Author: John Nest
Date: 2015-03-13 04:00:00+00:00
Keywords: Fantasy; Virtual Reality
Description: Smoke continues his adventure in the wondrous Virtual Reality world of Zectas. The DarkElf is joined by a red werebear named Sierra. Together with his private army, they venture into the heraldic city of Coatl. Where the Maneator King, Konig Mitleid, has given them the quest of liberating his brethren trapped beneath the city.

ZECTAS VOLUME TWO

The Heraldic City of Coatl

This book is dedicated to the readers and my fellow dreamers inside Zectas.

A special thanks to Vaanouney, ExperimentBL626, Otton,
and you, for enjoying Zectas.

Table of Contents

Chapter 01 - The Heraldic City

Chapter 02 - Anger Management

Chapter 03 - Cuezaltzinity or Tlaltezinism

Chapter 04 - Missing Mausoleum

Chapter 05 - Single Stone Beggar

Chapter 06 - Mounted Race

Chapter 07 - Fortunate Misfortune

Chapter 08 - The Last Maneator

Chapter 09 - Remember Verbrannt

Chapter 10 - A Village against a City

Side Story - The Labyrinth Escape

Characters.

Smoke and Sierra's Status Window.

Chapter One: The Heraldic City

Attracting viewership for Zectas' videos has gotten increasingly more difficult than when Nash first started. Tristan's latest video was about the start of his expedition into the unknown lands, east of Thayotl Kingdom.

He brought all the available members of DracoRicco with him. Even the historic sight of 10,000 players marching only got about 50 million views.

However, the most controversial thing that he has done up until now was not the expedition but rather the management of his city.  He had implemented a new law that affected his city and its neighbouring territories.

Tristan's decree was thought of as a brilliant scheme. By reducing taxes in Tonaci, he planned to increase its population, therefore taking the next step to develop it into a kingdom.

Now that Tristan's city has the lowest taxes in the whole known world of Zectas, this had enticed most of the players in the eastern kingdom to migrate to his city.

Players could now afford to buy properties. Some players started to buy houses and converted them into shops, while others brought some agricultural land and started planting medicinal herbs for potion making.

Merchants could easily trade with NPCs for the highest marginal profit. Other production jobs such as Blacksmiths, Alchemists, and others also enjoyed the low taxes for their services.

The game has a way of determining the location of the players where they are doing business transactions. The game would automatically deduct the taxes even if the transaction is between players.

The deducted tax would then be transferred to the owner of the immediate vicinity but would still be deducted with 20% which will go to the monarch of the kingdom.

This was also the reason why Amahan's mini-rally encampments were such a great success. Since, those places did not belong to any of the known kingdoms, there were no automatic deductions.

* * * * * *

Amahan's latest video was their fight against the Yetis. Together with the Decane members, they fought against thousands of undead monsters as they climbed over the Rhumeloc mountain range.

His videos got a staggering 240 million views. The viewers were so impressed out how efficiently they moved through the mountain range. There were only ten of them but they managed to overcome such a challenging place.

At the foot of the mountain, they fought against an army of skeleton soldiers. Decane's commanding power against the Undead proved to be quite useful.

When they reached the slope of the mountain, they were faced against living monsters for the first time since the start of their expedition in the forgotten Kingdom of Aquilomentl.

Agile snow wolves were the dominant monsters in this area. They stood on all fours at a height of 6 feet. A pack would mostly consist of thirty to fifty wolves.

The viewers' were impressed to see that even if the enemies were not Undead their guild could still cut through them like cheese.

They relied on the firepower of, Magikera, an Aero Magus, and Tirador, a Heavy Cannoneer, while the rest of the members formed a defensive circle around and 'kited' the monsters.

Those snow wolves only managed to threaten the lives of two out of four of their tanks. Amahan, Hilot, Tambal, and Atiman all had advance variations of the priest job. They continued pouring on their healing and support magic at everyone.

At the summit of Mount Rhumeloc, they faced the king of the mountain. 'Ketikus' was a yeti that was twice as large as normal yetis.

This time, the tanks played the role of main attacker. Ligon, Bato, Puthaw, and Baskog surrounded Ketikus and took turns at bashing it.

Their ability would inflict a stun of .25 second, but with all four of their synchronized attacks they were able to stun the beast for a full second, while Magikera and Tirador would execute their long range attacks.

'Ketikus' stood no chance and perished inside the area that the Decane's tanks created.

* * * * * *

With his tenth video completed, Nash went towards his brothers' room. He wanted to give them their birthday presents. Seth and Donny were born exactly two years apart.

Nash remembered how he used to get jealous whenever their parents would throw his younger siblings a birthday party. Both of them got presents while all he got were the dishes.

Seth was now fourteen years old, while Donny turned twelve. His brothers told him that they were fine without getting any gifts.

They knew that his past videos didn't make as much as before, and both of them wanted to help out in any way that they could.

Nevertheless, Nash would not listen and got Seth a rare Italian dagger called cinquedea. He had it encased in a glass container.

"I told you not to get me anything. How am I suppose to use this anyway? This case doesn't have any openings at all."

"Of course! That knife is meant to be the start of your knife collection. I don't want you to go out and have some random knife fights."

"Then why did you have to pick such an old looking knife? It does look pretty cool though. Thanks, Nash!"

Seth gave Nash a big hug and continued to scrutinize the craftsmanship in his new knife.

Nash then proceeded to Donny's room. He gave Donny an eskrima stick signed by Grandmaster Saavedra. This was Donny's idol. Once he saw what the Grandmaster could do, he was hooked and tried to replicate his movements.

"Is this really from Grandmaster Saavedra? Did he really sign this stick? These eskrima sticks looks amazing, but I don't plan to use them at all."

"Huh? I thought you liked them? Why aren't you gonna use them?"

"And ruin Grandmaster Saavedra's signature? Stop being silly, Nash. Oh, and thank you for this gift."

Donny leapt from his bed and gave him a tackle-like hug.

* * * * * *

Nash's ninth video of his encounter with Sierra got him a check of $15,000. The viewers couldn't believe that there was a Werebear race. For obvious reasons, Nash decided to edit out Sierra's name.

Clearly, everyone could see just how tough the Werebear's defenses were. The viewer's kept on asking how to get the race. They continued on pleading but were all left unanswered.

His tenth video was his solo mission on Mount Gliseloc. He had showed them certain scenes of his adventure. But left out the part where he got the hooded cape. He didn't want other people to know his ability of gliding through the air.

After a couple of hours, as Nash released his tenth video, he read the same thread entitled 'Tristan vs. Amahan vs. Smoke'

DarthMole: Tristan is copying Amahan and now Smoke is copying Amahan. That clearly shows just how superior Amahan is.

JustDFacts: It's only Tristan who is copying Amahan. If you think about it. Smoke and Amahan's videos both came out around the same time. How could he have copied Amahan? Please think about what you post...

SmoKING: Right on! Also, Amahan brought his whole guild with him to challenge that mountain, but what about my man, Smoke? He was flying solo. He didn't even bring that badass Werebear with him and still conquered that mountain. Now, if only he gave the location of that mountain.

DetectiveRonan: Here are some simple facts. Fact one: Tristan is still the only player who owns a main city and commands 300 NPCs. Fact two: Amahan still has the highest level in the game and is the leader of Decane, the guild with the highest level average. Fact three: We only know a few things about Smoke. After all those facts I'd go with Tristan. He still has the clear advantage and he has yet to conquer the unknown lands in the east.

CatatonicKing: Nyan nyan nyan, hear me, loyal cat subjects.

PurrFex: Meow! I hear and obey my liege.

PentaKiller: Can you Lioumereans stick to your own part of the forum? Mod? Mod? Can you erase this please? Anyway, Tristan's decision in lowering the taxes is a great help. It helps all players to acquire some property. Presently, I own a general merchandise store in Tonaci, district 12. I have more than reasonable prices. The store's name is Pentastico.

Manita: Amahan still has the commanding lead in conquering the forgotten Kingdom of Aquilomentl. I predict that once they've conquered that place they will not only gain a city but a whole kingdom.

Tritank: And you think that Tristan won't do the same once his done with the unknown lands in the east? Your narrow thinking clouds your judgment. I agree with what @DetectiveRonan said. Let's just stick to the facts, and you'll see that Tristan will win.

Sierra: Not if I have anything to do about it.

Tritank: You're cute. Are you some kind of great god? You think that your presence alone can stop the super typhoon known as Tristan? Can you take on 10,000 players at once? I don't think so!

On the agreed upon date, Nash got a call from the manager at the arcade. He came home with a gloomy disposition.

His tenth video only got 150 million views, which meant that his check for this was only for $10,000. If it wasn't for Sherry's Werebear debut in his ninth video he would have most likely gotten another $10,000 check.

He was reminded just how much of a difference Sherry made into his life. He regretted not asking her to join him on Mount Gliseloc. If she did, he was sure he would have broken the quota of 200 million views.

* * * * * *

Smoke was greeted by the Earth prison that he had created and held the Maneator. He told Sierra about the quest that was offered by the fiendish monster.

"I think Mitleid is telling the truth. I haven't heard of a quest that would turn into a trap."

"Well, there's always a first time for everything, and I don't want to be the first schmuck who falls into a 'quest trap'. I just wish I had Darius' ability 'Truth Seeker'. Then I would know for sure."

"Then you should ask for Darius' help. I understand that you want to be independent, but I think it's always wiser to utilize all the tools available to you. We will have to transport him securely though."

"But I thought you said that he was telling the truth?"

"I may think that, but I don't want to be the first schmuck who falls for the ploys of the Maneator."

"I guess that does make some sense. All right, we will have to modify one of the carriages. Sierra, I think we may need your help again?"

"NO! You don't plan to put some of Sharanga's trap on me and place me on the carriage are you?"

"But, we have to make sure that the carriage won't break as we travel. You don't want Mitleid to escape, do you? Come on, it will be really quick."

"Fine! Argh! But this will be the last time I'm gonna be used like I'm some kind of guinea pig."

"Of course! I promise..."

* * * * * *

All of them worked on modifying Tulin's carriage. Gandiva reassured her stag moose that the carriage should still be manageable to pull.

Smoke went to Mitleid's earth prison to prepare him for their journey to Nanahuatl. He asked Sharanga to accompany him as they were going to add more traps to weigh him down.

"I'm taking you to someone who can tell me if what you're saying is the truth or not. I hope you don't mind the special treatment in our travel conditions. It's simply because I don't trust you."

"I don't mind, I've been through worse. I get your skepticism but you must understand, that I would do anything to free my people."

"Your docile side is really giving me the creeps. Are you really like this or just a great actor?"

"You'll understand once I tell you the whole story."

Sharanga added more of her traps and made sure that it hurt Mitleid every time she placed them. Smoke used his 'Earth Manipulation' ability to move the Maneator towards Tulin's carriage.

The updated carriage could now hold a weight of at least eight tons. Smoke and Sierra had customized seats at the back. They will be the only passengers on this carriage as Gandiva would drive from the front as usual, while everyone else would ride with Laernea.

* * * * * *

Smoke was still hesitant about everything. He couldn't believe that such a beast was a king to some race. This quest could be a trap, but Smoke couldn't let the opportunity of it being a real quest pass him by either.

The trip back was longer because of the special prisoner cart. Smoke took advantage of the time by reading a book with one hand and flattening the road ahead with his other hand.

When Gandiva and Tulin would run at top speed, Smoke's Earth manipulations could not catch up with the fast moving ground.

Yet, now that the pace was relatively slower, Smoke had more than enough time to make the road wider and flatter.

He was so pleased with himself. He could now increase his 'Earth Manipulation' and continue gaining knowledge from books simultaneously. The book that he was currently reading was entitled 'The Heraldic City of Coatl'.

With his hidden basic stat 'Wisdom', the reading time required for acquiring a book's knowledge had been reduced by 20%.

Smoke was now troubled with the distribution of his stats. If he would continue to increase 'Wisdom' it could greatly boost all his active abilities. Nevertheless, he couldn't ignore 'Dexterity' and 'Strength'.

These two stats were his bread and butter for defeating monsters. His 'Earth Manipulation' took some time to form. At its current level an enemy could easily dodge any of his earth attacks.

At best it could make great prisons, shields, and other structures. It's a great support ability but didn't really offer much of an offensive power.

While he was pondering on what to improve, an armored armadillo scuttled along its way. Then he recalled that he had the ability after all.

The 'Armor Break of the Armored Armadillo', he had stopped using the ability because it quickly drained his mana. It started at 20mp per use but as its level increased so did the mana consumption. Now it's currently at 50mp per use.

When you add in the factor of his attack speed then that 50mp quickly 5,000mp in a couple of seconds. However, if he was to focus on Wisdom, mana consumption should no longer be an issue.

Smoke also decided to not raise 'Intelligence' because acquiring knowledge from books raised stat anyway. It would be inefficient to not abuse the hidden basic stat 'Wisdom'.

Also, the ability tomes of Gravity Control and Targeted Teleportation required Light and Dark affinities. Even if he did manage to get 300 Intelligence he still wouldn't be able to use the ability tomes.

Smoke noticed that Sierra was watching him intensely as he was grinding his ability. As the progress bar on the book that he was holding was about to be completed he asked Sierra if she could look to her left side towards the outside of the carriage.

Sierra tried to find what Smoke wanted her to see. She saw a wide wall up ahead. The wall was decorated with impressions of a lady that had turned to a Werebear. They were traveling, making the figures on the wall look like they were moving.

"This is amazing! It's like I'm watching a paper animation."

The walls then depicted the Werebear fighting a varanus indicus. Their battle ended quickly with the Werebear killing the lizard monster with her dual claw attack.

The earth wall animation ended with the Werebear turning back into a lady, and she stood together with a hooded man.

"That was so cool! I didn't know you were such a great artist."

"I think that Zectas only has our imagination as its limits. I just thought about what I wanted the wall to look like, and it came out like that."

In reality, Smoke had undergone an intensive training of his 'Earth Manipulation' ability on Mount Gliseloc. That was the reason why he could create such detailed works of art. Their trip back to Nanahuatl was entertaining despite having the imprisoned Maneator with them.

* * * * * *

They finally arrived at the village grounds. Smoke told Gandiva to ride directly to the entrance of the coal mines.

He didn't want the residents to see Mitleid. He still thought of him as a dangerous beast, and he wanted to keep him away for everyone's safety.

Darius was already waiting for them in front of the grounds of the coal mines.

"Adder tells me that you've brought a dangerous creature with you."

"Yes, but just as I was about to slay the beast he tells me a different story. I was hoping you could help me find out if what he's saying is the truth or not."

"Of course, I'm happy to help. If only I could find that missing ability tome for 'Seeker of Truth' that would have been most useful to you."

"That's exactly what I was thinking. I remembered that you told me that you had another copy but it went missing?"

"Right, but it has been missing for a long time. I can't remember how long. Where shall we interrogate the Maneator?"

Smoke created a reinforced dome like prison with only a few windows on the top portion to give some lighting inside. Darius smiled as he saw the structure.

"Well done! I couldn't have done it better myself. Although you could have placed another wall just in case he breaks free."

While Darius was saying that, a square wall was rising around them. This earth wall had no ceiling, therefore the light could directly come in.

"Oh, you weren't done yet."

"I was, but when I heard you starting to speak I knew that I had to put up another wall."

Smoke then brought Mitleid into his new house. Apparently, Sierra had to do something at home. She had to logout, which left the inquisition to Smoke, and Darius.

With Mitleid safely secured, in a kneeling down position, Smoke stood in front of the Maneator as Darius created a casting circle around the beast with his 'Earth Manipulation'. Smoke was the first one to speak.

"This is the time to prove yourself. Tell us this 'real' story of yours."

"Very well. Our creators were called the Tenebris. They consisted of Dark Wizards, Corrupted Druids, and Evil Alchemists. They stashed their accumulated treasure beneath Coatl City. They thought that it was the last place anyone would look. After all, who would think to search for a magical treasure trove beneath a city of Knights?"

The casting circle lit up with a low green light. Darius told Smoke that if ever the light turns red then the one inside was lying.

"The first created Maneators were much bigger than me. They were about six meters tall, and were incredibly strong but severely lacked Intelligence, and Agility. Sadly, there were only four of that generation left when I escaped. The second group of Maneators were divided as the Tenebris couldn't decide whether to focus on Intelligence or Agility. As a result they had an average height of only two meters, below average Strength, and either had above average Intelligence or Agility. In the end they came to the conclusion to make me. I'm not the strongest, smartest, or fastest. I'm your average Maneator."

"Then why did they make you their king?"

"At first, the specialized Maneators didn't want to mix with the ones different to them. Their brusque temperament would not allow it. Yet, I forced myself to challenge all of them because I didn't belong to any of their groups. Of course, I kept on losing. As time progressed, I slowly understood how to take advantage of their different specialties. When I fought against the strong Maneators, I used my Intelligence. When I fought against the fast Maneators, I used my Strength. When I fought against the smart Maneators, I used my Agility."

Mitleid paused as he looked to one of the windows in the dome. It looked like he was reminiscing the times when he challenged his brother Maneators.

"Slowly the different Maneators gathered around me, as I continued to challenge them. Our collective mind set of sadism subsided. We gained a sense of camaraderie. The walls of our differences started to break down. We started fight matches to expend our bursting energies. Once we were drained, we started to become different individuals. We started feeling emotions and ideologies. In our new enlightened state, my brethren decided to call me their leader, they said that I was the reason why this miracle had happened. We became more than what we were meant to be."

Mitleid took in a deep breath, and let out a loud roar.

"ROOOOOAAAAAARRRRARRGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

"Our evil creators took notice of this. They gathered us into a gigantic casting circle. There, they placed a curse upon us. As long as their prized possessions remained within their treasury, we would become sadistic, vicious guardians twice as we were originally created. The curse would trigger when intruders would come inside the labyrinth."

The Maneator King's eyes looked sad and regretful.

"Unbeknownst to me, I was given a second curse. If anyone were to attack me I would gain twice my abilities and be filled with rage until I kill my attacker. When all of this was completed our creators left us alone again. We thought nothing of the curse. That curse only strengthened our original purpose, we didn't see any significant changes. After a few years. A group of intruders came inside the labyrinth. They were somewhat skilled, for they reached the third level. We only saw flashes of what happened. We must have tortured them for hours. After the slaughter, we saw  the remnants of a battle, with all the intruders bodies lying on the ground. We didn't like the feeling of losing control of our own bodies. Because of this we made our internal competitions more elaborate and exhausting. I was never defeated, not even when I was up against three of my brothers. I got cocky, and asked to challenge six of them at once. I couldn't handle all six of them and got hurt, the next thing I knew, more than thirty of my brothers' bodies were lying on the ground. I killed anyone who came within my range."

Mitleid slumped down and had both his hands pointing upwards as if bowing and asking for forgiveness. Smoke started to feel sorry for the beast. Not once did the light in the casting circle change. It remained a constant green.

"One of the creators saw the whole massacre. He contacted the other members of the Tenebris. Together they decided that they could make a sport out of my mad curse. They placed me in the first level of the labyrinth. There the corrupt city officials would send the citizens who were in their way and would brand them as criminals for execution. I can't remember how many I've killed... On one of the executions, all four members of the High Council of Tenebris came to see me kill this particular individual. He must have been someone who wronged them greatly for all of them to be present. I made sure that I would be nearer to them before completely losing it. When I regained my consciousness, I found the dead bodies of everyone in the high council. I grabbed the key from Fortner, the gatekeeper of the labyrinth."

"I see, that's how you got possession of the key. Is that perhaps a master key for the labyrinth? With that you managed to escape but why didn't you free your fellow Maneators?"

"I think this key is some sort of master key. With me being in the first level, I quickly found the exit. I was about to go back for my brothers, when the other Tenebris came. I was lucky with the High Council because I managed to take them by surprise. I couldn't face thirty prepared members of the Tenebris. I ran for my life. When I got to the surface. I was immediately attacked by the heavy cavalry knights on patrol, which led to their deaths."

"How did you managed to get past the city gates? I thought that the defenses of a main city couldn't be penetrated easily?"

"I didn't. When I got to the surface I was already out of the main city and in some kind of village. Although, the exit closed itself once I stepped out and even with the key I couldn't open it from the outside. I ran non-stop, without looking back. I couldn't remember how many days it must have been. When I finally ran out of energy, I stopped and found that forest. It was a place that only had low level monsters inside. I claimed the forest as my own and took residence there. Sometimes there are some groups that would go into my forest to try and reclaim this key. Whenever I sense a party coming for the key, straightaway, I turn into my berserked form. Please forgive me for the time when I tortured you. You were with those Knights that got a quest to retrieve this key and I wasn't in control of my body."

"Your telling me that if Sierra never attacked you in the first place, you wouldn't have attacked her?! If I hadn't attacked you when I came with my private army you wouldn't have attacked us?!"

"That is correct."

Smoke stared into the eyes of the Maneator. He didn't need to see the casting circle's green light to know that he was telling the truth.

"Fine! I accept your quest and I will free your brothers."

"Thank you. Please use this key. This will help you greatly in your escape from the labyrinth."

+ Received Coatl Labyrinth Key.

"I will remove the shackles but you will still stay confined within this dome."

"Very well, I shall await for your triumphant return here."

* * * * * *

After interrogating Mitleid, Smoke informed everyone of his decision. They would leave for the Knight City of Coatl.

As Smoke gave everyone their specific tasks, in preparation for their new adventure, he estimated that it would take them at least a day if not more to complete it.

He called for Laernea and told her that they had to make a quick trip to a hidden fox hole.

With Bilis' speed they arrived in the fox hole at no time.

- Entered the hidden fox hole

- Only dire foxes are found inside this cave.
- Suggested level for entering this cave is 15.

Smoke stepped inside and remembered how difficult it was for him to face the dire foxes. He smiled as he saw the empty cave inside.

The dire foxes hid to the furthest corners of the foxhole. Smoke was now level 87 with a hidden basic job. He had satisfied the requirements for them to be wary of him.

Even if they did decide to attack him the monsters would be killed instantly. He started collecting the pelts of the dire foxes that he had killed long ago. Slowly, heading towards the spot where he was backed against the wall. There he found the loot that he had been looking for.

+ Acquired rare hand accessory: Wise Ring of the Dire Fox.

Wise Ring of the Dire Fox

A rare ring from a wise and cunning monster. It is made from three minerals, silver, gold, and mithril.
An emblem of the dire fox is carved into the ring.

+30 Intelligence
+30 Wisdom

Equipment Ability:
*Enhanced Cunning of the Dire Fox (Passive)
+ 5 levels to the Cunning of the Dire Fox Ability.

Whenever Smoke received rare items he couldn't help but give out an eerie smile that reached from ear to ear. Ecstasy was not enough to describe the elation that he felt during these events.

As he tried on the ring, he immediately felt the difference in his ability. The 'Cunning of the Dire Fox' increased to Advance Level 8, with a radius of 440 meters.

He easily felt the presence of the hidden dire foxes at the end of the cave. While continuing to admire his ring he realized that he had gotten a rare item from the horned rabbits and the dire fox but he didn't get one from the armored armadillos.

It wasn't logical that there would be no rare item drop for the armored armadillo. He asked Laernea to go ahead without him. He needed some time alone to think why this was so.

When he fought the horned rabbits he got the sense of how to become more agile. When he fought the dire foxes in the foxhole he gained the wisdom how to discern the attacks of the foxes. But with the armored armadillo just kept on killing them until he managed his 10,000th kill.

He did get the ability but he did not learn anything from the monster itself. Thinking that if he used the learned ability against the monster, it could result in the coveted rare item drop, Smoke started constructing an archer tower.

An earth tower stood at the exit of the foxhole. Smoke was about to take off and fly towards Nanahuatl when he sensed a group of armored armadillos some distance away.

With his enhanced 'Cunning of the Dire Fox' he could easily find them without having to strain his eyes and neck looking for them and if you include the vantage point from his earth tower he now had a clear sight of the plains.

On top of his tower he started shooting the armored armadillos with his arrows. He killed them in one shot but this time he used the 'Armor Break of the Armored Armadillo'. He moved turned the earth tower into a mobile archer tower by moving it towards the groups of armored armadillo.

Igniz wanted to kill some of the armored armadillos as well but was told not to. After all, he needed to kill them using the specific ability.

It took him two days to return to Nanahuatl but the delayed two days was worth it. Smoke got the rare item drop from the armored armadillo. The Armored Armadillo Shield.

As soon as the item dropped, he inspected it and found the attributes to be more than satisfactory.

Armored Armadillo Shield

A rare shield from an impervious monster. It is made with two materials, armored armadillo carapace, and mithril. An emblem of the armored armadillo is carved into the shield.

+3000 Defense
+100 Vitality

Restriction:
* Can only be used by the following:
Swordsman variations, Acolyte Variations, and Merchant Variations

Equipment Ability:
*Magical Armor (Active)
+ Blocks magical attacks
+ Consumes 100 mp/use
+ Once you've used this ability you cannot use it again for another three minutes.
*Armadillo Bash (Active)
+ Stuns the enemy for one second
+ Consumes 200 mp/use
+ Once you've used this ability you cannot use it again for another three minutes.

After he got the rare item. Smoke raised the height of the earth tower and used his cape, 'Wings of Cologus'. He leapt off the tower and started gliding towards Nanahuatl.

* * * * * *

Upon Smoke's return he saw Sierra waiting for him at the village entrance.

"Don't tell me you went to another mountain? I was only gone for a couple of hours and when I came back online you were out on some solo adventure again."

"Sorry for not telling you. I just needed to get a few item drops from my earlier time here in Zectas. If it's any consolation Igniz was bored the whole time as well. I had him do, absolutely nothing."

Igniz went flying around Sierra as if trying to tell her how boring the last two days were.

"Fine! I'm guessing you're finally ready to leave for Coatl City then?"

"As soon as I gather the things I've asked Darius to prepare, we will head to Coatl City."

Smoke went to Darius' home. After a few minutes he stepped out all dressed up as a swordsman. He was wearing a a swordsman's basic leather armor. He had his Armored Armadillo shield on his left hand and a small gladius sword on his right. He also wore the lucky bunny ears.

Because  he was still in the first stage of the Beggar job, Smoke looked shabby. Yet, the young man was very pleased with himself. Sierra couldn't help but ask why he was so happy.

"Why the smug look?"

"Now, I don't look like the 'Smoke' from videos that I posted, right?"

"Yeah, I guess, but why did you wear the bunny ears? I thought your Luck was already at 999?"

"I'm sure a lot of the players will ask me how I managed to make my critical attacks. When that happens, I'll just show them this lucky bunny ears. I can't very well tell them I have 999 Luck now can I?"

"Ahh, that makes sense. But why don't you want the other players to recognize you as Smoke? I thought you wanted to be famous and be the top player of Zectas?"

"I do. Sadly, I still don't have enough power to back that claim but once I do, I'll show the world my real intentions and stand on top of everyone. Especially that Tristan!"

"So, what do we call you now? Since you don't want to be recognized as Smoke?"

He made his voice louder in order for his entire private army to hear.

"Everyone, whenever we are on a convert mission such as this one. Please call me Ilad..."

With all their preparations completed they finally headed towards Coatl City.

* * * * * *

The trip that would have taken them one hundred days by foot now only took them two days by stag moose. Laernea and Gandiva's chosen jobs couldn't be more perfect.

As Coatl City came into view. Smoke ordered his party to stop. He couldn't help but admire the vastness of the city. In his heart he knew that Nanahuatl was the best place in Zectas but he would be lying if he said that this sight wasn't amazing.

The city frankly was a metropolis. Using his 'TeleFax Vision' ability he scrutinized the city. It had four layers of walls. The first outer area had thirty two entrances all of which had heavy armored knights protecting them.

The second area had sixteen, and the third had eight, and the last inner wall had four. The number of guards protecting the entrances increased as the area moves inwards to the city's castle.

The first area had expansive farmlands and small villages scattered all over. The second area looked like the business district and some better looking houses.

The third area appeared to hold the homes of nobles and aristocrats of the city, while the fourth area contained the castle surrounded by a moat, encircled by lush green garden.

From here, Smoke's forces would split up. He would only take Laernea and Gandiva with him into the city. They were the only ones that were not included in his videos.

Sierra would take command of everyone else as they searched for the secret exit of the Labyrinth. Mitleid told them that it was in a village outside of the main city, south west of the outer city walls.

Igniz would have to hide under Smoke's hood the entire time. He knew that he had to stay there otherwise he would give away Smoke's disguise.

Smoke and the Lioumereans headed towards the city. He rode on the back of Gandiva as they left the carriages behind.

When they reached the entrance one of the Knight Guards stopped them.

"Halt! State your name and business in Coatl City."

Laernea and Gandiva both stared at each other. They've been here before. This was the place where all eight of them changed into the basic job of an Archer.

They didn't remember the guards being this strict. Especially, since they are still in the outer area. It would have been acceptable if it were in the third or the fourth area but not here.

Laernea tried speaking with the Guard Knight but was dismissed. The Guard Knight stared directly at Smoke.

"My name is Ilad, I'm a swordsman from Centza City. I came to seek the advance job of a Guard Knight."

"Hahahaha! You, become a Guard Knight like us? A hooded swordsman with bunny ears? Hahahaha! You may look like a swordsman but you stink like a beggar. If that is your purpose here then begone at once! We do not welcome a swordsman with your stench."

Smoke knew that his 'Beggary' ability would not work on this Guard Knight. He was about to leave when another player riding a black dirus wolf was about to enter the gate.

He heard the Guard Knight reject passage to the swordsman player. He approached Smoke and asked him what the issue was.

His black dirus wolf was only slightly shorter than the stag moose that Smoke and the Lioumereans were riding on. Smoke quickly took command of the conversation.

"Good day, sir Knight. My name is Ilad. I was about to enter the city when the Guard Knights stopped me because of my tattered appearance."

"Really? I've never heard of such a thing happening before. Of course, I've never returned with such a damaged appearance such as yourself. But I really doubt that it was merely your look that made them stop you."

"Nice! I've never met such a perceptive player like you. I actually came from Centza City. I was about to get my advance job as a Knight when a famous guild started gathering players for a quest. Unfortunately, we failed that quest and suffered high penalties in intimacies with NPCs, especially those guarding Centza City. I thought that if I came here to Coatl that it would be a different case. Sadly, it isn't."

The player on top of the dirus wolf looked upon Smoke and the Lioumereans. He looked at them from head to foot. He felt that they were hiding something and wanted to find out what it was.

"My name is Macher, and I'm a Cavalry Knight. I have close intimacies with most of the Guard Knights around the city. Let me see if I can help you out in entering Coatl."

Macher got off his black dirus wolf and went to the Guard Knight that questioned Smoke. It appeared that he slipped something to the Guard Knight. Smoke thought that it must have been a bribe. He would have done the same thing if he felt that the Guard Knight would have taken it.

"Good news! My friends, the guards have changed their opinions of you and will allow you passage into the  first area of the city."

"Thank you Macher. Can I pay you for the kindness that you've just shown?"

"Don't mention it, Ilad. I'm sure anyone else would have done the same. But since you did offer to repay me. I'd like to show you around Coatl City."

"Oh, but these Lioumereans are here on an urgent quest. I have to take them to their destination as soon as possible. If I miss the time limit, I might fail the quest."

"Then, all the more reason for me to show you around."

"Seriously, that won't be necessary. I only have to take them to the Archer academia and there's only one of that in the entire city right?"

"Okay, okay. I get it but if you ever need my help again just look for me. Most NPCs here should know my name."

"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind."

"Do you want to add me as a friend?"

"No, no, that won't be necessary. You've already helped me enough."

"Alright, see you around then."

* * * * * *

Mitleid told them that he didn't exactly know how to get into the labyrinth. He considered himself to be very  fortunate that he escaped.

Searching through the forums, Smoke found that there was a series quest given to the famous Knights of Coatl. They could either be recommended by the city officials or from the head of the Order of Coatl Knights.

The start of the series quest was said to be beneath Coatl City. Smoke thought that this would most likely be his way to enter the labyrinth. He would explore the city and gain favor from the Knights or the city officials.

The breathtaking scene of Coatl City was enough to make Smoke forget his own itinerary. Finally, he had made it into a main city. His game life in Zectas was a complete opposite to everybody else's.

When everyone else wanted to quickly start exploring the outer walls, Smoke wanted to wander through the insides of a main city.

Smoke and his party proceeded towards second layer of the city, the Archer academia. He planned on visiting the place, just in case Macher was discreetly watching them.

He found the Archer academia to be really fascinating. The Novices lining up to take the Archer job quest were curious to see a Swordsman inside the establishment.

It took all of his self-control not to pick up the exam bow and hit the required targets to pass the Archer job. It looked so easy and fun. The first ten targets were stationary. While the next ten targets were moving and were sometimes blocked by a random shield.

After visiting the Archer academia, Smoke decided to visit the NPC auction center. He originally wanted to auction off the lucky bunny ears since it gave no benefits to him what so ever.

But now that it would help in his disguise he could no longer sell it. All he had left to auction off were four pieces of the double bladed mantis sword that Darius crafted.

Basing the current prices of other swords already in the auction list, Smoke placed the double bladed mantis sword at a starting bid of $50.

With all his items submitted to the auction, the next place he went to was weapons and armory shop. The shops in Coatl city specialized in Knight equipments but they still had the stock items for the other jobs as well.

He was shocked when he saw how much everything costs. The most expensive Knight set was prized at 500 million zecs, with a level requirement of 600.

Smoke knew that the prices in the NPC shops were outrageously high but he didn't think that it would be this much.

The Knight set with a level requirement of 80 was priced at 50 million zecs. He wanted to buy it but he thought it was too expensive.

While exploring the shop, Smoke noticed a public notice. It was for the Bi-Annual 'Swordsman to Knight' Tournament. The prizes in the contest were Knight equipments.

The categories and their prizes in the tournament were as follows:

Preliminaries:
Sword fight - one round elimination:
South District : Rzeka (Glaive)
North District : Jezioro (Two-Handed Great Sword)
West District  : Wodospad (Spear)
East District  : Wiosna (Lance)

District Champions Qualify for the Central Tournament

Sword fight - round robin : Gora Knight Equipment Set
Gora Helm
Gora Shield
Gora Gloves
Gora Plate Armor
Gora Plate Leggings
Gora Plate Boots

They were currently located in the south district. He asked the shop attendant if she knew where to register for the Swordsman to Knight tournament.

She told them that they would need to go to south district's Knight academia located about ten blocks from the shop. She also told them that although the tournament was open to all swordsmen there will still be an entrance exam at the Knight academia.

On their way to the Knight academia, Smoke and the Lioumereans came across the city's only library. Smoke asked if Gandiva and Laernea wanted to visit anyone in Coatl. They told him that they did want to say hello to a couple of friends they made here.

Smoke told them that they would meet up in about an hour while he searches for some clues inside the library. The library was not that big. He thought that Darius had more books than this whole library.

Although it was a library it was mostly adorned with knight armors and weapons. There was only a single librarian inside. There were no other players who decided to visit the library.

He skimmed through the books. Now, that his Wisdom stat was at 40, most of the books in the library only required him about ten minutes to acquire their knowledge.

After thirty minutes Laernea and Gandiva came inside. They asked him if they could help out with anything. Smoke told them that he may need to acquire a mount of his own soon but first he needs the 'Mount Mastery' ability.

Laernea and Gandiva told him that they might know a couple of people who could help them out. They asked permission to leave.

* * * * * *

Smoke went to the south district's Knight academia alone. The Knights on guard at the entrance stared at him intently. He didn't make any eye contact with them and just went straight in.

His Beggar job was really troubling against some NPCs. He was afraid that the examiner would be the same. Regardless he still had to take the exam if he wanted to compete in the tournament.

Smoke asked one of the NPCs inside, where he should sign up for the tournament. He was told to fall in line behind more than a thousand swordsmen.

The exam was simple. The examinee and a Guard Knight would fight on top of a square platform of about ten meters. All the examinee had to do was to push the Guard Knight off the platform.

Examinees who passed were displayed on the screen above. So far there were only five examinees who made it. There were eight platforms in order to accommodate the overwhelming number of examiners.

The ones waiting in line could watch the examinee's fight before them. Most swordsmen used the same attack pattern and launched a frontal attack.

Guard Knights having a strong defense would just block the attack and push examinee off the platform with their shield bash, thereby disqualifying them.

Smoke was waiting in line for about fifteen minutes. There a few swordsmen and swordswomen who would try to attack from the side but they were still pushed off the ring before even getting a chance to strike the Guard Knight.

Finally, a new Swordsman with the name of Blastar was added into the list of passers. A replay of the swordsman attack was displayed on the main screen.

The middle aged Lioumerean Swordsman that had a face that looked like a lion, was carrying a bastard sword. The biggest sword that a Swordsman could carry. He attacked head on and used his 'Sword Smite' ability. The Guard Knight stabilized his footing and braced himself for the attack.

The damage inflected was for 8,834 points. The Guard Knight's defense was overpowered and was knocked off the square ring.

Smoke thought that the damage was pretty high for a Swordsman especially if you consider that he was up against a Guard Knight, one of the strong defensive Knight variations.

Considering that the middle aged Swordsman used a bastard sword and the 'Sword Smite' ability, Smoke's estimate on the passing Swordsman's Strength was around 700. Which would mean that the he would have to be at least level 90.

As Smoke was nearing his turn. There was a beautiful Human Swordswoman with blond hair, who was three persons ahead of him. She was carrying a long saber. She noticed Smoke's glances. She smiled and gave him a flying kiss.

Smoke's eyebrows furrowed as he was bewildered by what just happened. The Swordswoman stepped unto her square ring as Smoke's undercover name was called out.

"Examinee Ilad, please step into the ring."

This would be Smoke's first time that he would use his gladius sword. Its damage was only slightly higher than his green dual knives but its attack speed was much lower.

He readied his armored armadillo shield and gladius. As he looked on the face of the Guard Knight, he couldn't believe that it was the same one who stopped him at the entrance.

"Hahahaha! Well, well well, I knew the fates would not allow such a pathetic excuse of Swordsman like you to enter this city. You may have gotten around me with the help of Lord Macher, but now its just you and me. I'll kick your sorry ass off this ring in under a minute."

"You know what? I was thinking exactly the same thing. Except I was thinking that I'd blow you away in under thirty seconds."

The Guard Knight was infuriated. The bell was rung and Smoke's entrance exam officially begun. He dashed towards the Guard Knight following the same movements he saw from the middle aged Swordsman earlier.

Letting out a smirk, the Guard Knight burrowed his feet into the ground and awaited Smoke's attack. Smoke was only inches away when the Guard Knight suddenly lost his footing.

Losing his balance, the Guard Knight was forced to raise his sword and shield up into the air giving Smoke a clear shot at his body. Smoke mimicked the slash of the 'Sword Smite' ability and managed to deal a critical hit at 2516 damage points.

The Guard Knight was then thrown off the ring as if the stage suddenly turned into a backward moving walkway. Smoke was declared the winner at an elapsed time of only 20 seconds. He stepped off the ring and went to where the Guard Knight had fallen.

"Oh, I guess I was wrong. It took less than thirty seconds after all."

"You cheater! What did you do? You didn't knock me off the stage with your sword! Judge?! Judge, I demand a review of the exam?! This Swordsman was cheating."

Two other Guard Knights swiftly came and took the defeated Guard Knight away. They apologized to Smoke for his unsportsmanlike conduct and assured him that he will be reprimanded by their commander.

Smoke looked at the main screen and saw the name Ilad added to the passers' list. He also saw that another name was added as well. It was the Swordswoman, Cudny.

A replay of her battle appeared. Cudny started out with a fast dash to the front and quickly took a side step to the left.

The Guard Knight responded well and slashed his glaive at the charging Swordswoman. She should have been knocked off the stage but instead of moving forward she took another step back.

With the Guard Knight's glaive missing its target. The blond Swordswoman ran towards him and used her ability 'Quadruple Lunge', the Guard Knight was pushed off the ring. Each attack inflicted around 2120 damage points.

Smoke was still staring at the screen and didn't notice that the Swordswoman on the screen was standing beside him.

"That was quite an interesting fight. How did you manage to push him back and only inflict 2516 damage points?"

Blastar also came nearer in order to hear their conversation. Smoke knew that they were fishing for his techniques, he was also confused on how to answer them. He only thought that they would ask about his critical hit.

"What do you mean, How? Of course, I used 'Sword Smite'. How else could have I done it?"

Blastar couldn't control himself and had to join in on their conversation.

"You're joking right? That wasn't 'Sword Smite', if it was you should have inflicted at least 4000 damage points, even with your puny gladius."

"I think that Guard Knight just had an unusually high defense. Well, if you'll all excuse me. I have somewhere else to be."

Quickly walking away from the them and heading outside the Knight academia but Smoke couldn't leave without hearing Blastar's last words.

"Ilad! We'll see what you really used when we fight in the district championships!"

* * * * * *

Smoke followed the directions that Laernea and Gandiva gave him. After thirty minutes of walking. He was out of the second layer and in the farmlands of the first layer.

He wondered why they brought him there when there were many decent and affordable lodging places in the second layer of the city.

Laernea and Gandiva greeted him as they were waiting for him outside a farm. They asked him if he could follow them to the back, to meet the owner of the farm.

She was one of their benefactors when they were abandoned by their parents when they were still children. She also helped all eight of Smoke's private army when they came their to got the basic job of an Archer.

"Excuse me, Madam Dawny, we would like you to meet our leader, Smoke."

Smoke cordially gave a bow and tried to shake her hand. The old lady just stared at the hand and looked at him from head to foot. Smoke retracted his hand and gave his greetings instead.

"Good afternoon, Madam Dawny, my name is Smoke but other people in the city might know me as Ilad. Let me just say that I like your name. It's very similar to a special person back home."

"Thank you, I like my name as well. Gandiva and Laernea already told me about your situation. Please feel free to stay in my farm for as long as you need. Just stay away from Ental."

"That's very kind of you Madam Dawny. Who is Ental?"

"She's an old hell boar that doesn't know she's pass her prime."

Just then Smoke felt the presence of a huge monster heading straight for him. He quickly created an earth ramp that made the hell boar, Ental jump over his head.

Ental landed smoothly and stood besides Dawny. She pointed her sharp fangs and two tusks at Smoke. The hell boar when on all fours, had a height of about five feet. She had a lean and muscular body with brown skin and spiky hair. Ental didn't look like an average pig for eating.

"Whoa! Calm down girl. I'm a friend. Ahh, Madam, can you please talk to Ental?"

Igniz came out of his hiding place and readied some fireballs in the air. Smoke signaled him to calm down. Ental responded to Igniz. The hell boar was wagging her tail and jumping around at the sight of Igniz.

"It appears that Ental likes your dark ember sprite. I didn't know you had a symbiote."

"Yes, I have to keep him hidden because he's already quite famous and other people might easily recognize me as Smoke."

* * * * * *

Now, that everyone had officially met each other. He wanted to know how Sierra and the others were doing, he called her to check up on them.

"Hey, how are you guys doing on your end? Have you found the village? I hope you didn't encounter any of the patrolling Knights."

"No we're fine. We've narrowed it down to five potential villages. I'm having Adder, Jinggu, Sharanga, and Thyrsus investigate the two northern villages. While the rest of us scope out the remaining three. How about you? Have you been invited to the labyrinth?"

"Not yet, but I've entered a tournament that should get me the invite. Provided I win, of course."

"What kind of tournament is it?"

"It's called Swordsman to Knight. I have some pretty tough competition but it's not anything I can't handle."

"You better win it. I want to get this quest over with so we can proceed with mine."

"Like I told you before. This quest shouldn't take more than a week, tops. Well, maybe a month, worst case scenario..."

"Smoke! You better be joking, Don't forget that I have most of your private army here with me."

"I'm joking, I'm joking. Jeez, anyway you better take care and make sure to keep everyone safe and intact. I don't want to have one of my men having a missing limb."

"You don't have to worry about that, I'm better than you remember? How could you have let Adder lose his arm in the first place. Tsk tsk tsk."

"Yeah, yeah, just be safe okay?"

"You too..."

* * * * * *

Smoke contemplated on how he would fight in the District tournament. Considering the fact, that the qualifiers had defeated a Guard Knight would only mean that they were like Blastar and Cudny.

They must be players who were at level 90 or more. He wondered why there were such individuals who would stay as basic job holders when they can easily get their advance jobs.

Looking at his gladius, he thought that it would have been better if he bought a sword at the weapon shop. If only the prices weren't that high.

Then, Smoke recalled the prizes for the Swordsman to Knight tournament. They were all high class Knight equipments.

The tournament happens only twice a year. If they lost before, this would give them plenty of time to train and raise their levels and abilities.

Smoke thought that it was highly likely that Blastar and Cudny failed before and decided to try again this time. Six months is more than enough time for dedicated players to improve themselves.

They had six months to prepare for tomorrow's tournament, Smoke had less than twenty four hours. He tried imitating all the Swordsman skill's that he knew and thought if he could use them.

If he could fight at his full potential then he would fight all of the competitors now. But with the handicap that he should fight as a Swordsman was too much of a restriction.

He didn't even have a single Swordsman's ability. His only trump card was the 'Armadillo Bash' from his shield. Even that had a long cool down of ten minutes.

Dawny was watching Smoke from her front porch, he was clearly struggling. The old lady decided to give him some advice.

"Did you know, that most Swordsman abilities are enhanced by elemental magic?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"At the moment of impact on a Sword Smite's attack, a fire blast explodes which is directed towards the target. Knocking them back and increasing the damage by at least three times."

"Wow! I didn't know that at all. That isn't found in the ability's description."

"Of course not. Most users only use their abilities without fully understanding how it works."

"In that case, does that also mean that the Quadruple Lunge attack uses Wind or Lightning enhancements?"

"Right! That was very intuitive of you. Lightning impulses increase their attack speed and movement speed for a few seconds."

"Thank you very much! That was some really great advice. I think I'll try out a few modified 'Swordsman' moves now."

Smoke created a colossal square wall in one of the farm's open lands. He went inside and started honing his sword play for tomorrow's district tournament.

* * * * * *

The southern coliseum of Coatl held their district's Swordsman to Knight preliminaries. The winner of this competition would become the district's champion and would gain the right to fight at the round robin championships.

The coliseum was about as big as the one found in Rome. It had an area of six acres and could hold a total capacity of 80,000 spectators.

The center arena was an ellipse with a maximum length of 287 feet and a maximum width of 180 feet. The walls had a height of 15 feet.

Tickets sold at 10,000 zecs at the lower boxes and the furthest seats were priced at 1,000 zecs. Even at those prices, all the preliminary tickets were sold out.

There were only eight participants in the southern district preliminary round. In order to win in the preliminary you could either knock the enemy off the stage or kill them...

The winning player would not get the status of a Chaotic Evil player as it has been set inside a tournament. However, the dead player would incur the same normal penalties of dying. If the participant was an NPC then they would be killed.

First Round:
-----------------
Cudny (Human)
vs
Pantalla (Dwarf)
-----------------
Tarcza (Halfling)
vs
Pedang (HighElf)
-----------------
Blastar (Lioumerean)
vs
Ecran (Gnome)
-----------------
Ilad (DarkElf)
vs
Szabla (Ork)

A loud announcer's voice was heard throughout the entire coliseum. It signaled the commencement of the game.

"Ladies and gentlemen, its time to start off our preliminary round for the Swordsman to Knight Tournament. For our first match its: Cudny vs. Pantalla!"

Cudny and Pantalla stepped onto the circular stage. Before the match started, Cudny gave Pantalla a flying kiss. The disoriented Dwarf didn't know how to react.

When the horn for the start of their match blew. Pantalla was still looking back at the audience. His girlfriend who was watching the match was glaring angrily at him.

With his back exposed, the Dwarf was easily pushed off the stage by Cudny's shield.

"The winner of the first match, it's the crowd's favorite, Cudny! Now it's time for our second match: Tarcza vs Pedang!"

This time it was Tarcza and Pedang's turn. Their battle lasted for thirty minutes and no one was giving in. Both their HPs stayed at 50%.

It looked like the fight would continue for another thirty more minutes when Tarcza used an all out attack which Pedang took on with his shield.

Even after blocking the attack, Pedang's lifebar was only left with around 20%. On the other hand, Tarcza stood motionless and was drained from his failed coup de grâce. Pedang grabbed the opportunity and pushed Tarcza off the stage with his shield.

"And the winner of our second match is Pedang! Now let's move on to our third match: Blastar vs Ecran!"

Blastar and Ecran took to the oval ring. Ecran readied himself and as soon as the horn went off, he made a dash towards Blastar.

The middle aged Swordsman met him head on and used the same technique 'Sword Smite', Ecran's slash was blown away and he was thrown off the ring. Blastar's fight lasted less than twenty seconds and he stared at Smoke, as he stepped over the defeated Gnome's body.

"Wow! That was quick and the winner of our third match is Blastar! Now! For our finally match on the first round of elimination. It's Ilad vs. Szabla!"

Smoke took the stage and he was followed by the huge Ork, Szabla. His opponent was carrying a Zweihänder. Szabla took the initiative and immediately used his 'Great Divide' ability.

Szabla missed his target but the floor of the ring had been greatly damaged. Smoke backed off a couple of more steps and continued dodging all of Szabla's attacks.

The stage now looked like it was about to break apart because of all the missed 'Great Divide' attempts. There were no more solid footing available on the stage. Smoke was now at the edge of the ring. The Ork readied himself for one more slash.

Just as Szabla was finishing his downward slashing motion. Smoke moved swiftly to his back and slashed him pushing him off the ring.

"That took long enough and here I thought that Pedang's match was gonna be longest. Right, the winner of the fourth match is Ilad! We will have a short break as our Earth Mages reconstruct our ring for us."

Smoke went to his assigned area and ate his prepared meal. He was sharpening his blade when he felt an ominous feeling that someone was watching him from the crowd.

He tried looking around but couldn't find the source. He shrugged it off. After all, he was in a competition where at least 80,000 people were watching him.

The announcer's voice resonated everywhere in the coliseum. They would resume the second round of the competition.

"Thank you for waiting patiently! I hope that won't happen again. That's right I'm looking at you, Ilad."

Smoke just gave a wave to the crowd as his disguised face was shown on the main screen. The hooded cape, bunny ears and specialized mask gave him the perfect disguise.

The main screen displayed the participants of the second round.

Second Round:
------------------------
Cudny (Human)
vs
Pedang (HighElf)
-----------------------
Blastar (Lioumerean)
vs
Ilad (DarkElf)

"Let's start our second round! First up, we have our beautiful Cudny vs HighElf Pedang!"

Cudny started her signature move and gave Pedang a flying kiss. Pedang's eyes just stared at her with fury. He wouldn't fall for her stupid tricks.

Cudny then made a sad face. The crowd started to jeer at Pedang, started calling him names and mocking him for even trying. The horn blew and this time. The HighElf ran towards the blond Swordswoman's left side.

He had planned to follow her usual attack pattern. Cudny jumped high into the air and performed her 'Quadruple Dive' attack.

Pedang managed to block all of her attacks and slashed her for 3212 damage points. The crowd gasped as their favorite participant was hurt.

The crowd started yelling at the HighElf. Cudny recovered and was pushed back near the edge of the ring. Pedang was about to use his own 'Sword Smite' ability when he saw Cudny jumped in the air again.

The counterattack was picture perfect. The HighElf's back was exposed and received all four attacks from Cudny's 'Quadruple Dive' attack. Pedang was thrown off the ring.

"And the winner of that beautiful match is our beautiful Cudny! Now, let's move on to our troublesome players. Our next contenders, Blastar vs. Ilad!"

The Lioumerean manlion stepped onto the ring first. Smoke followed and did not cower at the killing aura Blastar was emitting.

"Ilad! This time, we will find out the truth! We will see if the ability you really used was indeed Sword Smite!"

Smoke just smiled. He might not have the actual 'Sword Smite' ability but his training with Igniz yesterday gave him his own way of fighting.

Both fighters ran at top speed at the same time. They were running straight for each other. It was a contest to see who would make the first blow.

They were still out of each others reach, when Smoke manipulated the ground that he was stepping on, to propel him at a blinding speed.

Blastar started activating his 'Sword Smite', while the DarkElf placed his shield in front of him as he was flying straight at the Lioumerean.

Smoke used his 'Armadillo Bash' as soon as his shield came into contact with Blastar's torso. The Lioumerean was pushed back a couple of feet but he was still on top of the ring.

However, Blastar was now stunned for a whole second. In that one second, Smoke arched his back as far as he could. He was creating the optimal slash, he swung his sword as fast as he could.

Smoke and Igniz had mastered this move yesterday. Once his gladius sword collided with Blastar, Igniz melded his energy with Smoke's sword creating a strong explosion. Damaging the Lioumerean for 7,123 points.

Blastar was blasted out of the ring by Smoke's unique attack. Their whole match lasted a mere nineteen seconds. Smoke went to the wall, where Blastar was pinned to.

"Did you find the answer to your question?"

The Lioumerean was still in a daze as he watched Smoke walk away. The blast felt five times stronger than its actual damage. Blastar just laughed as he acknowledged his defeat.

"Well, ladies and gentlemen, I guess our trouble maker does know how to fight without completely destroying our ring. The winner and the one who will challenge our Cudny for the title of District Champion. Ilad! We will have a short intermission number from our sponsor. Arrted General Merchandise!"

As the exotic dancers were done with their show, Smoke went to his side of the ring and Cudny to hers. She gave him another flying kiss but this time Smoke caught it and placed it on his heart.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! Our final match to decide southern district's champion. Cudny vs. Ilad!"

Cudny was still shocked at Smoke's reaction. The crowd was also angered by Smoke's bravado. Smoke just smiled the whole time.

The horn was blown to signify the start of the final match. Smoke stood his ground near the edge of the ring. Cudny jumped high and was about to use her 'Quadruple Dive' when Smoke was no longer standing at his place.

Cudny searched for him but he wasn't anywhere on the ring. Then she noticed a shadow above her. It was Smoke who delivered four flaming strikes making Cudny fall off the ring.

The entire coliseum fell silent. The final match turned out to be the shortest one. Smoke landed expertly on the ring and gave a bow to his dumbfounded audience.

The announcer recovered from the bombshell that he had just witnessed. He continued to declare Smoke the winner.

"And the champion for southern district is... Ilad!"

The crowd roared into an applause, even if their favorite was defeated, Smoke still won in an unbelievable manner. A replay of the finals match kept playing on the main screen.

+ Southern District Champion
* You're now qualified to participate in the central district's championship.
* You've won the legendary Knight Weapon Rzeka (Glaive)
* Increased fame by 100(Beggar Penalty: 25%)

Even before Cudny jumped, Smoke had already launched himself into the air. As the audience started to thin out. The Cavalry Knight Macher came into view and was talking to someone.

"What did I tell you? If this guy wins the championship then it looks like we've found our next participant for the games..."

Chapter Two: Anger Management

Late into the night, the three Smoak brothers watched worriedly as the freak snowstorm continued piling up the snow, covering their entire house.

They had to travel tomorrow, to attend an unarmed open martial arts tournament. Grandmaster Cacoy had both invited Donny and Seth to participate in the 10-13 division and the 14-17 division respectively.

There was also an 18-21 division but grandmaster Cacoy wouldn't allow Nash to participate in it. He felt that Nash hadn't put enough effort into his training. Nash gave no argument and agreed with the grandmaster.

Morning came and the blizzard had stopped, leaving a bothersome three feet of snow. Nash had to dig through all that snow in order to make a path. Seth and Donny offered to help but were told to conserve their energy for the tournament.

Their grandmother, Daphne, wanted to join them but the cold weather was too much for her to travel outside. Besides, even if the weather was sunny, they still wouldn't want her there. They knew that she would just be nervous watching her grandsons' fight.

