“Surround the island,” Ria relayed Zyrus’s commands to all the captains. While the players were nervous and apprehensive about going alone, they followed his arrangements nonetheless.
The island had a periphery of about five kilometers. It didn’t take long before all of the longboats were spread evenly at the shores.
“Tell them to follow the same procedure as the last time. There’ no need to haste, they can take as long as they need to conquer the island.”
“Understood.” Ria nodded and went back to relay the commands. Her range of clairvoyance and conductor’s tiara wasn’t enough to cover the whole island. Thus, she would have to roam around for a while to make sure that everything went as planned.
Zyrus gave other leaders different tasks and told them to meet up at the center of the island. Like the maw of a hungry beast, the 50 longboats surrounded the lone island. The galleons acted as fangs that were responsible for dealing with any inside or outside threats. Before long, only Kyle, Lauren and the goblin riders were left.
“Lauren, use the ocean’s testament to keep an eye on the players. This will be their final test so make sure that there aren’t any unstable variables left,”
“Got it,” Lauren replied with a solemn tone and departed from the dragon of war.
“What do you want me to do?”
“Tail the selected candidate for my knights. Be it good or bad, report everything you observe.”
Their loyalty was unquestionable. However, Zyrus still needed to analyze their strengths and weakness to better use his crown’s authority. The day when he attempted the cube’s second mission was fast approaching.
Kyle nodded at his words and left without making a sound. Although his movements weren’t as stealthy and elusive compared to Lauren's, this was more than enough to deal with some rookie players.
After leaving behind the lazy franken to guard the dragon of war, Zyrus rushed out to the beach along with the goblin riders.
*Awoo~*
“You guys hate the sand?”
*Whimper*
“Well, I’m not fond of it either,” Zyrus chuckeled as he ruffled the wolf's fur. One could imagine their discomfort as their paws sunk in the sand while the raging wind poured more of it into their fur.
A Sylvarix and 100 goblin riders leisurely made their way to the islands’ center as if they were on a picnic.
“Elsid,”
“Yes, my liege,”
“Are you confident in riding a drake?”
“I….have never tried that. Though, it shouldn’t be difficult.” Replied his dark knight while holding a halberd. Not a single player had noticed his presence in his shadow.
Zyrus was pleased with the answer. He moved away from the group and stood before a large clearing. 200 ophidian warriors were already summoned back from the dragon of war, and thus, he decided to summon the same number of drakes.
*Shatter*
A familiar sound of the shattering space greeted his ears. A legion of drakes walked out from the faraway earth.
*Awoooo*
*Kiiek*
The wolves and even the usually quiet goblins let out startled cries at the drakes' presence. They would have prostrated to the ground if not for Zyrus’s authority.
While bloodlines were powerful, their disadvantages were just as apparent. In front of the abyssal drakes, the goblins were as meek as a kitten.
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
“At ease, they’re our allies,” Zyrus’s voice relaxed their frantic breathing as the goblin riders went back into their formation.
He wanted to build a cavalry legion by making the transformed ophidian warriors ride the transformed amargs. Only then would they be worthy to be called a legion of abyss.
“Pick one,” Zyrus beckoned Elsid who was observing the drakes with keen eyes. Although they were different in every aspect, his summons shared a common connection with his mana and bloodline. It was even more so for Elsid who resembled Zyrus in his appearance.
Seeing that one of the drakes was taking the initiative to approach Elsid, he beckoned the rest of the warriors to do the same.
One by one they choose their partners. Zyrus felt like something was lacking to make his plan a true success, but now wasn’t the time to think about it.
He wanted to explain about the sanctuary’s history and its secrets to the leaders under him. Since he had boldly ordered them to convene at the island’s center, it would be embarrassing if he failed to clear that area before they arrived.
