The afternoon air smelt of lush green as Emil and Aelia watched the overseer of Marbran, one of the free cities, complete his ritual.
He'd surrendered.
After Jasmine had risen to rank six, he had gone on a solo campaign against the free cities.
They hadn't gotten the chance to hear word of Thena's decimation in Gritjor by the time he arrived.
"He's like a demigod," Aelia had told Emil.
He had the air of one, too; something seemed different about him. He was distant and mysterious, though his smile remained the same.
At rank five, she'd been afraid of him as one is of authority, but now, there was a slight, almost religious reverence.
This was especially true regarding his space-path abilities.
His teleportation had received a significant boost compared to the previous times they'd traveled with him, and his other skills, like concealment and rifts, were nearly impossible to prepare against without prior knowledge.
