Fire. Technically, it was not in the Domain of his Supreme Lord, yet, for some reason, Rhaegar had always been good at playing with fire. It came to him just as naturally as Death. That had always surprised him, and those around him. Usually, people from his Heterodoxy were good at things related to Death. Like blood. Or pestilence. Even despair, and regret would have been fine. At least they had some connection to Death. But Fire…
However, all of that changed when Rhaegar had managed to infuse his fanaticism for Death, into his passion for Fire, creating the Ghost Fire. Thus, was born Rhaegar of the Ghost Fire, a leader, a general, a king, and a messenger, spreading the gospels of his Supreme Lord far, and wide, even within the territory of the Orthodoxies. Just like what he was doing at the moment.
Swathes, after swathes of Ghost Fire kept burning below him, spreading the ultimate truth of his Supreme Lord to every corner of the city. And to every living being, be it Wanderers, or Seeds. Even the Rootless. His Ghost Fire never discriminated. And neither did his Supreme Lord. The Supreme Lord did, however, order his entire Heterodoxy to look for a person who had denied his death.
Was it because the person in question had denied his death? The Supreme Lord did have command over certain parts of the Domain of Death. Denying death would mean defying the Supreme Lord himself. That was unacceptable. Such a man should never be given the chance to return to the embrace of his Supreme Lord. Still, it was not his place to questions the commands of his Supreme Lord. He had only one job. To find the man who had denied his death.
However, finding such a person was not easy. For months, Rhaegar had travelled in different parts of the Tes Domain, trying to find the man that his Supreme Lord had mentioned. Yet, no matter how many people he found, his Supreme Lord just refused to respond. It was quite obvious that none of the people that he, or the others of his Heterodoxy had found, and ‘invited’ back to their own Domain, were the man his Supreme Lord was looking for.
Rhaegar of the Ghost Fire did not doubt whether the person existed or not. Since his Supreme Lord had demanded that they search for him, the man must exist. It was just that they had not been able to find him. A man who had denied his death… he wondered what that person was like. And if that person could deny his death once, could he do it again?
Once that though came to Rhaegar, it took roots deep into his mind, and Heart. Not long after, he came up with a brilliant plan. The best way of finding the person who had defied his death was to create an opportunity for the man to defy his death once again. And so, he set out in his search, destroying cities after cities, searching for man who could survive from his Ghost Fire. To his disappointment, no one could.
In their defence, he had only searched in smaller sectors, and countries. He was not invincible, after all. Not yet. He could handle some of the smaller Orthodoxies on his own, but if he got entangled with the larger ones, things would become difficult. Fortunately, he was not alone in his actions. Almost all of the Wanderers of his Heterodoxy had set out in the search, combing through every corner of the world.
Rhaegar was just a General of the Heterodoxy, responsible for the search in the Fifth Sector of the Lightning Region. Personally, he would have preferred the Fire Region. That would have allowed him to meet many people with expertise in Fire. Maybe they would have even survived his Ghost Fire. His orders had come from the Elder’s council itself though. There was nothing he could do, but search in the Lightning Region.
But maybe, this was for the better, Rhaegar thought, as he watched the people, Wanderers, and commoners alike, wailing with the pain of having their Spirits, along with their bodies, burned, and being turned into ashes, while they were still alive. That was a unique property of his Ghost Fire, turning people into ashes while they were still alive. And it had never disappointed him, always bringing the ultimate truth to the people it had engulfed. If someone could survive his Ghost Fire, he would have to be the one that the Supreme Lord was looking for.
Yet, as he saw the city being turned into debris, and ashes, leaving behind no survivors once again, Rhaegar shook his head disappointment. Another fruitless search. Spreading the ultimate message of his Supreme Lord was all nice and good, but being in the Orthodox Domains for too long was beginning to tire him out.
No matter how many people he delivered to the Supreme Lord, all of them had the same reaction. First, they would attack him with their Glyphs, and Arcanas. And when that would not work, thy would start sending in their Warriors. These smaller cities did not have anyone of import though. The strongest one was only at the Tenth Stage of the True Rank. Their attacks were bound to fail. But so did his search for the man…
Once the last of the people in the city below him had turned into ashes, Rhaegar lost all interest in the city. If it could even be called as such anymore. A deserted ghost city, with his Ghost Fire still burning fiercely on some of remaining buildings, determined on turning everything into ashes. There was no meaning in continuing to watch. Thus, sighing in resignation, Rhaegar turned around to leave for his next destination, his next target. He had barely flown for a meter or so, when he felt the air—no, the space itself started to ripple around him, forming into a gigantic screen in front of him, blocking his way.
