???: [I’ll be right back, don’t worry.]
A distant voice called out in a deep, endless abyss reminiscent of the night sky. Its soft, masculine voice sounded familiar yet distant. It was reassuring, and calling to whomever was hearing it. Lost in the abyss of darkness, to never be heard again.
An arm reached out into the night sky with a beige pigment, slim and clean. Falling further from the voice, its echoes slowly faded out of obscurity and turned to nothing.
Moments passed in the dreadful silence. The arm fell back and tears arose in its place. Floating up like bubbles.
Shutting their eyes, they could hear a voice speaking. It was muffled but they could make out what they were saying, and who it was coming from.
Ruby: [There has to be something else!]
Opening their eyes, they found themselves in a candlelit room, submerged in warm water with a mask over their mouths. They turned to see Ruby sitting across them and a foreign girl with short black hair standing beside them. They were holding a plate of rice, with a not-so-pleasant expression.
Ruby: [We had rice last night!]
Meera: [It’s a perfect breakfast, Ruby! The chef made it for everyone!]
Ruby: [I didn’t come to another world just to have rice every day!]
Meera: [You didn’t choose to come to another world, dumbass!]
Ruby: [Well, they should at least treat a queen–!]
Sophia: [Could you two please shut the fuck up?]
Catching their attention, the two turned to the person submerged in the bath with wide eyes. Shocked that they had awoken, the two nervously cackled at her.
Ruby: [Sophia… how’s it going?]
Sophia: [Don’t give me that.]
Emerging from the tub naked and soaking, she reached for the towel not too far from her reach. Meera watched in awe as the water seeped down her slim and supple skin. Her body reflected the golden light from the surrounding candles and made her look like an angel under the sun.
Sophia: [If you’re going to interrupt my training, at least have it be when I’m outside.]
Ruby: [The hardest part of Od training is the mental part.]
Meera snapped herself out of her enchantment and handed the Queen her lunch in the middle of her conversation. Completely distracted, Ruby kindly accepted the rice.
Ruby: [I don’t want you drowning yourself.]
Sophia shut her eyes as she wiped down her long black hair.
Meera: [I’m sure we could’ve waited until after she was done, though.]
Ruby: [Yeah, but–]
Meera watched as Ruby took a spoonful of rice and nearly put it in her mouth, but before she could, the queen suddenly realized what she was about to consume. Ruby turned back to her assistant with furrowed brows.
Ruby: [Meera!]
Meera: [It’s good for you, Ruby!]
Ruby: [Tell the chef to make me an omelet or something! It’s ten in the god-damned morning!]
Meera: [For the last time, he doesn’t know what that is!]
Sophia: [Don’t argue here, please.]
Meera: [My deepest apologies! It’ll never happen again!]
Bowing down to her knees, Meera completely shut off any eye contact she might’ve had with the Royal Knight. Confused by her gesture, Sophia looked to Ruby for help.
Ruby: [Sorry, we’ve been really stressed out. Anyway, how was your session today?]
Sophia: [I heard his voice again… the man I told you about.]
Ruby: [The last time you heard him was when you used your powers, wasn’t it?]
The royal knight nodded.
Sophia: [It’s so much easier when I can use my powers. Without them, I feel like I’m just looking into space.]
Ruby: [Well, you’re only on day three. You shouldn’t expect to see anything for another month or so.]
Sophia suddenly came to a halt while putting her towel down. Her change in behavior surprised the queen and her assistant. Raising her head from the floor, Meera stared at Sophia’s wet back.
Sophia: [… but I don’t have a month, your highness.]
Her voice trembled as she lowered her head. The two behind her noticed as she clenched onto the wet towel and squeezed every last drop of water out of it.
Sophia: [Zack left without so much as a warning. I’m the only one capable of defending this place in case that girl was bluffing.]
Meera turned to her boss, wondering if she would bring up what they had spoken with Ali about.
Ruby: [It’s been a week without any sign of another wave, Sophia. I think we’re in the clear–]
Sophia: [I’m the only one… yet I couldn’t do anything in the second wave.]
