The words nibbled at his mind, feasted on his heart.
The last poem…about me?
You bastard.
You wretch.
You fucker.
You-
Kael internally screamed curses, but he soon ran out. His face, stoic as ever, revealed nothing. To avoid suspicion, he lifted his head lightly and uttered “What a pity.” He even shook his head to convey his remorse.
Lord Felt went silent. He dared not open his mouth again. Just what was this junior made of? Did he not care? Was he related to Thalorin’s murder?
He would never guess that the pitiful young man was just absolutely horrendous with any word that was not a curse.
The two surviving masters made their way through the dense forest without exchanging a word, much to Kael’s relief. Until…
“The snake. I saw it here, my lord.” Kael surprisingly broke the silence.
The Lord then bent down, took a handkerchief from his pocket, and wiped it on the ground. When he looked at the originally snow-white handkerchief, he saw a horrific smear of brown and red- the remnants of bloodstains on the soil.
“I’ll take this back and see if I can identify what type of creature that peculiar reptile is.”
“Thank you very much, my Lord.”
They both came to a halt, and the lord surveyed the area. He then swiftly unsheathed a dagger attached to his belt, and used it to cut a long, thin gash along his arm. It did not graze any vitals, and yet quite a bit of blood flowed out from it.
Nobody but the sword and spell masters had seen much of the lord’s spirit manipulation in practice. The blood dripped onto the wet soil, and the crimson faded and got absorbed into the dull brown.
He closed his eyes, focusing fully. Kael noticed that the rustling of the leaves got slightly louder. Kael knew that the lord was inwardly reciting an incantation- spirit manipulation was no easy feat, after all.
Then, from the ground a translucent figure emerged. It was humanoid on the surface, but its head was snapped, perpendicular to the neck. The entire head was only hanging by a vessel, which was why it could be summoned. Through spirit manipulation, any spirit with its head intact could be influenced.
The Lord just stared straight into the figure. Kael used to feel uneasy seeing the carcasses talk, but he had long since gotten used to the gruesome, inhumane way they talked. Their voice was raspy and sounded disgusting, while liquids and foam flowed out from their mouths. Some even started spasming mid-speech. It was truly horrifying, but all in a day’s work.
“Human…blood…scary…snake? Mother.” It had a bloody coughing fit in between every word, but each of them were more incomprehensible than the last. Fortunately, the lord was an expert- so he merely nodded and dismissed the poor soul.
“Apparently a while after he heard some human voices and some other noises, he detected a large amount of blood and hatred. He said there might have been a snake here, and if there was then it probably was a mother.” Lord Felt said nonchalantly, completely unaffected by the bloody display. “Does this match with your knowledge?”
Kael shook his head. “I heard no voices or unnatural sounds in the forest during my search, and the snake I brought back is a male…”
Lord Felt sighed. “This always happens…the spirits just cannot be used for proper interrogation, they’re too unreliable.”
Kael sighed heavily, and closed his eyes, trying to pick up on any slight sounds.
Birds chirping. Leaves rustling. Dew dripping. Water gushing. Animal noises.
Kael’s eyes flew open in realisation. “Why are there land animals here?”
The Lord was just as surprised, “The land is contaminated by demonic energy right now…and both water and land animals should have fled already. Kael, where is the sound coming from?”
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Just as the two were getting into position to break into a sprint, an eagle circled over them, making the ears of the Divine bleed with its mighty call. The two looked up to see its silhouette blocking the sun.
“It’s a message. Come here!” the Lord held his hand out, letting the faithful messenger bird to perch on his muscular arm.
Kael approached the large bird and used his fingers to delicately remove the parchment tied around its leg. The parchment was rather crumpled, he noticed. This was not a matter to be taken lightly. Without making contact with a single bit of the Lord’s skin, he removed the parchment and unfolded it.
The handwriting was the first thing that Kael noticed. It was rather unsightly and definitely rushed, and the sender probably did not not have a proper surface to write it on. The letters glowed in an ominous red- the writer used their blood, and it smudged at the corners. With some struggle, Kael managed to read it. His pupils contracted and he stood in place, reading the three simple letters on the parchment.
“What does it say?” The Lord, in full seriousness, looked over Kael’s shoulder. “...I can’t read that.” He sighed.
“Thalorin was seen.” Kael said, and spared no time wallowing in sentiment. He immediately turned his back, taking long strides back up the mountain. Lord Felt stood rooted for a brief second. He knew not what to make of the situation, but made his way up the mountain hurriedly, overtaking Kael.
Kael wanted to sprint up the mountain and slap the shit out of the Spellmaster as soon as possible. But he had to maintain decorum. What would he become if the students who saw him as a saint and his bitter colleagues who wanted him off the master position saw him desperately chasing a glimmer of hope? That would be absolutely pathetic, and that was the last thing he wanted to be.
Felt wanted to sprint up the mountain and embrace the hell out of the Spellmaster as soon as possible. But he had to maintain decorum. What would he become of the spies from the Quartz faction, the students who saw him as a saint and his bitter colleagues who wanted him off the Lord position saw him desperately chasing a glimmer of hope? That would be absolutely pathetic, and that was the last thing a Lord should be.
So instead of running for a friend, the two men took long strides, walking fast but leisurely, with no expression on their faces. The Lord longed to sprint in yearning for a youthful man to call out “Felt”, and the Swordmaster longed to sprint in yearning for a youthful man to…he had no idea.