“Ghost Fire.”
A cold, detached, and apathetic voice rang out from within that screen, as it slowly resolved its blurriness, becoming clear enough for Rhaeghar to see the figure of the person on the other side of the screen. An old man, dressed in a black robe, much similar to the blue robe that Rhaegar himself was wearing, just in a darker shade, with more subdued overtones, and patterns. A figure that he immediately recognised.
“Greetings, Elder,” Rhaegar said, cupping his fist in front of his chest. “How may Ghost Fire be of service to you?”
“Not to me, but to the Supreme Lord.”
“My apologies, Elder. How may Ghost Fire be of service to the Supreme Lord?”
“…How has your search been going on?”
“…As usual, Elder. Fruitless.”
“And of your subordinates?”
“They have been working hard, Elder,” Rhaegar said. “They send back some candidates every month or so. But you must already know about it.”
“Indeed, I do. That is why I was a little concerned after I lost contact with one of your subordinates, the one who used to send the most number of people back to the Heterodoxy.”
“…The little Blood Boy?”
“Indeed. Do you know what has happened to him?”
“I do not, Elder. As long as my subordinates do what I ask them to, I generally leave them up to their own means. Has something happened to Blood Boy?”
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“…I am afraid so,” the Elder said in a grave tone. “Do you know what he has been up to in the past few months?”
“…He informed me that he may have found clues regarding the man that we are searching for, but he says something like that every week or so, so I did not pay much attention to him, and asked him to do as he wished. Did he stir up some troubles, Elder?”
“Troubles,” the Elder mumbled, looking past Rhaegar, towards the rubbles of the city that once stood tall, and proud. “Can anyone stir up more troubles than you?”
Following the Elder’s line of sigh, Rhaegar glanced towards the city, before returning his gaze back to the Elder, and said, “I just do not wish to waste the time, and resources of our clan on some impostors, Elder.”
“Forget it. I am not using this apparition to reprimand you for your behaviour. Even I would have done the same in your place.”
“Then…”
“…That little Blood Boy fooled more than a hundred retainers of a clan, turning them into Enthralled Wanderers, practically destroying all the Wanderers in a city.”
Rhaegar blinked in silence, looking at the Elder in confusion, wondering if he was jesting. The solemn look on Elder’s face said that he was not.
“That little Blood Boy really did something like that?”
“…I was surprised by his audacity as well. He dared to stir up so much trouble while being just a Fourth Stage True Wanderer…”
A strange sense of pride, and satisfaction filled Rhaegar, as he burst out with a laugh.
“I never knew that the little blood brat had such potential,” he said, laughing hysterically, causing his Ghost Fire, still burning in the city below, to flare up in intensity. “That little brat must be in hiding right now, so you do not have to worry, Elder. He will contact us when things calm down.”
“…I am afraid that he will no longer be able to contact us.”
“…Did the Orthodoxies catch him?”
“We do not know,” the Elder said, shaking his head. “No one knows what has happened to him.”
“Then how can you be sure that he would not be able to contact us?”
“…Before starting his operation, the little brat had borrowed a spatial relocation array from the Heterodoxy. However, even a month after stirring up so much trouble, he has yet contact us… What do you think has happened to him?”
“…If I recall correctly, the blood brat was responsible for Rianra… Was it the Serpia clan?”
“We are not sure,” the Elder said, pausing to show some hesitation on his face. “After receiving such a big blow, if they had captured him, then they surely would have proclaimed so to the world to earn back their face. Yet, neither the Lotus clan, which had suffered from the brat’s schemes, or the Serpia clan have said anything regarding the brat. On the contrary, they are even upping their efforts to search for him.
