Under the bright morning sun, a man with thick black hair and deep blue eyes sat on the veranda in front of the pond.
His eyes reflected the silhouette of a young lady waving her rapier, her Catalyst, destroying one log after another, trying to maintain the precision and speed of each strike. She did this yesterday, today, and will come here tomorrow as part of her training.
Step. Step. Step.
There was the sound of hurried footsteps from the side, followed by an excited shout:
"Servant Hanor!" The common man, no... one of the Heaven Dwellers exclaimed, waving his hand.
Hanor did not even turn his head, watching the girl's progress intently.
"What happened?"
"Agh... Agh... Agh..." The man's breathing was ragged. "Iron Chain Village, they... they killed the light guard patrol!"
Strangely enough, Hanor was not surprised, showing no emotion on his face. He knew that sooner or later this would happen, that it had to happen.
"Barna was the first? I didn't expect that from her. It seems her concern for the common people forced her to take extreme measures."
"Sir."
"Hmm?"
"It wasn't Barna. It was done by some unknown man. He's definitely not one of the villagers. We don't know if he's an Origin or not."
Hanor narrowed his eyes. If this unknown man was in league with Barna, then that was already two Origins who had gone against the Golden Light.
Obviously, Hanor couldn't ignore this.
"I'm going down to Iron Chain Village right now, along with Lady Elyra."
"Y-Yes!" The man bowed his head.
Hanor stood up and clapped his hands once.
Clap.
Elyra stopped abruptly and turned toward him as her long blonde hair and amber, almost golden eyes reflected the sun.
"We have work to do, Elyra. It will be good for you to gain experience as our master's heir. This is important first and foremost for the Golden Light, not for you. Remember that."
...
Crack.
The heavy redwood doors opened as Hanor and Elyra entered the vault full of treasures. They had come here for one specific thing—the golden orb at the far end.
Elyra looked around curiously. She had only been here a few times, and now she was nervous about the risk of a rebellion below.
"Hanor, shouldn't we report this to Luras and—!"
SLAP!
Without hesitation, Hanor's palm slammed into Elyra's face as her head snapped to the side.
"Lady Elyra, even if you are the future heir, you must not forget your manners. Even for you, it is Master Luras and nothing else."
Deep hurt reflected in Elyra's eyes, but she did not respond and just nodded.
"I understand."
"Good." Hanor turned around. "Last month, during the execution, you performed excellently, ruthlessly killing three villagers."
Elyra nodded.
"They deserved it! They should be grateful that they are still alive and working for the glory of the Golden Light!"
Apparently, Ardur wasn't the only person in this region with a dark heart.
"Indeed." Hanor picked up the golden orb, staring intently at the intricate artifact.
"But why are we going down there together? Although I'll be happy to help you in battle!"
Hanor waved his hand as he headed for the exit.
"Don't overestimate yourself, Elyra. We can't bother Master Luras over such a trifle. You are coming with me to see how to suppress rebellions and how to fight against other Origins. You will watch and learn."
Every word he spoke exuded arrogance and confidence.
"Then why do we need this?" Elyra pointed to the golden orb.
Hanor raised an eyebrow as if laughing at her silly question.
"Even if there are two Origins, as I suspect, I don't need help. I can easily handle them alone. This Artifact is for your safety. You are still too weak, unfortunately."
Soon, they reached the edge of the Chain Island, where Hanor approached the Iron Chain and stamped his foot.
The runes glowed brightly along the chain as a long staircase of golden energy formed in front of Hanor and Elyra. This power came directly from the Chain Island, as long as the chain was connected to it.
"Come on. The day has come for another execution, and perhaps this time one of the villages will lose someone more important than simple miners." Hanor narrowed his eyes as he looked at Barna's house on the edge of the village.
Elyra gulped, ready for battle. More than anything else in the world, she wanted Hanor and Luras to look at her with pride, seeing her as a worthy ally and leader.
What she would have to do to achieve this, how many innocent people might suffer, did not matter to her. She saw no value in the lives of those who lived at the lower ring.
Step.
They descended the last step as the golden staircase behind them shattered into a myriad of fragments.
Ahead of them lay Iron Chain Village.
But...
Hanor frowned.
Something was wrong.
"How quiet."
There was not a single person to be seen in the village, neither Barna, nor miners, nor ordinary villagers.
There was only one exception: a dead light guard in the center of the square, his body impaled on an iron rod like a stake, along with his severed head.
Elyra wanted to step forward, but Hanor stopped her with a wave of his hand. No matter how he felt about her, he couldn't put her in danger because of her role.
His experience was enough to understand that only an ambush awaited them ahead.
"Just think, they're actually trying to go against the Golden Light.
Agh, Elyra, stay here and watch how to suppress rebellions, how to crush the will of your enemies before your eyes even meet."
Hanor reached out as his energy flowed toward the golden orb.
The orb trembled and soared high into the air, hovering over Iron Chain Village like a silent overseer.
Tremble.
With the next tremor, the golden ring emerged from the orb, covering the entire Iron Chain Village with a dome that did not affect Hanor and Elyra.
Barna, who, like the others, was hiding in a shelter, looked in horror at the runes before her.
[You are under the influence of the Orb of Righteous Control. Until the artifact is destroyed or you escape from under the barrier, your powers are blocked.]
However, Hanor did not think that was enough. He wanted Barna and her allies to lose all will to fight before the battle even began.
Whoooooooosh.
His eyes flashed as the golden ring appeared in his hand. With a grim look, Hanor destroyed the ring with his powerful grip:
"The Bone Watcher, come forth!"
The surface trembled as two bone arms emerged from the ground. Soon, a huge skeleton with three heads emerged, towering over the village. Only heavy, cold chains and torn fabric covered its great body.
With one action, Hanor equated the enemy Origins with ordinary people, and with another, he showed his full power by summoning his creature.
This should have been enough to break anyone's will to fight and plunge the enemies' minds into terror.
Barna's face, pale as a sheet of paper, was direct proof of this.
But...
Someone had a completely different opinion.
Amidst the darkness, Ardur's insidious grin revealed itself as he watched the events unfold through a gap in the debris.
'So this is another Catalyst Type? Well, I didn't know he could rob us of our powers, but that's no problem. Three against one and...'
His cunning gaze fell on the bag of dark red crystals emitting a gloomy, pernicious aura.
'The time has come to use these crystals for their intended purpose!'
Perhaps Hanor had succeeded in breaking Barna's will, and that would have happened to most Origins in her place.
However, Hanor did not know that Ardur's will went far beyond this village. He would not rest until he destroyed perfection, and this battle would be only the first big step towards that goal.