A few hours later, grandmaster Cacoy came to pick them up in his silver suburban. Nash had been contemplating on getting a car for their family, but decided not to.

After careful consideration on how unstable his income was, buying their house was all the risk that he could handle.

Nash's first game item auction resulted with $450. Three of his double bladed mantis swords sold for $100 while the last one was at $150.

It was a bit less than what he hoped for. He thought that while attending Seth and Donny's tournament, the Lioumereans should go to Mandragora Forest and gain their poison resistance.

While they were there, they might as well hunt some mantis blades. He planned on selling ten a day. He thought if he sold more than ten, it would greatly depreciate in value.

* * * * * *

The four eskrimadors arrived at the youth center where the tournament was being held. The center had a huge hall about the size of a football field.

As they came in, an usher came to them and briefly explained the rules and how to win in AUTOMATA (Amateur Unarmed Tournament Open Martial Art Techniques Association).

The ways of winning in AUTOMATA were as follows:

* Win via Judges' decision.

* Win via submission.

* Win via referee stoppage or fight doctor stoppage (due to serious injury).

* Win via corner's stoppage.

* Win via knock out.

There are only three rounds in each fight with two minutes per round. In the event of a tie, one more round will be extended to them.

Note: Referees have the right to deduct points whenever a participant has performed a misconduct.

AUTOMATA fights were harsher than most amateur competitions, but the association still regarded the safety of the participants to be the highest priority, resulting in early referee stoppage in most fights.

With such rough conditions, the participants in the tournament were noticeably few. In Donny's category there were only eight, whereas Seth's category had thirty two.

The participants were all required to wear complete protective gear. Everything was checked by the officials before the start of a match.

Normally, Nash would discourage such an event but his brothers kept on begging him for days. They had been practising Eskrima for quite sometime and they wanted to try out their skills.

He knew full well how good his brothers had become, this was the sole reason why he agreed. There was no way anyone could beat them in this competition.

His brothers attending AUTOMATA also made him feel connected to them. He was also currently in a tournament in Zectas. Their plan was for all of them to come out as champions in their respective divisions.

Donny's division went first. Nash and grandmaster Cacoy helped him put on his protective gear while Seth was doing some stretching on his side of the Tournament hall.

The excitement in Donny's eyes were crystal clear. Grandmaster Cacoy gave him some quick reminders about what to do during the competition. Afterwards, Nash gave Donny a fist bump. He wanted to hug him but Donny told him in advance not to do anything to embarrass him.

"Break a leg bro! Ah, I meant figuratively, you got that right?"

"Yeah, I know, besides if I did that I would get disqualified."

Nash laughed as he saw his youngest brother brimming with confidence. Donny stepped onto the blue padded mat. The referee asked Donny and his opponent to bow to him, bow to the judges and then bow to each other.

The opponent was two inches taller than him and stood at a height of five feet and six inches. From his stance it looked like he was a taekwondo practitioner.

He ran closer to Donny and gave him three consecutive side thrusting kicks. As Donny kept on backing off, his competitor leapt and tried to make a leaping round house kick.

Donny timed his sidestep correctly and caught the other kid in mid-air. Donny tackled him on the ground and pinned him down with a shoulder hammerlock.

Where the opponent's arm was held bent against his back, and his hand forced upwards towards the neck, thereby applying pressure to the shoulder joint. The referee counted up to ten and declared Donny as the winner.

Using small variations of the same pattern, Donny won his second match against a boxing practitioner, in barely under two minutes. It would have been faster if his opponent had made the first move quicker.

It was Donny's third fight, and this was already for the championship of the 10-13 division. Both of the fighters stared at each other, neither one made any moves.

This time his opponent was an aikido practioner. As such, he waited for Donny to make the first move. Donny lost the patience to wait and ran in the direction of his adversary.

The aikido practioner caught Donny. He was thrown down on the mat but as he fell down he made a scissor grab with his legs, bringing down his opponent with him.

Donny quickly grabbed the aikido practitioner's feet and performed a toe hold, using his hands to hyperextend and hyperrotate the ankle.

His opponent tapped out, and Donny was declared the champion of the 10-13 division. Nash ran up to Donny and raised him up on his shoulders.

* * * * * *

Seth's 14-17 division was divided into two groups. Each group had sixteen participants. The winner of each group would fight in the finals for the championship of that division.

Smiling at his younger brother for winning the championship, Seth gave Donny a thumbs up. He had won his fourth match. Now, he was qualified for the finals in his division.

Seth's matches were very identical to Donny's. They both used quick and efficient movements to end their matches as quickly as possible.

Now, that Donny had won. Nash, Donny, and grandmaster Cacoy went to Seth's corner to give him their full support.

His opponent for the championship was a seventeen year old rich kid by the name of Sagen Smith. Sagen had a height of 6 feet and 2 inches.

Sagen's face showed as if he had already won the tournament. Sagen's profile indicated that he practiced mixed martial arts but specialized in striking styles.

The referee called for both Seth and Sagen onto the mat. When they stood near each other it was clear just how much of a height difference they had. Seth was only five feet and seven inches tall.

They bowed to the judges, to the referee and to each other. Sagen casually moved forward into Seth's range. As he felt that Seth was within his reach he leapt out and did a 'superman' punch at the young eskrimador.

Seth responded by dodging to his right while grabbing hold of the attacking fist with his left hand. Now, that Sagen was within his range. He pounded on as much as five body blows before Sagen kicked him off.

The affluent kid was clearly agitated and continued to repeat the same attack. For that reason, all of his strikes were caught and countered.

Because they wore protective gears, Seth's body blows were not as effective. Despite that, the judges took note of those accumulated hits and awarded the round to Seth.

Since this was the finals, Seth wanted to use his strikes instead of his holds. He wanted to give Nash, Donny, and grandmaster Cacoy a great show.

The grandmaster understood what Seth was doing and gave him a disapproving look. With that one look, Seth clearly comprehended what his master was saying, that he was being  too overconfident and underestimated his opponent.

Ashamed of the what he was doing. Seth decided to focus and to use all of his skills to end this match as expediently as possible.

As their second round started, Sagen was doing the exact same thing. Seth prepared to grab him and to put him into a submission hold.

POW!

Seth was sent flying as Sagen's right punch, hit him squarely on his chin, on the unprotected part of the headgear. Nash was shocked as he saw the body of his brother floating in mid-air and fell hard on the mat.

The referee rushed to where Seth was lying down and was about to call for the doctor when, Seth sat up and assured the referee that he was alright.

Groggily, Seth stood up and took on a fighting pose. Seth took his time to regain his senses and stayed as far away from Sagen until he could fully recover.

Sagen tried to put in one more hit but wasn't able to catch Seth's speedy footwork. The second round clearly went to Sagen because he scored a down.

During the interval between rounds grandmaster Cacoy and Nash asked Seth what happened. They didn't understand why he would get hit by such a telegraphed punch.

"Are you okay? Mima will kill me when she sees your face. What happened? Why did you get hit by such a simple punch?"

"I don't know. I was getting ready to grab his fist when something blinded my eyes."

“This is why I always tell you. Never underestimate your opponent. Not even for a second.”

“I understand, grandmaster Cacoy. I'm really sorry. It won't happen again.”

Grandmaster Cacoy, told Seth to take the initiative rather than wait for Sagen to perform his attack. Seth nodded and got ready to fight.

For the third and final round, Seth was on complete guard. He didn't understand what really happened but he knew that he had to protect his eyes.

Grandmaster Cacoy's eskrima had incorporated different forms of martial arts. Seth used a peek-a-boo boxing guard and moved forward. Sagen was jumping around and continued hitting Seth's guard.

But with Seth's determination he pushed on until Sagen was within his reach. When Sagen released another wide left hook, Seth performed a series of hits to Sagen's head and body.

He was dominating Sagen when he suddenly stopped and tried to protect his eyes from something. Finally, Nash discovered the reason why Seth was hit in the second round.

Someone in the crowd had been using a red laser pointer and was blinding Seth. Nash was about to go to the source of laser pointer when he noticed that there was another one coming from his left side.

There were at least two people who were blinding his brother. Sagen quickly took advantage of the dirty distraction and hit Seth with a powerful uppercut.

Somehow, Seth managed to block the blow with his left hand. He guessed that Sagen was going for his chin again. Being extremely cautious paid off.

While Seth was backing off he was hit with another laser pointer to the eye. The laser pointer was really strong and was causing him to see double images of Sagen.

Seth's eyesight were out of focused. As he was seeing after images of Sagen, he couldn't tell which one was real.

Sagen continued punching Seth while he was still adjusting his eyes. Nash tried calling for the referee's attention about the laser pointers but the referee was too focused on the match to notice Nash's yelling.

It took a while for Seth's eyes to regain their normal sight. Seth was sure that if he doesn't score a down before the round ends, Sagen will win the championship.

Desperate, Seth risked the chance and attacked Sagen. He was able to hit Sagen's chin when Sagen was using his wide punches.

The blow clearly affected Sagen as he was about to fall down to the mat. Unfortunately, Sagen managed to clinch Seth and hold his arms down.

A laser pointer managed to hit his eyes once more before he closed them. The laser pointers were very bright that it caused his eyes to be really sore and itchy.

At the same time as he was clinching, Sagen was doing pathetic body blows in order to rack in more points while Seth's eyes were still hurting.

Two minutes finally ended, marking the end of the finals match for the 14-17 Division of AUTOMATA. Nash was furious.

If the judges didn't notice the underhanded tricks that Sagen was using then he didn't need to hear the results from the judge's score card.

The judges gave the following scores, 28-27, 28-27, 28-28. Giving Sagen the majority decision, two out of the three judges gave him the win.

Nash was about to run to Sagen's corner when grandmaster Cacoy and Donny grabbed hold of him.

"Nash, this isn't the time or the place. We don't have any proof of what they just did. Look, Seth is coming. You need to be strong for him."

A somber looking Seth was coming there way. He was clearly trying to smile but it was clear that his heart was aching.

"Seth, are you alright? I'm so sorry I didn't catch what they were doing on time."

"Don't worry about it. I don't want you to go after him. I think he has at least six bodyguards with him. Let's just charge this to experience. Now, I know that I rely too much on my eyes. I'll find some way to beat him on an official match next time."

"I'm sorry, I can't do that. I don't care if he has a hundred bodyguards. I won't let him get away for what he did. You were clearly the better fighter."

"Nash, let's just go home. Placing second in my first AUTOMATA isn't so bad, besides Mima will be worried if we get into any trouble. Remember, you are the one who told us that we should only use Eskrima for self defense."

This time Donny joined in to calm his brother down.

"That's right, besides we all know that, Seth, is the true winner. I also don't want to see you get hurt by those body guards. I'm sure if Mima were here she would also want you to forget about this."

"Fine! Let's just go home for now, but I can't promise you that I'm dropping this... I'll get back at that, Sagen, one way or another."

* * * * * *

Coatl city was filled with exuberance. The streets were filled with players and NPCs from all walks of life. Merchants and vendors were selling small figurines of the four finalists for the Swordsman to Knight Tournament.

The mayor of the city had invested quite a sum of money into the promotion of the Swordsman to Knight Tournament. Many players and NPCs from other cities came to Coatl.

It was the opening event to Coatl city's month long extravaganza. There were various forms of free entertainment, like the circus outside of the beginner's square and the musical contest by the Bards, Minstrels, Instrumentalists and other Musician variation jobs.

Aside from the free entertainment. There were also other events that required a joining fee. There was the 'Muddy Boar Catching', the 'Mounted Race', and finally the 'Jousting Tournament'.

The 'Jousting Tournament' would culminate their month long festivities, this even was exclusive to people who had jobs of Knight variations.

New players were starting at Coatl city because of these special events. With all the businesses that these events have brought in, the mayor's return of investment would take less than four days.

There were speculations that the mayor, Duke Burmistrz, was actually a part of some shady organization. Smoke kept a note of this as he continued his tour of the city.

Originally, the Swordsman to Knight Tournament was held once a year. Yet, a few years ago, Duke Burmistrz, decided that it was more lucrative for the city to hold the tournament twice within one year.

Blacksmiths were selling their Swordsman and Knight equipment like hotcake. Coatl city's tourists increased by four times.

Smoke, who was currently walking around the city, wore his hooded cloak and Swordsman's attire and was going by the name of Ilad.

Laernea and Gandiva were still on their way to Coatl. They came from Mandragora forest after gaining the poison resistance attribute and delivering five hundred mantis blades to Darius. Smoke had asked him to make as many double bladed swords as he could.

If he could sell them at the auction house for the same amount as before then he would have a decent increase in his monthly income. He planned on auctioning four double bladed mantis swords at a time.

There were so many products available, Smoke wanted to buy some of them but thought that his zecs should be spent somewhere more lucrative, he told himself that he would only spend money in order to make more money.

His altruistic nature was specially reserved only for Nanahuatl, but anywhere else on Zectas he stuck to his business and investment adages.

Smoke also admired the business sense of the mayor of Coatl city. He was sure that the every transaction done here would put a smile on the mayor's face.

He wished that he owned a city of his own. Someday, he knew that he would. Smoke firmly believed that one could only truly posses something when one had the proper power to protect it.

Igniz, hidden under Smoke's hood, kept on moving around trying to get a better view of the festivities. He would move to a certain direction, which meant that he wanted to go that way.

Smoke obediently followed his dark ember symbiote because he did not have any particular place to go.

While inspecting the other wares from different shops, Smoke found a disturbing figure. One of the finalists for the Swordsman to Knight Tournament looked eerily familiar.

At once, his heart started pumping vehemently. It was the face of the stuck up rich kid named Sagen but Smoke thought that it couldn't have been him.

Zectas' age requirement was strictly for 18 years old and above. Sagen couldn't have joined in on the game because the gamepod would detect the actual age of the person inside.

He decided to ask the NPC who was selling the figurines, she was a short plump Gnome.

"Excuse me, ma'am, can you tell me who this is?"

"Oh, that's Swordsman Sagen. He is the finalist from the Northern District. Wait a minute, aren't you Swordsman Ilad? Of course, you are! It's a pleasure to meet you sir Ilad. I know you're not yet a Knight but don't worry, with your skills, I don't think I'll jinx it."

He didn't notice the Gnome's pleasantries. Smoke was filled with hot rage. He wanted to scream and break everything in sight. He clenched his fists tightly and released all of his anger underground.

He used his 'Earth Manipulation' ability to squash and squeeze all of his anger out. Smoke had caused the immediate area to quake.

The whole street was rattled but it soon ended after five seconds. Everyone looked at each other and asked what that was. The merchants were especially glad that none of their wares were broken from the sudden earthquake.

The female Gnome looked around and checked that everything was in place. After checking her items she remembered that there was a celebrity in her stall.

Smoke regained his senses as he noticed that he had caused a brief mass panic. He extended his hand to the female Gnome.

She shook Smoke's hand eagerly. While shaking hands with the Gnome, Smoke raised his eyebrow. This NPC wasn't bothered by his poor appearance. He thought that maybe he could try out his beggary ability with her.

"Yes, that's right. My name is Ilad and you are?"

"My name is Kort. Can I help you with anything today, sir Ilad?"

"Please, just call me Ilad. I was wondering if you could tell me a bit more about Swordsman Sagen and the other finalists for the tournament."

"Hmm... All I know about, Swordsman Sagen is that he is the leader of the guild called 'Feras'. He also likes to be on the offensive. He always leaps out swinging at the start of all his fights."

Kort then grabbed the other two figurines and raised them to Smoke, giving him a better view of their faces.

"This Swordswoman goes by the name of Ayu, she uses counters. In some ways she is similar to the one you fought in your finals match at the district championship, Cudny."

Kort lowered Ayu's figurine and raised the one on her right hand, it was the figurine of a Halfling.

"Swordsman Kasar maybe short but his speed is top notch. All of his matches in the eastern district ended under five minutes."

"I see, that's quite some useful information. How much do these figurines cost?”

“Well, they're 150 zecs a piece but if you buy all four figurines I'd give them to you for 400 zecs"

"Oh, that's too bad. I wanted to have all four of these well crafted figurines but I just realized that I'm short on zecs. If only there was a way for me to get them as a memorabilia of this tournament. I may not win but at least I could tell my friends that I fought against such great Swordsmen."

Smoke tried making the saddest puppy dog eyes and hoped that it would work on Kort. The female Gnome thought that it would be too cruel not help him out. In view of the fact that she was cheering for Ilad to win the grand prize.

"Sir Ilad, it would be my great pleasure to give you these figurines for free. All I ask is you win the championship."

+ Received complete set of ‘Coatl city's 5th Swordsman To Knight finalists'.

"Thank you so much! I'm sure these will serve as my good luck charm and make me win the championship. Be that as it may, I'm afraid that you may not like what you see in the tournament."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"You'll see it when I fight against Sagen."

"Why? What did he do?"

Smoke's pitiful face instantly changed into a dark murderous killer.

"He robbed my brother of his honor and rightful title and now it's time for him to pay the price."

The female Gnome shuddered in fear as she watched Smoke walk away. She thought that she was lucky she gave him those figurines. Kort feared what he would have done otherwise.

Smoke left and went to buy the equipment that he needed in preparation for the finals and his grudge match against Sagen.

* * * * * *

The finals for the Swordsman to Knight Tournament was still a week away. Giving Smoke plenty of time to prepare. He would often ask Madam Dawny for advice on how to continue his training and preparation.

While waiting for the Lioumereans' arrival in Madam Dawny's farm. Smoke thought to enhance his common gladius and basic leather armor.

For the basic leather armor he chose the cheapest tower shields with the highest defense, he bought four of them. He used the shields as fusion ingredients.

With his 'Earth Manipulation', he created the transmutation circle that was specific for increasing defense.

====

+ Transmutation Completed:

Result: A strengthened leather-shielded armor

Effects:

Defense: + 500

Durability: + 400

Weight: Increased by 50%

Agility: -50

====

Smoke's experimentation on his 'Item Transmutation' ability, indicated that if he used the same base material the next results were negligible. There were even times where in it would have a worse result than the previous transmutation.

This made him decide to only use throw away items to raise his 'Item Transmutation' and to only one transmutation on expensive items.

For his gladius he bought four flamberges. He was hoping that the four pieces of two-handed swords would greatly enhance the gladius' attack.

Smoke modified the previous casting circle and tweaked it to focus on offense.

+ Transmutation Completed

Result: A compounded flamdius
Effects:
Attack: + 90
Durability: + 200
Weight: Increased by 30%
Agility: -30

Both transmutations resulted with negative effects but Smoke was still satisfied with the results. His old equipment were now stronger and deadlier.

With the Lioumereans' delayed arrival, Smoke thought he could unleash all of his pent up anger on Sagen with his training.

Sagen had lied about his age in AUTOMATA. Smoke was sure that he couldn't trick the gamepod but with his influence he could easily procure fake birth certificates claiming that he was still 17.

That bastard not only cheated Seth but everyone in AUTOMATA. He was gonna make him pay. Smoke had created a square wall to hide his secret training sessions.

Instead of calming down, his anger only increased. He was aiming for the training dummy he crafted inside the wall with an 'Exploding Strike' when he accidentally blew up one of the walls instead.

Laernea and Gandiva stood still as they were paralyzed at the sight of their leader. They had never seen him so angry before.

Gandiva, the tigress Lioumerean, was the one who broke the silence.

"Um, what happened? Did someone die? How is everyone? I hope they are okay. Please let them be okay."

Steam was rising out of Smoke. It looked as if his whole body was covered in dark purple fire. Igniz's energy responded to his strong, vehement emotions by melding with his mana and dispensing out some sort of flame aura.

It took a few more seconds for Smoke to recognize Gandiva and Laernea. His temperature finally started to cool down. He didn't know what he had just done. All he knew was that debris and rubble were everywhere.

Smoke decided to collapse the whole square building and to rebuild a new one when he decides to train. He also noticed that Gandiva and Laernea were still apprehensive when he went near them.

"Hey, I'm sorry if I scared you. I didn't know what came over me. I just felt like my whole body would explode if just stayed still, and from the damage that I caused I think it did."

Laernea, the lioness Lioumerean, was still clearly afraid of Smoke but she still wanted to console him nonetheless. This rampaging scene was familiar to the Lioumereans.

"Can you tell us what really happened? What could have irked you to become like this?"

Their DarkElf liege stared on the ground and fell silent. They had not seen his fight with the Maneator but since that time Smoke would have flashes of going berserk. He had lost himself to his wrath.

Laernea continued on, she felt that Smoke was slowly regaining his senses. The fierce killing aura that he was emitting was slowly fading away.

"Gandiva and I used to be really angry individuals. We would pick a fight with anyone. I felt that if I wasn't fighting the rage would consume me from inside."

Gandiva pulled Laernea in tighter and together they slowly stepped closer to Smoke. The Lioumereans gave him a hug. Smoke felt ashamed of what he had just done.

This maybe virtual reality but his overcharged emotions were all real. He thought that this isn't something his family would want him to be doing. Yet, something inside him was burning. He agreed with what Laernea said, if he didn't let his fury out, he felt that he would be swallowed whole.

"I'm... Just really frustrated with a certain individual. His name is Sagen, he is the northern district's finalist. He dishonored my brother. He didn't only hurt him physically he also harmed him emotionally. That bastard, Sagen, he even brought his thugs and they ganged up on my brother. When it comes to my family, I don't care if I turn into a demon, as long as I'll be able to defend them and give them justice."

"That makes sense! I would probably do the same if anyone were to mess with Laernea and you, and of course the rest of our team."

Gandiva's usual playful and energetic nature eased Smoke's tension and lightened his mood a little. She continued on to explain what calmed them.

"I think the reason why Laernea and I were so angry before was because our parents took us out of our village ,'Felin Platerres', and abandoned us in the outskirts of Centeo city. We were only about eight years old then. We couldn't understand why they would pluck us out of our peaceful valley. I guess we must have done something really bad for our parents to throw us away. Still, we wanted to return. We thought that our village was somewhere south. So, we decided to travel southward and came across the sternest looking Human you could imagine, Madam Dawny."

Gandiva was smiling as she was remembering her childhood. Smoke thought that she should have been sad rather than happy, after all they had been abandoned by their own parents but he decided to listen on quietly.

"We were stealing from a food stall when she caught us red-handed. With one look she understood that we were homeless. We just learned this later on, that she wanted to take care of us herself, but she couldn't due to the fact that she was still an active adventurer. She made us tell her the other places where we shoplifted from. One by one, we went back and she paid for the stuff that we stole. She also made us apologize to the owners."

Laernea was also smiling as Gandiva was telling the story of their childhood. She continued where Gandiva had left off.

"Madam Dawny scared us, by saying that she knew of a place where little trouble makers like us belonged to. We were terrified because she kept on a stern and serious face. She continued to take us southward. We originally planned to escape as soon as she left us in this 'reformation center' that she spoke of. She left us at the entrance of Nanahuatl village. She told us that we could either leave or try the life inside the village. We decided to stay, since we felt that we didn't have a place we belonged to anyway. We kept on doing our usual petty thefts and people got angry but they never locked us up or kicked us out of the village. They just waited for us to settle down. I remember that I finally felt at home in Nanahuatl was when master Darius gave us a purpose and treated us like we were his own family."

This time, Gandiva added in some of her thoughts.

"Master Darius taught us how to read, write, fish. Heck, we even learned how to cook some decent meals from him. We kept on asking him to teach us how to fight but he never did. Not until we told him that we wanted to fight for your cause. He said that if we had a reason to fight for, then it would be okay to teach us. He also told us that if we were to face the root of the problem, then it is most likely that our anger or anything that might have been upsetting us would disappear. For me, it was the fear of being forgotten. I felt like I was a nobody but when I came to Nanahuatl I knew that my friends and the family that I've made there would remember me even after I'm long gone from this world."

Smoke was inspired by hearing Darius' advice. Even when they were miles apart, Darius was still helping him. He was glad that Darius taught his students not only how to fight but also how to be helpful and productive members of society.

* * * * * *

Now, that he knew what to do with his anger. He focused on his training once more, this time with a specific goal in mind. He went to the old lady sitting on her porch.

Madam Dawny was enjoying the afternoon sky, rocking away in her wooden rocking chair. He wanted to ask for more guidance on being a Swordsman.

"Madam Dawny, I wish you a good day. I see that you're enjoying a quiet morning. I know that it's a bit bothersome but I was wondering if you could share some more of your wisdom. I was thinking that even though healing abilities are mostly associated to acolytes and paladins there should be something similar for Swordsmen right?"

Madam Dawny just stared at Smoke with a hard stern look. She looked stricter than when she gave him advice on the district tournament. However, he knew that she was real soft inside and continued to match her gaze with a smile.

"There is such an ability, but I haven't heard of a Swordsman in recent times that decided to acquire it. Its basic requirements are quite high and the ability itself can be called mediocre at best. Do you still want to learn the ability even with all that information?"

Smoke nodded with a smile. He didn't care if other people found the ability to be useless. All he cared about was that he could use it in the upcoming finals.

"Yes! Can you please teach me the ability. I'm willing to do anything to learn it."

"Alright, just do these steps. Go to the central library. Ask for the head librarian. Her name is Madry tell her I sent you. Then you just have to pay for the ability tome 'Life Share'. You do know what an ability tome is right?"

"Of course. I've used some of those before. Thank you so much for this information. I'll head straight for the central library now."

"Before you go. I'd like to give you something. In the off chance that Madry might offer you a ridiculous price for the tome. Maybe, you can find some use of this one instead."

+ Received Ability Tome: Mount Mastery

"Wow, I didn't think anyone but Darius would just hand out ability tomes."

"That tome enhances the user's ability to maneuver and fight on top of a mount. There were different variations of this ability that would enable the other jobs to get a mount. Like the Pathfinder's 'Beast Tamer(Mount)', the Warrior's 'Mounted Warrior' and the Druid's 'Animal Whisper'. Nevertheless, it is the Knight's 'Mount Mastery' that is the easiest to acquire. In mounted form, a person would need a longer weapon to increase his range. Hence, making most Knights take up the spear or the glaive. Go ahead and acquire the ability."

+ Consumed 'Mount Mastery' tome.

+ Learned Ability: Mount Mastery
Passive
Level: Beginner Level 1
Experience: (0/1,000)

Enables the Knight to take control of a mount as if it were a part of the user's own body.
Effects:
* Increases mount's speed by 5%
* Increases mount's defense by 5%
* Attacks in mounted form enhanced by 5%

Madam Dawny eyebrows met as she saw Smoke consume a Knight only ability tome. Although, this ability was readily available from the time that a player gets the job of a Knight hence making it a junk ability tome.

"Thank you so much! I'll use this properly when the time comes. Alright, I'll head out to the central district's library now."

Smoke equipped with his hooded cloak, 'Wings of Cologus', and a basic Swordsman's attire proceeded to the teleportation circle in the southern district.

* * * * * *

Sometimes merchants and other vendors would recognize him as Ilad their southern district representative. He would wave and smile at them cordially.

NPCs would go near him and shake his hands, all except for the stalls near the female Gnome called Kort. The NPCs there would avert their eyes when they saw Smoke coming their way.

Smoke failed to notice this and continued onward to the central library. He stepped onto the teleportation circle targeting the central district.

It wasn't only the NPCs that crowded around Smoke, there were players as well that would ask him to add them to their friend list but Smoke would refuse all of them politely. If he did that, they would discover his real name.

He finally came upon the special casting circle. This was his first time using a teleportation circle and he felt weird. He thought that it would be a seamless experience but it felt like his brain was jiggled up a bit. Like an elevator making an abrupt stop.

Before, he thought that the southern district was already crowded but it could not compete with the population of the central district. Players and NPCs numbered in the thousands.

There were shops that were catered to specific players like the 'MaguStore' and the 'SnipeRus'. Of course the Knight specific stores still dominated the market place.

He was excited to check each store, but his preparations for the finals superseded anything else. He went directly to the central library.

Smoke had never seen this many books in his entire life, the real world included. Inside the central district's library there were thirty floors, all of which were filled with books.

The central library was the tallest building in Coatl city, but he didn't think that all of its floors were filled up with books.

He was salivating when he imagined just how much acquired knowledge and Intelligence stats he would receive if he were to read all of these books.

A tall male HighElf with golden hair was standing at the front desk. Smoke went to him and asked to see the head librarian, Madry.

"I'm here to see the head librarian. Madam Dawny sent me."

The HighElf looked at him curiously. He was not used to see a Swordsman inside the library. He would occasionally see some Alchemists, Mages and Wizards, maybe even a Priest but never a Swordsman.

"Hmm, Madam Dawny, huh? Let me check if she is available."

The attendant with golden hair disappeared into the backroom. After a few minutes he came out and told Smoke to follow him. They went to the fifteenth floor of the library.

They arrived at a normal looking door with the label 'Head Librarian'. The HighElf knocked twice, and a deep voice answered them to come in.

Smoke couldn't have guessed what the head librarian looked like. Sitting in front of them was an old female Ork with glasses.

"Well, what do you want? I know that we may not look busy, but we actually are. The sooner you tell me the reason why Dawny sent you here, the better."

"Of course, first let me greet you on this fine day. My name is Ilad. Madam Dawny told me that you could help me acquire the ability Life Share'. I desperately need it for my upcoming tournament."

"Tournament? What tournament?"

The HighElf quickly answered the head librarian.

"I believe it's the Swordsman to Knight Tournament. I think he is the southern district's champion."

"Oh, it's that time of the year huh? Strange, you're the first one to ask for this ability. Also, I don't see why you we need an ability to heal someone when the tournament is one on one?"

"I have took the time to know my enemies, and for me to be able to assure a just victory I know that I would need that ability."

"Very well, since you were recommended by Dawny, I shall allow you to purchase the ability tome. You just need to pay us ten million zecs."

"What? Ten millions zecs? Isn't that too pricey for a mediocre ability?"

"How dare you? You don't ever call an ability mediocre! For that insolence, you've forfeited your right to buy the ability tome."

"No, no, no, I'm so sorry, I meant no disrespect. It's just that I'm really poor. I think you can tell from my appearance just how poor I am."

Madry examined the DarkElf closely. Smoke thought that the Ork was convinced that he was penniless as he claimed to be.

"Yes, you do look like you can't afford to buy for ten million zecs. Nonetheless, I can't let it go for anything less than a million zecs."

Smoke thought that he could offer up his newly obtained glaive 'Rzeka' but its attack at 80 was twice the attack of his green dual knives. He also needed the weapon when he would be disguised as a Knight.

Then, Smoke remembered that Laernea and Gandiva brought twenty pieces of double bladed mantis swords. Each sword could probably sell at around 20,000 zecs to 30,000 zecs.

"Would you be open to a trade? I have with me ten pieces of double bladed mantis swords. These swords are still quite rare. I think there are less than twenty of them including these in Coatl city."

"I am not a weapon's appraiser. If you want, you can take them to one of the shops outside and sell them there."

Smoke thought that it would be troublesome to sell each blade. His furrowed eyebrows and deep sighs caught the attention of the female Ork. He was about to give in and pay her with actual zecs when the head librarian spoke out.

"Hmm, it would seem that I could take the risk of accepting this offer, provided you pay the sum of one hundred thousand zecs."

The DarkElf did his best to suppress his smile. He quickly turned around and pretended to be counting his money. He couldn't believe how useful his 'Beggary' ability was.

"I would like to inform you that this is my whole life savings. If only I didn't need that ability tome I would have walked away from this deal. Against the better judgment of my pockets, I accept and will pay the said amount."

Madry motioned for the HighElf to retrieve the book. Upon his return, he went to Smoke and opened a trade window. After which, they successfully traded the agreed upon items.

+Received Ability Tome: Life Share

Smoke eagerly inspected his traded ability tome.

+Ability Tome: Life Share

The basic form of healing for a Swordsman.
Ability consumes 100 mp/sec.
Ability consumes 2% of the Swordsman's maximum HP and shares it with the target.

Requirements:
Job: Swordsman
Level: 80
HP Regen: at least 2%
Intelligence: 150
Mana: 4,000
Life: must be more than 10% of maximum HP

The head librarian then spoke out and said.

"You've received the ability tome, but I doubt that you could use it."

Before Madry finished her sentence, Smoke had already activated the learning process of the tome and acquired its ability.

The female Ork's jaw dropped. She couldn't believe that there was a Swordsman who could meet Intelligence requirements.

Smoke took notice of the head librarians reaction and decided to ask the question that had been bugging him since he saw her.

"Forgive my rudeness, but I just have to ask how did you manage to become the head librarian?"

"Oh? Because I'm an Ork?"

"No, of course that's not what I meant. I just mean that you look too young to be the head librarian."

Madry raised her eyebrow. She thought to answer his question because she had one of her own.

"I'm not your stereotypical Ork. I am a MaduHai Ork. There are only a few of my kind left and we are the most magically gifted among the Ork sub-races. Now that I've answered your question, can you answer mine? Why would a Swordsman invest as much as 150 to his Intelligence stat?"

"Oh, that's because I was taught that brain triumphs over brawn."

* * * * * *

Central district's coliseum was four times larger than the one found in the southern district. It was made to fit every audience from all districts.

Duke Burmistrz, the mayor of Coatl city has been invited to be the guest of honor for the 'Swordsman to Knight' tournament.

The old Human Viking War Lord had been in various epic battles, and although his job was not of the Knight variation, he was included in the order of 'Legendary Knights'.

Rumor has it that Duke Burmistrz was once a High Commander of the 'Ladrones del Mundo', the secret society of marauders and thieves.

Before the start of the tournament, the guest of honor asked to speak before the entire arena.

"Citizens and visitors of Coatl, I am honored to have all of you here in our sacred stadium. I am sure that we will witness a most enjoyable battle. Still, I find that the rule for having a one on one to be dull. I propose that we hasten the inevitable and have them all fight in a free-for-all battle. What do you say, my good people?"

The crowd cheered loudly as a new format for the finals was implemented. The screens that displayed the original sequence of fighters had updated into a bold and eye-popping "FREE FOR ALL FIGHT - four Swordsmen enter, one leaves as the champion!"

Smoke didn't mind the new format. In fact, he welcomed it! This only hastened his fight with his desired opponent, Swordsman Sagen.

He was given his own private area to prepare. Laernea and Gandiva were allowed to join him in his private quarters.

They were there to give him their support, they worried that he would experience another episode of blind rage. But were relieved because Smoke looked to have recovered from his anger streak.

It was about an hour before the start of central district's championship. The southern district's representative was busy preparing his equipment and cooking his meal.

He was excited to use the new spices and garnishes, and to test out his newly learned recipe, when a call abruptly interrupted his preparatory measures.

"Smoke, why didn't you tell me that something was up? How do you think I felt when I heard the news from Laernea that you were rampaging in Coatl city?"

Sierra had called the troubled DarkElf. He didn't have any reasonable answer for her. He barely understood what he was actually feeling during those flashes of rage.

"Listen, I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I didn't mean to hide it from you. It's just these emotions keep coming out of me. I think you remembered the time before I quit the diner? I'm having those feelings again but this time they're getting stronger."

"I thought that you already got past that. Aren't you here to enjoy this other world where you could be a different you?"

"I am here to enjoy Zectas, but I also think that I'm discovering the real me. Don't worry, Gandiva and Laernea gave me a pretty solid advice on how to deal with my anger."

"Well, I guess if you got a handle on it, then I guess you're alright. You are alright, right?"

"Of course! Trust me you won't see me picking fights in the real world."

"What was that again? What was the last part you said?"

"I said, I'm fine. Honestly. Anyway how is your search for the village? Have you found the exit to the labyrinth?"

"I'm still waiting for Adder's report. You know how he likes to be thorough. I think we will find the exit in two days, worst case maybe four."

"Don't hurry on my account. I'm still trying to get the recommendation to enter the labyrinth as well. It looks like my original estimate for this quest was wrong."

"I know! I had a gut feeling from the moment you told me, that you expected us to be done in a week. Anyway, don't worry about it too much. I'm still having fun on my end. I'm learning a lot of new things in my Werebear form. You know, just in case it will take us longer to break the curse."

"That's great. Not that you would be stuck in that form, but you getting better at your Werebear form. I hope you know what I meant."

"Yeah, I do. Smoke, please talk to me if something is bothering you."

"Don't worry I've really got it handled."

"Alright, stay safe, I don't want to hear you having any mental breakdowns. Take care!"

Sierra was very worried about his well being. He also knew that each member of his private army wanted to check up on him.

Despite that, they didn't call because the tournament was about to start. Even if they didn't, Smoke still knew that he had their support.

After his conversation with Sierra, he continued sharpening his gladius. Afterwards, he ate his newly learned dish 'Pork Rib Stew with Sage Cornmeal Dumplings'.

The meal boosted his health regeneration by 3%. When used together with the 'Heart of ReenTe', Smoke's total health regen was at 5%. Provided that he doesn't get hit.

FREE FOR ALL FIGHT:

Ayu (Lioumerean) vs Ilad (DarkElf) vs Kasar (Halfling) vs Sagen (Human)

All the participants were ushered into the center arena. The crowd grew wild as each of their representatives appeared before them.

Smoke, Sagen, Kasar and Ayu were all called to stand on the large oval ring. Each district representative stood on their respective ends of the ring.

Smoke donned the following equipment: his strengthened leather-shielded armor, compounded flamdius, rare shield, rare lucky bunny ears, rare necklace, rare gloves, and epic hooded cloak.

He checked on the other participants. Ayu, the Lioumerean cheetah, was dressed in a provocative leather armor. Smoke thought that it revealed too much skin. Her sword was a schiavona, a basket hilted sword. She also had a medium-sized round shield on her side.

Next, there was the Halfling, Kasar. He wore a black leather armor and had two kodachis as his weapon. Kodachis were the only Katana type swords that were accessible to the job of a Swordsman. Smoke thought that Kasar must have wanted to have Samurai as his advanced job.

Lastly, directly across Smoke, stood Sagen. His face looked exactly like the same in Zectas. He wore a heavy chain-mail. He had on his back a great sword called a zweihänder.

A loud commentator's voice was heard throughout the arena.

"My Lord Duke Burmistrz, honored guests, ladies and gentlemen, allow me to present to you, the finalists of our 5th bi-annual Swordsman to Knight Tournament. From the southern district we have the mysterious, Ilad! From the western district we have the enchanting, Ayu! From the eastern district we have the nimble, Kasar! And finally from the northern district we have the headstrong, Sagen!"

Sagen's guild had bought an entire front section of the arena and had huge banners with the name 'Feras' printed across it. They kept shouting out Sagen's name.

All the participants continued on waving to their audience. The crowd exploded into shouting, clapping and cheering.

Everyone was in complete uproar. They could not wait for horn to be blown.

TTOOOOOOOTTTT!

Each one of finalists studied each other carefully. Their eyes were darting back and forth as they checked the opponents on their sides and in front of them.

Their stalemate did not last long. Smoke rushed towards Kasar, while Sagen ran for Ayu. It was a simultaneous fight between high level players.

Kasar jumped from Smoke's right side to his extreme left. Smoke was significantly slowed down by his added enhancements on his leather armor and sword.

The Halfling ran circles around him. Attacks from Kasar's kodachis came from every direction. If it weren't for Smoke's 'Cunning of the Dire Fox' ability, he would have received numerous back attacks.

At the same time, Sagen raised his zweihänder over his shoulders and ran into Ayu's direction. Ayu was not flustered by the huge sword and met his charge head on.

Sagen used his 'Great Divide' ability, Ayu easily side stepped the wide attack. She thrusted her schiavona at her attacker, but struck nothing but air. Sagen had rolled away after executing his wide attack.

Ayu gave chase and was faced with a great horizontal cleaving attack from Sagen. She did her best to block the blow with her shield but was knocked back.

Kasar using his two kodachis, he unleashed twin 'Sword Smite' attacks. Smoke planted both his feet firmly on the ground and got ready to receive both attacks.

Owing to the fact that Smoke's modified equipment gave him added weights, he did not move from where he stood. Smoke found an opening after Kasar's powerful attack.

He used his flamdius and unleashed his own explosive strike, throwing Kasar over to Sagen, who had just blasted away Ayu.

Kasar saw that Sagen was about to attack the fallen Lioumerean and took this chance and launch a series of sword strikes on Sagen's back.

Sagen tried to runaway and was attacked by Ayu. Smoke saw that Sagen was stuck in a pincer attack between Ayu and Kasar.

Manipulating the ring, he launched himself upward. In the last few seconds, Kasar saw Smoke coming from above him. He tried to block with his two swords but Smoke's attack went right through them.

With his flamdius, he sliced down Kasar with his own variation of the 'Great Divide' ability. Smoke's added weight increased the force of his attack.

Kasar took the slash right on his torso and was slammed down to the ground. He was stunned for two seconds. Smoke grabbed hold of his feet and throw him off the ring.

Ayu was about to attack Sagen when a red light struck her eye. It was from one of the Snipers sitting in the crowd, who used the ability 'Guided Light' which temporarily blinded Ayu.

The ability 'Guided Light' was intended to give Snipers an added accuracy bonus but Sagen used in the same way he cheated Seth in AUTOMATA.

Sagen repeated his most powerful attack the 'Great Divide' and blasted Ayu off the ring. Ayu was eliminated from the tournament.

Only Smoke and Sagen were left standing on top of the ring. Smoke's lifebar was still hidden because he did not receive any direct attack, while Sagen's lifebar displayed (62,184/89,000 HP).

Raising his zweihänder over his right shoulders, Sagen prepared his attacking stance. On the other side of the ring, Smoke sheathed his flamdius and raised his right hand.

With his open palm pointing at Sagen. This move bewildered his opponent. Instead of charging blindly at Smoke, Sagan prepared to dodge whatever attack was coming.

The audience waited with anticipation to see what move the DarkElf would use. A small ball of white light was formed and was launched from his hand. The white ball flew fast and struck Sagan and healed him for 5,400 HP.

When Smoke used his 'Life Share' ability his lifebar appeared, which displayed (55,305/61,450 HP). He did not stop and kept on launching more 'Life Share' orbs in the direction of Sagen.

He did not stop until Sagen's lifebar was full. His current lifebar displayed (25,150/61,450 HP). Smoke activated his necklace, 'Heart of Rentee'. Now, his regen was increased to 5%.

Sagen was dumbstruck. He just stood there and watched Smoke's life increase at an amazing rate. Twelve seconds passed, and Smoke's life was already fully restored.

The audience applauded Smoke's action. They thought that he wanted a fair match with Sagen at their prime conditions.

"You bastard! How dare you make a laughing stock out of me! WAAAAAAHHHH!"

Sagen was enraged. His humiliation was clearly visible on his face. He got back to his fighting stance and ran towards Smoke.

Like clockwork, multiple red lights pointed on Smoke's eyes. Yet, Sagen and his Snipers couldn't believe what they saw.

Smoke's eyes were shut tight. The red lights were clearly seen on Smoke's closed eyelids. Sagen smirked and continued on his attack.

With a great vertical swing he struck down his zweihänder and made a deep hole on where Smoke stood. Sagen tried checking his sides and found nothing.

A shadow was casted over his face which made him look upwards. Sagen was staring directly at Smoke's 'Armored Armadillo Shield'.

KLAANG!

Smoke used his 'Armadillo Bash' ability and Sagen was stunned for one second. The moment Smoke hit the ground, four quick flaming thrusts slashed Sagen's body.

All four slashes made Sagen's lifebar drop down to (68,056/89,000 HP). The injured swordsman tried to retaliate with a side attack but Smoke's shield did not budge an inch.

With his eyes closed, Smoke smiled and did the exact same move as Sagen but with a completely different result. Even with his zweihänder blocking the flamdius, Sagen was pushed back by five feet.

"ARRGGGHH! When will you stop mocking me?"

"Not until I've completely stripped you of your pride and made a complete fool of you in front of everyone here."

"Just what the heck is your problem anyway? I don't recall meeting you before."

"No, you haven't, but your cheap tricks have irked me for the last time and this time you shall feel the full brunt of my wrath."

Smoke ran towards Sagen and launched multiple lunges. With his zweihänder he was only able to parry about two thirds of Smoke's attacks.

Sagen kept on backing up as Smoke continued his unending lunges. They had circumnavigated the ring and Sagen was left with only (33,350/89,000 HP).

At this point, Smoke stopped his attacks. He quickly backed off, giving Sagen plenty of space to reorganize himself.

Sagen's fighting tactic was completely obliterated. From the division tournament, he had been relying on his Snipers blinding his enemy. He didn't think that there was someone capable of fighting him with their eyes closed.

"Are you proud of yourself? Are you happy with winning titles that don't belong to you? My brother should have won that tournament but you took it away from him."

"Brother? Who's your brother? Well, whoever he is, it's his own fault for losing. In the end the winner is the won who is in the ring..."

A series of white orbs came at Sagen and completely healed his life. Smoke was left with (6,150/61,450 HP).

"DAMN YOU ILAD! You even reduced your life to 10%. I'll show you, no one makes fun of Sagen! WRAaaaaahhhhh!"

For the time it took Sagen to reach Smoke's location, Smoke's lifebar had fully restored. Sagen's zweihänder was still raised over his shoulder, when Smoke used his 'Earth Manipulation' ability and catapaulted himself at Sagen like a canon.

KLAANG!

Sagen was once again stunned by the 'Armadillo Bash'. This time, Smoke didn't stop with the lunges, he finished it off with a loud exploding slash which pushed Sagen near the edge of the ring.

With only (43,350/89,000 HP) on Sagen's lifebar, a succession of 'Life Share' orbs came his way once more. The crowd started laughing as Sagen cried out once more.

Only the section with the Feras guild members remained silent. They were glaring angrily at Smoke for making a fool out of their guild master.

Like a mad raging bull, Sagen went straight at Smoke, still holding his zweihänder over his right shoulder. Smoke responded by retreating strategically and continued pummeling Sagen with his 'Life Share' orbs.

After five minutes of running around, Smoke stopped. Sagen stopped as well. Sagen kept on shaking his vehemently.

He couldn't grasp how anyone could fight so well without their eyesight. He took his usual fighting stance and devised a new strategy.

Screaming from the top of his lungs. Sagen ran blindly, moving closer to Smoke. The DarkElf responded by using the same counter move, launching himself at Sagen with blinding speed.

But before Smoke came into Sagen's range, Sagen struck his zweihänder on the ground and used his 'Great Divide' ability on the ring.

Debris were flying everywhere. Smoke was hit, he was not able to dodge all of the scraps from the broken ring. The effects of his necklace had worn off.

"Did you see that? Oh, right, you can't because you stupidly closed your eyes. Just who in their right mind would fight with their eyes clo..."

KLAANG!

After such a devastating attack, Sagen took the chance to gloat, giving Smoke an opening to use his 'Armadillo Bash'. Now, that Smoke's regen only relied on his special 'Pork Rib Stew', it was reduced to 3%.

In that one second that Sagen was stunned, Smoke performed the fastest slashes he could muster with his flamdius.

After that blurring attack, Sagen was still left with (38,152/89,000 HP). He launched a sideways cleave for his counter attack.

But while Sagen was preparing his counter-attack, Smoke had already moved to his blind spot. From there he used the most explosive strike he could summon.

BOODOOM!

The blast blew Sagen off to the opposite side of the ring. Sagen still had (13,284/89,000 HP) left. Smoke slowly walked to Sagen's direction.

Sagen boiling with rage took completely different stance. He lowered his knees and arched his back. He took his zweihänder and leveled it to his line of sight. His zweihänder's sharp edge pointing straight at Smoke.

Sagen ran at his top speed and thrust his zweihänder with all his might. Smoke's responded by simply moving to his side and ran his shield across the length of Sagen's blade.

Smoke raised his flamdius for maximum leverage and ardently stroke down Sagen. His opponent was plowed forcefully to the ground.

With his eyes still closed, Smoke used his right foot and stepped on Sagen's back, pushing hard against the ring. He drove his flamdius fiercely on the ground, missing Sagen's face by an inch.

"Know this. I'm prepared for your entire guild to come at me. But, the moment one of your members attack me, I will not stop until I've reduced all of your levels to zero."

Sagen nodded meekly and tried to speak but Smoke pushed his foot down even harder.

"I hope this fight will teach you how to obey the rules and play fairly."

"Of course, I've definitely learned my lesson. I concede. You can throw me off the ri..."

Smoke pulled his flamdius and stabbed Sagen in the back. Sagen's lifebar went down to zero and was killed. Dying meant that he was blocked from Zectas for another twenty four hours.

The announcer's voice exploded and covered the entire stadium with the results of the Swordsman to Knight Tournament.

"And the champion for the 5th bi-annual Swordsman to Knight Tournament is... Ilad!"

The audience jumped from their seats. Cheering and shouting came from everywhere. The guild members of 'Feras' discreetly exited the arena. The crowd could not believe how Smoke completely dominated Sagen. A replay of the finals match kept playing on the main screen.

+ 5th bi-annual Swordsman to Knight Champion
* You've won the title 5th Swordsman to Knight Champion
* You've won the complete 'Gora Equipment Set' (Ruby Knight Set)
* Increased fame by 200(Beggar Penalty: 25%)

* * * * * *

After winning the tournament, Smoke, Gandiva, and Laernea went to the central district's Knight Academia. The walk that should have taken only ten minutes was lengthened into thirty.

+ Friend request from: Liebste
Accept? [YES/NO]

+ Friend request from: Namorada
Accept? [YES/NO]

+ Friend request from: Amoureux
Accept? [YES/NO]

+ Friend request from: Novia
Accept? [YES/NO]

+ Friend request from: Kekasih
Accept? [YES/NO]

+ Friend request from: Premi
Accept? [YES/NO]

The sea of people could not be parted. NPCs and players alike kept on asking him for friend requests. Smoke politely declined all of them but was bothered by the numerous system notifications that he decided to disable the option.

He finally reached the Knight academia. There, Smoke spoke with various NPCs and after a few minutes he went to a secluded corner.

As he was equipping the 'Gora Ruby Knight Set', Smoke realized that it had been twenty four hours since he had spoken with Sierra.

In all the excitement he had completely forgotten to inform her that he had won the tournament.

He thought about giving her a call now, but as soon as he had equipped the 'Gora Plate Armor' and the 'Gora Helm' he decided to, finish Ilad's 'Job Change' from Swordsman to Knight.

Smoke emerged, fully equipped in the tungsten carbide, Knight equipment set. His 'Gora Helm' only revealed his eyes. It had two bent horns on the sides that pointed upwards and one in front.

His 'Gora Plate Armor', 'Gora Gloves', 'Gora leggings', 'Gora Boots' were all thick and had black metal linings but they still gave him a great range of motion.

His 'Gora Shield' had the crest of a ram on it. The shield's defense was 500 points below his 'Armored Armadillo Shield' and had no effects or abilities. However, he still wore the poorer equipment in order to complete the set.

Due to his low Beggar level, the fully equipped Knight armor looked tattered, to the point of near destruction.

He thought that the rustic look gave him an aura of a well traveled Knight.

Smoke stepped out of the Knight's academia and tried to go over to the mayor's villa. He wanted to have an audience with him. Smoke had hoped that Duke Burmistrz would allow him entry into the labyrinth.

Sadly, Smoke's plans were foiled when the inner city's guards stopped him on his tracks. Even if he had received the title of 'Swordsman to Knight' he is still not allowed to go beyond the second layer of the city.

"Psst. Psst. Ilad, over here."

Smoke looked around and tried to find the voice that was calling out to him. In a dark corner, Cavalry Knight Macher, was waving out to Smoke, calling him out.

With his failed attempt of gaining access to the inner layers of Coatl city. Smoke decided to see what Macher was up to.

"Great job on winning the tournament! I won't waste your time, so I'll get right down to business. I have a lucrative business opportunity and I think you're just the right man to turn it to a complete success. Are you interested?"

Chapter Three: Cuezaltzinity or Tlaltezinism

Smoke gave Sierra command over the rest of his private army. They were assigned to look for the labyrinth's exit.

The moment they arrived in Coatl, Smoke immediately asked Sierra to begin her own mission of 'Liberating the Maneators' quest.

This was Smoke's first time to see a main city. Sierra knew this fact, which helped her understand why he was very excited to explore the wonders that Coatl had to offer ASAP.

Sierra had only passed by the Heraldic city of Coatl herself and didn't know much about it. She wanted to go with him and explore the city together.

However, her Werebear form hindered her to enter most settlements, let alone a main city. Sierra was pulled out from her musings when Thyrsus tapped her shoulders to give his falcon's updates.

"Thyr's initial scouting revealed five villages matching Mitleid's description of where he escaped from the labyrinth. Two of these villages are east from here, while the rest are to the west."

It has been a few hours since Sierra and the rest of Smoke's private army were separated from their leader.

Sierra speedily assessed the situation and decided that splitting the army meant she had to prepare to face the consequence of their reduced manpower.

Yet conversely, it significantly increased their searched area of Coatl's southern region.

"Nice going, Thyrsus. Please tell your falcon to return ASAP. My map tells me that the villages in the east are Poludnie and Nisko, while the villages in the west are Silap, Salah, and Betul. I know that all of you except for Adder came to Coatl to change jobs. Did any of you get a chance to visit these villages? Remember, we're looking for a big white mausoleum."

Sharanga, the young brunette WoodElf, was the first one to speak up.

"Vijaya and I have been to Poludnie and Silap. We went there to look for the manjur recurve bow. There were rumors that these villages have information about the bow that was used by the 'Guardian Vicars' of the great god, Cuezaltzin. But I don't remember seeing any cemeteries in those villages. There was a huge white warehouse though."

Ichaival waited for Sharanga to finish before he added in his knowledge of those villages.

"I went to Salah village. I think they had a cemetery, but the reason I went there was because I heard they had a special treatment to turn black hair permanently into brown. Sadly, I didn't have enough zecs to pay for the treatment but now..."

In an irritated voice, Sharanga interrupted Ichaival.

"What does that have to do with our mission?"

"I'm just saying I could go visit Salah again and get the treatment. Smoke, gave us a hefty honorarium and I could finally afford to get my hair into the color that you liked."

"It wouldn't matter what color your hair was. I still see you as the same snot nosed kid who used to drop worms into my back."

"But, Shar..."

Sierra stomped the ground hard. She had to interrupt Sharanga and Ichaival's quarrel.

"Both of you stop it. This isn't the time or the place for that. Let's just double check all these villages. Adder, you take Jinggu, Sharanga, and Thyrsus to the villages in the east. The rest of us will take the villages in the west. Also for our cover story, let's just say that we are looking for the manjur recurve bow. Everybody got that?"

Ichaival was clearly disappointed with Sierra's decision. He had wanted to be grouped together with Sharanga.

They were tasked to find the exit in one of these villages. Once found, they were to try to enter the labyrinth and use the exit.

If they couldn't, then they should at least secure the area in preparation for Smoke and the other Maneators' escape.

"Adder, I trust your leadership skills. However, please remember that our primary objective is to find the exit. If you encounter any form of danger, please escape. Everyone, please remember that your lives are more important than any quest or mission."

Adder nodded.

"You've got nothing to worry about. We've got the eastern villages covered."

"Alright, give us a call when you're done investigating those two villages. We will do the same on our end."

Adder and his group headed out to the nearest village, Poludnie.

* * * * * *

Their one armed commander lead the way as they carried on and traveled inside one of the patches of Otaczac forest. Sharanga and Thyrsus followed closely while Jinggu stayed behind a couple of feet to guard the rear.

Otaczac forest used to completely surround Coatl. When the city started to expand, the mayor ordered that they cut down the trees to make roads and farmlands.

Despite that, the forest started to reclaim its lost land and grew back on the roads that were not frequently used. There were many forest fragmentation which tried to connect with each other as they did in the past.

Otaczac forest permeated with life. There were creatures of various shapes and sizes, from the insects that crawled to the monsters that flew over the branches.

