Captain Lace and his men emerged from the treeline into a clearing near the side of the mountain.
"I thought you said it was under construction, Daravin,"
Lace said, sliding his sword halfway from its sheath. "Were you lying to me?"
"N-no, sir! Of course not. They must've finished while we were on the way,"
Daravin chuckled nervously, rubbing his hands together.
"Right. Regardless—show us the inside," Lace said, sheathing his blade.
"Of course, sir. But I have to grab the keys from the cave just around the corner. I keep my most valuable materials in there, so I keep it locked tight."
Daravin pointed toward a trail that wrapped around the mountain's edge.
"Half of you, with me. The rest, stay and secure the perimeter," Lace ordered.
"Yes, sir!" six voices responded in unison. Three vanished in a blur to secure the area, while the others followed Lace and Daravin around the trail.
⸻
"Hehe, here we are, Captain. Just downthese stairs—I've got a little makeshift office. The keys hang right beside the desk," Daravin said, that same twisted smile spreading across his face.
"I'll go first," Lace muttered, sword in hand.
As he stepped into the dim chamber at the bottom of the stairs, a gust of air blew his silver hair loose from its slicked-back style.
"HAHAHA! Behold, my greatest creation by far! I call it… the Gatekeep—eh?"
Daravin rushed ahead and dropped to his knees, stunned by the sight before him.
The Gatekeeper's corpse lay cleaved in two. Its stitched-together human and demon body was torn open. A broken mana crystal glimmered faintly in its chest.
"What… WHAT HAPPENED?! I even used an S-rank demon as the base! HOW—how did it die?!"
Daravin was in shock.
Lace walked up behind him and rested the edge of his sword on Daravin's shoulder.
"Get up. You're under arrest for crimes against the crown and for mass murder."
Daravin didn't resist. He slowly stood, eyes wide. "I… I don't understand… how is this possible?"
One of the guards took Daravin into custody and led him out of the cave. Lace remained, his gaze fixed on the body. His expression hardened as he recognized the human half.
It was his informant.
He lowered his head in silent prayer.
⸻
"Do you think you could've killed it?" Adian asked, walking in after sweeping the rest of the cave.
Lace didn't turn. "Only if I fought with everything I had. And even then… maybe. Barely."
They stood in silence, staring down at the Gatekeeper's corpse.
Adian shuddered in fear at the thought of fighting such a monster. Lace felt only sorrow.
"How's the rest of the cave?" Lace asked, breaking the silence.
"Twenty more corpses, all similar. There's also a containment device—metal I've never seen before. Whatever was inside, had blown open the wall from the inside. There's a surveillance crystal, too. It's pretty damaged but I got it from inside the box, so maybe we can use it to tell us just what Daravin had contained inside it. Otherwise, the place is cleared out."
"Were the others as strong as this one?" Lace asked.
Adian shook his head. "No, sir. Not even close. But from the look of it, even the weaker ones would've taken a full A-rank Guardian squad to put down."
"I see…" Lace murmured. "And this lab was just kilometers from the city. If they had escaped…"
A soldier burst into the room, panting.
"Captain! You need to see this—right away."
The man hesitated as he passed the Gatekeeper's corpse, visibly shaken.
"It's the cabin, sir… just like you suspected. It's horrifying."
⸻
The log cabin was worse than the cave.
Inside, female body parts hung from hooks. Diagrams of demon and human anatomy covered the walls. A pile of demon corpses lay stacked on an operating table. Buckets overflowed with blood and gore. The stench was unbearable.
Adian gagged and covered his nose. "This is… this is just wrong."
Lace said nothing. He walked slowly, absorbing everything. He found a stack of documents and flipped through the pages, scanning notes and formulas.
"Take anything useful. Burn the rest. Leave nothing. Stack the corpses in the cave and burn them too."
"Yes, sir!"
Lace exited the building and approached Daravin.
"Who taught you these methods? Where did you get the demon bodies?"
Daravin didn't respond. He stared at the ground, eyes glazed.
"She was perfect… my masterpiece…"
Lace clicked his tongue and turned away.
"Adian. I'm heading back to the church to file the report. I'll take the surveillance crystal to the Church of Order—see if they can retrieve the memories. Detain Daravin at the jailhouse until the Death Corps pick him up."
"Yes, sir!"
⸻
At the capital of the Althanis Empire…
A woman sat on a grand obsidian throne, long red hair cascading in fiery waves down her back with sections of it braided. Her eyes, glowing like molten rubies, scanned the court with thinly veiled boredom. Gold embroidery trimmed her sleek black gown that reveled a fine figure, one that was elegant and curvy but also hardened by countless battles, and a crown glittered with purple gems rested on her brow. A black-hilted sword leaned against the throne beside her.
She tapped her fingers on the armrest.
"How many more of these do I have left, Advisor?"
A man in green linen with a small bun hat took a step forward and bowed.
"This is the last one, Your Majesty."
He said sheepishly and then fell back in line.
"Hmph. Very well."
A scribe entered, bowing as he opened a massive book.
"Your Majesty," he said reverently, "I bring news from the Church of Order. The Book of Skills—blessed by the goddess herself—has recorded four new skills today."
The queen stopped tapping her finger. She sat upright.
"After centuries of silence, she finally moves…" she muttered.
"What are the names of these skills and their descriptions?" she demanded.
The scribe looked uncomfortable. "Yes, Your Majesty… but the names and descriptions are… odd."
"Speak."
