After her not-so-veiled threat the four mercenaries looked even more pissed, but they chose to stand down.

Their choice relieved Sage.

To fight now would be unnecessary and the outcome would serve no purpose. At the moment, although the mercenaries had something against her, she on the other hand did not think ill of them. To her they were just a bunch of gullible people who had been conveniently placed in her path by fate. Of course the four of them would be pissed as hell after encountering her again. She on the other hand had no intention of fighting them.

Remembering their performance against the bandits, she reckoned that the combined might of the Scarlet Quartet was inferior to that of the bastard Guard Captain. Because of this she was confident if a fight broke out between them she would come out on top; doubly so with the geezer here.

“I’m glad we could come to an understanding,” she said to them with a smile.

She truly was. The fact that she was able to stay their hand meant she would not have to kill them, which would leave a really bad taste in her mouth. She was a con artist, a thief. Depriving them of their possessions was second nature to her but, even in this world where one could get away with plenty, she did not want to be reduced to a savage who would commit a massacre for little to no reason at all. Even when she had uttered her threat she had no intention of actually carrying through with it. If she going to kill a person it would be one who earned her ire.

Like the bastard Tiih Guard Captain.

When her thoughts moved to the bastard who severed her arm she could not help grit her teeth. When the time came she would definitely pay him back for what he had done. But first she would have to get stronger. And to do that she had to get back to the tower so Bori could sew her arm back on.

Thinking this she conjured a [Force Wall] between her group and the mercenaries and the rescued victims. After that she cast [Dimension Door] and ordered the skeleton to enter the portal. Then she waited for the geezer, who gave her a meaningful look. He would definitely say something when they got back. After he flew in it was finally her turn.

Before she entered she turned to face the mercenaries and their charges.

The women hid behind the quartet and cowered. They had actually begun to whimper when they had heard her threat. Some of them even looked like they were wanted to run away, but the fact that dusk was upon them stopped them from fleeing. Probably because of the predators they might encounter at this hour.

As for the mercenaries, there was nothing else she could really say. They looked ready to tear her to shreds. Marcus looked like his was trying to stop himself from going berserk and charging her, Zachary had a hate filled glare that was trying to set her ablaze and Arletta looked like she was going to blow up from her small stature being unable to contain her rage. As for Kaylee… the look she gave her was intense. If looks could kill Sage would have already dropped dead.

“Always watch your back little bitch,” the half-elf snarled. “Because if I see you again I’m gonna decorate it with my arrows.”

An ominous warning, but Sage smiled and gave a bow. This seemed to anger them even more. However, at this point she did not care. Being able to anger others while knowing they could not do anything about it was quite fun.

“Then I hope we never meet again,” she said calmly before stepping through the portal.

***

Saana knelt in front of a sunflower idol and prayed. This idol was the only source of light inside the dark empty room. It was the symbol of Shea the Life Giver. As a dedicated servant she knelt below this idol and thanked the Goddess for the blessings She had woven into her life.

Saana had served her Goddess since she was a child. From the moment her talent for Light Magic was discovered and she was taken in by the Church of Life, she had dedicated her all to Her. She had protected all that was sacred to Shea and gotten rid of everything that went against the Goddess. As an agent of The Lady she had helped countless people and destroyed countless more enemies.

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But that had been years ago.

Now Saana was an old woman on her last leg. That was why, despite all her achievements she had asked to be put in charge of the Tiih chapel. The city was her home and it was where she wanted to live out her last days. It was here that she had waited for the Goddess to come and take her, spending much of her time praying and meditating in preparation for that moment.

Thirty years had passed since then.

Just then a knock on the door brought her out of her musings. She looked at the door as another round of knocking came from the other side.

“Who is it?” she asked in a scratchy voice.

These days she did not talk much and when she did it hurt her throat. The other priests and their assistants all knew this fact and usually left her alone. If they were willing to come look for her it meant something serious had happened.