Adder and his men only focused on the beasts that were either a threat to them or were useful. They hunted down any of these monsters that came within their range.

Smoke had ordered them to loot and to hunt, even on a reconnaissance mission like this one. They were told to gain more levels and items. He kept on telling them this one line.

'Why waste your precious time doing just one thing when you can effectively multi-task and do several?'

Adder remembered how Smoke trained his passive abilities. While Smoke acquired knowledge with a book in each hand, he also dodged four monsters' attack to increase his passive abilities.

He knew that he had to follow the example of his young master.

Frequently, they met a nye of blood pheasants, a small bird which averaged a height of twenty inches. These creatures' levels were from 30 to 40.

Their feathers varied from smoke white to ash gray but all of them retained the blood red colored feathers below their beaks and tails.

These monsters weren't much of a threat to them, but their sheer number could become a nuisance.

Adder and his team killed these monsters with a single hit, which prevented any potential swarm of blood pheasants.

The blood pheasant's meat and feathers came really handy to the Hunters who needed food and raw materials for their arrows.

Seldomly, they also met a group of pine martens, slender monsters with weasel-like bodies and a length averaging four feet. These creatures had huge rounded ears and stubby legs.

These monsters levels were from 48 to 57. Adder and his men had often seen pine martens that carried a carcass of a blood pheasant into their hole, up on the thick trees.

Then there's your extremely rare strigidae owls. There were just a few of them scattered in Otaczac forest. These huge silvery owls stood at five feet with wingspans of twelve feet.

These monster's levels varied from 70 to 80. They mostly hunted groups of pine martens and nests of blood pheasants.

Jinggu had a contest with his twin on who could bag the most strigidae owls. He wanted to hunt at least one, but they never saw any of that monstrous bird get within their range.

After a few hours, Poludnie finally came into view.

Adder motioned for everyone to get closer as he gave out his instructions on how to investigate this village.

"Since Sharanga has been here, she will go into the village together with Thyrsus. I think six hours should be enough time for you two to look around, while Jinggu and I will check out the surrounding area."

Sharanga and Thyrsus nodded and prepared themselves to go into Poludnie. They called for their falcons and asked them to stay perched on their shoulders.

On their way to the village entrance they spotted two Human Cavalry Knights on top of dirus wolves from behind them. The Knights were also headed to the village.

"Good day, travelers. We've just returned from our patrol and my friend here pointed out that it's weird we didn't see you on our way out. He seems to think that you might be bandits. If you don't mind can you tell us where you two came from?"

Thyrsus answered posthaste.

"Oh, that must have been because we were still sleeping inside our tents."

The second Cavalry Knight spoke up.

"Tent? I didn't see any tents on our way out to patrol."

Sharanga unwittingly followed Thyrsus' lead.

"Did you check the forest fragment about two kilometers southeast of here? We built our tents inside the forest. I guess it's just my WoodElf nature. Also our falcons have taken a liking to us sleeping in an area where there is an abundance of trees. Although, my friend Thyrsus has been complaining about it, saying it's dangerous. I didn't think it would cause any trouble to you, kind sirs."

The young huntress gave a long winded answer. She was unsure whether she had convinced them or not.

The Cavalry Knight's dirus wolf started to sniff them. Their falcons instinctively flew away as the massive beast's breath drew near.

"Hmm, you WoodElves have a very strange sleeping preference. You should know that it's much safer to sleep in the plains right? Can I have your names and your place of origin? Also state your business in Poludnie?"

Sharanga dragged on to entertain the Cavalry Knight's questions.

"Wow, when did this place become so strict?"

The Cavalry Knight questioningly looked at Sharanga.

"That's all thanks to those no good Brandal bandits. What? You haven't heard of the Brandal bandits? I guess, that's understandable. They did arrive only three months ago."

"So that's the reason why the Cavalry Knights are out here patrolling the village?"

"Yes, Duke Burmistrz ordered us to protect the villages outside the walls of Coatl. But before anything else, you forgot to mention your place of origin and the purpose of your visit to Poludnie."

"Right, we came from Coatl. We're here on a quest to look for the manjur recurve bow."

"Ha! Good luck with that. We've heard of that story as well. I don't think you will find any lead here. But you're welcome to try."

This time it was Thyrsus who added on his own musings.

"Thank you. About these bandits, it was very thoughtful of the Duke to send you guys here, considering how costly it is to send out a detachment let alone, Cavalry Knights."

"My lord Duke Burmistrz is truly generous. I'm very honored to serve such a righteous man."

A few seconds passed as the Cavalry Knights continued to stare down at Thyrsus and Sharanga.

"Umm, can we proceed to Poludnie now?"

"Of course, of course. Go right ahead. Remember to keep your falcons leashed within the village."

The Hunters nodded and called for their falcons to return. As they walked a couple of steps, they distinctly heard the laughter of the Cavalry Knights. Both of them wondered what made the Cavalry Knights laugh.

Poludnie was a craftsman village. The total land area of the village was about thirteen acres. The residential area was at four acres, while the rest were for the shops and business of Poludnie. Its total population was only 537.

The majority of the people that lived in the village were Humans at 78%, WoodElves at 11%, Lioumereans at 5%, Dwarves were at 4%, and Gnomes at 2%. The village only had two main gates and a high wall that encased the whole village.

Sharanga let out a whistle as she observed the changes in the village.

"Looks like those bandits really did a number on this village. The walls weren't this tall when I came here before."

"I wonder if Adder and Jinggu ran into any of the patrolling Cavalry Knights."

"I hope not. Those two might kill the Cavalry Knights just because they looked at them funny."

After they searched the entire village, both Thyrsus and Sharanga reached the same conclusion. This wasn't the village that they were after.

There was a large white building, but the residents there said that it was used by the Cavalry Knights as their sleeping quarters and stable.

The two Hunters decided to head out and report their findings to their commander. It was almost night time when they arrived.

Adder and Jinggu stayed hidden inside the forest. When they finally saw the Hunters, they went out of their hiding place and greeted them.

Jinggu had made a camouflaged shelter, he used the vines and the branches in the forest. Inside they had grilled some aromatic blood pheasants.

Their one armed commander looked up as they got closer.

"How was it? Did you find the mausoleum?"

Thyrsus was the first one to answer Adder's question.

"Sorry, it wasn't there. Although, there was a large building, but it was in the center of the village. If Mitleid did pass there, he would have caused a large commotion, but he said he was able to escape quietly."

Sharanga added her findings of the village.

"I'd just like to point out that the residents of the village felt weird. They had tired eyes, and the way they looked at the Cavalry Knights... it's almost like they were wary of them."

Adder let out a deep breath.

"Thank you both. I guess this means we proceed to Nisko. I'll call Sierra and give her our updates about this village."

While Adder spoke with Sierra, Jinggu quietly asked Thyrsus and Sharanga.

"Did you guys see any OrkElves in that village?"

Sharanga sadly looked at the OrkElf and answered his question.

"Sorry, no OrkElf. I know Madam Dawny said that she saw an OrkElf traveling between the villages but she did say that it was years ago and she wasn't a hundred percent sure it was an OrkElf."

Jinggu looked depressed when he heard Sharanga, but he forced a smile as he looked at his friends.

"I know, but I can't give up. I'm sure someday we will find other OrkElves."

Adder had just finished his conversation with Sierra.

"Okay, Sierra told me that they were also done with Salah and they found nothing there that fits the description of the exit. Let's take a quick meal break before we head out."

Sharanga and Thyrsus prepared the meals for their pets. They gave the chopped blood pheasant's meat to their respective falcons Thyr and Ranga.

While they ate Jinggu spoke his mind about something that had bothered him for some time.

"Adder, I know that you respect Smoke and that you respect his decision of putting Sierra in charge after him, but don't you think that decision is wrong? You were the first member of his private army. Heck, you even gave up a limb for him."

"What's wrong with Smoke's decision? Isn't Sierra stronger than me? She has greater life and defense, and I'm sure if she was there in that murlock's hidden cave we would definitely have won against them. Smoke did still give me the title commander. I don't have any problem at all. Believe me when I say, I feel nothing but respect for Sierra. Her bravery and her thirst for battle reminds me of my wife, Maxine."

Adder stared quietly into the camp fire as he took a bite out of his grilled blood pheasant. While he remembered the abruptly taken life of his beloved, it left a bitter aftertaste...

* * * * * *

Vijaya and Ichaival came back from Salah. It used to be a busy trading village, with a land area of eight acres. Its shops catered to almost all kinds of jobs. The owners were happy with their earned one percent out of their sold items.

Sadly, the Brandals laid waste to the village. It was now a rundown version of its former self. The population of 682 was reduced to 91.

The prominent shops were burnt to the ground. Only the burnt wooden beams were left. Most of Salah's residents migrated to Coatl or other nearby villages with a better financial and security situation.

Vijaya and Ichaival sat down before Sierra and Sharur who waited for them besides their campfire.

Sierra intentively watched Sharur prepare a blood pheasant. She asked each specific procedure and the exact amount of ingredient that he used.

"And what do you use next?"

"Next, we sprinkle some salt, black pepper, and paprika. Then we brush the melted butter over the pheasant meat and put it on the grill."

"And how long should we grill it?"

"It depends on your preference if you want it a bit raw, twenty minutes should be fine. Normally, it takes about thirty minutes for a well cooked pheasant."

Vijaya and Ichaival laughed at the sight of an OrkElf teaching a Werebear how to cook. It's not everyday that you see such a rare event.

Sierra looked up as she heard laughter.

"What's so funny?"

With no delay, Vijaya and Ichaival straightened their faces. The female WoodElf was the first one to defend their laughter.

"Sorry, we didn't mean anything by that. Its just the two of you look really menacing, and here you are cooking. It's just something you wouldn't expect to see."

Sierra and Sharur exchange glances and looked around their campfire area. It was true that they looked like they were on some kind of cooking show rather than on a mission. All four of them laughed as they realized how ridiculous the scene must look like.

The red Werebear tried to hold her chuckle in and spoke in a serious voice.

"Wait, wait. Let's get back to the real reason why we're here. Give us your findings on Salah."

Ichaival gave their report about the village.

"Right, we didn't find any mausoleum, let alone a white building. Aside from that, I'd also like to inform you of the changes in the village. It has been reduced to almost 14% of its former population. There are barely any goods inside that village. All they have left are food and other basic necessities. Also, the shop that offered the special treatment for my hair closed."

"Why? What happened?"

"It looks like some bandit group called the Brandal ransacked the village. Most shops were pillaged, establishments burnt to the ground. Looks like Sharanga will really get mad at me. I've once again failed to get the hair color she wanted."

Vijaya shoved Ichaival because he strayed out of the correct report. Sierra didn't mind Ichaival's comments about Sharanga. She knew he really loved her. He just had a weird way of showing it.

"Weren't there any of the patrolling Cavalry Knights guarding Salah?"

Vijaya answered in a dejected voice.

"One of the elders told us that, there used to be Cavalry Knights defending them. Back when they could still pay for the patrol tax that the Duke imposed. Unfortunately, the trade industry in the last few months were not so great. They eventually ran out of money to pay the patrol tax. Immediately, the Cavalry Knights left."

Ichaival finished their report and said.

"I think that the Brandals were keeping tabs on the village. Because the day the Cavalry Knights stopped protecting the village was the same day that the Brandals came and stole every precious thing in Salah."

"Hmm. I just finished talking with Adder earlier. He said that Poludnie had become much stricter because of the presence of the Cavalry Knights. Both of these villages have undergone major changes. We better watch out for these Brandal bandits."

Sierra and her group ate their barbecued blood pheasants when Smoke called them. She got up and got some distance away from the group to have a private conversation with him.

"..."

"Smoke! You better be joking, Don't forget that I have most of your private army here with me."

"I'm joking, I'm joking. Jeez, anyway you better take care and make sure to keep everyone safe and intact. I don't want to have one of my men having a missing limb."

"You don't have to worry about that, I'm better than you remember? How could you have let Adder lose his arm in the first place? Tsk tsk tsk."

"Yeah, yeah, just be safe, okay?"

"You, too..."

Sierra went back to her group and told them that Smoke had joined a tournament called Swordsman to Knight. She wondered out loud about the place where Smoke, Laernea, and Gandiva were staying.

Sharur answered Sierra's queries.

"Most likely, Gandiva and Laernea brought him to Madam Dawny's farm. That's where we stayed ourselves when we were there to become Archers."

"Who's Madam Dawny?"

Vijaya answered Sierra's question.

"She's a retired adventurer that looked after the trouble making Lioumereans when they were younger. She brought them to Nanahuatl when they were around eight, Yeah I think they were eight. She was hoping that the village would reform them. Nanahuatl has a miraculous power of reforming deviants, but its limits were tested on those two."

Vijaya, Ichaival, and Sharur all burst out in laughter as soon as soon as the Vijaya finished her sentence. They remembered how much trouble those two caused.

Ichaival carried on and told Sierra about what Madam Dawny did for him.

"Madam Dawny is a really cryptic old lady, and her talent of bringing out your potential is just as mysterious. I came back to her when I got my advance job of a Hunter. I told her that everyone had gotten certain specialty abilities except for me. She asked me to show her my skills with the bow and arrow. I obliged her by hitting the bull's eye squarely."

"And then? What happened next?"

"She told me to keep on hitting the same target until I would run out of arrows. She also said that even if I wasn't given a special ability if I would work hard enough, something good would come of it. I obediently followed her instructions and spent the next week repeating the same thing over and over again."

Vijaya and Sharur nodded in agreement on how Madam Dawny's advice always seemed insane, but eventually gave out great results.

"I noticed that the time it took me to use all of my arrows had gotten shorter as the days passed. Then at the end of that week, Madam Dawny told me to release four arrows at once. I laughed and told her that I couldn't do that without activating some ability. She asked me, why not activate my own ability then. I couldn't come up with an answer. So, I just followed what she told me. This was how I ended up learning my ability 'Phantom Arrows'. Now that our talented leader, Smoke, is under her care, I'm sure he will gain some amazing abilities in the short time that he is with her."

Sierra wondered if Madam Dawny knew her Priestess mentor Nenek. From what they were saying about her, she thought that it was highly likely.

"Madam Dawny sounds really similar to my mentor. I wonder if she could give me any advice on being a Werebear."

This time Sharur gave his opinion on Madam Dawny.

"I think that there's a high chance that she could give you some. I mean she was the one who told me and my brother to get the Siege Ranger job. She said that our natural high strength would be a hindrance if we took on the job of a Hunter. It feels like she can see into your soul and knows how to make your true potential come out."

"Damn it! Looks like Smoke is in for a lot of training under her tutelage. He keeps on giving me this tasks where I can't level up. I'm gonna tell him that I should improve my fighting ability as well. Although, it is understandable that I can't go into Coatl on account of this curse, but still. I can't stagnate at this level."

Vijaya thought to add her impression about this special mission.

"I think that this mission isn't as plain as we think it is. Let's just wait and see. I think that this could be more fun than being stuck in such a strict city like Coatl."

Sierra nodded. Out in the unrestrained wilderness, enjoying the night sky lit by thousands of stars was definitely better. She couldn't think of a better way to end their first day as they searched for the labyrinth's exit.

* * * * * *

Adder and his men were hidden in front of Nisko's main gate. From their obscured location, they observed that the village looked like a ghost town.

"We haven't detected any presence of the Cavalry Knights. I think all of us can safely go inside the village. Does anyone have any objections?"

No one raised their hand. Everyone agreed with Adder's decision. All four of them entered the village.

Nisko was a small farming village. Its total land area was twenty acres, but it was mostly farmlands. The housing of the village were all cooped up in a two acre lot protected by their shoddily built wooden walls.

As they came to the village entrance, all the residents started to run to the safety of their houses. They were afraid that the Brandals have returned to pillage their village once more.

With all their weapons safely tucked away, Adder raised both his shoulders to show that he was a one armed man. He wanted them to know that he was harmless.

One of the villagers came out of his house. He carried a pitch fork and drew closer.

"What do you want? You're not from the Cavalry Knights or from the Brandals."

"My friends and I mean you no harm. We come from Coatl. We're simply here looking for information about the manjur recurve bow."

Slowly, other residents came out of their houses to watch the strangers in their village.

"Hahaha, the manjur recurve bow? People still do believe in that myth? Let me guess, you're another Cuezaltzinian follower aren't you? You people are really funny. You believe in justice and equality when clearly it doesn't exist. All of us here in Nisko have done no wrong. We've paid our taxes regularly. Then a charlatan of a trader offered to pay double the regular price of our harvest, and quickly ran off as soon as we loaded it in their caravan. They ran with our goods without paying a single zec."

Adder was a strong follower of Cuezaltzin. Even though he was born into slavery. He was brought up by the elders of Condortl to believe in what is just and good.

He remembered that before he met Smoke, he was about to give up on being a Cuezaltzinian, but his faith was reinforced and strengthened when his entire village that was enslaved for decades was freed by an outsider.

Adder believed that it was their people's perseverance and persistent prayers to the great god that delivered Smoke to them.

"Please don't blame your misfortune on, great god Cuezaltzin. I was once where you are now, on the edge of my faith, questioning everything that I stand for, but I was saved by our great leader. We were here for a different reason, but I think my friends and I are actually here to stop you from converting to Tlaltezinism. Please continue living your lives as you did before. I know that the spirit of the god in your hearts will enlighten you."

The villager with a pitch fork laughed.

"Everyone did you hear what this one armed preacher was saying? He says that the great god Cuezaltzin has not forsaken us and in fact have brought them to deliver us from this harsh predicament. HAHAHAHA. Talk is cheap, one armed preacher! Now off with you. There is nothing for your kind here."

The villager picked up a stone on the ground and threw it at Adder. The Condortlian did not dodge the villager's pathetic throw. He took the stone directly on his face and looked straight into the villager's eyes.

"We will leave, and we may not return but believe me when I say that your lives will soon get better."

Adder left Nisko and his group followed him towards the exit. Nobody else threw a stone at them. The villagers just watched in silence as Adder and his men left their desolate village.

After the eastern group had finished their investigation on the two villages of Poludnie and Nisko. They swiftly rushed towards Sierra and the rest of their teammates.

* * * * * *

"Adder said that they're gonna meet up with us in Betul. Ichaival, Vijaya, let's follow the same procedure for Silap village, but considering that this is the largest out of all the villages, I think allotting the whole day will barely be enough for you to investigate. But I believe you can still finish in time. Adder and I have checked the map in advance, and we've both decided on our next base camp. Let's meet up at (Latitude: 6°16' S, Longitude: 106°48' E). Adder and his group are already heading there. Let's all meet up at 2200 hours."

Vijaya and Ichaival nodded in concert. They've already packed up their needed gear and headed out to Silap.

Three falcons swoop down from the branches. Thyr perched on his master, while Vij and Aya each took a shoulder on the young Huntress.

Both Sierra and Sharur headed to the opposite direction. The gigantic Werebear and the tall OrkElf towered over the bushes, shrubs, and even some trees in this fledgling forest fragment.

Because Sierra's 'Animal Instinct' ability could detect the presence of danger, she didn't mind that they weren't concealed well by the forest.

The tall duo were the first one to arrive at the meeting spot. They prepared to make a hidden base camp. While building their base, Sierra suddenly stopped.

She felt someone's eyes were on her back, she turned around and found no one, her Animal Instinct ability also gave her no warning.

"Did you feel that?"

"Huh?"

"I think someone's watching us."

Sharur tried to look around.

"Nope, can't sense a thing. That's probably just some strigidae owl. Their eyesight is very far. I think they may want to eat our barbequed blood pheasant."

"You sure? Hmm, I guess that could have been it. Hey, maybe you'll get a strigidae owl. I think Adder said that Jinggu had already killed one."

"What? Are you serious? I have to leave. What direction did you say you felt someone was looking at you?"

"I'm not sure. I think it was somewhere that way."

"Alright. I'll be back in a few minutes. I'm sorry I have to run out. I've just finished building the base camp anyway."

"Sure, sure. I hope you finally manage to get one."

Sharur ran in the direction that Sierra pointed to. He sprinted as fast as he could. He knew that if his twin were to win this bet he would never hear the end of it.

Sierra gave a weird Werebear laugh as she saw the OrkElf run. It was funny how his huge ballista would get in his way as he jumped through the bushes.  It was the first time that she was alone, ever since she met Smoke.

She thought about going hunting herself but realized that she wanted to try out the dishes that she had learned from Sharur in the real world. Sierra logged off and didn't return until their designated meeting time.

* * * * * *

Adder and his men arrived at the camouflaged base camp. If they didn't know the exact coordinates they would have had a hard time finding the place.

Sharur was on top of a tree in one of the sentinel platforms that they've built. He was keeping a look out and waited for everybody's arrival.

The moment he saw his twin. He immediately grab a rope and slid off the platform.

"HAHAHA, Jinggu! I've got something to show you. I've managed to kill a strigidae owl. Sierra said that she felt something was watching her. It wasn't in the exact location that she pointed to but I still got this monster."

Sharur briskly went inside their base camp and brought out the dead carcass of the elusive monster.

"Ha! I think this is just a really fat blood pheasant."

"What are you talking about? This owl is huge. You can't compare this to any blood pheasant. Unless you mean that... You've managed to kill an even larger strigidae owl?"

Jinggu fell silent and looked to his companions who just arrived with him.

"Alright, I think we should all get some rest. Right, Adder? We need to have energy for our next operation."

"Jinggu! Quit changing the subject. If you don't answer me I'll take that as a no and I'll claim that I've won our bet."

Sierra stepped outside as he heard the twin OrkElves talking.

"Hey! You're all here. Let's just wait for Ichaival and Vijaya they should arrive soon. Umm... What's up with Jinggu and Sharur?"

Jinggu was lying down on the ground while Sharur picked up a stick. He waved it in front of Jinggu and then he threw it far away. Jinggu sprang up and swiftly looked for the thrown stick.

Sharanga was the one who answered Sierra's question.

"Sharur won the bet, and now Jinggu has to be his pet dog for the next forty-eight hours."

"HAHAHAHA, what kind of bet is that? Hmm... But I like it! I think Smoke and I will have a similar bet."

Everyone laughed as they saw Jinggu being toyed with by his brother. Sierra clapped her claws and called for everyone's attention.

"Alright, enough of that, Sharur. Have your dog heel for the meantime. Let's all eat first before we start catching up."

Vijaya and Ichaival arrived shortly after, and managed to finish scouting the biggest village out of their five targets.

Otaczac forest was usually a quiet place at night, but this particular forest fragment was filled with boisterous laughter as the two scouting groups united in a small merry feast.

The two group leaders sat beside each other and started sharing more detailed results of the investigated villages so far.

"What were your impressions on Poludnie and Nisko?"

"I think all of them have lived sheltered lives, and when they met their first major trial they succumbed to it and forgot their faith and converted to what's convenient."

"Faith? Converted? What do you mean?"

Adder straightened his posture and looked at Sierra seriously.

"Huh? Don't you know about the four major religions in Zectas?  Tlaltezinism, Chalchizinity, Tezcazinism, and Cuezaltzinity. Have you heard of those names before?"

"I've only heard about Cuezaltzinity. That's the order that my mentor Nenek is under. I think most citizens in Centeo are Cuezaltzinians."

"If your mentor is a Cuezaltzinian Priestess, why didn't she teach you about Cuezaltzinity?"

"She wanted to, but I ran off the moment I got everything I needed to find Smoke."

Adder looked at Sierra sternly. He couldn't believe how she treated her mentor and how she ran out on a lecture about Cuezaltzinity.

"That was very disrespectful of you. Anyway, Cuezaltzinity isn't an order. It's the major religion of Chayotl Kingdom (Western Kingdom). We Condortlians are all Cuezaltzinians, and the same goes for the Nanahuatlanos. Even when our freedom was taken from us. We believed that the great god Cuezaltizin will deliver us from bondage."

"Oh, that's what I meant when I said that Nenek was from the order of Cuezaltzinity."

"Right... And I guess you also know what Cuezaltzinity is all about?"

Sierra sighed and asked in an exasperated voice.

"Like I said, I was in a hurry to find Smoke, and left the moment she started talking about Cuezaltzinity. Can you just tell me what it is already?"

"Cuezaltzinity tells us that you get what you deserve. It may not come at once but it will come. If you've done good to others then good things will happen to you. That's why when we were enslaved our people knew that it wasn't simply because of the virile and fecund lizards it was also due to the fact that we prayed to another god."

"Wow! I guess great god Cuezaltzin doesn't like you worshiping other gods."

"It isn't only him. All of the great gods will not allow it if you give homage to any other god that isn't under their realm."

"That's really harsh. Are you sure that all of you believe that?"

"I know that all of us here believe that. Aren't you a Cuezaltzinian?"

"I guess I am... But I've never heard about the other three religions? They sound like their religions from the other great gods? Can you tell me more about them?"

Adder simply stared at Sierra in disbelief.

Sharanga who sat near them saw the tension between the two leaders and decided to answer in Adder's behalf.

"That's right, the other religions are from the other four great gods. Tezcazinism is the main religion in Thayotl Kingdom (Eastern Kingdom). They believe that the afterlife doesn't exist. That this world is all there is to it. That's why most of them strongly value zecs and other worldly pleasures."

Sierra didn't mind Adder's stare and faced Sharanga instead.

"Wait, I thought their god was dead? Aren't all the four great gods dead?"

"Eh? Dead? Where did you hear that? They aren't dead. None of them are. They just left this world to us mortals. I'm sure that somewhere they're watching us and giving us 'Gahum', their spiritual energy and divine guidance from a far."

"What about the the other two religions?"

"I'm not really sure about any of the other religions. All I know is that Tlaltezinism is the main religion in Vitzytl Kingdom (Southern Kingdom). Tlaltezinism believes in natural selection. The strong has all the rights in the world while the weak exist only to support the strong."

Sierra faced Adder again and asked.

"Is this what you meant? Earlier, when you said that people are converting... Why would anyone want to convert to Tlaltezinism?"

Adder was still upset about Sierra's lack of knowledge about Cuezaltzinity but answered her anyway.

"For survival. If the residents give in and convert then they believe that Tlaltezin will protect them and will allow them to live longer."

Sierra kept on shaking her furry head back and forth. She couldn't believe the kinds of religion in Zectas.

"I guess that means Chalchizinity is the major religion in Mictaztl Kingdom (Northern Kingdom)?"

Adder nodded his head.

"Yes. Chalchizinity believes that death is the true meaning of life. I don't know exactly what it means, but that's all I know about it."

Sierra was dumbfounded with the overload of information. It has almost been a year since she had been playing but she never knew the importance of the four major religions.

She remembered reading somewhere about the main religion of the kingdoms, but most walkthroughs and FAQs indicated the same thing.

That it was negligible. Seeing that the kingdom's description was practically the same as the described religion. The game guides also stated that rather than focus on religion, a player should focus on fame and charm to get better intimacies with NPCs.

In the one year that Sierra had traveled around Chayotl Kingdom (Western Kingdom). She had never stayed in one place long enough to note the differences in the people living there. She decided to ask Smoke about this on their next conversation.

Sierra realized that if she were to analyze all the religions and their effects it would take too long and that their main objective was to find the labyrinth not convince the residents to convert or to stay to a certain religion.

"Umm. Can you refresh my mind again? Why are we talking about all these religions? What do they have to do with our mission?"

"Well, they really don't, but I told Smoke from day one that I will free the oppressed and give justice to those who deserve it. That was our deal for me joining his private army. I know that it's also the same with the rest of them as well."

Sierra looked around and noticed that the boisterous noise had died out. Everybody was glued in on their conversation.

"Hi, everyone. How long have you guys been listening to our talk?"

Vijaya answered.

"Since we heard you were talking about the different religions."

It just dawned on Sierra that it was practically from the beginning of her conversation with Adder.

"And? What are your opinions?"

Sharur spoke rapidly, before anyone else could give their thoughts.

"I say we stick to our primary objective. We only have one more village to look at, and I think that the exit should be there. After that, we wait in front of any village and kill all these Brandals."

Sierra looked around their concealed base camp and saw that all their eyes glowed with the same desire. They wanted to free all the villagers from their current predicament.

"It looks like we've picked up a secondary objective to this reconnaissance mission."

Everybody cheered enthusiastically and clapped loudly, while the falcons produced a variety of sounds, from shrieks to clicks and whistles to show their approval of what Sierra just said.

"Okay, okay, I think we can all settle down now. For the benefit of those not present on Vijaya and Ichaival's report about their investigation on Silap. Vijaya, Ichaival, you have the floor."

Vijaya rose up from where she sat and stood in front of everyone, Ichaival followed and positioned himself beside her.

"I had Vij and Aya fly around the village. Outside its wall, of course. All these villages have strict rules about falcons flying inside them. I don't know why."

Ichaival made a forced cough to help Vijaya focus on her report.

"Oh, right. Anyway, my falcons found no other potential exit aside from the southern and eastern gate. I also observed that the people were very friendly. There were no signs of any attacks from the Brandals. They had a cemetery near the eastern gate but no mausoleums of any kind."

Ichaival picked up where Vijaya left off.

"As some of you may know, Silap used to be a 'stop off' village en route to Betul. All Silap had to offer were their hot springs and reasonably priced inns, but they always held the security of their guests, as well as their own, as their highest priority. Aside from paying the Cavalry Knights patrolling the area, they also have their own satellite base of the famous mercenary group, 'Avendre'. There are about fifty mercs stationed in Silap. Some residents from the pillaged villages migrated to Silap. Its residential area has tripled in size. Commerce is booming with the new business district. In conclusion, we think that they've already converted to Tlaltezinism."

Sierra watched all of their reaction to Ichaival and Vijaya's report. She noted that they weren't bothered that the residents converted, and from first glance it appeared that they were happy with the conversion.

Sierra gave her own opinion about Silap.

"With that I would like to state that I don't want to go on some kind of holy crusade. If they've decided to convert to their new religion I think we should respect their decision. I'm sure they've considered a lot of things before finally deciding to convert."

Adder, Ichaival, Jinggu, Sharanga, Sharur, Thyrsus, and Vijaya all looked at each other. They smiled and nodded and agreed with what Sierra was saying.

Jinggu looked at Adder and thought to speak in his behalf.

"We're not preachers, and we do respect their decision. I know that what you said makes sense. I think you had misunderstood what our secondary objective was. We don't want to convince anyone to stick to Cuezaltzinity. We only want to show them that Cuezaltzin's teachings are real and we can do that by eliminating these Brandal bandits. We just want to follow what Smoke did, nothing more nothing less."

Sierra's eyes widened, there were only eight of them and Smoke wasn't even with them. She thought that it was too dangerous to fight a bandit group, just by themselves. They didn't even know how many of them there were. There were too many factors to consider.

“Wait... what? I thought you only wanted to convince them to stay as Cuezaltzinians? Are you sure we could handle an entire bandit group with just eight of us? I'm confident with my life and defense, but I'm concerned for your safety. I don't think it sounds a simple as you say it is."

Adder looked at the troubled, Sierra.

"I have a proposal for our next operation. We'll send Ichaival and Sharanga to Betul, while we will send out all the falcons to stand guard on the plundered villages. Since we're not sure which particular village their next target is. I suggest we stay here until one of the falcons tells us the exact location of the Brandal's base. We won't take any direct action until we have all the information we need."

Ichaival did not listen to what everything Adder said, he only heard his name was together with Sharanga.

"Ahh, that's right! It has to be Sharanga and myself to investigate Betul because Vijaya can practically understand her falcons' shrieks and Thyrsus can see what his falcon sees. That does make a lot of sense."

Sharanga frowned and stayed silent the whole time. Adder noticed her and wanted to reassure her that this was a serious mission.

"Don't worry, you'll also have Jinggu and Sharur with you. They'll guard your from the forest their great range should see everything that's happening to you."

Sharanga finally relaxed and released her frown.

With all their planning, Sierra forgot to tell them of the great news that she got from Smoke earlier. She clapped loudly as she usually does to call everyone's attention.

"Everyone, I'd like to tell you some good news."

All the members of Smoke private army looked at Sierra to listen to what the good news was.

"Smoke has won the district championship. He's even won a glaive called Rzeka..."

Jinggu and Sharur both shouted at the same time.

"Rzeka! That's the ten million zecs glaive!"

Sharur could not contain his amazement.

"It used to belong to the famous General Grave, the legendary Cavalry Knight of Justice."

Sierra tapped Sharur's shoulder to settle him down.

"Okay, okay, you can relax now. Smoke said that the finals for the tournament isn't until a week from now. He says that his training hard in Madam Dawny's farm and is sending his regards to all of you."

The members of Smoke's private army were proud of their leader. They kept on talking about his accolades and accomplishments. They knew that once they've succeeded eliminating the Brandals, Smoke would be proud of them as well.

Everyone was about to get some rest to re-energize for tomorrow's activities. Sierra decided to log off to continue her real life experimentation of the Zectas' menu she learned.

* * * * * *

Sherry was browsing through the Zectas forum. Everywhere she looked all she could see promotions about Coatl's Knight themed events. The prize of the Swordsman to Knight Tournament's complete Knight set totaled forty million zecs.

The 'Muddy Boar Catching' prize was cold cash of five hundred thousand zecs. The 'Mounted Race' prize was a trophy and and an armored carriage fit for a king, priced at thirty million zecs.

The final event the 'Jousting Tournament' offered a trophy, a mount armor set, and a cash prize of ten million zecs. If you were to add everything up it would be worth sixty million zecs.

"No wonder everyone is excited about Coatl's events. With such prizes most Swordsmen and Knights would definitely head there."

After browsing through the Zectas' website, Sherry went to their kitchen and started to prepare the dishes that she had learned in the virtual reality world.

Sherry wasn't too confident with her average looks. That's why she wanted everyone that knew her to remember her cooking.

She cooked at least a dozen dishes before she felt confident that she would let her uncle Alex taste it. Two hours passed, and she had two dishes prepared.

"Lunch is ready! Come and get it!"

Alex had brought in his girlfriend Gloria. Gloria was about his age at around forty. She had blond hair and the body of a sprint runner.

Her uncle had told her that they met when he was out jogging. He had invited her over because Sherry said that she would prepare a special meal for them.

Sherry always cooked very tasty meals, and Alex wanted to show off his niece's talent to Gloria.

"First, we have this mystery stew. I hope you'll like it."

Alex pulled a chair for Gloria and answered his niece.

"I'm sure we'll love it."

Alex and Gloria caught a whiff of the soup and immediately felt hungry. They blew on their spoon full of mystery stew as it was still steaming hot.

Gloria complimented Sherry's cooking.

"Mmm... This is really good stew. Can you tell me what's the secret to this tasty dish?"

"I'll tell you the ingredients as soon as you finished the next one. Sorry I only have two dishes for you to taste. I'm having a hard time finding the right ingredients. Next, we have this mystery barbeque."

Alex took a guess at what the mystery barbeque was.

"Mmm... grilled chicken. I like it. Gloria, let me cut those up for you."

"It's okay. I can do it myself. Mmm... What's the secret sauce that you used? They don't really taste like chicken at all."

Sierra smiled as she heard their compliments.

"Well, for the stew it's actually a rabbit stew, and the grilled chicken is actually a pheasant. In Zectas it's called medicinal rabbit stew and grilled blood pheasant. The game's ingredients required a magical medicinal herb. Since we don't have those in the real world I used ginseng, but just a bit of course. Those things are really expensive."

At full tilt, Gloria took a glass of water and gulped it down.

"How dare you? You've fed me something from out of a game menu, and worst you've fed me a rabbit? I don't eat rabbit, and what's a pheasant anyway?"

Gloria stormed out and Alex immediately went after her, but not before telling Sherry not to name her dishes with the word mystery in it anymore.

Sherry was left alone in front of a meal good enough to feed four people. She slowly ate her share of the meal.

When she finished, she packed the rest and placed them inside their refrigerator. She wanted to send the meal to Nash but after seeing her uncle's reaction she decided not to.

Sherry got back into her gamepod and logged back into Zectas.

* * * * * *

Sierra got back online and when she opened her eyes, she was greeted by Adder.

"Welcome back, Sierra. Huh? What's wrong? You looked upset?"

"It's nothing. Something just came up at home. Anyway, how's everything? Any updates?"

Adder frowned as he had plenty of sad information to tell Sierra.

"There certainly has been. Ichaival and Sharanga came back and they told me that Betul was in the same shape as Nisko."

Sierra listened quietly and waited for Adder to continue.

"Betul used to be a large river-port village. Water Traders would drop by the village and drop their wares from Centeo and Coatl. Presently, they only have twenty fishermen left in the village to feed them. Water Trader's ships would just pass by, because they fear the Brandals."

"How many residents are left in Betul?"

"Sharanga counted them to be around sixty. She also said that there was no cemetery in the village, but there was a white building with the statue of the Gnome who founded the village."

"I guess that means we still haven't found which village it is. What are the other updates?"

"Next, we have falcon updates. Thyrsus' falcon spotted the Brandals at Nisko. Thyr followed the bandits from a safe distance and was joined by Aya, Vijaya's second falcon. It appears that the bandits were heading to Salah. I think they're sticking to the same pattern and attacking the villages every other day. From what Thyrsus told me they only loot enough supplies to last them about two days. These Brandals have made these villages into their milking cows."

Sierra wanted to take action, she was tired of hearing these bandits attacking the defenseless villagers.

"Have they just left for Salah? If we leave now we can get there before they do right?"

"Yes, but from what Thyrsus saw, there were at least twenty mounted bandits on black ctenosaurs."

"What in the world is a black ctenosaur?"

Thyrsus got a stick and drew a sketch on the ground of a Brandal bandit riding a black ctenosaur.

"It looks something like this."

"That looks like a giant iguana. How long do you think this monster is?"

Thyrsus answered.

"I'd guess about five feet in length? If you include its tail then nine feet, maybe?"

"That's a really big scary looking lizard."

"They're fast as well, not as fast as Laernea and Gandiva's stag moose but still faster than the Cavalry Knight's dirus wolves."

Sierra took a step back and thought that they were at a clear disadvantage.

"Adder, what's the next phase of your plan? Eight versus twenty doesn't sound like favorable odds."

"Well, we'll have the falcons follow them to their base, and then we'll see just how many they really are."

"Sounds like a good plan."

The falcons that pursued the bandits were Thyr, Vij, and Aya. After Salah, the Brandals ransacked Betul.

They followed the Brandals' rampage from a safe distance. When they were done aiding Betul, the Brandals followed the river northward.

Ten kilometers up the river, the bandits took a sharp left. If anyone had pursued them on the ground they wouldn't have been able to follow the sharp turn.

Owing to the fact that the bandits had built movable shrubs that would swing when they pulled a lever that was made to look like another tree branch.

With the advantage of the falcons' view. The three falcons were able to follow them when they took the tricky turn. However, Otaczac forest started to obstruct the falcons' line of sight.

The three hunting birds dropped down and dove into the forest. They were used to flying through the thick branches.

Vij was avoiding a huge tree when an arrow winged her. A few seconds after, fast loud scratches headed to the direction where Vij had fallen.

Thyr and Aya swooped down and carefully picked their hurt comrade with their claws. The two falcons carried their injured friend to safety.

Two male Lioumerean lions on top of black ctenosaurs arrived and searched for the fallen bird.

"I know I shot it down here somewhere."

"All I saw was you shooting your arrow at a branch."

"I'm telling you. I shot down a strigidae owl."

"Well, I'll only believe you if we find it."

The Lioumerean bandits spent the next five minutes looking around the area. When they found nothing the two of them decided to follow their group to their hideout.

"I told you, you shot a branch."

"I swear I shot down a bird. I think I must have missed it by just an inch."

The bandits voices started to fade as they were getting further and further away. Thyr left Vij and Aya behind while the he pursued the galloping bandits.

* * * * * *

The moment Vij's wings were hit by the arrow, Vijaya felt a twinge and reflexively asked Thyrsus what he was seeing.

"Vij has been hit by an arrow."

The worried WoodElf immediately ran to the direction of her fallen falcon. Vijaya's team mates blocked the exit before she had the chance to leave.

"No one stop me! I'm gonna save my friend even if it's the last thing I do. Vij and Aya are more than just falcons to me. All of you get out of my way!"

Sharanga answered her sister calmy.

"When did we ever stop anyone from doing dangerous missions. Now, come on. We're all going with you."

Everybody was running as fast as they could towards Vij's location. It was between Betul and the Brandals' hideout.

It took them two hours before they reached the wounded falcon. Aya her twin falcon was diligently waiting for their master beside Vij.

Vijaya was in tears when she saw her two falcons. Although one of them was seriously injured at least they were both alive.

“Vij, don't worry. I'm here now. Everything's gonna be fine.”

The Huntress broke the arrow and carefully pulled it out. She quickly applied bandages and wrapped a small stick on Vij's wings to keep it in place.

They left Vijaya to tend to her falcons while they followed Thyrsus' directions as Thyr kept on the bandits trail.

Thirty minutes passed as they traveled on the bandits hidden path, when Sierra keened on her 'Animal Instinct' ability and noted that there was a hostile group up ahead.

Sierra raised her dominant Werebear claws and called her party to stop. Thyrsus confirmed that they were near the Brandal's hideout.

Thyrsus' eyes were white as he was sharing his falcon's vision with the bandits' hideout.

"It looks like an old ruined castle. Its area seems to be about eight hundred square meters and has heptagon shape. They've placed huge tree trunks on the fallen walls. They have one sentry tower on each corner of the wall. There's also a prominent keep at the center of the castle. That must be where they store all their stolen goods."

Sierra asked if he could see how many bandits he could see.

"From outside there are about seven Snipers, fourteen Barbarians, and four Priests. Thyr can't see inside the castle. I can't guess how many there are inside."

Sierra tried to count the known members of the Brandals.

"If we consider that the bandits who pillaged the villages are different from the ones guarding their keep, then there are at least forty five of them in there. Even with the least possible count we can't possibly beat them now. I suggest we use guerrilla warfare. Let's find a suitable base camp near here and start setting up traps."

Sierra contacted Vijaya and told her their chosen location of their new base camp. It was strategically located, a few kilometers from Betul, the Brandals hideout, and their hidden path towards it.

Sierra ordered for Adder, Sharur, and Thyrsus to start making multiple escape routes and other methods of traveling inside the forest. Vijaya, Ichaival, and Jinggu started building the interior of their fortified base.

They chose six large trees as their main posts and built defensive walls around them. There were platforms on top of the trees for the Hunters to attack from.

With her Werebear strength, Sierra provided the tree trunks and persistently worked on the exterior of their fortress.

Sharanga had a special task all on her own. She started working on traps specifically for the black ctenosaurs. Sierra ordered her to modify the traps that was originally for the Maneator.

Adder had been visiting Betul village daily, aside from building their escape routes and transport system. He wanted to see how the villagers were.

As the villagers of Betul were used to strangers brought by their past experiences with various traders, they were more welcoming when Adder visited them.

The fact that he brought food also helped him earn their trust. Adder found that they did not lose hope.

The Betulites believed that one day they will be freed from the Brandals. The one armed man kept reaffirming their beliefs by continuing to visit their village everyday.

Five days passed, and their fort along with other preparations were finally completed. Everyone gathered around to admire their architectural prowess.

Constructed: Otaczac Wooden Fort

Built with the raw materials from Otaczac forest, this fortress is well camouflaged.

Effects:
* Increases defense by 50% when inside the fortress.
* Increases range by 50% when attacking on sentry platforms.
* Increases health restoration by 100% when resting inside the fortress.

With her Werebear claws, Sierra etched out the word Amitié on the front gate.

Adder stood beside Sierra and asked what that word meant.

"Oh, this means friendship. We've only met recently but I feel like I've known you guys for a long time."

Ichaival opened the gates and said that he will conduct the grand tour of their wooden fort.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to our home away from home. If you would notice the six main trees. These are our pillars that support the walls. There are also ladders on each of these pillars for us to climb onto the canopy platforms. I'd also like to acknowledge Sharanga, because she taught us an interlocking way to build the wall enhancing its defenses. Next let me tell you about this special feature. On top of the platform as well as on the center of our base we have an emer..."

Thyrsus abruptly interrupted Ichaival's tour when he was alerted by Thyr that the Brandals have made their move.

"It's time! The Brandals are here."

Sierra nodded and issued the orders.

"Quickly! Strike team run to your positions. Defense team get ready to give ground support."

Jinggu, Sharur, Ichaival, and Thyrsus climbed to the top of their wooden fortress and started running through the canopy platforms that they've built on top of the other trees.

Each member of the strike team jumped and grabbed a hold of their zip-line bar holders.

There was a network of well hidden mini zip-lines all over Otaczac forest. This gave the strike team the great mobility they needed in order to compete with the speed of the black ctenosaurs.

The strike team got into their well concealed positions in front of Betul. Thyrsus informed the rest of his team that the Brandals would arrive in ten minutes.

The defense team quickly followed and were stationed one kilometer behind the strike team. Sierra hoped that their strategy would work and the defense team won't get to see any action.

Everybody was tense. They waited for the Brandals to arrive when suddenly Sierra received a call from Laernea.

Sierra canceled the call, but the Lioumerean kept on calling her again. Sierra finally answered her on the fifth call.

"Laernea, We're all kind of busy right now. What's so important that you have to call?"

"Oh, I'm so sorry. You see. It's about, Smoke. He doesn't seem to be himself. It's like he wants to destroy everything in his path."

Sierra looked deeply troubled, and for a split second she forgot that the Brandals were coming.

"I'm sure he's alright. If he wasn't he would have told me. Anyway, I have to go. I'll contact him when I have some free time."

Sierra finished her call with Laernea. She needed to focus on the Brandals. She didn't know what exactly was happening with Smoke, but she was sure that he could manage it.

Over their party channel, Thyrsus announced that the Brandals were in range. Immediately, Sharur and Jinggu launched their spiral piercing fire bolts and two of the bandits fell off their mounts.

The fallen bandits revealed their lifebars to be (85,916/91,416 HP) and (89,620/95,120 HP) respectively.

The raiding Brandals stopped on their tracks and did not proceed to enter Betul. They looked around their surroundings, craning their necks to get a 360 degree view of what happened.

Their leader wore an eye patch covering his right eye. He was a Human with two short swords on his back, a whip on his waist and multiple throwing knives attached on two belts worn from his shoulder to his waist.

"What was that? What happened?"

"Roubar and Roubado have fallen from their black ctenosaurs."

The bandit leader went to his dismounted companions, took out his whip and whipped the two bandits, damaging them for 1,200 points each.

"Roubar! Roubado! I told you to stop playing around when we're on a raid."

"But, Canalha, we weren't goofing off. Someone shot at us from the forest."

Roubado pointed to where the fire bolts came from. Canalha quickly turned to the direction of the forest and took two piercing fire bolts to his chest.

Canalha flew off from his black ctenosaur and tumbled to the ground. The rest of the bandits quickly took out their swords and knives and made a protective circle around their leader.

Canalha, stood up, and took out the two bolts from his chest. His lifebar was at (173,208/185,000 HP).

"Cavalry Knights don't use fire bolts. Boys! It looks like we finally have ourselves some resistance here. Alright, You four go into the forest and look for the source of these bolts. You two idiots, get back on your ctenosaurs."

The bandit leader grabbed a hold of his own black ctenosaur and climbed back up.

"Aaaaaahhhh!"

THUD!

"Whooooohhaaaaah!"

THUD!

"What's going ooooooohhooaaaannn!"

THUD!

"Waaaaahhh!"

THUD!

A bandit briskly reported that the four scouts sent to look inside the forest were caught in a sophisticated trap.

"How could they have fallen for a trap? All of us have high levels of 'Detect Trap' ability."

Painful and agonizing screams were heard from the captured bandits as the rain of arrows and bolts kept on hitting them.

Canalha looked at the number of bolts and arrows and guessed that their attackers were no amateurs.

"Fall back. Retreat. I don't want to risk getting trapped like those imbeciles."

"But Canalha, your nephew, Patife was also captured."

"Was he? I guess I'll have to tell my sister, that he fought valiantly against a Cavalry Knight. Alright! Move out. Everyone return to the Keep."

* * * * * *

Using his falcon's vision, Thyrsus saw that the Brandals were running away into their secret path.

"Sierra, we've managed to kill four of the bandits and the rest of them are retreating to their hideout. Ichaival and I are about to get the loot while Jinggu and Sharur will cover us."

"That's great news! I knew Sharanga's spiked traps would work wonders."

The brunette WoodElf smiled. Her cheeks and pointy ears turned bright red.

"Thanks for the compliment. I was actually inspired by your claws. I thought that the traps shouldn't just hold them in place. It should also cause some damage over time. With those sharp spikes, giving them 'bleeding' statuses was easy."

Vijaya gave her twin sister a high five.

"Great job, sis!"

Sierra commanded the strike team to return to their fort.

"We'll have a friendly race to see which team gets home first. Let's go, defense team!"

All of them were in high spirits. Their first guerrilla warfare was a great success. They only needed to wait for the next scheduled raid.

In the next two days, the residents of Fort Amitié were busy preparing for their next encounter with the Brandals.

* * * * * *

It has been exactly a week since Smoke told Sierra about the finals of his Swordsman to Knight Tournament. Adder and the rest of the Hunters had left earlier for Betul.

All the Hunters except for Ichaival. He had left right after their first victory against the Brandals. He said that needed to buy something in Salah.

Sierra was alone on the ground floor of their fort while the OrkElves were watching from their sentry posts. She decided to give Smoke a call just before he fights at the finals of the Swordsman to Knight Tournament.

"..."

"I said I'm fine. Honestly. Anyway, how is your search for the village? Have you found the exit to the labyrinth?"

Sierra thought that Smoke was clearly not fine. She didn't want to add to his problems, so she decided to tell him a little white lie.

"I'm still waiting for Adder's report. You know how he likes to be thorough. I think we will find the exit in two days, worst case maybe four."

"Don't hurry on my account. I'm still trying to get the recommendation to enter the labyrinth as well. It looks like my original estimate for this quest was wrong."

Sierra couldn't agree more and not only on his part but on their search for the exit as well. Not to mention their self imposed secondary objective of wiping out the Brandals.

"I know! I had a gut feeling from the moment you told me that you expected us to be done in a week. Anyway, don't worry about it too much. I'm still having fun on my end. I'm learning a lot of new things in my Werebear form. You know, just in case it will take us longer to break the curse."

"That's great. Not that you would be stuck in that form, but you getting better at your Werebear form. I hope you know what I meant."

"Yeah, I do. Smoke, please talk to me if something is bothering you."

"Don't worry. I've really got it handled."

"Alright, stay safe. I don't want to hear you having any mental breakdowns. Take care!"

Sierra finished her call with Smoke. After hearing his voice, she felt that Smoke was still not okay. She stared at the sky when she heard Jinggu sound their alarm.

"The Brandals are coming! There are about thirty of them, and they also have four blanketed wagons with them. We still have about five minutes before they get here, but Sharur and I can already hit them from here."

Sierra couldn't understand how they could have found their hidden fortress and how they managed to get past Sharanga's traps.

"Jinggu, Sharur, I want the two of you to escape right now. Find Adder in Betul and tell him to contact Smoke."

The twin OrkElves stood their ground. Their mother had taught them to stand against evil no matter what the cost.

"I'm sorry, Sierra. We can't follow those orders. We're gonna protect you to our dying breaths."

The OrkElves started hitting the bandits. They managed to knock two down and readied for their next round.

However, the Brandals were unfazed and pressed on towards their fort. Two more bandits were knocked off their mounts as another set of fire bolts came at the raiding scoundrels.

Sierra thought that she could by them some time by going outside the fort and confronting them head on. The Brandals were now merely a hundred meters away.

As fast as she could, Sierra opened the wooden gates, she rushed outside and let out her loudest roar. She unleashed her double slash attacks on the first black ctenosaurs that she met.

The mounted lizards had (97,123/110,000 HP). The other black ctenosaurs also took a swing at Sierra but only managed to do a damage of 700.

While black ctenosaurs' riders used their swords and did a similar damage of 800. The Brandals were shocked at how low their damage was.

Sierra's lifebar shown that she had (234,700/242,200 HP).

Canalha shouted on top of his lungs.

"Boys, don't worry about your low damage. If all of us continue to hit her she'll be dead in the next few minutes!"

The shocked Brandals quickly recovered after hearing their leader's encouragement.

In a flash, Sierra was surrounded by Brandals. The OrkElves continued knocking them off their mounts but the bandits would simply get back on in only a few seconds.

Jinggu and Sharur looked at each other and nodded. From on top of their fort, both of them leapt at the same. They managed to land safely behind Sierra's back.

"I told you guys to run away. I've got this."

"We know that your tough and strong, but seriously. You can't expect to win against this many opponents."

Sierra focused on the enemies in front of Jinggu and Sharur and knocked the bandits back with her claws.

"I never said I expected to win."

Sierra picked both of the OrkElves up and threw them inside the fort. Swiftly, she slashed the rope that was holding the fort gates open. The gates immediately closed.

Relieved that the Range Siegers were now safe inside the fort, Sierra turned to face the Brandals once more. As she turned she saw the blanketed wagons unveiled.

The wagons were actually catapults primed with gigantic barrels with a burning fuse on top. The four catapults were all released simultaneously.

The barrels flew past Sierra's head and went directly inside their wooden fort. The four barrels caused a massive explosion and blew their fort apart from the inside.

Sierra was blown away by the huge blast and damaged her severely. Her lifebar displayed (159,700/242,200 HP). She was gravely injured but she worried more for the Orkelves, their lives were only at 80,000 HP.

The red Werebear was down on the ground and was faced against Canalha and the rest of the raiding Brandals, who were only a few feet away from her.

Chapter Four: Missing Mausoleum

With purposely slow strides, Canalha leisurely rode over to where Sierra had fallen down. As he approached the injured Werebear, the bandit leader was laughing sadistically on top of his black ctenosaur. The rest of the Brandals joined in on his maniacal laughter.

"BWAHAHAHA. Curious, this is the first time I've seen someone like you. I've heard about Werewolves but I've never heard of a Werebear before. I take it that you're the leader of this tiny resistance?"

He made a circular motion with his hands, and the Brandals surrounded the wounded Sierra.

"I bet you're wondering how we found this 'secret base' of yours. I'll have you know that 'Trap' abilities are not exclusive to you bastards. We, Brandals have our own specialized unit. I'd like you to meet Ladrão and Morrão. Their levels are over 120. Both of them have advance levels in Trap and Stealth. Although, we only have two of them in the special unit at the moment, but these two are more than enough. I do admit that aside from their special abilities they're absolutely useless, but they're not here to fight anyway."

Sierra didn't mind the ramblings of the bandit leader. She kept on staring at the ashes of fort Amitié. No living thing was moving from within the flames of the blown up fort.

"Oh, I'm guessing you're worried for your fallen comrades, right? Don't worry I'll have you join them soon enough. Boys! Do your thing."

Sierra's lifebar indicated that she still had (159,700/242,200 HP) left.

The surrounding Brandals took advantage of their numbers. Two black ctenosaurs pounced at Sierra simultaneously. Both rider and mount attacked her for 350 damage points and 700 damage points respectively.

"Noooooooooooo!"

The red Werebear shouted and looked up to the skies. She had hoped that Jinggu and Sharur would drop down from the heavens, but nothing happened.

Sierra was in pain, not from the attacks of the bandits but from her heart tightening. She felt like it was being squeezed from the inside.

As she stayed motionless, groups of four black ctenosaur riders took turns and slashed her from all four directions.

Sierra saw that the blue sky was infinitely high and crystal clear and so was her goal. Her claws extended as she looked at the Brandals' leader.

The moment she spotted him she ran towards him with all her might. The attacks from the Brandals did not stop for one second.