Dropping the dry towel on the floor covered in water, Sophia turned to the queen with tears in her eyes and trembling teeth.
Sophia: [There’s nothing I can do against non-humanoid creatures, Ruby. Nothing! I need these powers now, or this kingdom is doomed.]
Ruby: [I understand your urgency, but you can’t rush through your Od training. It takes time and dedication. In the meantime, I’m here. I’ll be able to defend this place.]
Sophia stared at Ruby’s confident narrow eyes basked under the candlelight. The yellow light that reflected from her eyes instilled some peace in Sophia’s heart that she couldn’t ignore. A warm feeling, similar to the one she felt in the dark abyss.
Ruby: [You cannot use your powers for at least another month if you plan on mastering Od. We’ll need you at your best if anything gets out of hand.]
Giving her a pat on the shoulder, Ruby headed toward the door out of the bathhouse with Meera following quickly after. She tossed the bowl of rice in the trash before Sophia lashed out, which caught the royal knight’s attention.
Perfectly good food that was tossed out in favor of something else.
Sophia: [Do you think you can beat the demon lord?]
Ruby and Meera stopped in their step and turned back to the naked royal knight standing in the middle of the room with her fingers clenched.
Ruby: [Are you kidding me? He’d kill my ass before I even got a chance.]
The royal knight shut her eyes and further lowered her head.
Ruby: [But I’d give him one hell of a fight before I kick the bucket, that’s for damn sure. Just abstain from using your powers unless absolutely necessary, okay?]
With a confident smirk, Ruby shut the door behind her. Sophia watched the door close, her expression unchanged. The lifeless glare she held as she sat beside the steaming water didn’t last long. The somber silence began to sound like an unbearable ring as she sat there, and somehow forced tears to flow out of her eyes.
Covering her head in her hands, she cried out, trying to suppress her voice with whimpers and sobs.
-
Several moments later, Sophia walked out of the bathhouse in her Royal Knight attire and glowing skin. The suns were up and the capital city was bustling with life.
All of the citizens had been taken out of the safe room and allowed to resume their lives as if nothing had changed. Several NPCs walked passed her with smiles on their faces. Sophia watched in awe, her eyes locked on an elderly pair of centaurs walking around in the nearby park.
Everyone around her was a living, breathing individual who now depended on her to keep the smiles they previously thought to have lost. Even without her powers, she could tell that the lingering dread of the demon lord’s inevitable reign remained in the minds of the citizens based on the way they looked at her.
None of them knew of Zack’s withdrawal, but she couldn’t help but feel like they were depending on her. She pressed her lips together and lowered her head, then proceeded to run toward the castle.
Citizen 1: [It's the goddess!]
Citizen 2: [She’s the one that defeated Hydra, right?!]
Citizen 3: [It’s Royal Knight Sophia! Thank you for saving us!]
As she ran, she could hear the cheers from the citizens and some rumors following them. All the things she didn’t feel she deserved.
Sophia: [Stop! Stop it!]
She ran without turning back. With her head low, she continued forward with no plan of stopping, however, a child suddenly stood in her path with their arms behind their back. Their green-spotted skin and long ears surprised Sophia enough to stop in her path.
Child: [Excuse me, Royal Knight?]
Sophia stood in front of the child.
Child: [Could you find me my sister? She never came back from the safe room and my mom is really scared.]
Sophia: [... She never returned? But the safe rooms were cleared out two nights ago.]
Sophia got down to the child’s height and smiled her way, despite everything she was going through.
Sophia: [Are you sure she isn’t hiding at home?]
The child shook their head.
Child: [Me and Mom are really scared!]
Sophia: [Don't worry. I'll go look for you, okay? What does she look like?]
Child: [She’s an elf-orc! Like me! She’s really tall and has short orange hair.]
Sophia: [Okay. Thank you! I’ll send her home when I find her.]
Child: [Thank you so much!]
