Lelia marched confidently through the palace, the guards who were supposed to stop any intruders acknowledged her with a slight bow as she moved past them. The servants also paid their respects and swept themselves to the side to allow her room.
Lelia, upon reaching the throne room, fell to one knee and lowered her head. Her long golden hair hung just a few inches from the ground. Resting and clinging onto her back was a long bow which seemed to be impossible to place comfortably on her smaller stature. Indeed, many who did now know of her or the bow would've thought it strange that the bow was not simply unstrung.
The king who sat atop his throne quickly passed back the scroll which he had just received from one of his attendants. For a moment, he studied the beauty kneeling before him. She was one of his strongest knights, and one of the most talented archers within the southern continent.
Born between a noble and a mere servant, she did not possess the same privileges as her siblings. Pushed aside by her father and without a mother, as she had been kicked out by the wife, Lelia had little to nothing and served much more as a maid in training than an actual noble.
Yet, somehow, the girl was able to obtain an admirable rank. How she was able to do so has to do with the bow tightly bound to her back.
"Hello Lelia," the king, Neon, said. "Stand. What brings you here?"
Rising to her feet, she bowed once more before speaking. "Yes, my king. I am worried about the forces sent a few weeks ago. I do not believe them to be sufficient in strength to subdue her."
She waited patiently for the king's response. She knew he was thinking of how to respond, she also knew as well that he sent the forces knowing they were not sufficient as a true army. Lelia was aware of the king's predicaments and upcoming plans. However, she also knew of the destruction the person who was being pursued by 3000 strong could cause.
Which mattered more to Lelia? Of course the latter. If the person, the girl, they were chasing were to be lost, then havoc would be wrought throughout the kingdom.
"You do not think 3000 men can handle her? Though powerful as she is, she cannot win alone," he gestured for one of his servants to bring over a drink. "Does this issue worry you greatly?"
"Yes," she nodded. "I understand your current preoccupations but I'd like to request a few men which I could use."
He sighed and took a sip of his drink, "I suppose since the troops in the ruins are doing well, I shall grant you a few. How many do you need?" he felt especially in a good mood today. The letter he had just been reading was from his head general who was overseeing the operations in the ruins. Many of the guardians had been cleared out while his own forces sustained little injury.
They were nothing but hulking constructs of magic after all. Well trained and disciplined soldiers would not lose to such mindless bodies of stone and mana, especially if they were under the instructions of a capable man such as the general.
"Thank you." Lelia bowed. "I request 1000 soldiers."
The king spit out some of his drink. "1000? That's ridiculous!"
The part that was ridiculous wasn't the number of men, a kingdom as large as Iotorn, the one which Lelia was a knight of, had more than enough military strength to spare. However, the problem laid with the kings upcoming plans and the sheer number of men the knight thought would be needed to take down the troublesome green haired girl.
3000 armed peasants who went through basic training, along with 1000 experienced soldiers with the addition of one of the kingdom's strongest knights, the hunt for one girl was blown out of proportion. The girl had caused some damage and the seer did predict that a disaster would occur if she were to be left alone but the king hardly believed the old seer any longer.
She was growing increasingly old, nearing 200 years of age to be exact. Besides, the king, also named Wicker, had a new, stronger, more reliable method of telling his kingdom's future. He allowed his eyes to wander over to the silver-haired beauty who stood covered almost head to toe in plate armor.
"So be it," he told Lelia. "However, I expect success and minimal losses to the thousand I am sending. If the girl is not captured or killed, then you shall be punished. Understood?"
"Yes."
---------
With a yawn, Lelia awoke. Today would be the day that she'd be leaving with 1000 men in hopes of backing up the 3000 already sent. Her immediate reaction upon remembering was to fall back onto her bed. She covered her face with her arms and began twirling her feet.
"Uuuuggg."
"What's wrong?" something asked her. "Having second thoughts about reinforcing the troops to capture that green haired girl?"
"Mhm," she mumbled. "What if, when I get there, they've already defeated her? What'll I tell the king then? Hey, I arrived there and it turns out they didn't need any backup after all, sorry."
