• The Royal Courtroom of Ashenmoor.
"Your majesty, the people of Ashenmoor are tired," a minister rose to his feet and started speaking, a bold move for a man in front of his King.
"Ashenmoor was never slaves to others… sure, we did nothing but farm, but we farmed for ourselves! We… we never aligned ourselves with unnecessary battle that leads our people to their death. This is not the life you promised us five years ago."
The meeting was observed by ministers of the kingdom as well as noblemen and merchants who had helped in the prosperity of the kingdom.
The king, a dark-skinned bald man with a full black beard that covered most of his face. He wore his Royal attire coupled with a green fluffy coat and held a golden staff in his left hand. On his bald head was a golden crown, carved to perfection by the early men of Ashenmoor. It sat gracefully on his head, putting more emphasis on the majestic right he possessed. His eyes were large and green, their colours reflecting as the king looked at the raging minister.
"Forgive me Your Majesty, but I can't live this way anymore, I can't live my remaining days following a King who doesn't do what's right. You are tarnishing the name of this kingdom and the name of your fathers before you, it is a disgrace."
Everyone in the room gasped at the mention of the words spoken by the minister but the king remained quiet. His eyes kept moving from the minister to the entrance gate.
"You dare speak to his majesty in that manner?"
The king followed the direction of the voice to see the speaker standing on a chandelier in the courtroom.
"You ungrateful fool," the speaker added before landing in the middle of the room with a thud.
The king of Ashenmoor tried to contain the joy that flushed over his face but found it difficult. Just the sight of the young lady made both his lips stretch to his ears.
The girl stood tall with a warm smile lingering on her lips. She had a blindfold wrapped around her eyes. The cloth she used to wrap her eyes was red and it had drawings of a dragon etched on it. The girl was light-skinned with slightly yellowish grey hair like that of unbleached wool. Her hair stretched down to the arch of her back with two strands sticking out from each side of her face.
A flowing cloak drapes over her shoulders, its edges lined with delicate embroidery that catches the light. Beneath, a fitted tunic cinches at her waist, accentuating her slender form, while sturdy leather boots protect her feet as she moves with graceful confidence. Though her eyes were hidden, her steps were precise and steady. She exuded a strong aura that made the minister slow his words and step back.
"King Roland, how can you sit and watch these idiots belittle the hard work you and I have put in all these years?" She strode forward and sat in a space next to the king.
The King giggled sheepishly and attempted to inch closer to her but she put her hand to stop him.
"I was…"
"Oh, you were being generous, giving him the freedom to speak his mind?"
She turned to the minister while crossing her feet. "Should you belittle a king that is this much gentle? Matter of fact, you should be grateful that your head is still attached to your neck."
The minister raised his hand and pointed at the girl. He allowed himself to get taken over by rage, allowing the words to roll down his tongue with no filter. "You witch! I am not scared of you or the Hex god you worship."
The man reached for his belt and pulled out a sword. "I am not scared of you…" His words suddenly turned into a gurgling noise as blood gushed down a thin cut in his neck. He dropped his sword and collapsed to the ground lifeless.
She stood up on her feet and walked forward with a smile on her face while holding her hands behind her back. "So," she started. "Anyone else have something to say?"
They all shut their mouths and averted their eyes. The girl smiled and returned to where she was earlier seated, once again using her hand to stop the king from getting close to her.
A Knight rushed into the room and threw himself on the ground in front of the throne. "Y-your Majesty! Your… your Majesty…" he struggled to catch his breath.
"Our watchmen have sighted four individuals approaching the gate, one of them seems to possess a very large amount of pure energy!"
The girl with the blindfold jumped up on her feet. "Finally, he's here," she said with an elated voice.
"Who might this be?" The king asked. "The one that gives my lady this much joy?"
She placed both her hands on her chest and let out a sigh. "He is the one that I have been destined to have much fun with, the one that'll decide the path my life shall thread through, oh this is interesting!"