“Let’s go,”
…
*Rooar*
*Boom*
-250,-250,-750,-250
Exp +350
*Awooo*
The legion of abyss and the goblin riders bulldozed their way through the forest. Zyrus acted as a spearhead and killed any monster in sight while Elsid and the others followed behind.
‘They’re getting along rather well,’ Zyrus curved his lips in amusement as he punched a rabbit’s head.
*Splatter*
-750
Exp +350
There wasn’t an existence like Camazotz on this island. Thus, the monsters in this forest were weak and scattered. Rather than calling them monsters, it would be more accurate to call them beats who just met the system’s criteria to evolve.
They were similar to the wolves of the goblin riders. It would be an even fight if they fought on their own, but it was a different story when the drakes were involved.
The goblin riders were like little brothers following their delinquent older brothers to bully their classmates.
*Rooar*
*Awooo*
‘Well, bullying is an understatement,’
The ophidian warriors didn’t even need to use their hands. The drakes tore apart any monster in the vicinity.
“Elsid, lead them and round up the area. I don’t want anyone else to hear what I’m about to say.”
Zyrus ordered after seeing that the sun was about to reach the middle of the sky. It shouldn’t be long before the rest made their way here.
‘Haa... so this day has come in the end,’
He moved his gaze away from the floating clouds and took out the cube. His yellow reptilian eyes were staring intently at the shard floating besides the cube.
“Activate,”
*Whirrr*
[||| Initiating request.15%…..63%...97%...Request approved |||]
The trembling cube hovered in front of Zyrus. This was his true reward for clearing the first ring,-no, for breaking the first seal on the cube. A reward that he wasn’t all too willing to accept.
[||| Checking Authorization-----Access granted: Host-Zyrus Wymar |||]
But his thoughts had changed in these past months. The more he learned the more he realized just how ignorant he was. Even after changing his race, it was difficult for him to let go of his thought process as a human. Afterall, he was once their ruler, a monarch who led them to great heights in the sanctuary.
*Crack*
Mirroring the last bits of his lost humanity, the black shard crumbled into fragments at this moment.
[||| Connecting to the first ring…3%...26%....57%....81%...- connection established |||]
[||| You have acquired the administrator’s rights (Temporary) |||]
The fragments swirled around the cube and opened a black-and-white portal. And within it he saw the familiar sights of the first ring.
Like a celestial being looking down on the mortals, he observed their struggles without any emotions.
“What…are you doing?” it was Ria who arrived before anyone else. Zyrus didn’t answer her question and told her to wait for the others.
But even without hearing the answers, she could see what was on the other side. The scenes she saw frightened her, but the look in Zyrus’s eyes was even more terrifying.
One by one the leaders arrived at the scenes, and their reactions were similar to Ria's. Druv and Strongfist were no exception.
In front of them was a horror that didn’t discriminate between races. Be it human, trolls, or ogres, everyone shared the same suffering.
“You are finally here. Now, for the first and the last time, I’ll give you a chance. Decide whether you want to know the truth or not. It’s not too late to turn back.”
Of course, if they turned back now, then the only thing that awaited them was the edge of Elsid’s halberd.
There was no going back once they met him at this moment. Someone stupid enough to not understand this didn’t deserve to serve under him.
“We will stay,” Kyle and Shi kun spoke at the same time
“Stay.” Strongfist, Druv, and the other also added their acknowledgment.
“Good, as expected from my subordinates. I’m proud that none of you are cowards. Now then, please ignore ‘that’ and focus on what I’m about to say,”
Zyrus clapped his hands to get their attention and sat on a nearby boulder. As if on cue, the rest followed his actions and sat around.
It was like a group of children sitting around to hear a story from an elder. However, the story was anything but a fairytale.
“Often times, the most difficult things to understand are also the simplest. The end and the beginning aren’t as different as you may think. So let us start from the day when everything changed, the day when we were summoned to the sanctuary,”
On this day, on this remote and insignificant island, the darkest secrets of the sanctuary were revealed under the murky sky.