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Slayers - Volume 12 - Chapter 4




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4: The Ancient Dragon Knows the Dynast Army’s Plans

“I think... it’s over,” Luke whispered.

“Here, at least,” Mileena replied.

As for Jade... Jade just stood there, still and silent, gazing at the fallen Grancis. If his nature were really more similar to a lesser or brass demon than a pure one, a normal sword would be enough to do him in. And sure enough, Grancis had been felled by Gourry’s blade even after he’d expended the magic within. As we watched, his body crumbled in the manner of demons both demi and pure, leaving no trace behind.

“Ah... er...” Gourry stammered, clearly at a loss over what to say.

Jade turned to him and bowed. “Thank you for what you’ve done.”

Still unsure of how to respond, Gourry stood there in silence, scratching his head.

Jade straightened up, then looked around and said, “Let’s proceed.” His voice was firm and his face resolute. “To the office. To Sherra.”

Waaaaaaaaaaah... aaaaaaaah...

“Is that... screaming?” Mileena asked quietly as we ran down the hall en route to the office.

We’d reached an area of the palace where only the king and his closest aides were normally allowed, and I gotta say... it was way drearier than I expected. The place was mainly unadorned stone walls punctuated only by the occasional sconce. A persistent howling echoed down the dimly lit corridor, its source unclear. Frankly speaking, it was eerie as hell.

“All I hear’s the wind,” Luke said indifferently.

“But it really does sound like a voice...” Gourry added, equally indifferent despite the inherent creepiness of what he was suggesting.

“The wailing of King Dils...” Jade whispered.

“What’s that?” My ears pricked up.

“Oh! It’s an old ghost story,” Jade replied, quickly waving me off. “People like to say that the former king is still alive, locked away somewhere, the victim of a demon’s curse...”

I’d heard that story myself. Twenty years ago, King Dils II had gone to slay the Kataart demons and returned to the castle afflicted by a curse known as Raugnut Rushavna. The curse had transformed him into a writhing mass of flesh, immortal yet eternally in pain. To this day, he supposedly remained shut away in the depths of the castle, howling ceaselessly, unable to die...

“But I think the tale is really just a way to account for the sound of the wind blowing through the halls,” Jade concluded.

That would be a fitting explanation, but the rumor seemed plausible to me. Everyone knew that the old king had gone to slay demons and was never seen again. And I personally knew that demons were real—Raugnut Rushavna too. If I’m being honest, part of me wanted to go find out if there was any truth to the myth... but this was no time for a side quest.

“Oh, right. Gourry, draw your sword again. Everyone else step back,” I said and chanted a spell. “Blast Ash!”

Bwoosh! Darkness enveloped the sword, coalescing on its steel and spreading across it briefly before the blade returned to its silver sheen.

Okay, now his magic sword’s all charged up! Not that I expect Blast Ash to do much against the likes of Sherra...

“This’ll affect a decently wide area... probably a little larger than an adult’s arm span, so don’t unleash it on an enemy if any of us are too close by. Got that?”

“Yeah, got it,” the big lug responded casually, sheathing his sword.

Do you, though? If he accidentally hit one of us with that spell, his usual offhand apologies weren’t gonna cut it...

“Say, do you really know where this office is?” Luke asked as we continued forth.

Jade replied hesitantly, “I think so...”

“You think so, huh?”

“Well, as we left the audience chamber, I saw placards marking the antechambers and such. Now, I was just a low-ranked knight and I never visited his office myself, but I’ve never heard of anyone getting lost looking for it.”

Not that anyone who did get lost would be eager to cop to it...

Fortunately, the hall ahead was a straight shot for the most part. We hit a branching path here and there, but none of them were particularly long, suggesting it would be harder to get lost than not. I also couldn’t really imagine that our destination would be deliberately secreted away.

“Oh, right, Jade. Let’s get this squared away in advance,” I said while running. “That Allus guy said Sherra was with the king, right?”

“Yes, I recall that.”

“So when we get into the room, the first thing I want you to do is grab him and make tracks.”