Running up to her, the small child wrapped their arms around the royal knight and rubbed their snot all over Sophia’s clothes. When following him around, she would see Zack oftentimes interacting with the citizens and helping them whenever he could.
Being Paladin wasn’t just about being the strongest, but the kindest and most inspirational. She knew that if she wanted to be anything like Zack, putting aside her problems for the people she was protecting was the first step she had to take.
Child: [Her name is Sylver! Please bring her back home.]
Sophia: [Of course.]
The child ran away after a wave. Sophia smiled at the child until they were out of sight, and immediately after losing them, she frowned.
Sophia silently: [This would’ve been so much easier if I could use my powers.]
Throwing all of her items into her inventory, Sophia began her walk to the safe rooms beside the castle.
The rooms that the king and ex-Paladin had decided to throw the citizens into while the waves were taking place, were old prisons used to hold dragons. Built with durability and strength to withhold the powerful beasts, destroying the sturdy metal walls was nigh impossible. Having been emptied after the deportation of dragonkind, they were used as storage before the first wave was announced.
Strafing from one end of the castle to the eastern gates, it took a long time to clear them out. Along with Ali, Sophia and dozens of other soldiers escorted every citizen they could see. However, due to the sheer size of the area, Sophia wouldn’t have been surprised if some remained.
Finally arriving at the front door, she used her Royal Knight ID card to open the doors. Opening with a hiss, the doors split and revealed the darkness of the other side. Without all of the people moving around, the safe rooms looked like they came straight out of a haunted house.
She stepped in with her footsteps echoing throughout the dark halls. Sophia showed no sign of fear, as there was nothing that could’ve remained that would scare her.
Sophia: [Sylver!]
Shouting into the darkness, she received no response.
Sophia: [If there is a Sylver in here, your family is very worried about you! I’ve been asked to bring you home!]
Again, no response.
She continued to walk into the dark after drinking a light potion of night vision, granting her ten minutes of enhanced vision in the dark. Where most people would see black, she could see as if there was a grayscale filter in a dimly lit room. Anything that was living would emit a temperature of varying degrees, and that temperature would reflect her eyes as a varying value of grey. Anything that wasn’t, would be solid black.
Unluckily, all she could see was pitch darkness, no different from what she had seen before.
Sophia: [God damn it.]
She continued to walk through the different rooms while keeping a lookout for anything that left a heat signature. While walking through the tenth safe room, she caught sight of a pair of handprints on the door leaving, and several footprints on the other end. With some hope, she widened her eyes and ran to the prints.
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The two handprints left on the door were large and fairly bulky. From a single glance, it would be unreasonable to attribute them to a woman, however, from the description that the child gave her, Sophia had a feeling she found her culprit.
Orcs, whether they were man or women, always had the same physical structure, however, the girl she was looking for was a half-orc, her other half being elven. The handprints weren’t all that large, but they also weren’t that small.
Sophia: [What is she still doing down here?]
Sophia moved toward the footsteps and followed them through the dark corridors.
As she trailed the footsteps, she noticed another two join the path. Smaller and thinner in frame, the two new footprints followed the bigger footprints, standing by both of the half-orc’s shoulders.
Sophia: [Are these her friends? How did they slip past inspection?]
??? (British Man): [Is that the Royal Knight?]
Suddenly hearing a man’s voice in the dark, Sophia jumped and turned in the direction of the voice. Her heart racing and eyes scanning the room, she eventually landed on a figure standing in front of two others, looking toward her with smiles.
She couldn’t distinguish their facial differences from one another, but their voices did help with that.
??? (British Man): [I think it’s Royal Knight Do.]
??? (Deep Woman): [It’s hard to tell who’s who in this darkness. Why couldn’t we bring a torch or something?]
??? (Soft Woman): [I thought we didn’t want any unnecessary attention, Clyde.]
Clyde (British Man): [I’m confident the Royal Knight will help us!]
Sophia: [What are you three doing here? You should’ve left when the waves stopped.]
Clyde: [Well, there was something we found during our time here, that we couldn’t just ignore, ma’am.]
Sophia: [Like what?]
