Silence~
'Did I imagine that again?' He wondered but decided not to think too much of it.
Eventually, he laid down to rest and drifted off into dreamland once more.
In the darkness, the outlined eye on the amulet displayed a faint glow.
If Ingal had been awake, he'd have seen the eye quaver a little.
....
....
....
"Your hand is all healed up now."
In what looked like an infirmary, Shield Hero Henrod stood before the spear Hero, who had his right arm bandaged.
"Yeah, thanks to Bridget," Spear Hero Winchester responded with an appreciative tone.
Bridget was the Spell Hero, and she was long gone by the time Winchester awoke. Her abilities as the hero with the five-starred grimoire made her extremely busy, so the moment she helped the spear Hero regrow his cleaved-off limb, she left.
"It still feels a little sore, though. I guess it will take some time for me to get used to it," Spear Hero Winchester slightly complained.
"Look on the bright side, at least you can wank now," Shield Hero Henrod voiced with a dirty smirk.
"You little..." The spear Hero suddenly felt the urge to strangle him.
"Imagine losing your right hand while still being a virgin. Tsk, tsk, must have been hell for you," Henrod shook his head in pity.
"I'll kill you," Winchester jumped to his feet and began chasing Henrod around.
"Look out look out here comes the one-armed virgin," Henrod kept laughing uncontrollably while dashing away.
"cough cough" A feminine figure with a mask suddenly appeared in view.
Both of them instantly paused their childish theatrics and stood before her with meek looks.
"Ruri my love," Henrod shot her a flirty gaze.
"I wish to cut out your tongue any time my name rolls off it," Ruri voiced with a tone of repression.
"But how would I be able to give you head if you do that? You would just be cheating yourself of a pleasurable night. Hehe," Herod responded with a narrowed gaze.
Silence~
Ruri stood in place for a few seconds completely speechless. She almost didn't recall what she went there for.
'What a shameless man!' Both herself and Winchester yelled inwardly.
"I spoke with the Sword Hero," Ruri broke the silence.
"What did that big righteous oaf say?" Henrod asked playfully.
"He said to be ready in two months," Ruri responded.
"Are we finally doing that?" Henrod face turned a little serious as he asked.
"According to him, yes," Ruri replied.
"Tch, who died and made him boss," Henrod said with a sour tone.
Ruri couldn't help but think, 'He says the strangest things...'
"Wait... two months? Isn't that too short?" Winchester had a perturbed expression as he spoke.
"It may be a little rushed but the situation demands it. We recently got new information," Ruri responded with a grave tone.
Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.
"Hmm? What is it?"
...
....
....
The shimmering moonlight highlighted a rugged landscape in the dead of night.
The silence was broken as a grand caravan traversed a narrow path etched along the sheer mountainside, defying gravity with each winding turn.
The caravan, an assortment of covered wagons and laden-pack animals, was led by two colossal lizard-like creatures with scaled hides, their powerful limbs propelling the caravan forward.
The caravan inched along the precarious cliffside path, the air wheezing from its speed as it transversed further into the distance.
The view was both breathtaking and treacherous, with the caravan's progress marked by the echoes of clattering hooves and creaking wheels.
A dense forest could be spotted towards the edge of the cliff which was at least a hundred feet below but fortunately, the creatures moved with enough precision to keep the balance of the caravan on the small path.
Within the caravan, a diverse group of nine individuals journeyed together. Seven adults, clad in a mix of weathered armor and colorful robes, represented a spectrum of professions – traders, mercenaries, and skilled healers. Two children, one fast asleep with his head on his mother's lap and the other wide awake.
The latter seemed to be brimming with excitement as her shimmering eyes were focused on the face of her mother who seemed to be narrating a tale.
"The demon Lord thought he had won till the five Great Kingdoms came together to summon the otherworldly heroes.
They each were said to come from different times, all blessed with divine weapons that would aid them in destroying the demon lord army and closing the gates," The woman narrated.
