It’s been two months since they raided the Death’s Embrace tower and returned back to Eve Glade. Two months since the attack by the Bastion forces, turning their quaint peaceful haven into a land of chaos and destruction.
And two months since they’ve been working their asses off to get everything back in order. Even after arriving here, Zeke didn’t know when exactly this town ever actually acted like a normal town. It was either preparing for the horde battles, or trying to restore their broken town. It was a shit hand to be dealt with, but nonetheless the townsfolk stood strong.
As for the trio who just joined this town practically half a year ago, they have gotten very busy since then.
For starters, the buildings were broken down to burnt pieces and embers. Most of the citizens had wooden homes, so when the attack started, everything was burning down. It left most of the homes and essential buildings for the economy barely standing, the acrid smoke a constant companion for the poor folk.
The cobblestone streets were broken, filled with cracks or painted red and other viscera of pink that some would rather not step on for their mental sanity.
That took a while to clean up, if not replace entirely. As for the townsfolk, they’re not much better.
Out of the thousands living in the town, about 5% of the population were killed from the ambush. Perhaps more than 200 were killed, according to Cloud’s estimates.
A lord had to calculate it that way to recover properly, no matter how morbid or dark that sounded. To treat the casualties of so many as just mere numbers might seem cruel, but it was necessary to know.
That way, they can properly demand recompense from the enemy province that did this to them… but the chances of that actually happening was slim to none.
Just as one would expect, the bigger countries won’t pay as much attention to the small towns and cities dishing out war crimes left and right. There were so many to take care of, the countries won’t care much if one territory falls and gets absorbed into another. As long as one of the big powerhouses doesn’t do anything substantially dangerous, the kingdom won’t move a hand to help.
However, Cloud refused to give up and still sent report after report about their damages to the nearby post town belonging to the kingdom of Sham-la–the name of the kingdom where they were not only situated, but what owned Eve Glade as part of their giant territory. It was one of the towns connected straight to the kingdom, something like short hubs to ensure better connection between the kingdom’s allies across the continent.
It was also a way for Cloud to contact the merchants to warn them about their horde problems, and just as well to tell them that it had been settled. But despite two months passing by, none of them have arrived.
They were short on supplies, and recovery was slow because of that. The townsfolk had no choice but to pick up what they could from the surrounding forest to gather wood and stone to help rebuild their town and their homes, only being able to rely on their skills and resources to keep moving.
The soldiers were also working hard, helping to gather the said wood and stone for the townsfolk to build their homes. The elite team that have returned, having gained many levels throughout the raid, helped substantially in the process, their stats overcompensating the damage done to the town. Mikella herself was a prime example of a soldier whose stats covered every aspect of town recovery.
Chopping the wood and breaking the stone, then gathering them all up by several cart loads. Then carrying the wood and stone to the downtrodden and personally help build the homes herself. It was unnecessary to say that Mikella was one of the top performers of the town’s recovery, as well as being very loved by the folks who had lost so much.
That didn’t mean the others were falling behind. Myra had also helped, and even offered to use her fire attunement to help rebuild the metal and stone that needed to be remade. Along with Philip and the new staff he gained, the two made quick work of smelting and rebuilding materials for crafting.
As for the people who were hurt from the ambush, healers were working on the clock to help them heal up as quickly as their mana allowed, trying to bring them back into shape, or at least in working order to help the town recover faster.
Unfortunately, they didn’t have as many healers on hand unlike the buildings and workers, so Zeke became the very icon of a busy bee.
Zeke has done what he could to help heal the injured. Thanks to his high Spirit stat, he had more mana to give, even if at the time, he was still sore around his channels.
Some did question how Zeke gained so much power and levels despite being a Runist, but Cloud intervened by stating that his barriers worked in a lot of ways, helping him gain more experience. Though the truth was that Zeke and Mikella were not as normal as one would believe.
Since arriving in this new world, Tarial, Zeke, Mikella, and Clara are all connected with a special link to their status, or at least between Zeke and Mikella, as Clara was still too young to be accepted into the system’s initialization. As she was only ten years old, actually closing towards eleven now, one needed to be fifteen to be accepted by the system.
Due to this, Zeke and Mikella share the same experience rate, no matter how far apart they were. In other words, Zeke was getting as powerful as Mikella, and being a Runist with a support skill set, that was a massive boon due to his lack of attack skills.
Due to this phenomenon, Zeke had little reason to hold back in aiding the town as he used his massive pool of mana to heal the injured and the sick. Not only that, but whenever he managed it, he would come over to the soldiers helping to build the homes and use his barriers as substitute support beams to build the broken walls and flooring.
In other words, Zeke was a convenient handyman to have around, and nearly everyone in the town wished for his help in one way or another–whether it was his Recovery or his Barrier Craft.
