Grandis.

A Region famous for the calamity that befell the city of Paradise and infamous for its long, depraved lists of atrocities that plagued its otherwise beautiful lands. There was a saying that the brightest light casts the darkest shadow.

The adage was written in blood. Grandis’ history was proof of it.

All regions of Grandis were mountainous woodlands, with valleys serving as natural highways that connected distant cities. If they were lucky then that city’s lights were still on. Southern Grandis only had a handful of places that were still active, mostly those that ran along the coast.

The great city of Infernis that replaced Paradise was there one day, and disappeared the next, leaving behind a colossal crater where it once stood. Mystery surrounded its disappearance and was attributed to one of two things:

A Corrupted, or a Dungeon. Destruction was the ‘truth’ the denizens of Grandis believed in, but for the well versed – it was highly unlikely that they were destroyed.

The eastward was devoid of life after the fires of Divas Pass.

Northern Grandis was ruled by the Diavola Kingdom – a kingdom ruled by mages. They had the backing of the Justica Arms 1st Branch until their unexpected departure some time Frost was inside of the Black Forest.

Their status was unfortunately unknown.

Across the vast mountain ranges to the west was the Bellum Empire. Fearsome warriors were bred for nothing but war with the Insectids, Anids and the Lizardmen that endlessly invaded Grandis through the Great Marshlands.

They were the second major power in Grandis that had a considerable presence alongside the Diavola Kingdom. Most rising powers were squashed by the hostile Corrupted before they could come to fruition.

Due to the dangers of travel most settlements were utterly isolated. Only the courageous and most powerful were able to traverse its lands. But there was always one rule that even the strongest followed.

Never set out on foot.

Caravans were the only mode of transport one must take. There was no being that could outrun the monsters of the night or survive waves of monsters without the protection of the caravan’s sturdy walls.

Dangerous monsters lurked within the forests and were no stranger to spilling into the dirt paths. Most of which were believed to be Corrupted.

Some were even intelligent enough to wipe the path clean to herd unassuming travelers straight into their nests.

One such race was the Anids.

Something moved through the forests. It cut through the air like a thin blade. Shrubbery exploded in its wake. That thing could easily be mistaken for a monster.

What moved through the fog-enshrouded woodlands like a blur was a person draped in black and gold.

* * *

An armored caravan barreled down the side of a mountain.

Onboard were a dozen merchants who clasped onto whatever they could reach. Other hands clambered onto feathered necklaces for a miracle.

“The driver’s been killed! The horses are out of control!”

In one second the caravan driver’s head was there, and in the next it was taken by a humungous white blur. The sheer force along rocked the caravan and nearly took the horses along with them.

Terror filled the eyes of the merchant band. They were the last of a long convoy to traverse through the misty woodlands just after Little Tais. The monsters that lurked within were well known by many travelers. All countermeasures had been deployed prior to entering their territory. Extensive preparations were supposed to protect them from the worst-case scenario.

This was why they were so surprised when they were suddenly ambushed on the third day of the three-day trip.

“You said that we only had to worry about them on the first day!” The merchant’s anger was directed towards their guide. “No one said anything about them being this deep!”

This guide was a part of a renowned third-party group that knew the flow of Grandis’ highways and animal paths.

She was an old woman with the rugged hands that had worked since young. Her grey hair was cut short as she thrusted a long staff past the slits between the stone walls of the caravan.

“Shut that mouth of yours or you’ll be thrown out as bait! One client dead is better than losing nine!” Her hoarse voice was drowned out by the roaring wheels and the wails of the dying horses.

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By now the caravan had crushed them underneath its immense weight. The Anids of the forest were not supposed to attack. Neither were they expected to have expanded their nest this deeply into the forest.

“[Steel Outcrop].” Rocks shaped like fangs emerged from the earth, flanking the caravan like additional walls. “What has made them so desperate to expand out here!? The Anids have nothing to feed on. Did we make a mistake!?”

The old woman flickered through the pages of possibilities as she bombarded the Octanids with magic. The brown crystal atop her staff radiated with magical particles – a testament of her immense magical prowess as a High Sorcerer.

She fit right into the ranks of Gold Ranking Adventures, possibly even reaching Violet. An Octanid was not an issue for people of her strength.

However, that was only in a one-on-one confrontation.

The devoted warriors of the Nest threw themselves harder, not caring if they impaled themselves on the jagged outcrops. They flew down the mountain side, crashing into the thick trees with enough force to permanently entomb themselves into it.

They eventually reached flatter lands. It was a miracle that they had not crashed into a tree. Were it not for her partner – who was a young apprentice mage capable of controlling objects – then they would have died the moment they were ambushed.

“Does it not seem weird that they’re not trying to attack us directly!?” A merchant pointed out.

“Quiet! We’re entering deep Anid territory! ARM YOURSELF!” The old woman commanded, but only two of the nine merchants were held the courage to hold a blade.

And even then, their hands trembled terribly.