Canalha laughed as he saw the Werebear running towards him. He readied his sword and his whip. The moment Sierra was in range, Canalha cracked his whip, and struck nothing.

Sierra leapt to the side and pounced on the two special Thieves who Canalha was so proud of. With one Thief in each claw, she pinned them to the ground.

She flipped them around so that their backs were right side up. From that position she started hacking and slashing.

The other Brandals were alarmed and tried their best to remove Sierra from on top of Ladrão and Morrão. Canalha tried to restrain her with her whip, but the Werebear was undeterred.

Sierra's lifebar was quickly draining, but so were the lifebars of the two Thieves below her. Canalha and the Brandals were desperate.

Five minutes passed, and the lifebars of the two special Thieves were below 4%.

Sierra raised both her claws and plunged them deep into the backs of the two men who led the Brandals to their fort. She finally killed the Brandals' special unit.

The Werebear's lifebar displayed (62,108/242,200 HP) left. She estimated that it would take less than two minutes before she would die.

With her sharp claws, she lashed out at anyone who was near her. As a result, some of the black ctenosaurs' eyes were gouged out.

Her furious warpath made the bandits back off. Only Canalha was brave enough to be in her range. He kept on using his whips.

However, Sierra ignored him completely. She was after the weaker Brandals. She planned on reducing as much of their attack force before they could kill her.

Her lifebar was left with (10,096/242,200 HP). All the bandits stayed out of her reach. When she moved the surrounding circle of bandits would move with her.

Canalha's damage of 1,024 meant that she would be dead in the next ten attacks. Sierra tried her best to gouge out one more eye.

Sadly, she couldn't get any more victims. The Werebear snarled at the cowardly Brandals who kept running away. Canalha was about to crack his whip when an arrow knocked it off his hand.

The Brandals' leader turned around and saw a one armed man carrying a menacing double bladed sword. He was accompanied by a Hunter and ten Betulite Fishermen, each Fishermen carrying multiple fishing spears.

All of the Brandals' attention were on Adder and his men. They were laughing at the small rescue group before them. Then, out of nowhere four falcons swooped down from on top of the forest. Each falcon took their turn and attacked Canalha for 800 damage points.

Canalha madly swung his sword around him to drive off the dangerous falcons.

"Boys, check the sides. I think they have other Hunters hiding behind those tall shru..."

Canalha took an arrow to his side. It came from the northern shrubs, and a second later he took another arrow which came from the opposite direction. The Brandals immediately turned to face the tall shrubs and searched for the other Hunters.

Adder, Thyrsus, and the Betulites came charging at the Brandals, denying them the opportunity to search for their other companions.

They took advantage of the fishing spear's range. The only range weapon available to the Brandals were Canalha's throwing knives, which had a shorter reach.

All the Betulites threw their fishing spears and focused their attack on the nearest mounted Brandal. Each spear damaged the bandit for 1,200 points.

After taking all ten spears the targeted bandit fell down and died. The Betulites prepared to do the same attack on another bandit, but not before the grouped Brandals received a shower of fishing spears from the north and the south sides of the forest.

The Brandals saw twenty pairs of bundled fishing spears towering over the shrubs on each side. The spears were gradually drawing closer to them.

"Primo, they have us surrounded. I think there are about fifty to sixty of them altogether."

Canalha's lieutenant discerned that it was too dangerous for them to stay any longer.

"Please, it's time to run. I beg you; sound the retreat."

"Retreat? Why would we retreat when we've just burnt down their bas..."

Another arrow from Thyrsus attacked the Brandal leader. Canalha's lifebar was still at (162,369/185,000 HP). He was confident that he could survive this battle.

As soon as Canalha finished talking, one more Brandal fell down and died from the multiple fishing spears lodged all over his body.

There were only twenty six Brandals left. The bandits' focus were only on Adder and his men that they forgot about the powerful Werebear deep inside their clustered formation.

Sierra stabbed her claws on two bandits at once and threw them towards Adder. She then gouged out the eyes of their black ctenosaurs and made them run away.

"Wwaaaahhhh!"

The Brandals were shocked to see two of their comrades flying over them. The thrown bandits fell directly in front of the charging Adder.

Adder leapt over them and attacked them from behind. As each bandit was writhing in pain, five fishing spears flew towards them killing them simultaneously.

In order to avoid friendly fire, the hidden attackers from the sides focused their fishing spears on the bandits furthest away from Adder and Sierra.

"I'm sorry, Primo, but we have to leave right now."

Canalha's lieutenant and another bandit grabbed their leader and dragged him off of his mount. They forcefully carried him westward.

"Nooo! Tenente, you better release me now or you'll suffer the consequences!"

"I'm ready to sacrifice my life for yours and our men. When we're safe I will not run away from your wrath."

Canalha understood, the situation did look disadvantageous. He ordered to sound the retreat.

As the Brandals were running away. Sierra snatched two more bandits and held them down with her claws. Canalha saw what the Werebear did and shrugged of his lieutenant and ran off to finish her.

Sierra's claws were busy with the two pinned down bandits when she felt the sting of a knife on her back. Leaving her with only (6,096/242,200 HP). Adder, Thyrsus, and the Betulites were running as fast to save her.

Canalha saw that they would reach her soon. He hitched a ride on one of the unmounted black ctenosaurs but not before he aimed six of his throwing knives at Sierra's back.

With the running black ctenosaurs on her sides, Sierra's eyes were fixed on Adder. She felt like everything around her was in slow motion. She didn't know how to tell him that Jinggu and Sharur were dead.

Sierra was still in a daze at the turn of events. She couldn't comprehend why Adder and Thyrsus were waving their hands frantically at her.

She tried to turn around but it was too late. Canalha's knives served their purpose.

Sierra's vision turned pitch black. A second later a system notification popped up.

- You have been killed by Canalha's throwing knives!

- You lose 1 level!

- All The stats that have increased in the last level up will be rolled back!

- Because you have DIED You cannot log in to ZECTAS for another 24 hours!

* * * * * *

Sherry trembled and cried as she stepped out of her special edition gamepod. She remembered how Nash described the feeling of dying in Zectas.

This was her first time to experience it. Nash told her that it was like falling in your sleep, but that wasn't what she felt. What she experienced was an extreme anxiety attack.

She thought that it could be a different experience for everybody else. She also considered the fact that she was distressed. Seeing as she just witnessed the death of Jinggu and Sharur right in front of her eyes.

Zectas' realism was more than enough to make her grieve for the NPCs. In between her sobs she realized an obvious problem that she completely forgot.

How in the world was she going to explain this to Nash.

Sherry started to panic. The gears in her distraught head started to turn. 'If Adder chose to contact Nash inside Zectas then shouldn't he have called by now.'

She got her cellphone and stared at it with anticipation. She felt that Nash's call would come any time soon.

An hour passed and she still did not receive the dreaded call. She wanted to log back into Zectas but she still had twenty three hours left.

Sherry tried to cook some of her Zectas' recipes but she was too distracted. Her eyes would always find themselves looking at her phone waiting for Nash's call.

She paced around the kitchen, she decided to go back to her room. She remembered that these many hours was more than enough time for her to get some much needed sleep.

However, lying down with your mind running was a sure way of depriving yourself of sleep. She thought she would go to the park and have a nice calming stroll.

While watching the trees, Sherry remembered Otaczac forest and quickly wanted to think about something else. She sat down on one of the park benches.

She stared at the afternoon sky and admired its auburn brilliance. While watching the beautiful setting sun, tears started running down her cheeks.

The culpability of losing Jinggu and Sharur followed her wherever she went. She decided to do some mobile banking to distract her mind from such sad thoughts.

Despite all her efforts, her mind would always find its way back to the twin OrkElves. She conceded and started to cry once more.

Then, she remembered Jinggu and Sharur's life long wish. They wanted to look for other OrkElves. Sherry decided to read up on all the information she could find about Orks in Zectas.

She also thought to look up the different religions in Zectas. She didn't want to experience one of Adder's disappointed stares.

At a jogging pace, Sherry headed home and quickly went to her laptop to find all the information that she needed.

She used the remaining time on research and only took quick breaks for basic necessities. She found that the forums did not have as much information as she had hoped for.

Sherry started to search through other player's blogs and conspiracy theories for answers.

The hours passed and there were only a few minutes left before she could get back into Zectas. Sherry never got Nash's call, which she interpreted as Adder not contacting him.

* * * * * *

Sierra's eyes opened. She expected to be in front of their burnt down fort, but instead she saw the welcoming fountain of Nanahuatl.

It took her a couple of seconds to realize that this was her last save point before dying. She hadn't been to any other villages or cities since they started the Maneator quest.

Twenty four hours ago, she wanted to get in contact with everyone in her party, but when she was back in Zectas she couldn't bring herself to contact any of them.

Sierra was still deep in thought when an old man wearing a high-end wizard robe lightly tapped her shoulder.

"Oh, Darius. You startled me."

"Sorry about that. I just wanted to ask how you were. You looked deeply troubled. Is everything alright? Wait a minute. You appeared here, in front of the fountain alone. Don't tell me... Is Adder and everyone else dead?"

Sierra instantly came to her senses and defensively answered.

"NO! No, no, not everyone died... Adder is alive, at least from the last time I saw him and I think all of the Hunters are alive as well."

Darius looked at Sierra intensely.

"Then are Laernea and Gandiva alright? Hmm, Gandiva's suppose to come here to get the latest batch of double bladed swords... No... That means that... Jinggu and Sharur? Are they really dead?"

Sierra tried her best to hold back the tears. She hadn't been this emotional since her mother passed away.

"I'm so sorry. Smoke divided his private army and he gave me command over Adder, Jinggu, Sharur, Sharanga, Vijaya, and Thyrsus. Maybe he should have left Adder in charge. I thought I had everything under control. I thought I was protecting them. I honestly thought they would be safer inside the fort. How could I know that those Brandal bastards had such massive explosives. If only they followed my instructions and ran away. They would still be alive today."

The red Werebear whimpered. Darius patted her back to console her.

"I'm sure those two knew what they were doing. If they could talk, they'd probably say that they didn't regret anything. I bet they're smiling right now, wherever they are. Don't beat yourself up. Learn from this experience and grow from it. You have to be strong for everybody else... Um, how did Smoke take the tragic news?"

Sierra covered her face with her claws.

"I... haven't told him yet, and I think no one else has as well."

"Oh... But you are planning on telling him right? You can't keep something like this from him."

"Of course! He'll eventually find out, sooner or later. He might as well hear it from me. If you'll excuse me. I'll give him a call now."

Sierra walked to the direction of Smoke's house. She wanted to get some privacy. Smoke answered her call on the first ring.

"Hey! I've been wondering when you'd call. I was so busy after winning the tournament that I completely forgot to check in with you. I'm so sorry. Anyway, have you found the exit?"

Smoke's voice was ecstatic. It was clear that he was in a state of euphoria. It was understandable, given all that devoted attention and luxurious prizes.

Sierra thought that she would just tell him directly but it wasn't as easy as she thought.

"Oh... Well, we still haven't found the exit. Although we've finished investigating all the villages. Don't worry we'll find it sooner or later."

"Ahh, that's okay. Don't worry about it. I know you'll eventually find it."

Sierra took a deep breath and readied herself to tell Smoke the horrific news.

"Listen... I have to tell you something important. While we were waiting for the Bran..."

Smoke wouldn't let Sierra finish her sentence.

"Right. Well, let me tell you, once you've won that championship and equipped this glorious armor the crowd just wouldn't let go of you. I've had dozens of friend requests that I decided to disable the friend request notification. Oh, and that reminds me. Do you remember Macher? The Cavalry Knight who helped me enter the city?"

"Yeah, I think so. What about him?"

"He offered to be my sponsor in the Mounted Race event. It costs 80,000 zecs to join, and if I agree I get to join for free. What do you think? Should I accept his offer? He only asks that when I win the grand prize I give him ten million zecs from the winnings. I think it's a fair deal."

Sierra was upset with Smoke. She wanted to tell him the sad news but he was too full of himself to give her the chance.

"It sounds like you've already made your decision. Why do you need to hear what I think?"

"I knew you'd agree with me. Alright, call me when you get any new developments on your search. I'll also do the.. Hello? Sierra? You still there? Hmm. She hung up on me."

Sierra couldn't believe Smoke. How could he be so insensitive and not give her the opportunity to tell him about Jinggu and Sharur.

She went back to the fountain where Darius was still waiting for her.

"So, how was it?"

"Well, he was too occupied with winning some tournament in Coatl that he wouldn't let me tell him what happened."

"But did you really try to tell him?"

"I tried, believe me I tried, but I think I'll tell him about it later. When he has gotten over all this hype of winning."

Darius was troubled, he stared into the fountain to calm himself. He carefully watched the flowing water.

"You know, I wish all relationships were as peaceful as this fountain. Sadly, it isn't. I think if you want a relationship to work then you need to have a strong foundation. One way of building that foundation is through trust. I think trust between two people is like this egg."

Out of nowhere an egg appeared in Darius' right hand.

"I think gaining someone's trust is like holding this fragile egg. It can take a few cracks here and there but once it's broken, it's broken."

Darius released the egg and before it hit the ground it disappeared.

“Make sure you keep those cracks at a minimum. Anyway, Gandiva will be here soon. You can hitch a ride with her. I'm assuming you want to rejoin with Smoke or Adder?"

"Yes, yes. That would be great."

"While we're waiting, why don't you tell me what you've been up to these past few days? Perhaps sharing your experience will help you deal with the grieving process."

Sierra told Darius about their investigation on the five villages of Poludnie, Nisko, Betul, Salah, and Silap. She also asked him about Cuezaltzinity. She wanted to get a deeper understanding about the other religions as well.

A few hours passed and Gandiva finally arrived.

"Sierra? What are you doing here? I thought you were out looking for the labyrinth's exit?"

"Uh... Something came up. I can't tell you all the details yet. If you don't mind, I'd like to tell you after I tell Smoke. I hope you understand?"

The Lioumerean tigress looked puzzled but nodded her head nonetheless. Darius came out of his house, and with his right hand he levitated the batch of double bladed swords to be delivered.

"Here they are. Let me just drop them beside in carriage and you'll be all set."

"Oh, wait. Please give me a second. Let me just empty my carriage. Smoke gave me some stuff to to give to the Nanahuatlanos."

"That's okay. Let me help you with that."

Darius made a series of motions with his left hand and the assorted packages floated into the air.

"Where do you want me to put them?"

"Right in front of Smoke's house would be great."

Darius calmly placed the levitating bundle of double bladed swords into Gandiva's carriage and proceeded to bring the assorted packages to Smoke's front porch.

“You know, Gandiva, I can't get over how mature you and Laernea have become.”

The tigress Lioumerean beamed, she was proud that her master had praised her.

“On that note. I want you to respect Sierra's request and keep everything you know about this trip to yourself. If she's going to tell you anything, let her do it on her own volition. Don't force it out of her. Okay?"

Gandiva's smile disappeared and her face became serious.

"Of course, of course... So, I can't ask questions then? Wait I still need to ask you whether Sierra wants me to drop her off somewhere. You are still planning on going to Adder and everybody else right? I hope that's okay to ask?"

Sierra grinned at Gandiva's effort of having a serious conversation.

"Yes, that's alright. If you don't mind, can you drop me near Betul? Adder and everyone else should be there."

"That's no trouble at all. Let me just do one quick thing. After I finish this up, we'll head for Betul immediately. Just give me about ten minutes."

Gandiva went to Smoke's house and rang the newly installed village bell. Everyone heard the bell and excitedly went outside their homes. The villagers couldn't wait to receive their gifts from Smoke.

The Lioumerean tigress also promised all the kids to give them one action figure of the participants in Coatl city's 'Swordsman to Knight Tournament'.

When Smoke heard about Gandiva's promise, he gave her more than enough money to buy all the children a complete set of the wooden action figures.

Gandiva also delivered a variety of vegetables and fruits for Franz Briar and his family to plant. She also delivered an abundant supply of meat and spices for everyone to enjoy new dishes.

She gave silk, linen and other raw materials for sewing to James Jackal, and the top of the line tanning tools to Howard Hide.

Peitro Fischer also received the latest fishing rod and ten new nets for fishing. Smoke had something for everyone in Nanahuatl.

Everyone gathered in front Smoke's house were laughing and showing their new items to each other. Darius who stood beside Sierra told her that this scene was something that he thought he would never see again.

"Smoke saw this scene once. I never imagined that he'd follow in Kumbaba's footsteps. Kumbaba was..."

Sierra stopped Darius' from telling her who Kumbaba was. She knew that he was the great DarkElf village chief of Nanahuatl who was also the only Beggar Imperator of the secret society of Verum de Mendicantibus.

"I know who Kumbaba was. He was your closest friend, right?"

Sierra smiled as she saw the happy faces of the Nanahuatlanos. She thought that Smoke had become too self-absorbed, but as she saw the scene before her. She realized that maybe he hasn't.

"Don't worry. I'll tell Smoke about Jinggu and Sharur, as soon as I see Adder and everybody else."

After Gandiva gave out all the packages she turned to Sierra and asked if she was ready to leave.

The red Werebear nodded and the two of them were on their way to Betul.

* * * * * *

Sierra and Gandiva spent the next couple of hours talking about Smoke's adventures inside the heraldic city of Coatl. The Werebear made sure to keep Gandiva thinking about anything else aside from asking her about Jinggu and Sharur.

Gandiva pushed Tulin to his limits but the trip back to Betul still took another day.

The two of them finally saw the village that they were headed to. However, Betul was not the same place as Sierra remembered it.

Instead of the broken down walls. The village was surrounded by fortified wooden trunks that were higher than the hidden fort that they had built.

Betul village looked like an improved version of their fort, except for this one prominent feature that Sierra had never seen before.

Scattered a few feet away from each other were tall wooden towers with steel nets attached to them. Sierra couldn't understand what they were for.

She had a warm familiar feeling about the village with its new enhancements. She asked Gandiva to go near the village entrance.

The reinforced village gates opened and revealed a giant tower that looked like a steel umbrella that covered the village's center.

As the gate fully opened, Sierra saw a group of individuals who were waiting for them. Adder and the Hunters were there along with the other Betulites.

Everybody was smiling with relief when they saw Sierra, all except for Adder. His face was as  solemn as a statue.

Sierra looked at Adder and quickly shifted her gaze to the ground as she stepped off from Gandiva's carriage

She tried to look at him again and this time, both of their eyes met and saw each others pain. They were both ashamed of their failure against the Brandals.

Thyrsus came forward and welcomed both Sierra and Gandiva.

"Welcome to the new river-fort village of Betul and this is their village chief Cacique."

Sierra and Gandiva shook hands with Betul's chief.

"Hi, like sir Thyrsus said. Welcome to Betul. We had seen better days, but now that Adder and your men are here, I think we'll see those days again."

Gandiva was surprised to see Thyrsus do the introduction. It was usually Ichaival who made them. She also noticed that Ichaival was not with them. Along with Jinggu and Sharur.

"Wow! I've only been here once but it looks so different. You guys really converted the river-port village into a river-fort village. Not bad, not bad at all. What are those umbrella thingies for?"

Thyrsus answered squarely.

"It's all thanks to the efforts of the Betulites. All of them including the children pitched in to reinforce this place. Those umbrella thingies are Sharanga's inventions. They are anti-exploding barrel defenses. We've learned quite a few things from our destroyed hidden base."

Thyrsus guided them into the inner parts of the village.

"Of course, it was under Adder's leadership that we were able to make this quickly. We've also trained most of the Betulites to use their fishing spears against the bandits. There were originally just twenty Betulites who were there when we were about to rescue you, Sierra. We're truly sorry it wasn't a successful rescue... All of us are really sorry for your death. Adder most especially."

Gandiva screamed at Thyrsus when she heard that Sierra died.

"Sierra died?! How could you have let her die? No wonder she didn't want to talk about what you guys have gone through. Even if she is a 'Sonstwelter', we promised that we would never let them die. Not even once!"

Sierra quickly interjected Gandiva's lecture on Thyrsus.

"It wasn't his fault. It wasn't anyone's fault but mine. If only I was a better leader then Jinggu and Sharur would still be alive..."

Adder tried to talk to Sierra, but his words would not form into sentences. Sierra went on to talk about the noble OrkElves.

"I don't mind dying. I could handle that, but Jinggu Attrayant and Sharur Attrayant were my responsibility. They were truly men among men. If only..."

Sierra's speech about the OrkElves was interrupted, when two pairs of olive green arms hugged her from the sides. The Werebear couldn't believe what she saw. Jinggu and Sharur were alive.

"You... But I saw the fort explode. How could you have survived?"

The twin OrkElves laughed. Sharur began to explain how they escaped the blast.

"Do you remember Ichaival's tour of fort Amitié?"

"Yeah, but vaguely."

"Well, if Thyrsus hadn't interrupted him. He would have said that there was an emergency exit under the piled up pine marten's pelts at the center of the ground floor. Vijaya thought that the place looked too dreary, that's why she placed them there. She said it would act as our 'rug'. The exit would lead out to an above ground exit one kilometer away."

Sierra couldn't believe what she heard. She thought that the piled up pine marten's pelt were just there for Vijaya's aesthetic purposes.

The OrkElves suddenly looked serious as they kept on with their story on how they escaped. This time it was Jinggu's turn to speak.

"We miraculously lifted the emergency exit door on the ground and dove in, barely escaping the explosion. The blast caused a massive cave in and Sharur and I had to literally run for our lives. It was a good thing that Commander Adder insisted on making the tunnel to be wide enough for us to run through."

Sierra was speechless. She smiled as tears of joy flowed out from her eyes. She tried to repress them but her tear ducts were out of her control.

She had spent the last two days grieving over their deaths and here they were alive. It was her own fault for not contacting them. She didn't see any dead body, she simply assumed the worst and her guilt reinforced that.

She didn't mind that she had to suffer through that torture. As long as Jinggu and Sharur were alive then that was all she needed.

She would gladly suffer through that torment if it meant it would bring her dear friends back from the grave. The OrkElves were touched by Sierra's tears. They quickly apologized for having her endure the pain of their deaths.

"We're really sorry. We didn't mean to make you think that we were killed. We tried to run right back to you, but we were too late."

Sierra smiled an even brighter. She wiped her tears and hugged them tightly.

"It's alright. It's not your fault. Everything was really my fault. I didn't confirm anything. I didn't try to contact you once. But all of that is in the past. What's important is that we're all alive and back together."

Everybody joined in on Sierra, Sharur, and Jinggu's group hug and the mood was lighter once more. Thyrsus gave Gandiva a short version of what they had been up to the last few days.

While they were catching up with Gandiva. Sierra went to talk with Adder. She noticed that he was still silent the whole time.

Sierra decided that it was time for her to apologize. However, she was shocked to hear Adder speak instead.

"Listen, I'm really sorry. If I only listened to your advice and stayed away from the Brandals like you said. Then you wouldn't have died. It was my fault that you died. I haven't contacted Smoke about the incident as well. I wanted to apologize to you first before I'll tell him that I will quit his private army. I'm not fit to be a Commander at all. I was just waiting for your return before I was going to leave."

Sierra had enough drama in the last forty-eight hours.

"No! No, stop that. We'll learn from this mistake and grow from it. What's done is done. From now on, let's just work together. If I didn't believe that wiping out the Brandals was the right thing to do, then I would've stopped you from the start. I didn't regret with agreeing with you. How do we get rid of these Brandals?"

"Shall we have our meeting now? I'll have Thyrsus prepare the materials and discuss the plan that we've come up with."

"Oh, not right now. Let's just have a quick joyful reunion first. Come on, let's join in on the party."

"Alright, I'll join you guys in a bit. Let me do a quick check on our sentries. Please go with Village Chief Cacique. He'll prepare a special table for you."

Cacique and the villagers prepared a long table and asked them to wait for a bit. It took them less than twenty minutes to prepare three meals.

Sharur and the Betulites had cooked a special feast in honor of Sierra's return. They had bluegill soup, barbecued blood pheasants, and steamed catfish.

While they were eating. Sierra asked her OrkElf cooking instructor about how each dish was prepared. The village was filled with laughter again.

Adder was busy talking with Cacique. Sierra noticed that he still looked troubled. She asked Sharur how he was after their failed rescue mission.

"Adder was the one who was affected the most. The Brandals had already left when Jinggu and I were reunited with them. He didn't believe that a 'Sonstwelter' would revive like the legend says."

"Sonstwelter? What's a Sonstwelter?"

"Why you of course. That's what we ordinary Zectians call people like you and Smoke. A person who lives in two worlds at the same time."

"Smoke and I are called Sonstwelters and you are all called Zectians?"

"Well, technically a Sonstwelter is also a Zectian but a special one. This is a legend that was passed down from my mother. She said that she learned this from her elders and her elders' elders.”

The young OrkElf made a fist with both his hands, he intended for them to look like worlds.

“The legend goes that there will come a time when our world..."

He looked at his right hand and said.

"Zectas will be populated with Sonstwelters. Beings who originally comes from another world called Sonst."

Sharur then looked at his left hand.

"A Sonstwelter can freely move in between these two worlds. They have the same potentials as a normal Zectian but they have other amazing abilities unique only to them."

"Abilities? Like what kind of abilities?"

"Legends say that a Sonstwelter could disappear into thin air and reappear in the same spot. Most of the time your kind doesn't age at all and the best out of all the legends was that when a Sonstwelter dies, they will always come back to life after four days. A Sonstwelter's return will be a complete rebirth. If a limb was lost then they will grow back that limb. Even if their heads are chopped off, they will still come back as if nothing happened. The end of the legend states that when the day comes that Sonstwelters own most of Zectas, that will be the day when the great gods will return."

"How come I never heard or read about this before?"

"Well, it's kind of taboo for an ordinary Zectian to tell a Sonstwelter this legend, because if an ordinary Zectian would do that then they would become that Sonstwelter's slave forever. Or at least that's how the legend goes. I don't think that part is true though. I mean here I am and I'm not your slave or am I?"

Sharur laughed as he finished his explanation about Sonstwelters. After he stopped laughing at his own joke. Sharur asked Sierra a serious question.

"If you don't mind can you tell me what's it like? I mean dying as a Sonstwelter?"

Everybody in the table fell silent and wanted to hear Sierra's answer. Sierra looked around and saw that all eyes were on her.

"I can't really put it into words. I mean, every 'Sonstwelter'? Did I say it right? Well every one of us experiences a different feeling when we die. That was my first time dying. I felt like my heart was being crushed even when I got back home to Sonst. If it's alright with you I don't want to re-live that experience again."

The silence around the table continued. All the members of Smoke's private army made a vow to themselves not to let Smoke or Sierra die again.

The serious tone in the atmosphere remained. Gandiva said her farewell to everyone, as the meals were taken away. She needed to head out to Coatl. She was already late as it is and didn't want to anger Smoke.

* * * * * *

With their long table all cleared out. Thyrsus took out a small scale model of Otaczac forest, which contained the Brandals' ruined castle. There were currently seven small figurines that roughly resembled Sierra, Adder, Thyrsus, Vijaya, Sharanga, Jinggu, and Sharur.

Sierra and the rest of Smoke's private army were gathered around the table. They were joined by Betul's chief Cacique and twenty Betulite Fishermen armed with their fishing spears.

Adder stood at the head of the table and started the meeting.

"This plan was mostly conceived by Thyrsus. He's knowledge on the fighting potential of the Fishermen of Betul and the dimensions of the Brandal's base were the main points of this plan. As such, I'd like for him to lead this meeting."

Adder stepped aside and Thyrsus stood in front of the attacking party.

"Thank you. I came from a long line of Fishermen, I knew that the Betulites had a great fighting potential. They just needed someone to encourage them to fight and to assure them that they will have  a shield to protect them from the bandits' melee attacks."

Thyrsus pointed to the Betulites present in the meeting.

"To reassure the Betulites of their safety. We've built an emergency escape boat that could take all the residents away safely into the river and head for Coatl."

He pointed to five riverboats anchored on the river.

"In the past few days. We've trained these twenty men to their limits and presently, we've almost doubled their damage. Even after all that training, their average HP is still around 30,000 points. I think they will be most effective on the back as another part of our range unit."

Everyone else clapped in recognition of the Betulites achievements in the short amount of time.

Thyrsus then displayed twenty pieces of a small figurine, meant to represent the twenty Betulites that were to join them on the raid of the ruined castle.

"One of the Betulites overheard a bandit say that they needed to feed eighty persons, during one of their raids. We used this number as our baseline of their count, we didn't even bother to deduct the bandits that we eliminated on our last encounter with them. Our main force would be divided into two groups. The left group will be under Sierra's command while the right group will be under Adder's. These twenty Betulites will be divided into those two groups. Their spear's range are much shorter than our arrows. This means that we need to get closer to the bandits in order for us to efficiently hit them."

Sierra remembered that the Brandals' ruined castle was still well reinforced. It would be very difficult for them to destroy their walls with just spears.

"How are we suppose to break down their walls? I doubt that the Brandals would just come out of their base just because we would taunt them."

"I leave that part to our Range Siegers. Their specialty is in taking down castle defenses. They've got it covered."

Jinggu and Sharur kept on nodding their heads as a sign of affirmation on what Thyrsus just said.

"With the walls broken down. Adder and I are 70% sure that the Brandals' raiding team will come out to greet us. That's when both teams simultaneously charge for the castle and lay everything to waste."

Sierra couldn't understand how the plan would work at all. They only had one melee person on each team and that was herself and Adder.

Even if the Hunters and the Fishermen could take out as many as three raiding bandits before their encounter, they would still be outnumbered and the other bandits would just attack the low HP Betulites directly.

"I think Adder and I can only manage to hold five maybe six bandits at a time. Do you think we could reduce their numbers to be only that much. When you said that the Betulites just needed a shield, I don't think that Adder and myself would be enough to defend everyone."

"That's where Ichaival comes in."

"Now, that you mentioned it. Where is Ichaival? He's been missing since fort Amitié burned down."

Sierra looked around the table for the Human Hunter.

As if on cue, a loud marching sound came from outside the village. One of the Betulite sentries shouted.

"They're here. They're really here!"

Betul's main gates were opened. Ichaival came into view accompanied with twenty-eight Avendre mercenaries. Each mercenary wore a thick leather armor and was equipped with a saber and a medium sized kite shield.

* * * * * *

Everybody left the village of Betul in high spirits. They traveled through Otaczac forest stealthily. Thyrsus informed them that they should be safe to travel for the day because the Brandal's shouldn't come out until tomorrow.

The raiding party totaled fifty-six members altogether. Their opponent's numbers were estimated to be around eighty but Sierra and Adder were confident that they could manage to win against such disadvantageous odds.

Sierra wondered why the Betulites number were lesser than the when they tried to save her in the forest. She asked Sharanga about the missing Fishermen.

"I thought that there were around fifty Betulites who were there on the ambush in fort Amitié? What happened to the rest of them? Were they killed after I died?"

The young WoodElf was taken aback when she heard Sierra's question.

"Uh, uhm, no. Not a single Betulite died."

"Then where are they? I mean, we need all the help we can get."

"Ohh, you mean the ones hiding behind the tall shrubs? Hehehe... There were really just five men on each side. Sharanga was on the northern side, while I was on the southern."

"Wait... what? But I saw at least fifteen spears on each side?"

Sharanga giggled as she saw Sierra's puzzled face. The WoodElf started to explain what happened on the fort.

"Through his falcon's eyes, Thyrsus saw the Brandals coming towards our hidden base. All twenty Fishermen were  gathered in one place and  Adder mentioned that if we only had two more groups of the Betulites then surely the Brandals would run away. Then it came to me. I thought we could give them the illusion that there were three times as much Betulites."

"How did you manage that?"

"I got a long piece of wood and drilled four holes with equal distances between them. I placed a bundled spear in each hole and tied it with rope. I virtually made one Fisherman into four. Sharanga and I had five Betulites on each side who had this long piece of wood attached on their backs."

"Now, I get it. I thought the whole time that those Betulite Fishermen were very well trained. They marched in perfect order. That was ingenious! Good job."

Sharanga frowned and looked down to the ground.

"But it wasn't good enough to save your life. Before, I thought that a Sonstwelter's life was easy. I mean you're practically immortal but then I guess it's kind of like being tortured repeatedly, having to experience death over and over again like that. I can't imagine going through such a painful ordeal."

Sierra patted the young Huntress' back.

"Don't worry about it. It wasn't that painful and I know that you guys did your best."

The young WoodElf did her best to smile at the Werebear, she admired Sierra's resilience. Sharanga hoped to be as brave as her.

Four hours passed and Sierra and her group of avengers arrived at their destination. They were hidden in front of the Brandals' hideout.

Straightaway, Jinggu and Sharur ran in opposite directions. Jinggu took the right side while Sharur took the left.

The OrkElves first objective was to take out the Snipers on top of the seven sentry towers on each corner of their ruined castle.

Sierra and Adder each took command of their teams. Sierra's team was composed of Sharur, Sharanga, and Thyrsus.

While Adder had Jinggu, Vijaya, and Ichaival. Each team had ten Betulite Fishermen and fourteen Avendre mercenaries with them.

Sierra heard the first screams after five minutes passed since the OrkElves left. With less than a minute of interval they heard six consecutive screams, one after the other.

Thyrsus informed everyone over their party channel on what his falcon saw.

"Alright. Jinggu and Sharur have knocked down all seven snipers. The first scream alerted the Brandals and most of them are presently gathered outside their central keep. Also, there are signs that they are about to open up their gates."

Sierra saw Sharur running towards them. The OrkElf signaled some of the Betulites to follow him. They went to the tall shrubs further behind Sierra. A few seconds later they came out with two catapults. The same catapults that destroyed their wooden fort.

The red Werebear couldn't understand how they got a hold of the catapults.

"Why are those things here?"

Sharur answered her while pushing one of the catapults.

"The Brandals were running for their lives and they completely forgot about their four catapults. Sharanga also made some enhancements on their exploding barrels. You'll get to witness that soon enough."

The OrkElf ordered the special exploding barrels to be placed in between the two catapults to make the reload easier.

Upon hearing the Brandals attack on fort Amitié, an idea exploded in Sierra's head.

"Wait. Sharur don't aim for their walls. Give me a sec. Let me contact Jinggu."

Sierra quickly spoke in their party channel and called for Jinggu's attention. She spoke to both the OrkElves at the same time.

"Guys, Change of plans. I want you to aim for inside their castle. Hit the area where they are currently gathered. I want them to have a taste of their own medicine."

The OrkElves were on opposite sides of each other but both of them smiled the same wicked grin at the same time.

Jinggu and Sharur made adjustments to all four catapults and loaded each one with Sharanga's special barrel. When Sierra gave her command all four barrels were launched over the ruined castle walls and hit their marks perfectly.

BAKKOOOMM!

BTOOOOOMM!

BWOOOMMMM!

BBOOOOMMM!

The Range Siegers had a bonus of 100% increased damage when attacking against forts, castles, and other types of encampments.

The OrkElves quickly reloaded their second round of exploding barrels and launched them in quick succession.

However, while the second batch of barrels were still up in the air. The Brandals' main gate was lowered and the damaged Brandals came rushing out on foot.

Most of the bandits' lifebars were almost halved from their averaged HP of 90,000.

With the well placed position of Sierra in the left side from the main gate and Adder on the complete opposite, the Brandals were momentarily confused on which group to face first.

Canalha and the black ctenosaur raiding force were nowhere to be seen and the lack of leadership was apparent in the confused state that was on the Brandals' faces.

Both Sierra and Adder ordered to carefully move forward and place the bandits within the Fishermen's range. Once the bandits were in range, The Fishermen released their fishing spears and slowly started to eliminate the injured Brandals one at a time.

The Hunters' falcons gave a great distraction on each end of their pincer attack. Sierra saw that the bandits on her side pushed forward without any care for their lives.

There were only eighteen bandits left on her end, and they had the look of suicide attackers who were only there to take out as many people before they die.

Sierra's group was still intact and remained at twenty-eight fighters, herself included. She ordered her fourteen Avendre mercenaries to engage the suicide attackers with her.

She took on two bandits at once while the other mercenaries faced one bandit each. This left two bandits to run directly for the Betulites.

Sharanga and Thyrsus were both given command over five Betulites, and they made a pin cushion out of the two bandits with their arrows and fishing spears.

Both Hunters instructed their men on which bandit to aim and slowly they started to kill off one Brandal at a time. They focused on helping the Avendre mercenaries first because they knew that Sierra could handle herself.

While they were busy fighting the Brandals on the ground. Twenty snipers climbed the front walls and started to attack them.

Most of the mercenaries managed to block the Sniper's arrows with their kite shield but Sierra had just lost two of her melee attackers from the sudden shower of arrows.

Sierra ordered for Sharur to destroy the wall where the Snipers stood. She saw two exploding barrels launched into the air and a few seconds later another set of exploding barrels were launched from Adder's side.

Adder's area was also hit with the same attack from the Snipers. The top of the castle's wall crumbled and the Snipers were blown away.

There were twelve Snipers who fell on the ground and survived the blast. They sustained their range support from behind of the bandits.

Sierra asked Sharur to leave the catapult and moved closer to the Betulites. She couldn't risk the life of her comrades from the splash damage from the exploding barrels.

She ordered Sharur to aim for the Snipers as she charged towards them herself. She ordered seven mercenaries to join her.

Sierra took several arrows on her arms and torso before she reached the Snipers. Sierra's lifebar now displayed (199,155/238,300 HP).

She unleashed her feral rage when she finally reached the Snipers' area. She aimed her claws at their heads for an increased damage.

The Snipers' maximum HP were at 120,000 but most of them only had 30% remaining when they fell from the top of the wall.

Close combat rendered the Sniper's bows useless and Sierra saw that they switched to their knives instead.

Sierra's seven Avendre mercenaries took on one Sniper each while Sierra faced the remaining five.

- Attacked by Brandal bandit. You've taken damage. Health -40.

- Attacked by Brandal bandit. You've taken damage. Health -40.

- Attacked by Brandal bandit. You've taken damage. Health -40.

- Attacked by Brandal bandit. You've taken damage. Health -40.

- Attacked by Brandal bandit. You've taken damage. Health -40.

The red Werebear smirked as she saw the puny damage from the Snipers' knives. She didn't bother to defend their attacks and just went on a rampage against the Sniper that was in front of her.

Sierra killed three of the Snipers before the mercenaries came to help her out with the remaining two. Together they did quick work with them and killed them in a blink of an eye.

There were only five remaining bandits fighting against the Hunters and the Betulites. Sierra looked to Adder's end and saw that they only had three remaining.

Sierra and the seven mercenaries rushed to attack the five bandits from the back, but as they ran a loud thundering sound came from behind their catapults.

A mounted Canalha and twenty of his black ctenosaur riders jumped out of from the back of the tall shrubs and stormed towards the unprotected Sharur, Sharanga, Thyrsus, and Betulites. Canalha left five mounted Brandals to secure the catapult.

Sharur understood their intentions and quickly targeted his huge ballista at the stockpiled exploding barrels. The Orkelf released his spinning fire bolt and hit his target.

The explosion blew everything within five feet of the barrels to kingdom come. Canalha shouted and ordered his charge to shift from the Werebear to the Orkelf.

The five remaining mercenaries were still busy fighting the last five bandits that they were not able to give their needed support to the Betulites.

Sharur, Sharanga, and Thyrsus all focused their attacks on Canalha, but the riders in front of him would block any incoming projectiles with their bodies.

The Brandal that was hit by Sharur's bolts was knocked off from his black ctenosaur. Sharanga threw two of her traps and immobilized two of the bandits that were about to stampede them.

Thyrsus took command of all the Betulites and focused on one bandit at a time. The Fishermen would wait for his arrow and attack quickly after him. The Betulites had been efficient in retrieving their fishing spears from the fallen bandits around them.

Canalha was left with eleven stampeding black ctenosaur riders. He was dead set on killing the OrkElf that had blown up his men and his catapults.

The leader of the Brandals were only a few feet away from Sharur when he dodge the OrkElf's spinning fire bolt. Canalha cracked his whip and disarmed Sharur's ballista.

Canalha kept on with his whip attacks and Sharur's life quickly drained to (62,258/80,000 HP). Sharur grabbed a hold of the whip to stop the next attack.

The Brandal leader threw the base of his whip at the OrkElf and proceeded to throw his deadly knives as well. Sharur was hit by all six knives and was at a clear disadvantage.

Canalha was about to throw another set of knives when Sierra tackled him from the side and threw him off his black ctenosaur.

Sierra was filled with bloodlust. Her claws kept on slashing through Canalha's face and body. Canalha's lifebar instantly displayed (151,261/185,000 HP).

Five Brandals quickly threw ropes over the infuriated Werebear and dragged her off their leader. Canalha laughed as he Sierra captured.

"A base for a base eh. You're more resilient that I thought. You may have killed most of my men but I'll kill you again and that blasted OrkElf before I'll run to our headquarters and ask our Ultimo to give me five more battalions and wipe out the rest of your group."

* * * * * *

When Canalha leapt out from the behind Sierra's group, Adder instinctively knew that they had to rush to her side quickly.

He ordered his men to plow through the remaining bandits and run as fast as they could to Sierra, but he knew that the distance was too far for them to make it in time.

Adder called on Jinggu and told him to recalibrate the catapult and aim for Sierra's location. The Range Sieger didn't move and was hesitant at his commander's decision.

"I can't do that. The blast from the exploding barrels will damage all of our comrades."

"You're not gonna be loading the catapult with a barrel. You're gonna be launching me at them."

Jinggu couldn't believe what he heard. He was impressed by his commander's radical decision and obediently adjusted the catapult.

The recalibration of the catapult took longer than expected. Adder was only launched into the air right after Sierra was captured by the ropes of the five mounted Brandals.

Adder attempted to use his long double bladed sword as an aerodynamic rudder to guide him to Canalha. Jinggu's marksmanship was right on target and Adder was right above Canalha when he started to give his long speech.

WHOOOGGG!

+ Attack hit. +LIGHTNG DMG. BACK ATTACK. Adder damaged Brandal Leader: Canalha for 6249.

After successfully landing a back attack on Canalha, Adder fluidly took a low running pose and headed to Sierra. With his double bladed Blitztod, he slashed off the ropes that had bound her.

All the while Sierra's eyes were fixed on Canalha. Adder took on all five mounted Brandals and Sierra went straight for their leader.

The remaining ten black ctenosaur riders rushed to overwhelm the already outnumbered Adder. The one armed commander saw their gallop and made a decisive retreat towards his men.

Canalha was separated from the other Brandals as Sierra aggressively chased him into his ruined castle. He kept on throwing his knives at the Werebear but Sierra simply deflected them with her claws.

The Brandal leader steadily retreated further into the grounds of his hideout. Sierra's focus was on his rattled face.

Canalha started to run and made huge leap over the grounds. Sierra followed him steadily and as her foot stepped on the ground that Canalha had leapt over, it caused the ground below her to collapse and she fell into a deep pit that was filled with spikes.

Canalha burst out into his maniacal laughter and went closer to the death trap.

"Bwahahahaha! How silly of you. You really thought that I would cower before a pathetic beast like yourself. Now, you'll have the full taste of my knives on your impaled bod..."

Sierra leapt out of the pit. She was able to grab ahold on the walls with her claws and escaped from being impaled on the spikes below.

She pounced over Canalha and pressed him down with the full weight of her Werebear body. Her claws focused their attacks on both his arms.

Sierra was determined to sever them off. The Brandal leader screamed in pain as he felt his limbs being slowly removed.

After a few more slashes with her claws. Sierra finally amputated both of Canalha's arms. His lifebar displayed (17,786/185,000 HP).

Canalha spewed out his blood and was left with less than 10% of his life.

"Hahahaha... Well played. But you should know that I've already sent a runner to warn our Ultimo  about this incident. When he doesn't hear from me, he'll send hordes of Brandals here and wipe out all of yo..."

Sierra formed a pentagon with her claws and plunged it deep into Canalha's heart. She squeezed it hard from the inside and crushed it. The Brandal leader's lifebar was completely depleted.

+ You've dealt a fatal blow to the Brandal Leader: Canalha.

+ You've killed the Brandal Leader: Canalha.

+ You've gained 300,000 exp.

+ You've gained a level.

As the body of the Brandal leader Canalha started to fade, it left behind a precious loot.

+ Acquired epic knife belt: Brandal's Infinite Knives.

Sierra picked up the epic knife belt and placed it inside her backpack window as soon as she did she received a game notification.

Incurred the wrath of the Brandal Bandits.

You and the rest of your party members will be hunted down by all of the Brandals.

Sierra closed the notification window and stared blankly around the ruined castle. She stepped outside to check on the results of their counter attack.

All the members of Smoke's private army were alive, but there were still casualties in their hard fought battle. There were left with only seventeen Betulite Fishermen and eighteen Avendre mercenaries.

* * * * * *

The aftermath of their battle against the Brandals was catastrophic. Sierra and her comrades were still slowly recovering.

Sharur and the WoodElves were busy cooking a medicinal blood pheasant stew, while Adder and the rest of Smoke's private army were picking up the loot that was left behind.

The Betulite Fishermen and the Avendre mercenaries were gathered around the camp fire and waited for their medical treatment.

After an hour when everybody was fed and was treated. Sierra gathered Smoke's private army in front of a smaller campfire. There she told them about the imminent Brandal horde that was coming.

"Most likely they will kill everyone in the unprotected villages. I propose we warn everybody, have all of them escape to a far and safe place. Maybe Coatl or some other place. Canalha said that this was just a small fraction of their entire organization. We can't risk facing them."

Adder quickly interjected.

"But Smoke sent us here to secure the labyrinth's exit."

"I know. I'll have to talk to Smoke about all of this. I just want to have an escape plan for all of us before committing to anything else."

All of them had somber faces. They didn't look like they had just won a great battle.

* * * * * *

As Sierra and company stared at the campfire, cold yellow eyes with black slits watched from a far. The hidden figure ran further away and contacted her High General with her golden magical plate.

"High General Lizardo, this is Netteria. I have urgent news. One of the encampments of your Human ally Ultimo Maire, has been decimated by a resistance group composed of some Betulite Fishermen and Avendre mercenaries. They were led by a red Werebear and a one armed man."

The High General's eyes widened.

"Red Werebear? One armed man? Are you sure they weren't led by some stupid looking DarkElf?"

"I'm positive. All the Elves that I saw were two WoodElves and two OrkElves."

"HAHAHAHA. He may not be there but that is clearly Smoke's army. So, he has made it as far as Coatl. I wonder if Maire's luck will be better than mine in dealing with him. Thank you, Netteria. Continue on spying Maire's activities. I don't want him double crossing me."

Lizardo stood up from his throne and walked towards an ornamental Knight. He pulled the Knight's lance and a secret door was revealed on the wall beside the Knight.

He went inside his secret chamber. The hidden room was wide and spacious. It was dimly lit. It had a comfortable chair and a table filled with his memoirs.

One of the walls had several shelves that had several large glass containers on them. Each container had a light green fluid in it, together with a severed head.

Lizardo took one of the glass containers and placed it on top of his table. He took a seat and started writing. He looked at the severed head and spoke.

"Maybe I shouldn't have changed my mind. Maybe I shouldn't have taken you up on your offer, Spyteria. Maybe I should have kept you on Smoke's trail. I really thought that he would stay in the far southern regions of Nanahuatl. Oh, well. What's done is done. I just wish Talino would tell me how to deal with that accursed DarkElf. If Talino wasn't the only Lizardite Shaman left, I would've killed him ages ago."

Chapter Five: Single Stone Beggar

The noon sun shone brightly over Coatl city. Three individuals were having a serious discussion over lunch. Smoke, Laernea, and Madam Dawny talked about Macher's proposal on the Mounted Race.

The young lioness Lioumerean spoke with a mouth full of vegetable salad.

"I think you should do it. I mean, he looked like a decent guy."

Madam Dawny rolled her eyes when she heard Laernea's suggestion.

"You used to be very jaded, but your time in Nanahuatl has made you soft. Do you remember when you were younger? You wouldn't even trust me, and I only had your best interest at heart. Now that you're out of Nanahuatl you should regain some of your mistrust."

Laernea shrugged and passively listened to Madam Dawny's lecture. Smoke nodded his head and agreed with what their benefactor said.

"That's why I'm going to gather as much information as I can, before signing up on anything. Sierra has been telling me that my decisions are always rash. That reminds me. It's been some time since I got in contact with Sierra. Excuse me for a bit, while I make a quick call."

The young DarkElf stood up and walked a few steps away to get some privacy. As he was about to contact Sierra, he got an unexpected call from her instead.

+Incoming Call: Sierra
Accept the call? [YES/NO]

Smoke immediately answered her.

"Hey! I've been wondering when you'd call. I was so busy after winning the tournament that I completely forgot to check in with you. I'm so sorry. Anyway, have you found the exit?"

Smoke wanted to impress her. He thought that she should know how hard it was to win the Swordsman to Knight Tournament.

"Oh... Well, we still haven't found the exit. Although we've finished investigating all the villages. Don't worry, we'll find it sooner or later."

He thought that it had been some time since they started their search. He surmised that it was the cause for Sierra's voice to be melancholic. He thought he could cheer her up by changing the topic.

"Ahh, that's okay. Don't worry about it. I know you'll eventually find it."

"Listen... I have to tell you something important. While we were waiting for the Bran..."

Smoke was determined to change the topic. He wouldn't let Sierra finish her sentence.

"Right. Well, let me tell you, once you've won that championship and equipped this glorious armor the crowd just wouldn't let go of you. I've had dozens of friend requests that I decided to disable the friend request notification. Oh, and that reminds me. Do you remember Macher? The Cavalry Knight who helped me enter the city?"

"Yeah, I think so. What about him?"

"He offered to be my sponsor in the Mounted Race event. It costs 80,000 zecs to join, and if I agree, I get to join for free. What do you think? Should I accept his offer? He only asks that when I win the grand prize I give him ten million zecs from the winnings. I think it's a fair deal."

He thought that she would cheer up if she was involved in the decision on the Mounted Race event. He believed that if she thought about something else, she would relax and forget her anxiety from her failed search attempts.

"It sounds like you've already made your decision. Why do you need to hear what I think?"

"I knew you'd agree with me. Alright, call me when you get any new developments on your search. I'll also do the.. Hello? Sierra? You still there? Hmm. She hung up on me."

Smoke smiled. He thought that their talk had inspired her on a new way to find the missing labyrinth exit.

He was pleased with himself as he rejoined the dining table.

"So what were we talking about again?"

Laernea repeated their discussion from the time Smoke had left the table.

"Madam Dawny said that we should try visiting a pub called Noir Emporium."

The retired old woman waited for Smoke to be seated before she proceeded.

"If you give 30,000 zecs to a long curly haired bartender named Gin, you'll be able to get plenty of informative rumors from him."

"30,000 zecs? That's a little too steep for me. Is there another way I could get information without paying that much?"

Madam Dawny stared at Smoke for a few seconds.

"Well, there is one more way. You could speak with the owner of the bar directly, but he doesn't speak with just anybody. If you really want to talk to him then you would need to have a belt with a special black stone on it. Darius has one. Maybe you have one as well?"

It was Smoke's turn to stare at his benefactor. He thought that if she saw the belt it also meant that she knew about the secret society of beggars.

"I don't mean to sound offensive, but how well do you know Darius?"

"Pretty well, I guess. Before the coal mine incidents in Nanahuatl, old man Darius and I used to travel all over Chayotl Kingdom(Western Kingdom). This was back when I was younger. I would drop by Nanahuatl and invite him to join me on one of my quests, especially the harder ones. Thirty years passed and my movements were no longer as sharp, but old man Darius stayed exactly the same. If I had known that he wouldn't age I would've called him immortal Darius rather than the old man."

Madam Dawny chuckled as she remembered her younger days.

After he heard the old lady's story, Smoke believed that she was a good friend of Darius.

"I'm sorry for doubting you. It's just that Darius never talked about his past adventures. All he talks about is Kumbaba, but did he tell you what his job is?"

"Yes he did. He told me he was a Beggar, and he even showed me his belt with nine shiny black stones embedded on it. He also told me that only members of his organization can possess that belt. Well, do you have that kind of belt or not?"

"I do."

"Good. Then just ask Gin, the bartender, and tell him you want to talk to his boss. I don't know his name but Darius did a similar thing before and I think it might work with you."

"Thank you very much. I'll look into that pub and start my investigation on this Mounted Race from there."

Smoke looked to the direction of Nanahuatl. He saw Igniz outside the house. His symbiote enjoyed the bright sun and the cloudless sky, while the hell boar Ental energetically ran around the dark ember sprite. Ental tried her best to get Igniz's attention.

"Hmm. I wonder if Gandiva has already arrived in Nanahuatl. I need to put the next batch of double bladed mantis swords up in auction."

* * * * * *

There were many variations of the Knight job to choose from. Some of the variations were: the popular Cavalry Knight, the speedy Stealth Knight, and a sub variation called Elemental Knight.

Smoke chose to disguise his cover identity Ilad as a Flame Knight. He had Igniz hide comfortably on top of his head. He used his symbiote's energy to coat his shoulders and helmet in dark purple flames.

His newly won armor may look tattered because of his low Beggar Adaptability level, but the effects of the dark purple flames gave Smoke an intimidating appearance.

The DarkElf, equipped in a flaming Knight armor, took the teleportation circle headed for the central district. When he arrived, he expected the crowd to swarm him.

However, no one came near him at all. They just looked at him from afar. He could hear them whisper his name.

Smoke couldn't understand their sudden change. It was just yesterday that everyone couldn't get enough of him.

He felt sad that nobody fawned over him, but he realized that this was what he truly wanted, peace and quiet. At a quick pace, he followed the directions Madam Dawny gave him.

The pub was not easy to locate. Smoke had to ask multiple vendors before he reached the pub. Each vendor that he spoke to was shocked to have a conversation with him.

After an hour, his search for the well hidden pub was finally over. Smoke stood outside of Noir Emporium. From the outside it looked like a small place.

Smoke entered the pub and was amazed at what he saw. Despite its modest exterior, the interior was larger than what he expected.

The pub was filled with small round tables, each one of them had four chairs. The Flame Knight armored Smoke estimated that the whole place could probably seat a thousand customers at the same time.

He was told to look for a long curly haired bartender, but there was only a bald man behind the bar at the moment. He walked up to the bar and ordered a drink.

"Well, look at that. If it isn't the famous stiff necked, sir Ilad. What's your poison?"

Smoke was curious why the bartender called him stiff necked.

"I'd like an otromundo on the rocks."

The bartender was a muscular bald man. He went to the other end of the bar, and poured a gold fermented beer on a big glass mug. When he was done, he slid it on top of the bar, and the mug stopped to where Smoke sat.

The bald man walked over to his new customer.

"That'll be 250 zecs."

"That mug sliding was impressive, but isn't that a bit too expensive for an otromundo? I could buy a whole meal for 250 zecs."

"Then why don't you leave and go to that cheap restaurant. Let me tell you that a meal worth 250 zecs isn't a meal worth paying."

Smoke opened his transaction window and paid the amount. He hoped that with his 'Beggary' ability he could lower the price, but this did not work on the bald bartender. The DarkElf opened up his tri-horned Gora helmet and drank his otromundo.

After he finished the glass in one gulp, Smoke asked the bartender.

"I was wondering if you could tell me where Gin is? Do you know when his shift starts?"

The bald bartender gave Smoke a quizzical look.

"I'm Gin. What do you want with me?"

"Oh, I thought you had long curly hair."

"Yeah, that was before, but the boss told me to shave it all off. He said that he was sick of hearing the customers complain about having strands of my hair in their drinks."

Gin signaled Smoke to get closer as he said in a whispered voice.

"Between you and me. I still put some of my hair in the drinks of the customers. HAHAHAHA."