“Huh?!” Jade stopped in place, incredulous. “W-Wait a minute! I want to fight with you! I won’t be a burden, I swear!”

“It’s not about that,” I said, hurriedly waving my hands. I mean, yeah, I did think Sherra was a bit out of Jade’s league... But for that matter, I wasn’t confident that the rest of us stood a chance against her either. “All I’m saying is that if we’re gonna throw down, someone has to get the king to safety. We can’t just be chucking spells willy-nilly while he’s in the room, right? Sherra might even use him as a hostage! Someone needs to get him out of the danger zone, but the four of us have neither the desire nor the duty to do the deed in a pleasant manner. We’re here to beat Sherra, not save the king. So the task falls to you.”

“B-But...” Jade argued, redoubling his pace to catch up to us.

“What? You’d rather fight, even if it means the king dies?”

“No! Obviously, I can’t let that happen...”

“Right? That’s why this is on you. Of course, the king trusts Sherra, so I doubt he’ll be inclined to just do what we tell him... If you really want to get him to safety, you’ll probably have to knock him out and drag him away.”

Jade fell silent at my words. “Very well. I’ll get him to safety, then return as fast as I can to join the battle. Is that acceptable?”

“That’s not what I’m saying, man...”

He wants to fight that bad, huh? Sherra was far more powerful than Jade imagined... possibly even more than Luke and Mileena imagined. She wasn’t gonna go down with one good stab from some piddly magic sword.

I sighed. “If you want to make sure the king is secured, you have to get him out of the castle. Out of the city, even. If we catch Sherra in a destroying mood rather than a fighting one, nowhere within the outer walls is safe.”

“Surely you exaggerate...”

“Hardly. And think about it. Those demons we fought in the audience chamber... You really think that’s all the goons they have?”

“You mean there are more?”

“Entirely possible. These guys want this nation in their control for some reason, which means they won’t let the king go without a fight. Who’s to say they won’t send a goon squad after him once you drop him off somewhere and come running back?”

“That’s... a good point.”

“And it’s like you told that guy... What was his name again? The dude who took us in. Gatekeeper No. 1.”

“Maias?”

“Yeah, him. It’s like you told Gatekeeper No. 1. Even stripped of rank, you still have the heart of a knight. And a knight’s job is to defend his king, right?” I shot Jade a wink.

“Ah...” he breathed, then smiled slightly. “Yes, that’s true. Very well! I, Jade Caudwell, hereby reswear my sacred oath to protect His Majesty Wells Xeno Gyria with my life!”

Attaboy.

“You’d better be ready to follow through on that sacred oath of yours,” said Luke, coming to a stop and looking back. There was now a door in view at the end of the long hallway with light streaming through its cracks. “Looks like we’re here.”

The plaque on the door declared it an office, so we knew we were in the right place.

Knowing what I did, we couldn’t risk this dragging on for too long. Sherra wasn’t called the General of the Dynast for nothing. She was hellaciously strong. So much so that a single blow from her would kill any of us on the spot. And once one of us fell, the rest would follow like dominoes.

In other words, the outcome of the fight ahead boiled down to a solitary question: Would Sherra obliterate one of us before our teamwork could best her? Either way, it would be a short match. The only uncertainty was who would be left standing when it was over.

We all exchanged a silent nod, and then... Wham! Gourry kicked in the door, his sword at the ready.

The room beyond was far bigger than I was expecting. Just ahead of us sat a large dark oak desk stacked with papers, beyond which were a man and a woman. The man was presumably King Wells. He looked to be in his mid-thirties, with long black hair and a solid build. I had to admit, he had the aura of a leader... He didn’t strike me as the kind of guy who’d succumb to Sherra’s feminine wiles or magical influence, but as they say, it’s the ones you don’t suspect that are the most dangerous.

Kneeling not far behind him was a figure clad in a blue dress uniform with silver embroidery. Her long hair was done in a braid, and she carried a black longsword. The two seemed the spitting image of a king and his loyal knight. But this knight’s true master wasn’t the lord of this kingdom... it was the lord of darkness!

