Liara coughed heavily, spitting out a thick lump of dry blood. She weakly raised her head, struggling to see. Her eyes couldn't focus, and her sight was blurry, and simply keeping her eyelids open was difficult. She quickly verified the status of her body and pressed her lips together.

It wasn't looking good.

Nelg had stabbed her multiple times, each with profound wounds. Liara tried to shake the confusion and bleariness off, but the blood deficiency only made her want to sleep more. To rest.

But she couldn't do that.

The white cross on her forehead gleamed slightly as she pushed herself up. The heavy chains restraining her bit into her wrists and ankles with cold weight. Her skin was flayed, broken, and covered in scabs. Liara's eyes widened slightly.

'How did I recover? The chains are Blumar, they should have stopped any recovery...' She closed her eyes and Meditated, trying to figure out what happened to her.

It took little time for her to find an answer. There was foreign energy in her Mana channels, burning like fuel to try and replenish her strength. It wasn't much energy, nowhere near enough to regain her strength, but it was barely sufficient to trigger her regenerative healing factor.

'Where did that come from...?'

She reopened her eyes, her strength slowly returning. She was still chained to a pillar inside the carriage, next to Nelg. Glenn's doppelganger was lying silently, his eyes shut and his fists clenched tightly. Her blood was still covering his hands, undeniable proof of his actions.

'Good. He did the right thing. That slaver would have executed me otherwise.' Liara let out a small sigh. 'I hope he doesn't feel guilty...'

She glanced around the carriage, but she couldn't see Nora anywhere. Glenn was still sleeping in the bed, as still as a statue.

'We need to give him the antidote to that sleeping poison Nora gave him, and somehow find a way to administer it. I won't be able to endure another torture session, and I can't even begin to think about Nelg.'

Liara pulled on her chains and elbowed Nelg. The latter jolted awake, dread invading his expression. He looked to the side and immediately teared up at Liara's sight.

"Oh my god, you're still alive! Shit, I- I really thought I killed you! A- Are you okay? Did my energy help you?"

The Black Heiress forced a small smile before coughing out another lump of dry blood. Her lungs had been punctured too, it seems. The colors drained from Nelg's face and he grabbed his chains.

"Listen, I can get us out of her right now. I can turn into a sword and cut through our chains. We'll find a way to run away, we can't stay here, it's too dangerous—"

Liara interrupted him with a shove. A second later, Nora entered the room with a loud sigh.

"These slaves, always dying when we need them..." She walked to a map and did some verification with a compass and other measuring instruments, none that Liara could recognize.

"Tell me there's an inn somewhere on the way...We're going too slow, we need new slaves." Nora looked at the map for a while longer before clicking her tongue. She threw herself on her bed, snuggling next to Glenn, only to stop in wonder. Her eyes were glued to Liara.

"My, oh my, our mute guest is alive?" She chuckled in awe. "How did you survive? I'm sure that 'friend' there bled you out."

She grabbed Liara's chin and raised it, looking into the Black Heiress' eyes in search of something. Liara cleared her throat and spat her last lump of dry blood right into Nora's face.

Nora took a step back, her smile not fading away. She licked the blood on her face with delight.

"Lively...and strong-willed too...I changed my mind. I'll keep you alive." Nora rubbed her chin, pondering. "A beauty like you, with such strong willpower, what would be the most...Ah!"

Her grin threw a shiver down Liara and Nelg's backs.

"I know a group of old men who always look for strong experiences...I'm sure they'll have a lot of resilient slaves to trade me just to use you. It will be more profitable than planned to go to Penitentia, in the end. Haha, such a good idea! Excellent!" She laughed and returned to her bed, her head resting on Glenn's chest.

Her laughter died out as the expression on her face hardened. She suddenly straightened up, looking at Glenn in awe before pressing her ear back onto his chest.

"No, no, that's not what was—how? How is this possible? The Mother said—no, this can't be? But fate—?" Nora began to sweat heavily, checking every piece of Glenn's body to find a pulse. Liara and Nelg exchanged a horrified look. Nelg suddenly froze, opening and clenching his left-hand multiple times. Liara's eyes widened and she nodded slightly.