Clyde: [You see, these safe rooms are connected to the secure prisons right under the castle. While we were here, we figured we should peek into the prison to see some things.]
Sophia: [So you three broke the law? Why are you admitting to that?]
Clyde: [You already knew that, didn’t you?]
Sophia hesitated to respond as the man with a British accent tilted his head. With a nod of her head, she peered over his shoulder and watched the two in the back converse.
Clyde: [It turns out, the prison is defenseless, and that there is only one prisoner!]
Sophia focused back on her conversation with Clyde, confused and frustrated
Sophia: [Only one? What about the others?]
Clyde shrugged.
Clyde: [It looked like one of the battles completely tore the place apart! We were going to go back to get the last prisoner some food, as I imagine he must be starving.]
Sophia: [Who was it?! Who remained?!]
??? (Deep Woman): [The vampire that tried to attack the capital a few weeks ago. He looked like a parody of his former self, and we felt kinda bad.]
Sophia: [Omar?! Wasn’t OJ in charge of watching the place?!]
The royal knight turned to the deep-voiced woman.
Sophia: [Did you see a man with light brown skin?]
??? (Deep Woman): [We only saw the vampire.]
Sophia: [Take me to him, and then I want you three to go back to the surface.]
Clyde: [We knew something was up!]
??? (Deep Woman): [We can help you, Royal Knight Do.]
Sophia: [No, this isn’t something you guys should be involved in in the first place.]
??? (Deep Woman): [We’re stronger than you think.]
??? (Soft Woman): [I don’t like where this is going.]
Sophia: [The vampire isn’t– No matter how capable you might be, I don’t want to risk your health in a fight you could’ve avoided.]
Clyde: [Sylver is right. The three of us are trying to become the next Royal Knights!]
Sylver (Deep Voice): [You can assess our skills using this battle. I promise you we won’t be a thorn in your side.]
Sophia: [You’re Sylver? Do you know how worried your family has been?]
Sylver: [How come you didn’t know that sooner?]
Sophia stepped back in hesitation. Sylver suspiciously raised her brows as Sophia tried to avoid the question.
??? (Soft Voice): [It's obvious that she doesn’t want us here, you two. I don’t think anything we say will change her mind.]
Saved by, the bell, Sophia silently let out a sigh of relief.
Clyde: [But we’re really strong! Just let us prove it to you! Besides, if anything happens, you could stop him on your own.]
Sophia: [You three want to be Royal Knights, right?]
Clyde: [More than anything.]
Sophia: [Fine. Let’s go.]
Sophia followed the three of them as they guided her to the open path to the prison. It was a long path of nothing but pure darkness and fading footprints. The group of adventurers tried to make conversation with Sophia, but she put in her best efforts to avoid them. It was obvious to her that the three were close friends, which was surprising considering the differences in their dialect.
Sylver didn't look anything like the other two. Her short orange hair, pointed ears, and wide frame set her apart from the shorter companions that followed her. Clyde was a dark-haired, chisel-jawed, jock with beautiful orange eyes and a taste for jewelry. He was shorter than Sylver, but a lot taller than the young girl. With pierced eyebrows, lips, and ears, he looked well-off and honorable, the exact opposite of a Royal Knight. Had he told Sophia his last name, she would probably have recognized him as the son of a duke. The woman with the soft voice was a purple-haired, 150 centimeters tall, young girl who was wearing black knee socks under her light armor, a pink and white short skirt, and a light pink sweater. She looked like a female cleric Sophia once knew, only she was less well endowed, and constantly looked nervous around the Royal Knight.
The lineup of people confused the royal knight. She couldn’t believe that these people wanted to be anything more than a bunch of adventurers, and wanted nothing to do with them.
As they approached the prison, the light from the other side bled into the dark safe rooms. Finally being able to see everyone, Sophia got confirmation that Sylver was the elf-orc she was looking for.
Clyde: [Well, this is the place.]
Sophia: [What could’ve made this hole?]
??? (Soft Voice): [Our best guess was one of the prisoners.]