“Who are you people?” the man boomed, seemingly uncowed as he stood from his chair.

Jade immediately went down on one knee. “Jade Caudwell, formerly of the Blue Knights. I came here against your wishes... Please forgive my impudence.”

“Jade... Caudwell? Ah, yes. One of General Grancis’s sons, aren’t you? I believe I ordered you exiled, did I not?”

“Indeed, my liege. But the clear corruption in our kingdom behooved me—”

“Silence, traitor!” the knight—Sherra—interrupted. Slowly, she rose to her feet, her eyes fixed sharply in his direction. “Are you the one stirring chaos in the castle? What are you after? My liege’s life?!” she barked.

Smart little demon... Sowing the idea that we were here to kill the king all but guaranteed he wouldn’t listen to a word we said.

“My liege, you must believe—” Jade pressed.

“Silence!” Sherra shouted, interrupting him. “Do not dirty your ears with their lies, my lord. I beg of you, take your leave. I shall dispose of them posthaste.”

“Please do. I’m counting on you,” King Wells agreed placidly without any sign of misgivings.

She took a knee again and kissed the back of his hand. “I swear it upon the sword that serves you.”

And as she rose once more, Wells turned around and manipulated something on the wall. Thunk. With a low sound, a partition in the back opened.

Of course... Every good palace has a couple secret escape routes.

“Majesty!” Jade tried to follow after his king, but Gourry stopped him. “What?!”

“Don’t be stupid! You’ll be killed if you go now!”

Dude was right. Sherra was standing at the opening. Rrrumble... And with another heavy sound, the wall closed behind King Wells. I doubted there was any way to reopen it from here. But that didn’t mean we should just give up on tracking him.

“Jade! Find General Allus! Work with him to get the king to safety!” I shouted.

“I shall!” Jade spun around and rushed out of the room.

A man of Allus’s rank surely had to know all the castle’s hidden passageways. If Jade apprised him of the situation, I was betting he’d be willing to lend us a hand.

“All righty.” I turned my eyes back to our opponent. “Now it’s just us and you... General Sherra.”

Slowly, she returned my gaze. “I see... So Allus sided with you, did he?”

“He did. But boy, you sure are selling this whole loyal knight schtick... Kissing the king’s hand and everything. Ever thought about quitting the demon business and taking up acting?”

“Is that all you have to say to me after all this time? What poor manners. You’ve been a fly in the ointment of my plans, Lina Inverse.”

“Maybe your plans just kinda suck? You’re the servant of Graushera and your name is Sherra, so if your schemes have a gimmick half as cheap as your name—”

“Silence!” Sherra roared angrily enough to quiet me. “Do not comment on my name!”

Ah, whoops. That one really ticked her off! I’d meant to talk trash, but that might have backfired. Maybe she’d asked Dynast about her name after all and gotten an answer like “I just didn’t care, teehee!”

“That aside, you said I was a fly in the ointment of your plans...” I quickly changed the subject. “But what exactly are your plans? I know you’ve been lending Dulgoffa out here and there... Are you behind the demon hordes spawning across the region too?”

“I don’t owe you an answer!” she said bluntly, then drew the black sword, Dulgoffa, smoothly from her belt.

Wuh, that was fast! She’s got even less chill than the last time we tangled!

“This is... my last chance!” she said. I didn’t know what she meant by that... but I didn’t have time to wonder! Her aura of hostility was swelling!

She’s coming!

Dulgoffa sliced through the air—Vrum!—producing a black shock wave on a beeline for us! We immediately scattered. The black wave tore through the room and destroyed the sturdy door on the other side.

“Fell Zaleyd!” Luke must have been cooking up a spell in advance, but the moment he unleashed it, Sherra dispersed it with a flick of her left hand.

“What?!” he shouted, stunned by the power of a top-class demon.

Mileena was right on his heels with a follow-up attack. “Elemekia Flame!” The blast, which could terminate a brass demon in one hit, was dispelled by an effortless swing of Sherra’s sword. And then...

