COI C212
The news is always in for a look out from any warnings to their citizens what happened. All those coverages to let the people know are so useful to get them in order. Silent from the harsh environment, the dusty wasteland had proven to give its notorious nature and fear throughout the city. It is another repeating event in the inside. The internet has sent the people the posts what’s going on. Far from danger, but close enough to get involve. This occurrence keeps coming back no matter how they tried to hide it. This ‘they’ had made a lot of sense, yet others have grown to love this dangerous world.
There are people who followed the demons’ army to go into the secret facility. They lie and wait for them to come back. Under the dusty fall of the Jigeram’s light, they managed to take down so many remnants as they grew confident. While they’re waiting, they feel the ground shakes, and right in front where it happened. Others were curious. They go closer to the entrance, and the shakes are getting stronger. They stood back and the shakes stop.
Others have come to aid them. Islanders from the Stranding Island, the adventurers from the city guild, and the co-adventurers from the Victory Rooks also had come. Where everyone had gathered together, something rose up. A huge shockwave of magic coming out from the entrance spread in such a wide radius. Many exposed by it and all around them cleanse away the dusts. The powerful magic keeps spreading, as fast as it could, then slowly moving where it reached the distance about 3 kilometers from its limits. It reaches only to the Mihayara district, its evacuation area, strengthening it.
Everyone looks around the blast radius where all the dusts and its wasteland disappeared. The signals are coming back and the speakers are restored its loop warning.
“All citizens, we are no longer be responsible when leaving the evacuation area. Please advised to be wary to your surroundings. . . All citizens, we are no longer be responsible when leaving the evacuation area cuts*”
The speakers stop and the city barrier roses up to the sky and blocked the falling dust returning to the cleansing area.
The speakers turn back on with a new announcement “ALL ABLE BODIES, secure this area at the best of your abilities. The city barrier is starting to operate again. ALL ABLE BODIES, gather this area before the chance is lost”
Everybody has to take this chance as the dust rains again. The crystallization formed into a dome where the city barrier reaches only to the half of the tallest building thus far. The disfigured round dome had formed the barrier making this part of the district safe to go around. The remaining people left in the hurry. The people who left behind are the islanders. One of them is a leader, and a demon in disguised waiting for the secret before her to be unfold. Patience rewards her with such of that, there are people coming out.
The demon elf raises her fingers and snaps it. The islanders follow the signal. They go the two and apprehend them.
“. . . This is not what I have in mind”
The demon elf looks around to anyone who is looking at them. No citizen at her sight, she gives herself a relief and said to the goblins. Only by the looks of her death stare face, the goblins and their spirits are frightened. They are in disbelief. Feared by her demonic stare and at the same time despise her grin. The words of their mouth wanted to say it, and their hands shield it before making it worse.
The shockwave they found is indeed from the Foundation’s magic source. Still, they pretend it as a mystery. They can’t sense anything as if they were numb. The Foundation’s magic had stop them using their mana. The demon elf knows the Foundation mana was stolen, taken what she assumed from Isekai citizens themselves. The true mana replaced by their own. The key resources for the citizens to escape. The demon elf sees the two researchers have been taken into custody. This makes her want to know more, sadly, someone is stopping her to know.
The demon elf still has her own powers to use. This time isn’t hers to act. She heard the two what happened. The researcher explains everything
“Like that, it slaps the barrier with a large boom. Then it disappears, leaving us in a trance to force us to follow it. After we break free of course. It didn’t’ return. The demon says its name though. Calling itself Acurse”
The demon elf shuts her mouth. She was impressed how they almost never mention him until the last few words. It is certain they didn’t ‘remember’. Her men stare right at her without giving a comment. They know what will happen especially a demon like Acurse. The dwarf has to fill her role and said to the researchers.