Sylver: [It could’ve been a result of the fights too.]
Sophia: [These walls are too sturdy for anyone or anything to break open.]
Sylver: [Can’t you touch the walls to see their history?]
Sophia and Sylver look at each other suspiciously.
Sophia: [Now isn't the time. Take me to the vampire you found here.]
Clyde: [He should be just down this hall and to the left.]
Sophia: [Okay. Stay behind me.]
The three of them arrived at the cell, only for it to be completely empty. Sophia turned to the three adventurers with a disapproving glare, shedding the hopes they could've had at being Royal Knight.
Sophia: [... There’s no one here.]
Clyde pressed his lips and lowered his head while Sylver continued to look at the Royal Knight suspiciously. The young girl, however, didn't want to give up there. She continued to scan the environment and widened her green eyes upon finding something.
??? (Soft Voice): [Look at the heat signatures! He must’ve left recently.]
Life was reborn in Clyde's eyes. He ran to the scene ahead of everyone else and quickly noticed the heat signature on the outside of the cell bars. A pair of boots facing the other way, and a pair of hands just outside of the cell.
Clyde: [But he wasn’t alone! Look at this.]
The prints outside the cell were fairly larger than the vampire’s and emitted more heat.
??? (Soft Voice): [Who could’ve helped him escape?]
Sophia: [This is bad. This is really, really bad.]
The Royal Knight rushed to the other cells and found that they were also empty, but there were no heat signatures in sight.
Clyde: [Something helped them escape, but they didn’t attack the city? What are they planning?]
??? (Soft Voice): [Maybe they wanted to regroup and fuel up.]
Clyde: [Team Hydra isn’t full of a bunch of pussies. Leviere was at its weakest during the waves. They would’ve taken that opportunity.]
Sylver: [Now would be a perfect time to use your history-seeing thing.]
The Royal Knight was beginning to feel Sylver's suspicion, but couldn't prove her right. If word of her inability to use her powers got out, that could spell disaster for Leviere. She had to come up with something quickly to get out of her situation.
Sophia: [Why don’t you three prove that being a Royal Knight is something you’re capable of?]
Clyde: [How do we do that?]
Sophia: [Pretend I’m not here. How would you solve this?]
The three of them looked at each other.
Sophia: [Royal Knights are more than just powerhouses, y’know. Part of the job is taking over tasks the Paladin would usually take care of. Problem-solving is part of the job.]
Sylver turned back to the Royal Knight with her suspicion growing stronger. Sophia’s awkward smile didn’t help mask her nerves.
??? (Soft Voice): [I guess that makes sense…]
Clyde: [Okay, do either of you have anything that could solve this?]
??? (Soft Voice): [I have a Historia bead, but I set it to read my story.]
Clyde: [That’s okay. I didn’t bring any items with me… not like I had anything anyway.]
Sylver: [Don’t worry, Clyde. My cursed side has something that can be useful.]
As she walked past her two friends, the orc-elf made her way towards the bars. With a determined look on her face, she firmly grasped the metal bars and closed her eyes. Suddenly, a faint light blue glow started emanating from between her palms, illuminating the entire hall. Her long hair began to rise, without any apparent source of wind, and her pointed ears started to wiggle with a strange intensity. It was clear that some sort of powerful magic was at work, and the orc-elf seemed to be in complete control of it.
??? (Soft Voice): [Are you sure you want to use it? Won't your–]
Sylver: [It’s okay, Aine. I’ll do whatever it takes to be a Royal Knight.]
Sophia was taken aback by Sylver's response, which caught her off guard and snapped her out of her nervousness. Aine, who was terrified, took a step back, while Clyde crossed his arms, suggesting that whatever Sylver was about to do was a cause for concern for them in some way that Sophia couldn't quite comprehend. Although Sophia generally relied on her powers to evaluate the danger of the orc-elf's next move, she had no other choice but to join the children and share their concerns.