"Mummy, mummy, are the heroes powerful?" The four-year-old questioned hurriedly.
"Yes. The Sword Hero arrived with his Excalibur. The shield Hero with his Everlasting war shield. The Spear Hero with his Heaven piercer. The Spell Hero with his five-starred grimoire and the Bow Hero with his Darkness-devouring arrows. They all joined hands and defeated the Demon Lord's army. The gates were sealed and the world was saved all thanks to the five Great heroes," The mother finished narrating, causing the girl to clap repeatedly in pure admiration.
"Don't be noisy kid, I am trying to sleep, hmph!" A lady in an expensive-looking, blue attire expressed her dissatisfaction from the side.
"Shush," The girl's mother quickly gestured at her daughter while placing her index finger on her lips.
"Shush," The four-year-old girl copied her mother's gesture and both of them instantly began chuckling.
"Mother, does this mean the heroes will always save us when we are in danger?" The little girl whispered.
"Yes, the heroes will always..."
Bang!
A loud crash rang out, causing the caravan to come to a screeching halt.
"Ouch," An exclamation was heard from the side as everyone within the caravan got jumbled across the place due to its sudden halt.
"What in the world was that?" One of them voiced in concern.
That was when they heard it...
Grrrrhhhhhh~
A subtle but powerful growl caused everyone in the vicinity to slightly tremble.
"Kiaarrrhhhhh!"
A scream came next causing chills to permeate the surroundings. The little boy opened his eyes in confusion while everyone began to panic.
"What is going on out there?"
"Let's go out to the..." Before one of them could finish suggesting the top of the caravan was sliced off.
"Grrrhhhhooouuuu!"
The face of a giant being with bloodstained white furs and long canines appeared in their line of sight. It grabbed a man in priest robes.
Before they could react to what was going on, it chomped off the man's head with its giant teeth, chewing away like he had just consumed a cookie.
"Kiaarrrhhhh!"
Chaos erupted as everyone swiftly jumped off the caravan and began escaping in different directions.
The creature didn't seem to be in a rush to chase after them. It didn't stop after swallowing the head it had ground to pieces within its mouth. Instead, it proceeded to push the rest of the priest's headless body in and resumed chewing.
Up ahead, the mountainside path had been decimated. There was a huge twenty feet gap in between.
The group was running in the opposite direction because of this when...
Bam!
Another similar creature to the one that ripped the caravan open, appeared before them and grabbed another traveler.
Screams and cries rang out as they turned around and started running only to see that the first one had finished his meal.
"Sword Hero, save us please!" the little girl who was in the arms of her mother began praying.
The little boy who was just six years of age stood before his mother as the creature boxed them in.
There was nowhere to run... and so the slaughter began.
"Kiarrhh!"
"Arrghhh!"
"Help me!"
Chomp! Chomp! Chomp!
Blood splattered across the pathway as the monsters ripped the flesh of the travelers open one after the other.
"Sword Hero, save us!"
....
Within a room, a figure suddenly jolted awake in the middle of the night, breathing heavily.
Huff! Huff! Huff!
His braided gold hair seemed ruffled at some corners but despite his night appearance, he still looked breathtaking.
After a few seconds, his breathing returned to normal. He sat up properly from his bed and placed his hands together with a contemplative expression.
"A dream?" He wondered out loud.
He touched his face with a look of uncertainty, "It felt so real."
His broad chest rose and fell slowly as he tried to piece together what he had just dreamt.
The room was rather large with a mirror on the other end and a decorated rug on the floor. At the far end of the room, a five-foot-long sword rested against a luxurious-looking seat.
This room belonged to none other than Sword Hero Morningster.
After some time, he stood to his feet and grabbed a yellow shirt to put on. He slowly walked towards the balcony area of the room. If he had delayed a few seconds after, he would have noticed the greenish carvings on his sword hilt light up.
Sword Hero Morningster stamped his right foot against the railing at the balcony and leaped towards the roof of the Adventurers guild.