As Stas prepared to meet with Koruga, he remained on alert. Not because he feared that the Deathbringers might try something reckless.
After all, the meeting was to take place at the edge of the army camp under the supervision of several Jishin's loyal supremes standing slightly aside. Not even a "god of warmasters," if one existed, could manage to kill Stas and then escape.
Ordyntsev wasn't worried about the possible detection of ether either. Since he had long ago developed a detoxification technique for both ether and natural energy, Koruga wouldn't feel a thing.
Yet, even so, the earthling was not going to let his guard down. It wasn't wise to underestimate someone capable of uniting the Deathbringers' families into a single force.
Koruga was waiting for him at the designated spot without any other attendants.
A rather brazen and courageous behavior, which, however, was fully justified. The Deathbringer knew well that the command would not dare to attack him just as the chaos was about to start its advance.
One look at the man dressed in a heavy, black cloak was enough to understand that he had "charged up" substantially for this meeting.
Stas remembered how he looked years ago, and the man's healthily glowing face, in the prime of his strength, hinted that a few dozen peasants had likely lost their lives to him.
The art of thirst was considered forbidden because, sooner or later, its users began to "feed" on people.
The leader of the Deathbringers himself had a good athletic build, a powerful bull neck, and a completely bald head, which made Stas wonder if it was because the hair hadn't grown back after ether "treatment"? Meanwhile, his eyebrows and eyelashes were light blond, almost white.
"I'm glad to see you, Serpent-san," Koruga smiled warmly. "And I'm very pleased that our meeting occurs under less tragic circumstances than last time."
"I hope your journey here was peaceful," Ordyntsev replied politely, stopping near the envoy. They both turned away from the camp and looked towards the distant waterfall.
With all his duties, Ordyntsev had had no time to admire this beauty, but even from a distance, the waterfall's size was impressive. As he learned, this waterfall was something of a local wonder.
"However, I am genuinely surprised that you remember someone like me," Stas baited. "Back then, I was just an ordinary man."
"Oh, come on," the Deathbringer laughed, flashing his pearly white and even teeth. "You, Shiro-san, are anything but an ordinary man."
Stas displayed courteous interest, and the Deathbringer eagerly continued.
"Everyone knows that you are the man the heads of the Sumada and Mizuno clans turn to when they need to address some tricky and unwelcome matters. Your unquestionable loyalty and ruthlessness have become legendary. Honestly, it wasn't hard to guess that they would send you to meet with me. And if they hadn't, I would still have insisted on meeting you."
"I see no reason for such interest in me," Stas smiled insincerely, feeling tense inside. "But I'm more curious in what you meant when you spoke of my ruthlessness."
"Oh, really?" Koruga spread his hands as if puzzled. "Take, for example, your last mission. I'm talking about fighting chaos among the Mizuno. A tricky and challenging task, which you nevertheless completed honorably. Chaos was destroyed despite the casualties. And it doesn't matter that among the dead were not only adults but also women and children."
"Chaos doesn't limit its spread to adults. It's even easier to corrupt those who are weak in spirit or mind," Ordyntsev frowned, causing Koruga, "in defense," to jokingly raise his hands in front of him.
"Oh, come on, come on. I'm certainly not judging! Who am I to do that? But rumors persist - and you know, they're such a pesky thing - that among the dead were not just chaos servants. Allegedly, entire families who actively opposed the policy of uniting the Great Clans were also eradicated."
"Whatever people say, I personally didn't engage in the extermination of traitors," the conversation and associated thoughts were already displeasing to Ordyntsev. Had Aoi indeed done what Stas had warned him against?
"Of course, of course, but after you returned to Sumada, the situation repeated itself, didn't it? Yes, the chaos servants were eradicated, but somehow, those families that resisted unification especially actively found many of their members missing."
Koruga's amiable face showed nothing but kindness, but a sinister gleam burned deep in his eyes.
"And let me note, I'm not accusing you, for we are all sinners before the holy Kami. But what an interesting coincidence, don't you think?"
"Indeed, a coincidence," Stas decided to maintain a neutral stance. Such rumors needed to be stopped, but the problem was that they belonged to that category of gossip that "burns" even more the more you try to extinguish them.
"However, today's meeting is also related to what happened in the distant past," Koruga's voice changed, becoming much more serious, which made Stas even more alert.
"Remember, years ago, before all this World War, there was that unexpected and reckless attack by my clan on the Sumada Citadel? There weren't many deaths, but as a result, one prisoner escaped, who had an impressive history with us."
Stas listened without interrupting, preferring to hear everything.
