"Mordu' is the culprit?" Dovos asked him confusingly. They just got out of a tunnel so Ethan must be out of his mind, he believed. They suffered a lot in there. They could barely drink, barely eat and their sleep was out of rhythm so this talk must be from it, he concluded.

Ethan explained his reasoning. The drawings and inscriptions at the suspicious hideout, the connection between the room and the temple, the connection between the content of the Book of Sahel who could be Sakh El and the hideout. "They are too much to be called a coincidence," Ethan explained. "Of course, they are not definitive evidence." Ethan gave some room for doubt since he did not want to challenge the most powerful man based on circumstantial evidence.

Igüan scratched his head in shock. Although mountain people do not regard Mordu' as a god, they do respect him as the Great Sage. At the same time, Dovos walked in a circle subconsciously as he was in deep thought.

Ethan watched the two of them quietly as he believed they needed some time. He explored around the quarry alone to find a place to rest. He built a fireplace and cooked the last strip of chevon.

The smell of meat lured the two men away from the deep thought. They sat by the fire and smoothly took a chunk each.

Silence filled the room except for the sound of chewing meat until Dovos started the conversation. "Let's do it. I am sure you are already with me, Ethan. But I want to hear it from you." "Do what?" "Taking down Mordu' and the Temple."

Just the thought of it stirred up his mind. Of course, he wants to. If Mordu' was not a true saviour, then everything he said was all lies too. That he was the son of God. That he was the protector of the realm. And that he was the guidance of salvation. They are all lies. Mordu' lied. Then, what about his father who trusted Mordu' and played gambling? What about his mother who was killed by a monster while working in a field in place of her gambling-addicted husband? What about Leila who was punished unfairly because of the rules of a false god? Would all those be different if Mordu' did not lie? Will they all be still alive?

Anger boiled inside him just from thinking. Ethan took out his sword from the sheath and brought it over to Dovos' hammer. "I am in." Igüan hesitated at first then he decided to be in. "You get my shield too."

And so, the three newly bonded warriors swore loyalty to each other to bring down the most powerful man and the most influential organization.

They returned to the white fort in Northedge to get back their mounts. Ethan lightly brushed Rings's forehead and touched it with his.

"I am sorry for leaving you here for so long, Rings. I bet you miss me. I miss you too. Especially when I had to walk all the way back to here from Rombit." He handed a carrot to Igüan and introduced him to Rings. Rings snatched the carrot from Igüan's hand and gobbled it.

"Hey, don't scare your new uncle. This man has never pet a horse so be gentle with him, okay?"

Rings neighed cheerfully as if they scared Igüan on purpose.

After a rest at the white fort, Igüan climbed the mountain to inform his family about his brother and said farewell for his journey before joining his new friends, while Ethan and Dovos travelled south to start their plan.

"If we want to take him down, we will need more hands." They journeyed across the country to Sousa where the hideout of anti-Temple organization was stationed.

"This is Indran. Don't tell me. The madame is the head of your_."

Dovos refuted it profoundly as if he hated the very idea of it. "We are going further."

They entered the shabby inn which was the same in all seasons. Ethan reckoned a cheapskate like Madame can't be a ringleader.

"You are back, Ethan? Young master is missing you. He must be sad if he knows you come back while he is away." The innkeeper greeted friendly to Ethan. Then he saw Dovos. "As usual, a room for one?"

"No. A room for two with lunch and dinner delivery to the room." Dovos replied. He put a bunch of gambers on the desk.

The innkeeper was confused at first then he looked at Ethan and understood it.

"Sure. Here is your change, sir and the key. Third one on the left, second floor." The innkeeper returned two two-faced coins to Dovos. Without further conversation, Dovos went upstairs. Ethan followed.

Dovos handed over a coin to mark Ethan's entry to the group. Ethan checked his own coin with the one he got from Clara. The face of the devil and the angel looked the same but he noticed there were different patterns of markings on the side. Clara's coin had full markings while his coin had a big gap after every five markings. Dovos explained that those markings were identities.

They rested a bit in their room until they heard a light knock on their door in the middle of the night. Dovos woke up Ethan and they followed the innkeeper. They stepped quietly not to wake up the other customers. They went around the inn to the back where the desert starts.

"Follow my lead. Don't wander anywhere without telling me," said a man waiting for them on a camel. He sounded very serious. "Here are your headscarf. You might want to wear it from the start if you don't want to taste sand every time you speak." He gave out the scarfs which looked the same as the turban on his head. He was all bundled up in thick layers of clothes, covering everything from head to toe.

He looked around to make sure no one was following them before their departure. The location of their hideout must not be revealed to anyone without the coin.

"Are you sure that we should travel at night?" Dovos asked in worry. He had heard somewhere that deserts are more dangerous at night since many venomous snakes and scorpions usually came out at night to avoid the scorching daytime heat.

The man in the turban reassured them, "Tomorrow, you will be glad you travelled at night."

There were a lot of reasons he chose to go at night. He could see the stars for direction, avoid the heat and most important of all, maintain the security of the hideout location. Trackers won't be able to follow them easily at night without any lights. Dangerous nocturnal animals also provide a natural defence against any invaders. Anyone new to the desert will peril in the harsh environment.

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"I am Jonah, the ferry of the desert. As long as you follow me and my command, you will get to the destination safely."