“After what you told us. We have no choice but to escort you to Stranding Island”
With that, they go to the ferry after the two seeing the city barrier is back. It is rather small, and it is getting them to realized how clean the city is. Many people come out from the evacuation area starting to protest, continuing the disturbance as they are desperate to leave this hellish world. Others continue to defend on staying as the fight persist since that day. Emerald couldn’t hold herself to say about the protest
“After what’s happening to us, I never thought leaving this world would be the best”
The researcher groans from the pain from their escape “No argument there, I’m glad we got away from it”
The islanders notice, the two citizens are been escorted. The demon elf gives the same stare as before, they quickly shut and continue on. The two didn’t complain and press on. To where they are at now, they rather want somewhere safe after their last encounter with the demon. The ferry arrived, switching the load with more people joining to help the district to expand. Such incident, brings the bravery to restore this city as soon as possible. The researchers watch pass many goblins and dwarves, but there were no humans coming along with the group.
They rode the ferry where everyone left them and returned to their duty. The demon elf is the only one escorted the two. Once they disembark to the island. The demon elf transforms back to its real self.
“The equipment of yours. I won’t be disguising much if you two wears it, right?”
Emerald’s visor has so much credit to be designed by Myrrkei. She sees what’s going on and thanks to the indicators from friend and foe. It helps her identify them without any worries. The researcher though, he finds it fascinating to see the demon is able to hide herself. The visor is great and all, from what he sees though, the visor has still its limits.
“I’d say, I don’t know anything about demons. You being silent makes me remember what the files we found it is really mind magic”
The demon elf laughs calmly. Revealing her true form, larger than she originally disguised. She can’t hold of herself these new comers know so little what’s going on in this region.
“Laugh* There are so much to tell, and I don’t want you to remember it. It’s true, mind magic. It is a rare skill to haunt someone making the victim to remember as their way of passage. You remember the demon and its horror. Remember it, and you will be their void. Your fear and doubts are its path”
“Good thing we never seen its ugly ass and how it shits, huh?”
Emerald coughs out laughing from the researcher’s ridiculous comment. The demon leans slowly her head to look at him. Acting so childish and at the same time daring to go there with such provocative words. The demon elf takes her interest seriously, and keeps looking at him. The researcher smiles at Emerald persists her laughter. This simple talk makes Lady Hivites understood this slang. The Lady speaks to the demon elf’s mind
“Don’t try it”
“Of course, my lady. I’ll just watch him play. He sure can run from your old acquaintances”
They reached the port, still has no docking port, and relies on magic to raise and walked on to come across the island. There, the researchers meet one of the Enders guild masters. The birds fly over him and to the two. The guild master’s bird already seeking deep into their memories only given a partial glimpse with the name Acurse. Emerald proceeds to reach out her hand to guild master. The guild master pointed out her friend. The researcher got distracted by the spirit birds, he fell off from the floating platform, and managed to land in both feet on the ground with his magic.
“You’re really out of it today” Emerald places her hands on her hips acting like she is right
“Uh? I have magic taking care of myself, you know. Seeing a guy with birds all around him makes him looks like some video game character to be honest”
“Oh jeez, you watch too much video game cinematics”
The two bickers as they all go to where they could rest. They were sent to a town, a town that is filled with citizens. However, there is a sign reads ‘Under the debt of Lady Coheld’, this makes them curious, but they ignore it. What is important to them now is their safety, and what they did might get into trouble from the government.
The spirit birds flown over them, as it flies to the building. A small house, it looks like shed from they both saw. Emerald uses her visor what magic it holds. There indeed it has. The house is a concealment, and including with her UI identifying only a piece of it. She can only read the simple detail that it can be hiding spot or an imprisonment. Both seems rather suspicious from what she read. The researcher tests it out, and it really is a normal house removing the magic possessing it. Both of them didn’t hesitate and barged right in.
The researcher sets up his things. Meanwhile Emerald is busy having a talk with the neighbors. It is temporary until everything they found out will be separated once they return back to the main land. All documents readied, he took one of the main folders he made in drafts. There are four; First is the occurrence of the demons’ army heading the secret facility. Second is the phenomena happened inside the facility. Third, another one that the first case able to find out beside them. Finally, the fourth one, the area 51 laboratory has its collection of classified information. All together neatly and rambled in one folder ready to be organized.