The door opened, causing bright light to flood into the room. Saana shielded her aged eyes until they adjusted before she took away her hand and looked at the silhouette in the doorway. It belonged to Nick, a fledgling priest.

“Revered Head Priestess,” the youth began. “The City Guard just brought Sir Isaac to the chapel infirmary. He has been poisoned and the other priests are unable to help him. They have requested your help Revered Head Priestess.”

When she heard the young priest, Saana nodded and got to her feet. Then she looked at the youth and signalled him to lead the way. After that she followed Nick through several corridors, with the young priest keeping his pace deliberately slow in mind of her age. It took them about five minutes to reach the infirmary. There she spotted a couple of priests and city guards surrounding the only occupied bed, on which lay a rather large man in black armour. The black of the armour was not its intended colour but scorch marks covering its entirety.

When Saana and the young priest arrived those hovering around the bedside all turned to them. After seeing her their eyes all lit up.

“Head Priestess you’re here!” Tuvana exclaimed joyously.

Hearing this priestess tone made Saana frown. This was the first time in a long time the woman expressed joy at seeing her. Saana’s presence was a reminder of the fact that she was not really in charge of the Tiih branch of the Church of Life. The fact that she was rejoicing at her presence spoke of the direness of the situation.

“What happened?” she asked, skipping the pleasantries and looking down at the man on the bed.

“It’s like this Head Priestess,” one of the guards began. “When we raided the black market last night we encountered a necromancer. The fiend of a mage tried to escape but the Captain went after him. While chasing after the necromancer he encountered a strange undead and got poisoned.”

She nodded in understanding. Then she used her hands to indicate they stand back so she can take a look. The priests, having known her long enough to recognise her gestures, immediately moved to the side and when the city guards saw this they followed suite, clearing a path for her to the injured Guard Captain.

She crept closer to have a better look.

The man was good for most of the part. Even though his armour was scorched he did not seem to have a single burn mark. The only problem was a large black spot on his neck. The blood vessels around this spot were dark and visible. They seemed to cause the unconscious man unimaginable pain as he groaned and twisted on the bed, his entire body soaked in sweat. Seeing him like this, she could not help but sigh.

Oh Isaac.

Years ago when she had picked him off the streets because she saw his potential. His affinity for light rivalled even hers and to top it off he had a talent in the physique department. She had taken him in with the thought that one day he would surpass her.

As far as talent was concerned the boy had not disappointed her. At the young age of twenty-five he had been allotted to the Paladins, the elite knight force of the Shean Faith.

What she had not accounted for was his impulsiveness, which caused him to be kicked out of the Paladins in less than a year. It was something that made her sigh whenever she thought about it, the fact that someone so gifted had been reduced to the post of a mere Guard Captain.

Let’s see what has befallen you, she said as she leaned in to take a closer look at the dark spot.

After a moment she nodded in understanding and raised her hand. Then white light left her palm, settled around Isaac’s throat and began cleansing the dark spot. In response to this he began to toss and turn violently, but she quickly cast a binding spell on him to make sure that he did not hurt himself. Minutes passed in which he repeatedly woke up screaming before falling asleep again. After some time the dark spot had vanished and Isaac slept peacefully.

When she saw this Saana sighed in relief. The 8th Order spell [Purify] was a spell that could cure almost any poison and cleanse any curse. The process was extremely painful though. She was just glad it worked.

“The poison is cured,” she said, removing her binding spell. “All he needs is a bit of rest and he will be fine.”

This caused joyful expressions to sprout on the guards’ faces.

“Thank you very much Head Priestess,” they bowed reverently. “Light bless you!”

But she did not care one bit for their gratitude. “Do you happen to have anything of the necromancer?”

Moments later she returned to her dark room holding a withered foot. There was a serious look on her face that she had not displayed when she was in front of the priests and guards. Her eyes burned with cold determination as she looked at the severed appendage.

A necromancer who can summon a phantom. He must be eliminated immediately!