Chương 113: B2 Chapter 32 - Interlude

Silveria – Silver Dragon Her eyes fluttered open to the vastness of the realm. Nothing could hide behind her soul-peering gaze or the perception of a Divine Beast. She could see, sense, and crush everything ranging from the mountain range to the edges of the dark forest. If she had full control of her power that is. The weight of the Seals on her spirit was enormous and as painful as it had been before, but in the presence of the full Blood Moon, that was nothing.

If it had been the nights of the Beast Moon, she would have been strong enough to descend the mountain range and slaughter the savage, Ragna, once and for all. Instead, Silveria was forced to return to a short-lived slumber to replenish her power and fuel it into a single direction. She had to control the essence seeping into the forest, the Miasma oozing from the Fractures before the dark forest too would collapse.

Silveria controlled the essence of the forest and redirected it, urging it to create more Fractures, to strengthen them, and to brute-force evolutions. That, among many of the atrocities the Silver Dragon had to perform to protect the realm, was far from the best solution. Still, it was a much better option than standing idle as the dark forest transformed into an Instance. The Fractures promised trouble, but that was why the savages were still alive. They could remove the Fractures and remove their taint.

Even now, Silveria did not understand Their decision to give those pathetic creatures that kind of power. No matter how many Fractures they closed, the power they wielded was too dangerous to be left in their hands alone. But They did not care about any of that. For them, it was no more than a game. Everything was. Great Ones… She called out longingly. … when will you return? Her senses spread out toward the edge of the forest.

To the border of what had once been divine territory and Orion's domain and what had devolved into the dark forest and the Alliance. Even if the savages could not deal with all the Fractures and the Miasma seeping into the realm – they were likely too stupid to realize what was happening in the first place – the humans entering the forest ought to do well enough. Except if they once again fell victim to the worst trait of their kind. Greed. Silveria sneered.

As bad as the savages were, they stayed true to their word and knew little of deceit. Humans… were the opposite. On the outside, it may not appear like they amounted to much, especially compared to the savages' power, but they carried silver tongues and knew how to make use of their numbers. Vulgar breeders. Silveria let out a low growl as memories she thought lost resurfaced in her mind. Snippets in which her once-gullible nature had been exploited and her trust betrayed.

Thereafter followed images of the destruction she had caused in a fit of rage. Ruins of the empire that betrayed her were all she left behind. The Divine Beast shook her head and focused on the humans. The Blood Pact must have lapsed with the number of humans she sensed in the forest, yet it did not look like the Alliance's forces had met up with the savages. Their reunion promised to be interesting. Maybe their meeting would eradicate the savages, once and for all.

Even if they failed to remove the savages, Ragna would break. In the worst case, Ragna would face off against the strongest of the Alliance, and he would be forced to break the Seals. Then, after so many cycles, she would be free once more. She could search for her daughter and… I should kill that cretin first though. She thought just as a pang raced up her spine to the base of her mind.

A vision formed, one materialized by the power of her spirit and the divinity leaking from her body, and it showed an image of her daughter. She was… alive, and in a place she never expected one of their kind to be. Not after all that happened. Silveria let out a heavy sigh and lay back down at the base of the mountain range. Her offspring never listened, so she had to learn from her own mistakes. All Silveria could hope for was that her stupid girl would survive.

Too many of her kind were already dead, be they Divine Beasts or Dragons, and she did not want any more of them to die. But that left her with yet another lingering thought. What in the realm's name was strong enough to kill a Divine Beast? To inflict a True Death upon one of her kind? She didn't know, and that scared her more than anything.

Rogarth Pearot The tribe was a mess. What had been a bustling mass of motivated warriors lusting for victory and conquest had become a place of sadness and misery. Tribe Pearot's momentum had slowed. Some of the greatest warriors were still recovering from their fight against Chieftain Ragna, but it wasn't their bodies that were still injured. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. Their spirits were broken.

All physical wounds had been tended to as well as possible, and yet the Barbarians were weaker than ever. Their Wills thrummed within them with fading strength, and Rogarth Pearot couldn't even say anything about that. He too felt just like them. How could he not after what they had witnessed two moons ago? Even his Wills were on the verge of shattering, his Lifeblood no longer as vigorous as it used to be. But it was not his Will that had been damaged but his spirit.

It had been crushed by the true Warlord of the dark forest. No one from Tribe Pearot had a doubt about that. Fear had bloomed in the hearts of the entire tribe at the thought of Ragna of Tribe Taskur returning. No matter how small the chance was, knowing it was possible that Ragna could barge into their tribehold at any moment affected Pearot's warriors, elders, and younglings more than the influence of the Blood Moon.