"Minoru, that was her name. We have legends about her. She was the one who stood at the origins of our clan's power and one of those who led to our downfall. It was a big surprise to learn that she feels quite comfortable under your protection. And even more amusing, I am absolutely sure that no Deathbringer family took part in that attack."
Koruga intentionally paused, giving time to ponder his words.
"In other words, we have someone who knows the techniques of the Deathbringers, and this someone helped the powerful yokai prisoner escape her confinement. After all this attack, a number of the main Sumada families mysteriously fell out with each other, playing into the hands of the one who was then just a contender for the clan head position."
"Interesting reflections," Stas nodded calmly, looking into the eyes of the waiting head of the Deathbringers. "They make one think a lot, but even so, I still don't understand why you recalled such an old story? Do you know who pulled all this off?"
Although Stas spoke calmly, the atmosphere involuntarily cooled. Ordyntsev liked to use blackmail, but he couldn't stand when the same tactic was used against him.
"Unfortunately, no," Koruga smiled broadly, pulling on his amiable mask again. "But if I knew that person, I would tell them that our clan holds no grudge against them and, moreover, is ready to talk about mutually beneficial cooperation and even exchange techniques. After all, it's doubtful that after her release, Minoru-sama didn't thank them with a couple of rare techniques belonging to the art of thirst."
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
"Are you really in need of few-hundred-year-old techniques?" Stas asked, puzzled, making his interlocutor grimace.
"Unfortunately, after our clan's fall, much of our knowledge was lost. On the other hand," Koruga noticeably brightened. "Over the years of wandering, we've managed to create many new techniques, so we'd have plenty to exchange."
"That's good, of course," Stas decided to get to the point of why they had gathered today. "But I'm interested in your desire to fight chaos. What prompted you to take such a bold step as to reveal yourself?"
"Two reasons," explained Koruga. "Not long ago, we faced the fact that we almost became puppets of the chaos followers. Their deceitful speeches nearly ended us, but fortunately, the energy of thirst very characteristically reacts to the presence of chaos in bodies, so we were able to notice the issue in time."
"Is that so?" Ordyntsev raised an eyebrow in interest.
"Exactly. This event, by the way, served me well in uniting all our families. In the end, we decided not to wait for the chaos servants to try again and decided to strike back."
"But you mentioned two reasons."
"The second reason is simple," the Deathbringer's eyes sparkled. "Many are satisfied with our clan's position. They don't want to change anything, thinking we can continue to exist this way. But I see that this is a path to nowhere. If we want to preserve our history and ensure that the clan survives, we must negotiate. And now is the perfect opportunity for that."
"I understand you," Stas mentally assessed the words and concluded that they matched perfectly with what he knew before. "Frankly, I see no reason why we should reject your proposal."
"Glad to hear that," Koruga grinned again.
"But forgiveness won't come cheap," Stas noted right away. "For it, you'll have to prove your desire to amend in battle. You'll be assigned a place in the vanguard. Are you against it?"
"We expected something like that," the head of the Deathbringers philosophically reacted. "Just don't set us up to simply get rid of us, and we'll get along fine."
"Excellent. But I must ask, what exactly are the forces you're ready to bring into battle? After all, you still need to be assigned a place in the formation..."
"O-o-oh, then allocate a larger space! Because we've prepared thoroughly!"
*****
The day when everything was to be decided, as it should be, arrived unexpectedly.
The movement of such immense masses of warmasters could not be missed. Like a living nightmare, the army of chaos spilled out of their camps, beginning to converge towards the prepared defense line.
However, such a large-scale offensive could not happen instantly, so the united forces had more than enough time to take positions.
"I never thought I'd say this, but, demons take them, I'm glad the Deathbringers are on our side," Jishin mused thoughtfully, and the nearby Katashi nodded in agreement, mesmerized by the even rows of the dead, controlled by the rare Deathbringers, lining up on the earthen wall.
Tens, hundreds, and thousands of silent dead methodically trampled the dust into the ground, frightening everyone with their unnatural synchrony.
Unlike before, the Deathbringers removed all signs of the zombies' affiliation with any particular clans. But it wasn't hard to understand where they had gotten so many dead warmasters.
Considering their terrifying number, the question arose as to why they had gathered such a daunting army?
Dried-up heads, devoid of lips and noses, covered with gruesome stitches and scars, with steel implants inserted here and there and armor embedded in their bodies - to Stas, they looked almost like a bizarre army of cyborgs. They were in stark dissonance with everything this world could present.
Stas himself was in the so-called command post, where all the top leadership of the newfound alliance had gathered.