“Graaah!” Gourry dove in from the side while her arms were spread wide from blocking both spells. He wasn’t about to let this opportunity slip by!

Slash! He sliced right through Sherra’s torso, then swiftly leaped away... but Sherra’s expression didn’t change in the slightest. She just hurled a series of small magical projectiles after him. The big lug managed to evade them.

Figures... Gourry’s slash didn’t do a thing. The power of a Blast Ash couldn’t put a scratch on her.

“This is freakin’ ridiculous!” Luke complained.

“Yeah, just like Lina’s been saying!” Gourry responded. “In which case...”

Whomm! Gourry swung his sword at Sherra again. She was well outside of its range, but for a moment, a darkness enveloped her and then disappeared. Gourry had unleashed the Blast Ash from his sword... and Sherra had completely no-sold it.

What did you think that was gonna accomplish, big guy?

Sherra didn’t even spare the others a glance, just unleashed a shock wave at me as I chanted! I began a dash to the side. Sherra tore across the floor, keeping pace with me.

So she’s after me first!

But she’d have the advantage at close range! The shortsword in my hand couldn’t block the magical sword-slash-demon Dulgoffa! Gourry ran in from the side, thrust out his sword, and parried Sherra’s shock wave with his blade!

Of course! He wants to absorb some of Sherra’s power!

But could the sword take it?! The shock wave twined around the blade, and—Crick!—the metal screamed!

Is it hopeless after all? I lamented. But as I did, Gourry drew the sword back. Letting what remained of the shock wave’s power slip past him, he put himself between Sherra and me.

“Keh!” Sherra breathed, withdrawing as she realized the property of Gourry’s sword. And then...

“Dynast Blas!”

Krickakrack! I unleashed a magical thunderclap, amplified for good measure!

Sherra let out a silent cry as the lightning wreathed her body, and then... Pop! With a bursting sound, it dispersed.

“Hyahhh!” In that moment, Gourry slashed at her.

Clink! Dulgoffa rose to intercept his sword. The keening collision echoed through the room when the two blades met. But Gourry had the upper hand in terms of skill! After a few clashes, it was Sherra who leaped back.

“Hrah!” Gourry swung when she did, sending the shock wave she’d released moments ago flying back at her.

“Trivial!” Sherra mocked, dispersing it midair. She then produced more magical projectiles around her and—

“Ra Tilt!”

Bwooooosh! Mileena conjured a blue pillar of flame to engulf Sherra. Gourry sprinted forward, thrusting his sword into the silhouette within the fiery column.

“Did we do it?!” Mileena cried.

But the show wasn’t over yet! All Gourry’s sword pierced was a shadow—the old demonic lizard’s tail trick! She’d left a fragment of her spirit form as bait while retreating into the astral plane. And then she reappeared...

Behind me?! I thought at first, but she was behind Mileena instead!


“Look out!” Gourry cried.

Sherra let fly her volley of magic projectiles. Mileena twisted in an attempt to dodge them, but...

Crash!

While she avoided the worst of the damage, one of her pauldrons was blown to pieces as the shock wave sent her flying back! Sherra pursued, and...

“Ruby-Eye Blade!” Luke produced a crimson magical blade and charged in to stop her!

Twice in one day?! That’s gonna be pretty damned draining!

Magical shock waves went flying as Dulgoffa clashed with Luke. His Ruby-Eye Blade would be the sharper of the two swords, but Dulgoffa could regenerate itself indefinitely so long as Sherra was around. In other words, Luke would run out of energy first!

That meant I had to make my move now, while Sherra was locked in place. I began reciting the incantation for my void sword, the Ragna Blade.

Will I make it in time?! As I watched Luke’s magic sword wane with wicked speed, I figured the answer was probably not. I hadn’t finished my spell yet.

At last, his crimson blade was extinguished. Dulgoffa swung down, and... Slash! There was a flash of steel. Sherra’s body pitched forward.

Gourry!

