Maria was the first to wake, blinking against the bright sunlight streaming into the carriage. It was morning.
"We are just 1 km away," Charl's voice came from the front. "I will leave you at half that distance. You will have to go the rest of the way on your own."
Maria nodded. "Okay." She then turned and vigorously shook Kael and Brad awake.
Kael groaned, his mind foggy with sleep. I want sleep... where are we? Brad's thoughts were a similar,groggy mess. Ooooh god, I want to sleep.
Kael rubbed his eyes and looked at Charl. "Sir, can you tell us exactly where we have to fight?"
Maria answered for him. "He will leave us at the edge of the forest. We have to walk from there."
Kael's eyes widened in shock. "So how will we be able to see a Bore? Or Bores? We could walk right into an ambush!"
Charl didn't turn around. "That's the difficult task that Marions have. You have to find them by yourselves from there. Tracking, sensing their mana, anticipating their movements—it's all part of the job."
Kael leaned back in his seat, a determined look replacing his shock. "Fine. I can do it. I've come this far. It will be easy." The words were more for himself than anyone else.
Charl smiled. "You have a very brave heart, boy."
Kael's eyes then fell on Brad, who had already fallen back asleep, his head lolling against the carriage wall. Annoyed, Kael looked at Maria. "Can you slap this bastard, Brad?"
Maria was taken aback. "Why?" Then she followed his gaze and saw Brad, fast asleep again. Her irritation flared. "Brad!!" she shouted.
Brad jolted awake. "Yeah? What happened?" "Don't you dare go back to sleep!"Maria scolded.
Before another word could be exchanged, Charl announced, "We are at your destination, guys. Grab your bags."
The carriage came to a halt. The three recruits stepped out, their bags slung over their shoulders, and stared at the imposing wall of trees before them. The forest was ancient and vast, the sunlight struggling to pierce the thick canopy.
Kael swallowed hard. Wow, this forest... it's so big. I don't think we can find a Bore easily in this.
"Goodbye, guys," Charl said, his expression grim. "I hope you will win." With a final nod, he cracked the reins, and the carriage rolled away, leaving the three teenagers alone at the edge of the wilderness.
They stood in silence for a moment before Maria turned to them, her voice dropping to a serious whisper. "Shhh! Don't say anything. I've heard that Bores can hear even our heartbeats. Their ears are very powerful. And don't forget, we are dealing with a Manio-rank Bore. This will be difficult. After entering this forest, we must walk with light feet."
Kael and Brad both nodded, the gravity of the situation finally settling on them. They took their first cautious steps into the shadows of the trees, their senses on high alert.
---
Meanwhile, back in Valarus, Jaxon Alfred sat in his vast, silent library. Dust motes danced in the slivers of light falling across an ancient, leather-bound book open on his desk. Its title was etched in fading gold leaf: The War of One.
The name was given to the conflict because of one man: Arthur Throne.
Jaxon's finger traced the lines of text as he read the tragic history.
He was alone, and against him was the whole world. Arthur Throne was not always a monster. He wanted to give everyone a peaceful life. The Death God, Zinos, promised him the ability to create a heaven-like world where no one would feel anger or jealousy.
He had only two men he trusted after the death of his wife, who was pregnant. His own friend, Borin Warnus, killed her on the order of the king because he was loyal to his monarch. It is said Borin cried while killing the wife of his friend.
The only two men who stood by Arthur were a person named Ziras Warmen, who had power equal to a World Beast and who believed Arthur was right—that this world was despair—and another named William Arnus, also called the Swordgod. Arthur, Borin, William, and Ziras were once all Primarch Marions, brothers in arms.
But when King Kiros Kranus, a ruler who thought only of himself, grew fearful of a prophecy, he ordered Borin to kill Arthur's wife and unborn child. Borin begged the king a hundred times, but the king did not relent.
Borin betrayed Arthur and his friends and killed his wife, a woman named Eloria Silvana.
When Arthur heard, he cried for ten days. People thought he had gone mad. But his two remaining friends, Ziras and William, grabbed his arms and told him, "We will never let you down. We will kill all those who did this."
But something had awakened in Arthur. He was speaking with another presence: the fallen God of Death, Zinos. The god promised him power, and in his bottomless grief, Arthur accepted.
Ziras and William then betrayed the kingdom for their friend and announced a war against the world. Arthur, with his new power, cleared his entire kingdom of life.
But Borin was still alive. In the war that followed, Borin killed Arthur's two loyal friends, Ziras and William first. This act sent Arthur into an even deeper rage. With the power of Zinos, he wiped out fifty percent of humanity.
The text then describes Zinos speaking in Arthur's mind: "I know, Arthur, you have suffered so much, like me. My siblings, the other gods, betrayed me because I killed their creator, a universal being named Goron."
Zinos killed Goron because the creator god disliked the necessity of death and tried to seal Zinos away. While Goron was unarmed, Zinos struck him down. The other gods, enraged, managed to seal Zinos, but only because he was weak and without a vessel.
At the end, it was Borin who finally sealed Arthur away. But there is no clue as to where Arthur is sealed or how he can be unsealed. Before Borin could tell anyone, he died from his wounds. But with his last breath, he uttered a prophecy.
Jaxon closed the heavy book with a soft thud and sighed, the weight of centuries and forgotten bloodshed pressing down on him in the quiet library. He looked toward the window, as if he could see all the way to the forest where three young students were now walking into danger.
A danger whose roots were buried deep in the tragedy he had just read.
(Chapter 13 Fin)