A couple of weeks later.

As a mage king, Sion Hart could fly very fast by summoning a powerful wind spirit. He also had special artifacts to increase his speed, given to him by the Myriad Sword Palace. Hence, even though the Holy Capital was much further away from the Beast Woods than Basindale or Duskville, he arrived there in just a couple of months, with both Hazezel and Elwin.

The two brothers watched as a large city came into their view.

The walls of the city stretched as far and wide as their eyes could see, even from their altitude. The buildings and architecture looked majestic. For two boys who had grown up in a village, this looked like a whole new world.

Sion saw their stupefied look and smiled.

“Welcome to the Holy Capital. The capital of the Holy Kingdom. The capital of the human race!”

Sion took the brothers directly to the Myriad Sword Palace’s headquarters. As a sect led by immortals, the Myriad Sword Palace was quite powerful even within the Holy Capital. Sion arranged for someone to show them around, introduce them to the place and take care of them. Sion informed the brothers that he would meet them later.

But now, Sion had an important job to do – reporting to the sect’s immortal elders about his findings.

Within the Myriad Sword Palace’s vast territory was the Alton Peak - a mountain where lots of medicinal herbs grew, enriching its air with mana. The higher up you went, the denser the mana you could find. At the summit, the mana was dozens of times denser than normal.

The mountain peak was covered with clouds, conjured not only by nature but also by powerful magic. If one could peer through the clouds, they would see a large and magnificent palace built right at the tip of the mountain.

It was the home of the sect’s immortal leaders.

Sion stood just outside the cloudy peak and released his mage king aura, before waiting. After half an hour, the clouds parted and made a path for him to follow, leading directly into the palace.

Entering the palace gates, Sion was welcomed by a grand hall. Placed at the end of the hall were three thrones. Three old men, dressed in the most extravagant and luxurious robes, were seated on each throne.

Sion kept his head bowed as he walked into the hall, before kneeling at the centre.

“Grand elders, I have returned,” he spoke calmly.

The elder seated at the centre stroked his beard and spoke slowly, his voice echoing with power.

“Well done, Sion Hart, we are happy to see that you have returned safely. Tell us what you found.”

Sion nodded and recounted everything, seeing the demon tides, rescuing Elwin, and confronting the dark mages led by Damon Rogue, before leaving with both Elwin and Hazezel. The elders listened keenly, without interrupting.

“Hm, these dark mages are becoming more brazen by the day,” the elder on the right spoke. “We need to teach them their place again.”

“Damon Rogue… that name sounds familiar,” the elder on the left mumbled.

“Actually, I remember,” the middle elder answered. “I believe that one of the Apostles of the Hidden Venom Cult had an aide who went by the name of Damon Rogue. This must be him.”

“But based on this report, he seems to have been acting alone now?” the elder on the left asked again.

“Yes, it is possible that he had a falling out with the Cult. Such things are not uncommon within dark mage organisations,” the elder on the right responded, nodding his head.

“Still, we cannot just let them do whatever they want,” the middle elder spoke again.

“Agreed,” the two responded.

“Very well then, Sion Hart. Put together a group of three mage kings to go and investigate the Beast Woods more thoroughly. We need to know exactly what the dark mages are up to. If you find Damon again, then don’t let him get away this time.”

“Absolutely! I will get started on it right away!” Sion replied.

“Thank you for your work, Sion Hart, you may leave now,” the elder on the right spoke.

“It is my honour!” Sion replied respectfully, before leaving.

Normally, immortals didn’t care much about the activities of mortal mages, however this was different.

After Sion left, the elders continued their conversation.

“Hm, so we were wrong before,” the elder on the left spoke. “This didn’t have anything to do with that woman.”

“It seems so,” the elder on the right replied. “But we haven’t heard of Dalia in a while, she has been maintaining a low profile. But the question is why? Did she not become an immortal already?”

“Ha, if we’re lucky, she might have attempted immortal ascension and failed, dying in the process,” the elder on the left giggled, amused at the idea.

“That is very likely,” the elder in the middle spoke, stroking his beard again. “After all, most people that attempt immortal ascension fail. However…” he paused, his voice becoming troubled.

“I cannot imagine that old hag dying so easily,” the elder on the right finished.

“Indeed,” they both replied with a hint of concern.

“If she becomes an immortal, her Order of the Blood Raven which already has three true immortal mages, would become even more powerful. At that point, we would be in trouble,” the elder on the left said.