.
.
.
Eryth, Arya, Blutox, and Danila stood in front of the gate of Ashenmoor.
"So what now? Do we just charge in and fight everyone in there?" Blutox queried.
Eryth ran his hand through his hair while groaning loudly. "I didn't think anything past getting to the gate."
[You are insane.]
'Yeah, I know'
"How brilliant." Arya shook her head. "
"We don't even know how many of them there are… perhaps one of Hex's generals is in there, or Hex himself, and it will be ugly if Hex is in there too."
Eryth sighed. "I've never been one to work out my plan before. I just go with the flow and hope things work out my way, all I need is an objective. You can wait out here if you want to."
"You are crazy," Arya stated before stepping forward to stand by his side. "But I have to make them pay for what they did to my parents and friends, even if it means being crazy as well."
Eryth chuckled softly before turning to the War Kanrei and Danila. The former narrowed his eyes at the Dark mage while gripping the handle of his sword. They held each other's stare before Blutox stepped forward too.
"If it means getting to Hex."
Eryth snickered and then turned to Danila. "Come on, Dani."
She scoffed and shot him a sarcastic look. "Don't I get a say? You know I'm not the shy fairy I was yesterday."
Eryth turned to face her. "Of course, what do you say, Dani? Are you willing to be crazy with me?"
She giggled softly before stepping forward. "I'd do anything with you, all you have to do is ask."
Arya rolled her eyes and started towards the gate.
As the four approached the gate, it suddenly opened, giving them a path to get through.
"Are they… letting us through?" Arya queried.
"It seems like it," said Eryth.
Blutox pulled out his sword, ready, almost eager to engage in a battle with whomever approached them. As the gate fully opened, they were greeted by the sight of a man in full armour. He had pale skin and was about seven feet tall.
"Greetings visitors, I am Commander Oakheart, and I welcome you all to Ashenmoor." He had orange hair which he tied in a bun, and over his right eye was a scar that looked like it was made not long ago.
"Did they already know we are coming?" Danila queried.
"Please, sheath your sword, there will be no violence today."
Blutox unrelentingly held his sword in his hand. His eyes burned with rage as he anticipated exchanging blows with the man in front of him.
Eryth could feel the energy of some others around but could only see the huge man standing in front of them.
"Invisibility," he thought to himself.
He slightly nodded, urging Blutox to drop his sword before taking steps forward. "You knew we were coming?"
"His Majesty wishes to dine with you, let's not keep him waiting."
Eryth remained quiet for a moment as he tried to identify the number of invisible energies around them but the number carried on.
[They have surrounded us.]
'Yeah, we have no choice'
"Very well."
Commander Oakheart hummed before moving aside, using his hand to direct them in. "Don't try anything funny," he whispered.
The commander led them into a large hall that was designed with different ornaments including gold and diamonds. They all glittered, adding to the brightness and royalty of the hall. In the middle of the room was a large table with golden chairs all around it. Different variety of cuisines were arranged elegantly on the table with the king sitting at the head of the table already filling his belly. Next to the king, also at the head of the table, the girl with the blindfold sat. She had a wide smile on her face as Eryth and his partners entered the room.
Commander Oakheart showed them their seats before moving to stand in one corner of the room. King Roland gulped down his drink before raising his head to look at the group.
"Welcome to Ashenmoor," he exclaimed. "Does it spell the words people out there say about it?"
Eryth scoffed. "What I heard is that it's a kingdom of farmers."
The bald King threw his head back as he burst into laughter. "Kingdom of farmers, mhmm."
He looked at the girl by his side through his peripheral vision before clearing his throat and sitting upright. "Well, err… what business have you here?"
Eryth averted his head down, and when he looked up, the smile he had on his face had vanished. "I came here to kill you."
"Wow," the girl chuckled. "The bravery you have to walk in here and threaten the king."
"Why hide it? I'm already in here, what's the worst that could happen?"