Sylver turned back to the bars, shut her eyes, and concentrated. The light in her palms continued to shine brightly, illuminating the entire space. As she progressed further and further, a magnificent blue glow began to spread from her palms, covering the bars in their blue light. The light advanced until it reached a spot where it rose from the ground and created a figure.
The illuminated blue statue of Omar stood before them, from his boots to his head. Sophia was awestruck by Sylver's abilities and moved closer to the statue. She was able to observe every intricate detail of the vampire, from the folds in his clothes to the tangles in his hair, and even the small birthmark on his collarbone. It was a mystery that such a skill existed but was not widely known. Sophia turned to the orc-elf, whose ears continued to wiggle, and the spell went on.
While the blue light continued to scour the area for any sign of life, Sylver exhibited signs of distress. She lowered her head, gritted her teeth, and let out a grunt. Her friends rushed to her side and held onto her shoulders to offer support.
Clyde: [Just a little longer, Syl! You can do it!]
Aine: [Don’t hurt yourself!]
The blue light reached another pair of shoes just outside of the cell that was sparkling and wide. As if they were uncovering a giant's foot, the blue light went a lot slower. Sylver’s distress was more clear than ever as she struggled to even keep her hands clenched.
Sylver: [Ugh…]
As she groaned, Sylver dropped to her knees and released the cell bars. Her friends quickly lifted her from the floor and let her rest on their shoulders. They reassured her that she did well, but they weren’t sure if Sophia had been impressed.
Keeping her usual stale expression, Sophia walked up to the boots projected by the blue light, with no regard for Sylver’s pain.
Clyde: [You wouldn’t happen to recognize those boots, would you?]
Sophia stood up and slid her hands in her pockets.
Sophia: [No, but there are a few things we can deduce from what we have. It won’t be concrete, but it sure will help shorten the potential suspects.]
Sylver breathless: [Do you… have anyone in mind?]
Sophia: [I do… but I don’t want to believe it.]
She turned back to the three adventurers and hesitated when she saw the state that the orc-elf was in. Barely able to stand, she pushed herself to smile through her battered face.
Sophia: [Can you keep going?]
Sylver: [If you have a mana potion, maybe.]
Having to keep her abilities off, Sophia had no use for mana potions. She’d given them all to Ali shortly after she was tasked with her Od training and hasn’t had any use for them since. Sophia shook her head and looked to the others holding Sylver up.
Clyde shook his head.
Clyde: [Mana pots are too expensive. We rely on our natural regeneration.]
Sophia: [Okay, then we’ll have to inspect what we have.]
Clyde: [No offense, but there isn’t much we can get from a pair of boots.]
Aine: [From its size and texture, we can figure out who it isn’t.]
Releasing the orc-elf and walking toward the boots near the cell, Aine got down to her knees and inspected the boot.
Aine: [Judging by the size, I can tell that it was a tall boy. His sense of fashion is rather expensive for the casual citizen, but not too extravagant to be from the rich.]
She scooted her knees around to get a different angle of the boots.
Aine: [His posture suggests that he has fighting experience, but not so stiff that it could be a soldier. It is either a Paladin, or the king himself.]
Sophia lowered her head after she heard the little girl confirm her suspicions.
Clyde: [It can’t be any of them, right? Zack and the king know better than to–]
Sophia: [Zack dresses like a peasant, and King Didus has never set foot in the prison. He isn’t allowed to.]
Sylver: [Then who could it be?]
Sophia: [What makes you think it’s a tall man? Couldn’t it be an orc or just a wide woman?]
Aine: [Orc or woman, they don’t stand like that, or wear shoes like that. There is no doubt in my mind that it is a human man.]
Clyde: [When did you become an expert detective?]
Aine: [I’ve dabbled–]
Sophia groaning: [I should’ve seen this coming!]
With her palms covering her face, Sophia raised her head to the ceiling.
Sophia: [Paladin Daring, you sly motherfucker.]
Sylver: [There’s no way it was a Paladin, right?]
Sophia: [You three need to go back home, and don’t bring any mention of this to anyone! I need to find OJ and Omar before they can do anything.]