Emerald comes back bringing some beers and already changed clothes borrowed by the neighbors. “Hey, change your clothes! We need a deserving break”
The researcher was casted by her spell and pulled him into the bathroom. He did his fair share of magic and did it on the whim. He walks out clean without any the necessary washing. Emerald wasn’t pleased of his sudden appearance all clean. She mentioned to him
“You know, I come here 2 hours in. You should be already relaxed yourself after what we have been through”
“And at the same time, we were stopped momentarily being apprehended. I thought we are not going to be safe for long”
The demon and the guild master are watching over them, out of reach, where they can’t be seen by anyone. It is indeed they are apprehended.
The demon elf tells him what’s going on “They have the information what your guilds’ friends have already know”
“It is impressive how they weren’t found out about it”
“Their luck shines because of a certain demon had no interest until old friends meet in a wrong place”
“As for that, I am involved what will interest them in the future”
“Interest? Who will it that be?”
The demon senses their presence. The available Enders in this island. Weak in nature, the young boy still dares to go out when it is settled. The demon recommends
“Then I’ll bring the former Dexter”
Back in the small house, he brings out his inventory with all the snacks he bought from the store. Emerald grins to see his stacks of sake have already empty. The researcher didn’t say anything as he grabs her can. After few gulps down to his throat he begins to go back to work.
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
“Let’s skip the demon part and focus on the computer system”
“Oh yeah, that. That AI knows something about the facility. I found leads that it was a virus from Fuku City trying to hack”
“Me too, then I found out how it behaves. Like a fictional character speaking in English. Like this one”
A sample video where the voice match and has its own account avatar, definitely a videogame character where on screen there is a gaming UI and all. He surely understands why, and more whys he had to interpret.
“What we don’t know about this artificial intelligence. An intelligence that knows about demons and others like archscience. The hardest part is to get it from the computer how this AI is not from us. It makes it harder how this fantasy world has technology”
Emerald is busy eating the snacks and drinking a few gulps. “Gulp* Yeah. Giving us real advise against that specific demon though”
“It is amazing how it gives us the crucial moment when it attacks us”
The message from the AI played from his device “Ok, ok, there is one last thing when you go running out to the back door. The demon, never mention its name, he is a nightmare, literally. Don’t try to use the word ‘it’ anymore, it’s a ‘he’ now. He can do nightmarish magic when he uses his human form. Got that?! Oh yeah, how he can’t hurt you. It’s going to be hard. Ignore him, at the moment. He seems rather not himself, not the part of him being disappointed, annoying, and more likely do sarcastic things. When he gets serious, there you could use reverse psychology. As long as you barely remember him, ignoring is the best option. Mind magic is his weak spell. Barely noticeable and dangerous you see”
It stops when the computer shuts off from his recording. That long nuisance of its explanation saves them.
Emerald mentions him again “It’s very specific. Now we know demons are not the same, and have different characteristics”
“Damn, the rest are gibberish. It doesn’t make sense. Reverse psychology, that’s too much for me”
“The ignoring part saves us though”
“Alright, back to the files. The other AI, from what we saw on screen are the robots. The AI never explained it to us. Even by typing it, the machine we found had given a big reaction for the demon to show hostile to”
This case made them worry. They thought it was some secret facility researching and manufacturing the most illegal products they thought would be. Guns and drugs like turning their people into super soldiers like the Dexter Guild. It wasn’t too far realistic, and after what the city had brought out with their own weaponry. They thought that’s the place. It wasn’t. That’s where they collect the loots from the demon’s army. And there is another one, the unidentified machine attacking the demon. Although, the machine gives a frightful vibe as it really come from Horsin. Their designs were never look so menacing.
Emerald is tapping her pen. The pen has secret materials for the Enders to use. Given by Myrrkei, it is the first time the researcher saw her using it. She had no other choice who will know about it. Now apprehended, under the Stranding Island supervision. They need to get the data straight or else will happen. The two checks their devices for any news about the secret facility. There is none, they turned to social media’s dark side of the internet. Nothing.