“Yes. Whether she has become an immortal or not, or if she is hiding, is something we need to find out. And if she is just hiding for some reason, whatever the reason might be, cannot be good for us. We need to find a way to bring her out and put an end to her before she becomes an immortal,” the middle elder spoke sternly.

“Yes, but the question is how?” the elder on the left asked.

“I have a plan,” the middle elder smiled mysteriously.

The other two looked at him with curiosity.

…

Sometime later, around one month after Dalia attacks the dark mages.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

“Duskville, we’ve finally arrived!” Astoria exclaimed, stepping out of the carriage with Sam.

“Indeed, we have,” Sam replied softly. They both stepped outside of the carriage to see a large town.

This was nothing like their small village. The walls were large and made of stone coated in a paint of silver. The town stretched wide and far, easily at least five times as big as their village.

Looking at the town and its marvellous design, Astoria turned back to see where they came from.

The Beast Woods and their villages were nowhere to be seen.

Astoria sighed and looked at the town again.

“This doesn’t feel like a town… it feels like a new beginning!”

Duskville was slightly closer to Jain village than Basindale, hence the reason why they arrived at their destination quicker than Drake. Of course, Hazezel giving them the pills that could ward off low-class demons was helpful too, as they did not get attacked at all for a long time, long enough for them to move far away from the woods. They were occasionally attacked by some random demons afterwards, but the demons were weak enough for Astoria and Sam to take care of.

Astoria turned to the driver, the eccentric old man.

“Thank you for driving us,” she said gratefully with a bow. “But what are you going to do now?”

“Well, first I’m going to take a break in the town,” he laughed. “Then I will find information about the war situation in our village, and then I’ll decide whether I want to return or not.”

Astoria was slightly amazed at his ability to talk casually about the destruction of his own village. However, she didn’t think much of it and just nodded.

“In that case, we’ll part ways here.”

“Yes,” he replied, rubbing his beard. “If fate wills it, we might meet again one day.”

“For sure,” she replied.

“Thank you again,” said Sam this time.

The old man waved goodbye and started making his way to the town gate.

Astoria looked at Sam and smiled. Sam took her hand in his and they both started walking towards the gate together.

…

Another month later.

A carriage was speeding its way through the plains. On the horizon, a large town, several times the size of Duskville, was coming into view. Tall walls made of finely cut stone stretched across the horizon. A couple of massive buildings could be seen towering over the walls.

Half an hour later, the carriage arrived before the bustling town gate.

Two figures stepped out. A young boy dressed in ordinary-looking robes, and a female swordswoman.

“So, this is Basindale,” spoke the boy.

“Yes, master Drake, we’ve finally arrived.”

There was a long queue in front of the gate, at the end of which stood two guards. They were checking the identity of the people who were entering.

Drake and Helen joined the queue. It took fifteen minutes, and finally, it was their turn.

“Haven’t seen you two before, do you have any ID?” one of the guards asked Helen. Given that Drake looked young, he must have figured that Helen was his parent, older sibling, or guardian of some kind. Helen looked at Drake who nodded at her, before responding.

“Actually, we are from a village far to the west,” she replied.

“To the west?” The guards looked at each other, confused.

“But there’s nothing west from here apart from the Beast Woods.” They looked at the two warily, wondering what they were trying to hide.

Drake spoke up. “It’s true. We are from a small village located close to the Beast Woods. We grew up there our whole lives. But recently it came under attack by demon tides and got destroyed.”

The other guard seemed to have a realisation.

“Demon tide? Actually, I heard about demons acting strangely in the Beast Woods several months ago. We were worried that the demons might end up attacking our town, but luckily, they never made it this far. Our town lord sent out some scouts who reported the destruction of what looked like some human settlements. Could you two have come from there?”

“Yes!” Helen replied.

“I see,” the guard responded. “Due to the scale of the destruction, and the scouts not wanting to get close to the demons, they couldn’t confirm whether the remains actually were human settlements. Most people thought that there was no way that there would be any humans living so close to the Beast Woods and dismissed it.”

Both the guards’ expressions changed, and they now carried a look of pity towards Drake and Helen.

“There were actually three villages. Two human villages and one elven village. There were also a few other villages further away from us, but we don’t know what happened to them as we were the first to get attacked and fled,” Drake explained.

“I see,” the guard responded, nodding his head satisfied. “Actually, the scout reports did mention three different areas that looked like settlements, but most people don’t know that. Since you also mentioned three villages, I can only assume that you’re telling the truth.”