That bastard better be there. Kael chanted.
May the Goddess of Luck smile upon this soul, may the Demon Lord, embodiment of death not claim the soul- Felt recited.
But they looked like they were about to patrol an area rather than find a dear friend.
As Kael walked through the looming gates, he thought. ‘What the hell am I hoping for? That bastard’s as good as dead. Don’t get hopeful. In the first place, he was annoying as hell. Wasn’t it I who wished for him to be buried six feet under as soon as possible? But…without him, most of his useless tasks and student lectures have been assigned to me. I don’t want to deal with the fucking brats, so he better come back. And set up the barrier around the Clan…I swear everyone here is illiterate in sorcery…myself included. Nevermind, just don’t hope for anything. It is what it is, no matter the result.’
When the two finally arrived at the main area of the clan, they were greeted by the hustling of students and masters alike. Students followed behind their mentors, helping them survey the area. They were too busy to even notice the Lord’s arrival. However, there were two innocent figures standing right in front of them, obviously awaiting their arrival- Riven, Pela and another of Thalorin’s proteges, Vivian. “Greetings to the Masters.” The three said in unison.
Kael could not help but glance at Riven. Sure enough, his eyes were red around the rims. He was also fidgeting, as if he had something he had to see but could not. Kael gave him the snake to keep him busy from the grief and because he was adept at taking care of beasts-
‘Wait a moment’, Kael thought.
‘Where the fuck is the snake? That thing can’t be left alone!’ Panic flashed in Kael’s eyes, but his expression remained stoic as ever. He moved not a single inch, but he felt a headache creeping onto the surface. His fingers pulsed, resisting the urge to rub at his temples and nose bridge.
“Sir Kael, Lord Thalorin, as you must have read already, we caught sight of Master Thalorin a while ago. And, Lord Kael, forgive us but…” The calm voice that rang out belonged to Vivian, who was a skilled sorcerer who Thalorin thought had “enough potential to give him the Jeril Tribe’s renown swordsmen a run for their money.” She was level-headed and held her ground, even in such a daunting situation. Her red hair flew in the wind as her light brown eyes held Kael’s gaze. Truly a mature beauty. “-The snake you entrusted with Riven had fled…it was only in its pursuit that we caught a glimpse of Master Thalorin.”
She was skilled at manipulating her words. Her phrasing was directed in such a way that it could convey the message that “Sure, Riven fucked up but if he didn’t then say goodbye to your Spellmaster, darling.” At least, that was how it came across to Kael.
“It is what it is. Punishments shall be decided later, tell us exactly what happened, with not a detail short. Do not beat around the bush as well. Bring me to where you last saw him and talk as you walk.” Kael sternly said. The coldness in his voice made Pela shudder and Riven avert his gaze. Only Vivian nodded steadily, as she began to tell the tale. “Well, after RIven got the snake…”
Riven took the snake in, perplexed. But he was experienced at handling mythic beasts, so he decided to see how hostile it was first. He peered into the box, seeing that it was fast asleep. He then carefully closed the box, and placed a thousand-page thick notebook on it. However, unlike before, he poked holes in the box for the snake to breathe and dropped some hydrating seeds in the box- in case the snake was hungry or thirsty. He then heads out, setting to the girls’ dormitories to seek out Pela, who was not a fan of reptiles but somehow sent him a snake.
As he headed there, he saw Pela and Vivian walking, and stopped them, expressing his concerns. “Pela, why do you want me to take care of the snake?” Riven asked. At that, Pela was perplexed.
“Sorry,” she said, sniffling- she was still mourning her master’s death, and was confiding in Vivian- “I’m not in the right state of mind, could you repeat?”
“Pela…did you send a snake to my room?” Riven knew the answer before the shaken Pela weakly shook her head.
“...There might be something going on. Riven, take us to your dorm.” Vivian quickly said. She seemed totally fine- because she was by Pela’s side this entire time. The emotions of grief have yet to process as she was still basking in the business of the day. When night came, she herself knew that it would be one of silent tears and sleeplessness.
The three made haste to Riven’s dorm. When Riven opened up the box, Pela had immediately connected the dots. “This is…the snake I saw on Sir Kael this morning…”
As soon as the words left her mouth, Riven froze. He gritted his teeth, fuming “That bastard! He has the gall to send me that accursed snake?”
Vivian stared at him in disbelief. “This snake is clearly not normal. You’re telling me that you saw it once, then proceeded to not remember it in the span of a day? Is your head alright? And watch your tone! Sir Kael could slice you into minced meat with his sword sheathed.”
Pela jolted in a realisation as well, “This snake has weird markings on its head and its scales shining in a deep shade of blue. It could very well be a demonic entity and you LEFT IT ALONE?”
Riven could not handle the assault any longer and refuted loudly, “HEAR ME OUT!” and proceeded to tell them about the morning’s encounter.
After hearing the entire story, the two girls nodded their heads.
“Wait…Sir Kael was unfazed by Master Thalorin’s death? But…Master Thalorin was always boasting about how close they were…” Pela said.
“I’m sure that either Sir Kael never considered him a friend, or our Master just has some loose screws.” Vivian chuckled.
This was how it always was, Thalorin’s proteges gossiping about their own master and about everyone on the mountain. Thinking it was a normal day, the disciples all laughed heartily, not in reminiscence but in usual antics. But then the laughter began to fade, replaced with the ashen faces of realisation. The silence stretched on for a while.