She said to him “Let’s send it to Myrrkei”
The researcher lies down his head on the bed “I agree, I don’t think I could manage to discover a secret that is far worse than we thought”
It took them three days to finish. All little details to the numerous data scrambled around in a categorized order. The two never realized how bad they can formulate good words to make it understandable for Myrrkei. They give up when they reach the topic about demons. They walk out from their room. The two felt their bodies concealed. It is indeed they were apprehended to this island. It felt rather cozy though, they can’t lie. The spirit birds are flocking around them knowing too well they are being watched. The guild master is waiting.
The spirit birds are pecking Miyusuki’s window. The sign of him to be ready has finally there while eating with his friends. Sniper and Kombat give their permission to continue his training. His friends persist to join him as their unfinished business on the mainland made them determined from their past mistakes. Faye heard about their callings, and tried to refuse Miyusuki’s companionship. The other guild mistress stops her
“There’s nothing to worry. The message is preserved and they won’t go far when leaving the ferry”
Faye looks at her showing off her jewels filled with magic, the other guild mistress had prepared for them.
The boys are going to meet the Enders guild master, and soon caught wind by the girls as they followed them too. The group gathers together after nearly a week staying. They have learned so much about the other mana types, and about this island. Excited to train again under the expectation of Voldemyr’s return. The guild master wasn’t expecting them in a group during this hard cycle.
Although, he continues “Your training is simple yet dangerous. You will cross path. A letter that needed to deliver written in Enders ink. Meaning, it has importance you need to finish it today. Time takes haste, you must deliver it”
Miyusuki receives the letter, a simple single envelope that says the instruction where to go. The address shows Raker Mawn guild tower. This makes him think the best way to deliver is using the train.
He got himself excited and ask “You mean we’re going to Enders Bridge?!”
The enthusiasm appears with great determination, then fell into the spirit bird’s chirping as if it sings sorrowfully.
“I’m afraid not, training there would be adapting the region’s environment. You know who your guild member is, and she alone can’t go to the isles because of how bad the mana is there”
The two researchers see the recruit. Hiding behind among the larger birds, the spirit birds warn them in its numbers echoing mob voices.
“We will acknowledge your request. The demon though, is still under supervision to you both. You two are her custodies. Make it so or you will be another example who didn’t make in the aftermath. Watch them go as you want to please yourself while it is being sent”
They watch them settle out the envelope. Emerald was struck from disbelief, one of the students is holding the envelope without burden by the ink’s effects. The researcher shuts her up. There is time to evaluate back in their room or house.
The ferry calls to the islanders as it begins to leave. The students rushed there excitedly leaving the Enders guild master behind. He looks at them believing they will train together with Voldemyr. The guild mistress, wearing a beautiful dress, said to him.
“Jeweler is acting a little of trickster for the younglings”
“That’s explain why no one is rejecting the boy’s companions”
They look up to the spirit birds casting a ritual to look above from the ferry sets sail to the mainland. A mist appeared blinded them from their view. One by one, Ootadakimasu, Usweet-censored, Holly, and Joanne returned before them. Confused and left behind.
The Ferry reaches the port, Miyusuki sees the mist clears and notice his friends are gone. Only left by his side is the guild mistress other than Faye. Wearing her runes like jewelry or as accessories, she looks at him acting rude.
Miyusuki was angry and said “What did you do to my friends?”
Her jewel glows inside the gem, a runeword appeared and flashes to his eyes. He remembered the promise that Faye wanted for him, returned back to reality. The guild mistress wipes her jewels to stop the spell. She remains quiet never giving him the explanation. A kill joy, her action varies it.
Miyusuki frowns as he is alone, walking down to see his guild come to aid him. His eyes open wide to see how they are fully ready to go to the wasteland. In shroud of their mantles, he meets them again. Haw, Voldemyr, and the man hiding his face. His mouth moves to speak out his name
“Archivist . . .”