But in the end, Zeke still felt like he wasn’t doing enough. A day after returning from the raid and fighting off the invaders, everyone gathered to the center of their destroyed town to grieve for the lost in a large funeral pyre.
They built a powerful flame to help cremate the bodies that have fallen, the biggest tragedy this town has ever suffered through. It was also the same time the elite team grieved for their own losses, to the five soldiers that have died throughout the journey.
Zeke could still remember their names. Mikael the axeman, Joshua the spearman, Bryann the duelist. Lisa, the mage that helped Zeke out during the horde battle and Philip’s crush, and finally Maxie, Jackie’s twin brother and Myra’s childhood friend.
He barely knew the folks that had died during the ambush, but nevertheless he felt everyone's pain and anguish, their cries and sobs louder and heartbreaking than the crackling flames in front of him. The fire, as though responding to their emotions, reached higher towards the sky as that was the only source of flame they would accept in this town.
And of course, curses to those who have done these atrocities were thrown. Being one of the healers, even Zeke was a target of one family, the one belonging to the axeman Mikael. His father came around, blaming Zeke for his death.
It was… hard to see. And even harder when the other people held the raging father back, realizing that his grief was turning him illogical. Zeke couldn’t blame him. Not only had he lost his son, he also lost his wife from the ambush, making him truly alone.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Cloud stepped in to settle the trouble, but Zeke could see it in his eyes as well. The pain and anguish of what would happen if things didn’t go his way. His wife Valorie almost died back at the dungeon, and his daughter Ana was just as close to the ambush attack as everyone else. The fact that they both survived helped Cloud enough to stand firm.
After that, the town went back to help rebuild the town. But even after months have passed, the recovery was slow and painful. Even now, Zeke was walking back towards the Mystio house, where not only the lords and their daughter lived, but also his own family–Mikella and Clara.
Along his side was Cloud, utterly exhausted and grumpy. So basically the same as Zeke. They had just returned from their trip to the nearby kingdom post town, trying to report what had happened. But just as they expected, their troubles were considered ‘minor’ compared to the situation going on at the kingdom’s side.
Apparently another major powerhouse, considerably the same tier as the kingdom, was making strange movements across the border, so Eve Glade just had to settle for now while they kept things under control. In other words, they had no time to help the town that was ambushed unfairly despite the kingdom’s assurance of their safety by another city clearly backed by another powerhouse country–the Aetheric Federation.
As for why Zeke went with Cloud to that post town, he had Valorie to thank. Val, the captain of the military force, had no choice but to stay behind thanks to the damage done by being nearly possessed and turned into a zombie. While Zeke did his best to help heal her channels with Cloud’s aid, he still wasn’t proficient in truly healing her back.
No matter how much Cloud and Zeke tried to help, her channels were still bruised, especially after she became crazy from returning back to the town to find it being attacked and her daughter nowhere to be seen.
Zeke can’t blame the mother for going crazy to try and find her child, but that ended up extending her injuries and forced her to stay at home longer than normal. And since Val was out of commision, she asked Zeke if he could travel with Cloud to the post town, not really having confidence that Cloud won’t get attacked and injured without his barriers.
While Cloud argued against that, Zeke had no issue accepting Val’s request, and besides, he could always learn more from Cloud as they walked. The two became fellow comrades for understanding magical knowledge–but after the post town visit, none of them were too keen to get back into the joy of talking about magic stuff.
Still, Cloud spoke up after a long silence, their home coming closer in their vision.
“Zeke, I want to thank you for all that you did,” Cloud suddenly said, getting Zeke out of his musings.
“What for?” Zeke asked. He can guess a lot of things, which would be problematic as he did quite a lot for the town.
“For going along with my wife’s selfishness,” Cloud said, and Zeke could tell Cloud’s eyes were rolling despite looking forward. “And for what you’re doing to the town. That also goes for Mikella as well.”
“Oh, well, that’s obvious,” Zeke shrugged his shoulders. “Eve Glade’s our home. And we got the skills needed to help. I don’t see why we should just stand around and do nothing.”
Zeke was right, at least he thought he was. Having all this power, magic, and stats; not doing anything as simple as building a house or healing the injured with magic? That was the epitome of laziness.
But Cloud still stood firm, unwilling to let it slide.
“There shouldn’t be a reason why you had to work so hard for us. You’ve already done so much for us. In the folk’s eyes, you’re already essential to our town.”
“...I feel like I haven’t done enough, though,” Zeke said, his enthusiasm draining a bit. “There’s still so much to be done.”
The town was still a mess in his eyes compared to the first time he visited it. Despite the construction taking place practically everywhere in his vicinity, due to the lack of supplies, the buildings were still half-finished, and some still showed scars of the ambush. The streets were still a mess to walk on, making it difficult for the carts to drive on.