Smoke reflexively took a look at his mug and examined it for hair strands. He found none on the glass, but he did just finish the whole drink in one gulp.

He pushed the thought out from his mind and asked about Gin's boss instead.

"Listen, I'd like to talk to your boss. Tell him that I have some important business to discuss with him."

"I'm sure you do. But the boss isn't a very social person. If you're done drinking here then you can leave."

"Not even if you tell him that I have a belt with a special stone on it?"

"You really have one of those belts?"

"I really do. Can you take me to see your boss now?"

"Alright, let me just get my replacement to cover the bar. Tonic! Oi, Tonic, get up you lazy bum. I want you to look after the bar. Someone's here to see the boss."

When Tonic heard Gin's last words he quickly went over to man the bar.

"Right this way, sir Ilad. Please forgive my rudeness from before. I wasn't aware that you were an acquaintance of the boss."

Smoke grinned as he saw the pleasant change in Gin's demeanor.

"It's okay. Don't worry about it."

"Oh, and I'd really appreciate if you wouldn't tell him about me putting my hair in the customers' drinks."

"Well, I wouldn't want to lie to him. So, if he doesn't ask I won't tell him."

"That's good enough for me."

The two of them walked over to the back room which had seven doors. Gin opened one door, both of them entered to see another room that looked exactly like the first room they entered.

They kept on repeating the same process over and over again. Smoke felt dizzy as he tried to keep up with which door was which.

After they entered the twelfth door, the next room only had one door in it. The door was ornately decorated unlike the previous doors.

"We're here. Please wait for a moment, while I inform my boss."

Smoke removed his helmet and Igniz energetically flew around the room. His symbiote was happy to be outside of the helmet.

"Sorry for putting you in there, Igniz, but we have to keep up appearances that I'm not Smoke."

Igniz gave a nod and understood why he had to stay hidden in Coatl.

"Alright, time to get back inside. We'll have to check whether this boss is legit."

Smoke hid Igniz back inside his helmet as the ornate door opened Gin came out.

"You may now enter."

Gin held the door open as Smoke crossed the threshold. The room was filled with drawing cabinets, bookshelves, and a single table with two chairs in front of it.

A middle-aged imposing man dressed in a black suit sat behind the table. He stood up and extended his right hand which exposed his golden ring on his index finger. Smoke walked calmly towards him and performed the secret Beggar handshake.

When they completed the secret hand seal, both of their bodies were covered in an amber light. The boss smiled and removed the traditional belt on his suit, revealing a Beggar belt with four black stones embedded on it.

Smoke also unequipped his upper Knight armor, and revealed his single stoned Beggar belt. With an open palm on his left hand and a fist on his right, he made both his hands meet in front of his heart. Smoke bowed down and greeted the higher ranked Beggar in the manner that Darius taught him.

"May harmony and balance be kept in a perpetual state. My name is Beggar Smoke, but I'm currently using the name Ilad here in Coatl."

The boss did the same gesture with his hands and bowed down as well.

"And may the divine essence and eternal truth protect us all. Hello, I am Beggar Evocati Caid, but people around here call me boss."

"You're a Beggar Evocati! What's that?"

"You don't know what a Beggar Evocati is? How can a Beggar not know the ranks within our brotherhood? Who made you into a Beggar anyway?"

Caid examined Smoke's belt and just noticed that he only had one stone.

"You're a one stoned Beggar? There hasn't been a one stoned Beggar since... Well, since the last Imperator."

"Oh, you mean Kumbaba right?"

Caid's voice raised when he heard Smoke casually use the great Imperator's name.

"Don't you dare say his name without using honorifics. You should know your place, boy. When you speak about the greatest leader of the Verum de Mendicantibus, you should use his proper title. Validus Imperator Kumbaba."

Smoke was taken aback. He didn't mean to be disrespectful.

"I'm really sorry if I've offended you. It's just that Darius talked about Validus Imperator Kumbaba in a very casual manner and I..."

"Legati Darius? You don't mean Aeternus Legati Darius do you? How can you be so discourteous?"

"Darius had that kind of a title? I meant Aeternus Legati Darius never once told me to call him by that name. Don't worry from now on I will use the proper honorifics. Umm... If you don't mind, Beggar Evocati Caid. Can you possibly teach me how to address our brothers?"

While Smoke asked Caid to teach him about the secret society of Beggars, the Beggar Evocati was busy searching through his books.

"Even if you didn't ask, I was already going to. There are very strict and uptight Beggars out there who would punish you for being so... Ignorant and disrespectful. Here, read these books."

+Received Book: Verum de Mendicantibus Volume I.

+Received Book: Verum de Mendicantibus Volume II.

Smoke hastily checked the progress bars of the first two volumes. Both progress bars indicated that it would take five minutes to acquire the knowledge.

The DarkElf had heavily invested on his hidden basic stat called Wisdom. He is reminded to appreciate this decision whenever he was to acquire knowledge from a book.

Most books used to require him hours upon hours, but now the progress bars would only indicate minutes.

"Please excuse my speed of acquiring knowledge. My Wisdom stat isn't quite there yet. If you can just spare me a couple of minutes."

"Minutes? How many minutes do you need to have before you finish those two books?"

"Less than five minutes."

"Impressive. Please take a seat while we are waiting for you to finish the books."

"Thank you."

Smoke wanted to ask Caid about Coatl's Mounted Race event but was afraid to offend him once again.

"Well, you haven't told me, who made you into a Beggar? Who was it?"

"Oh, it was Aeternus Legati Darius. However, he gave me no other information at all. He told me that I should explore the possibilities of what being a Beggar is myself."

Caid rubbed his chin with his fingers as he listened to Smoke's answer.

"Aeternus Legati Darius was the one that sired you, huh? That does sound like him. He has always been fond of Self-reflection as a method of teaching. He has been gone for quite some time. There has been many changes since his absence from the Beggar council. The eight Beggar Legati left are the ones who makes the decisions for us. How is Aeternus Legati Darius?"

"He is doing fine. His power had been reduced to a third, but he is slowly recovering some of it."

"That must be why he has stayed hidden for this long. Oh, about your single stoned belt. You should know this, it has been decreed that only a Beggar Legati can make a new Beggar. For those below that rank, we are given an option to pass our knowledge and abilities to our chosen successor. If we choose not too, then our rank and power will disappear together with our death."

"Why was it changed? Wouldn't this new process reduce the numbers of the secret society of Beggars?"

"Yes. That is precisely one of the reasons why this new system was implemented. It isn't just the knowledge and the power that gets transferred. The process also melds the consciousness and the morality of the ancestor. This would safeguard the future Beggar generations from making the same mistakes of the traitor Giro."

Caid examines Smoke closely before he resumed to speak.

"Aeternus Legati Darius must have complete faith in you. True that being a one stoned beggar is really difficult but it also gives you complete freedom. Trust me when I tell you that my decisions and mannerisms are not all my own. When I talk, my melded mind from my four ancestors converge to tell me what to say. It may seem like an unfathomable task to you but it becomes more natural over time."

"You're right. That's really mind boggling. Can you excuse me for a second. I'm about to finish reading the books."

+Book: Verum de Mendicantibus Volume I.

Beggar Ranks
The stones on a Beggar's belt are empty essence diamonds.

Beggar           > 1-2 stones, can only access 25% of true potential.

Beggar Evocati   > 3-4 stones, can only access 50% of true potential.

Beggar Quaestor  > 5-6 stones, can only access 75% of true potential.

Beggar Legati    > 7-9 stones, has 100% access of true potential.

Beggar Imperator > 1 tyrian star diamond, has magnified powers of 125% of true potential.

Smoke couldn't believe that he had four more ranks to go through before he could become Imperator. Nevertheless, he was greatly impressed with the Beggar Imperator.

When he saw the increased 125% of true potential description, he immediately wanted to become an Imperator. He knew that it was a long shot, but this knowledge would fuel his determination and set him focused on his goal.

+Book: Verum de Mendicantibus Volume II.

From plain Beggar to Beggar Evocati

You would need the recommendations of two Beggar Evocati.

The young DarkElf was dismayed when he saw the acquired knowledge from the second volume. He thought that if he contributed once his rank would increase.

"I can't believe how difficult it is to increase to the next level."

"I know, and it only gets harder when you rank up. I'm still two recommendations short to turn into a Beggar Quaestor myself."

"Thank you for sharing these books with me. I only saw the Legati and Imperator titles, I didn't see the Validus or the Aeternus titles."

"You get a title unique to you, when you become a Legati. Of course the titles of the Legati are shared to all the members of our brotherhood. Do you have a Beggar's tablet?"

"What's that? Dar... I mean Aeternus Legati Darius didn't give me one of those."

"That's understandable, these things have only been made recently. I'll give you one, I have five Beggar tablets here."

"Can you maybe give me two tablets, please? I'd like to give one to Aeternus Legati Darius."

"Of course, of course. Let me just go get them."

Caid disappeared into thin air. He promptly returned after a few seconds. He brought two stone marble tablets. It had a length of ten inches, a width of seven inches, and a thickness of one fourth of an inch.

"As you can see, it's currently a blank marble slab. But when you place your hand on it and recite these words 'Mendicus Nuntius Exsto' a screen will appear. Here you can check on the latest news from our brothers scattered all throughout Zectas."

Caid handed the stone marble tablets to Smoke. Right away, he got the impression of a modern day tablet when he saw the demonstration.

He followed Caid's example and tried to activate the Beggar tablet. He recited the words and at once the stone marble changed into a screen.

"The news displayed depends on the Beggar's level. As I mentioned before, there hasn't been a single stoned Beggar for quite sometime. I doubt if you can get any useful information at your current level."

Despite what Caid said, Smoke was still excited to explore his new tablet.

"I can see all the names of the nine Beggar Legati."

"If you can put that away for now, I'd really appreciate it."

"Oh, right, right. That reminds me. I completely forgot to mention why I was here in the first place. I was hoping to ask you about Coatl's Mounted Race event."

"Hmm... That Duke may have called it a race but it's really a survival game with a finish line. The event allows for anyone who meets the requirement to enter. You only need a mount and the zecs to pay their overpriced entrance fee. Guilds would send five if not more members to participate. There are only two rules in the Mounted Race event. Those rules are; 'Your mount must be restricted to a ground type' and 'You cannot switch mounts'. I've gathered information about this year's racecourse. I could share them with you if you like?"

"Please do! That would be a great help."

Caid proceeded to tell Smoke about the Mounted Race's course. He told him what monsters to expect and other useful information that could help him finish the race.

The Beggar Evocati cleared his table and placed a map of the racecourse. The two Beggars stood beside the map as they spent the next hours in a strategic discussion.

Smoke learned each section of the race, he gave his initial thoughts and Caid would either agree or refute them.

Caid also told him about the other implications involved in the Mounted Race event. It clearly wasn't a simple race.

Both of them sat down when Caid finished sharing his information on the Mounted Race.

"Thank you so much for sharing all that info. If there's anything I can help you with, please tell me and if it's within my power I'll do it right away."

Caid rubbed his chin with his fingers once more. He had been doing this mannerism whenever he was deep in thought.

"Well, if things workout as we expected in this event. I think there is one thing you can help me with."

+ Quest: Find Caid's son Espion
Search & Rescue Quest
Level: C

Beggar Evocati Caid's son has been missing for the past three months.
Find him and reunite him with his father, in perfect health.

Accept the Quest? [YES/NO]

Smoke was shocked to see Caid's quest from out of the blue. He never once mentioned his son.

"Can you tell me more about Espion? What he looks like? How old he is? Where you last saw him?"

"I think you misunderstood. Espion isn't some missing child. He's already grown up. In fact, his job is that of a Spy. An advance hidden variation of the Thief job. He wanted to help me investigate the corruption within Coatl. I fear that he was captured and is kept as a prisoner somewhere or... I don't want to think the worst...”

Caid stopped his sentence, and changed the subject.

”So, will you help me find my son? My men are already looking for him as well but no one has found him anywhere. My Beggar instinct's tells me that you have the highest chance of finding my son."

Smoke was set on raising his intimacy with Caid. After all he needed the recommendations of two Beggar Evocati.

"I'm honored to accept this quest. I swear that I'll find your son and bring him back to you."

Caid shook Smoke's hand and thanked him for accepting his quest.

* * * * * *

Smoke started his preparations to join the Mounted Race. He needed a trusty creature to ride on. He asked Laernea to help him pick out his steed.

Laernea got curious gazes from onlookers as she walked beside Smoke. The DarkElf disguised as Ilad, equipped in his flaming Knight armor was now known as the Estranged Flame Knight.

His nonchalant response to the people after he won the Swordsman to Knight tournament was the main reason for his newly earned nickname.

Smoke wasn't bothered by the crowd and he told his Lioumerean companion to do the same. She was told to forget the crowd's whispers, and to focus in their search for his mount instead.

"You'd want to look for a comfortable mount, but it should also have a decent speed at the same time. Unfortunately, there are no stag moose here in Coatl. Don't worry, I'll take you to best place to get a mount, southern district's Bestride Stables."

"As long as the mount obeys me then I could start from there."

The lioness Lioumerean led the way. It took them twenty minutes to get to the famous stable.

A whole city block was occupied by the Bestride Stables establishment. There was a top view perspective of the building on the side of its entrance.

Smoke read the layout of the building. Because of its high walls on the sides and a wide open space in the center, it looked like an old military fort.

Smoke was hesitant to enter the building.

"Are you sure about this place? It looks expensive."

Laernea tried her best to persuade Smoke.

"Let's just go inside and check on their mounts."

They were greeted by a lean Gnome when they entered the premises.

"Good Day! My name is Billig Verkäufer and welcome to Bestride Stables. How may I help you today?"

Laernea spoke in behalf of Smoke.

"Hello, I'm here with my master, Sir Ilad the Flame Knight. We're here looking for a mount suitable of his caliber. Do you think you have something for us?"

"Of course, of course. Right this way Sir."

The Gnome led them to a small coffee table with comfortable lounge chairs beside it. He took out a catalog and gave it to Smoke.

"We have a variety of mounts to choose from. If you've chosen one, we can head out to the stables, and you can check them physically if the mount pleases your taste."

Smoke did not speak at all. In a rigid motion he took the catalog and examine its contents.

+Bestrides Stables Mounts

* Acinonyx Cheetah
Level: 50
HP: 50,000
Speed: 210
Defense: 50
Loyalty: 60
Endurance: 60
Obedience: 80
Special Ability: Tempo Burst - Momentarily increase in speed.
Price: 10,000,000 zecs

* Springbok Gazelle
Level: 50
HP: 30,000
Speed: 200
Defense: 30
Loyalty: 70
Endurance: 110
Obedience: 80
Special Ability: Tempo Burst - Momentarily increase in speed.
Price: 5,000,000 zecs

* Dirus Wolf
Level: 50
HP: 70,000
Speed: 150
Defense: 90
Loyalty: 100
Endurance: 150
Obedience: 80
Special Ability: Danger Sense - Alerts the rider of potential danger.
Price: 8,000,000 zecs

* War Elephant
Level: 50
HP: 160,000
Speed: 60
Defense: 190
Loyalty: 80
Endurance: 250
Obedience: 60
Special Ability: Unbreakable Endurance - Momentarily increases defense.
Price: 30,000,000 zecs

* Paracamelus
Level: 50
HP: 110,000
Speed: 110
Defense: 100
Loyalty: 70
Endurance: 250
Obedience: 70
Special Ability: Life Share - Can share its life with its rider.
Price: 12,000,000 zecs

Smoke didn't like any of the mounts that he saw from the catalog. The prices were too high. However he was curious to see all of them face to face.

"You really have a war elephant? Is it here, in your stables?"

Billig the Gnome salesman fidgeted before he answered.

"Well, you see war elephants haven't been very popular because of their price and all that. We have to order them before they are delivered here. It'll take us maybe two weeks in order to get one. Would that be a satisfactory?"

"No, I need a mount today. I need to start practising as soon as possible."

"Very well then, you can choose from the rest then. I am happy to inform you that we have everything in stock. Except for the war elephant and the paracamelus."

"Everything in stock, huh? Alright, I'd like to see these mounts in person."

"Certainly, sir. Please follow me."

Billig took them to the stables. There, Smoke studied each animal carefully. He was curious to see if any of them would call to him and would move him to pay the overpriced amount.

The acinonyx cheetah looked majestic. Its body alone was easily over five feet in length. It looked like in good condition.

Smoke tried to touch it, but the acinonyx cheetah stayed the same. It didn't respond to any of Smoke's attempt to familiarize himself with it.

"I don't think this mount is worth 10,000,000 zecs, and I think it's too aloof for me. Can you show me the springbok gazelle next?"

"Of course, right this way. I think you'll find the springbok gazelle to be most satisfactory. It's our most popular mount."

The springbok gazelle was smaller than the acinonyx cheetah. Its body length was only three feet. It also looked uncomfortable to ride on.

"This is your most sold mount?"

"Yes sir, it is."

Billig smiled proudly.

"I'd like to move on to your dirus wolf."

Laernea tried to examine the springbok gazelle herself.

"I think this is a pretty decent mount, Smo... Umm, sir Ilad. It's no stag moose but it has decent speed, there is an issue with its endurance though."

Smoke smirked at Laernea's observations.

"You've already pointed out most of the reasons why I don't want to buy it. Not to mention that I ride with my armor on."

"Oh, right. You have that heavy armor as well. Well, Billig, show us your dire wolf then."

Billig kept his salesman smile on. He showed them on to the next stable.

"This is one of our dirus wolves. You can get a 75% discount if you are a Cavalry Knight."

"If it isn't obvious from my flaming helmet? I am a Flame Knight."

Smoke irritatingly moved his head from side to side. He examined the dirus wolf. It was a specimen in prime condition, but the price was still too high.

"Wait, I thought your springbok gazelle was your most sold mount? I've only noticed a couple of those around Coatl. Whereas I've seen hundreds of dirus wolves all throughout the city."

"Well, the city provides a level 5 dirus wolf when a Swordsman becomes a Cavalry Knight."

Smoke looked unimpressed. This place had no mount suited for him.

"Laernea, let's go. I think I'll have better chances at finding a mount in the wild."

"Are you nuts? Do you know how long Gandiva and I had to hunt our stag moose? The Mounted Race is gonna start five days from now."

Smoke looked at the lioness Lioumerean in an offended manner.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to sound so rude. It's just that with the given time constraint, getting a mount in the wild is just unrealistic."

Smoke smiled at Laernea.

"Don't worry, I was just teasing you. I wasn't offended, but I was serious about this place not having a mount for me though. Thank you for your time, Billig. I think I'll come back and see one of your war elephants in the future."

The Darkelf started to walk out of Bestrides Stables, followed by a troubled Lioumerean. Smoke heard the Gnome salesman grumble as they headed out for the exit.

As they got out of the famous mount establishment, a group of five Cavalry Knights on dirus wolves came towards them.

"Good day, sir Ilad."

"Oh, sir Macher, nice to see you. I was just about to contact you after I've procured a mount."

"You've decided to accept my proposal then?"

"Yes. I'd be happy to partner up with you. Can we discuss the specifics of this partnership?"

"I'd be happy to. Let me just tell these guys to head on out without me."

Macher gave the rest of the Cavalry Knights some instructions and they headed out. He got off his dirus wolf and went to Smoke and shook his hand.

"I know this quiet cafe. It's just a block from here."

Smoke, Laernea, and Macher walked towards Knackig cafe. The Cavalry Knight had his dirus wolf in tow.

When they got to the cafe, Macher tied his dirus wolf to one of the posts outside of the cafe. Macher requested that they be seated near the window. He wanted to see his dirus wolf while they spoke.

All three of them were seated in a small circular table and were served with a cold frappuccino. Macher had ordered the drinks for them.

"These are on me. I'm really impressed with you, sir Ilad. Quite a bold move playing the cool and silent Flame Knight. How did you know that the people would respond well with that?"

"What? What are you talking about?"

Macher raised his eyebrow.

"You can drop the act. We are going to be partners right?"

"Act? What act?"

"You know, you not talking with the NPCs and players, because you've blatantly avoided the masses they only want you more."

"Really? But no one comes near me anymore."

"Exactly, because you made it look like you were too good for them. Now, they only want to admire you from a far. When you officially join the Mounted Race, I'm sure that you'll be the number one bet on winning the race."

"That's really weird. Anyway, tell me about our partnership. You'll pay for my registration fee and you'll get 10,000,000 zecs if I win right? I don't have to pay you anything if I don't win."

"Well, to be more specific I would get 30% of all your winnings. No matter what place you may finish at. Here, these are the prizes for the Mounted Race."

Macher gave Smoke a scroll with the prizes of the said event.

+ Mounted Race Prizes

1st Place: Gold trophy, 10,000,000 zecs, and a golden armored carriage.
2nd Place: Silver trophy, and 5,000,000 zecs.
3rd Place: Bronze trophy, and 2,000,000 zecs.
4th Place: 1,000,000 zecs.
5th Place: 500,000 zecs.
6th Place: 200,000 zecs.
7th Place: 100,000 zecs.

"Even the trophies can fetch a high price if sold at the auction."

Smoke nodded his head as he listened to the Cavalry Knight.

"I was about to join, but I couldn't find a mount. The ones in Bestride Stables were too expensive. Only a madman would buy a mount from that place."

Macher told him some more information about the race.

"Remember the race is for 5,000 kilometers. You will need to travel to four special villages that will be announced two days from now. These villages will most likely be scattered all over Coatl. The race usually involves circumnavigating the city. Last year's race lasted for six days."

"That long? I guess I'd really need a great mount. Then clearly I can't use a springbok gazelle. I don't think it could survive that distance."

"Well, most merchants buy the springbok gazelle to pull their carts. Their discount ability drops the price to 1,250,000 zecs."

"Their discount ability can drop the price that low! Incredible, I wish my discount ability would work every time."

Macher pulled back his shoulder when he heard Smoke.

"You have a discount ability?"

"I mean, I wish I had that kind of discount ability."

"Yeah, you and me both. That dirus wolf outside was the same one that I got when I first became a Cavalry Knight. I raised it up to level 80."

Smoke nodded as he hid his amazement. He knew how difficult it must have been to raise a level 5 dirus wolf.

"If you want, I can purchase a dirus wolf for you. I think it'll drop down to 2,000,000 zecs?"

The DarkElf thought that two million zecs was a fair price for a level 50 dirus wolf.

"I'll think about it. I don't have that much zecs to spare. Two million zecs is still a pretty high amount. I'll get back to you tomorrow if I can't find a mount on my own."

"Fair enough, but be sure to register before 8pm tomorrow. That's the time that the registration is closed. Anymore questions about our deal?"

"Yes, where's the contract?"

Macher smiled and pulled out a contract from his backpack window. He gave it to Smoke to sign it. The DarkElf signed the name Ilad over the contract.

A notification window only visible to Smoke popped up.

+ Alias Documented: Ilad is now bound as one of your aliases.
note: If you use an Alias that is already registered by another user then that user will get the benefits of the contract.

Smoke pretended not to see the alias window. He shook Macher's hand and smiled.

"Pleasure doing business with you. Listen, Laernea and I have to get going. We still have a lot of things to prepare."

"I'll be waiting for you at the finish line double grand champion."

Macher said his farewell as the DarkElf Flame Knight and the Lioumerean Pathfinder went out of the cafe, determined to find a mount.

* * * * * *

Smoke and Laernea were back in Madam Dawny's farm. They tried the other stable houses from the other districts but all of them had similar prices.

Laernea gave Smoke some advice.

"I think you should take Macher on his offer. I know you don't want to spend too much on yourself but think of it as an investment."

"Let's wait for Gandiva. She should arrive any minute now. When she gets here we'll talk about finding my mount."

A few minutes later the tigress Lioumerean arrived with the next batch of double bladed mantis swords for auction.

"Finally! What took you so long to get here? Did something come up in Nanahuatl?"

Gandiva stared on the ground and tried her best to avoid Smoke's eyes. She had promised Sierra to keep their meeting a secret from Smoke.

"Well, everybody was so happy with your gifts that they wanted to party a bit. I didn't notice the time and one drink led to another and..."

"Argh! Okay, okay I get it. You partied with the Nanahuatlanos. I don't mind, at least you were honest with me."

"Of course. Thanks for understanding."

"Yeah, I bet if I sent Laernea instead of you she would've partied with them too."

Laernea interjected Smoke's statement.

"Hey, I resent that."

This time it was Gandiva who asked Laernea.

"Really? You're telling me that if the Nanahuatlanos asked you to party and would offer you a cold otromundo you would say no?"

Laernea became silent and answered in the end.

"Fine. I guess if I think about it, I would've said yes as well. I mean who could deny a cold otromundo."

The Lioumereans laughed at each other. They both knew how much they loved drinking otromundo.

"Ahem, ahem ahem. If you don't mind I'd like to talk about my mount. Laernea, you update Gandiva about our development on that end. I'll go out and do some practice swings in the meantime. Come get me when you're done."

Smoke equipped his Gora Knight armor. He wanted to be comfortable fighting with the armor on. He also equipped his glaive Rzeka.

Igniz, the dark ember sprite, and Ental, the hell boar, were outside as well. The two of them were up to their usual game of chase.

The DarkElf tried to execute his own attack called Mountain Split, but the damage on the ground was smaller when he didn't use Igniz's energy.

"Igniz! Come here. I need you to help me practice with Rzeka and this armor."

Igniz immediately stopped playing with Ental and flew towards Smoke. The dark ember sprite went inside his tri-horned helmet and melded his energy with Smoke.

Smoke's armor was coated in the usual dark purple flame. When Ental saw the flaming armor she instinctively ran towards him.

Ental's speed was much faster than when she played with Igniz. Smoke was alarmed when he saw the charging hell boar.

He turned away from the hell boar and ran as fast as he could. Ental lowered her head and body. She scooped Smoke up and had him ride her back.

Smoke couldn't believe what happened. He was mounted on Ental. He thought that she was an old retired hell boar but she carried him well.

Ental started to pick up speed. She ran towards one of the four foot tall fences surrounding the farm. Smoke wanted her to turn but he didn't know how.

The hell boar picked up even more speed and leapt over the fence. Smoke was astounded at what the old hell boar was capable of.

He used his Earth Manipulation ability and created an earth pillar far ahead. The pillar was eight feet thick. He wanted to see if Ental would follow his instructions.

"Alright, Ental, let's pulverize that pillar."

Ental grunted to indicate that she understood. She picked up, Smoke used both his hands and readied his glaive. The moment the pillar was in reach he swung his long glaive across it and and explosive slash erupted. The pillar was completely obliterated.

"Whoa. Ental, slow down girl. Let's see the damage we've made."

The hell boar slowed down and turned around. She trotted slowly to where the pillar was erected. All that was left in its place were small pieces of rocks.

"Amazing! I thought you hated me girl. Good job, good job."

Smoke scratched Ental behind her ears. The hell boar grunted in response. Smoke smiled as it looked like he found his mount.

“A free mount is the best the kind of mount.”

They went back to the farm. He still had to ask for Ental's owner to let him use the hell boar in the Mounted Race.

The ride back was as pleasant as Smoke could imagine. When they got back on the farm he saw Madam Dawny standing on her front porch.

Smoke dismounted Ental and unequipped his Knight armor. He went to the owner of the farm and the hell boar to ask for her consent.

"Umm... I don't really know what happened. Ental forced me to mount her. I know it sounds weird but believe me that's what happened."

"I believe you."

Madam Dawny's short answer left Smoke in a puzzled state. He wasn't sure if she was okay with him riding her hell boar.

"Right. So, about the Mounted Race event, I was wondering if it's alright with you... I'd like to borrow Ental for the event?"

Madam Dawny looked at her hell boar.

"Ental is old, but it looks like she wants to go on another adventure. Who am I to stop a friend from having fun? It's okay. You have my permission to use Ental."

Smoke was ecstatic. He finally had a mount. He thought that he should inspect Ental's stats now that he could officially use her.

* Ental
Hell boar
Level: 200
HP: 180,000
Speed: 180
Defense: 100
Loyalty: 150
Endurance: 160
Obedience: 80
Special Ability: Inferno Tusks - Sets her tusks on fire.

Smoke plotted his schedule in the next few days. He would register himself and Ental tomorrow. He trained with the hell boar in the day and had Caid teach him at night. He followed the same routine until the day of the mounted race.

* * * * * *

The following day he went to register for the Mounted Race. He also asked Laernea and Gandiva to join the race. He would pay for their registration fees.

Gandiva couldn't understand why it was okay for Smoke to pay for their fees, when he signed a contract with Macher to waive his.

Smoke told the tigress Lioumerean his way of thinking.

"It would've been a waste of money if I payed for myself. Whereas it is an investment when I pay for you two."

To him 160,000 zecs was a logical gamble. He was confident that the Lioumereans could bring home 1st and 2nd place.

After they were done with the registration, Smoke went to another establishment. He left the two Lioumereans behind. He said that he would return quickly.

Ten minutes passed and their DarkElf leader returned. He was about to tell them to head on to the farm when he got a call from Sierra.

"Hi, Sierra. What's up?"

"I have something important to tell you. I need you to shut up, and listen to me well."

Smoke was stunned by Sierra's voice. He decided to keep his mouth shut.

"There has been a major complication on our end. The labyrinth's exit is still undiscovered and... Well, we've accidentally incurred the wrath of the Brandals."

"The Brandals! Everyone in Coatl knows to stay away from them. Weren't you suppose to stay hidden?"

"I've never been to Coatl! Smoke, please listen to me until I've finished what I have to say.”

Sierra told Smoke everything that happened to her and his private army. Everything except for Jinggu and Sharur's close encounter with death.

“What's done is done. We also have around 500 refugees with us. They need a new home. Their villages were ransacked and destroyed by the Brandals. I was having second thoughts of sending them over to Coatl. I don't think that the city would take them in. I need your help. What should we do? Should we abandon searching for the labyrinth's exit? Should we fight the Brandals?"

Smoke remained silent. It was too much for him to handle right away.

"You guys need to stay put and well hidden. I'll think of something fast. I'll contact you in a few hours from now. But for now just stay out of the Brandal's radar."

The DarkElf ended the call. He didn't know what else to say. He racked his brain for an answer. He discussed it over with the Lioumereans and they were also stumped.

Smoke looked for a quiet place to think. He needed to talk to someone. He decided to call the wisest person he knew. He called Darius.

“Open Contacts Window.”

+Contacts Window
Friends:
*Sierra
*Darius
*Dawny
*Caid
Private Army:
*Adder
*Ichaival
*Sharanga
*Thyrsus
*Vijaya
*Sharur
*Jinggu
*Laernea
*Gandiva

“Call, Darius.”

The game system opened a connection between Smoke and Darius.

"Hi, Sierra and everyone else are in trouble. I need your help."

The DarkElf wanted to solve these kind of problems on his own. However, this situation needed a quick and efficient resolution. Darius knew that Smoke didn't want his help. He knew that it was difficult for him to even ask.

“Okay, let's calm down and think about this objectively. List all the resources available to you and list all the things that you need to resolve. We'll start from there.”

Darius didn't give Smoke any clear answers. Instead he offered critical discussions on the possible solutions that Smoke came up with.

He also told Darius about his first time meeting another Beggar.

“Have you heard of a Beggar named Caid? He's a very interesting character. He's stricter than you and insists on using honorifics.”

“Little Caid? I knew his father Eldion. He was the previous owner of Noir Emporium. So he has inherited his father's Beggar status? His father was also strict. I guess that must be his father's melded part.”

Smoke and the famous Beggar Legati spoke for the next two hours. It was the longest time that he been on a call in Zectas or in real life.

After his insightful talk with Darius, Smoke called Sierra back.

"Sierra, I know what to do..."

Smoke gave Sierra detailed instructions on what to do next.

* * * * * *

At last, the day of the Mounted Race arrived. Almost all the players and NPCs of Coatl were gathered at the starting point of the race.

Long wooden bleachers were built on each side of the road where the racers would start. The Mayor had a special platform made for him and his special guests.

Smoke, in his flaming Knight armor, was mounted on Ental the hell boar. Laernea wore a heavy leather armor and rode on top of her stag moose Bilis. Gandiva wore a similar attire and rode on top of Tulin.

All three of them were ready to face the race. Macher came out from the crowd and went to talk to Smoke.

"This looks like a fine hell boar. A little old but its scars are a great sign of its power. Good luck, Ilad. Remember anything can happen in this race. I hope your two Lioumerean friends are enough of a backup to help you reach the finish line."

"Don't worry about us. These two are very good at what they do. I trust them completely, and as for Ental here, we've bonded really well these last few days."

"Alright then, break a leg, you three."

Macher went back to the bleachers and joined the rest of the crowd, who also waited in anticipation for the race to start.

Aside from training with Ental, Smoke had also acquired knowledge on the different types of mountable creatures in Zectas. He was able to read the book series called 'Mounts and Their Ups and Downs', up to volume three. The series had seven volumes altogether.

The DarkElf looked around at the other participants. He noticed a couple of intimidating individuals. There was a male Druid who rode a wind scorpion.

The wind scorpion's whole length with tail and stinger included was at fifteen feet. Its special claws enabled the wind scorpion to travel long distances as it slightly hovered above the ground. It has the ability to hover over long distances but is still classified as a ground type mount.

Next, Smoke noticed a group of six Hydro Knights mounted on andalusian horses. Smoke had read that those monsters were very elusive. Their average price was around 30,000,000 zecs, as much as a war elephant.

Finally, He spotted four Insect Warriors who rode on massive tiger beetles. They were as large as a normal tiger in the real world but were beetles with orange and black stripes.

Smoke tried to look for some more potential threats but a loud noise blasted over the speakers.

"Testing. testing..."

The announcer's voice was heard over the boisterous masses.

"My Lord Duke Burmistrz, honored guests, ladies and gentlemen, allow me to present to you the 1,359 participants of this year's Mounted Race! Our steadfast racers will circumnavigate around our great city. They will start their journey to the northern village of Utara. Where they will then cross the bridge of Leiden and stop in the western village of Barat.”

After taking a deep breath, the announcer finished the known route of the great race.

“From there, they will cross the desert of Wundern and stop in the southern village of Selatan. Finally they will traverse through the thickest forest fragment of Otaczac, and they will cross the finish line in the eastern village of Timur. Now, let's hear a few words from our esteemed mayor."

"Thank you, Ansager. It's time to start our second of the three special events Coatl offers. Good luck, participants,  and may the great god Tlaltezin protect you all. Oh, before I forget, I hope none of you will break the two rules of this race. Committing such a crime will be treated as a capital offense."

Duke Burmistrz stepped down from the podium and sat down. The announcer took the microphone once more.

"Thank you, Duke Burmistrz. Ladies and gentlemen, without further ado..."

The announcer fell silent and gave a dramatic pause.

"LET THE MOUNTED RACE BEGIN!"

TTOOOOOOOTTTT!

All the participants scrambled and rode their mounts at full speed. They were told to give the audience a great start.

Smoke and the Lioumereans were near the frontrunners. The last group of racers were composed of twenty nine Cavalry Knights on top of their dirus wolves... and a lone acinonyx cheetah whose rider was a Stealth Knight named Sagen.

Chapter Six: Mounted Race

A vast cloud of dust exited from the northern main gates of Coatl. More than a thousand racers pushed their mounts near their top speed.

Right from the start the racers were divided into three groups. The front runners, the main pack, and the stragglers.

Mounts with speeds that reached beyond 170 were the ones who composed the front runners. While the main pack mostly comprised of dirus wolves, as 78% of the participants were Cavalry Knights. Finally, the bulk of the stragglers' mounts were made up of monsters who were built for endurance.

Their first checkpoint was the northern village of Utara. They had to travel 625 kilometers of wide plains, forest fragments, and treacherous swamps before they could reach there.

The Mounted Race was tagged as an individual event, but it was clear that members of the same guild joined in, and planned to work together.

Smoke, Gandiva, and Laernea rode carefully to be placed in the middle of the front runners. Smoke needed them to be there to start his plan.

Days before the Mounted Race, Smoke, Gandiva, and Laernea trained to speak comfortably while on top of their running steeds.

In a loud voice the DarkElf spoke to his Lioumerean companions.

"Running on these plains sure is a breeze. I wish we could travel on this kind of terrain throughout the whole race."

Gandiva answered Smoke in an equally loud voice.

"You and me both, Sir Ilad!"

When the other racers heard Ilad's name, they tilted their heads to get a visual confirmation. The moment they saw Smoke's flaming armor and flaming hell boar, they knew that it really was the estranged winner of the Swordsman to Knight Tournament.

All three of them took notice of their gained attention. Laernea joined in on their rehearsed dialog.

"I think that the most problematic part in this first leg of the race would be Parjure swamp."

"I know exactly what you mean. As a Flame Knight, my abilities are greatly reduced because of the swamp's environment. Not to mention that my hell boar will have a hard time running through the marshes."

In a booming voice, Gandiva asked.

"Do you think there's a way for us to bypass that part?"

Smoke answered as clearly as he could.

"Of course, but now is not the time or place to have this discussion..."

The intended listeners' curiosity were piqued. Some of the riders rode closer to them in hope that they would start to have another conversation.

For the next thirty minutes, Smoke and the Lioumereans kept on with their pace. However, this time they were slowly moving towards the right side, in the outer regions of the front runners.

When they had arrived at their intended location. The three of them restarted their practiced dialog. After they were done, they waited another thirty minutes to move to the last racers in the front runners group.

The three of them repeated the whole charade on the left side as well. They had just delivered their last performance when an enormous forest fragment of Otaczac came into view.

It had been two hours since the race started. The first one to reach the boundary of the forest was a Druid on top of his wind scorpion. He stopped on his tracks as there was no visible entrance into the forest fragment.

Slowly the racers started to gather in front of the forest fragment. Some of them went to the right while others to the left. All of them tried to find a gap between the trees big enough for their mounts to fit in.

It took another three minutes before Smoke, Gandiva, and Laernea reached the other racers. Straightaway, Smoke opened his map and checked for his location.

Smoke's map had been updated by Caid's gathered intelligence on Coatl's regions. It had locations on abandoned roads, safe resting places, and other useful information.

After he got himself oriented, Smoke moved two hundred meters to the left. From there he brought out his Rzeka glaive.

The DarkElf fused his energy with Igniz's to create a dark purple flaming glaive. Together with his hell boar, Smoke dashed into the impassable forest fragment.

Smoked used both his hands and stretched his glaive as far back as he could. With four multiple slashes, Smoke opened a path into the forest.

Before the dust had a chance to settle, Laernea and Gandiva quickly followed their leader into the Otaczac forest fragment. The other racers closest to the scene took advantage of Smoke's created path.

The racers inside saw remnants of an old brick road with a width of two meters, and the faded backs of their three competitors. Forthwith, the other racers gave chase.

With Smoke's created passage into the forest being the only visible path, a bottleneck had been created at the mouth of the entrance.

Other Flame Knights tried to imitate what they witnessed. However, as they hacked through the forest, they were only met with thicker and closer tree formations.

Smoke, Laernea, and Gandiva led the way. The blood pheasants, pine martens, and strigidae owls all steered clear from the racers.

The loud thunderous sound that the racers made as they galloped through the forest had intimidated them.

Gandiva and Laernea stayed behind to hunt the swarm of blood pheasants that gathered in the area while Smoke rode on ahead.

The bottleneck helped the participants from the main pack to catch up with the front runners. The racers traveled on the narrow forgotten road for another hour before they got out of the forest fragment.

Up ahead was the treacherous swamp with a different set of forest fragments on each side. However, it was clear from the map that going through the swamp was the fastest route.

Five hours had passed since the start of the race and the traveled distance had taken its toll on Ental. Smoke decided to take a short break in front of the swamp.

- Entered the swamp of Parjure
- Monsters inside this swamp are highly aggressive.
- Suggested level for entering this swamp is 100.

As he finished his preparations with the campfire. Laernea and Gandiva arrived with fifty blood pheasants each. They dismounted and started to remove the feathers from the blood pheasants.

When the other racers caught up with them, they were puzzled to see Smoke and his companions busy cooking a meal.

The racers disregarded Smoke and the Lioumereans, and focused on the swamp instead.

The mouth of the swamp was 500 meters wide and its end could not be seen, but the map indicated that its total length was 20 kilometers. There were more forest fragments on both sides of the swamp.

Its murky dark green waters camouflaged the unknown monsters living inside the swamp. There were poison-dart frogs with the length of three feet on top of giant lily pads scattered all throughout the swamp. They had a majority of black skin with scattered pigmentation of bright yellow.

There were also permiana dragonflies flying around the swamp. These winged monsters had a body length of five feet from head to tail and a wingspan of over eight feet. These monsters would occasionally dive down and grab one of the poison-dart frogs.

The racers in front of the swamp started to swat their own bodies with their hands. A scourge of mosquitoes appeared and feasted on their warm blood.

As Laernea and Gandiva were coating their blood pheasants with spices, Smoke added some sage and rosemary into the burning fire. This served as their natural mosquito repellent.

A party that belonged to a guild called Infime, decided to push through the swamp. They were composed of ten Rangers and fourteen Insect Warriors. While the rest of the racers stood in place, and thought to watch their progress instead.

The Insect Warriors were an advance variation of the Warrior job that specialized in defense. Their heavy armors were made out of giant insect carapace, and they used long stingers for their spears. There mounts were the massive tiger beetles.

The twenty-four racers tried to go directly in a straight line, but found that it got deeper as they went towards the center of the swamp.

The members of Infime withdrew, and started to travel near the shallow shore lines on the left. There were some visible movements in the swamp, but the boggy water made it impossible to distinguish what caused it.

They proceeded with extreme caution. The Insect Warriors formed a circular barricade around the Rangers. A hundred meters into the swamp, and a giant alligator snapping turtle came out of nowhere and chomped at the nearest Insect Warrior.

The monster's surprise attacked snatched the Insect Warrior's tiger beetle. The rider managed to jump off moments before the giant alligator snapping turtle swallowed his mount whole.

The Insect Warrior may have survived, but according to the rules, he had been officially eliminated from the Mounted Race. He was forced to hitch a ride with one of his guild mates.

The members of the Infime guild pushed on. Another fifty meters further into the swamp, and a different black giant snapping turtle came out.

However, this time they were prepared. The Insect Warriors used their stingers to attack the exposed neck of the giant alligator snapping turtle.

In a synchronous movement, the ten Rangers fired their arrows and targeted the snapping turtle's head. It took them thirty seconds to kill the monster with a life of 70,000 HP.

When the giant alligator snapping turtle died, a poison-dart frog attacked one of Rangers with its tongue. It croaked loudly, and five more poison-dart frogs shortly came out to attack them.

The Insect Warriors divided themselves equally against one poison-dart frog. The Infime guild members swiftly killed the poison-dart frogs with a life of 30,000 HP, but not without their members being poisoned.

Their half submerged mounts were restless. It was clear that it was very difficult to fight with such unfavorable conditions, but it was still manageable.

Other racing parties which had more than twenty members followed suit. One group followed directly behind the Infime guild while others used the opposite shallow shore lines on the right.

The racing parties with less than ten members stayed behind. They knew they couldn't survive against Parjure swamp with their numbers.

They gathered around Smoke's party to see what one of the smallest racing parties would do. The other racers clearly noticed how calm they were.

Smoke gave small bits of grilled blood pheasant to Ental, he massaged his hell boar's leg muscles which made her grunt with happiness, and the Lioumereans fed their stag moose with a handful of specially mixed hay.

After they were well rested. They packed up their belongings and headed to the forest fragment on the right side of Parjure swamp.

Smoke was about to create an opening to the blocked road when two other Flame Knights were already there hacking away the thick trees.

The real Flame Knights belonged to the guild called Confiance. They had giant fire axes, and they were lit with ruby red flames. When the hidden road was revealed the rest of his fellow guild members immediately followed him into the woods.

Their party was composed of two Flame Knights, two Electro Knights, one Aqua Knight, and three Shamans. All of them had bronze jackals for their mounts. These monsters were smaller than the dirus wolves but were also faster.

Smoke and the Lioumereans were the second group to use the old brick road. They were able to bypass the imminent bottleneck of racers in the newly created path.

This forgotten road in the forest fragment had a distance of 80 kilometers. It was more than twice the length of Parjure swamp. It was further, but offered a much safer route.

Twenty minutes passed, and the front runners on the forgotten road enjoyed an uneventful ride, when suddenly twenty black ctenosaurs leapt at them from the sides.

The Confiance guild members followed their standard formation against surprise attacks. They had their healers behind them while the five Elemental Knights protected them from the front.

Each Elemental Knight had to face four Brandal bandits at the same time. If it weren't for their Shaman's healing powers they would have been already killed against the multiple slashes inflicted against them.

Both of the Flame Knights could only manage to inflict some splash damage against their eight attackers with their great fire axes.

However, the two Electro Knights' approach was different. They focused their electrically charged lances on one attacker and endured the damage against the other three bandits.

The Aqua Knight didn't try to attack the four Brandals she was up against. She made sure to protect their three Shamans at all times.

Two minutes passed and two of the bandits were about to die. The leader of this black ctenosaur raiders threw his knives at the Electro Knights.

Unlike the damage from the ordinary bandits, the damage from the knives were high enough to force the Electro Knights to defend against them.

The two bandits who had less than 10% left on their lifebars moved back behind their formation. They rode towards safety while they applied healing salves on their bodies.

Before the two bandits had a chance to fully recover their lives, Smoke created a tall earth ramp, and together with Ental, they leapt over the Confiance guild's defensive formation.

The DarkElf used his flaming Rzeka, and cleaved the two dying Brandals with a back attack from his glaive. The Brandal leader switched targets, and was about to attack Smoke with his whip, when he received multiple arrow attacks from Laernea and Gandiva.

Five minutes later, the other racers who followed them into the forest fragment caught up with them and saw the fight. They drew out their weapons and attacked the Brandal raiders.

This time it was the Brandals who were outnumbered three to one. The Brandal leader saw that the situation was hopeless, and ordered his men to retreat.

Despite the Brandals mad efforts to escape, their exit paths were blocked by the other racers. Everyone knew about the notorious Brandals, and their heinous acts against the villages outside of Coatl.

Everyone was united in the thought of cleansing them from the face of Zectas. The Brandal leader tried to force his way through. He fought against the two Assassins on top of metallic zebras who blocked his path.

He was able to dismount one of the Assassins and was about to do the same to the other, when Smoke arrived and severed the front legs of his black ctenosaur.

The Brandal leader jumped off of his dismembered mount. All the while, Gandiva and Laernea's poisoned arrows never ceased their attacks on the bandit primo. His lifebar displayed (127,786/185,000 HP).

On foot, the Brandal leader had better mobility. He tried to flee into the thick tree formations, but both his feet were stuck on the ground.

Smoke used his 'Earth Manipulation' ability to capture the Brandal leader. The flames from Igniz's infused energy grew hotter.

Flashes of Brandals hurting Sierra and the rest of his private army entered Smoke's mind. He raised his Rzeka with both his hands over his right shoulder and charged at the trapped bandit.

The enraged DarkElf aimed his four attacks at the bandits right shoulder.

+ Attack hit Brandal Leader: Brusco. +FIRE DMG. CRITICAL HIT. Damage 9,011.

+ Attack hit Brandal Leader: Brusco. +FIRE DMG. CRITICAL HIT. Damage 8,998.

+ Attack hit Brandal Leader: Brusco. +FIRE DMG. CRITICAL HIT. Damage 9,029.

+ Attack hit Brandal Leader: Brusco. +FIRE DMG. CRITICAL HIT. Damage 9,032.

Followed by his Quadruple Mountain Strike, Smoke amputated the Brandal leader's right arm.

+ Severed: Brusco's arm. +MAIM DAMAGE. +FIRE DMG. CRITICAL HIT. DMG 14,064.

The Brandal leader's lifebar was now at (77,652/185,000 HP). He desperately tried to reason with Smoke.

"Wait, stop! I'm one of the riches raid leaders in all of the Brandals. I can give you more than 10,000,000 zecs. If you'll only let me go. I won't even come looking for you..."

Smoke repeated the same attack on the bandit's left arm, and severed it as well. The Brandal's lifebar now displayed (23,652/185,000 HP).

Next, Smoke targeted the bandit's legs and removed them from his body. The Brandal writhed in pain. He kept on shouting cursed words at Smoke. He was left with (5,350/185,000 HP).

The DarkElf rode over to the mutilated body of the Brandal leader.

"No one messes with me and my private army!"

"What? I don't even know you..."

Smoke swung his Rzeka glaive and decapitated the Brandal leader's head.

+ You've dealt a fatal blow to the Brandal Leader: Brusco.

+ You've killed the Brandal Leader: Brusco.

+ You've gained 300,000 exp.

+ You've gained a level.

His anger wasn't satiated by the death of the Brandal's raiding leader. He tried to fight the other remaining Brandals, but Gandiva and Laernea quickly stepped in, and blocked their leader's path.

"Please calm down. I don't know if you've noticed but you've been using your Earth Manipulation ability rather haphazardly. Gandiva and I have been blocking the view of the other racers, but if you join in on their fights they might see you use it."

Gandiva joined in to help Smoke regain his senses.

"You're really out of it, to the point that you even forgot to pick up the Brandal leader's item."

Smoke took a deep breath. He had another one of his rage outbursts. He couldn't believe that in his maddened state he even forgot such an important act, to gather the Brandal leader's loot.

+ Acquired rare bull whip: Brandal leader's Sting.

"Inspect bull whip."

Brandal leader's Sting (whip)

A rare black whip said to be the symbol dominance over the average Brandal bandit.
Restricted to any variations of the Thief job.

Damage: 20-30

Equipment Ability:
*Hold (Active)
+ can temporarily hold any monster with a medium type body size.
+ duration depends on the difference in Strength between the user and target.

"Thanks, you two. If you weren't here I think I would've really blown my cover as Ilad the Flame Knight. Alright, let's head out first. While the rest of the racers deal with the remaining Brandals."

Smoke, Gandiva, and Laernea did not run directly to the first village. Instead they spent the next twenty minutes hunting blood pheasants, just enough time for the other racers to catch up with them.

The three of them joined together with the rest of the mounted racers headed for the northern village of Utara.

* * * * * *

It took Smoke, Gandiva, and Laernea nine hours, but they finally reached their first pit stop, Utara village. It was a thriving agricultural village.

There were fifty stationed Cavalry Knights in the area. They were sent here to protect the citizens who were mostly made up of farmers.

Smoke noticed that the parties that went through Parjure swamp had already settled in the village. They were either treating their injured or were busy preparing their meals.

The DarkElf and the Lioumereans had their Race Sigils verified, it was the process that assured the participants passed through the correct checkpoint.

There were a total of 752 mounted racers gathered in Utara village. Only the racers from the straggler group were missing.

Smoke ordered the Lioumereans to start with their needed preparations for the next phase of his plan. Smoke searched for the Elemental Knights that opened the path to the forgotten road.

The DarkElf ordered Gandiva and Laernea to set up a camp besides the Confiance guild members. They prepared a campfire to cook with and started to grill the blood pheasants that they hunted earlier.

Smoke didn't want to associate with any other players, but the situation with Sierra and his private army was extremely perilous. He needed to reduce the Brandals' manpower ASAP.

The DarkElf faced his fear of potentially being betrayed. He would sacrifice anything in order to protect Sierra and his private army. He thought that this approach was the best way to protect him from potential treachery.

The Confiance guild members only ate stale bread. The aromatic smell of the grilled blood pheasants drove their starved leader to partial insanity.

Their leader was the female Aqua Knight that protected the Shamans against the Brandals. She went towards Smoke and spoke with him.

"Hello, my name is Mamelon. I'm the representative of the Elemental Knights and Shamans that you see there."

Mamelon pointed at her companions.

"Hi, my name is Ilad. I'm the leader of our small group of three friends."

"I'd like to thank you for coming to our rescue earlier. If you hadn't jumped in we would've been dead."

"What are you talking about? The other racers were only a few seconds behind us. You should thank them, not us."

"Well, it was your flaming armor that I noticed. My men and I were curious how you get a dark purple flame when most Flame Knights only have ruby red flames?"

Smoke clearly noticed that Mamelon tried to make some pleasant conversation before she would tell him the real reason why she was there.

"I really don't know myself. When I activated my flames they were just naturally that color. Oh, right we've cooked some extra grilled blood pheasants. Perhaps you and your guild mates would want some?"

"I wouldn't want to impose, but since you insists I'll tell them to come over."

Mamelon went back to her group and all of them followed her to Smoke's campsite. She introduced her party members.

"These two Flame Knights are Tirer, and Virer. The two Electro Knights are Flux and Courant. Our Shamans are these three beautiful ladies. Aida, Sauve, and Crisa."

This time it was Smoke's turn to introduce their names.

"Hi, my name is Ilad, the tigress Lioumerean is Gandiva, and the lioness Lioumerean is Laernea."

The Electro Knight named Flux shouted his astonishment when he heard Smoke's name.

"Ilad? So it really is you. I saw your fight in the Swordsman to Knight championship and the way you handled your matches were amazing. It's really an honor to meet you."

Flux shook Smoke's hand enthusiastically.

"Umm... Nice meeting you too. Well, the food is ready so why don't we grab some grub?"

The two groups had a pleasant meal together. They talked about their experiences and expectations in the race. After they finished their meal, Smoke asked the members of Confiance to spare him a few minutes.

"As you probably witnessed earlier. In order for us to survive through this race I propose that we sign a 'Non Aggression Pact'. I had this auto-notarized in Coatl. With our two small groups together we have a bigger chance at finishing this race. What do you guys think?"

Mamelon looked interested with the idea, and she wanted to clarify the details of Smoke's proposal.

"What exactly are the rules of this proposed Non Aggression Pact of yours?"

"The basic stuff really. You can't harm in any way or form the members of the pact. We will aid each other until the southern village of Selatan. The support may only stop until Selatan, but the rule that we can't harm each other will last for the whole duration of the race. So, are you in?"

"I think it sounds like a good idea. Can I have Crisa read through the Non Aggression Pact before we decide whether to sign it or not."

"Sure, no problem at all. Please feel free to ask if you have any concerns."

Smoke handed the NAP document to Crisa. She read the document for five minutes and gave it back to Mamelon.

+Mounted Race Non Aggression Pact

----------
Rules:
----------
* Members cannot harm each other or their mounts or impede in another racer's ability to race.
* Members must cooperate with any adversities that may occur before Selatan village.
* Members will equally share all the loot before Selatan village.
* Rare items and beyond that are picked up before Selatan village will automatically be put into auction and the proceed will be divided equally.
--------------------
Players Only:
--------------------
* In the event of death, the member will still receive the equal share
of the total loot gathered before Selatan village.
----------------
Penalties:
---------------
* Receives a Player alignment of Chaotic Evil.
* Automatic Deduction of 1,000,000 zecs.
- In the event the offending member doesn't have the exact amount.
A negative deficit will be reflected on his financial status.
- The accumulated amount will be automatically divided equally among the non offending members.

Smoke was confident of his drafted Non Aggression Pact. The 1,000,000 zecs appeared expensive, but it was the 'Chaotic Evil' alignment that sealed the deal of the agreement.

'Chaotic Evil' was the alignment given to killers. People with this alignment were not welcomed anywhere. Removal of this alignment meant, you had to go to one of temples of the great gods and payed to be cleansed. The fee was 10,000,000 zecs or 90% of your total net-worth, whichever was higher.

Crisa scrutinized the Non Aggression Pact, and informed her Aqua Knight leader that there were no anomalies in the document. The leader of the Confiance guild members signed the Non Aggression Pact. One by one the rest of her members signed the document as well.

Smoke smiled as Mamelon handed back the document to him.

"I'd also like to inform you that there is a synchronized copy of this document in Coatl. Even if we do lose this document, we will still be protected and claim what is agreed upon."

