As usual, news of the hero spread quickly.
The great part is that it did not spread as much it could. The forest folk were excited to hear of the emergence of a hero, even though it was just a skill. It's just that they already had all their hopes in someone else – the queen – Xarion. As it goes, she is actually one of the most powerful beings. And her spirits are even stronger. She could summon an army just as the Knight – an even larger one at that.
So, the Knight only felt relatively new believers this time.
The Knight couldn't care any less though. It entered its chambers. The legion had a week to rest as they waited for news from HQ. Solace had a mental link using someone with the calling skill. It establishes a psychic connection similar to that between the Knight and its own army.
It's a simple skill to learn. It has even been monetised. The guild also has similar deals for clients to track their issued requests. Seneschal Devan said she should stand by while they look for other more pressing areas. They also want more data regarding the darkness and its erratic behaviour.
In a weeks' time, the orders will be issued out. Usually, the marshals should be doing this, but all of them are busy in an active zone. Even the grandmaster was sent out on a special mission – the order came from the Laurels.
'I really wanted to go to the guild, but the recent situation might make it hard to find quests worth my time – not to mention the hero thing. I guess I'll just have to focus on the plan.'
The Knight sent out for its army – telling them to use [Camouflage] and [Sense Manipulation], the dragons stayed back. There was something it wanted them to look into. The things had no intelligence whatsoever. But using their shared sense manipulation, the Knight is able to use them to spy. The sharing of these warped senses would have killed anyone else – since their vessels were the bodies of monsters – and monsters as well as void beings have a warped sense of perception.
'While they are busy with that, I have something else to do.'
The Knight walked outside the balcony. Its room was only this luxurious because it was a knight, Bachelor. As with many other things, it had no meaning to the Knight. It then continued its conversation with Mugaw, one about the incredible opportunity it had stumbled upon during the queen's story.
"You really think they will let you sleep for a week at minimum without any form of interactions Boss."
'It doesn't matter.'
…
'I can feel it.'
The Knight knew where the monster that fought the queen is.
The Knight then teleported near it – there was no way to be sure it was it though. Then it used sense manipulation and camouflage itself. The Knight did not have a detection skill. The fauna was thick, the vines wide. If not for the fact it could see in the dark, the Knight would have also been blind.
"Are you sure?"
The Knight chose not to answer Mugaw. It was trying to feel it. Something was resonating with the Knight. And it was sure. It also wanted to keep a distance so that it was not detected. This was a suspicion the Knight had gotten ever since awaking, but only after coming back and hearing Queen Xarion's story was the Knight sure about it.
Being this close, it was even more certain now.
'It's here…!'
The Knight is no human and has no human emotions. And even though one could not see inside the helmet. One look at its eyes one could feel the sinister grin plastered all over its face. Because inside its helmet, the mangled flesh, the eternally splintered jaw bones somehow grinned bigger than any man could. Habits were really hard to kill for in this moment. The Knight knew no joy, but the simple elation it felt towards the discovery was making it feel pure Malevolent Glee?
In this moment, all its believers shook, feeling a dark chill run down their spines.
'Must be the believers emotions affecting me.'
One could become evil just by witnessing this grin, it felt wilder than that of a rabid beast. It was inhuman, and even more so it was the most human thing the Knight could ever do.
It peaked behind the trunk of the massively overgrown trees, and it saw it. A Book.
Yes – a book, to be more precise – The Book.
***
(This is a flashback to a few hours ago, in the castle, the part of the queen's story that had interested the Knight – making its greed bare its fangs, and bite through its armour.
"… This monster was strong enough; the problem though lie elsewhere."
"What do you mean?" Asked the Paladin Adriel.
"Well, it had a spell book of sorts."
"A spell book? Like the ones mages carry. Aren't they rare."
"Yes, but not this one. It was like a spell book, but none like I have ever seen. I myself had to learn spells from our archives, but this was something else. The Book itself felt more dangerous than the monster. It kept reciting those words and every time it did things became worse."
She winced as she said the following. "That thing even taunted me by using my own spells. I realised once it was gone that the spell it used is only known by me and me alone after my mother's passing."
She relaxed and appeared lazy, probably because she was sick of having to think of this thing. "I did some investigating. You can go hear the full story from one of the guards in the ICU. She was too battered to speak, but she insisted on telling me before she forgot. So, if you go to her can you please keep in mind her current state.
She said reading that spell book not only killed that thing, but it also created it and gave it all that power it has. I have heard rumours about these types of books, but after seeing it myself I believe it. The book was an artifact not for this world. Quite frankly, they should not be."
'It couldn't be –'
The Knight then stepped into the conversation, "About this book...?"
Zoldi hit the Knights helmet – and hid her pain. "You should not interrupt the queen when she's speaking junior."
Solace had an almost emotion like expression on her helmet, not like they could tell. It felt more like rage? It was soon quelled when the queen spoke.
"It's okay. I don't mind. He should try to be more thoughtful next time."