King Roland glanced at the girl and then at Eryth before stuffing some food in his mouth. The girl leaned back on her chair and chuckled.
"Is this because of what happened in that little village?"
The king coughed as he choked on his drink. He looked at the girl and then at Eryth.
"Who are you?" Eryth asked.
She clasped her hands and sighed. "I thought you'd never ask."
"I am Nikephoria Mourtzouphlos Lascaris," she smiled as she noticed the look on their faces. "But you can just call me Nike."
She got up on her feet and paced to one of the many vases in the room. "You shouldn't be hating on Roland, let alone making threats to kill him, after all, it was I who ordered the attack."
Nike moved from the vase to a flower. "I sensed a massive amount of chaos energy from the village but an external force was preventing me from entering the village, so I ordered my friend here, King Roland, to have his knights do the deed for me."
Eryth's eyes twitched as he looked at the young lady. "Are you… Hex?" He asked.
She burst into a peal of hysterical laughter. "Hex? Me? Fuck no. I told you, I am Nike… aaaand also the Dragon of Hex." She exhaled and returned to her seat.
"So you are one of Hex's bodyguards?" Arya queried.
"SHUT YOUR MOUTH, WOMAN!" Nike barked. Her smile and cheerful expression faded and her voice sent echoes throughout the room.
"You will not speak unless spoken to."
As if nothing had happened, she turned back to Eryth, her cheerful smile all over her face again. "You have no idea how good it feels to finally be speaking to you in person."
"I've been watching you since you left the village. You've tried to suppress your energy but you can't hide it from a possessor of the Green Eyes, especially one like mine. So I followed your unique scent to that little camp," she smiled.
"I saw your little moment with that woman, your time at the camp, and also what you did to Lancelot."
"What do you want from me?" Eryth man asked.
She smiled and shook her head no. "It's not about what I want, it's what you are willing to do to get what you want."
She snapped her fingers and the wall behind her slid open, revealing Syrie tied naked to a pillar with her hands outstretched and unconscious.
Nikephoria noticed the zero change of emotion on Eryth's face. She groaned and lightly tapped the table. "I thought you were fond of her so I picked her up, hoping to be able to use her to get you to do whatever I want, but it seems I was wrong."
Arya swiftly pulled out a dagger and launched herself over the table, but Nike, with very little effort, put her hand up and a wind hurled her back over her partners and into the ground with a crash.
The girl with the blindfold relaxed her body and chuckled. "Don't you ever try that again."
[Was that her? Or the King?]
'Not sure, none of them expelled any energy'
Eryth exhaled softly and leaned forward. "I wouldn't want to hurt a child, or destroy what you've worked hard for, so why don't you just give me her, and I'll be on my way. We could throw hands the next time we meet again."
The smile on Nike's face faded once more. "You think I did all these just so you can slip out of my hands?" She scoffed and strolled to where Syrie was.
"You are a Black colored Rune Act user." She paused.
"I want it to be you up here, I want to have all that Chaos Energy you possess, Eryth— I want you."
"Then why don't we settle this then? You and me, one on one, if I win, you'd do whatever I say you should."
Nikephoria remained quiet for a moment before speaking. "I'd love nothing more than that."
King Roland stood up on his feet and clapped. "Well then, why don't we make it a contract then." He waved his hands in the air and a sheet of paper appeared in front of Eryth and Nike.
"Are you sure about this?" Blutox queried.
"She's one of Hex's generals, she is powerful."
"It's fine, I'll win."
The bald king clasped his hands. "The fight continues until one party decide to yield. And if you win," he pointed at Eryth. "My lady does whatever you say till her last breath, and if my lady wins, you'll do whatever she says even when you get reincarnated."
Eryth furrowed. "That doesn't seem fair."
"Backing out already?" The king asked.
Eryth sighed. "Fine."
Nike smiled before dropping her hands by her side. "Let's get started then, shall we?"
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