And there was still that scent in the air. The lingering tang of smoke and embers. Despite two months passing by, it was still there–mocking them.
Like a nasty reminder that a damn ambush led to this, due to their own mistakes of not covering all of their tracks before they left.
“This is our responsibility, Zeke, not yours,” Cloud said resolutely, and Zeke could tell he was talking about himself and Val rather than the entire town itself. “Even with all the power you have, that still shouldn’t force you to clean up our mistakes. Many others with powers don’t just casually visit and help us–because mostly that would mean they would ask for a price we’re not ready to pay.”
Cloud stared at Zeke this time, his striking eyes making themselves known.
“And yet you ask for nothing but to just give you a place to stay. That’s too cheap of a price.”
“It’s the best we could hope for,” Zeke shrugged again. He didn’t mind gaining some other benefits, as long as it was for Mikella and Clara. But for himself, he was happy just to help. “And Mikella would say the same. We like this place. Definitely better than the others that would ask us to pay out of our asses in taxes.”
Zeke shivered at the idea. The other countries and cities have built in a taxing system that doesn’t take their money, but instead their resources. Their kinetic, magical, and in some cases, life energy. No matter how you spin it, that just seems so unnatural.
To take that as compensation is like selling blood or even urine and stool to some shady group for simple living. Even if it does refill naturally, that could still have adverse effects on the human body if done long enough.
The death rate of those who were spent trying to pay taxes were pretty high in those towns and cities, something that Zeke didn’t like at all. Taxes aren’t supposed to kill people. Everything revolving around taxes does, but not the taxes themselves–at least that’s how Zeke views the world.
“Still…” Cloud answered, but he trailed as their home was coming in full view now.
Zeke decided to leave it at that as he opened the door. He knew Cloud felt guilty, especially after what happened during the dungeon. Zeke nearly gave his life to save his wife, and he went through a lot of strain and agony due to overusing his magical channels once more. Still, Zeke would gladly do it again if it meant protecting those he cared about.
And it was becoming easier and easier to make that decision every time he opened the door to the Mystio household.
“Hey!” A childish shrill rang out. “They’re here! Cloud and Bobo’s here!”
Clara, now just slightly taller and nearly reaching Zeke’s upper stomach, ran full tilt towards him into a massive bear hug. It was enough to nearly topple Zeke, but he took on the tackle of the tiny beast gladly as he smiled.
“Hey, Clara,” Zeke said, a smile so natural he didn’t even realize he had it on. “Miss me?”
“Yesh!” Clara tried to speak, but her mouth was covered in Zeke’s robes. She turned her tiny head up towards him. “Wassuh!”
“Wassuh,” Zeke mimicked Clara’s greeting with a grin of his own, just in time to see Cloud’s own tackle done to him by his own daughter.
“Daddy!” Ana cried out, hugging him tighter as though trying to beat Clara’s hug. “Welcome back!”
“Hey there, my little angel.”
Compared to the serious tone and demeanor he showed before, it all melted away the moment Ana came into the picture. His face turned goofy as he picked up Ana and smushed her with hugs and kisses on her head, getting her to try and scramble away before landing on her feet and running back towards the living room.
Just as they left, the house was a little cluttered and messy due to the kids playing around. Since the town was still in construction, it was dangerous for children to be running about and possibly staggering on the broken roads. While the rest of the children grumbled, Clara and Ana made quick work of getting adjusted.
Vivian would also often visit the house, making it the perfect time for her to not just take care of the kids personally, but to also look out for her friend Val who was down for the moment. Despite being a teacher, she was absurdly sturdy for a woman who was critically injured just two short months ago. Her high Vitality was clearly responsible for that vigor.
Speaking of which, the housewife of the Mystio household came up to greet them along with a familiar young woman by her side.
“Welcome back,” Val greeted, her smile so pleasant as a morning breeze. But after a closer look at her, Zeke felt his heart sink.
While her complexion was getting better these past two months, there was still that hint of exhaustion around the brim of her eyes, her cheeks slightly sunken in. Her smile never seemed to dull in its radiance, however, no matter how beaten she looked.
Even now, her recovery was still hampering her, forcing her to stand back to even help the construction of her own town. Even though Zeke felt like he wasn’t doing enough, he felt guilty seeing Val forced to stay while watching her town try to heal just like her.
And just by her side was Mikella, who still kept a watchful eye on Val even when greeting the men. She turned to Cloud with a smile, then a grin to Zeke.
“Wassuh,” Mikella greeted the same way as Clara, only getting Zeke to chuckle and repeat the same thing.
Tonight will be the same night as every night–mostly just talking about what they did to the positively bored Val and retelling anything interesting.
All the while playing with the bundles of energy while being completely out of it themselves. All in all, it was a good way to end the day and start anew to work all over again.