'That's—he might be right!'

Nora suddenly jumped out of bed, sticking her face inches away from Liara's. "Did you do something? Is this your fault?"

She grabbed Nelg's throat and clenched it tightly. "Or maybe it's you? The weak yet immortal one? What tricks did you play?"

The slaver let them go and paced the room in a panic. "How can the Devil's Hand die? The Mother said that it was fated for him to arrive at Penitentia and meet the Thorn's Church Arch-Bishop... Why did he die? Why, why, why?!"

She stormed out of the carriage, leaving the two inside with Glenn's dead body.

Liara drew a weary breath and glanced at Nelg. She pried her lips open but no sound came out.

She couldn't resolve herself. Why was she still hanging on that stupid tradition? She gave it up for Glenn, why couldn't she do it for Nelg, his doppelganger?

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

'This is so stupid. I'm so stupid.'

"Liara, you know that thing I did to help you after I...hurt you, you know, giving you energy. Do you think you could regain your strength if I gave you enough?" Nelg suddenly asked, as if reading into her mind. Liara's eyes brightened and she nodded frantically.

"Enough to run away from there with Glenn?"

Nod, nod!

Nelg breathed out deeply. "Alright. Just...give me a sign whenever it's enough. It's quite draining for me, so..." He pushed his back to hers. Liara felt foreign energy enter her body. She instinctively tried to push back against it, but took back control of herself and let it flow in.

It was a strange power. It didn't feel like Mana, Aura, or the combined thing she and Sahro used. No, it was different. Something that worked on a deeper level, not lifeforce but even more profound—

Liara's eyes widened. 'Glenn said that Nelg can grow through consuming the souls of the one he kills. Is this power...souls?'

She shook her head and concentrated. She couldn't afford to be picky. Anything that would let her bypass the Blumar restraints and regain her strength was good for the taking. After a dozen minutes of transfer, Nelg gasped and fell to the side, exhausted. Liara opened and closed her hand, digesting the energy. It wasn't enough.

But it was a start.

Forward.

Liara's head snapped to the side, to the bed Glenn was lying on. The latter was still sleeping deeply, his chest rising and falling steadily.

'Strange. Maybe it was just me.'

***

"Lads, if you look to the side, you will see the Still Peak! It is a Peak only in name, for it is not even close to the height of the Dark Wall back when the mountain range was still there. Retni's Forest is below us, and if I'm not wrong, we should..." Lucian trailed off as he stopped his joyful presentation.

They smelled the Retni's Plains before they were able to see them. The wind brought them an awful, putrid stench that simply couldn't be described. An acrid, oily smell of burning bodies and rotten flesh, the odor of death itself. Lina breathed through her sleeve as she leaned over the guardrail to see the source of the smell, but Sahro pulled her away.

His expression was unusually hard, his teeth clenched. Lucian held himself on the boat's guardrail, his knees weakening.

Black smoke formed a large cloud in the sky, rising in pillars from the ground. The Retni's Plains were a terrifying mix of red and black, with no grass in sight. Bodies littered the ground amidst charred bones and pools of blood. Broken weapons and burning banners stood like countless tombstones.

Lucian clenched the guardrail tightly, crushing the lacquered wood in his hands. "Munirp is suffering from one of the worst crises of its history, but here they are, wasting their lives away, fighting for...what?"

Milena gulped heavily, her eyes closed. She shook her head.

"Lina, take the helm. I need to be on the forefront if something happens."

Lina complied silently, affected by the somber mood.

"Not as playful now that you can smell death, hmm?" Tuleam sneered as he stood beside her, his arms crossed.

"I can't imagine how many died for it to smell that bad..." muttered Lina.

Tuleam rubbed his chin. "Considering that Satidipug and Eari both have the largest populations in Munirp after King's Rise, I'd say...Tens of thousands, maybe?"