His earlier thrust hadn’t been for nothing. He’d absorbed the Ra Tilt’s power into his emptied blade. Look at you, using your head for once, my man! Even for a top-rank demon like Sherra, a blow like that had to smart.

Dulgoffa spilled out of her hand... and into Luke’s freed one! Hang on, wait a—

“What?!” Sherra cried out in shock, just as...

Thunk! Luke pierced her with Dulgoffa!

“Ah...” A faint moan escaped her throat.

Luke quickly released the black blade and leaped back.

“...Ah...” Unsteadily, her own sword protruding from her stomach, Sherra began to lurch toward him. As she approached...

“Hahh!” The Ra Tilt Gourry unleashed from his sword tore into her.

Sherra was still standing... but not for long!

“Ragna...” She turned to face me. A shadow of doubt flashed through my mind, but I didn’t have time to entertain it! “...Blade!”

The sword of void I summoned sliced straight through the General of the Dynast.

Plink... With a low, clear sound, the demonic blade snapped. As each piece hit the floor, it crumbled like parched earth. Dulgoffa was dying, having lost the source of its power—its master, Sherra.

“Well, we worked it out... I think,” Luke whispered.

“Even so,” Mileena scoffed, “grabbing that sword the way you did was reckless.”

“Aw, Mileena! You really do care!”

“It might have possessed you, and then we would have had another enemy on our hands,” she countered heartlessly.

“Aw...” Luke whimpered.

Mileena was right, though. If, in that moment, Sherra had ordered Dulgoffa to possess Luke, we would’ve been screwed for sure. I mean, not that she’d ever expected someone to swipe her sword and turn the damn thing against her...

Still, as a gal who’d pulled off more than her fair share of seat-of-the-pants nonsense, I really had to hand it to Luke.

“Well, at least that’s over,” Gourry said cheerfully.

Except...

“What are you talking about? Now we have to straighten out all the political crap around the castle, and that ain’t gonna be easy!” I reminded him.

“Right...” Luke and Mileena muttered in agreement.

But Gourry replied with his indefatigable smile, “Hahaha... Silly Lina. Thinky stuff is above my pay grade, so as far as I’m concerned, it’s over!”

“That’s not something to brag about!” I shouted as I gave Gourry a glorious sock to the face.

“So... what was the point of all that, anyway?” Luke whispered as if that question had only just occurred to him. “Sherra was tryin’ to take over the kingdom and all, an’ we stopped her by killing her. I get that much. But what was her endgame?”

Dude had a point.

It was now a few days later, after we’d departed Gyria City. The immediate danger was behind us. General Allus had gotten Sherra branded a spy from a hostile kingdom (though I was skeptical anyone really believed it), and he’d intervened to have Jade reinstated as a knight. The guy whose name I forgot—Gatekeeper No. 1 who’d sheltered us—netted himself a sizable reward, and we also bagged a little compensation for our work. (Not exactly fair compensation considering we’d slain the freakin’ General of the Dynast... but whatever. I’m over it.) Once that was all worked out, General Allus had resigned from his post, and the Kingdom of Dils turned back to reconstruction. But...

Seriously, what was Sherra planning? We’d never uncovered what she was really up to, and that didn’t sit right with me. It just felt like there had to be more to her scheme.

Moreover, I couldn’t stop wondering... Had Sherra really given her all against us? I wasn’t exaggerating when I’d told Jade that nowhere in the city would be safe if she got serious. Yet she’d only used a fraction of her power. Granted, we might’ve just managed to finish her off before she had the chance to flex. Had she thought she could beat us without using all her strength? Or was she so desperate to get the king under her thumb that she’d willingly restrained herself? Either way, the thing nagging at me the most was when I’d used the Ragna Blade to kill her...

Was it just my imagination... or was she smiling at me then?

Of course, I hadn’t mentioned that part to anyone. Could’ve just been my eyes playing tricks on me, after all.

“Welp, we’re not gonna think our way to an answer in this case,” Gourry chimed in.

“When have you ever thought your way to an answer in any case?” I teased him. Nevertheless, the big lug was right.