Moons be damned, Chieftain Ragna was even more terrifying than the Divine Beast's awakening had been. He can kill us. Rogarth said to himself for the umpteenth time. He could have killed us all this time. Effortlessly. There was no doubt about it; Ragna of Tribe Taskur was the next Warlord. The Shaman had to be mistaken because the Warlord was not on the rise. He was already there. But as frightening as Chieftain Ragna may be, his existence was reason enough to push the warriors to new heights.

Their spirits may have been crushed, yet they still strived for survival. So they fought desperately, like their lives depended on their future growth. Because that was what they believed to be the case. However, to grow truly powerful, they had to fight their weakness, break it down to the finest pieces, and overcome it all, or they would truly die. The Dragon Blessed was all Rogarth Pearot needed to become the next Warlord.

No, it was what he had thought would be enough to become the next Warlord, but that had been wrong. It was his biggest mistake, and as long as he could still breathe, he would give everything in his power to make up for his weakness and acquire all he needed to conquer the tribes and become the true Warlord. The prophecy no longer mattered. However, Rogarth would rise in the blood of his foes, and he would become the next Warlord. All he needed to do was kill Chieftain Ragna. As to how… he would figure out a way.

There had to be something, a weakness of some sort, and Rogarth was ready to give everything he had to find it. But first he had to take care of that little nuisance that had entered his territory. Some foolish creatures that called themselves humans. Rogarth was thirsting for Taskur's blood, but if humans were anything like the old tales made them out to be, fighting them would be worth it.

"Prepare for a hunt." He called out to his right hand, eyes glimmering in excitement.

"Humans have returned!"

Thorian Blainslay"Miles is dead." Knight Lias shared with his group, his expression grim as ever.

"He and his people were killed by unknown forces. We found their bodies, or what was left of them, and I deem it important to share this with my unit; they weren't killed by monsters. The body parts found where they were last located were severed by sharp blades. Not claw marks or the like but cuts and marks of blunt force." Thorian stood there frozen. He and the others had just returned from the Devil's Lair, their bodies drenched in monster blood and grime.

He was beyond exhausted, listening to the muffled screams of pain and suffering in the camp, only to hear about that. What even did that mean?

"What…W-what does that mean?" one of the young Mages, talented but a scaredy-cat who wasn't suited for combat, squeaked out. Everyone's eyes turned to Knight Lias. The Knight wasn't the oldest in the group, but he did have some experience with regions similar to the Devil's Lair. And while he hadn't entered the Devil's Lair before the campaign had started, he had been taught a lot about it. Everyone had.

"Mage, you know what I am hinting at." Knight Lias grunted.

"But if your head is only good for magic, I will make this easier for you. Miles and his unit encountered the savages of the Devil's Lair." Thorian let out an internal groan, and he watched his comrades curse and cry out loud. The tales about the savages of the Devil's Lair were terrifying, to say the least. And, as it turned out, the stories were not only true but potentially worse than anticipated. That's not all. Knight Lias encountered not only the savages. Thorian told himself. They died as well, all of them.

Thorian was not even a Knight yet, so he could only fathom what would happen to him if he were the one to encounter the savages. He too would have died.

"More Seekers and Scouts will move out for reconnaissance, but we won't know more about the savages' whereabouts, habitat, and population for some time. Reinforcements have been requested, but for now we are on our own." Knight Lias explained.

"We will move through known areas, cleanse them of corruption, and follow the Mage's guidance to locate more suitable Dungeon entrances." The Alliance may have lost several Knights to the Devil's Lair already, but the campaign had performed better than the nobility had anticipated. Several Dungeons had already been located and claimed, and some had already been closed for various benefits.

Several trainees had awakened their Will Seed, and from what Thorian had heard, a few Squires had gained something valuable enough from their Dungeon conquests to awaken their Will Seed as well. They would soon become Knights, leaving him behind in the process. I am tired of falling behind everyone else. He too wanted to enter a Dungeon and conquer it. To advance to a proper Knight, and maybe even to fight those savages and lay claim to the Devil's Lair.

After all, that was what the leaders of the Alliance had promised. Those who contributed the most to the extermination of the savages would be given land and title. A portion of the Devil's Lair, to be precise, and that was invaluable. After all, how many nobles could brag about the wide variety of Dungeons in their fiefdom? Almost no one… except for Thorian Blainslay… soon enough. Watch me, father. I will show you what I'm capable of!