledge, a scouting party had already captured them and forced them to sing cheery tunes as the army approached. The army reached the village and came to a momentary halt. The drums suddenly grew silent, and the day was only beginning. The same grassy smell in the air could still be felt. The day was a perfect day for a picnic. Suddenly a bright red man approached the villagers through the army. It was Varis.

Varis reached the front of the army, and with Lancel by his side to guard him, not that he needed it, the village chief approached the Inquisitor and asked them what their business was with them. Without even taking a moment to answer, Varis threw him across the village square using magic and yelled.

“Soldiers of Justice! Show me your courage! Slaughter all these foolish heretics and burn all their belongings!” The battle drums were not used anymore, for this was not a war. It was now only a slaughter. The captured children could still be heard throughout this event, and to that end, they were forced to sing, with their voices amplified with magic so that everyone could hear.

Alinta cried with Rhea on that hill, but what confused them was that they could hear children singing, and the worst part of all, it was still such a beautiful day. The slaughter was successful. The men returned to camp mentally exhausted because they had just slaughtered innocent civilians in the name of God. Everyone was silent, except the children who could still be heard singing, with a cry in their voice. Varis returns last. Happy with what he just did, he praises God for letting them have such a decisive victory, yet there was no fight to be had yet, only a mass murder. The whole event happened in only five or six hours. Varis finally returned to Alinta to see how she was coping with her punishment.

“Have you learned your lesson yet, my child?”

Alinta cries and tells him with the last voice she has left. “Yes, I learned my lesson. Please forgive me!” Not being one to hold a grudge, Varis accepts the apology and tells her she is now forgiven.

“Lancel! Where are those damn heretic children who were singing? Bring them to me!” Lancel brings over the hostage children who soiled themselves from watching what just happened and throws them to the floor in front of Varis’s feet. “Alinta, my child, God asks you to prove your loyalty once more, take up your holy sword and bring it down on your enemies!”

“But these are only children, how could you….”

Before being allowed to finish that sentence, Varis interrupts. “These are heretics! You must kill them here and now, or these vermin will spread.”

Alinta, no longer able to think, just stops responding with words, she takes up her holy great sword, and as instructed, she brings down the sword of God on her enemies, cutting off all the children’s heads.

“There it is finished! See how simple that was. If you followed orders from the start, you wouldn’t have been in this mess, no matter! Be glad that you are alive this wonderful day and praise God for he is the one who has forgiven you, allowing you to wield that sword once more.” Varis enthusiastically takes his leave along with Lancel, who looks back at Rhea standing next to Alinta.

“Lord Varis, perhaps you were too harsh on her.”

“If God wills it, it shall be done, you will not believe it, but I have witnessed a miracle most grand today. I must tend to my holy duties and purify the land with due haste, make sure Alinta is under control for me, will you?”

“Of course, I will” Lancel, slightly conflicted on what just happened himself, is reassured by Varis’s words. “He must have seen a miracle from God. I wish I had been there to see it.”

Night fell on the land, and everyone went to sleep. But not Varis, for he still had a task to fulfill. He grabs his holy scripture and travels outside into the village square, where he decides to open his book, and pitch-black souls come out surrounding the area. Due to his spirituality, he was one of the few that was able to see such things. The dark, tainted souls began to corrupt white souls in the sky and merged into one giant entity. A voice came from the darkness after the last white soul turned black and returned to the larger dark mass.

“This is not enough! I Demand more!”

The inquisitor bowed down on the ground and only said. “As God wills it!” and “it shall be done!”

The dark spirit switches topics and asks about Rhea. “This recruit of yours, she seems to have strong magic power. Who is she?”

Confused about the line of questions, Varis only replied that he did not know much about her and that she had recently joined them. The dark spirit then commands Varis not to bring any harm to Rhea, and Varis willingly accepts his demand. As the souls went back with haste into the book, Rhea, who had a strong magical power, sensed the same sinister energy she felt back at the abandoned house, only this time the strength behind it had been multiplied a hundredfold. She saw the entire thing but could not hear the conversation due to the distance.

Rhea felt terrible for what just happened and felt even worse for not being able to stop it, considering how powerful she was. She returned to her tent and lay down on the floor, thinking absolutely nothing. She was mentally exhausted with these religious fanatics and couldn’t wait to get it over with.

Another bright and cheery day came after that. The soldiers were all happy as if nothing had happened the day prior, food and alcohol were served to the soldiers, and they gambled the little money they earned from their posts with each other. Who knew how many soldiers would return to their homes alive? Rhea could think of one thing, going to the Holy Empire without dying. Escaping from the army itself would prove to be tricky, for Varis had told the most elite soldiers, including Lancel, to keep an eye over her. Alinta’s mind is broken after the events that transpired a few days ago, and she has yet to regain consciousness. She walks and eats but will not communicate. Her eyes seem lonely, staring into the abyss every day. The bright and strong woman that Rhea met, who truly lived up to her name, flame, was nevermore, only a husk, an empty shell, of what was prior.

The soldiers under the command of Varis marched forward, for their mission had not ended yet. Their true goal, Castle Gremont, was only one day away. Castle Gremont was an incredibly durable fortress. The castle itself was divided into three separate sections. The inner, middle, and outer walls protected the troops during long sieges, and the walls themselves were made of the most durable stone in the Southern Empire. Castle Gremont was also the only one built deep into the mountains. This provided with very useful high-ground advantage for the defending party. Castle Gremont also had a village located directly in front of its gate to provide necessary protection against bandits in time and, more importantly, to take most of the damage during the siege and give time for preparations.

Varis never planned to come out victorious during the siege. His true goal for the siege was to gather enough souls to create a strong vessel to hold God. God’s rebirth into the world is right around the corner. The surrounding goblins and demons attracted to magic power knew that the worst cataclysmic event was to come soon. Terrified of what God was planning and sensing such sinister power from the holy army, every single demon and other creatures of power stayed away from the traveling army, a rare thing to behold for traveling deep into their den. Varis, who was full of himself due to the protection given to him by God, would communicate with his god while the army slept and discuss at length what Varis had to do.

The plan was to create a large transmutation circle, a magic art that was banned by the church. Varis was slightly unsure of how to do what God asked. The transmutation circle required to revive him into the world was larger than the castle they were about to invade and seemed impossible to create. God had a plan. He was going to lend his power to Varis, who was supposed to cast air magic to move the clouds above them and create a transmutation circle out of the clouds that cast their shadow over the land.

The surrounding nations, specifically their grand mages, could sense that the world was also about to fall into chaos. They felt the significantly increased sinister energy across the world. Knowing that the church was behind it, they knew immediately that they must stop whatever was about to come. The Mages, who were direct advisors to their kings, suggested that an immediate force should be sent out to find the source of the sinister energy. All empires unanimously decided that in order for them to stop the cataclysm that was about to commence must send hundreds of thousands of soldiers to the source of the evil they felt. The most powerful mages and warriors led each army.