It was a very long walk. By the time they saw a body of water with a line of coconut trees in the middle of a small settlement, it was near dawn. They safely reached the hideout without encountering any danger although it was a different story for any who followed them. They occasionally heard helpless screams from behind. The thought that the same could have happened to them sent shivers down their bones, chiller than the icy winds of the desert.

As soon as they approached the settlement, they heard a ring of bell from the tower. Except for the big dusty brick building with a tower, the rest were more or less tents. The residents watched them with their wary eyes. A man with a huge diagonal scar over his cheek took out his dagger and licked it as a show of nerves.

Their destination was the big building near the oasis but Jonah turned to another path. Ethan and Dovos looked at each other, confused, but they followed the man without complaining. They walked around the settlement for a while, until they finally reached the main building. Then, Ethan and Dovos finally understood that Jonah intentionally paraded them around just to have some fun. He wanted to see their intimidated faces.

"That was unnecessary," Dovos mumbled displeasedly.

Ethan was surprised by the fact that Dovos had never been here even though he was in the band.

"Show me your identity." A bald man stopped them at the entrance and asked for their identities. Dovos showed his coin proudly, "Third rank." The man checked the coin with markings in the group of three and gave him a nod. Then, Ethan gave him his coin. The man checked the coin and showed displeased. "Fifth rank. Why are you even here?"

Ethan was baffled by the question. He noticed the onlookers had formed a wall so that he could not escape.

Why is he there? He asked himself. He was there because Dovos told him and Jonah led him. If he wasn't supposed to be here, why did they even take him there? He looked at Dovos and Jonah. Jonah was having fun, smiling in the corner, until the bald man also cursed at him for taking a newbie inside.

Jonah calmly shouted to Ethan, "Show you another coin."

Ethan did as he said. He took out Clara's coin. Only after he saw Clara's coin, the guard stood down and gave him a pass. "First rank. You must be Ethan. You may enter. She is waiting for you upstairs."

Clara welcomed him with open arms when she saw Ethan as if she had been anticipating him for a long time.

"You seem so certain that I will join your organisation."

"Of course, you will. You hate the Temple after all."

"Not really. Not at that time."

"I see. But you are now, right? So, you must have found something up there that makes you hate them."

"Y_you know about Northedge? ... Of course, it is your doing."

Ethan sighed in disbelief. He expected that she would not hand over her mission out of goodwill. But he did not expect it would turn out this big.

"Yes. I told Dovos and Ishàn to befriend you."

Clara explained. Then, she noticed Ishàn wasn't there. She made fun of him, believing Ishàn was scared of the desert since he lived in the snow. When Dovos informed her that Ishàn was gone, her smile faded away.

She told them to rest as they had travelled the whole night. They woke up when the bald guy left them lunch on a tray. "Come to the conference room after lunch. It is next to the room you were before."

Probably due to courtesy to a guest, the food was not too shabby. A potato scorched by the hot desert sand and a skewer with a scorpion. "How is that 'not shabby'?" Dovos asked Ethan in disbelief.

After a proper (disgusting for Dovos) lunch, they joined Clara and the others in the conference room. There were five of them; Clara, the bald guy, Jonah, a woman with an abacus and an old man whom Ethan believed he had met somewhere before. They were already discussing something but when Ethan and Dovos arrived, they changed the subject immediately.

"Welcome to the revenant," said Clara cheerfully.

It was new to Dovos. When did they call themselves revenant, he wondered?

Clara continued, "I would like to introduce you to our council members. I am Clara. The co-leader and main sponsor. This bald guy is Gura. He is the captain guard of this camp. This is Jonah the founder of this settlement. He also works as a ferry. This desert is like his own backyard. This is Abel. She works in finance and logistics. Finally, this old man is_"

When it was his turn, the old man suddenly approached Ethan with a knife in his hand.

"Wait. Mr Elba. Mr Elba!"

Before Gura disarmed the old man, he reached Ethan and swung his arms around Ethan. Then, he hugged him while crying in happiness.

"I know I will meet you again like this, O' saviour. I know you were a good man from the start when you helped me. I know you are not like the other warriors from Temple."

As the old man kept talking like he knew Ethan, Clara asked Ethan if they were acquaintances. Ethan couldn't answer. He was confused. He believed they met somewhere but he couldn't remember the man's name or anything.

The old man wasn't angry but he smiled, "Of course, you won't remember me. You must have helped many people so there is no way you remember them all. But as the one being saved, how would I forget the face of my saviour? Ethanial, we met at the camp near the gold mine in Rode. You retook the gold from the soldiers for me so that I could save my family. You were travelling with a young girl at that time. What's her name? Leila?"

After he heard the story, Ethan finally remembered the thin old man who was coughing all the time and asked for his help to steal the gold back from soldiers. The soldiers robbed his golds which were to donate to the Temple for his sick family.

When Clara heard the great story about Ethan, she mumbled to herself, "It seems like things will be easier.

"This is great. Knowing each other. So let's start our real work; to take down the fake god Mordu'."

Clara placed a sketch of a man on the table. It is a man known by Ethan. "Templer Raün."

Raün is an infamous High Templer, known for his ruthlessness and brutality even among the Templers.

"Yes, you are right. And he is the Templer who killed my mother," said Clara. "So we will start with him."