"Then let us not go."
"What?" she rose from the bed and sat upright. "Why shouldn't we go?"
"You said it yourself, Lelia. What if we go and we weren't needed? The king is right, sending 3000 troops after one girl is already overkill. It would be a different story if she were a magical beast, though, which she is not."
Combing her hands through her long hair, she shook her head. "We're going."
"No. I don't want to go."
"What? Why not?" she started towards the voice. "You've been itching to be used for a while right? Then this is the perfect chance."
She grabbed the bow leaning against the wall and tossed it onto her bed. Going into her closet, she picked out a few clothes and began putting them on.
"Why'd you throw me? I see no point in it at all. Seriously, I don't think that going is a good idea." the bow complained.
"I'd like an explanation then oh mighty bow of mine," she said, while slipping on the first pieces of her light armor. "The worst the king would do to me is restrict my movements for a while, probably."
"I'd watch out for that lecherous old man. He's got his eyes on you."
"He's has a wife and many mistresses already. He's not that old either. He's the king and you should show him respect, no matter how strange he may be."
"Even if he isn't a lecherous old man, he's still a power hungry one. In my opinion, that is one hundred times worse. He's preparing for war, a war which isn't what the kingdom even needs. If anything, he's going to lose more than what he'll gain." If the bow had a head, it would've shaken it. "For a being such as myself, I was forced in here by men like him."
"He doesn't seem evil," Lelia responded, picking up the bow and stringing it around her back. She was finally armored and ready to depart.
"I never said that he was evil. Quite honestly, I do think he's doing a fine job at keeping the kingdom up and running so far. The only real problem here is that he's too busy with his ambitious projects that he is missing the biggest threat to the kingdom."
"That's why we're going to stop it," she said, leaving through the door. "How come you seem to be so against this right now, even though you suggested it to me."
"I have a bad feeling."
"You've been having that bad feeling since weeks ago."
"Yes.... Something is going on." the bow said no more, choosing to stay silent.
Lelia quickly made her way through to the front of the city. On her path, those who saw her stared on with glamor filled eyes. Her spotless, shining, unnatural purple cloak dazzled anyone who laid their gaze upon it. With the crest of the king stitched onto the back, and the mirror-like cloth people's eyes were instantly drawn to it as if it were a sheet of jewels laid out for all to admire.
She strolled on confidently, upholding the image the public had perceived of her. As one of the kingdom's strongest knights, the fourth strongest, in fact, she was held in high regard and well known throughout the land. Known as Lelia of the booming arrows, she would release arrows so quickly and with so much power, they'd cause loud noises on impact, making it seem as if a bomb were just thrown.
The nickname was mainly due to her magical bow which was possessed by a spirit. Some may call her undeserved of her post as the fourth strongest, however, none could deny her talent as an archer. The speed of the wind, the distance she was from her target, neither mattered. As long as she could see her target and the bow she held was strong enough, she'd make a perfect shot every time, if there was no interference.
Her eyes were sharper than a hawk's and easily able to discern an individual within a mob hundreds or thousands of yards away. Truthfully, one reason why the kingdom had flourished so much was due to that ability of hers. Against the armies of larger kingdoms, Lelia would be sent out to deliver one fatal blow to the general, leaving the masses panicked in unorganized if no other were to take their place.
"Have they arrived?" she asked, with a smile.
The knight who stood at the gate awaiting her arrival returned the gesture, "Hey Lelia. Yeah, they've just made it."
She smiled again, "Don't call me that when we're on the job. Call me captain or commander understood?"
He nodded, sighing. "You're always like this. I've already prepared our horses."
She gave him a pat on the back and mounted the horse he had prepared. She settled comfortably atop the steed and ushered it out the gate. In ranks of 10, 100 people stood in each line. Lelia quickly but carefully glossed over the men, making sure that the columns looked right. In the process of mass teleportation, the crystal used could possibly run out of power before all would be able to be brought to the correct place meaning that sometimes fewer men than expected would actually arrive.
