" Alex! ALEX!"
A rough tap shook me halting the movement of my sword.
"Haa, hhaah." Exhaustion hit me as I closed the folds of my eyes, the sun was scorching.
"I have been calling you, didn't you hear me?" Alice's enraged voice ruptured the air, "I'm sorry. I was training." Taking a look at the wooden sword it was smeared with blood, cuts and bruises on my arms.
" What is wrong with you, is it your family or are the nobles bullying you again?"
" Haa-Nothing." I took a look at the sword, my arms were shaking, tired and limp. "How long has it been? "
"About 12 hours. We were just about to see the city you coming? " Alice squinted at my face, she flicked my hair back.
She grew more sullen, " What's going on Alex?"
" I don't know but I feel like something ominous is coming. " I said hesitantly.
" How ominous?" She stared deep into my eyes, her intent to draw her sword visibly naked. "I don't know okay, just take it easy. Let me freshen up and I will join you."
I walked past her to the inn, " I must work harder, he is coming. He is coming." Like a mantra I chanted to myself. Even for a minute I had not forgotten my dream, the man with black hair and eyes. Eyes so dead you could lose meaning of your life just by looking into them. I could still feel the desperation. I had taken so many potions to keep me awake at night to run away from him, so I trained day and night. I had grown stronger but not enough cause I'm still afraid, recalling my trembling self I held the wooden sword tighter.
" I'm finally a warrior but should I continue being a swordsman?" I asked the vagabond wind.
There are two main paths to power in mergard, the path of a warrior or a magician. Each having three apprentices ranks followed by a rank up to magician or warrior. At the mage rank, apprentices would choose their primary and secondary elements. Of course those who chose their affinities as their primary and second elements would be stronger and reach higher ranks much easier. From a mage then to master magician> grandmaster magician> Saint magician.
For a warrior, once they rank up they would choose their specialization becoming a hunter, archer, assassin or a knight. Knights could be a heavy class or light class. Tanks were heavy classes and swordsman or dual wielder or spearman were light classes of knights. So Alex was confused on what path to take. He needed power but not paper thin power, solid power to resist "Him."
After choosing their specialization like mages they would advance over the ranks of Master, grandmaster and saint warrior. No knew what was the peak of power or if had ever existed many civilizations had been lost and their salvaged records incoherent.
Alex walked into the adventurer's guild of Liberia.
Around 360 miles from the city of Liberia...
" You fuckers, I'm really gonna kill you!" Nathaniel cursed as he coughed blood. He leaned on a tree as he scoped up ahead at the bandits attempting to encircle him.
" Why is a master magician here?" He was surprised well not really, " Fuck my luck." Taking a moment, he rushed out as mana arrows in the tens shot into the thicket of trees. " Nature magic; Thorny embrace." From around Nathaniel's foot vines shot up attempting to bind him. " Crystal spikes!" Studs of crystal spikes dismembered the vines as screams of panic and pleas for help came from the humble bandits.
" Lord Lobos, Please stop. My men, you are killing them!" The bandit leader pleaded.
" It's all for the cause, their sacrifice is not in vain." Lobos answered, " We just need to capture him, he alone is worth a thousand commoners. His surging vitality, oohh how delicious his soul must be..." Lobos said as the death aura of the vines sucked the life force of the forest.
The bandit leader could only mutter " I'm sorry." in shame, they were forced to work for Lobos since they were weaker, other than plundering they kidnapped the people as part of the agreement. They grew rich within a fortnight but ever since a few days ago Nathaniel had been chipping away at their numbers till the current confrontation.
" It seems you lot have not changed." An aged voice said suppressing the winds, mana became alien in the surroundings as magic rebound hit Nathaniel and Lobos full force. Two explosions occurred as an old man without shoes stepped on the thorny vines, eradicating them with each step.
Lobos caught sight of the man, his eyes widened and immediately every fiber of his being screamed; RUN!
" Please spare me!" Lobos begged bowing down.
" Not a chance." The old voice replied. With that, Lobos from the knees started turning into ashes, this was accompanied by the squealing of a rat caught and toasted on open fire. A crest of bones forming a ring with a flickering flame centroid was all that remained. " Whoosh." It flew into the sky unsuccessfully.
Thumb! THUMB! THUMB! Nathaniel's heart was roaring!
" I just wanna go home. Fuck! How hard is it just to get home!" He was leaking liquids right now, sweat and piss from sheer terror and he still hadn't caught sight of who yet. From his now advanced physique he could tell this was bad news, it didn't get any worse than this.
" Why don't you come out?" The old voice said.
" I'M HERE!" Nathaniel screamed jumping out from behind the tree. " Shit." He cursed looking slightly ashen, " Why don't you just kill me, fuck! I'm tired of this. I'm always running, running into this, fearing that, signing this. Fuck it, just kill me I'm tired of this shit. The war, the chimera, Rodrick, Morbius and even Rose, ROSE!! It's in the fucking name, ROSE. Your supposed to be tender, loving and a valentine, its Rose you know from Roses.
And now I'm heading to Liberia, to be liberated from this shit fate. BUT! Fate is showing the middle finger, ' You can't just be normal, they say.' Well fuck them, if this is what it affords you then I'm fine!" Nathaniel ranted, his vexation naked.
" You done?" The aged voice asked with amusement.
" Yeah." Nathaniel said, he no longer felt the suppressive aura as sensation of mana returned to him.
" Who are you? All beings of mergard origin die in the absence of mana. So who are you?" A bare footed old man approached in steady steps, he was calm with some Buddhist aura Nathaniel mused. His feet sank into the earth with no trace, Nathaniel gulped at the sight. Life force surged into the withered plants as the man waved his hands, the death aura was absorbed into him. " What?!" It was a sight, shrubs grew visibly to the naked eye, it was like creation. At that moment Nathaniel knew and felt as his racing heart calmed the meaning of transcendence.
" I'm Ivar, Ivar Silus or you can call me Millennium twilight, of course those who know me by that name have arrived in the underworld."