“Not to change the subject, but we seem to be goin’ in the same direction... Where are you guys headed next?” Luke asked idly, then clicked his tongue and wagged his finger at me. “Ah, but don’t you dare say, ‘Wherever you’re going.’ I don’t need you hornin’ in on me an’ Mileena’s honeymoon.”

“This is not a honeym—” Mileena began, then stopped short.

We followed suit. We were currently walking east down the city road, a wide highway packed with pedestrians and carriages. It was flanked by forest, and from the woods came a sudden war cry...

“Hraaaagh!”

Kra-booooosh! A flying ball of fire took out a covered wagon up ahead. A cacophony of screams erupted around us.

“Rrrrrgh...” A growling lesser demon burst out of the brush—no, not just one! There was a second, then a third, and then... I could sense their presences among the trees all around us.

Another demidemon swarm? Was Sherra not behind them after all?! I didn’t have time to dwell on the answer. The demons were tearing into the people on the road!

“Elemekia Lance!” The spell I chucked killed a lesser demon heading for a woman paralyzed by fear.

“Hyah!” With a cry, Gourry ran out, swinging his sword at the demons. Luke joined in, and so did Mileena.

We made it rain attack spells, but there were just too many targets! I also had no idea how many more demons were lingering in the woods... If they’d all been clustered up some distance away, I could blast the whole forest away with a Dragon Slave, but we were already in the thick of the onslaught.

To be honest, it was getting frickin’ annoying! Demon charge, attack spell. Demon charge, attack spell. We were certainly chewing through the suckers, but they just kept a-comin’!

“Dynast Breath!” Crack! I blasted another demon as it lunged from the brush.

“H-Help me!” As I was chanting my next spell, a middle-aged traveler suddenly grabbed hold of my cape.

Hey! I get that you want help, but you gotta let me move, man! I thought to myself, but just as I was about to wrest my cape free... a brass demon roared out of the underbrush!

Ack! Not good! My spell wasn’t ready yet! And I also had a dude clinging to me!

The brass demon locked eyes on me. Then... it was mowed down by a beam of light. Kra-paaash! The light’s movement was lagged by a roar as it sent trees and demons alike flying.

That light...

Then came a second beam.

Is that... the white giant?! I realized, turning my eyes toward the origin of the light. When I did, there was another flash behind me. Huh?! I whipped back around, but the trees inhibited my view.

“Waaaaagh!” The man crawled away from me, clearly confused beyond comprehension.

It did seem like the giant was after the demons, but one hit from that thing was liable to roast us on the spot.

“What is that?!” Gourry shouted at me.

“I think it’s the white giant!” I shouted back over the din.

“But there are two of them!”

“Yeah!”

“What do you mean, ‘yeah’?!”

While we were discussing that... “Hey! Anyone think we maybe oughta get outta here?!” Luke called.

“I do!” Mileena agreed as they ran up to us.

“But there are still people around!” I objected.

“No there ain’t!” Luke insisted.

I looked around and saw that we were, in fact, the only ones left. Huh?! When did you little bastards... The man who’d grabbed my cape, previously cowering helplessly on the ground, as well as the petrified woman were now booking it down the road like champion sprinters.

You just leave us holding the bag?! At least there was no reason to stick around now!

“Got it! Let’s make tracks!”

“But Lina—”

“But what, Gourry?! FYI, if you say something dumb, I’ll smack you down right here!”

“It’s just... I think the attacks have stopped.”

“...Huh?” Come to think of it, I couldn’t hear any more smashy-roary around me. No further signs of demons in sight either. “Is it... over?”

“It is. For now,” said a man from deep in the underbrush.

Huh?! Wait... I know that voice. I turned to see him just as he emerged from the flora. Indeed, it was exactly who I was thinking of—a handsome, blond middle-aged man in loose-fitting blue clothing.

“Master Milgazia?!” I was so shocked to see him that I couldn’t help crying out.