From what Lelia knew, only a few other kingdoms and empires had crystals that could teleport that many men. Although a powerful tool for warfare, it took days to set up, was easily seen as it needed to draw on the power of the sun and was well over three meters in height.
Confirming that all men were present, without so much as a word, Lelia began riding her horse off towards where she had last heard the army of 3000 were.
Full of faith in their commander, the thousand followed without complaint. Lelia smiled to herself, the men trusted her and her abilities. This was also the first time she'd be leading a group of more than ten men. Her heart beat faster as she started to fantasize about what she could do with such an obedient and disciplined group.
"Ahem." coming to ruin her fun was the knight from before, Niccolo. "At the pace we're going, it's going to take at least three days."
"That's fine," Lelia replied in a happier tone than usual, "As long as it doesn't take more than a week I have no problem."
"Huh? You're unusually patient. Though, I suppose it's a good trait to finally start developing, seeing as how you're a ranger and all." he commented.
"Yeah... Get off your horse and start walking."
"Already abusing your power I see," he chuckled and jumped off his horse. "I don't mind walking captain."
As the sun went through its cycle of night and day, the thousand drew closer and closer to their destination. The first day had ended nicely with smiles plastered upon the faces of the soldiers. As far as they knew, they weren't going to war, fighting anything dangerous, and were working under one of the strongest knights in the land.
That's not to say there was no dissent at all. Some, if not many, did feel like they were wasting their time. Much rather than chasing a won quest, they would rather be wasting away their coins at a tavern or home in the company of their woman. The goal of reinforcing an army of 3000 strong against one girl did not appeal to their thirst for excitement or comfort.
However, the days still went by calmly and smoothly as none had any open complaints to Lelia. Skilled as she was in archery, she too, of course, was talented in the sword, easily besting trained men.
Her days were spent in leisure, they consisted of bantering back and forth with her friend Niccolo and playing games with the men which also helped to relieve any present tension.
As night struck again, Lelia bored and aching from riding all day decided to join in a game of cards with Niccolo. Nonchalantly touring around, she moved past dozens of tents and as one would have it, she heard a comment about herself. So, curious as she was, she leaned in close without letting her presence be known.
"I'd like to see what's under the captain's cloak." one of the men inside the tent said. "Seems like a nice girl, heheh."
What? They'd like to see what was under her cloak? Lelia felt angry and somewhat violated at the same time. Thinking of your own captain that way. How inappropriate. I should punish you by having you stripped!
"Idiot. Do you want to die? She'd kill you faster than a pack of starving wolves would kill an injured deer. Not to mention that she already has a man."
Huh? Lelia had a man? Suddenly her interest outweighed her previous emotions. She listened intently for any gossip about her.
"I've heard that she and that knight, Nick, was shacking up."
"Eh?" she let out a squeak and covered her mouth. Hoping that none had noticed, she slowly started backing away.
"Who's there?" the two men jumped out of their tent with swords raised. Upon recognizing her, they lowered their weapons.
"Sorry cap," one said. "Thought it was an intruder eavesdropping... Did you by any chance, perhaps, hear anything?" he asked with a nervousness creeping up.
"It was him!" the other pointed at his companion. "He's the one who said all those things about you!" he dropped to the ground in a groveling position with his forehead touching the dirt.
"You- friggin traitor!" he turned back to look at Lelia who held serious eyes. "L-Look cap. I-I didn't mean what I said. I-It was just some honest to god dumb comment I made."
She continued to stare and he faltered.
Dropping to his knees, he too prostrated himself. "P-Please forgive me! I-I have a wife."
After a minute of uneasy silence, he dared to look up. "C-Cap?"
Covering her face with her hand, she asked, "D-Do people really think we, Nick and I, are shacking up?"
He stared at her for a moment before speaking. "No, no. Not at all. J-Just something that popped up."
"Oh." her chest relaxed. "Do you perhaps know where he is then?"
"I-I think he's by the bonfire with the other men."