The green and brown world instantly turned pale. Webs encased their world. Lesser Anid species observed them from their hollowed trees, their hands rubbing together expectantly.

Suddenly, something dropped onto the ceiling with a heavy thud. Their hearts stopped beating in that instant as seven thick tentacles entered through the slits, strangling whatever it touched.

“SEPTANIDS! CUT THEM WHILE YOU STILL HAVE THE CHANCE!” The woman swung her forearm, releasing tiny rocky blades that sliced them effortlessly.

Paralytic fluids smothered the face of one merchant.

“Help him take it off! Don’t just sit there with your hands on your heads! We’re doing everything we can on our side so just do SOMETHING!” The girl roared. Her voice was unfit to lead, sounding like a blood curling scream which further entrenched the cold blade of fear into the hearts of the catatonic merchants.

She threw herself past their legs and began scraping the paralytic goop from the man’s face.

“Tch –! LOOK DOWN YOU FUCKING IDIOT! YOU’RE GOING TO DIE!”

It was clawed off eventually, but by then the paralysis had already kicked into his system.

“Dammit… even me…” Her hands became numb, but she was still able to concentrate on maintaining the caravan’s momentum. “Teacher! Can we rely on the others to come back for us!?”

“They probably haven’t even noticed it yet! You don’t have the luxury to be thinking about other people. You… They’ve herded us here – because of you!”

The old woman’s eyes instantly drilled onto her apprentice who still had not understood the severity of her situation. She did not blame her. Those eyes were filled with nothing but sorrow.

“Teacher!?”

“The fact that they haven’t killed us yet is because they’re after you! Anids will only rapidly expand when they’re at risk of dying out! You should know what that means! You’re a woman!”

“S-So are you?”

“FOOL!” The old woman roared. An uncontrolled surge of mana was channeled through her staff, and it cracked the crystal. “What’s a hag with a dysfunctional womb!? The Hexanids are undoubtedly waiting for you at the end! They must have sensed you in the beginning and made preparations to take you in as one of their broodmothers!”

The girl’s eyes widened in horror.

“Despicable monsters! Take this! Run it across your neck the moment they land a finger on you! It’ll be a mercy compared to birthing their kin.”

A stone shard was thrown her way, but the paralysis had moved to her elbows. It bounced off her chest. Her arms flailed as they swiped at the shard, her fingers unable to clasp at the thing that would spare her from a fate worse than death.

“Please… pick it up… my hands…” The numbness eventually spread to her shoulders, and all she could do was kneel there as the Anids surrounded them.

More and more Septanids dropped onto the ceiling, their tentacles slithering in to strangle the necks of all.

“… When did things go wrong?” She lamented, feeling one brush against her hair as she stared down at her limp arms. “We were supposed to head to Aquagale to see the sea. Teacher –!”

Blood splattered onto her face. The arm of an Octanid burst through the side of the Caravan, impaling the chest of her beloved teacher.

“… don’t… let them… take you…”

Her eyes mellowed from shock to sincerity. In her last moments she wished for nothing but for her apprentice to at least avoid that fate. But more than that, she prayed for a miracle.

“TEACHER!”

The walls crumbled around her.

She had never felt so lost.

Something precious was taken away from her in an instant.

And all she could do was sit there on her knees, crying to a heart that was no longer there.

Everything slowed down. It was as though time had stopped. In that moment she heard something.

It was a faint ticking.

She didn’t know where it came from. Neither did she care. But amongst her wallowing despair she heard a voice speak to her.

“Do you love the world you live in?”

“I… I… I…!”

Before she could answer – A tremendous flame engulfed everything including her. It jolted her free from the illusion where she could have sworn she saw a woman with pale hair standing before her, offering her hand.

The flames were hot.

So unbearably hot that it melted the caravan down till nothing was left.

But somehow…

“… I’m… we’re unscathed…?”

… the flames did not harm them.

“It’s ok now. You don’t have to worry about a thing.”

The voice of a woman spoke to her.

But it did not come from the pale-haired lady she saw.

Instead, the figure that stood before her had black hair and rich, golden eyes.

“I barely made it in time to catch her before she could pass on.”

The gaping hole was no longer in her teacher’s chest. It was as though it never existed in the first place. The woman, who seemed to be just a touch younger than herself, reached down to tap her head.

“Better?”

Sensation returned to her hands as she stared up at the figure in total disbelief. And with her last remaining strength, she reached up to touch her hands as if she would replenish it.

“W-Who… are you…?”

The woman gave her a bright smile – the kind that should never be shown in this kind of environment. But judging from the flames alone, and the lack of Anid corpses that were left behind, it was clear that she was no ordinary person.

“I’m just an Adventurer looking for directions! If you can help me out –”

She pulled out a strange-looking weapon from her back and shouldered it. In that same instant the tamed flames surrounded them again, devouring all but them in a fiery blaze. Her golden eyes shone brighter than the fires itself as she stood back up, now holding the weapon with both hands.

“– Then I will lend you my power.”