Mamelon and the rest of her party were about to leave when Smoke stopped her.

"Before you leave, I'd like to ask that we share this Non Aggression Pact with other parties that are in a similar situation like us. Preferably members with below seven members perhaps?"

"I guess it does make sense if we have more members. Alright, we'll try to look for other potential recruits. I'll contact you when we get them."

Both parties bade their farewells. Smoke, Gandiva, and Laernea started to talk to parties with less than five members.

While Smoke went out and invited the other racers, he also sold the junk items that they looted and replenished their needed supplies.

On the other hand, Gandiva and Laernea were left to prepare more than a hundred grilled blood pheasants for the incoming guests.

Within the period of two hours, Smoke and the Confiance members gathered thirteen parties which had three to seven members each. A total of sixty four potential members.

Smoke fed them with the grilled blood pheasants, and proceeded to give out the same explanation to the other racers.

They knew about Ilad and some of the mounted racers heard about the Confiance guild. They were a famous guild from the northernmost city of Chayotl Kingdom(Western Kingdom), Centza city.

All the gathered racers thought that the pact made complete sense. They agreed with the Non Aggression Pact and signed the document. All in all, they had seventy five affiliates.

Their allies were composed of a variety of jobs. They had Elemental Knights, Cavalry Knights, Paladins, Crusaders, Druids, Shamans, Rangers, Pathfinders, and a Beggar.

The groups separated when everybody signed the document. Smoke started their private discussion when everyone left their campsite.

The DarkElf laid out a detailed 3D map of the racecourse.

"Remember Caid told us that the Brandals have a total manpower of around 1,000. They're currently scattered in groups of 80-200 bandits. But, they've started to converge. I think they might head for Sierra and the others soon. These are the known locations of their smaller encampments."

Smoke pointed to the eight known locations and the points on the map were highlighted.

"We'll have to make the members of our Pact pass through these points. We were lucky that we only encountered twenty Brandals on the way here. Also, our current numbers aren't enough if we face a converged group of Brandals. Let's try to increase in the next village."

Gandiva gave her opinion on how to achieve this.

"I think we could show them the clear benefits in joining our NAP when we cross Leiden bridge."

Laernea was about to say something when a group of Cavalry Knights arrived in Utara.

Twenty nine Cavalry Knights who belonged to the guild called Feras arrived. Along with their guild leader, a Stealth Knight called Sagen.

The Feras guild members belonged to the stragglers group who had finally arrived in Utara village. All the remaining participants went to the racing official and had their Mounted Race cards updated.

From 1,359 participants there were only 1,045 left in the competition. The straggler group of the racers had taken the most losses.

Sagen looked around the village. It was clear that he was desperately searching for something or someone. When he spotted Smoke he ordered his men to join him towards the DarkElf.

The thirty mounted racers made such a commotion that all the other racers' attention was on them.

Sagen and his men were still on top of their mounts. All thirty men formed a semicircle in front of Smoke, Gandiva, and Laernea.

"Hello, Sir Ilad. It's a pleasure to see you managed to reach the first pit stop. Otherwise, it would have been such a shame."

"I'm sorry. Have we met before? Your face looks familiar but I can't quite place it. Oh, right you were the twerp that groveled in the finals of the Swordsman to Knight Tournament."

Sagen and the Cavalry Knights all drew their weapons.

"You're pretty brave. I'd like to see just how brave you are."

Smoke looked up and stared into Sagen's eyes.

"Do it. I'm ready for you anytime anywhere."

Before Sagen could answer Smoke, the members of their Non Aggression Pact gathered behind the DarkElf and the Lioumereans.

They also had their weapons drawn out, ready to face all thirty members of Feras.

"Well, what it'll be, Sagen?"

Sagen sheathed his sword and ordered his men to follow him.

"Looks like you've made some friends in the past few hours. Good luck on Leiden bridge. I hear it's a tricky bridge to cross."

All thirty members of the Feras guild left, and went to the opposite part of the village. Smoke's hand trembled with anger. Gandiva and Laernea patted his back to try to calm him down.

* * * * * *

The front runners had more time to rest because they arrived first. They left while the main pack and the stragglers were still recuperating.

Leiden bridge crossed one of the widest portions of the great Murray river. The bridge crossed over a length of 8 kilometers.

There were 162 kilometers of flat lands from Utara village to the obstacle that blocked Leiden bridge. Before the bridge there was a volcano called Mt. Entrave.

There were three routes to bypass the obstacle. First was a 30 kilometer hike up Mt. Entrave, second was a 70 kilometer bushwalking trip through the forest below, and third was a straightforward 120 kilometer run around the forest, and the volcano.

There were fifteen parties including Smoke's in the Non Aggression Pact. Before they left Utara village, the party leaders held a meeting to choose which route to take. Five voted to stick to the plains, seven voted to pass through the woods, and three voted to climb through the mountain.

All of the party leaders voiced out their opinions. However, Smoke needed to convince them to choose Mt. Entrave because there was a Brandal base up on that Volcano.

"I can understand all of your reasons why you've chosen the safer paths, but didn't we join this coalition in order to compete with the larger parties? Mt. Entrave is just a dormant volcano. Sure, it maybe the most dangerous of all the three routes, but the shortcut is worth the risk."

Smoke made a dramatic pause, and looked at all the party leaders.

"Do you guys remember the Infime guild? They arrived in Utara first and left the village first. True, two of their men were eliminated from the race when they chose to cross the swamp, but we have to utilize this Non Aggression Pact to its fullest potential."

There were more follow up questions after Smoke's winded speech, but in the end he was able to convince the other party leaders to choose Mt. Entrave.

All 75 members were gathered on the foot of the volcano. They managed to see the Infime guild enter the forest.

Mamelon rode close with Smoke and commended his decision.

"Good work, Ilad. Looks like your choice to pass through the volcano will put us in front of the guys from Infime. I just hope that none of our members will be lost on top of Mt. Entrave."

"Thanks! If we stick to the plan and watch each other's backs, I think we'll be just fine."

All of the members took a quick twenty minute break. They rested their mounts while Smoke fed them some medicinal deer stew. When they were in their peak conditions, all of them rode their mounts to climb the volcano.

Smoke led the way as he had become the unofficial leader of the NAP members. Thirty minutes into their climb they spotted a Brandal encampment.

The DarkElf acted surprised and told everyone to find cover. He consulted with the other party leaders and asked them what to do next.

Smoke didn't want to give away that he wanted to attack the Brandals and gave his fake proposal first.

"I'm really sorry about this. I think we should head back and use the forest route instead."

One of the party leaders who originally chose to use the forest path quickly agreed with the DarkElf.

Mamelon on the other hand objected Smoke's proposal.

"You're not scared are you, Ilad? What happened to your speech about utilizing this coalition. I think we should take them head on. Besides I've always wanted to get rid of all those Brandal bastards."

Smoke quickly supported the Aqua Knight's interjection.

"You're absolutely right. What was I thinking. If we turned back, there's a high chance that they would spot us and come after us anyway. We were able to deal with the Brandals from before, I'm sure we'll be able to deal with these guys as well."

The party leaders had a quick meeting on how to attack the Brandal base. Among the members of the coalition there was the lone Druid with the wind scorpion mount. He did not belong to any party as he joined the Mounted Race by himself.

"Hello, I am called Soutien. I've heard that all of you have decided to attack the Brandals. I'd like to offer my services. With one of my Druid abilities I can sense how many bandits there are inside that base."

Smoke's 'Cunning of the Dire Fox' had increased to the point that he could accurately sense the 128 bandits inside the base, but he thought that it would be wiser to conceal this to the members of the coalition.

"That's great news. We were troubled about that question as well. Please tell us how many Brandals we have to face."

The Druid knelt down. He made rapid hand seals and pressed both his palms on the ground. His eyes turned white, ten seconds later he stood up.

"There are 128 bandits. 16 of them have Wizard variation jobs, 30 of them have Archer variation jobs, 20 of them have variations of the Cleric job, 60 are black ctenosaur riders, and 2 Brandal leaders."

Smoke was impressed. His 'Cunning of the Dire Fox' gave the exact same count but it didn't give him the job variations of the Brandals.

Mamelon gave out her idea on how to attack the Brandal base.

"Alright, how about we divide our group into two forces. A main force will attack from the front while an infiltration force will scale those steep roads, and jump from the slope above."

The party leaders gave out the pros and cons about the suggestion and thought that it was a sound battle plan. Smoke, Gandiva, and Laernea volunteered to join the infiltration team.

Mamelon was voted to take charge of the 50 members of the main attack force while Smoke took command of the 25 members of the infiltration team.

Smoke and the rest of the infiltrators started to climb the slope. Smoke gave the signal to Mamelon when they got into position.

At once, Mamelon ordered the attack on the Brandal force. Thirty Cavalry Knights used their 'Mountain Splitter' ability and destroyed the walls of the Brandal fort.

The Brandals sounded their alarm and immediately formed their ranks. The black ctenosaur riders went out to face the main force.

Six Aqua Knights on top of their andalusian horses used their 'Spring Force' ability, and made the grounds muddy to impede the Brandals' speed.

Smoke spotted the Brandals' healers. It was the infiltrators' turn to attack. He ordered his men to leap from the slope and focused their attack on the healers.

The 25 members of the infiltration team made quick work with the healers in under five minutes. Most of them had splash damage and the Brandal healers didn't have any area healing ability.

It was already beyond their control when both of Brandal leaders noticed the second attack force. Mamelon and the main attack force charged the confused black ctenosaur riders while Smoke and the rest of the infiltrators targeted the Brandal Wizards.

The Druids, Shamans, Crusaders, and Paladins of the coalition made sure to heal everyone of their members. Their enforced five man buddy system worked splendidly against the Brandals.

The five man team was ideally composed of one healer, two melee attackers, and two range attackers. Not all the five man team had this composition but it was imperative that each team had one healer.

The infiltration team took advantage of the Brandal Wizards' handicap against close range attacks. It took less than three minutes to wipe all of them out.

The numbers were almost balanced after Smoke and the infiltrators' accomplished their task. The Brandals were left with 60 black ctenosaur riders and 2 Brandal leaders.

The angered Brandals went after Smoke since they had fewer men. Mamelon was aware that this would happen. That was the real reason why she ordered the Aqua Knights to make the grounds muddy.

The main attack force was able to catch the black ctenosaur riders and attacked them from behind. The Brandals were confused and frustrated. Some of them turned back and faced the main attack force while the others continued on to attack the infiltration team.

Smoke saw the confused state of the Brandals and without any notice he left the Lioumereans and the infiltration team.

He charged through the Brandals. He looked for one of the Brandal leaders and went on a straight line directly to him.

Gandiva and Laernea did their best to keep up with Smoke. The Brandals who saw Smoke coming stood their ground and readied their weapons to strike.

However, Smoke used his newly gained abilities with his Rzeka glaive and knocked back all of the bandits in his path.

His explosive attacks knocked back five to seven bandits. The damage was lesser than a focused attack, but it served its purpose, which was to give Smoke access to the Brandal leader.

One of the Brandal leaders was almost in sight, but the bandits got used to his attacks. As Smoke knocked a few bandits away another group would come back to block his way.

Smoke's aggressive charge placed him in an undesirable predicament. He was now surrounded by the Brandals. The DarkElf was forced to keep on using waving his glaive in 360 degrees. He needed to push them back or it will be the death of him.

Groups of three to six black ctenosaur riders were lunged at Smoke, and he could manage to dodge 75% of their attacks. Smoke's lifebar displayed (42,012/87,360 HP).

The Brandals were so focused on killing Smoke that they failed to notice that their numbers were slowly dwindling.

The Lioumereans and the other infiltrators did their best to kill the bandits that were blown away by Smoke's attacks. Soutien and other healers who had a range healing ability kept on casting 'Heal Balls' and other similar abilities.

Smoke's lifebar was reduced to (21,987/87,360 HP) when the infiltrators finally cleared out 30 of the Brandal bandits.

When the infiltrators were sure that Smoke's life was secured. They shifted their attacks on the Brandal leader.

All of the infiltrators' ranged attacks were thrown on the Brandal Leader.

Then came the onslaught of the melee fighters. On top of their mounts, they galloped towards the Brandal leader and took turns in attacking him to his last HP.

The coalition's surprise attack and five man team formation defeated the Brandals stationed in Mt. Entrave. However, the victory was at a cost.

Eight players died in order to conquer the Brandal base, but as stated in the Pact those players would still receive any future loot acquired until Selatan village.

The Pact members searched through the base and the dropped loot from the dead Brandals. It was estimated that coalition obtained 25,000,000 zecs.

Mamelon eye's grew big when she heard the amount.

"Who knew attacking a Brandal hideout could be so lucrative."

The other members of the coalition shared the Aqua Knight's thoughts. Smoke looked around at everyone's faces. He saw the spark of greed light up in their eyes.

Smoke smiled. He didn't expect that the other racers would voluntarily hunt the Brandals' bases. He estimated that Brandals still had more than 800 men.

The bandits still had a formidable force, but Smoke was satisfied that he was on his way to reduce the threat against Sierra and his private army.

The healers tended to the injured members of the coalition. The persons who had Cooking abilities prepared the food that the Brandals had in stock.

Three hours had passed since they climbed Mt. Entrave. The coalition hastened their pace as they went down the volcano.

On their descent, the members of the Pact saw the parties who chose to pass through the forest. They had reached the entrance of Leiden bridge.

The parties from the forest rested in front of the bridge. Smoke and the rest of the Pact members rode their mounts to their fastest possible speed.

The resting racers heard their thunderous gallops, but they could only watch as Smoke and the Pact members whizzed past them.

* * * * * *

Leiden bridge was one of the widest bridges that Smoke had ever seen. It was made of black bricks. Its width was sixty meters, and its length was nine kilometers.

The moisture from Murray river made the bridge very foggy. The visibility was only a two feet which reduced the Pact member's speeds greatly.

The coalition was ahead of everyone, but they were on a slow pace. Two kilometers into the bridge, and Smoke felt hostile monsters with medium sized body types.

"Everybody stop! I think something's up ahead."

Mamelon quickly called their three Aero Knights. Vent, Gaz, and Blague.

"Guys, we need to see what we're up against."

Immediately, the three Aero Knights used their massive wind flails, and blew the dense fog away. The members were unsettled with what they saw.

A clan of bridge trolls started to climb from below Leiden bridge. Bridge trolls were the smallest of the troll species.

These monsters had green skins and orange hair. They were six foot tall, had irregularly long arms and short legs. Their hair grew from all the strange places. On their backs, elbows, and knees.

Their fang-like teeth, rabbit-like ears, and crumpled nose gave them a terrifying look. These monsters were all equipped with long wooden clubs.

Smoke used his 'Cunning of the Dire Fox' and detected that there were already twenty bridge trolls, and there were some more bridge trolls coming up.

Gandiva spoke to Smoke and Laernea.

"So that's what a bridge troll looks like."

Smoke thought to answer her with...

"Hey, at least it's not an internet troll."

Both the Lioumereans turned their heads, and asked Smoke simultaneously.

"What's that?"

"Never mind. Let's just look for their clan head. I read from one of Caid's books that these bridge trolls will retreat once their head is killed."

In his loudest voice, Smoke shouted this information to the rest of the Pact members. The bridge trolls numbers increased to forty, when Gandiva spotted an eight foot tall bridge troll.

"Everybody, I found him! It's that tall monster on the right side of the bridge."

The DarkElf looked at where the tigress Lioumerean pointed at. He saw the tallest bridge troll in the area. The monster had a long wooden club and a wooden shield.

At once, Smoke yelled out his orders.

"Everybody Train Formation, head for that troll clan head!"

The coalition shifted into the ordered formation. Fifteen persons with Knight job variations were stationed outside, on each side of the Train. Range and healer job variations were placed and protected in the middle.

The three Knights in front held their respective positions while the three Knights at the end of the Train Formation ran to the front.

This formation was slow but it gave them the best possible offensive and defensive power. The range attackers converged their attacks on the bridge troll clan head while the healers focused their energies on the Knights who defended them.

The Knights outside only used their abilities that could knock back their opponents. When one of the bridge trolls was damaged. It revealed its lifebar to be (162,208/170,000 HP).

The ranged attacks irritated the clan head of the bridge trolls. It started to escape down the bridge. Smoke instantly took action.

However, it was Soutien, the Druid on top of the wind scorpion, who got to the bridge troll clan head first. He tried to bind the beast with his Druid magic, but it was ineffective.

The bridge troll boss swung his gigantic wooden club and blew Soutien off his wind scorpion. The intelligent wind scorpion reflexively moved to the direction where Soutien was thrown and caught its rider.

Smoke knew that Soutien would be killed if he didn't reach them in time. He made Ental run her fastest possible speed. The hell boar pushed herself to the limits. Smoke leapt off of his hell boar and with both his hands drove his Rzeka glaive into the clan head's skull.

+ Attack hit bridge troll clan head: Balader. +STUNNED. +FIRE DMG. CRITICAL HIT. Damage 7,451.

The monster was stunned for three seconds. Smoke moved to the bridge trolls' front side to give a clear shot to the arrows that flew right after.

The bridge troll clan head revealed its lifebar to be at (314,921/350,000 HP). The three second stun duration was almost done when Tirer, the other Flame Knight from Confiance used his stun ability.

The Pact members gained another three second window. Smoke, Tirer, and Virer took turns to stun the bridge troll clan head.

Two thirds of the coalition focused made a triangular defensive formation while the remainder of their members kept on with their attacks. Their synchronized attacks and stuns killed the monster in two minutes and thirty one seconds.

When the other bridge trolls saw that their clan head died, the monsters ran for their lives and leapt off the bridge.

Members of the Infime guild and other guilds who rested at the entrance of the Leiden bridge saw the entire event.

As the body of the bridge troll clan head started to fade, Smoke picked up a unique ring.

+ Acquired unique ring: Balader's Ringen.

Smoke wanted to inspect the Boss loot but the item disappeared. It was automatically placed into auction, as it was stated in their Non Aggression Pact.

With Lieden bridge cleared from the thick fog and stinky bridge trolls, the front runners of the Mounted Race rode the long road towards the western village of Barat in peace.

* * * * * *

Currently, it had been three days and four hours since the start of the Mounted Race. Smoke and the rest of the members of the Non Aggression Pact arrived in Barat safely.

Many factors were involved in order to cross Wundern desert with minimal casualties. The monsters hiding beneath the sands, the deadly scattered quicksand, and most importantly the sandstorms that destroyed anything in its path.

This was the reason why the coalition were leisurely eating the looted food from Brandal's fort, and resting their mounts for the next part of the race.

Parties who had members above fifteen wanted to join in on their Pact. Smoke wanted to accept everyone, but the other party leaders were hesitant.

They thought that if they had more members the division between the loot would greatly decrease. Smoke pointed out that the other Brandal bases could potentially have 500 bandits in them.

Mamelon argued that 500 was an overestimation. The council of party leaders and Soutien voted to limit the members of the Non Aggression Pact to a maximum of 300. Everybody in the front runners group applied to join Smoke's Non Aggression Pact.

As the main pack of the mounted racers arrived they were intrigued to see that the front runners did not go their separate ways.

The unfamiliar arrivals asked around and learned about the Non Aggression Pact. Most of them quickly applied, and their quota of 300 members was instantly achieved.

The new members were informed that Smoke, Mamelon, and the council of party leaders were the ones who led this coalition.

The other riders who were unfortunate enough not to join the Non Aggression Pact tried to form their own customized party.

However, the other riders were not able to bring themselves to trust each other, without the Pact's security features.

An hour after the tumultuous formation of the 300 coalition riders, Sagen and the rest of the stragglers arrived.

When Sagen saw that the DarkElf had increased his men, Sagen promptly gathered his twenty-five guild members. He lost four of his men when they crossed Leiden bridge.

"Everybody! Ilad has increased his ranks by this much. Our only chance at extracting our revenge is from a surprise attack. Looking at them closely. Ilad is only really close to those two Lioumereans."

Sagen faced him and checked on the conditions of their mounts.

"Alright, you have ten minutes to rest. We have to leave Barat village straightaway."

The Feras guild members groaned but obediently followed Sagen's command.

Smoke saw Sagen and wanted to play around with him. He was about to walk to him when the Feras guild leader and his men started for the plains, and directly headed out to Wundern dessert.

The DarkElf stood in disbelief. He decided to follow them with his eyes. He used his ability 'Telefax Vision'. Sagen and his men rode their mounts at full speed.

Another fifteen minutes in, and the Feras guild members were in the territory of Wundern desert. Smoke started to go back to rejoin Gandiva and Laernea.

Smoke thought that Sagen was up to something and prepared some countermeasures. They still had another hour to rest before the agreed upon time that the coalition riders were to head for the desert.

As Smoke turned around he saw a black shadow appear in the corner of his eye. Smoke relied on his long range vision once more. The black shadow turned out to be a sandstorm in Wundern dessert.

Everyone barricaded themselves in Barat village. They waited another three hours, before the sandstorm dispersed.

Without delay, all the riders went on their way. The 300 members of the coalition faced the Wundern dessert with renewed vigor.

The desert had assorted creatures from small insects to harmless birds. However it also had formidable monsters.

Wundern desert had wild bronze jackals, nocturnal aardwolves, burrowed sandcats, poisonous chuckwallas, and the king of the desert the bearded dragon Pogona.

The coalition of riders struck all the hostile monsters in its path. The sandcats relied on their ability to travel under the sand, but with the Druids' help, they efficiently tracked down the sneaky monsters.

The Druids pointed at the locations on the ground, and Knights with long spears and lances would pierce it with their weapon's full length. Experience wasn't included in the Pact. This made everyone work for their own XPs.

Packs of bronze jackals and nocturnal aardwolves were usually hard to capture. Despite that, the coalition's overwhelming numbers gave them the needed manpower to capture every one of the mountable monsters.

They tied Calming Rope on the monsters' necks and towed them to the next village. Calming Rope was a rope especially designed to help domesticate these rideable monsters.

A staggering haul of fifteen bronze jackals and twenty-two nocturnal aardwolves alone was estimated to be at 31,100,000 zecs.

The 300 coalition members were all in high spirits when the sand that they stood on drastically shifted. Some of the riders were thrown off from their mounts.

From the epicenter of the shifted sands emerged the ruler of Wundern. Pogona, the 60 foot long, bronze scaled, bearded dragon.

It was a flightless dragon, but its enormous size made it a horrifying monster.

Pogona used its split tongue hissed at the members of the coalition. With its spiked tails, it thrashed the Pact members behind it.

Everyone was stupefied. Smoke saw that no one moved at all. They just stared at the massive bronze bearded dragon.

Smoke knew that he had to do something. He tried his best to his loudest battle cry.

"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The DarkElf dismounted from his hell boar and ran on foot towards the bronze bearded dragon. Pogona clawed the charging Smoke with its right front legs.

Using his 'Cunning of the Dire Fox' ability, Smoke dodged the attack and grabbed the dragon's leg instead.

Smoke's scream and his fight with Pogona awoke the astounded Pact members. All the ranged fighters released their projectile attacks.

Mamelon shouted her orders.

"All melee attackers, follow Ilad's example and jump on the dragon! Healers pour out all of your mana and protect our people from dying."

Pogona's lifebar displayed (412,927/500,000 HP). The bombardment from all 300 members of the coalition kept on with their attacks.

The bronze bearded dragon was desperate. It tried to shake off the attackers that were on top of its skin. Pogona managed to throw some of them off, but the Pact members were relentless.

The king of the dessert tried to burrow into the sand but the Aqua Knights and the Flame Knights meddled with the sand, and made it impossible for the Pogona to escape into it.

Smoke ran up from the right front leg to the monster's head. From there, the DarkElf shoved his flaming Rzeka glaive into the dragon's right eye.

"KIRRRYYYAAAAAAAA!"

Pogona screamed in pain as its eye was gouged out. Smoke completely blinded the bronze bearded dragon as his glaive took out Pogona's left eye.

Smoke went to the back of the bronze bearded dragon's neck. He started to hack away the bronze scales to sever the monster's head.

Tirer, and Virer, the two Flame Knights from Confiance helped with this endeavor. The king of Wundern dessert still had (207,416/500,000 HP) left.

This time, Flux and Courant, the two Electro Knights from Confiance, joined them in attacking Pogona's neck. The monster tried to reach them with its claws, but its joints were not able to bend that far.

Pogona shook and thrashed its body. It rolled on its back, and tried to crush the attackers on its body. Smoke and the other Elemental Knights managed to jump off, but the other Pact members were not as fortunate.

The bronze bearded dragon's weight alone crushed 15 of the Pact's members and killed them. However, now that the dragon exposed its belly, the damage from surviving members increased.

The lighter bronze scales on Pogona's belly had lesser defense than on its back. It took them another ten minutes before they finally killed the king of Wundern desert.

* * * * * *

The village of Selatan was 20 kilometers north of Betul village. There was another forest fragment of Otaczac from Wundern desert before you could reach Selatan village.

Sagen and his twenty-five Cavalry Knights miraculously survived the sudden sandstorm that insurged when they entered the desert of Wundern.

They avoided any hostile monster and rode straight on to reach the thick forest fragment. He decided to travel on without substantial rest in order to set a trap against his hated DarkElf.

Sagen gambled on his target's tendency to have a fair distance away from the rest of his allied riders. The Stealth Knight noticed that he only had the two Lioumereans close to him.

"Sir Sagen, we have our men in position."

"Good, once that bastard Ilad is within view all of us will grab him and kill him. Don't worry about the Chaotic Evil alignment. I'll give the Ilad's killer five times the amount needed to purify that alignment."

The promise of zecs spurred on the Feras guild members. As they hid in wait of their DarkElf target. Five shadows casted over Sagen.

He looked up and saw five falcons flying above his men. He thought that it was strange to see a Hunter's pet in the middle of the forest.

Then he felt the tall shrubs in the forest move. A lone one armed man came out. Sagen thought that he looked familiar but couldn't recall from where.

Afterwards, a red Werebear came out from the opposite direction of the one armed man. Sagen finally remembered the one armed man. He was a member of Smoke's private army.

The mysterious player who was as famous as Tristan and Amahan. He was confused about what they were doing there. The red Werebear went closer to him and asked him.

"You're, Sagen, right?"

The Stealth Knight's face grew more bewildered.

"Why do you know my name?"

"I heard that you were out to get Ilad, the Flame Knight from Coatl?"

"Huh? What does that have to do with you?"

"Well, he is a member of our group, and that means he is under Smoke's protection."

"So that's why that bastard was so confident. I don't give a damn about Smoke! I'm not afraid of him."

Sierra nodded at Adder, and spoke.

"Then you've declared war against us."

"HAHAHAHA! You, Ilad, and Smoke are hilariously. Guys I'll give 10,000,000 zecs to whoever kills the one armed man and 20,000,000 zecs to the one who kills the Werebear."

The Feras Cavalry Knights immediately charged at Sierra. Their damage against her averaged from 300-450 damage points.

After the twenty five Cavalry Knights attacked Sierra, her lifebar was left with (254,575/265,200 HP). The were astonished at how low their damage was. They thought to change targets. The Cavalry Knights shifted directions and went after Adder.

However, before they reached the one armed man, forty modified fishing nets were thrown from behind the tall shrubs.

The Cavalry Knights tumbled into each other and were entangled by the fishing nets. Sagen looked to the direction where the fishing nets were thrown from, and forty leather-armored Fishermen came out.

There were still movements from behind the shrubs. Four Hunters and two Range Siegers stepped out with their bows and ballistae pointed at Sagen.

All six of them released their bolts and arrows and pierced through Sagen's armor. Jinggu and Sharur's bolts knocked him off his mount.

Sagen scrambled to get back on his mount. The Stealth Knight tried to escape with his acinonyx cheetah, but Sharanga's falcon dropped an eight trap system on him.

Sagen and his acinonyx cheetah were pinned down to the ground. They had no power to overcome the weight of special trap designed for the Maneator.

Sierra walked calmly towards Sagen.

"I heard Ilad promised you that he would reduce all the members of your guild to level zero. I think that such a thing would be too harsh, even for a bastard like you. So, I'm giving you this final chance. Stay away from Ilad or else I won't be able to stop them from keeping his promise."

While Sierra threatened Sagen a group of fifty leather-armored Farmers equipped with menacing pitch forks came up from behind her.

Sagen started to grovel.

"Thank you... Thank you... I promise, this time I'll really stay away."

"Good. I knew you'd be able to understand the situation."

"Thank you. So, does this mean you'll let us go now?"

"Huh? I never said I'd let you go. I only said that we won't reduce your levels to zero."

Sierra raised both her claws and started slashing Sagen. Everyone else followed suit and started attacking the trapped Cavalry Knights with fishing spears, pitch forks, bolts, and arrows.

* * * * * *

Smoke, Laernea, Gandiva, and the rest of the Non Aggression Pact members reached the forest fragment before Selatan village.

Everyone knew that the Pact stated that only the loot acquired before Selatan can be shared. The Pact council decided to hold a meeting.

The Pact members were ordered to get some rest and prepare for the lucrative fight ahead.

Smoke gathered his Lioumerean friends and gave them strict instructions.

"Alright, we're finally at the last stretch. I want you two to head out and get your Race Sigils verified."

Laernea was confused, and argued with her leader.

"But, we still have another Brandal base to attack."

"I know, but I also want you two to win first and second place in the Mounted Race. That's why I explicitly indicated in the Pact that only the loot before Selatan can be shared."

As Smoke explained further information about the Non Aggression Pact. They saw Soutien on top of his wind scorpion ride past them. Smoke instantly realized that the Druid was on to the loophole of the Pact.

"Damn! You two, chase after him. I think he's gonna make a straight dash for the finish line."

"Alright, but you better cool it at the Brandal base. Remember, you're Ilad, the Flame Knight. You can't use any other abilities outside of a Flame Knight's."

"Yes, yes, yes... Now, go! If you two don't win this race, you'll really see my angry face."

Laernea and Gandiva smiled and unleashed the limiters on their stag moose, Bilis, and Tulin. The Pathfinder Lioumereans chased the Druid with all their might.

However, Soutien's wind scorpion also had a limiter equipped on it. The Druid removed the limiter and increased his mount's speed.

Smoke was still able to see them with his 'Telefax Vision', but they already looked like small figures. He decided to head for the Pact's council meeting.

The DarkElf saw that the party leaders were already gathered. Smoke heard Mamelon talking.

"Like I said, We should get rid of these small Brandal outputs."

Smoke seated himself, and voiced out his opinion.

"Rather than going after the outputs, why not head for one of their main strongholds? If we attack their smaller outputs we may lose some more of our members. Instead of smaller gains, let's just go for the big gamble."

The party leaders chattered on and discussed Smoke's proposal. One of the party leaders agreed.

"I agree with sir Ilad. Let's go for broke. I raise that we put his proposal into a vote."

Everyone agreed and Smoke's proposal got a 75% approval. The Pact members headed towards the Brandal's second largest base.

Smoke used his 'Cunning of the Dire Fox' and sensed that there were 450 bandits inside the base. After their fight with Pogona, the bronze bearded dragon, the Pact members were reduced to less than 300.

They were at a disadvantage, but Smoke still needed to reduce the Brandal's numbers. The Pact's council of leaders decided that a three pronged attack would be the most efficient way to capture the base.

Smoke was assigned as one of the three leaders. He had his men ready on the left wall of the Brandal's base.

He positioned himself higher up to give him a better vantage point.

The DarkElf ordered the demolition team to break down the walls when he got the signal to commence the attack. As he observed the progress of the attack, a specialized stunning bolt hit him behind his head.

Smoke's vision turned pitch black. The next second he awoke he was bound and tucked discreetly behind a wagon. He tried to see the face of his captors. Macher's face came into view.

"Hello, Ilad. Don't take this the wrong way. It's nothing personal. I just have a quest that rewards me with 100,000,000 zecs. I'm sure if you had this quest you'd do the exact same thing."

Smoke received another attack on the back of his head and passed out.

Chapter Seven: Fortunate Misfortune

It had been months since Tristan, Baron of Tonaci City, started on his journey to the east. He and his guild of 10,000 players traveled across various towns and villages in Thayotl Kingdom (Eastern Kingdom).

Due to the cut throat environment in the outskirts of the eastern kingdom, many of the villages were either abandoned or died out with the corpses of their residents still inside.

The villages that survived may be different, but all of them had one thing in common: their resident's love for zecs, expensive jewels, and rare equipments.

The prominent religion in Thayotl Kingdom was Tezcazinism. They strongly believed that there was no afterlife, and only wealth mattered most in this world.

This was not a problem for the affluent people like Tristan, but not all the members of DracoRicco were rich. At least a fourth of their members had to save up a month's worth of game time in order to afford the guild's entrance fee.

It was common knowledge that Tristan's guild ranked first in overall power, defense, and money. However, Amahan's guild held the highest player to level ratio.

The Paladin Lord wanted to weed out the weaker members of his guild, and this long excursion to the unknown lands of the east was his solution to this problem.

As they got further away from the main cities, the citizens that they met in Thayotl Kingdom got greedier and greedier. The discrimination shown by the Zectians to the poor members of DracoRicco was very distinct.

The richer members were treated well, and were even given discounts. Whereas the poorer ones were ignored and neglected by shop owners. This gave the indigent members a harder time restocking their supplies on healing potions and food.

This unwelcomed treatment from the Zectians brought about two results from the targeted members. It either encouraged them to give it their best or made them quit the guild altogether.

Tristan had his men battle against bridge trolls until the whole monster clan was wiped out. They even went head to head against draugrs!

Draugrs were spirits of fallen Vikings who would reanimate any rotting corpse. The undead corpse is different from your typical zombie or ghoul. These undead draugrs had the fighting abilities of Vikings.

This was DracoRicco's hardest battle yet. Their Paladins and Priests did their best, and helped all their lower level members to survive.

Similar monster hunts were scheduled when Tristan saw how much his men improved against a life and death situation.

When the lowest member of DracoRicco attained level 80. Tristan decided to start their real journey to the east. He had his scouts spy on ahead.

The Paladin Lord started to plot out the best course that gave them rare items and high experience. Their guild master's harsh treatment brought about many deserters of DracoRicco, but Tristan welcomed their departure.

Months went on and the Tristan's despotic attitude towards his guild only became more intense.

* * * * * *

Inside an extravagantly large white tent, a blond Paladin Lord  with short hair sat in front of a 3D map. He studied the explored regions of Thayotl Kingdom. His right hand massaged his temples. He was deep in thought as to how to proceed with the next campaign.

"Tristan? Tristan? Have you heard the latest news?"

A player with the job of a Shadow Phantom entered Tristan's tent. It was Bones, one of Tristan's most trusted generals. Bones' job was an advanced variation of the Thief job.

This also allowed Bones into secret societies who had useful gossips and rumors. The black haired Human had just received a disturbing news about one of the two men who they were keeping tabs on.

Tristan looked at Bones in a baffled manner.

"What news?"

"Apparently, some wannabe named Sagen took more than twenty men to ambush Ilad. You know, the guy who won Coatl's Swordsman To Knight Tournament. Apparently, Ilad changed jobs into a Flame Knight and joined Coatl's Mounted Race event, and this Sagen who lost to Ilad in the finals of the Swordsman tournament plotted to get back at him in the race."

Tristan was half listening to his Shadow Phantom general, as he placed an icon which symbolized 1,000 men on the map. He was busy and didn't have the time to be bothered.

"Bones, please get on with it. What does some guy, in the complete opposite side of Zectas, have anything to do with us?"

"Well, Smoke's red Werebear friend and the rest of his private army came out, and attacked Sagen. The Werebear told Sagen to lay off of Ilad because he's a part of their team. It looks like Smoke's started to make his move, and is recruiting players with great potential."

The Paladin Lord dropped the 1,000 men icon when he heard Smoke's name.

"That bastard finally showed himself. I knew he was still in Chayotl Kingdom(Western Kingdom). Do you know how many members he has in his private army, and also check on the status of his guild."

"According to the records, Smoke still doesn't have a guild. However, according to Sagen, the red Werebear had a private army of 100 NPCs. He also said that they were mostly made up of Farmers and Fishermen."

Tristan was confused. He couldn't understand Smoke's logic at all.

"Why would he use Farmers and Fishermen? But you know, Smoke has been tricky since the first time we met him; hold on, why is he in Coatl? Oh, right, the Maneator quest. I guess he must've managed to kill the beast and is claiming the treasure beneath the city."

The Paladin Lord stood up and went outside his tent. He walked out into a swamp. All 6,000 surviving guild members of DracoRicco were outside clearing the monsters in the area.

Their respawn point was at Dernier village. The last respawn point before they entered the unexplored territories of the east. All of the members who died were instructed to return to Tonaci city. There, they will be transferred to a different guild, DracoRiccoSecondo.

The lower guild members did increase their levels. However, the new objective of their expedition was uneventful. No hidden temples, no secret lairs, not even a new species of monster.

Everything was sub-par to what Tristan had envisioned phase two of their journey to be. Until today, this time in front of the Paladin Lord was Viverna Swamp, nests of the wyverns.

"I won't allow Smoke to be more famous than me. I already have qualms to deal with that Amahan character up Mictaztl Kingdom(Northern Kingdom), but don't worry, Bones. This hunt right here will put us back as most popular existence in this world, the strongest guild in all of Zectas."

The wyverns were smaller than dragons at a full height of 15 feet. These scaly green monsters had overly large heads and only two legs. Their wingspans covered their entire body. Their tails had sharp barbed spikes at the end.

Tristan's scouts found seven wyverns. He divided his men into a smaller regiment of 1,000 members. He assigned each regiment to a wyvern, and the last wyvern was assigned to himself and his private army of 300 NPCs.

Bones stepped out of Tristan's tent and stood beside him. The Paladin Lord stood in front of his guild and was about to inspire his men.

"I'm sure many of you remember the time that my personal army and I defeated the legendary dragon Valdurath. Let me tell you this. These wyverns are nothing compared to that monster! If I could do it with only 300 men then I'm sure your regiment of 1,000 will succeed without fail. Now go out and kill all those wyverns. Remember the spoils will be divided according to your personal contributions of the battle. Good Luck!"

After Tristan's speech, Bones whispered his concern.

"Are you sure that was a good way to inspire the men? Sure, they saw you kill Valdurath, but they didn't know that he only had 10% of his life left. Valdurath was running away from the other two great dragons of the east. That was the only reason why you and your personal army of 300 NPCs were able to defeat him."

"I know that, and you know that, but the other guild members don't have to know that. Anyway, these wyverns are really small when compared to Valdurath. I'm sure they could handle it. Besides, I'll have my personal army on standby and assist any of the regiment that's having a hard time."

"Tristan, please don't steal their kills and claim that you were only trying to help them. It worked before because they were dying, but if they aren't I don't think our guild members would be as forgiving."

"Don't be an idiot! I don't steal another man's prey. I really am here only to protect my guild members. If it means that I kill the monster that is about to kill them then that is purely coincidental, nothing more nothing less."

Tristan had a Paladin sound of his trumpet, and called out his private army.

"If we do manage to kill all of the wyverns in this swamp, we will move further east, on to the unexplored lands of Grand Malodorant Dragonis."

* * * * * *

Smoke opened his eyes and found himself lying down on a dank floor and tied up with thick ropes. Still fully equipped in his Ruby Gora Knight Armor set.

The chamber was wide and had torches evenly distanced at ten meters apart. The DarkElf looked around and searched for Macher, but instead got a game notification.

- Entered Labyrinth of Zuchthaus

- Monsters inside the labyrinth are beyond logic.
- Suggested level for entering the labyrinth is 400.

Macher's smug face came into Smoke's view.

"Finally, you're awake, Ilad. I was beginning to think that I'd just leave you here without a single explanation, but that would be just too unfair of me. After all, you're the reason why I can now afford one hundred Knights as members of my private army. Well, for the next two months at least."

"Macher! You bastard! I knew your offer was too good to be true."

"Then why did you take it?"

Smoke stayed silent and simply stared at Macher with hatred and bloodlust.

"If looks could kill, huh? I bet you're wondering what really happened right?"

The DarkElf tried to wriggle his way out of the ropes, but remained tied up.

"No need to get all excited. You don't have anywhere to go."

"Fine! What's the real deal here? Why did you offer to pay for my registration fee?"

"I thought you'd never ask. I'm on my way to acquire one of the main cities in Chayotl Kingdom(Western Kingdom). I know that this sounds crazy, but I really do want to be partners with you. Before you scream in disgust, just hear me out. It's just that I needed someone to round up all the royals into betting on one person."

Smoke's face became puzzled as he heard Macher talk.

"Royals? Betting? I don't understand what you're saying."

"Oh, of course you don't. All the nobles of Chayotl Kingdom had a bet on who will survive the Mounted Race event. It wasn't a bet on who would win first place, but who was certain to cross the finish line. I received a quest to find an individual that will gain one billion zecs worth of bet from the nobles, and make all of them lose their shirts. In turn I would receive 10% of the commissioned bet."

Macher went closer to the DarkElf, and helped him sit up properly.

"There, that's much better isn't it? Now, where was I? Right, the schmuck who would gather the bets of the nobles. Before I met you, I was gonna offer the position to Sagen, but I was already hesitant that he could catch all of the nobles' interest. When you made a fool out of Sagen in the finals, I knew that you were the man for the job."

The DarkElf remained stoic. He silently listened and stared at Macher.

"Thanks to you, Ilad. I now have all the requirements I need to win over Centzo city. Now, I just need a good right hand man to help me secure it."

The DarkElf shouted at Macher.

"Are you insane?! Why in the world would I ever trust you again?!"

Macher scratched the back of his head.

"Would it help if I told you that I didn't harm anyone else? Well, except for you of course. Your two Lioumerean friends made it to the finish line, and they won second and third place."

The DarkElf couldn't believe what Macher told him.

"No way! You're lying! Who could have defeated Gandiva and Laernea?"

"It was one of your Non Aggression Pact members. A Druid by the name of Soutien."

Aside from the winners of the Mounted Race, Smoke was also curious about their attack on the second largest Brandal base.

"What about the men under my command against the Brandal base? What did you do to them?"

"Nothing, nothing. They executed your last command perfectly. You were considerate enough to stay away from your men. Giving my Stealth Knights and Cavalry Knights the perfect opportunity to grab you."

"You had men inside our Non Aggression Pact? But that would mean that they would have Chaotic Evil alignments now."

"No, they weren't a part of your tricky little pact. They just mingled in among your men. They were smart enough to avoid head counts and other poor organizational methods that your Aqua Knight friend came up with."

Smoke took note of the flaws of his Non Aggression Pact. It didn't have a clear indicator that a person was a member without an explicit display of their Pact symbol.

"What about Ental, my hell boar. What have you done with her?"

"Oohhh. Let me rephrase myself. Nobody got hurt, except for you and your hell boar. It was unfortunate, but she wouldn't leave your side.”

Macher patted the DarkElf's left shoulder.

“I tried to shoo her away. I didn't want to hurt your mount. You know to help convince you that I mean well, but she just wouldn't leave. We were forced to kill her. I'm sorry, but don't worry about it. When I become mayor of Centzo, I'll buy you a better mount than your old hell boar."

Smoke slumped down lower when he heard Ental died. He thought that Ental didn't care for him, but she tried to protect him until her death. It took all of Smoke's patience to sit still.

"Ilad, are the gears in your head turning? Ohh… I think you're starting to consider my proposal of joining me on Centzo, right?"

The DarkElf shook his head left to right.

"You really are insane."

"I get that a lot, but believe me. I'm as sane as they come. I don't expect you to join me now, but maybe this piece of information will help me gain your trust. This labyrinth isn't inescapable. You just need to find a statue of a gargoyle and offer 30% of your level to it. After that you can escape. If you decide to join me I'll be waiting for you in Centzo city. Also about the Duke..."

Macher wasn't able to finish his last sentence. Duke Burmistrz arrived with six Brandal raid leaders. The mayor of Coatl walked up to the tied up DarkElf.

Smoke smirked when he saw the mayor of Coatl. He thought that the city's corruption was widespread, and he had his suspicions that the Duke was at the center of all this depravity.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the great uniter, Ilad, the Flame Knight. Winner of my city's tournament and a thorn on my side.”

Duke Burmistrz clapped loudly in a sarcastic beat.

”You had the gaul to rally up the racers and attack my Brandal bases."

Duke Burmistrz called for one of the Brandal leaders and asked for a spiked club. The Duke hit Smoke's face, the only unprotected part of the DarkElf.

"Did you know that I didn't want to send you to the labyrinth? I just ordered Macher to capture you, and to make sure you were unable to finish the race. But you were too good for that weren't you? You just had to attack my Brandals?"

The Duke bashed Smoke's face with the spiked club for multiple times. One of the Brandal's raid leaders called out to the Duke.

"My General, Ultimo Maire. It's time for us to leave. High General Lizardo is waiting for your call."

The Duke stopped his attacks on the DarkElf.

"Time sure flies when you're having fun. After your little fiasco, the Brandals stationed around Coatl were reduced to less than 400 men. If it weren't for my campaign in Centzo, I would have all of my 10,000 Brandals come here, and they would slaughter all of the mounted racers."

The mayor of Coatl wiped his hands clean from the DarkElf's blood.

"It's sad, but it's time for me to say farewell, Ilad. Don't worry I won't remove a single item from you. I wouldn't want you to say that I didn't give you a fair chance against this wonderful place. I doubt that any of your items will be useful to you though."

The Duke mockingly slapped the DarkElf's face.

"However, before I let you go. I'd like to inform you that the Tenebris have made special additions to the labyrinth. I think you'll find that this place is beyond the things that you might've heard about."

The supreme leader of the Brandals snapped his fingers, and all six Brandal raid leaders carried the DarkElf into a teleportation circle.

Red lights started to appear on the markings of the teleportation circle. In the next moment the DarkElf was gone.

"Before we talk to High General Lizardo. Order all 400 scattered Brandals stationed in Coatl to discreetly rally in the ruined base near Selatan. I want them to deal with a red Werebear and her Farmers and Fishermen."

* * * * * *

Smoke's saw a blur of flashing light. He had been teleported into a different part of the labyrinth. He used his ability 'Cunning of the Dire Fox', and detected no presence whatsoever.

He was teleported into a pitch black room. His first priority was to be free from the rope and to get a hold of his surrounding.

"Igniz, Flame on!"

His dark ember sprite released his hottest flames and burnt through the rope. Smoke removed his tri-horned helmet. Igniz flew out of hiding and whizzed across the new chamber that they were in.

Igniz illuminated the room. Smoke saw that this chamber was smaller than the one where Macher and Duke Burmistrz had previously held him.

Smoke's Rzeka glaive was too long and would be disadvantageous to use in a narrow place like this. Instead, this made him decide to equip his Flamdius sword and Armored Armadillo shield.

He took out his Beggar's tablet and started to create a map of the labyrinth. Smoke had prepared the things he needed inside the underground dungeon. He never thought that he would use them before the end of the Mounted Race.

Ten minutes later, Smoke discovered that he was in a sealed rectangular room with a size of 40 square meters. Despite the chamber's small area, the room had a height of 8 meters. There were four Corinthian columns on each corner which supported the room.

Since he was locked up inside, he thought to replenish his strength, and started to prepare a medicinal meal.

As Smoke cooked his food, his mind was deep in thought.

Smoke hated Tristan to his core. However, there was something that he had learned from his Archenemy which he had incorporated to his daily life in Zectas. His strong distrust for other players.

Sierra was the only exception to this rule. He knew that once he would get to a main city, he would be forced to interact with other players.

This idea gave birth to another persona. A facade that was meant to interact with other players.

Hence, Ilad was born. Smoke told the members of his private army that Ilad was there to disguise his identity, but the truth was, Ilad was there to protect himself from ever trusting another player.

He never trusted Macher from the start. The whole time he interacted with the Cavalry Knight as Ilad, was purely to gain Macher's trust.

Smoke knew that Macher's offer was too good to be true, and Smoke had experienced the reality of such a situation.

He assessed that the worst case scenario of accepting Macher's proposal was his death. However, the benefits outweighed the risks.

If Smoke learned Macher's true goal then he would be one step closer to the truth about Coatl's corruption. He never imagined that his plan to uncover Macher's aim would lead him to the labyrinth, and now he also knew the Ultimo of the Brandals, Duke Burmistrz.

The DarkElf silently thanked the Duke's egoistic nature that allowed him to be teleported further into the labyrinth with all his equipment intact.

Smoke drank his medicinal soup, and rested until his HP was fully recovered. He tried to use his 'Earth Manipulation' ability but the wall, ceiling, and floor of the chamber did not respond.

He tried to call Sierra, Darius, and everybody else on his contacts, but he wasn't able to get in touch with anyone. Communication to the outside world was impossible.

With his HP fully healed, he stood up and scrutinized the chamber walls once more.

"Igniz, come here. I need you to shine brighter, and show me these markings."

Smoke saw a six inched sphere like cavity in the wall. He tried to push it, but nothing happened. He tried to use the labyrinth key that Mitleid gave him, yet it was useless.

Then he saw some writing on the wall beside the depression.

Complete the hidden spherical figure.
In order to secure your departure.

Smoke craned his neck closer to the wall to read what was written on it. He raised both hands and shouted after he read the phrase for the tenth time. He still had no idea what the phrase meant.

He thought harder and decided that there was a globe-like figure hidden somewhere inside the sealed chamber. He knelt down and had Igniz light the area where he was searching at.

Smoke tried to move every damp brick on the entire floor, but nothing was moveable. It had been two hours since he started his search. The DarkElf reached the opposite side of the room empty handed.

He was certain that the figure was hidden in plain sight. He thought he needed a better view of the chamber.

"Igniz, can you fly to the center of the ceiling, and light the room from there?"

The dark ember sprite flew up quickly. When he reached the middle of the room he launched his brightest light with his dark purple flames.

A circular energy pulse was released, and bounced off all the corners of the room, this sudden change in brilliance made the top of all four Corinthian pillars glimmer for two seconds.

Smoke noticed the brief clue. He removed his Knight gloves and equipped his rare Claws of Chiropterra gloves. The special claws allowed him to scale the wall of the sealed room with ease.

Upon further inspection, he noticed that the helix of the column had a slightly different color than the rest of the pillar.

With his special gloves, Smoke single handedly secured a firm hold on top of the wall. He used his right hand to try and remove the helix.

Carefully, he detached the helix, and found that it was one quarter of the hidden figure.

The DarkElf smiled. He stored the first piece of the figure, and went to collect the remaining three.

After he collected the last piece of the sphere. He placed all four pieces together, and they bonded. The scattered pieces turned into one sphere.

He gathered his belongings, and took the assembled sphere figure. He confidently placed the sphere inside the cavity in the wall.

The wall started to shake. In the next seconds the floor near the wall started to show a semi-circle indention. Everything inside the semicircle turned 180 degrees.

Smoke finally freed himself from the sealed room, but as soon as he was outside, his Cunning of the Dire Fox felt the presence of a pack of small sized monsters.

"Igniz, can you shed some light on our uninvited entourage."

Enthusiastically, Igniz made a large orbit of fire around Smoke. The increased luminance showed Smoke that he was now in a long hallway, and the small sized monsters were furry spiders.

Igniz made a larger fire orbit and damaged the monsters which revealed their names and lifebars. These monsters were called wolf spiders and had a maximum HP of 30,000.

Wolf spiders had a body length of 2 feet. These monsters looked like small wolves. With their long spotted grey fur and cropped in eight legs. The red light from their multiple eyes shone brightly in the dark labyrinth.

Smoke's Cunning of the Dire Fox indicated he was surrounded, and there were 100 of these small sized monsters. The monsters simultaneously came at him from all directions.

The wolf spiders released their sticky white web and tried to capture Smoke with it. He needed protection from all possible angles.

Smoke quickly took out his only shield which satisfied such a requirement. He expanded his bladed spherical shield v2.0.

This improved bladed shield was now completely made out of fire resistant metal. It had ten times the durability and five times the return damage of its predecessor on Mount Gliseloc.

Once he was inside the bladed sphere, the wolf spiders rapidly encased it with their web. Smoke ordered Igniz to heat up the metal of the bladed sphere.

Igniz obediently followed Smoke's order. Due to the intense flame, the metallic bladed sphere became red with fire. The web that was on it, instantly melted away.

Smoke switched weapons and used his Powersaw Bow instead. He pushed the burning bladed sphere and went after the wolf spiders near his left side.

The wolf spiders were so many that they had a difficult time to retreat. Smoke proceeded to roll over five wolf spiders and stopped right on top of them.

The monsters' HPs drained quickly due to the damage from the fire, the blades on the sphere, and Smoke's weight.

Smoke jumped up and down on the bladed sphere to increase its damage on the five crushed monsters. When he saw that the flattened wolf spiders were as good as dead, he took aim and let loose his torrent of fire arrows.

Some of the wolf spiders jumped on the flaming bladed sphere and tried to destroy it. The DarkElf switched weapons again, and used his green dual knives.

When the spiders below him finally died, Smoke rolled over the bladed sphere and crushed the spiders who had leapt on top of it.

This time he had eight wolf spiders crushed on top of each other. His encounter with the wolf spiders proved to be easy. He decided to secure the hallway and wipe out all 100 wolf spiders.

"Igniz, I need you to make a fire wall from both ends of the hallway, and build more of it going towards me."

The dark ember sprite nodded, and rocketed out of the bladed sphere. The wolf spiders who noticed the small flaming ball tried to capture Igniz with their webs, but his flames protected him from being wrapped up by the creepy crawlers.

With Igniz out of the bladed sphere, its burning attribute started to fade away. Smoke unequipped his knives and rolled around the bladed sphere in the entire hallway.

Smoke got five poison pellets from his backpack and crushed them on various blades of his sphere. The wolf spiders had poison resistance, but still received some poison damage.

The bladed sphere kept on rolling around the hallway until the entire area was covered in a sea of flames.

Igniz had successfully made multiple firewalls. The trapped wolf spiders were burnt to a crisp.

The monsters that were still alive tried to leave the hallway, but Smoke went after them and rolled over the escaping wolf spiders.

Smoke and Igniz's constant melding of energies increased his fire resistance and affinity to 75%. This made him immune to all of Igniz's flame attacks.

The hallway was charred. It took Smoke 30 minutes to wipe out the pack of wolf spiders. However, he felt that these monsters were at the bottom of the food chain here inside the labyrinth.

He expediently gathered the items dropped by the wolf spiders. There were spider legs, white spider silk, and an occasional gold spider silk. He examined the silks and discovered that it was used for clothes and leather armors.

Smoke got out his Beggar's tablet and updated his map of the labyrinth. The exit of the sealed chamber he was in was at the center of the hallway.

He decided to go to the left. He keened on his Cunning of the Dire Fox for any monsters that would be in his ability's range.

When he got to the end of the hallway he found that it opened into a wide room with seven tunnels. Smoke burnt a symbol on one of the walls of the room and labeled it as left-one.

Afterwards, he took the first path on his left. This pathway was narrower than the hallway. It was in the shape of a half circle and had a radius of ten feet, but the light from Igniz was able to light up the entire length of the tunnel.

Halfway into the tunnel, Smoke felt the presence of a medium sized monster at the end of the path. He told Igniz to dim out his flame.

The tunnel where Smoke and Igniz were in became stygian. Despite the lack of light from the dark ember sprite, the end of the tunnel started to glow.

A giant firey lizard which walked on all fours appeared. Smoke quickly took out powersaw bow and released eight poison arrows.

He attacked the glowing beast which revealed the monsters name and lifebar. Fire salamander (50,012/60,000 HP).

The flaming fire salamander came out. Its skin was black with hot streaks of yellow. From head to tail, it had a length of 6 feet.