The two turned to him, without a mask, and only hides in a hood. With cartoonish reaction by the movement of his hood. He didn’t know a thing why Miyusuki stared at him like that.
His responds “Shield Student, we only meet once and you seem to be . . .”
Miyusuki answered directly by releasing the black mist from his mouth. Archivist shuts his mouth before the mist released.
“I understand, just don’t do it again”
Miyusuki feels his grip enclosing his mouth. Barely breathing from his mouth and nose close shut. Archivist bends the black mist to ever never let it go from the young boy’s system. His body loses control and let Archivist controls him. It was painful to the least, and tried to break free. He can’t, this strength alone controlling the black mist inside of him gives a dangerous warning. One smidge of his strength recovers and leans back as Archivist let’s his hand go.
Miyusuki finally breathes again and hears a clap from the guild mistress behind him. Voldemyr bows and Haw follows, Miyusuki follows along but stop by Archivist.
He leans down and whispers to him “Don’t show respect if she treated you wrongly”
The two looks at her, her eyes show despised and really show of her rude character. What Miyusuki don’t know have made her generalized with him to them.
“Why is she acting that way?”
“Because we were once enemies. The past didn’t act kindly of her path”
The guild mistress looks at Voldemyr and Haw, one former Dexter and a veteran of Raker Mawn Guild, her rash judgement took in and finally speak out.
“Guide this boy to the best of your training. A spoiled child like him loved by guild mistress Fay’mae has no chance to survive this world nor with his friends”
“We have been told” Both of them reply simultaneously.
Miyusuki felt insulted and at the same time to be true. His mind deluded how generous they are with him provided what he must do, but never truly exceed what they expect from him.
The guild mistress gives a stern look at him. It reminds him those disappointing eyes, the people he remembered thought to be better than that, and those eyes returned gazing on him opening his wounds. He blurted out after she looks away.
“I . . . was a . . . k-k-kid back then”
That stuttering tone, moves his depressing heart. A strong pat of the back given by Voldemyr.
“Have strength, youngling. Oue didn’t lie about you”
“Aunt Oue?”
“Aunt Oue??? Ah? Yes, the woman who cares for you with her doll entrusted you”
Miyusuki raises his head “That’s right, Fae-chan! Fae-chan?”
He calls out its name and didn’t respond. Neither in his inventory nor around him that always love acting like a pet. There he kneels down, Oue’s help disappeared. Voldemyr didn’t stop supporting him. Another pat at his back again, including the strength of his runic gloves. Strike down to his shoulder providing admirable endurance from the kid’s back. He did not flinch and stands up trying to control his emotions. The young boy is still not overcome, and his resolve is fresh, for now. He needs to take it into action.
Haw and Archivist let Voldemyr motivates the student on his terms. It was enough, and they wait for Miyusuki to talk about his quest. While they discuss, Miyusuki look at the new improvement they are wearing. Heavily equipment around their body, no exposed skin under their leather to heavily padded armor. Haw looks like a post-apocalypse adventurer, Archivist is in his desert journeyman, and Voldemyr is heavily deck out with multiple different weapons, solid weapons without a single trace of magic. While Miyusuki is in the same as he had before. A shield, a gauntlet, and his trusted throwing daggers.
Miyusuki shows them the envelope. One of them tried to touch it, and it was only Archivist is having trouble to touch it. His hand fell drop on the floor by the weight of the envelope. The strong loud thud made him groan in pain.
“Agh! What kind of envelope is this?”
Voldemyr answers “This must be Myrrkei’s. For this youngling to go with us, this is definitely why they called us for”
Haw says otherwise “I was called not from the Enders though”
“Then that means this is important. Shield student, have you ever experience fighting yet?”
“Yeah, I have, only against monsters though”
“That’s fine, since you don’t how mortals like us fight”
They are on their way to the station. Skipping Ironno’s saferooms when they get a chance to see it. The noise in the environment gives a fright as the battle rages on. The battlefields left in crystal shards, show the horror of the finally killed looters and bandits. Miyusuki for the first time see such a horrific sight. Then he realized something is different. The bodies left in bones and others still left rotten and continue to absorb by the dusts. He reaches out to Haw
“Why this doesn’t look fresh. It’s all dried up?”