A while back, in the midst of a different kerfuffle, I’d paid a visit to the towering Dragons’ Peak in the north and met Milgazia, a golden dragon elder. He was a legit dragon, but he could also take on human form, and when he did, this was how he appeared.

Aha... I assumed that last blast of light was from the white giant, but it was actually a golden dragon’s laser breath.

Still, what was Milgazia doing off Dragons’ Peak?

“I heard familiar voices and names,” he said. “And indeed, here you are. It’s been a while, human girl. You too, human man.”

“Long time no see,” Gourry replied, scratching the back of his head.

“Don’t tell me you don’t remember him,” I said.

Gourry looked hurt. “Come on, of course I remember! He’s that big lizard guy.”

“Please do not call me a big lizard.” Milgazia leaned in and stared straight into the big lug’s face, his expression terribly serious.

“Ahhh, sorry, sorry!” Gourry apologized hastily.

“But I must say,” Milgazia turned his eyes to Luke and Mileena, “your other two companions have changed their appearances a great deal.”

“You got it all wrong!” exclaimed Gourry, waving his hands.

“Totally different people!” I followed suit.

“I am aware. It was a joke,” Milgazia said, still stone-faced.

Guys... I so do not get dragon humor, okay?

“But if you’re alive and well, then you must have conquered your previous trial,” he continued.

“Yes, I’d say so,” I replied, looking around. “But, uh, what’s going on here? First it’s demidemon swarms, and now a guy who’s never left Dragons’ Peak before is out in the world. I figure it’s gotta be something serious, but...”

“Indeed,” Milgazia muttered in assent, then cast a glance back at Luke and Mileena.

“Oh, don’t worry about them,” I assured him. “They’re trustworthy. They helped us beat General Sherra.”

“What?!” Milgazia looked understandably shocked. “You defeated... No, I suppose this isn’t your first time surviving such an encounter, is it? Hmm,” he said, then sank into thought.

“Hey... someone wanna fill us in here?” Luke asked.

“It’s a long story. I’ll catch you up later,” I responded.

Soon after, Milgazia looked up again. “Yes, I see... If you promise to keep it among yourselves, I believe there is something I should share with you.”

“Surely there’s no need for that, Uncle Milgazia,” came a piercing voice, this time from behind me. I turned to see a beautiful woman step out of the brush, moving so smoothly that she didn’t even rustle the leaves. She looked about twenty years old, had long golden hair, and was wearing curiously designed white plate mail over loose-fitting blue clothing.

Now, I said she looked around twenty because she was undoubtedly much older. Those pointed ears and that skin like porcelain? Yeah, totally pegged her as an elf. Elves lived five or six times longer than humans and possessed magic many times more powerful, but they rarely showed themselves before our kind. If I had to guesstimate, I’d say she was probably a century old.

She continued to address Milgazia without even sparing us a glance. “Mere humans will be of no assistance whatsoever. They’ll just spread more chaos, at best.”

“Mere humans?” A vein bulged on Luke’s brow, but she unsurprisingly paid him no mind.

“No more of that, Mephy,” chided Milgazia. “As fellow inhabitants of these lands, they have a right to know. And they may very well be useful.”

“But...”

“I’ve made my decision. I’m going to tell them,” he declared simply.

“Very well...” this so-called Mephy agreed grudgingly.

“Pardon the interruption. She has little fondness for humans.”

“I can tell,” I said with a shrug.

Once upon a time, humans had persecuted elves. That was ages ago in human terms, but to someone much longer-lived, the wounds still probably felt fresh.

“Now, where to start... I needn’t tell you of the recent rash of lesser and other low-tier demon spawnings. They seem to be acting primarily as an arm of Dynast Graushera’s army, and I’ve seen a similar pattern once before.”

“A similar pattern?”

“Yes. Demidemons spawning, fear running rampant among the populace... Said fear seeds war, which in turn seeds further chaos. Dynast wasn’t responsible last time, but given the similarity of the circumstances, I imagine the goal is the same.”

“What goal?” I asked.

Milgazia was silent for just a moment. He then said gravely, “Another Incarnation War.”



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