"Thank you." she said and turned to leave.
You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.
As she neared the site of the raging fire, dozens of men started to appear. Those who weren't ready to sleep were here, those who did not wish to sleep were here, and those who wished to have fun were here. She danced all over, trying her best to find her fellow knight among the crowd. Eventually, she spotted him playing cards with another soldier surrounded by a group.
She made her way over and started to watch.
Niccolo had two cards in his hand and his opponent did as well. She silently cheered for Nick, solely based on the reason that she knew him more than the other player.
Nick glanced between his cards and his opponents cards frequently. If anything, Lelia swore that they would've fallen out if he kept it up. Eventually, his lips parted and he said, "Do you have any kings?"
The soldier grinned fiendishly at Niccolo's misfortune, "No. Go fish."
"YES!" A bystander screamed in joy. "HAHA YES! Give me my money!"
"Hey!" another soldier, soldier 2, said. "Hold on there buddy. It hasn't been decided yet. He still has another chance. You ain't getting no coin of mine if your buddy over there fails."
Nick's lips curled into a frown as he drew the card. No pair.
"Do you have any aces?"
"Goddamn it. This game is rigged all to hell," he took out the other card that was previously in his hand and gave it over. He stared at his hand again and took a deep breath.
"Can't miss it this time." soldier 2 said.
"Think so?" the one who shouted in glee before said.
"Do you have any Queens?" Nick asked.
"HELL NO! GO FISH!"
The crowd burst into a fit of laughter and cheers. People were patting each other on the back and holding out their hand for their coins. Niccolo picked up the last card from the deck and put his pair away before sending the last card to his opponent.
"Fucking hate fishing. Did that the whole damn game." Nick mumbled as he picked up his pathetic pile of pairs.
Lelia stifled her own giggle and decided that she had no need to join in a game today.
------
Despite her seemingly carefree attitude over the past few days, parts of her began worrying as her bow had stayed silent for most of the trip.
In the middle of the third day, she asked, "Psst. You there? Been pretty quiet for a while. I'm not really a needy person so I haven't called on you much but it's good to let out your thoughts every once and awhile. If I remember it correctly, your first words were, 'Goddamn it. Took you long enough to find me. Do you know what I've spent the last twenty plus years doing?'"
She waited with a smile on her face, knowing of course that the bow couldn't see it.
No response came.
Her smile turned into pressed lips then a frown. Why wasn't the spirit talking to her? Had she said something to offend it? They've known each other and have been working together for over five years and it was refusing to speak to her?
"Hey," she said irritably. "I get it if you're mad or something but at least, tell me why," she waited a few more moments with futile hope. "HEY! ARE YOU LISTENING?"
"Uh, captain? Who are you yelling at?"
She turned to look at Niccolo. "None of your business. Anyways, are we there yet?"
"Should be just ahead, over the cliff."
"I'll be going ahead then!" recklessly, Lelia ushered her horse into a fast gallop.
"Stop." the bow said. "We need to turn around. Now."
For some reason or another, Lelia stopped her horse. Normally she wouldn't obey to such an order, especially one that came from what should be an inanimate object but since it hadn't talked in days, she decided to listen. She lifted her arm in the air and signaled for the army to continue without her.
"Why do we need to turn around?" she asked.
"How can you not know?"
"How CAN I know? I can't read your mind, I can't see the future, heck. I can only use the basics of magic."
"I sense danger. We need to leave."
"There's always danger. We can't go around avoiding everything that seems to hold the slightest possibility of death. Besides, I-"
She was interrupted by a piercing yell.
"Captain!" a bearded man covered in chainmail ran towards her. His face was filled with sweat and he seemed to be in a rush.
"Lelia!" Niccolo screamed. "The 3000, they were all massacred!"
"Impossible," she muttered. As she rode her horse to the cliff, she prayed that the king was right and that it was ridiculous how one person would require 3000 men be sent. Please let the seer be senile.
But as her eyes fell upon the scene hidden by the rocks, her heart dropped. The sight was hardly possible for any human to stare at for as long as she did without being in total shock.
