Ashley let out an exaggerated sigh and tapped on the wooden monument towering in front of her. An amber glow enveloped her, causing her white hair and eyes to take on a golden hue for a brief moment before her body vanished, leaving her companions, the other lords, behind.
The amber light blocking Ashley’s vision vanished, and she took a second to observe her surroundings. As expected, she had arrived in the Temple of the Light Lord. It was the only temple not within the current advancement-exam cycle, the region having been sectioned off to allow its natural resources to replenish. The temple hadn’t changed much, but Ashley still found it a bit unfamiliar. When the tower had erected a temple for her, she didn’t care much for the process, letting the tower design everything for her—unlike her companions.
Another sigh escaped from Ashley’s mouth as she furrowed her brow and made her way to the exit. She didn’t like using her abilities to break the rules of the tower, but representatives of the other lords had been killed and eaten by Geomi. As the only one who could use an official channel to descend to the first floor, it was up to her to maintain the prestige of the lords even if the action would make her a hypocrite—rules for thee but not for me and all that.
A loud thumping sound caught Ashley’s attention, causing her to flinch. There shouldn’t have been any sounds; people shouldn’t have been in the region. Unless … Geomi knew of her descent and came out to greet her. Ashley approached the temple doors, and another loud but muffled thump caught her attention. For some reason, the temple door on the right side had a dent in it. It almost looked … fist-shaped? Ashley grabbed the door’s handle and jerked it open as if annoyed there was something blocking her path.
A fist flashed past Ashley’s face, striking her hair. White strands were severed and tossed into the temple as a torrent of wind blew past, rushing viciously like tiny little razors cutting across her skin. The owner of the fist stumbled forward, past the threshold of the temple gate. The fist belonged to a shirtless man, who caught himself almost immediately after falling off balance. The shirtless man blinked at Ashley. Then, he turned around to look at his companions. “There’s someone inside.”
A demon poked her head into Ashley’s view before the horned woman turned away. “Didn’t you say this region was off-limits?”
A well-dressed man came into Ashley’s view, and his eyes widened upon seeing her. “Ash—Light Lord! She’s the Light Lord,” the well-dressed man said. He hunched his back and nodded his head in her direction, acting as if he were meeting an old acquaintance.
Ashley furrowed her brow. She reached to the side and pulled the other temple door open as well, revealing the full party standing on her temple’s doorstep. A beautiful woman with pointed ears, a large man with red hair, an aging man with outdoor clothes, a bald monk, the more people Ashley saw, the more confused she became. An elf, a demon, and five humans traveling together, when had the tower become so progressive? The Light Lord tilted her head. “Who are you people?”
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“I’m Vur,” the shirtless man with the tattoos adorning his body said. He leaned over to the side and looked around Ashley before pointing at one of the crystals in the massive chandelier that hung overhead. Silken threads reminiscent of Geomi’s skill shot out of his fingertip, wrapping around the crystal before snapping it off the light structure. The threads retracted, and the crystal flew towards Vur’s waiting hand. He caught it, and the root bracelet on his wrist flashed amber. “Holy Smite.” Vur turned around to show the crystal to his companions, completely ignoring Ashley’s baffled gaze. “It gathers mana to attack. Who wants it?”
“Excuse me,” Ashley said, causing Vur to turn his head to look at her. For some reason, Ashley couldn’t help but think the man was annoyed at her, but … why? It didn’t make any sense. She was the Light Lord for goodness’ sake.
“What?”
So, it wasn’t her imagination. The man really did seem to be irked by her interruption even though he was being the rude one here. Ashley placed her hands on her hips. “I asked who you were.”
Vur furrowed his brow. “I am Vur,” he said, enunciating each word, making Ashley feel like someone who was hard of hearing.
“Alright, Vur,” Ashley said. “What are you doing?”
Vur stared at Ashley with a look of pity in his eyes before shaking his head. He shuffled to the side, creating a pocket of space for anyone to walk into if they wished to communicate with the Light Lord in his stead. Tafel took a step forward, but Kim Hajun rushed ahead of the demon, cold sweat running down his back. If the two parties had a conflict here, it’d be infinitely more difficult for Kim Hajun to bring Vur’s group onto the lords’ side.
A slim hand landed on Kim Hajun’s shoulder, and Ashley shoved him to the side, causing the well-dressed man to fly and crash into the wall “What exactly was that look supposed to mean, huh?” the Light Lord asked, glaring at Vur. “Do you think I’m stupid?”
Vur kept his mouth shut.
“Why aren’t you answering me?” Ashley asked. She held her arm out to the side, and a long, glowing object appeared in her hand. When the light disappeared, the outline of an automatic rifle revealed itself. She swung her weapon to the side and grasped it with her other hand as well, pointing the barrel of the weapon towards the ground.
“Because his mama taught him right.” A fairy poked her head out of Vur’s chest. “If you’re not going to say something nice, don’t say anything at all.”
“Wait,” Kim Hajun said and took in a deep breath as he picked himself up off the ground. “Let’s not fight. Dragons don’t squabble with humans, right?”
“You keep your mouth shut,” Stella said, glaring at Kim Hajun. “Vur will squabble with whoever he damned well pleases.”
Kim Hajun shifted his gaze onto Ashley. “Lords don’t pick fights with newbies, …right?” he asked, his question trailing off into a whisper upon seeing Ashley’s expression. A grimace appeared on Kim Hajun’s face. Wasn’t saving the tower supposed to be easier with the experience of his prophetic dream? Why did it seem like it was going to be more difficult this time around?