In addition to the mandatory security at this location, there were members of all factions. Warmasters were represented by Jishin and Katashi. The daimyo sent two experienced and taciturn samurai. From the onmyoji was Hidoro Shijero – head of the Shijero clan, whose ancestors once imprisoned Minoru. Despite the old man's decrepit looks, his spiritual power was second only to the nearby great spirits, who, logically, represented the yokai.
The last representatives were the red dragon Yamato, who, in an act of unprecedented generosity, transformed into a human, and Koruga, at whom everyone except the dragon looked with obvious irritation.
Yamato, to Stas's surprise, bore no resemblance to a typical European. Looking at his narrow eyes and predatory, sharp cheekbones, Ordyntsev involuntarily wondered what humanity looked like in this world when the dragon received his human form.
Each of the leaders of their races or factions had a couple of assistants or just messengers. Stas fell into one of these categories. Although he belonged to the Jishin's clan formally, this didn't prevent Katashi from addressing him if needed.
Right now, standing on a man-made hill created by techniques, they all watched the troops lining up.
The very front line was taken by the samurai. Their sturdy armor and specialization in close combat made them excellent first-line fighters. However, one should not think that they were alone. Among them, scaly giants, mature dragons, irritably swayed their bony tails and leathery wings.
The reptiles felt the approaching fight and intermittently belched smoke, cold, or some other elements, leaving melted traces on the reinforced stone.
The zombies of the Deathbringers and the "puppeteers" themselves also took their place there. The surrounding troops were clearly displeased with such neighbors, but the command's order forced them to put up with it.
If everyone started expressing their mutual complaints, considering their total number, they simply wouldn't survive until the arrival of chaos.
The second line of defense was firmly occupied by ordinary and advanced warmasters. Although they could fight in close combat, the passion of any warmaster was their techniques.
The arrangement of positions allowed them to target the ranks of the advancing foes from behind the samurai and dragons.
But again, as with the samurai in the first line, the warmasters were not alone in the second. They were accompanied by quaint yokai of various sizes and appearances.
Not all spirits possessed some kind of long-range skills, but most of them did.
And although the yokai cast sidelong glances at warmasters, they were much more wary of the third line of defense, where the onmyoji lined up behind their backs.
Effectively, the onmyoji were the most vulnerable part of the troops, barely surpassing ordinary people in physical terms.
On the other hand, they also possessed impressive long-range skills and a whole swarm of controlled spirits.
Nevertheless, the fourth line was supposed to guarantee their protection. On the other hand, in terms of power, it could stand for the rest of the army.
Yes, correct, it included practically all supreme warmasters, but not only them. The strongest yokai and dragons also took their place in the fourth line, ready to appropriately respond to the strongest spells and techniques of the enemy.
Stas was hardly an expert in historical matters, but he vaguely remembered a similar arrangement of Roman legions, where the very fresh recruits were placed in the front rows, then came already experienced soldiers, and finally, at the very end, full-fledged veterans.
The essence of such tactics was that the initial onslaught was to be taken by the least valuable part of the troop, so that the veterans would survive and play a decisive role at the most crucial moment of the battle.
Here and now, despite the similarity, there were other reasons for such an arrangement, but an attentive mind could find analogies.
However, the true commonality among all the allies was the sparsity and length of the front. Due to their way of conducting combat operations, none of the fighters needed a dense formation. Rather, it would only interfere. Because of this, there was a space of at least several meters around each warmaster or samurai.
This approach allowed the defenders to stretch their positions over an impressive area.
Finally, there was the fifth, last line. There, the monks stopped. Right now, kneeling and closing their eyes, they sonorously began long chants.
And indeed, their actions had an effect!
Stas shrugged in surprise, feeling as if the armor weighing on his shoulders had somehow become lighter. Judging by the surprised actions of the others, he was not the only one to feel this new sensation.
Meanwhile, the changes escalated.
Breathing the surrounding air became much easier every second. Moreover, in some mystical way, the vision of living beings gained greater clarity, and their bodies were filled with new, unfamiliar vigor.
Stas had long known that this world did not like people. Quite possibly, humanity was not actually native to this dimension, having arrived from somewhere outside.
However, what he definitely was unaware of was that people were capable of convincing the world to give them a chance.
The monks did the impossible: addressing the whole world, they were able to ask it to help in its own defense.
And the world did help, lifting those invisible chains that it had previously imposed on them.
Yes, individually, the changes were barely noticeable, but together they caused only delight.
However, the surge of euphoria immediately disappeared when the entire horizon far ahead began to shroud itself in putrid-green darkness. It stretched to the right and left as far as the eye could see. Black clouds ominously swirled, advancing as a unified front.
A foul, cold wind hit Stas's face, penetrating to the very bones and conveying one simple truth.
Chaos was already here.
And, upon reflection, death was not the worst fate.