The Knight could not care, but it needed the answer, so it nodded in agreeance. Greed was eating it inside out. The Knight was feeling its draw back, it was literally knowing at its soul. Ever since making it to the woods and waking it has felt something off. It has managed to ignore it until now, but hearing what the queen was saying, did not help.
"Ask your question."
"Was the book sized to fit its grip, and in anyway, did it look an ancient book."
"Yes, in fact it did. How did you know have you seen one?"
"I have…"
Later on, after the meeting, the Knight pulled Poli to the side using her arm. She was a little startled but not surprised. The Knight was failing to contain its curiosity, malice, and greed. To the Knight these were one. As such it pulled her at a higher speed. Almost as if it was in battle, not to mention it had the void armament.
'If I am right about this. It is the book, one of them anyway. And best of all, it's still right here in the woods. I don't know why the queen can't sense the monster. But I, I can feel something else, the link to the book. And if so, I need to hurry.'
"Poli, do you mind healing someone for me?"
"Huh?!"
The Knight even forgot to sigh like it would in this situation. "Madam knight Bachelor Poli, can you please heal someone for me." – she had insisted on the manners back at Arulli. Until the Knight became a fully-fledged knight, Bachelor.
"That's better. I know who you're talking about, let's go. You wanna ask that guard about the story don't you."
The Knight was silent. So, she just spoke. "No need to worry, I was going to heal all of them anyway, but remember, you owe me one for this."
They walked down the hallway and reached the infirmary. Poli had ordered one of her squadrons to help. She herself went for the priority patient. They turned around the corner and the whisper spoke.
You have encountered a level 239 Forest Folk, Basil. Type-Elite Guard.
The reason the Knight wanted Poli, was because her healing was instant. She entered the room. Basil was asleep, visibly in pain. The Ellerian guard did have healers, but most had died when they were with the Knights. The ones alive are helping the towns, some aren't here, and the few in the palace heal slower, and there are more patients. Waiting would take too long.
Once they got in, her barrier activated, it spread and covered the both of them. Basil was bathed in pure white light as her injuries vanished. The Knight was too impatient to even analyse how light elementals use the basis of the power of a paladin.
She walked out of the room. "I still have other people to heal, just tell me the whole story later, okay?"
…
"Okay?!"
The Knight then nodded. It had to wait for half an hour. Being patient was near impossible, especially since greed caused existential pain. So, the Knight waited just enough after her waking to ask her for the full story.
"Who are you?"
"I am the knight Bachelor known as Knight. I am here to hear the story the monster told you, especially the parts regarding the book."
"Oh!... that thing. Some parts of its story seem wrong, how could one die reading a book…"
She then regaled the Knight the tale. It made the whole thing clearer.
'Now, I am slightly surer that it is the book, but somethings I have to confirm. For one, how did a monster come to come into possession of one? I got the book of souls from my will, the void, and a dungeon contract aligning. And if this is it then this might just mean I can do it earlier than I had anticipated.'
This brings us back to the present.)
***
The Knight glared at the book, it looked different from its own, but there was no mistaking it. It is one of the books in the series of knowledge. Then it stopped hiding and headed down by teleporting. The Knight then ran into a barrier similar to the walls of cities. It seemed to negate spatial skills.
'I guess this is why the queen could not sense it. But this is not enough to stop me.'
The armament was already active, so the Knight just let some of the void to leak out; after covering a certain section, it activated its power.
"[Daunting]!"
Nothing was happening, since this was a spell and not a power. But that was not it – it had something else in mind.
"[Visage of Terror]!"
Then its hand reached onto the barrier, it warped and did not break. Then the Knight pushed on it. Then it increased its strength by adding more void armament onto its armour. Then the Knight grabbed the barrier and tore it open.
'The queen sure did a number on you, even this barrier isn't as powerful as it could be.'
Suddenly a forest folk in tethered robes and bloodied in rotten thick blood. The robes were like a more basic ancient version of the ones worn by the forest folk today. It even reminded the Knight of Cathina the ice mage. The usually pale skin of forest folk was now a deep reddish pink. The stars on it had even lost their radiance.
On its forehead inscribed in black bold letters the word – translated by [Gift of Speech], 'Keeper' – of the book probably. It was tall and lanky. Its legs were crooked but not broken. And on its chest, instead of ribs was a cage of bones that shone like tough metal. And instead of organs or anything similar, was the book, perched inside like a princess.
It looked at the Knight and smiled. The voice was not as boyish as Basil had said. This voice was full of confidence and made those who heard it feel instant hatred. It was consistent and smooth, made to tempt the weak to listen. The voice carried with it a silent malice, an academic understanding, and a forgotten tone – one of the damned.
"Oh, oh, what do we have here? I was sure I was not going to receive guests tonight."
The Knight felt irritated, 'no wonder the queen sounded so cranky.'
You have encountered a level 341 monster, Keeper of spells - Kaiper. Type-Mage. Title-Lord of Spells.