The scribe read aloud, word for word:
'Mana Vision I Guess (C)'
'Phantom Step (F)'
'Go Away Can't You Tell I'm Busy (A)'
'Nova Bomb (A)'
The court went silent.
The queen stared, mouth slightly agape.
"…She was drunk. She had to be drunk."
The court held their breath.
She slumped back in her throne, hand on her forehead. "Mana Vision I Guess?! Go Away Can't You Tell I'm Busy?! What kind of names are these?!"
But after a beat, she composed herself. "Still… they're strong. Especially Mana Vision. It Suits my job well."
She stood and addressed the room.
"Hear me, all of you! Whoever brings me a guardian with any one of these skills shall be rewarded with 100,000 Guardian Coins and granted one selection from the Imperial Treasury."
Her voice echoed across the chamber.
The moment she exited, the court exploded into chaos—each noble racing to be the first to find the skill user. Pushing and shoving each other to leave the throne room. Others stood their in disbelief that new skills had been created.
⸻
Later, in her private chambers, the queen removed her crown and stared out the window at the glowing city below.
"Nella," she said softly.
A hooded figure appeared behind her, kneeling silently.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"If new skills are forming, that means the demons are stirring again. Investigate the northern border for any breaches. Then head southeast—to a town called Homedge. Something strange is happening there. Find out everything."
Without a word, Nella vanished.
The queen remained at the window, her expression distant. Sad. Lonely.
"…Guess I'll go train," she said quietly, grabbing her sword and stepping into the night.
⸻
Back at the jailhouse…
Two guards shoved Daravin into a cell, laughing.
"Hope you like your new cellmate, Daravin—he's probably crazier than you are."
They locked the door and left.
Daravin dusted himself off, muttering under his breath—only to hear a voice from behind.
"Well hello there."
Daravin spun around. A mostly-naked man with wild hair and a ripped physique lay on a straw mat, one leg stretched out, the other propped up. One hand scratched his stomach; the other cradled his head.
He smiled lazily.
"Um… hello. I'm Daravin. And you are?"
"Basileus Narciss. I'm from out of town," he replied cheerfully.
"Oh. Uh… nice to meet you, Basileus. Um… where are your clothes?"
"Ah. My clothes? Yeah, no idea. Woke up one day with none. The draft felt nice, so I just… didn't bother."
Daravin blinked. "Right…"
He sat on his straw bed, still eyeing Basil suspiciously.
"So… what are you in for?"
"Not much. Just running around town naked and beating up a fat guy for picking on a little girl."
Basil laughed. "You should've seen his face!"
Daravin chuckled awkwardly.
"Oh. Not what I expected. I thought you were some kind of maniacal murderer."
Basil waved him off. "Nah. But hey, if you are, ill snap your neck."
Daravin's eyes twitched.
"Well, I'm a genius in evolutionary magic. My project would've changed history—until the Church of Death ruined it. I'll get my revenge on them. And that monster…the one who mutilated my greatest creation like it was a sack of potatoes"
He giggled darkly.
"Wow. Sounds like those guys suck," Basil said flatly, thinking: This guy thinks I'm the wacko? Please.
"Do you have an escape plan, Basileus?"
"Escape? Nah, last time it took me 600 years to get out of a meat box. Probably not the best guy to ask."
In truth, Basil had already mapped out 42 escape strategies the moment they locked the door. But the guard had said it was only a 3-day sentence, so he kept calm… on the outside.
Inside? He was screaming.
Daravin blinked. 600 years does he think this is a joke? Why the hell am I in here with this lunatic?
"Well… I'll get us both out," Daravin said with dramatic conviction.
"Sure, sure. Whatever you say, man."
Suddenly, a guard approached.
"Oi, homeless man. Someone paid your bail. Let's go, nutjob—they're waiting outside."
Basil sprang up with excitement, practically strutting out.
Who the hell paid my bail at this hour?
⸻
Outside the jail, Gyra stood waiting.
She wore a floral dress and held a basket of warm bread and milk. A soft smile lit her face.
"Hello, sir," she said sweetly.
Basil blinked. Stunned by her beauty.
Then smiled back.
❧
End of chapter notes:
Stats Window:
- Name: Basileus Narciss
- Age: 22 (629)
- Level: 75
- Job: Eldritch knight
- Title: Goddess's Guardian
- HP: 200/200
- Mana: 32,000/32,000
- STR: 205
- VIT: 80
- INT: 170
- AGI: 112
- PER: 60
- XP to Next Level: 12,000/30,000
- stat points available: 62
- Skill Points Available: 10
Skills Window:
Basic:
- Innocence (F)
- The King (A)
- Swordsmanship (S)
- Mana Control (SSS)
- Charisma (F)
- Crafting (B)
- Longsword Mastery (S)
- Mana Manipulation (F)
- Rune Knowledge (B)
- Healing (C)
- Scholar (A)
- Mana Vision I Guess (C)
- phantom step (F)
- mana slash (D)
- Earth spike (B)
- body reinforcement (D)
- Kneel (F)
- nova bomb (A)
- Mana regeneration (S+)
- poison resistance (F)
- GO AWAY CAN'T YOU TELL I'M BUSY' (A)
Unique:
- Immortality (EX)
- Oversight View (EX)
- Haggle (SS)
- Misfortune (D)
Inventory
- HP Potions x1997
- MP Potions x2000
- Winter Clothes (C)
- Summer Clothes (C)
- bread x100
- jerky x100
- piece of Tess
- piece of Rob
- piece of Lark
- abomination horn x10 (S+)
- jagged dagger (?)
- mana sword (?)