Aldryn quickly parted from the group and ran to a small black figure. The blonde dropped to the ground and lifted the small body. It was a falcon, the one that Zevram asked to look after this place.

“He must have wanted to come our way to warn us” the blonde said mournfully.

“Poor thing” the Thrae agreed, pitying the bird.

This caused everyone to take out their weapons. Rose had both arms raised and the chains surrounded her body again, ready to defend her in case of danger. Her men pulled out their own weapons and some even cast some Shadow spells and went ahead, hiding their presence. Aldryn took out his spear and ran to the gate, avoiding any debris. Ye Shin followed him, taking out her bow and preparing to shoot an arrow the moment a target appeared. Rose quickly ran after them, leaving Ylvis behind.

“What a day”, the Oracle of Earth muttered and grabbed his dual axes and ran after his companions.

Inside, everything was aflame. The bodies of the few people who lived in the temple and helped with its maintenance and defence were laying on the ground. Aldryn quickly noticed that among those people were some strangers. The blonde approached a man whose clothes were different from the others and crouched in front of him. There was no symbol on his clothes, so the apostle ripped the material in places where it was already thorn. That was how he found a symbol on the man’s arm.

“Scavengers”, Rose spoke angrily near the blonde, then shouted again the word for her men to hear.

This caused everyone to tense. They looked for any survivors, or attacker. It was then that Aldryn heard it, the sound of a fight. The Thrae within him heard the noise and warned him of it. In an instant, the blonde was up on his feet and running. Quickly understanding that the oracle must have noticed something, Rose ran after him, followed shortly by the others. The closer they got to the mansion, the more the sound of a fight became noticeable.

Without thinking much, Aldryn burst into the room. The sight before him made the blonde stop in his track. There, among the corpses and the flames stood two women.

Shyra was standing in the middle of the room. Her sole presence being so powerful, that all the others faded away into the background. She wore her usual attire, a long black dress with golden patterns that hugged her frame. The cut in the dress that displayed her long legs was a sight that would attract the attention of any man. She also strangely wore high heels, as if she never had any intention of fighting in the first place. The sight was so familiar to Aldryn, yet to different. Shyra had her usual attire, the usual thick braid that laid on her shoulder. Aldryn remembered the way she used to stroke it whenever feeling nervous.

“What a coincidence”, Shyra’s voice then resonated, “To think that the three of us would meet here” she spoke looking at Aldryn and Ylvis.

“Are you really surprised?” Ylvis then asked stepping forward.

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“Yes”, she answered truthfully, with a surprised look.

The blonde then noticed another woman standing near Shyra. It must have been the one that Deryam warned him about. She stood quietly near the apostle of Darkness, her blank eyes watching everyone present. She was dressed in an attire similar to that of her master. An elegant black dress with golden patters and shoes with a thick heel. Her black hair was flowing down her back, being gently caressed by Shyra. A sword was also limply held in her arm, soaked with blood.

The moment the assassins made their move, so did the unknown woman. She moved with grace and parried every attack, as if seeing through them. It caused the men to stumble back in surprise.

“The Tenarym was right”, the Thrae suddenly said, “That dead woman is a Ryan.”

At those words, Aldryn could not help but watch her closely. There were some aspects in her appearance that reminded him of Klyran. Like the eyes, even in human form they were similar. They also both had high cheekbones. The woman’s face, at the same time, looked much thinner.

“I’ve heard much about your new friend”, Shyra then suddenly said approaching Aldryn, causing him to tense.

“What a pity”, she then said with mocking sad eyes, “That I was searching for a Ryan so long and you just happened to stumble into one.”

As she finished speaking, Shyra was standing a few steps away from Aldryn. The blonde, in his turn looked as if he was ready to run at any moment. He could faintly hear the sound of fighting in the background. Shyra’s revived puppet was still fighting off the assassins, while Rose and Ye Shin were dealing with the remaining Scavengers that were still alive.

“Those guys must be low rank”, the Thrae suddenly said, looking at the falling Scavengers, “Their main force would easily beat Rose and Ye Shin.”

“So I ask you again Aldryn”, Shyra then suddenly said with a smirk, “What are you doing here? Why aren’t you with your new friend. If I know about the Ryan, do you think the Scavengers don’t?”

“He’s with Zevram and the Greenyards”, Aldryn said tensely.

“Look around you”, she then said with a cruel laugh, “The Scavengers have been attacking temples and killing apostles. What makes Zevram special? The Greenyards?”, Shyra the finished with a smirk.

Those words were like cold water for the blonde. He began worrying for them. He worried for Klyran, for Zevram and the village. A part of him wondered if he should have left the Ryan in the mines first, as it was the only place that the Scavengers would not be able to attack.

“Don’t listen to her”, Ylvis then approached the duo, “Zevram has enchanted the forest remember? Nothing can get in there without his permission”, he said with a glare.

“Hell Ylvis”, Shyra said with a coy smile, “How have you been?”

“Better if you were not stirring trouble”, he nearly growled in reply.

“Who?... Me?... Never”, she spoke with a hand over her heart.

Shyra then looked around her and suddenly exclaimed.

“All right! That is more then enough my dear. We are leaving”, she then looked again at the two apostle that she has known for so many years and turned around to leave.

“Hurry back to your little Ryan Aldryn”, she spoke again before departing, not even a bit concerned that the two of them will attack her.

“That was strange” the fox suddenly said, “It seemed as if Shyra was not here for the same purpose as the Scavengers... She gave up too easily”

As he finished speaking, a coldness brushed past them. The resurrected woman walked by and gave the two of them a glance, something flickering in her eyes for a moment. But she left without stopping and not giving Aldryn the chance to understand what just happened. She left elegantly, sheathing her sword.

When there was nobody else left, beside their company, they gathered around in the middle of the room.

“There are still living things remaining in this mansion” the fox then whispered.

“Where?” the blonde asked back in his mind.

Suddenly, Aldryn begun walking, being guided by the Thrae who claimed to feel the presence of others still within the building. Others quickly noticed his actions and followed him. When the fox pointed out the room, Aldryn slowed down and took out his weapon. An action which the others copied in an instance.

The door was closed and obviously abused. Scratching and scorching marks were visible all over it. It became obvious that the room was barricaded from the inside. This caused Aldryn to put his weapon away and approach it.

“Hello?” he gently called, “Is there anyone here?” he asked again.

Despite his attempt, nobody answered. It was obvious that the people inside the room were afraid of making any noises.

“We know that you are in there”, the blonde then tried again, “So please open the door. We came here to help you”, he said and touched said door.

“My name is Ye Shin”, another voice then suddenly spoke up, “I am from the Ice Arrow town”

At those words, something stirred. The door was cracked open and a young boy peeked out.