The monster hissed out its forked tongue. The monster looked at the source of the arrows and got a scent of Smoke. It hastened its pace and ran towards the DarkElf.

Smoke estimated that he could still release sixteen more arrows before the fire salamander could reach him. He committed himself to utilize his range attacks and kept on firing his poison arrows.

Igniz tried to attack the fire salamander with his fireballs but the flaming monster pushed on unaffected. The monsters lifebar now displayed (32,488/60,000 HP).

Inches before the fire salamander could reach him. Smoke switched weapons and used his green dual knives, the Tails of the Virile and Fecund Lizards.

Smoke leapt up and touched the ceiling with his feet. He used the ceiling to increase his speed as he landed on top of the fire salamander's back.

The fire salamander responded by lighting its whole body on fire. Fortunately for Smoke his 75% fire resistance was enough to negate the salamander's flame attack.

The DarkElf raised both knives to his waist and started to stab the fire salamander. His Dual Wield and Knife Mastery abilities increased the damage and attack speed of his green knives.

Smoke also used the active ability of the Tail's of the Virile and Fecund Lizards, which paralyzed the fire salamander for a few seconds.

Just as he was about to give the fire salamander's death blow, three fire salamanders came out from the end of the tunnel.

The DarkElf plunged his knife on the back of the fire salamander's head and killed the monster.

+ You've dealt a fatal blow to the fire salamander.

+ You've killed the fire salamander.

+ You've gained 60,000 exp.

The three fire salamanders galloped towards Smoke.

He thought that he had an advantage over the fire salamanders because of his fire resistance. However, the fire salamanders that rushed him had another thing planned.

It leapt at Smoke with its mouth wide opened and took a bite out of Smoke's right leg. He was damaged for 3,200 points, and revealed his lifebar at (84,160/87,360 HP).

The damage was high, but the most concerning part was that he was now caught. The two other fire salamanders were getting closer to him as well.

Smoke expanded his bladed sphere to block the fire salamander's path. The bladed sphere's diameter of 8 feet was not enough to impede the two fire salamanders.

The monsters pushed the metal spherical shield, and took minimal damage from the blades. Smoke used his dual knives to loosen the fire salamander's jaw on his leg.

The fire salamander was momentarily paralyzed, Smoke freed himself from the monster's mouth and unequipped the green dual knives.

He used his Claws of Chiropterra to scale the walls and clung on top of the tunnel. The fire salamanders used the walls to help them stand.

The three monsters tried to grab a hold of Smoke with their mouths and claws, but their height of 6 feet wasn't tall enough to reach the ceiling.

Smoke stayed on the tunnel's ceiling. He wanted to get inside his bladed sphere, but thought that the fire salamanders would grab a hold of him before he got a chance to enter the spherical shield.

Then he remembered that he recently acquired a weapon from one of the Brandal's raid leaders. He equipped the Brandal's bull whip.

With the aide of the rare gloves, Smoke was able to hold on to the ceiling with just his left hand. He attacked the fire salamanders with the bullwhip on his right hand.

The damage from the bull whip was only for 2,000 points. Smoke thought that it would take a long time if he would continue with this attack pattern.

As kept on with his attacks, he slowly moved further away from the bladed sphere. The fire salamanders started to follow him.

When he was about 40 meters away from the bladed sphere, Smoke used the bullwhip's active ability. It had the power to hold a medium sized monster.

He held one of the fire salamanders and swiftly scaled the ceiling towards the bladed sphere. The captured fire salamander obstructed the other two monsters.

Smoke was able to get inside his bladed sphere and started to attack the fire salamanders with his poison arrows. The two monsters braved the poison arrows and started to claw the bladed sphere.

The spherical shield's durability went down by 25%. Smoke knew that he couldn't rely on his bladed sphere forever. He focused his attacks on one of the fire salamander and killed it.

Smoke took out his flamdius sword and Armored Armadillo shield. He collapsed his spherical shield and placed it into his backpack window. He made a mental note to use it only on emergency situations.

Smoke didn't use any fire enhancement on his sword because he knew that it would be useless against the fire salamander.

He used his shield's Bash ability and stunned the fire salamander. He briskly went on top of the fire salamander and repeatedly plunged his flamdius sword on the back of the fire salamander's skull.

The captured fire salamander had 10% left on its lifebar, and finally broke free from the bullwhip.

It leapt and targeted Smoke's back. His Cunning of the Dire Fox alerted him from the monster's back attack and made him dodge in time.

The fire salamander flew past him. Smoke quickly went after the dying fire salamander and chopped its head off. The remaining fire salamander let out a shriek as all of its companions were killed.

The monster covered itself in flames and ran at top speed towards Smoke. The DarkElf held his Armored Armadillo shield firmly. He turned his shield to face the last fire salamander.

Smoke charged at the fire salamander and met the monster head on. He bashed the fire salamander's head with his shield and fluidly leapt on to its back.

He unequipped his Armored Armadillo Shield, and with both his hands on his flamdius sword, he started to carve out a hole on the fire salamander's back until it reached the monster's heart.

His flamdius sword pierced through the monster's heart and touched the ground. The fire salamander collapsed on the floor and died.

Panting hard, Smoke sat down on the labyrinth floor. He touched the floor and felt that it was warmer when compared with the hallway of the wolf spiders.

He surmised that these monsters must have had territories. He only met two species of monsters so far, but there was one type of monster that he was excited to see.

This labyrinth was famous for one thing, and that was for its killer Maneators. However, Smoke had not seen one in the past four hours that he had been inside the underground maze.

The map on his Beggar's tablet was updated with the new information from the tunnel. Before he pushed on.

Smoke thought to replenish his life with his medical soup, and do some experimentation with his equipments.

He created a transmutation circle that was needed in order to merge his desired object. He used four pieces of the white spider silk for enhancers and the bullwhip for the main ingredient.

With all the requirements completed, Smoke used his Item Transmutation ability.

+ Transmutation Completed:

Result: A stickier, longer bullwhip
Effects:
Hold ability increased by 5%.
Attack increases by 2%.

The first enhancement from the transmutation was negligible, but if this process was repeated until all of his white spider silk are depleted, then the result would be significant.

His bullwhip's hold ability increased by 25% and its attack increased by 10%.

After he enhanced the bull whip. Smoke took out his electro stone, and started to rub the entire length of the bullwhip with the elemental stone.

Next he thought he needed a better way to stay on top of the ceiling aside from using his Chiropterra gloves. He checked on the items in his backpack window.

From the labyrinth alone, Smoke looted 60 white spider silk, 10 gold spider silk, and 2 fire salamander hides.

All 60 of his white spider silk was used on his transmutation with the bull whip.

He was left with 10 gold spider silk. He used the techniques that he learned from his two good friends in Nanahuatl. James Jackal and Howard Hide taught him how to craft equipments from monster hides.

He drew shapes on the fire salamander's hide, and started to cut the pelt. He stitched them up into his desired form.

It took him longer than he expected, but he successfully created a sturdy climbing harness that had the capacity to carry thrice his entire weight when suspended on the ceiling.

He equipped his harness and scrambled up to the ceiling. He had shaped four metal anchors to hold his weight. Satisfied with the performance of his harness, Smoke readied himself and pushed on into the tunnel.

The end of the tunnel proved to be another room with seven set of tunnels identical to where he had been on. He started to label each one including the tunnel where he came from.

The complexity of the labyrinth reminded Smoke of the time when he entered Caid's office, the only difference was that he had Gin, the bartender to guide him.

His plan was to move forward until he reached the end of the tunnel or he would reach the point where he started.

Whenever he enters a room with several tunnels to choose from, he would mark all of the tunnels and match that with his map, and then he he would choose the leftmost tunnel.

Two rooms had passed with five tunnels to choose from. The number of choices had been reduced by two, but the size of the room still remained the same. The DarkElf updated the map in his Beggar's tablet.

As he was labeling the tunnels, steel doors suddenly came up from below the ground. All of the entrances to the new tunnels were blocked.

There were no visible exits, except for the one where Smoke came from. Then, a plaque appeared on the wall, and it stated.

Solve the puzzle on the ground.
If you don't want to turn around.

At the center of the room a rectangular shaped marble slab started to rise from below the floor. Smoke took a closer look at the risen object.

He saw a jigsaw puzzle of a Maneator. He found the puzzle to be simple enough. As he placed the last piece, loud sounds of gears were audible from beneath him.

The steel doors slowly retreated back to where they came from. After the quick puzzle, Smoke decided to push on with his leftward direction.

As he was about to enter the leftmost tunnel, it started to glow. With his Cunning of the Dire Fox, he felt that there were  two fire salamanders inside the tunnel.

Smoke smiled. He had been looking for monsters and these two were perfect to test out his new equipment. He stood in front of the entrance of the tunnel.

He decided to stay in the room with the entrance to the five tunnels because this chamber was bigger than the tunnel. His strategy was to use his Agility of the Horned Rabbit to dodge the attacks of the fire salamander.

With his poison arrows, Smoke attacked one of the fire salamander. He fired as much as 16 poison arrows before the monsters reached the entrance.

Smoke's targeted fire salamander had (30,360/60,000 HP) left. The DarkElf switched weapons, and chose his electrically charged bull whip.

The moment the injured fire salamander came out of the tunnel, he attacked the fire salamander with the bullwhip and held the monster at the entrance. He stuck the bullwhip firmly on the ground to hold the captured fire salamander.

In view of the fact that his bull whip had been enchanted with the electro stone, the captured fire salamander received 150 damage points from jolt attacks at an interval of five seconds.

The bull whip's hold ability was enhanced by the white silk from the wolf spiders. The other fire salamander leapt over its companion and rushed after Smoke.

The DarkElf switched back to his powersaw bow, and ran in the opposite direction. Smoke was almost at the opposite wall, but he didn't reduce his speed. Instead he ran up the wall, and managed three steps on it before he leapt over the fire salamander.

He used his Wings of Cologus, his hooded cloak, to glide inside the huge chamber. He swiftly attacked the fire salamander with his poison arrows.

As Smoke's air time was coming to an end. He switched his weapon to his green dual knives. The fire salamander kept on following him from the ground.

He remembered the monster who gave him this hooded cloak, and decided to imitate the monster's attack.

Similar to how Cologus landed. Smoke used the back of the fire salamander as the designated area for his 'Stunning Landing' attack.

The power from Smoke's vertical attack, forced the fire salamander to be flattened on the ground. On top of the monster's back, He proceeded to sever the monster's neck with his knives.

Several attacks later, Smoke delivered the finishing blow and decapitated the monster. The fire salamander caught with the bullwhip still had (17,760/60,000 HP) left.

Smoke switched back to his powersaw bow, and leisurely killed the captured fire salamander. His improved bullwhip was a success. It managed to hold the fire salamander for seven minutes.

Posthaste, he gathered the loot from the two fire salamanders and proceeded to the tunnel where they came from. The end of this tunnel led him to a chamber that had three pathways.

As he decided earlier, he chose the leftmost pathway. It had already been twenty minutes, and he still didn't reach the end of the tunnel.

He thought to pick up his pace, and started to run. Igniz felt completely useless when Smoke fought against the fire salamanders.

Depressed, Igniz flew a few distance behind Smoke.

"Don't worry about. I don't think that all the monsters in the labyrinth are immune to fire."

Igniz nodded, but still felt down.

Another ten minutes into the tunnel, and Smoke finally saw the exit. The pathway opened to the biggest hallway that Smoke had seen.

However, before he had a chance to step into the great hallway, the exit of the tunnel was sealed, and so was the area behind Smoke.

He was enclosed in a semicircle tunnel which barely had an area of five square meters. A different plaque appeared on one of the walls.

Guess this new beast,
If you want to join the feast.

In a similar manner as the room which had the puzzle of the Maneator, a new marble slab rose from below the floor.

However, this time Smoke did not recognize the monster in the jigsaw puzzle. It had two long goatlike horns, cloven hooves, had fur with black and brown colors, and had a long pointed tongue that lolled out.

Smoke tried his best to follow which puzzle piece belonged to where. This jigsaw took longer than the previous one.

Fifteen minutes passed, and Smoke finished the puzzle. The monster was clearly a large bodied creature. With dark colored fur, long goat-like horns,  and a chain that was held on monster's arm.

With the jigsaw puzzle completed, the doors went down and opened Smoke's path to the great hall.

There were two rows of Corinthian pillars at the center of the great hall. The pillars extended upto the 40 meter ceiling. Each pillar had a distance of 20 meters from the next.

However, the scene that impressed Smoke the most was the multitude of monsters that were at the center of the great hall.

There were 400 wolf spiders at the outer layer in the gathering of monsters. 200 fire salamanders were grouped on one corner, and 230 crested newts were on another corner.

The crested newts had the same size as the fire salamanders with a body length of 6 feet. These monsters had black tough skin and white-tipped warts. The crested newts had slimy hides which protected them from the fire salamanders' flame attacks.

Due to the fight between the fire salamanders and the crested newts, these new monsters, unknown to Smoke, had their names and lifebars displayed.

Smoke discreetly ascended the great hall, and attached his harness onto the ceiling. From up high, Smoke had a great view of the battle between the fire salamanders and the crested newts.

Five minutes passed, and the two sides remained in place. All the monsters were doing were hissing and taunting at the other side.

The DarkElf grew impatient, and decided to start the ball rolling.

"Igniz, can you hide behind one of those pillars near the crested newts and make as many firewalls as you can?"

The dark ember sprite smiled, for at last he had monsters to torture. At full tilt, Igniz flew down from the ceiling and hid behind the Corinthian pillars.

Igniz released five firewalls on the swarm of crested newts. The monsters immediately got riled up and charged at the fire salamanders.

The fire salamanders and crested newts used their claws and their teeth to gnaw and slash against the other species.

Smoke enjoyed the view of seeing the two packs clash. Then he noticed the wolf spiders started to move around. The opportunistic beasts waited for the monsters to be gravely injured.

The wolf spiders would then wrap their dying prey and took them to the far sides of the great hall. There were some wolf spiders who were not able to choose the proper victims.

When some of the wolf spiders tried to wrap an injured fire salamander or a crested newt that still had some fight in it, the wolf spiders got bitten with sharp teeth instead.

The gnawed on wolf spiders were eaten by the larger monsters. Smoke took notice of everything that was happening below him.

He thought that he should take a page from the wolf spider, but made sure to kill his targeted monster. He took out his powersaw bow and looked for any crested newts or fire salamanders with less than 15% left on their lifebars.

With his target chosen, Smoke released 8 poison arrows and killed the crested salamander. He received a significantly lesser amount of experience, but he knew that this process would still net him a higher amount of total experience.

The crested newts and fire salamanders kept on attacking each other, and did not notice the poison arrows that were fired from above them.

However, the wolf spiders were aware of the intruder who kept on killing their precious meals. The wolf spiders preferred their prey to be alive before they wrap them up in their sticky spider web.

The wolf spiders started to scale the pillars and went after Smoke.

"Igniz! Quickly, cover the entire ceiling with your flames."

Spiritedly, Smoke's symbiote flew around him in a circular motion, and started to cover the ceiling with fire. The intense heat blocked the wolf spider's path, and the monsters were not able to go near the DarkElf.

Smoke used his powersaw bow, and attacked the wolf spiders on top of the pillars. He aimed two of his arrows on the wolf spider's front legs, and his third arrow on one of the monster's eyes.

The damage from the first two arrows made the wolf spider lose its balance, and the last shot to the head knocked the creature down. The drop from 40 meters dealt a substantial amount of damage.

Some of the fallen wolf spiders died while others were eaten by either the fire salamanders or the crested newts.

There were 50 wolf spiders left on top of the ceiling, and Smoke dealt with each one of them with the same three arrow technique.

After he finished all of the wall climbing monsters. Smoke resumed his attention on the beasts below. There were 280 wolf spiders, 175 fire salamanders, and 189 crested newts left.

The wolf spiders only targeted the dying monsters and left the monsters that Smoke killed alone.

Smoke happily spent the next hour dangling on the ceiling. His free ride on attacking the monsters ended because all 4,000 of his arrows were now on the ground below him.

The wolf spiders had gathered enough of the wrapped up fire salamanders and crested newts, and went on to one of the tunnels.

There were only 179 monsters left on the ground fighting. The fire salamanders finally had an upper hand with 96 of their kind left while the crested newts had 83.

These surviving monsters only had less than 20% on their lifebars. Smoke released the metal anchors that held his harness. He leapt from the roof and glided down using his hooded cloak.

The smaller area of the previous tunnels impeded him from using his most destructive weapon. In mid-air he equipped his deadly Rzeka glaive.

THUD!

He made a Stunning Landing attack behind the the group of fire salamanders, and went after their heads.

Smoke killed one of the fire salamanders as he severed the monster's head when he landed. The fire salamanders on the back heard the loud sound and faced him.

He used his own special attack called the Mountain Split, and repelled the six fire salamanders that were about to run up to him.

With some distance between him and the six fire salamanders Smoke switched weapons and used the bullwhip. He chose the monster with the lowest life and held him captive with the electrically charged whip.

He plunged the end of the whip into one of the Corinthian pillars and electrocuted the fire salamander to its death. He switched back to his Rzeka glaive and went after the five monsters that were facing him.

The rest of the fire salamanders were still busy fighting the crested newts in front of them. Smoke chose the two fire salamanders on the right and leapt over them.

Using his Mountain Split ability, Smoke divided the fire salamander's skull in half and killed it. He then proceeded to swing his Rzeka glaive and lopped off the second fire salamander's front legs.

After they saw what the DarkElf did to their kind, the three fire salamanders hesitated. They began to fear him. Smoke smirked. He was proud of himself. He had instilled fear into these monsters.

Smoke used a horizontal Mountain Split and attacked the ten fire salamander that were facing the crested newts.

When the monsters turned their backs to face him. Smoke swung his Rzeka glaive and slashed the throats of the three fire salamanders that were near him.

The monster's blood gushed out from their throats and all three fire salamanders died. The ten fire salamanders who had just seen Smoke were shocked at the sight at the death of their fellow fire salamander.

Smoke used this opportunity, and he performed a 360 degree turn and and swung his Rzeka glaive once more. He repeated this cleaving motion for a third time and finally killed three fire salamanders out of ten.

The DarkElf removed the electrically enhanced bullwhip from the dead fire salamander. He cracked the whip on a new flame beast. The monster cried out in pain as the tip of the whip stung the monster's eye.

An hour passed, and Smoke had started to thin out the numbers of the fire salamanders. He stopped attacking the outnumbered creatures, and climbed up one of the pillars.

From the ceiling he crossed the area where the fire salamanders and the crested newts were fighting below him.

When he was directly above the last line of crested newts, he leapt off and glided downwards until he was in range, and performed his Stunning Landing attack against them.

In the same manner as the he attacked the fire salamanders, Smoke used a horizontal Mountain Split attack and pushed the crested newts backward.

He fluidly switched weapons, and took out his bullwhip. He got a hold on one of the crested newts. When the beast was captured, he was amazed to see the damage from the electric jolts that the whip was inflicting on the crested newt.

As Smoke had witnessed, the crested newts were weak against electric attacks. He struck the tip of the bullwhip on the floor and trapped the crested newt to its death.

He climbed up the Corinthian pillars and stopped when he reached the ceiling. He attached his harness onto the ceiling, and took out his Rzeka glaive and electro stone. He started to sharpen his glaive with the elemental stone.

After he finished enhancing his glaive. He stowed the electro stone, detached the harness, and dove downwards with another Stunning Landing.

Igniz created a firewall after the tenth crested newt. The firewall gave no damage to the monsters, but he felt that he needed to do something in order to help Smoke out.

As ineffective as the firewall was at damaging the monsters, it did serve a purpose. It became a fiery screen which blocked the view of the other crested newts.

With the enhanced damaged from the electro stone, Smoke massacred ten crested newts with his Rzeka glaive, in under twenty minutes.

Smoke maximized the bullwhip's potential and kept on catching one crested newt to its death. He pulled out the bullwhip and searched for its next victim.

Igniz floated closely near Smoke as he got ready to take on his next batch of crested newts.

"Good job creating this firewall. Now, can you cancel it out? I need a new batch of monsters. Next, place a new firewall after the fifteenth crested newt."

The dark ember sprite obeyed. The firewall blocked the crested newts view and forced them to turn around. Smoke greeted the bewildered monsters with his cleaving attacks.

Forty minutes later, and Smoke climbed up the pillar again. He went to the other side, and attacked the fire salamanders.

It was a tedious strategy, but it was the only way he thought of that could wipe out more than 400 monsters by himself.

Six hours passed. He was left with twelve fire salamanders and eleven crested newts. The two species of monsters stopped fighting against each other, and faced the lone threat that was bent on killing both of their kind.

Smoke was panting hard, but a grin was clearly visible on his face. He made a strategically retreat upwards and rested above the monsters, with his harness attached to the ceiling.

The crested newts and fire salamanders remained focused on the dangling DarkElf. Smoke activated his necklace, Heart of Reente. His life rejuvenated rapidly.

Five minutes later and his health was fully recovered. He leapt off the ceiling and dove head first with his Rzeka glaive pointed at the ground.

He performed a Mountain Split attack and blew away the gathered monsters below him. The strong attack caused a cloud of dust to rise.

This gave Smoke cover as the visibility inside the dust was nil. He relied on his Cunning of the Dire Fox to locate and attack the hidden monsters within the dust.

The monsters tried to slash at anything that was in front of them, but all they managed to hit was either a fire salamander or a crested newt.

As the cloud of dust settled. Only seven monsters were left. Three fire salamanders and four crested newts growled at the glaive wielding DarkElf.

With only seven monsters remaining, Smoke thought to brawl with the monsters head on. He lifted his Rzeka glaive over his shoulders and swung it horizontally.

Four monsters were blown away from Smoke's attack. He focused his attention on one monster. He switched weapons and took out his bullwhip. He captured one of the crested newts with the whip.

Next, he switched back to his Rzeka glaive. He held his glaive like a spear with the sharp edge pointing upward.

The targeted crested newt lifted its right front leg and scratched Smoke's chest plate. He was damaged for 3,200 points.

Smoke braved the damage, and positioned his glaive under the crested monster's belly. In an upward motion, he sliced the crested newt in half.

With the five monsters remaining, Smoke decided to repeatedly use the Stunning Landing attack against them.

He used the long length of his Rzeka glaive as a pole vault, and with tricky precision he unequipped his glaive at the maximum point of his jump.

The force propelled him upward into the air, and with the help of his hooded cloak he gained some altitude by soaring upwards.

After Smoke turned around in midair, he re-equipped his Rzeka glaive which increased his velocity downwards.

Smoke's Stunning Landing immobilized two of the the monsters. He slashed the monsters a few times before he flew up into the air once more.

He repeated the process until the captured crested newt was killed by the bullwhip. He removed the bullwhip from the place where it held the monster. He unequipped his glaive and captured a different crested newt.

Twenty minutes later, Smoke had officially cleared out one of the many great halls of  Zuchthaus Labyrinth.

He gained one level from cleaning out all the monsters inside the great hall.

Fervently, Smoke gathered all 4,000 of his arrows on the ground, next he collected the loot that came from the dead beasts.

White spider silk, gold spider silk, salamander meat, newt scales,  and various item drops from the dead monsters.

* * * * * *

Smoke had been stuck in the labyrinth for more than a day. Yet, he still hadn't seen any of his old markings.

The map on his Beggar's tablet only became larger and larger. He completely had no idea what the shape of this labyrinth was.

He had passed through similar chambers and had gone to solve similar jigsaw puzzles. It felt like everything he was doing was repetitive.

Not until he reached another great hall. However, this time the monsters were almost double the amount from the previous great hall.

Smoke positioned himself on top of the ceiling. He was psyched up to gain another level. As he started to pick off the dying monsters, a young man came running out form one of the tunnels.

The youth had black hair and fair skin. His black leather armor reminded Smoke of the armor that James Jackal and Howard Hide gave him.

The mysterious youth looked back at the tunnel where he came from, and sprinted faster into the throng of fighting fire salamanders and crested newts.

He leapt over the monsters and jumped from one monster's back to another. He steadily made his way across 856 creatures unscathed.

As he finally crossed the river of fighting monsters. The wolf spiders that surrounded the fire salamanders and crested newts started to gather around him.

Smoke was perplexed. He didn't know whether he should help him or not. This guy was a Zectian, which meant that there was a high chance he would receive some form of reward.

The DarkElf decided to watch him, and only would only move if it was really necessary.

The mysterious young man took out two canisters, and sprayed the area around him abundantly. The wolf spiders instinctively backed off.

However, the young man still looked to be very troubled. His eyes were glued on the exit where he came from.

Moments later, three large sized monsters came out from the watched exit tunnel. They stood at a height of three meters. They had long goatlike horns, brown to black fur, cloven hooves, and rusted iron chains dangling from their arms. These monsters looked exactly like the ones in the jigsaw puzzle.

Reflexively, all the wolf spiders, fire salamanders, and crested newts stopped what they were doing. The scared monsters looked at the three monstrous beasts.

Unified, the wolf spiders, fire salamanders, and crested newts all rushed against the three unknown creatures.

One of the enormous beasts countered the throng of unified monsters. As it ran, the beast started to swing its iron chains in a circular motion.

The monster's chains damaged all the monsters that reached its range. However, the unified wolf spiders, fire salamanders, and crested newts pressed on.

Multiple fire salamanders and crested newts bit the gigantic monster's legs. Which revealed the monster's name and lifebar.

The monster was called a krampus and its lifebar displayed (275,000/280,000HP).

The other two krampus whacked the monsters that had clung to their companion. Together all three of them slowly made their way through the river of monsters.

The power of these monsters were clear. Smoke estimated that it would take less than twenty minutes before they would wipe out all of the monsters in this great hallway.

Smoke looked back at the mysterious young man, and knew that if he didn't save him then the youth will be killed by these behemoths.

The DarkElf hid from behind the Corinthian pillars to obstruct the krampus' view. He dove downward, and only used his hooded cloak to stop before he crashed into the ground.

Smoke quickly rushed towards the young man, and as Smoke grabbed him from behind. The DarkElf's hand was caught in a joint lock, and with his running momentum used against, Smoke was thrown away.

The DarkElf flew through the air. He used his hooded cloak to perform a U-turn, and land safely in front of the young man he thought to rescue.

The mysterious young man took out dual rampuri knives. The knives were a foot long and had black handles.

Smoke took out his dual green knives, and was prepared to defend himself against this mysterious NPC.

After the adrenaline rush had subsided from being thrown over the shoulder was over, Smoke carefully examined the man that stood in front of him.

Smoke felt that he had seen this young man's face before; sadly, for the life of him, Smoke  wasn't able to remember.

He wracked his brains for this mysterious youth's name. The imminent threat from the krampus also contributed to Smoke's short term memory loss.

Finally, it hit him. This was the Beggar Evocatti's son. the one he was tasked to look for.

“Espion? You're Caid's son, right?”

Chapter Eight: The Last Maneator

Smoke saw that the youth who ran for his life was puzzled as to why he knew his name. Espion looked to be slightly younger than the DarkElf.

"Your father sent me to find you."

The black haired young man's face showed he was not convinced.

"And I'm just supposed to believe you because you know my name and my father's name?"

The DarkElf frowned at Espion's wariness.

"Your father told me that you started this mission to prove that you're worthy of being his successor to his hidden job. He also told me you want to inherit his being as the next Beggar Evocati."

After Smoke told Espion of his father's current Beggar rank. He saw that the young Spy finally acknowledged him speaking the truth.

Espion spoke to Smoke in a commanding tone.

"Alright, let's make a run for it. We'll head for that tunnel."

The DarkElf wasn't confident he could outpace the three krampus. He instinctively thought of a defensive countermeasure.

"I don't think we can outrun them, but I think we can outsmart them. Quick, use your wolf spider cannister repellent, and throw one of it into the furthest tunnel from the left."

Espion did not move. Smoke immediately saw that Espion may have accepted that Caid had sent him, but it did not mean he would follow his orders.

"What are you talking about. I've done it a hundred times. Those gigantic krampus beasts may be powerful, but they aren't smart. They still get lost in the labyrinth, and their movement speed is not that fast."

Smoke didn't have the luxury to argue with the young Spy. The DarkElf briskly snatched one of Espion's wolf-spider repellent cannisters, and gave it to his dark ember sprite.

"Igniz, throw this deep into that tunnel."

As Igniz followed Smoke's command, the DarkElf ran to one of the corners of the great hall, and piled up the web-entangled corpses of fire salamanders and crested newts. The wolf spider's pungent webs masked any other smell.

Smoke had built an igloo cocoon out of the wolf spider's victims. He signaled Espion to join him. The young Spy was hesitant, but ran as fast as he could towards the makeshift hideout.

The igloo cocoon was sealed as soon as Espion was inside. Smoke made peepholes in order for them to see what the monstrous krampus were up to.

The three colossal krampus formed a V-like wedge formation, and decimated the fire salamanders, crested newts, and wolf spiders.

Even with all three races combined. The three krampus still made light work of the monsters inside the great hall.

Once they were done with the monsters, the krampus started their search for Espion. They found the scent of Espion's wolf spider repellent in one of the tunnels, and rapidly followed the tunnel's path.

Espion was about to speak, but Smoke covered his mouth to silence him. They waited for another five minutes before they started to talk. Espion finally asked the question which had bugged since he met Smoke.

"Okay, where's the rest of your men, and how do we get out of here? Oh, and what do I call you?"

Smoke had never met such an impertinent young man before. He was glad that his brothers, Donny and Seth, were raised with proper manners.

"First off, my name is Smoke, and I'm the only one here to rescue you."

Espion was flabbergasted when he heard that Smoke was alone and there was no one else coming.

"But didn't Da send out all his men to find me?"

"Da? Who's Da?"

Espion stared at Smoke with an all knowing look.

"Caid, my father. I call him Da."

"Oh... Anyway, Caid did send out all of his men, but no one figured out where you were. Luckily I found you here, inside the labyrinth."

Smoke had no idea that Espion would be inside the labyrinth, but he thought that it was better for Espion to think that he was on top of the whole situation.

"Da must really think highly of you to send you here all by yourself. So, how do we escape?"

The DarkElf froze as he had no idea on how to escape the labyrinth himself.

"Let's discuss that later. First, we need to find a safe place to regroup."

"Follow me, I know a good place."

Espion led the way through the complex tunnel system of the labyrinth. His years of living inside the warren maze that Caid had built in their house, helped him navigate inside the labyrinth.

Smoke couldn't believe how Espion memorized the labyrinth without looking at any kind of map. They traveled through the fourth forked chamber with multiple tunnels, when they met three crested newts.

The DarkElf took out his electro charged bullwhip, and instinctively captured one of them. The captured crested newt was weak against electrically charged attacks, which meant it was good as dead.

"Espion, you take the crested newt on the right and I'll take the one on the left."

Once again, Espion did not follow Smoke's command.

"Why would I do that? When I can easily outrun them?"

One of Smoke's countermeasures from being mobbed was to wipe out all the monsters he would encounter. In case he needed to retreat, and use the same tunnel.

Espion left him fighting the crested newts. He disappeared into the middle tunnel. Six minutes later he came back. He was running as if he was being chased.

All three crested newts in the forked chamber were already killed when the young Spy returned.

"You managed to kill all of the monsters already? But I was just gone for a couple of minutes."

Smoke was infuriated. How could Caid's son be such a spoiled brat.

"If you hadn't left and helped me instead. We would've killed them in half the time."

"Well, I wonder how long it'll take you to deal with ten crested newts."

Even without Igniz's melded energy, a warm heat started to emit from Smoke's body. If this young Spy wasn't a quest he would have already left Espion behind.

The highest number of monsters that Smoke had seen outside of the great hall were only six.

"I've never seen this many monsters in one group. Where they at the tunnel up ahead?"

Espion gave a sheepish look.

"In an enclosed place like this tunnel. I can probably dodge upto eight monsters of this caliber. But, I could cross a throng of these monsters in one of the great halls. These guys are so absorbed fighting each other that you can literally run on top of their heads, and they wouldn't notice. So, I kept on running to the third forked chamber from here."

Smoke couldn't believe what he heard.

"You mean to tell me you made this mob?"

Espion raised both his hands and shrugged.

"Not really. It was just coincidental that all of them followed me here. I think these monsters must have been spooked by the three krampus chasing after me."

Smoke shook his head left to right in disbelief.

"How in the world did you manage to survive all these months trapped inside the labyrinth?"

"Like I said. I can outrun them. It's just that you're here now. I don't think being separated from you would be a good decision, and aren't you here to help me escape?"

Smoke inhaled a deep breath.

He thought Espion might be annoying, but maybe there was some hope for him yet.

"That was why I told you to kill the three crested newts from before. So a situation like this wouldn't happen."

Smoke was furious, but he knew that this wasn't the time or place for a lecture.

"Alright, from now on we kill all the monsters we encounter. Got it? The tunnel's narrow entrance will probably only allow three to four monsters to come out at the same time. Do you have any ranged attacks?"

Espion took out numerous black throwing knives.

"I only have these."

"Okay, I'll block the entrance while you attack with your knives. Remember, focus on only one enemy. We want to dwindle their numbers as soon as possible."

Espion nodded.

Smoke wanted to use his Rzeka glaive, but the room wasn't big enough for the needed maneuverability. Instead, he chose his electro enhanced flamdius sword and Armored Armadillo Shield.

The young Spy had an impressive attack speed. The number of thrown knives was reminiscent of Alteria's attack speed, the fecund lizard matron who previously enslaved Adder's home village.

Although, Espion's 500-600 damage points from the throwing knives did not faze the crested newts, but every damage was important. Smoke bashed one of the monsters with his shield and stunned it.

One of the crested newts escaped Smoke's defense and went after Espion. The DarkElf swiftly switched his flamdius sword with his bullwhip, and caught the beast before it got close to Espion.

"Espion, leave the captured monster alone, it's already as good as dead. Focus on the enemies left inside the tunnel."

Another crested newt replaced the captured monster, and Smoke was up against four crested newts once more.

Earlier experimentation showed that Smoke was able to dodge up to two crested newts with his Agility of the Horned Rabbit ability.

Smoke depended on his shield to block the attacks that were unavoidable. As he kept on dodging he felt something was missing. He noticed that the throwing knives which flew over his head had stopped coming.

The DarkElf made a quick glance at Espion, and saw the young Spy focus all of his attacks on the crested newt captured by his bullwhip.

A minute passed, and Espion shouted with euphoria.

"I DID IT! I killed the crested newt."

Smoke was exasperated.

"Great... Now can you go back to the plan, and attack the monsters I'm trying to block."

With his combined dodges, blocks, and attacks, Smoke was able to reduce the four monster's lifebars to 30% of their maximum capacity.

Espion was impressed at Smoke's fighting ability. He copied the DarkElf's attack, and scattered his knives to all four crested newts.

"No! Focus your attacks on one monster only."

"But if I spread my attacks like yours, we would be able to kill all four of them at the same time."

This was Smoke's first time teaming up with someone who blatantly disregarded his instructions.

"You don't want to listen to me? Fine! Do it your way then."

In one swift motion, The DarkElf unequipped his sword and shield. He leapt upward, and grab a hold on the wall. Smoke climbed to the top of the ceiling. He attached his harness there, and watched as all nine crested newts enter the forked chamber.

"Smoke? Smoke, what are you doing? Do you want me to leave you? Get down from there and help me!"

As Espion shouted at the DarkElf. Nine crested newts surrounded the black haired Spy and began to attack him. He tried his best to dodge all of the monster's attacks.

Smoke switched weapons and took out his powersaw bow. He focused his attacks on one crested newt at a time. After Smoke killed his third crested newt, Espion noticed that it was easier to dodge the attacks.

Smoke yelled out at the upstart Spy.

"Now do you understand why I ordered you to focus your attacks on one monster?"

Espion remained silent. Instead, he kept on dodging the six crested newts that were left.

After Smoke killed another crested newt, he gave Espion a different command.

"This time I want you to use your knives while you're dodging, and hit the monster with the lowest life. Every injury inflicted on an enemy is an important damage."

Espion conceded and followed his orders. He directed all of his attacks on the monster with the least HP left. Smoke followed his attack and targeted the same monster.

The DarkElf helped reduce the dying monster's life, but made sure to give the killing blow to Espion.

The young Spy brimmed with confidence, as he started killing off the monsters one by one. This was how Smoke showed Espion how important it was to follow a strategy.

They dealt with all ten crested newts in under ten minutes. When the last crested newt fell. Smoke detached his harness, and used his hooded cloak to land safely on the ground.

Espion was invigorated, this was his first time to experience such a rush. While Smoke started to collect the loot, the young Spy forced himself back to his aloof nature.

"If you're done collecting scraps, can we proceed to the safehouse that I mentioned earlier?"

Smoke shook his head once more. He felt that this was not the last time his head would shake in disappointment.

"Sure, but please remember. We're going to kill any monster that comes our way. Well except for those krampus. I think we couldn't handle that kind of monster at the moment."

Espion nodded. He headed to the same tunnel where the crested newts had came from.

"This way then. We're almost there. It's just six more of these forked chambers away."

The two of them met groups of two to four crested newts or fire salamanders along the way, but with Smoke's battle plans and Espion's cooperation, they were able to deal with the monsters rapidly.

There were random forked chambers that held the jigsaw puzzle of either a maneator or a krampus.

Espion dealt with the jigsaw puzzle in a flash. He had learned to do them as a reflex in the months that he's been trapped inside the labyrinth.

When they arrived in the sixth forked chamber, Espion took the second tunnel from the right, out of the five choices available in the room.

Espion stopped at the tunnel's midway point. He faced the wall, and there they were met with a door like impression.

There was a spherical cavity on the wall, similar to the sealed room where Smoke came from. There was also a  plaque on the wall which stated:

I am always around you but often forgotten.   I am pure and clean most of the time,
but occasionally rotten.
What am I?

Smoke thought that there was another hidden figure that needed to be placed in the spherical depression. Espion smirked as he told Smoke to answer the riddle.

"It took me a while to answer this one myself. I don't see any monsters around. I think you have some decent time to solve this riddle."

"Riddle, huh? Sure, I'll give it a go."

Espion was already impressed with Smoke's battle prowess, but he wanted to test the DarkElf's intellect as well.

Smoke stared at the plaque, and in a hushed voice repeated the sentence over and over. He thought that there was clearly something that should be placed inside the spherical cavity.

He was stumped as to what it could be. The riddle didn't state any form of figure. There was absolutely nothing tangible that could be placed in the spherical depression.

"Since there's nothing here. I might as well try this."

Smoke went closer to the spherical cavity, and faced it squarely in front of him. He took in a deep breath and blew out all his gathered air into the depression.

Espion was taken aback at how fast Smoke answered the riddle. The wall started to shift and the door like impression opened up.

Smoke and Espion went inside, and the door closed shortly after.

"Good, that was quite easy wasn't it. I think I've covered this entire floor of the labyrinth, but I couldn't find any way to get to another level."

The DarkElf looked around the room, and found that it had a similar size to where he was teleported by Duke Burmistrz. The room had an area of 150 square meters.

"Espion, is this where you've been hiding for the past few months?"

"This room, and two other rooms similar to this one."

"So, what's in this room?"

"Well, there's those two jigsaw puzzles of a horse and a man. It's on that opposite wall over there. I've already completed them, but nothing happened."

"What about the other two rooms?"

"The one farthest from this place has a receptacle. The plaque in that room stated 'Place the stone of vision to meet the second revision.' I searched the whole room and found nothing there."

"And what about the last room?"

"That room is somewhere in the middle of the labyrinth. That room had no plaque and just had a pedestal at the center of room. In between these rooms are dens of the fire salamanders, crested newts, and wolf spiders. Each den has about five hundred or more. Whenever they go beyond that number these monsters meet in one of the great halls and fight it out."

Smoke thought that the monsters' behavior must have been meant to maintain their numbers. He went to the two jigsaw puzzles of the horse and the man. He checked on the puzzle and thought that it looked to be done correctly.

He started to ask Espion about his life inside the labyrinth for the past few months as he thought about the two jigsaw puzzles.

"What did you eat for this past few months?"

"There are edible moss scattered all over the labyrinth. There's also a part of the labyrinth that isn't covered in marble and it has an underground spring. There are some fishes there. Of course you just have to be careful of the monsters that gather there as well. I've already figured their schedule to stay away from them. There are also times where I can't go to the underground spring and I just crush these green edible moss and extract all the moisture out of them. I can probably squeeze out half a glass if I've gathered enough."

"Why didn't you try eating the crested newts and the fire salamanders?"

"I was afraid I might get poisoned by their salmonella, and I don't have any of my detoxifying items left."

Smoke nodded. It was wise of Espion to think about the poison that was contained in these monsters' meat. Of course this wasn't a problem for him because he had high poison resistance.

"That does make sense. Now, about these two jigsaw puzzles. Did you try to change their places?"

Espion had been inside the labyrinth for months, and still wasn't able to solve this problem. He answered Smoke haughtily.

"Yeah, I already tried that. Nothing happened. I've been trying to solve those two puzzles for months now. I bet, I've already tried anything that you can possibly think of."

"Mmm. Alright, then. I need to log out for now. I'll be back in a couple of hours. Oh, but let me cook a quick meal for you before I go."

Espion was surprised when he heard Smoke say that he was going to log out.

"You're a Sonstwelter? I never thought my father would associate himself with a Sonstwelter?"

"Well, your father and I have a lot of things in common. Igniz can you prepare a campfire to cook on?"

Smoke quickly prepared a tasty medicinal deer stew for Espion. Smoke thought that this meal should increase his intimacy levels with the young Spy.

After a few minutes, Smoke gave Espion the aromatic stew.

"This smells delicious. Aren't you gonna have some?"

"Nah, I'll have some later. You enjoy the meal"

As Smoke was about to log out, he distinctly heard Espion cry out 'This is so delicious...'

* * * * * *

Nash got out of his gamepod with a smirk on his face. If his leadership skills and battle strategies weren't enough then his tasty meal should have sealed the deal, and earned him Espion's respect.

It had been a while since Nash was all by himself in Zectas. He was so immersed in the game that he forgot the time and skipped his scheduled breaks.

From the moment he was stuck in the sealed room by Duke Burmistrz,  Nash only thought of solving the mysteries that the labyrinth had to offer.

His recent encounter with Espion reminded him that he had not informed Sherry of his situation,

and the special restrictions inside the labyrinth.

It had been almost two days since he last spoke to anyone of his private army. He only realized that they probably were worried sick about him.

He gathered his thoughts before he touched his cellphone. Then he dialed Sherry's number. He was glad that they decided to exchange phone numbers.

Nash had never called her before because there was never any valid reason. He waited in anticipation as Sherry's phone kept on ringing.

Until finally, he got her voicemail.

"You've reached Sherry Levine. Leave me a message, and I'll get back to you as soon as I can."

"Hi, it's Nash. Uh... I'm really sorry I haven't informed you of my whereabouts in Zectas. I was so caught up trying to solve the puzzles in the labyrinth that I.... Oh well, at least I'm inside the labyrinth now, right? Also, as it turns out the leader of the Brandals was Duke Burmistrz, and Macher was working under him. I knew there was a reason why I had a bad feeling about him. Can I ask you to tell the rest of the private army not to worry? I'll call them as soon as I'm out of the labyrinth. That dungeon disables all forms of communication to the outside world. I think that's everything for now?  Oh, and I also found Caid's son, Espion..."

BEEP!

After he informed Sherry of his location in Zectas, Nash decided to check his latest video feed.

The month was about to end, and the video results had not arrived yet. He had planned his scripted video in advance, but he wasn't done editing the video until a few days ago.

Since the time when Igniz became his symbiote, Nash's video feed option was increased from his own perspective to include Igniz's point of view.

This was also the reason why he managed to get incredible angles in his video feeds which helped increase his followers.

As he disguised himself as Ilad. He had Laernea and Gandiva stand beside Igniz. The two Lioumereans were ordered to shoot their fire arrows and poison arrows at himself.

This gave the impression that Smoke was training Ilad as he fired the arrows at the Swordsman. The maximum number of arrows that Laernea and Gandiva could manage were only four at a time.

Which was half of what Smoke could usually do, but this was acceptable since this was a training session and not a real fight.

He kept on recording himself training as Ilad from a Swordsman up to when he received the Gora Knight Armor set.

When he disguised himself as a Flame Knight. He had Igniz hover in one spot, as he practiced using his Rzeka glaive.

Nash double checked the videos and was convinced that it looked like Smoke was watching Ilad in training.

He was about to release his edited video when Sagen released his own video feed of the time when Sherry attacked him during the Mounted Race, near Selatan village.

Nash never thought that it would be Sagen who would help him promote his video. Nash barely made it in time for the video feed's deadline. As soon as he published his video of 'Smoke training Ilad', the number of views rose dramatically.

At the rate of the number of views, he thought that this was the month when he could finally deposit the needed funds for Donny and Seth's college fund.

Aside from check for his video feed, Nash also earned $3,000 from the items that he sold at auction. $2,000 came from the well timed selling of his mantis blades, and the remaining $1,000 came from various rare item drops from the monsters that he has killed.

Yet, with Donny's recent win at the state level of AUTOMATA (Amateur Unarmed Tournament Open Martial Art Techniques Association), earned him the right to compete for the championship at the national level.

Grandmaster Cacoy, told him that it will probably cost $1,500 for the whole trip. The tournament was held at the west coast. The complete opposite of where they lived.

Their grandmother, Daphne, insisted on going with Donny. Nash also thought that it would be unfair if he didn't send Seth with them.

Nash thought that the reason why he started working hard was in order for his family to have a better life. He could use $3,000 from the Zectas' auctions, but that wouldn't be enough for all of them to go on the trip to the west coast.

He thought that if his family shared a hotel room together the added cost shouldn't increase as much. He wanted to go with them, but he realized that if he joined them he would only be an added expense.

Besides, he also needed to play Zectas, and if he did join them on the trip it would mean that he would be out of Zectas for more than two days.

Nash could not afford to be gone for that long. As he checked on the number of views again. He felt positive that he could reach the minimum requirement of 200,000,000 views, but there was no guarantee that the rate of viewers would remain the same.

Filled with conflicted thoughts, Nash went down to prepare breakfast for his family. He still had no idea whether to send all of them or only Donny to the AUTOMATA championships.

Nash called all of three of them to come down after he made coffee and cooked bacon with eggs. Donny was sleepy as always, while Seth held their grandmother's hand, and assisted her down the stairs.

They were gathered at the table and began to eat quietly. Nash noticed that Seth was quieter than usual and asked him what was wrong.

"Is something wrong? Do you have a problem at school? You don't seem like your usual self today."

Seth merely shrugged and remained reticent.

"You better spit it out. You know I don't like it when you're this silent."

"Well, it's just that you cooked bacon and eggs."

Nash raised his eyebrow.

"But you like bacon and eggs? Isn't this one of your favorite food?"

"Yes it is, but you only cook bacon and eggs whenever you have bad news. Like when you said that I couldn't go to summer camp. Or when you said that mima Daphne got sick. So, I'm guessing that these bacon and eggs mean that only Donny is gonna go to the AUTOMATA championships."

Their mima Daphne and Donny ate on silently. The two of them tried their best to stay out of Nash and Seth's discussion.

"But, I haven't even told you that I..."

Nash stopped himself mid sentence. He hadn't informed his brothers that he hadn't paid their college fund in a few months.

Nevertheless, he wasn't able to stand the sadness in Seth's eyes as the two of them spoke.

"What I mean to say is that you and mima are going to join Donny on the AUTOMATA trip, but I was planning it as a surprise and you completely ruined it."

Seth's smile widened from ear to ear.

"Are you serious? Are you really letting all of us of go with Donny?"

"Of course I am..."

Their mima Daphne gently touched Nash's hand and asked him.

"Are you sure about this? I was going to ask Donny to skip out on the tournament altogether. What with all the expenses that we have. Are you sure you can spare the money?"

Nash plastered a confident smile.

"I got this grandma. Don't worry about it. What's the use of money if my family can't enjoy it?"

Nash decided to use the $3,000 from the auctioned items and $1,500 from his emergency funds. He secretly prayed that his video feed could reach the needed amount.

* * * * * *

Smoke opened his eyes, and saw Espion playing around with Igniz. As soon as Espion noticed the DarkElf, he stopped on his tracks, and pretended to be looking at the two jigsaw puzzles on the wall.

"Oh, you're back. I didn't see you there."

"So, what have the two of you been up to?"

"Well, Igniz here showed me a couple of his abilities before, but currently I'm busy solving these two jigsaw puzzles. How was your trip back to your world?"

"Let's not talk about that different world. Let's focus our attention here in Zectas."

Smoke looked at the two puzzles and the wall.

"Still no progress, huh?"

"You think this is easy? Why don't you solve it then?"

The DarkElf scratched his head. He tried switching out the places of the two jigsaw puzzles, and nothing happened.

"I told you, I already tried that one."

Next he placed them upside down, but still nothing changed. Smoke tried other variations with the two jigsaw puzzles, but it was useless.

After an hour of various experiments on the jigsaw puzzle, Smoke gave in and left the two puzzles alone.

"How about we proceed to the room at the center of the labyrinth?"

“Are you sure? This labyrinth is really big. I think it will take us more than a day but less than two days to get to the that room.”

“Well, we don't have anything left to do here, and I'd like to investigate those rooms personally.”

Espion hesitated. He thought that Smoke's plan would be futile, but the DarkElf's actions made him think a fresh pair of eyes could help.

"Alright, let's go then."

Smoke, Espion, and Igniz left the room with the two jigsaw puzzles and headed for the room at the center of the labyrinth.

The three of them pushed on. Smoke thought that as they traveled, he could ask some of his questions about the labyrinth, and all of them could be answered by Espion.

Owed to the fact that the young Spy had been there for a few months, Smoke thought that Espion had some information about the underground maze.

The first question that came to mind was 'where are the maneators?'.

"I've been here for almost two days now, and I still haven't encountered a single maneator. Do you know where they are? Have you met one of them?"

Espion looked back as he kept on running in front of Smoke.

"From the time that I've been here, I haven't met a single maneator as well."

"Do you think they're in a different level?"

"I thought about that as well, but I remembered something I overheard from Duke Burmistrz when I was spying on him. Have you heard of the Tenebris?"

"Yeah, they're the group of dark magicians who supposedly created this labyrinth right?"

"Yes, that's right. Apparently, the Tenebris had been having problems with the maneators ever since their king escaped."

Suddenly, Smoke got a bad premonition on what Espion would say next.

"I heard them tell the Duke that they terminated all of the maneators and replaced them with the krampus. They said that they've modified these beasts to be mindless monsters, and since its still in the testing phase they only have a few of them inside the labyrinth. These monsters were said to be only filled with the urge to kill anything that isn't a member of the Tenebris or a fellow krampus."

Smoke stopped running. Espion stopped as well and wondered if the DarkElf sensed any monsters nearby.

"Did you sense something? I didn't hear anything."

"No, no, there aren't any monsters nearby. It's just that aside from rescuing you. I was also here to rescue the remaining maneators. I wonder what Konig Mitleid will have to say about this?"

Espion was dumbfounded when he heard Smoke say the name of the maneator's king.

"You know Konig Mitleid? How? That monster's been gone for a long time."

"I met him somewhere south of here. He's given me a quest to liberate the maneators. I guess he didn't know that the Tenebris terminated all of them. I guess this also means he's the last maneator. He already felt guilty about leaving his brothers, and accidentally killing some of them. Looks like he won't have a chance to redeem himself."

"From what you're saying it sounds like, Konig Mitleid is a decent monster. I always thought that he would be scarier than the krampus beasts that I've seen."

"I used to think that as well. Maybe I misjudged him. He was bred to be a torturer. It wasn't his choice to be one. A person should be given a chance to change himself if he wants to."

Espion believed that Smoke was genuinely concerned about the king of the maneators. Originally, the young Spy thought that Smoke was only worried about failing the maneator's quest, but it appeared that he was mistaken.

"Well, sorry to have brought the bad news to you, Smoke. But, we have to go. I don't like staying too long in one of these tunnels. It feels like a krampus could come out of nowhere and grab you."

"Of course, of course, please lead on."

Smoke empathized with Konig Mitleid, but what really saddened him was the idea that he had lost a great potential ally.

He was secretly hoping that the maneators would join his private army as soon as he liberated them. He consoled himself with thoughts of the loot inside the labyrinth's treasure room.

It was said that the locked vault contained a compendium of the Tenebris most prized possessions. He briefly took out the labyrinth key given to him by Konig Mitleid, and stowed it back into his backpack window.

Smoke had other inquiries for Espion, but the only thing that was in the DarkElf's mind was the loss of the maneators. He could not think of anything else.

It had been almost two days. Smoke and Espion met several monsters along the way to the secret chamber at the center of the labyrinth. As a result, Espion gained one level before they reached their destination.

The DarkElf was somewhat disappointed with Caid's son. Inspite of that, he did show great potential and promise.

It was revealed that Espion's level was still at 82. The young Spy also distributed all of his stats on Agility. This explained why Espion's lifebar was very low at 40,000 HP.

Espion's dedication to one stat gave him a total of 668 Agility. While Smoke at level 92, only relied on his passive ability 'Agility of the Horned Rabbit' which gave him a total Agility of 452.

Smoke was envious of Espion's dodge rate and attack speed, but he was also satisfied with the stat which he chose to raise.

His hidden basic stat, Wisdom, was now at 50. Even with such a low Wisdom stat, it had already reduced the needed acquisition time for gaining knowledge from books.

Espion called out Smoke's name, and brought him back from his musings about stats and levels.

"Smoke, we're here. Would you like to solve this riddle or should I?"

The wall in front of Smoke had a gate like carving. There were two doors on the gate. It was clearly larger than the previous secret room which Espion showed him.

It also had the same spherical cavity and a plaque which stated.

No legs have I to dance,
No lungs have I to breathe,
No life have I to live or die,
And yet I do all three.
What am I?

"Ha! This one's easy. All of these phrases describe my favorite element. Igniz, put some FIRE into the receptacle"

The dark ember sprite made a small fireball and filled the whole spherical cavity beside the embossed door.

Espion clapped theatrically.

"I knew you'd guess this one right away. A good thing too, because I've almost used up all of my fire moss."

"Fire moss? What's that?"

A loud mechanical sound was heard. Gears and chains started to move, after Smoke placed some fire in the spherical receptacle.

The gate like impression on the wall started to moved, and opened both doors. Smoke, Espion, and Igniz, went to the opening and entered.

Espion wasn't able to answer Smoke's question until they were safely inside the hidden room. The young Spy answered Smoke after all of them entered the chamber.

"Well, fire moss is a special type of moss scattered in specific parts of the labyrinth. It's quite some distance from here. It makes a great fire after you light it up."

"Alright, let's rest up first. I'll cook some medicinal soup. Igniz, can you please light the fire."

Espion stepped in, and stopped the dark ember sprite.

"Wait, wait. I'd like to show you how a fire moss works."

The young spy gathered the firewood. He then placed the fire moss at the bottom of the tepee shaped firewood. Rubbed the fire moss for friction, and the fire moss lit up, which lit the campfire.

When Smoke saw Espion's demonstration of the fire moss, he remembered one other thing he was curious about.

"Say, how do you manage to navigate through this labyrinth without a torch or any other kind of light?"

Espion remained silent. He wasn't sure if he could trust Smoke completely. Although he was impressed with the abilities that the DarkElf had shown, and his intellect and battle strategies were just as astounding.

Smoke sensed Espion's hesitation, and speedily stopped his question.

"You don't have to answer me. I was just curious that's all."

"No, no, I'll tell you how I traveled through this tunnels. Ever since I was younger I've always wanted to become like my father. Because he was always so secretive. One day as I researched through our family library. I found a book that told me where to get the ability that would help me greatly."