“So, you finally see it”
“See what?”
“We found out you people use tracking differently, while we found the tracks from the remains of those dead bodies. You people never reacted before, until a few days ago”
Miyusuki checks himself for any stains he had gone here. Taiyou Industries was the most dangerous. All those ruckuses running amok, it does not make sense to have those battles last long. Horsin never intend to last a fight except for the citizens. After see those dead bodies, revealing the puppets as they are. Miyusuki just walk pass it all. Voldemyr stops them, to where they take their steps. The crystallized floor seemed to break easily. He pointed out someone is hiding among the shards.
Haw said to the young student. “There’s no holding back. Blood will be spilled here”
Miyusuki gulps down his throat, he brings out his water bottle to take a sip. Where he puts it down, Archivist initiates and jumps over the crystallized environment. A few of the enemies flown to their direction. Voldemyr raises his crossbow and fires at his targets. Haw doused Voldemyr’s bolts with his potions increasing its damaging potent. The enemies recover and rained down with their own self-made crystallized weapon. Miyusuki goes to the front and raises his shield.
The shards shatters where his shield touches it. His runic shield prevents it piercing through and able to withstand the falling shards. He then slides to the side, where incidentally step on Haw’s potion. Haw pulled him back to them where the potions start to react. All three together circling around as more is coming to get them. Voldemyr sees Archivist is doing much work than he had anticipated. His martial art is controlling the enemies’ position to move closer to them. Forcing the enemies to target them, and more of them start coming. Until Archivist collect them all seal away all their exits.
Archivist stands still immerse himself into the dust, his eyes beam from his hood, releasing an absurd amount of his energy to perform his technique. One step on the ground, seeing his enemies trying to flee. Twisting his bending to lose their sense of escape into a verge of fighting to the death. He suddenly moves, he senses Haw preparing his lethal concoction. Through Voldemyr, he senses his tools are drenching in blood, neither is fresh nor organic, and the shield student is hesitating to use his gauntlet. There is no hesitating now. They walk into this wasteland unseen by the citizens, and they will be exposed by this world of enemies.
Arise by the dusts turned to the strength of his bending, capturing them enclosed to their very being, and into the strength of Archivist’s. Pulled into his team to finished them off. Miyusuki was bombarded by enemies. Couldn’t hold on except his gauntlet, he bumps into one of the bodies and slide among the piles being thrown into. Haw and Voldemyr were busy to take them down, blood splattered and body drenched in powerful potions. The mist of unsavory taste poisoned through the gush of dusts and putrid mana.
Miyusuki braced it through with his runic shield and the gauntlet breaks through the piles of the dead. Engrossed by it, where he can’t seem to recognized these looters at all. Losing their human features revealing what they really are. Mere puppets of the demons’ creation, there he sees the mana flow fading to nothing. Where the glow appeared before him and entered to his gem. Hearing a foreign voice, he tries his best to check his device. The haunting words of texts appeared forcing it out through his little functionable UI. Barely he could read it and only react by the rots of the bodies.
Those rot touch the envelope trying to pry it open but lost touch because of the ink protecting it. The demons of Agatheus City felt only a glimpse it has on the envelope only recognized the foreign writing into their tongues. It spoke with malicious intent.
“Find that envelope, his name is written in citizens’ hands”
Demons start to wake up and casts down their collections from the inner realms of Agatheus City, in the form of human now entering the city with great intent. Not scavengers, as manhunters, worse than what Lady Hivites couldn’t control.
Meanwhile, Lady Hivites sense their initiation. It wasn’t long from what the demon elf sends her message. This is not what she had expended, giving her time to sip her glass and look at the distance where she can’t the see the Isekai City. She speaks its awry.
“When will the true Jigeram’s light enter their city?”