Sylver: [But we can help you, Ms. Do!]
Sophia: [I’m sure you’re all strong, but this could blow way out of proportion. I can’t take you into the eye of the storm. Go home.]
Sylver: [Take us with you, or we’re telling everyone about what happened here!]
Clyde: [Syl!]
Sylver: [You can’t use your powers, isn’t that right? What good would you serve with no abilities?]
Sophia: [How did you…]
Sylver: [I don’t have to be a detective to notice something was wrong.]
The orc-elf released herself from Clyde’s support and stumbled her way to the Royal Knight.
Sylver: [Whatever’s going on with you, it’s plain as day that you can’t fight. You need us.]
Sophia: [What if you get hurt?]
Clyde: [Then boo fucking hoo! We're trying to be Royal Knights, not damn cowards!]
Sophia pressed her teeth together and furrowed her brows. She couldn’t deny what they were saying but didn’t have it in her to put these three random civilians in danger. Dealing with foreign isn’t a job of the Royal Knights, so even she doesn’t know how to handle the situation.
She started to think of all the alternatives. Asking Ali for help would leave all of Leviere defenseless. Even though he wasn’t a heavy hitter, he had the brains and abilities to take on an entire army on his own. If both of them had left, Leviere would be easy picking for whatever wanted to attack.
She couldn’t bring this up to the king as it would cause more problems than it would solve. If OJ really is the person who freed Omar, it could lead to a war that Leviere couldn’t handle without their paladin.
Bringing it up to the public would only cause panic and allow chaos to ensue. All paths led to doom. All except for the one presented to her.
Looking at the three, Sophia had a sudden vision of three people, two men, and one female, standing under a single umbrella in the middle of the rain. Following it was the same voice that called to her during her training, only this time it said something else.
???: [There’s nothing to worry about!]
Clyde: [Please believe in us.]
Planting his palm on his chest, Clyde looked at Sophia with a narrow, unflinching glare.
Sophia: [Fine!]
With an exhale, Sophia gave in to their persistence. Sylver smiled through her exhausted breaths while Clyde and Aine threw their arms in the air with a cheer.
Sophia: [But you three HAVE to follow my every command! Word for word,]
Clyde interrupting: [Bar for bar! You got it! What’s our first order, boss?!]
Sophia: [Don’t call me boss.]
Clyde: [You got it captain!]
The two girls laughed as Sophia looked at the only man around with raised brows and narrowed eyes.
Sophia: [I get the feeling that OJ isn’t in the capital anymore, so we’re going to head to Aveay.]
Aine: [Is it a good idea to attack in their territory?]
Sylver: [No. That’s why we’re going for a civil discussion.]
Sophia: [Right. Let’s head out.]
As the group of adventurers made their way towards the front gate, their eyes glistened with a sense of anticipation and excitement. Sylver, who had previously been struggling with her mana, had now fully recovered and looked ready to take on whatever challenges lay ahead. Clyde had donned a set of light armor and wielded a battle axe, his muscles bulging beneath his skin as he swung it with ease. Meanwhile, Aine stood tall and proud, a bow in her hands, her eyes fixed on the path ahead.
The road to Aveaay was long but peaceful, with very few ultras on the path and no dangerous terrain. But despite the tranquil voyage that lay ahead, the group that the quest wasn't over at the end of the bridge. If Sophia's suspicions are right, this could very well be the last chance for the three adventurers to prove themselves. This was their only chance to achieve their dreams of becoming Royal Knights.
As they stood at the gate, Sophia, their guide and mentor, walked ahead of them and turned to face them. Her gaze lingered on each of them in turn, taking in their confident grins and smirks. And as she looked at them, a small smile spread across her face, her own sense of pride and joy at seeing them ready for the journey ahead.
Sophia: [This is your last shot to change your minds.]
Clyde: [Quit stalling and let’s go!]
Sylver: [Right?!]
Sophia: [Don’t say I didn’t warn you.]
She turned back to the road ahead.
Sophia: [Let’s pray we make it back alive.]