The people lain strewn about, some with their limbs missing, some without their lower half, some with their eyes gouged out, and some with another's arm piercing through their chests.
The purple of the kingdom mixed with the crimson of their blood made for a gruesome sight. Not because the colors were mismatched, but because of the battles she had seen before. Lelia, who was notable on the battlefield, had seen hundreds of thousands of people dying, however, there were always casualties to both sides. Here, with her enhanced sight, she couldn't find any bloodied paths leading away or any strands of green hair. The army of 3000, by evidence so far, had been unable to even touch her.
They had been utterly decimated and piled on top of one another as if it were a game. The once proud flag of their kingdom was ragged and torn.
Lelia recalled her bow's words.
"Everyone!" she yelled. "Retreat!"
Lelia watched as chaos took over from her command. Those who were able to see, meaning the ones in front, began to push their way through the mass of those who had not yet gained the opportunity to see the massacre. Soon, a struggle started and small fights were breaking out everywhere.
"Lelia!" Niccolo rode up to her. "Are we really retreating?" he asked. "Rather than that. Shouldn't we be p-"
"Huh?"
Lelia watched, dumbstruck, as her friend's head fell lifelessly to the ground, followed by his body. His eyes were still wide open. The soldiers who saw the event either drew their swords or simply stood still.
"Get off the horse!" the bow warned.
With great force, she pushed herself sideways onto the open ground. She heard the shouts of her men as they tried to restore order to themselves and fight back. A few cries went out, more people were already losing their lives.
Getting onto her feet, Lelia lifted the bow from over her head and knocked an arrow. She glanced around for any sign of the girl. The only indications were the screams and numerous bodies flying into the air from the east side. She did her best to catch an opening but the mass of bodies continually blocked her way.
"Stand your ground!" another knight shouted. "Soldier-"
He too had his life extinguished. A random sword had flown out from where the enemy was fighting and lodged itself into his neck. He started making inhuman sounds and fell to the ground where his eyes began rolling back into his head. He tried reaching for the sword but his body twitched to violently for him to do so. In a matter of seconds, his life had been extinguished and he no longer suffered.
Lelia bit her lip as she tried to estimate the number of soldiers left. She assumed still over 900. It had been only seconds since the attack started, surely no more than 50 had actually fallen.
"Troops!" she yelled from behind the cover of her horse. "Make way for a shot!"
However, as she plead, none were able to hear her. If they did, they simply did not care. They were all too busy fighting for their lives. Those who watched on the outside were growing more and more rabid. Lelia could tell, she could tell that their hearts were beating faster and hands were getting sweaty. She knew that their minds were growing tired already and sought respite, just like hers did.
Someone ran. Dozens ran.
They all died as a man emerged from the ground and swiped his arm. The deserters sunk down and dyed the ground red with their blood.
Seeing her first chance to increase morale, Lelia fired off her bow. The shot disappeared and a loud boom was heard, in an instant, leaving behind a kick up of sand and clearing a circle of space through the air, the arrow flew towards its target.
It hit, right on the man's upper right side, his shoulder. He fell back from the force of the blow.
"O-One down" Lelia gasped to herself. The report officially said that there was only one, a green haired girl, but apparently there was a man too. Was the information wrong?
Lelia began to turn her attention to the green haired girl, but chills went down her back. The man who had just been shot by her enchanted arrow stood up and, annoyed, gripped the arrow and tore it out. That wasn't the part that had scared her, instead of blood leaking from his wound, a heavy, dark, black liquid seeped out like tar.
She changed the intended target of the arrow and shot at him once again. This time, however, he ducked under it, dashing forward.
She stepped back and hurriedly tried knocking another arrow.
A soldier stepped in to assist her.
"[Flash Cut]!"
A lightning quick slash.
The shadowy man stopped the sword with his own and snapped the blade.
"Wha?"
He sent his fist into the man's chest, caving it in.
Lelia released her arrow filled with desperation, she was going to be next.