“For the Serpia clan, I can understand their actions somewhat. The city that the brat attacked was where the heiress of the Serpia clan was acting as the city lord. The Serpia clan must earn back their face. The heiress of the Serpia clan has led a campaign to rout out all the Heterodox Wanderers entrenched in their country. But the Lotus clan… their actions are very suspicious…”
“…Since even you are calling them as suspicious, then there must be something strange about their actions.”
“…While the Serpia clan is clearing out all the Heterodoxies from within its territory, the Lotus clan is focussing on just that brat, desperately searching for him. As if he has taken away their Divine Treasure.”
“…Did that brat really take away their Divine Treasure?”
“What do you think?”
“…It is highly unlikely,” Rhaegar said, shaking his head after some thought. “No matter how great his schemes are, in front of absolute strength, they are like children’s tricks. That he succeeded in delivering such a heavy blow to a city all by himself is already a miracle in itself. Still, I reckon that the city should be just a normal one, with barely any Fourth Stage True Wanderers. Such a city should not even have any precious treasures, let alone a Divine Treasure.”
“That is why I am saying that their actions are suspicious…”
“What did that brat take away though?”
“A child.”
“A child?”
“A boy, around thirteen years old. He took his Roots last year, and reached the Ninth Level by the time of his Spirit Test.”
“Interesting… this child seems to be quite talented. No wonder the Lotus clan is so desperate. Any clan would be desperate if someone kidnaps their heir.”
“The child is not their heir.”
“Huh? Is the Lotus clan so strong that even such a talented child does not deserve to be its heir?”
“…He is not from the Lotus clan in the first place, so how can he be their heir?”
“…Not from the Lotus clan? Then which clan is he from?”
“None. The child seems to be normal civilian. His father was a retainer of the Lotus clan, but died in his Wanderings. And his mother is not even a Wanderer.”
“…Why is the Lotus clan searching so desperately for the child then?”
“Now, do you understand why their actions are so suspicious?”
“…Interesting,” Rhaegar said, as a grin started to slowly form over his face. “I am assuming this child is also the one whom that blood brat assumed to be the target of the mission?”
“Indeed,” the Elder said, with a slight nod of his head. “From the very beginning, his entire scheme was centred around that child. Enticing the retainers, making them rebel against the Lotus clan, and then turning them into Enthralled Wanderers was all a part of his plan to get that child. And as far as witnesses can tell, he even succeeded in his plans, rushing out of the city with the child…”
“But he never went back to the clan… Do you want me look into this matter, Elder?”
“Not just you, I want you to take all your subordinates, and head over to Rianra to look for that brat. If he is fine, then bring him back. If not, then find out how he returned to embrace of the Supreme Lord, and if possible, deliver the ultimate truth to the Wanderer responsible. In either case, you must get that child… Something is telling me that the child is really the one we are looking for.”
“…From what you have told me, things might be a little dangerous over there at the moment, Elder. It is fine if I go alone, but if I bring all my subordinates, then I might not be able to guarantee their safety.”
“Since when did you start caring about the life and death of your subordinates?”
“…I do not care whether they live or die. But I have a quota to meet, Elder. At least, let me keep half of my subordinates out of this mess.”
“You are to take all your subordinates, and go to Rianra to look for that child. This is a decision that the Elder’s Council has come up with.”
“But…”
“Do not worry. The Elder’s Council understands your worry. Which is why we are sending you a Fortune Devouring Cat.”
“…A Fortune Devouring Cat?” Rhaegar said, staring incredulously at the Elder. “When did we have a Fortune Devouring Cat?”
“One of the Elders just recently got hold of it,” the Elder said, finally showing a hint of smile on his face. “We were all wondering how to make the best use of it, and now a chance has finally has presented itself to us. That should be enough to rest you of all your worries, right?”
“Enough… That is more than enough, Elder.”
“Good. Gather all your subordinates, and make way to Rianra. I will send you the location of the spatial relocation array. You can begin your search from there. And make sure to bring that child back to the clan, alive.”
“Do not worry, Elder. I will definitely bring the child back.”
“…May the Supreme Lord’s guidance be with you, Ghost Fire.”
“And with you, Elder,” Rhaegar said, waiting patiently for the rippling space in front of him to return to normal. Right before the screen completely disappeared from his sight though, the Elder’s voice rang out for one last time, giving him another piece of information.
“Ah, and one more thing. The child’s name seems to be Alnea…”