The other guard spoke up, “I’m sorry for your loss. It must not have been easy seeing your families, friends, and your entire village getting destroyed.”

“I’m sorry too,” the other guard said apologetically. “I’m sure that the merciful goddess Iva will help you recover from your loss.”

Iva was the name of the goddess that was worshipped throughout the Holy Kingdom. Although their villages had lost touch with the religion due to getting isolated over time, the rest of the Holy Kingdom was still religious.

“Thank you,” said Helen. “We don’t have anywhere to go now, so can we stay in your town?”

“Of course, you two are most welcome,” the guard smiled. “Can you tell me a bit about yourselves first? Are you a cultivator by any chance?”

“Yes,” Helen replied. “I have cultivated the perfect stage tempered body and so has master Drake.”

The guards’ eyes widened as they looked at Drake.

Helen being a perfect-stage martial artist was not unusual, it was a normal cultivation speed. But given that Drake was almost half her age, still being in the same realm as her was unbelievable.

This was naturally due to Drake using the top-notch cultivation technique passed on from his village ancestor, a mage emperor, plus receiving personal guidance from the exceptionally talented Ray, as well as Holt and Zhao Gaumond on occasion, and his own hard work.

Drake previously told Helen not to mention him being a mage since he couldn’t use his mage abilities at the moment and he didn’t want to explain the reason why to anyone.

“Really?” The guard asked. “And what do you mean by ‘master’ Drake?”

“He is the son of the head of our village,” Helen replied.

“I see,” the guard nodded, as if he was finally understanding the situation now.

“In that case, would you two be interested in becoming hunters? It would be the easiest way to make a living for you.”

Drake and Helen looked at each other. In Jain village, hunters would visit the Beast Woods to hunt demons for meat, controlling their population, and keeping the areas visited by locals safe. He wondered if they did a similar job here.

“Sure, we’ll consider it,” said Helen.

The guard nodded. “Additionally, I’d highly recommend that you two join our martial arts association. It will be very useful for you.”

The guard paused as if having a realisation. “Actually, how rude of me. You two haven’t ventured out of your village, right? And given how isolated your village was, I’m guessing you don’t know much about the outside world?”

They both shook their heads.

“In that case, wait here.”

Saying so, the guard walked into the town. A couple minutes later, he returned, accompanied by a young-looking man in his teens.

“This is Tom,” said the guard, introducing him. “He can be your guide of the town. I have updated him on your situation so he will let you know everything and answer all your questions. I have also paid him for his services, so you don’t need to worry about that. Consider it a token of my goodwill.”

“Thank you!” they both exclaimed. Drake was worried about understanding the outside world and finding his way through but luckily, this guard had solved everything for him.

“Please follow me, young master, young miss,” Tom spoke, respectfully bowing to each of them in turn, before walking into the town.

Drake and Helen look at each other with a smile. Excited at finally being able to enter the town, Drake and Helen hurried after him.

The moment they passed through the gate, they were greeted with a lively sight.

There was a road going straight ahead, and another laid horizontally across. Both sides of the streets were covered by various houses. Unlike their village which was mostly built with wood and mud, the houses and roads in this town were constructed with stone and marble, looking far more pristine.

“Welcome to Basindale,” said Tom, giving them a moment to admire the view.

A crowd of people were walking across the streets, some were on their own, others with their families, and some seemed like young couples living their lives. A few travelled in expensive-looking carriages, driven by young and strong horses.

The whole town gave off an air of elegance and luxury; it was clearly a prosperous town that was well-built and managed.

After a minute, Drake and Helen finally recovered from their awe.

“Please follow me,” Tom smiled, before walking straight ahead.

At the end of the road, there was a large clearing, filled with dozens and dozens of stalls. Merchants were selling all kinds of wares, from food and water, to clothes and accessories.

“This is the western market square,” the guard explained. “There are four market squares in this town, the others located in the north, south, and eastern edges of the town.”

“I see,” Drake noted. He would likely have to visit these markets quite frequently in his everyday life.

“The centre of the town is where the headquarters of the main organisations of the town are located,” the guard explained.

“Oh, what are those organisations?” Drake asked.

Tom smiled and explained as he slowly walked across the market square.

“At the centre is the town lord’s manor,” he began. “He is a mage emperor and oversees all our town affairs.”

Mage emperor!

Both Helen and Drake gasped.