The shadowy man was unable to dodge and was struck. He held his feet to the ground even as the full force of the arrow had impacted him, only managing to force track marks onto the dirt.
"Awaken me!"
Immediately she knocked another one, "Awaken and pierce, Vendro!"
The bow shimmered a pretty green. The man's eyes widened and she let loose. The shot broke through his skin, his unearthly body, pulling him with it as it flew away, entirely destroying multiple trees in its wake.
Lelia let out a shaky breath, the man could no longer be seen, the arrow was still going and the man along with it.
"Now, back to the girl."
She turned to meet with a fiery explosion. Bodies were thrown all over the place, dead ones, those who were still alive and crawling around while being burned. Their screams and cries terrified her. They reached out futilely for someone to save them, no one could.
"Watch out!" someone yelled.
"Attention!" the bow said. "Knock another. Quickly!"
She followed its instructions. Taking an arrow from her quiver, she placed it on the bow and pulled back the string. Aiming at the smoke, she shifted her aim back and forth uncertain of where the enemy was. Everything was silent save for the men who were screaming as they burned alive and the fire that seemed to consume their bodies like wood.
The smoke was growing heavy, very heavy. It seemed like the main fighting had stopped. Did someone kill her? No, there would've been some cheer if that happened.
With sweat trickling down her face, Lelia, as quietly as she could, stepped over the bodies of the dead, attempting to head into the forest. There was no way that she would be able to win, she knew that realistically at the time. All she could do was try to escape and report back to the king. All their forces would have to gather, or if it was the silver haired girl, they might have an actual chance then.
Still, she believed that she had a chance of defeating the villain.
However, her battle sense led her to continue on her path to the forest.
Suddenly, more screams were made discernible.
"Help!" were what many of the cries consisted of before being cut off.
The closer and closer that Lelia got to the forest green, the more and more and more anxious she felt. Not yet had she seen the green haired girl.
Just as she put her first foot onto the green grass, untainted by blood, another brilliant green appeared in the battlefield. A stunningly beautiful girl who looked like no adult, walked among the corpses, crushing skulls underneath her foot while smiling sadistically.
The girl's head snapped to stare at her.
Lelia released her arrow and ran. She ran as fast as she could. The beating of her heart and the aching of her feet as she stepped over hard rocks and fallen branches did not matter to her.
Short and shallow breaths, she took out an arrow from her quiver and placed it onto the bow, doing her best to steady it as she ran.
How much further? Is she gaining on me? she thought over and over. I can't see her. Where is she?
Her adrenaline pumped, it kept her going, it kept her alive. She no longer cared for those dying back there.
"I can sense her!"
"Then tell me where she is!" Lelia shouted.
"Above!"
She shifted her sight and found the girl falling down from a branch, attempting to land on her. Lelia pulled back the string and fired. "Awaken and pierce, Vendro!"
The arrow connected with the girl's side and sent her spiraling to the ground. She landed on both feet and grinned.
"Nice shot. Nice shot. I see that they finally decided to take me somewhat seriously." the girl giggled in a high pitch, making each hair on the back of Lelia's neck to stand up. "I guess I'll take you seriously a bit too then."
The girl closed and reopened her eyes. They glowed an ooze green.
"Look away!"
Lelia turned her head and began running.
"Hahaha." she could hear laughing behind her. "I like it when they run!"
"Hah...hah...haaa." Lelia was finally running out of breath. She wanted to stop so much but the bow and her mind told her to keep going.
"UGH!"
She tripped.
"Found you~" the girl laughed her shrill laugh and casually strolled to Lelia. "Such a pretty girl. I'll make your death quick as a reward for injuring me. How does that sound?"
Lelia incessantly tried to knock another arrow.
"Use me to block!" the bow said.
"Oh. It can talk!" the girl placed her hands together in joy. "Too bad I have no use for you, may you be freed from that prison." she lifted her arm up and with one swift motion brought it down.
Lelia used the bow in an attempt to block but it snapped in half.
The world grew dark and she felt warm.
"Sweet dreams." the green haired girl said.