Lina's eyes widened. "Tens of thousands during the whole war? That's—"

"No, no." Tuleam shook his head. "Tens of thousands every day."

Lina shivered from head to toe and concentrated on the helm, keeping it as still as she possibly could. Dread began to nest in her stomach, but she did her best to ignore it. In an oppressing silence, the flying ship flew over the Retni's Plains bloody battlefield. The smell of rot, blood, and burning corpses eventually faded away, but they couldn't forget it. Their clothes were soaked with the stench, like a curse following them.

"I hate war." Milena crossed her arms as she stood next to Sahro.

The Black Heir glanced at her and pressed his lips together. "Once, I would have disagreed with you. But, these days, I'm slowly starting to get tired of it..."

Milena patted his shoulder before leaning over the guardrail. She gave one last sour look at the battlefield.

'So Glenn woke up in there. That's...terrifying.'

After a moment that felt like an eternity, the ship arrived in the vicinity of a walled city large enough to house millions of citizens. It was nowhere near King's Rise size, but it was still massive. The ramparts were built out of yellow bricks, with banners of the Count of Satidipug covering them. The golden coin emblazoned with two horses fluttered proudly in the wind.

"Satidipug, the city of merchants and the headquarters of the Gold Church..." Lucian nodded as he took the helm from Lina's hands. "I'll handle the landing. Shout if something weird happens."

Lina nodded and joined up with Sahro and Milena. Tuleam remained next to the helm, more comfortable looking over the boat. The ship slowly descended from the sky, landing at a safe distance from the ramparts. Thankfully, nothing stopped them from touching the ground.

The team jumped off the ship and approached Satidipug's gates. There was nobody outside, no structure or anything of the sort. It gave a very different vibe compared to King's Rise. The latter was also a hundred times bigger so that probably played in a lot.

"Aren't you worried someone will take the ship?" Lina asked as she glanced back at the boat.

Lucian shrugged. "I can always buy another one if this happens."

Lina looked at the rich prince in disbelief. Lucian ignored her gaze as he stood in front of Satidipug's gates. "I, Munirp's Crown Prince, Lucian Magnus, am here! Open your gates!"

His voice echoed in the wind, the gates remaining as still as stone. Milena and Sahro exchanged a glance, wondering what they should do when Tuleam suddenly clicked his tongue.

"Late bastards."

The gate opened, revealing a hastily prepared procession. A large official runs up to Lucian on chubby legs, sweating profusely.

"Y- Your Highness, we haven't been notified of your visit—"

Lucian scoffed. "It's not like I didn't try, but someone has cut off all teleportation nodes between this county and King's Rise, same for Eari. You wouldn't know something about that, would you?"

The official wiped the sweat off his forehead tensely. "I- I apologize, Your Highness. The situation with the County of Eari has been...complicated, to say the least. Please, come into the city and let us accommodate you and your servants."

Sahro raised an eyebrow and grabbed the hilt of his sword. "Servant? Did he call me a servant?"

Milena clenched his shoulder and smiled tensely. "Shut it and play the part."

"What's your name, chubby man?" Tuleam asked curiously without an ounce of respect.

The official gave him a concerned look but forced himself to reply after noticing Lucian's glare. "I- I am Count Satidipug's steward, Bernard Lampi, esteemed guest. But... that seaweed-like hair, you wouldn't happen to be Sir Tuleam Manalok?"

Tuleam grunted. "The one and only. Come on, show us inside quickly. I need a shower and a couple hundred cleaning spells after flying above that mess on the Plains."

Bernard Lampi glanced at Lucian, frightened. "A- Ah, you flew above the b- battlefield, then? I apologize for the d- discomfort."

"Move along, steward." Sahro's eyebrows creased. "We already wasted too much time."

Despite the horror she smelled on the way here and the terrible circumstances, Lina couldn't help but feel a little excited. It was the first time she was out of King's Rise, after escaping from the W.O.R.M. and the Ink Dunes.

What adventures awaited her?