The DarkElf was pleased with himself. Espion sharing this information only meant that his intimacy level with him was almost at 80%.

"The book told me to kill 10,000 bronze and masked owls. I had to use traps and laid them on the bronze owls nests. It took me over ten years, and when I got my 10,000th kill I gained this ability called 'Bronzen Owl Ears'. This ability gave me the monster's echolocation ability."

Espion grinned as he reminisced the countless days he spent earning this ability.

"It can also detect enemies, but its range is only for 100 meters. This was also how I was able to pick up on Duke Burmistrz conversations. If only I had the proper patience and waited until I gained the ability from the 10,000 masked owls. Then they wouldn't have caught me."

"So, the Duke caught you spying on him because you don't have a proper camouflage ability? Just how many masked owls were left until you gained its ability?"

"Well, counting the ones I've killed it would be 9,999. Those monsters are harder to find than the bronze owls. I've been spying on him for more than a month before he finally noticed me though."

Smoke had already met some iron owls in the forests around Nanahuatl. Yet, those monsters gave him no ability whatsoever.

He was interested in these bronze owls and masked owls. He thought that he would ask Espion about the location of these monsters later. At the moment, Smoke was only interested about what Espion heard from Duke Burmistrz.

"That's still a lot of masked owls before getting that ability. Now, about the time you were spying on the Duke? What exactly did you hear?"

The DarkElf offered the finished soup to the Espion, and both of them started to sip through the meal as the young Spy pushed on with his gathered information.

"Some parts were about this labyrinth. About how it's a special dungeon. As you've noticed you can't contact anyone in the outside, and I heard that even if a Sonstwelter were to die they wouldn't revive in the outside, but rather wake up here."

Smoke already knew this part about the labyrinth. He had never been to any map in Zectas that disabled all forms of communication to the outside world.

However, it did make sense that this feature was added for those captured inside. Otherwise, the Zectians captured like Espion would have had the opportunity to contact their guilds, and have shared the information that they managed to gather.

"The Duke was out harassing the villages outside of Coatl. Milking them out of their last zecs. If they didn't pay his weekly fees to the Cavalry Knights he would send out the Brandals and ransack the whole village."

The DarkElf shook his head left and right in disbelief.

Espion proceeded, and spoke his opinion about the Duke.

"How can such a monster act all responsible and caring, when the truth is he was the true reason why the villagers outside were suffering?"

"Well, you know what they say. The greater the power the greater the abuse."

The young Spy composed himself and pushed on.

"The Duke also mentioned that there were two ways to enter the labyrinth. One was through a quest accessed by honored players of the city. They were taken to the entrance of the first level of the labyrinth. They were tasked to look for Konig Mitleid."

The DarkElf was taken aback when heard Espion describe the first method of accessing the labyrinth.

"Only to find out that he had escaped and taken the key with him. Most players wouldn't even know how to find the maneator king, and if they did they would surely be wiped out by him."

Smoke clenched his fists tightly. It reminded him of the day he met Tristan.

"Smoke? Are you alright? Is something wrong?"

Espion stopped talking midway as he noticed the DarkElf trembling with anger.

"Oh, sorry. It's nothing. What about the second way in the labyrinth?"

"The second way was to be captured by the mayor or any members of the Tenebris. Those captured would be sent down here to the third level. Where the maneators were suppose to tear us limb from limb. But, as I mentioned before, I heard the Duke talk to one of the Tenebris' high council say that all the maneators were exterminated and were replaced by these krampus monsters instead."

Smoke nodded as he remembered the death of all of the maneators inside the labyrinth.

"What about the Mounted Race? Did you hear anything about that?"

"Umm... Only that the race was actually the main event for Coatl's festivities. It was exclusive for the benefit of the nobles in Chayotl Kingdom(Western Kingdom). He sent someone by the name of Macher on a quest to gather participants that the other nobles would bet on. The Jousting Tournament was only there to throw people off the Mounted Race event."

"Do you know what the Duke was planning to do with all that money from the bets in the Mounted Race?"

"I think he plans on conquering the whole kingdom. One city at a time. Heck, he even promised that Macher fellow Centzo city."

"So, anything else you heard from the Duke?"

"I think that's it. Oh, and he often gets called to answer to someone named Lizardo."

Smoke only heard the name Lizardo once before, but he got an ominous feeling when he heard it again.

The DarkElf shrugged off the sinister feeling, and focused on the central hidden room instead. At the center of the room there was a single pedestal.

As they had both finished their meal, Smoke stood up and went closer to the focal point of the secret chamber.

He took out his Coatl Labyrinth Key which he got from the king of the maneators. He placed it on the pedestal and nothing happened.

"Pfft. Some key this turned out to be."

Espion stood by Smoke, and saw nothing changed.

"Is that key the reason why you wanted to come here?"

"Yeah, it was given to me by Konig Mitleid himself."

"Wait, what? This key is the one where those honored players were trying to look for?"

"I think so. It's suppose to open the secret treasure room, but I guess this isn't the place. Shall we head back to the last room you mentioned earlier?"

"Sure, maybe the key can be used there."

* * * * * *

Smoke and Espion maintained a fast pace as they traveled on the last hidden room. They traveled through several great halls.

They were stopped with the same jigsaw puzzle of the krampus. As what they did before, Espion was the one assigned to deal with the puzzle as he had mastered it.

After their third great hall and jigsaw puzzle. Smoke noticed that Espion's unusual speed of solving the jigsaw puzzle got even faster.

"Espion, how many jigsaw puzzles like this do you think you've done?"

"I don't know? I've lost count already. Why do you ask?"

"I think these puzzles aren't here to simply block the path. I think they're related to the first hidden room you've shown me before."

"What do you mean?"

Smoke was adrenalized. He wanted to test out his theory ASAP.

"Let's head back to the first chamber now."

"But, we're already halfway to the last hidden chamber. Can't we stop there first?"

"I don't think we can do anything in that room with another receptacle and plaque at the moment. We need to solve the room with the two jigsaw puzzles first."

Espion was apprehensive, but followed Smoke's orders.

"Fine, let's go this way then."

It took them almost two days to get to the central hidden chamber. However, with the monsters were cleared out, Smoke expected the trip back to be quicker.

Smoke edged Espion on as he ran close next to him. The young Spy wasn't used to someone running close to him. Although it was a good distance between them, this still made him run even faster.

The DarkElf also dealt with the monsters they met as rapidly as possible. He used Espion as bait to lure the monsters' strikes as he killed them with his back attacks. This time he didn't give the killshot to Espion.

Espion tried his best to get more kills, but Smoke gave him no opportunity. This inspired Espion to try harder. After their eighth monster encounter, Espion finally managed to kill one monster.

"Not bad, Espion. At last, you managed to kill one on your own."

"They say that the first one is going to be the hardest, and the second one is gonna be as easy pie."

Five monster encounters later, Espion still didn't get his second killshot.

After a day and five hours passed. Smoke and Espion were nearing the hidden chamber which required air to enter it.

Their increased pace and suddened contest to get the kill shots led them to the first hidden chamber in no time. Espion was disappointed when he saw the engraved door on the wall. For the young Spy's second killshot did not happen at all.

Smoke took in a deep breath and exhaled all his gathered air into the spherical receptacle. As soon as they entered the room. He immediately went to the opposite wall from the entrance, where the two jigsaw puzzles were.

Espion looked over Smoke's shoulders and asked.

"So, how are the jigsaw puzzles scattered all over the labyrinth related to these puzzles of a man and horse?"

"I think that those puzzles were designed to mislead you. You've been solving them so quickly and efficiently that you're already doing it out of reflex. And whenever you look at these two puzzles here you solve them as is, right?"

"Yeah? How else would you solve them?"

"How about we take the upper half of the man, and we also take out the upper half of the horse. Then we swap their halves."

Espion followed Smoke's instructions. In under five minutes Espion was done swapping the two upper halves of the jigsaw puzzles.

One jigsaw puzzle had an upper body of a man and a lower body of a horse. While the other jigsaw puzzle had the upper body of a horse and a lower body of a man.

After Espion completed both puzzles, a low red light glowed on each one. Both puzzles started to change the image depicted on them. The mixed creatures were fused better.

Then the names of each creature appeared on each puzzle. The images on the puzzles started to move as the new monsters were fused together.

The one with the upper body of a man and the lower body of the horse was labeled as Centaur. Smoke had known about Centaurs, this was the reason why he thought to swap the two puzzles.

However, the other puzzle with the upper body of a horse and the lower body of a man was alien to him. He had never known about such a creature.

The second puzzle was labeled as Tikbalang. This monster had red eyes, it had gnashing teeth. It's mane was made out of sharp black spines.

The Tikbalang's upper limbs were from the horse's limbs which gave the monster a hunched over appearance due to its extra long front arms which reached to its Human like feet.

Espion was astonished when he saw the two jigsaw puzzles changed.

"Whoa! I would have never thought to try that out. I think you were right about those jigsaw puzzles outside. Once I saw these two puzzles. My only thoughts were to solve them quickly."

"Don't worry about it. If I were in your situation, and was stuck here for months. I think I would have fallen for the same trick as you..."

Smoke wasn't able to finish talking. Due to the pedestal that came out from the center of the room. On top of the pedestal was a shiny emerald colored gem.

The DarkElf went to pedestal and took the precious stone on top of it.

+ Received Stone of Vision.

"Espion, we just found the stone of vision. I think we better head for that room that was asking for this stone."

With an open mouth, the young Spy nodded his head with anticipation.

"But, I have to log out for now. I'm gonna update my private army about our progress in the labyrinth."

Espion looked confused.

"How can you tell them when you're inside here with me?"

"I'm a Sonstwelter, remember? I have only one Sonstwelter friend that I can trust, and She'll spread the news to the rest of our members."

* * * * * *

Nash got out of the gamepod and was pumped to continue on. However, he knew it was necessary to take his scheduled break, and get some shut eye.

There were numerous times that Nash wasn't able to keep up with the strict schedule of the Uberman sleeping pattern.

In those times his head felt heavy, and his nose bled a little. He endured through those ailments and played on inside Zectas.

However, whenever his scheduled time to sleep appeared. He would often be in a situation where his adrenaline was high, and it was almost impossible to calm his mind.

Before he would try to go to sleep. Nash performed the meditation method that grandmaster Cacoy taught him with eskrima. He also drank a glass of warm milk with nutmeg and honey.

The warm milk was at mima Daphne's suggestion, and he was surprised that it really helped him meditate into a tranquil place.

TUN-TA-TUN-TUN-TUUN! TA-TA-TA-TA-TUUN! TA-TUN-TUN-TUUN!

Nash's unique alarm tone woke him up. He reflexively sat upright after he slept through the required amount of rest.

He quickly grabbed his cellphone. It was always in the same spot. Since, he only used it to check for the text of the manager of the game center.

As he picked up his phone to leave Sherry another voicemail, he was surprised to see that he received a message from her instead.

“Hey, Nash. It's really great to hear your voice… Yeah, everyone's worried about you. Especially Laernea, I think she might have a crush on you. I never knew Zectians could have feelings for Sonstwelters. Anyway I just called to tell you that we're all doing great. Your plan on securing the other villages and gathering more men worked. We've recruited 500 men already. 300 Farmers and 200 Fishermen. Although, there was one occasion where we were almost wiped out, but a friend came and rescued us. We've secured practically the whole area where the exit is suppose to be. So, we've got you covered. Hope to see you outside of the Labyrinth soon...”

Nash was smiling, but he didn't know what he was smiling about. He thought maybe it was simply because he heard Sherry's voice?

Their being addicted to Zectas made it impossible to see each other in the real world. They couldn't even catch each other on the phone.

However, he was still happy with their situation. He wasn't ready for anything beyond what they had now.

Nash made a quick recall of what he was going to say before he called Sherry's phone and left his voicemail.

After he updated Sherry with all the information he had gathered. He focused on a more important issue. His latest video feed in Zectas.

It was just four days since he uploaded the feed, and it was already at 119,921,267 views. This assured him of a check worth $10,000. He needed 200,000,000 views in order to get $15,000.

He needed $14,000 a month, for him to pay his grandmother's medical bills, his brothers' educational fund, his mortgage on the house, and for their day to day expenses.

Nash still had ten days before the video feed cycle ends. It was still a long way to go before he could hit the needed views, but he was still optimistic.

He then checked on the longest thread in the official Zectas forum. A thread entitled 'Tristan vs. Amahan vs. Smoke'.

KyouKai: Tristan is way in the lead now. Sure, Smoke's revelation of him being in Coatl city was intriguing and all, but that was it. He should clash with some wyverns. Then we'll see who's the real bad ass.

Ten: We shouldn't let the number of their latest video feed dictate what their actual ranking is. Amahan maybe dead last between Tristan and Smoke this month. Yet, the Decane still remains the highest at level per player, and Amahan still has the highest level in the whole game.

Shin: Bah, all this theoretical talk is just boring. As someone mentioned before, they should just all meet up in one place and have an all out war with everything they've got.

SupahNovice-Disciple#12312312: Master Smoke! You've started to recruit players? And another DarkElf to boot! Why didn't you call me? Or any of your other faithful followers? I'm sure if you invite us to your guild we'll wipe out all of them. Both Tristan and Amahan at the same time.

TriTank: HAHAHAHA! And what good will a bunch of low level players be? I'm sure if Smoke ever makes a guild the average level would be below 80. HAHAHAHA, good luck trying.

SupahNovice-Disciple#11298592: Haters gonna hate...

TriTank: HAHAHA! Smart come back.

Hilot: I agree with what @Shin said. The number of views isn't the true measure of how strong a player is. It's his accomplishment in the entire game. Amahan, Tristan, and Smoke all have different qualities. Let's just watch and see who really dominates the game in the long run. Now that Smoke's revealed his location. They should occupy their own continent first before claiming world domination.

Tritank: For once, I kind of agree with @Hilot. Now, it's just a contest to see who controls his own continent first. Tristan has just started his expansion in the unknown lands of the eastern continent. Amahan has long started before Tristan, but hasn't progressed much in the last few months. As for Smoke... Well he has just shown us that he is in a main city of a western continent. Well, woop dee do.

KSKing: I still think they should have an arena battle and leave their guilds and private armies or whatever other allies they have behind. It should be a one on one on one. A three way battle to decide who really is the best. Smoke maybe at a clear disadvantage now, but when the time comes I think he'll put up a good fight. Heck he even taught Ilad, right? Ilad won Coatl's tournament. I'm sure Smoke will do great.

PurrFex: Meow!

When Nash read that Amahan was dead last, he immediately wanted to know who was first between him and Tristan. He checked on Tristan's video feed views, and was dismayed when he saw that it was at 218,084,943 views.

He decided to check on Amahan's number of views and was disappointed that he was only ahead of him by around 50,000 views.

Nash took a deep breath. He needed to clear his negative thoughts, and decided to do some eskrima practice to clear his mind.

* * * * * *

Smoke and Espion headed for the hidden room which required the stone of vision. Espion estimated the journey to take them four days at most.

The journey to the furthest room from the hidden air chamber kept on with Smoke and Espion's ongoing competition.

Smoke was impressed with Espion's tenacity. Even if he only made one kill shot to Smoke's ten, it still showed his perseverance, determination, and his progress.

They already spent two days of the four day trip. In the past days, Smoke had increased his level by one, while Espion increased his by two.

As they passed the central area of the labyrinth. The three krampus monsters that were out looking for Espion got a hold of his scent once more.

With Smoke and Espion's constant sprint competition, The DarkElf had gotten a sense of how to travel inside labyrinth in these past few days. He found his movement speed had a noticeable increase.

Then a window notification appeared.

Beggar's Adaptation (Dungeon Level Mastery)

+ You've traveled 30% of the 3rd level in dungeon: Zuchthaus Labyrinth.
+ You've gained 30% increased movement speed in this level.

Smoke eyes grew wide as saucers. He never knew that the Beggar's Adaptation had this kind of effect. He wondered if this was only exclusive to dungeon maps. This Zuchthaus Labyrinth was his first dungeon after all.

With the increased speed, Smoke thought he could almost match Espion's movement, but the young Spy was still ten meters ahead of him. Nevertheless, with this speed it was now possible to run away from the krampus monsters if they did encounter them.

Smoke wondered how it came to be. He checked on his ability list and found that his 'Agility of the Horned Rabbit' had increased its level. It was now at Advance level 5 with a bonus of +450 to Agility.

This made them out maneuver the three krampus monsters. Both Smoke and Espion ran for the nearest great hall. They needed to use the throng of monsters to block the three krampus' path.

The DarkElf used his Rzeka glaive as a pole vault and leapt across the feuding monsters of fire salamanders and crested newts. While Espion vigilantly leapt over their heads.

When they were safely across. Smoke decided to test his arrows against one of the krampus monsters. He used a poison arrow, a fire arrow, and an electro arrow to see which element the krampus were weak against.

All three arrows were in the same damage range of 1,200-1,400. Smoke decided to use the poison arrows if ever they needed to face the krampus.

However, a quick mental calculation based on his inflicted damage told him that he would need approximately two hours in order to kill just one of them.

There was no possibility they could win against all three krampus monsters at once. Smoke followed Espion as he ran into a tunnel.

Espion cleverly lost the krampus monsters behind. Smoke and the young Spy kept on their fast pace as they made sure to have a far distance between them and the krampus monsters.

As their journey proceeded, Smoke asked Espion to head to all the great halls, and monster dens. He told him that they needed to increase their levels and their battle compatibility.

The DarkElf also took all of Espion's weapons and equipment. He transmuted them with monster hides and the wolf spider's threads.

Espion's armor had increased its durability and defense. Smoke also increased the damage of Espion's throwing knives.

Smoke thought that they couldn't keep on running away from the krampus monsters forever. The four-day peregrination turned into a six-day training session.

Igniz was very useful as he served as a diversion when they fought against the monsters. The dark ember sprite also refined his firewall creation, and turned it into a blinding wall of light. Which gave Smoke and Espion their needed space to regroup.

Smoke had minimal improvement in terms of level increase. He only raised his level to 94. However, he wasn't after his personal training.

For them to have a chance against the krampus, he needed to have a decent party member. What Smoke truly wanted was to raise Espion's fighting ability.

Espion was only at level 82 when they met, but now he was at level 87. The young Spy was able to dodge up to eleven monsters at once.

Smoke hoped that this dodge rate was enough to stand against a krampus monster. They had traveled all of the possible monster dens and great halls in the area.

Both of them stood in front of an engraved door similar to the hidden air chamber. The plaque on the engraved door stated:

I am called the bringer of life,
but I do not have any form.
Without me plants are in strife.
I am very abundant in a storm.
What am I?

Smoke looked at Espion, and raised his eyebrow.

"Are all the hidden chambers opened with elements?"

Espion nodded.

"Pretty much. Once you get one of them the rest are kind of easy."

The DarkElf took out one of his canisters of water and poured some into the spherical cavity. The engraved door opened, and both of them entered at once.

The room had a similar size to the first hidden chamber which Espion showed the DarkElf. The rectangular room had an area of 150 square meters.

Smoke searched for the receptacle, and took out a shiny emerald, the stone of vision. He stood beside the inscribed plaque.

Place the stone of vision
to meet the second revision.

"Espion, are you ready?"

The young Spy motioned that he was excited to see what the stone had to offer.

"Do you think another gem will appear, and we'll take that to the hidden Fire chamber?"

Igniz hovered near Smoke, as he placed the green colored gem into the receptacle. The whole room shook and dust started to fall from the ceiling and the pillars.

A large opening started to part on the far side of the wall opposite to the entrance. Smoke and Espion looked at each other and wondered whether they should walk closer towards the opening.

Ca-chunk! Ca-chunk! Ca-chunk!

Sounds of heavy chains being flung was heard from the opening. Smoke instantly realized that he had made a terrible mistake.

Slowly a pair of black horns came into view. It was followed shortly with two cold black eyes. Both of them saw the head of a huge krampus.

The gigantic hairy monster stepped out of the opening. Its eyes were fixed on the two intruders before it. It took its heavy chain and whirled it over its head.

The krampus threw its chain against Smoke. The DarkElf was able to dodge it, but the debris from the chain's impact damaged him. Smoke's lifebar displayed (91,867/92,212 HP).

The DarkElf briskly equipped his Rzeka glaive. Simultaneously, Espion threw sixteen fire enchanted knives at the krampus' back.

With the krampus' high defense, each throwing knife only damaged the beast for 240-310 points. Igniz trapped the krampus in a fire cage.

However, the krampus broke through Igniz's fire cage like it was made out of red paper. The krampus' lifebar displayed (342,680/350,000 HP). Together with its name, Herzog Popanz.

The krampus that they previously encountered only had 280,000 HP. Popanz had 25% more HP when compared with an ordinary krampus. Even the maneator king, Konig Mitleid only had 300,000 HP.

Lumbering, Popanz ran towards Espion with its iron chain spinning over its head. Popanz was about to launch his chain against the young Spy, when Smoke who stealthily circled around the monster, leapt from behind.

There was barely any space in the room for his weapon. Yet, the DarkElf swung his Rzeka glaive, and delivered a loud crashing blow, worth 2,100 points on Popanz's right shoulder blade. The krampus winced in pain and stumbled forward.

Espion took advantage of Popanz unbalanced state and ran at the krampus with a pair of green dual knives. The Tail's of the Virile and Fecund Lizards knives which Smoke had leant him, was lodged into Popanz head.

The krampus cried out, and tried to grab Espion with both its hands. The young Spy was able to dodge with a hair's breadth.

Smoke and Espion stood on opposite sides of Popanz. The krampus looked left and right, and was confused on who to attack.

Popanz grabbed its heavy chain and started to swirl it around the whole hidden chamber. The length of the heavy chain was enough to cover the areas where Smoke and Espion stood.

On the double, Espion dodged down. While Smoke quickly unequipped his Rzeka glaive, and scaled up to the ceiling of the secret room with his rare gloves, Claws of Chiropterra.

Clinging to the ceiling with his right hand, Smoke took out his electro charged bullwhip. He aimed for Popanz's right hand which held the heavy iron chains.

The DarkElf cracked his bullwhip, and stopped the heavy iron chains from swirling around the room. Smoke held onto Popanz's caught arm with all his might.

The moment the attack of the swirling chains halted, Espion ran to Popanz. The young Spy performed thirty two blinding slashes on the krampus' right armpit.

During their past six days of training, Smoke taught Espion to focus on the monsters' limbs. A severed limb meant the monster would receive a maimed status.

Also, the damage of the amputating blow was more than doubled. Espion was inculcated to follow up after Smoke's attack. The initial blow to Popanz's right shoulder blade meant that the young Spy was supposed to attack the opposite side of the same limb.

The thirty-two slashes from the green dual knives only made a total damage of 8,640 points. The bullwhip's electric shock damage only did 120 points every 3 seconds.

Nevertheless, Popanz was still caught. The krampus did its best to snatch Espion with his left hand, but the young Spy was too fast for it.

Espion kept on with his lightning fast slashes, and managed a total damage of 25,920 points. Popanz's lifebar now displayed (312,940/350,000 HP).

The humongous krampus realized that it needed to free itself from the DarkElf's bullwhip. It grabbed a hold of Smoke's bullwhip.

Popanz focused all of its strength, and pulled Smoke towards it. The DarkElf was unhinged from the ceiling, and hurled rapidly into the Popanz's dangerous hand.

Smoke did not resist Popanz's pull. Instead, he welcomed it. As he was yanked towards the krampus, he took out his flamdius sword with his right hand.

The DarkElf used the momentum from the hauled bullwhip attached to his left hand, and lunged his sword into the Popanz right shoulder joint.

Simultaneously, Espion kept on hacking on the opposite side. Popanz had prepared itself for another attack that came near its torso.

The krampus hugged Smoke with all its might. The death squeeze attack damaged Smoke for 1,200 points per second.

Igniz and Espion became desperate. Igniz began firing his strongest fireballs on Popanz head, but its low damage at 150-200 points made no effect on the krampus.

While Espion climbed on top of Popanz shoulder and started to hack at his right shoulder joint with the green dual knives.

The Tail's of the Virile and Fecund Lizards active ability to paralyze an opponent did not work on Popanz. Espion became desperate as he saw Smoke's lifebar drop to (55,867/92,212 HP).

Igniz stopped attacking with his fireball attacks. The dark ember sprite knew he had to do something to save Smoke's life.

He charged at Popanz with his top speed. Igniz's dark purple flaming body was small enough to fit into one of Popanz gigantic nostrils.

The dark ember sprite rammed himself into Popanz nose. Once inside he began emitting bursts of powerful flame attacks.

Popanz's fire resistance was weaker from the inside of its body. Each of Igniz's flame attacks damaged the krampus for 800 points.

The dark ember sprite lodged in the krampus' nose severely irritated the huge beast. Popanz released its death grip on Smoke, and tried to wriggle Igniz out of its nose.

As soon as he was released. Smoke activated his necklace, Heart of ReenTe. The necklace's active ability increased the DarkElf's lifebar at an amazing rate.

On the ground Smoke switched weapons, and took out his Rzeka glaive. He focused all of his energy on his feet and leapt up with all his might.

Smoke swung down his Rzeka glaive with a deadly blow, and finally severed the krampus' right arm. Smoke damaged the krampus for 8,400 points.

Popanz cried out in pain as its blood began to gush out of where his severed limb used to be. The krampus' lifebar shown (268,828/350,000HP).

Igniz remained safe inside the nose and kept on with his flame attacks. Smoke quickly gave the young Spy an order.

"Espion, grab Popanz's iron chains, and lock its left arm into its body!"

Swiftly, Espion unequipped the green dual knives, and followed Smoke's command. He managed to circle around Popanz three times.

Espion successfully disabled the krampus with its own weapon. Smoke switched his attacks onto Popanz's kneecaps.

With a strong horizontal Mountain Split attack, the DarkElf knocked Popanz down to the floor. He started to chop off the krampus' right leg.

"Espion, start on the back of Popanz's neck."

"You got it."

Popanz writhed around on the floor. The monster was in complete pain. The maimed status and the loss of blood, drained some of the krampus' strength.

Smoke kept on striking down Popanz's knee cap. After his sixteenth stroke the krampus' right knee was sliced off completely.

The combined attack of Smoke, Espion, and Igniz whittled down Popanz's lifebar. It now displayed (145,628/350,000 HP).

"I've almost got its head as well."

The krampus' second severed limb gave back its drained strength. The monster busted out of its own chains. Popanz went after Espion's head.

The young Spy was busy slashing the krampus' neck that he didn't notice Popanz's claws were coming at him.

"Espion! Behind you!"

Espion turned around and saw the claws right in front of his eyes. He tried to dodge, but Popanz reached Espion's face and scratched his right eye.

Igniz flew out of Popanz nose as he tried to look after the injured Espion.

Smoke moved in front of Popanz and swung his Rzeka glaive at the krampus' eyes as well. The strike temporarily blinded the beast.

The DarkElf twisted his body as far as it allowed him. He stretched out his glaive for maximum force.

"Igniz, enchant my glaive!"

Immediately, his Rzeka glaive was covered in smouldering flames. Smoke struck Popanz's neck with all his might.

However, the hit was not enough to decapitate the beast. Espion tried to help by throwing his enhanced knives at the back of Popanz's neck.

Only eight out of his sixteen throwing knives hit their target. At the same time, Smoke kept on striking the front of Popanz's neck.

Popanz tried to grab Smoke, but without its right arm and right leg it had a hard time trying to move.

Smoke, Espion, and Igniz kept on with their attacks. Until finally, Smoke delivered the finishing blow and decapitated Popanz's head.

+ Your party has dealt a fatal blow to krampus: Herzog Popanz.

+ Your party killed krampus: Herzog Popanz.

+ Your party gained 400,000 exp.

As the body of the krampus, Herzog Popanz. started to fade away, it left behind a precious loot.

+ Acquired rare iron chains: 'Swirling Iron of Death'.

+ Acquired krampus hide.

+ Acquired krampus horns.

+ Acquired krampus hooves.

+ Acquired krampus embryo.

Smoke didn't have the time to check on the dropped items. He quickly stored them away in his backpack window.

After he secured the items, the DarkElf went to see how Espion was doing. The krampus' attack blinded Espion's right eye.

"Are you okay?"

"I'll live. Don't worry about it. If you hadn't warned me in time, that monster would've probably cleaned my head off."

Smoke prepared his medicinal deer stew after he applied bandages on Espion's eyes.

As they ate, Smoke inspected the items and found that the acquired krampus embryo was described as the key to unlocking the center of the labyrinth.

Smoke told Espion and Igniz that as soon as they were rested they would head back to the central hidden chamber.

* * * * * *

Back in the central hidden chamber of Fire. Smoke, Espion, and Igniz prepared for the worst. They were at optimum fighting condition.

Espion had his throwing knives at the ready, and Igniz was prepared to launch a series of fire cages or even lodge himself into another nostril.

Smoke carefully placed the krampus embryo on top of the pedestal at the center of the hidden chamber. Once again the whole hidden chamber shook as an aperture appeared on the floor behind the pedestal.

Smoke, Espion, and Igniz were on full alert. All of them stared at the opening on the floor with bated breath.

A minute passed and no horns came out from the opening. Smoke signaled them to start moving closer into the aperture.

Smoke switched weapons from his Rzeka glaive to his flamdius sword and Armadillo shield. Espion did the same and switched to the green dual knives.

Vigilantly, all of them peeked at the aperture. They all saw that there was a staircase which led downwards.

"Igniz, can you go do a quick check on what's waiting for us below?"

The dark ember sprite gave a nod, and stealthily went into the opening. A few seconds later Igniz came out and gave the 'all clear' signal.

Smoke and Espion still had their weapons out as they went down the staircase. Igniz lit the whole room as it was required him.

The DarkElf saw that the hidden room inside the secret Fire chamber was actually a laboratory of the Tenebris.

The laboratory was larger than the room above at 300 square meters. It had mountains and mountains of books scattered all over the place.

However, there was one table that caught Smoke's attention. On the desk was a journal entitled 'How to Create a Maneator'.

Chapter Nine: Remember Verbrannt

The clear blue sky was cloudless. The hot sun shone brightly over the gathered crowd in the eastern village of Timur.

One hundred fifty thousand people were seated on the stands of the finish line for the Mounted Race. The scorching heat made the crowd more restless.

The announcer's voice boomed over the speakers.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, our first racer has reached the five kilometer marker. As soon as they come out of Otaczac forest, they will have to run through the last three kilometers of plains right before you. If you don't have special long range telescopes or other similar devices, you can view the action in our giant jumbovision screen behind me. Our jumbovision is brought to us by the Light Wizards of Regard. If it's lights and sights, make it Regard."

Five minutes passed, and a Druid on top of a wind scorpion was shown in high definition on the jumbovision. His wind scorpion appeared to be floating over the plains.

Three seconds later, two Lioumerean Pathfinders with their stag moose came out in hot pursuit of the Druid. Despite the close gap, the wind scorpion still had a clear advantage over the stag moose on the plains.

Slowly, the gap between the Druid and the Pathfinders grew. Laernea and Gandiva pushed their mounts to their limits, but it was futile.

Soutien, the Druid, maintained his lead and won first place. While Laernea and Gandiva placed second and third respectively.

When all three of them came to a halt, the Druid gave the Lioumereans a bow. It was to signify that he enjoyed the race against them. Laernea and Gandiva were unresponsive.

They crossed their arms and stared back at him. The moment Soutien turned his back, the two of them simultaneously stuck out their tongues at the Druid.

An hour passed before the tenth placer crossed the finish line. The Mounted Race event would officially end 24 hours after the first placer.

Yet, preparations for the awarding ceremony started as soon as the seventh placer arrived. All seven racers were asked to join Duke Burmistrz on stage.

With the stage set, the Mayor of Coatl stood in front of everyone. Duke Burmistrz addressed the audience in the stands.

"Friends! Standing before you are the finest racers in all of Zectas! Our experts estimate that only 50% of those who started the race will be able to finish. So, you can all imagine how talented these racers are. Let's give them a round of applause."

Everybody clapped and cheered for the top racers of Coatl City's Mounted Race.

Soutien, Laernea, and Gandiva were on top of the podium marked 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. All of them carried their respective trophies and were waving to the crowd. The participants who won fourth to seventh place stood a foot below them.

All of them were given their promised prizes. Soutien was awarded with 10 million zecs and a golden armored carriage.

While Laernea and Gandiva only won a total of 7 million zecs. They watched Soutien drive away in his luxurious carriage.

With the completion of the awarding ceremony, Laernea tried to call Smoke and asked for his location.

"Gandiva, I can't contact him..."

The tigress Lioumerean's face was stricken with worry.

"You don't think a bandit killed him in their attack against that Brandal base?"

"There's no way that could happen."

Laernea couldn't believe such a thing was possible.

"I'll try to call Sierra and see if she has any idea what's going on."

The lioness Lioumerean called their second in command.

"Hi, Laernea. What's up?"

"Umm. I was wondering if you know what happened to Smoke? Did Sagen and his men get to him?"

Sierra's voiced got louder and defensive.

"No, he didn't! I took care of Sagen and his men personally."

"Of course, of course. It's just that I tried to call Smoke, and was about to tell him that Gandiva and I won second and third place in the Mounted Race."

"Second and Third place? Somebody was faster than you two? How did Smoke take the news?"

"That's the problem. I tried calling him, but there was no answer. What do you think happened to him?"

There was no response from the werebear.

"Sierra, you still there?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm still here. This isn't the time to be worrying about Smoke. I'm sure he's doing fine, wherever he is. For now just come to our location. I have a special task for the both of you."

* * * * * *

When Sierra asked Smoke for advice on what to do against the incoming Brandal army, he told her that he wanted them to retreat back to Nanahuatl.

However, there were two major reasons why Smoke needed them to remain and fight the approaching Brandal forces.

First, was securing the whole southern region of Coatl, since Sierra wasn't able to locate the exit of the labyrinth.

Second, was to help the harassed and massacred villages. Smoke had promised the members of his private army that they were going to be protectors of the weak, and the upholders of justice.

Smoke had to make sure to maintain his intimacy level with his private army. If he left the troubled villages alone, he would risk losing members of his private army.

Sierra had no problem when Smoke asked her to stay. Even though it was only a game in a virtual reality world, she still felt the suffering of the villagers.

The DarkElf told her that he would deal with the immediate threat of the Brandals gathered within the zone during the Mounted Race event, but this wasn't an assurance that Sierra and the rest of his private army were already safe.

Which was why, on the day the Mounted Race even started, Smoke secretly paid 10 million zecs and hired 500 men from the Avendre Mercenaries in Coatl City.

Even though they were Mercenaries, the Avendre were loyal to a fault. Once a contract was made with them, they would honor it to the death.

Unfortunately, the Avendre informed Smoke that they could only send the men to Sierra's location within two weeks.

Smoke decided to push through with the contract even if there was a long delay. The Avendre were costly, but Smoke knew they were a necessary expense.

The DarkElf thought to himself that zecs could be earned again, but the lives of his men and the maneators he could rescue were priceless.

Smoke thought that Sierra would love this surprise once she's seen it.

Even after Smoke planned his countermeasures. He still felt that they weren't safe. So, he sent Sierra a short checklist on what they could do in their end.

This was to increase their success rate on surviving the Brandals' attacks.

Sierra's TODO:

1. Find an impregnable headquarters.
2. Gather the villagers from the other ruined villages.
3. Train the villagers into formidable fighters.
4. Improve the levels and abilities of the members of the private army.
5. Map out the whole southern region

Sierra started all five tasks, but didn't finish all of them. They found their headquarters, but it wasn't impregnable.

They started to gather residents from the devastated villages, but there were still more villages to visit.

Adder and Jinggu started to train the villagers, but their training couldn't be completed because Sierra needed them to work on reinforcing the castle.

Smoke's private army did increase their levels. At the moment, Vijaya had the lowest level at 87. Followed by Thyrsus, Sharanga, and Ichaival at 88.

Laernea and Gandiva greatly increased their levels from the Mounted Race. The Lioumereans were now at level 89.

Sharur and Jinggu, the Range Siegers, shared the same level as the Pathfinders. While Adder had the highest level at 90.

With all the Brandals Sierra killed, she increased her level to 95. Some of the other members had started doing personal training, but most of them spent their time training and instructing the new volunteers.

With the help of his falcon Thyr and his 'Falcon Vision' ability, Thyrsus mapped 30% of the entire southern region, but his progress was still behind schedule.

Sierra asked Thyrsus for the optimal points to place sentries. She likewise ordered the men to dig out escape tunnels to these locations.

The sentry volunteers were given special flares to alert Sierra and the main force against invaders.

Thyrsus improved on Sierra's sentry plan. He devised the sentry posts to work as a series of distress signals.

The furthest sentry was ten kilometers away from Verbrannt Castle, and the next sentry towards the castle had a distance of two kilometers.

In this manner, their warning system covered a wider range and had the ability to alert them at an outstanding speed.

* * * * * *

With all tasks unfinished, Sierra checked on the progress of reinforcing their headquarters. She hoped that their chosen castle could withstand a horde of Brandals.

She thoroughly inspected the improvements done on the ruined castle. This stronghold belonged to Lord Faible, the former ruler of Verbrannt Village.

Sierra and Adder both agreed that this was the best place for their headquarters.

From a short distance, the wide Murray river covered their whole western front.

While, to the east of Verbrannt Castle was Mount Engrais. The snow capped volcano stretched out for miles. It was almost impassable. This dormant volcano made the surrounding soil rich and fertile.

Verbrannt village was so vast that its outer walls were not visible from the castle. There were many parts of the village that laid in ruin, and were reclaimed by the forest of Otaczac.

Their ninety recruits of Fishermen and Farmers used big rocks to repair the damages done on the walls.

They then applied clay plasters on the piled up stones. They used a special type of mud-clay that was abundant in the nearby riverbank.

Sierra was on top of the castle's highest tower. She stopped her inspection and took a minute to enjoy the picturesque landscape. The wide and winding Murray river coupled with the towering and grandiose Mount Engrais.

"Why in the world would the villagers leave this place?"

The red werebear wondered out loud.

One of the Farmers working on the tower's reconstruction heard her.

"Excuse me, miss werebear. I'm Veinard Gars, I'm a survivor from Salah village. If you'd like, I can tell you the tragedy that befell this place?"

Sierra turned around and found a forty-year-old man was putting clay plasters on the tower.

"I'm sorry, I didn't see you there. I was just talking to myself."

"Oh, I see. Well, if you ever change your mind. I'm sure you can ask anyone. This village was quite famous you know?"

"I think I can spare a moment. What exactly happened here?"

The Farmer went closer to Sierra and began to tell the massacre of Verbrannt.

"Before the Brandals and Cavalry Knights arrived in the southern region of Coatl, this village was known to be the most prominent village in the whole area."

Veinard pointed across the entire scenery.

"Everything you see before you flourished. The fishes were plenty and the harvest was always abundant. All the other villages envied Verbrannt. Regrettably, this was also the reason why it was razed to the ground. The Brandals of the southern legion, wanted to make a bold statement to the whole area."

Sierra raised her eyebrow as she wondered what exactly the Brandal scoundrels did.

"In broad daylight, all 5,000 bandits of the southern legion, pillaged, plundered, murdered, and raped the residents of Verbrannt. Then, they chopped up the body of Lord Faible to pieces. They attached a piece of the lord's body to a black ctenosaur. Then they had the six foot long lizard carry the severed piece along with a note."

Here is a body part of Faible, Lord of Verbrannt.
The residents suffered a fate worse than their lord.
Pay us our demands or suffer more than the Verbrannts!

King of the Brandals,

~ Ultimo Maire

"Other villages laughed and ignored the warning. Most of us thought it was just some stupid prank. It wasn't until more villages burnt down before we realized that the Brandals' threat was real."

Veinard looked up to the sky. He touched his forehead with his right hand and raised it upward. It was how Cuezaltzinians performed a short prayer to their god.

"I think it's very fitting that you chose this place to rally the troubled people, scattered in the southern region."

Sierra awkwardly replied.

"Really? We only chose this place because of its geographical advantage against invasions."

"Regardless of whatever reason. I think this tower will be a beacon of hope to everyone in the area."

Sierra nodded. She smiled as she thought that they were giving peace to the long troubled people in the region.

* * * * * *

The Huntress Vijaya felt useless. Her twin sister Sharanga blossomed into an invaluable member of Smoke's private army. Sharanga's traps and other inventions were very useful in all their operations.

The WoodElf secluded herself in a clearing, deep within Otaczac forest. She had been secretly training for the past weeks. She thought she would be most useful if she could obtain Thyrsus' ability 'Falcon Vision'.

Her twin falcons could cover more area to spy on. She also envied Thyrsus, because even without his 'Falcon Vision' ability he was one of the tacticians in their military operations.

She tried closing her eyes, but she couldn't see what her falcons were seeing. She felt that she had no chance of gaining Thyrsus' ability.

Vijaya regretted that she relied on her falcons for attack power. She wasn't able to give out any massive damage like Ichaival's 'Phantom Arrows', which had improved from firing four arrows to six.

The young Huntress started to imitate Ichaival's training in Madam Dawny's farm. Vijaya held three arrows in one hand, and started to fire as fast as she could. Yet, that also felt awkward to the WoodElf.

Vijaya was frustrated and didn't know what to do. She heard a branch crack behind her. She quickly had her bow and arrow aimed on the source of the sound.

The one who stepped on the branch was a one-armed man.

"Vijaya, calm down. Sorry if I startled you. I was just out doing some recon. Since most of the recruits are rebuilding the castle."

"Adder! What the heck? Couldn't you have called out my name or something?"

"Sorry, I thought that would've broken your concentration."

"Concentration? Are you making fun of me? I must've looked really pathetic, huh?"

Adder shook his in disagreement.

"No, on the contrary I think you're on the right path. Let me tell you something Darius told me, when I lost my arm."

Vijaya tilted her head. She was curious as to what Master Darius said.

"It is only when we hit rock bottom that we can build a stronger foundation of our improved selves."

Adder saw that Vijaya was confused.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure it'll come to you."

After he shared Darius' advise, the one-armed Condortlian briskly disappeared into the forest.

Vijaya was slumped on the ground. She started to wail out her frustrations. She felt insignificant and inadequate. Her twin falcons, Vij and Aya, came down and perched on her shoulders.

Her falcons tried their best to console her. They started to shriek and chitter.

Kekkek kekk kekeeeekk kekk

"What do you mean I've been talking to you? Of course I can talk to you. I'm a Hunter, remember? All Hunters can talk with their falcons."

Kekkkekk keeek kkeekk kekeke

"Correct, Aya. Like that's something special. I see Sharanga talking with her falcon all the time. What's so special with how I talk to you guys?"

Keeekk keekekek kekekeke.

"Huh? Sharanga's falcon doesn't understand what she's saying, not like how you two understand me?"

Kekke kekek kkeeek.

"Yeah, of course I remember the time when an arrow struck your wing, Vij."

Kekekk ekekek ekkekk.

"You mean I gained an ability from that time?"

Vijaya checked her ability list and was astonished to see a new ability she had never seen before, 'Falcon Tongue'.

Keke keekekeeeek kekekekekek.

"I think you're right, Aya. I was too absorbed mending Vij's wound that I didn't notice my new ability. It says that with this I could talk to all falcons and they could completely understand me."

Vijaya thought that she could use her 'Falcon Tongue' for scouting. She tried having Vij fly 200 meters ahead of her and Aya 200 meters behind her.

She called out to them and asked them what they saw. They shrieked back their answers, and Vijaya understood them perfectly.

She thought to herself that she could go to a Hunter Shop, and get more falcons. The condition of calling out the falcons name wasn't a problem for her any longer.

Her scouting range was shorter than Thyrsus, but that could easily be solved if she had more falcons.

* * * * * *

Sierra was on the grounds of Verbrannt Castle when she heard the lookout on one of the twelve towers screaming that a cloud of dust was coming towards them.

She looked at the familiar cloud of dust and she knew that they were from Laernea and Gandiva's blindingly fast stag moose.

The Lioumereans were punctual as usual, and arrived right on the dot of their promised time.

"Gandiva, Laernea. You guys are finally here."

The red werebear opened her arms and gave the two Lioumereans a bear hug.

"Thanks for coming to greet us. Where are the others?"

Gandiva hugged Sierra back with all her might, while Laernea lightly gave her a quick pat on the back.

"I'm glad you asked. They're all at the dirus wolves pen."

Laernea and Gandiva both looked at each other.

"Since when do you have dirus wolves?"

"Oh, its from the time I slaughtered Sagen and his men. After their bodies disappeared, we managed to capture ten dirus wolves. The other nineteen wolves fought to the death, rather than being captured. I think those captured wolves mustn't have bonded with their riders yet."

Laernea nodded as they were being led into the dirus wolves holding pen.

"I see, and what are you planning to do with them?"

"Actually, that's the reason why everybody's excited to see you two."

"Huh? What do we have to do with the dirus wolves?"

"Sharur mentioned that you could teach them the Basic Riding ability."

"So, this was the task that you had us rush over for?"

Sierra laughed as she saw the exasperated faces of Gandiva and Laernea.

When they got to the dirus wolves pen, the Lioumereans were swarmed by Sharur, Jinggu, Ichaival, Thyrsus, Sharanga, and Vijaya.

Adder remained near the dirus wolves' fence, and lightly nodded at the Lioumereans.

Gandiva and Laernea's eyebrows met at the center of their faces. They scowled and pushed all of them back.

Laernea crossed her arms when they had enough room from their excited friends.

"Cut it out. We both know why you're all excited to see us."

Gandiva snarled at them, and in a cranky voice spoke to their eager students.

"Let me just inform you that the 'Basic Riding' ability gives you no enhancements whatsoever. It just allows you to ride mountable monsters. Do you understand?"

Laernea added in their conditions for teaching them the ability to ride mounts.

"Remember, all of you must obey all our instructions all the time. You should call us Master. If you disobey us even once, you will be banned from our lessons. Is that understood?"

The six persons in front of the two Lioumereans nodded enthusiastically.

"Fine! Let's proceed with our first lesson. If all goes well, we should be done in a couple of hours."

* * * * * *

In the real world, Smoke made Sierra study the ranks and formations of modern day military. He also asked her to apply them to their gathered villagers.

From her studies, Sierra learned that an organized group of weak individuals had a chance to defeat stronger opponents in disarray.

Together with Adder, Sierra decided that this was how their militia could operate. The plan was to grow the militia to the point where each member of Smoke's private army could lead one battalion. As leaders of a battalion, they were given the title of Commander.

One battalion had two platoons. One platoon was made out of six to eight squads. One squad was made out of five to seven individuals.

Sierra's formed militia followed this chain of command. A platoon leader was given the title Lieutenant. He was directly in charge of the squad leaders.

While a squad leader had the title of Sergeant. At the very least, each squad was comprised of 3 Farmers and 2 Fishermen. This was Sierra's chosen formation to give their militia a defensive edge.

The Farmers had high HPs and decent defense, but they had low attack power. Whereas the Fishermen had high attack but low HPs and defense.

Sierra was on foot as she set off for the nearest rundown village of Nasunugan. She wasn't able to learn the 'Basic Riding' ability because no dirus wolf could hold the weight of her werebear form.

Sierra brought one platoon along with her to the village. Her werebear curse made it impossible for her to give a good first impression, so she chose one of the villagers to be her representative.

The red werebear made Veinard Gars into a Lieutenant. He was the forty year old man who spoke passionately about Verbrannt Village. She thought his zealousness could convince the residents of the ruined villages.

When they reached Nasunugan Village. Veinard made the people remember how the Brandals ravaged not only their village, but how the bandits laid waste to Verbrannt.

The villagers recalled the horrendous incident, and felt that if they didn't leave their home they could become the next Verbrannt.

Veinard was honest and sincere. The village leaders and their residents knew that what he spoke was the truth. All the residents of Nasunugan joined them.

As the last citizens of Nasunugan left their ruined village, Sierra wondered how the rest of the private army were doing.

Sharur, Jinggu, Thyrsus, and Ichaival were out on a similar quest. They traveled to the remote villages with their own platoon of volunteers. They proudly rode on the backs of their new dirus wolves.

When Sharanga received a message from Darius, she asked Gandiva to take her back home to Nanahuatl, the WoodElf needed to return home as soon as possible.

Adder and Laernea stayed behind Verbrannt Castle to continue training the Farmers and Fishermen. They needed all the training they could get against mounted enemies.

After Nasunugan Village, Sierra went to Verderben Village. There, she had Veinard repeat his magic. She had him convince the crowd to join their cause.

When Sierra returned to Verbrannt Castle, She gathered a total of 383 refugees from the two villages. She asked Adder to help with the new arrivals. She had those willing to fight be sorted into squads.

Sierra saw that Laernea was impatiently waiting for her to be free, as the lioness Lioumerean kept within her line of sight.

"Can I help you with something, Laernea?"

"Yeah, you can! It's been almost two days and we haven't heard anything from Smoke. Can't you contact him in your other world?"

Sierra thought about calling Smoke, but then she realized that he would have called if he really wanted to talk to her.

"Aren't you guys together all the time in your other world? I thought the two of you were a couple?"

The red werebear became defensive as Laernea pressed on with her questions.

"No, we aren't like that. We're just friends. In fact, I've never been to his house."

Sierra caught a glimpse of Laernea's smile when she finished talking.

"Oh, I thought that the two of you lived together or something."

"Laernea, do you like Smoke?"

"What? Why in the world would you think that? I'm just worried about him. If he died then shouldn't he have resurrected by now?"

Sierra patted Laernea's shoulders.

"I've been worrying about him too, but we still can't contact him. Don't worry, I'll give him a call when I get back to the other world."

* * * * * *

Sherry got out of her gamepod. Her mind was filled with what Laernea told her. She picked up her cell phone. She was about to dial Nash's number, when her uncle called her from downstairs.

"Sherry? Sherry? Can you hear me? I'm about to go to the groceries, do you want anything?"

"Wait up. I need to buy some stuff as well."

Sherry rushed down and waited for her uncle to drive out of the garage. She sat in the front seat of her uncle's black sedan.

They rode to the supermarket in awkward silence. Sherry wanted to reconcile with him after she made his new girlfriend eat her exotic Zectas dishes.

She was about to speak when her uncle Alex beat her to it.

"Listen, I'm really sorry about Gloria's visit. I may have overreacted a bit, she's just not into special food."

Sherry remained silent, and stared straight at the road.

"Awww, don't be like that. I thought your special menu was delicious. In fact, I've asked some of our investors to have a taste at it."

"Why did you do that? I'm not yet ready to have outsiders taste it yet."

"Ahh... Well, I haven't given them a date, but I think this could really be something. I think if you have more exotic dishes then you could have a special restaurant."

"That was my plan right from the start. Before Gloria told me it wasn't any good."

"You shouldn't let one person's opinion distract you from achieving your dream."

"I know that, and I didn't say I was gonna quit. I'm still searching for more recipes to add to my menu."

"Good. Just tell me whenever you're ready. I can set up a meeting with the investors then."

Sherry beamed. She knew her uncle Alex still had her best interests at heart.

As she got out of the car, she noticed that her cell phone's notification light was on. She swiped her thumb over the screen to check the notification.

It was a voice mail from Nash. The redhead was ecstatic. She just reconciled with her uncle and now this.

"You can go on ahead. I've got something important to do."

"Okay, just find me when you're done."

Sherry went to a quiet corner of the supermarket and listened to Nash's voice mail.

"Hi, it's Nash. Uh... I'm really sorry I haven't informed you of my whereabouts in Zectas. I was so caught up trying to solve the puzzles in the labyrinth that I.... Oh well, at least I'm inside the labyrinth now, right? Also, as it turns out the leader of the Brandals was Duke Burmistrz, and Macher was working under him. I knew there was a reason why I had a bad feeling about him. Can I ask you to tell the rest of the private army not to worry? I'll call them as soon as I'm out of the labyrinth. That dungeon disables all forms of communication to the outside world. I think that's everything for now?  Oh, and I also found Caid's son, Espion..."

Her smile turned into a frown, after she heard Nash's voice mail. She couldn't believe how he could be so insensitive.

Nash didn't ask for an update. He didn't even ask how she was. All he said was to reassure his private army that he was fine. The more she thought about the voice mail, the more she felt unimportant.

Furthermore, she wondered why it took him so long to call her. So, she decided to call him when she wanted to say something to him, and at the moment she wanted to say nothing.

Nevertheless, she was still glad that he finally found his way into the labyrinth. Nash additionally gave her vital information about the Brandal's leader. She never expected it to be the Mayor of Coatl City.

* * * * * *

Sierra watched the 250 men clothed in leather armor assembled before her. They were armed with fishing spears, pitchforks, and wooden shields. She saw both fear and determination in their eyes. It was just five minutes ago when they saw a yellow flare launched from the south east.

One yellow flare meant that there were around 500 intruders. Sierra decided to face them head on. Since, she didn't want to expose their headquarters' location.

Laernea stayed in the castle with two platoons made up of 80 recruits. Someone had to stay behind, and protect Verbrannt Castle. As a precautionary measure against invaders who could break through Sierra's attack force.

The 250 men were divided into two battalions. Sierra took command of the first battalion, and would attack their enemies from the front, while Adder took command of the second battalion.

They were assigned to perform a surprise attack from the side. Both Sierra and Adder gambled that the two pronged attack would catch the Brandals off guard.

Sierra ordered her battalion to hold their position when they reached five kilometers away from the castle. Whereas Adder's battalion moved further ahead to hide in the forest.

The Invading Brandals finally came into view. Sierra saw five Brandal Leaders, and estimated the bandits to be near 400 rather than what the flare signal indicated earlier.

The Brandal's stopped and had their 35 Snipers take the front. The Snipers pulled their bows and began their arrow attacks. Sierra responded by ordering her battalion to raise their wooden shields.

A second after the arrows were launched, all the black ctenosaur riders ran from behind the Snipers.

The bandits made a mad dash for Sierra and her battalion. The red werebear ordered the Fishermen to assail them with their spears.

Their intense training and improved fishing spears further increased their attack power. It used to take ten fishing spears to kill a black ctenosaur rider, but now they did it with eight.

Sierra's battalion killed fifteen black ctenosaur riders on their first volley of fishing spears alone, but there were still more than 345 bandits coming straight for them.

The red werebear charged to the front as her men launched their second attack of fishing spears. The black ctenosaur riders clashed against the wooden shields, and broke most of them.

The moment the black ctenosaurs came into contact with Sierra's battalion, Adder and his men came out of hiding from the forest. Adder's battalion launched their own fishing spears at the bandits.

The Brandals were caught by surprise. They were temporarily distracted but the Brandal Leaders who stayed behind called out, and gave them orders.

Sierra and Adder leapt to the center of the swarm of bandits. They took on as many as they could. They wanted the enemy's attention on them, and not on their fledgling militia.

Nevertheless, the 35 Snipers started to pick off Adder's battalion members one by one. While the rest of their militia's front squads were slaughtered by the black ctenosaur riders.

Adder tried to run towards the Brandal Leaders, but numerous bandits would blocked his path. Sierra decided to stay behind, as she tried to protect the members of the militia.

Sierra kept on using her 'Double Slash' ability to push back the black ctenosaur riders. Despite her efforts, the bandits still managed to attack the squads outside of the werebear's defensive reach.

She had a hard time fighting the black ctenosaur riders while defending the militia. She felt like she was fighting with her hands tied behind her back.

The Brandal leaders issued another command, and Adder's battalion was slowly being pushed back into the forest by the black ctenosaur riders.

All the Fishermen from the militia remained focused on attacking the same target. Unfortunately, the Farmers were not able to hold their defensive formation.

The sounds of shattered shields was synonymous to the death of a squad. One of the squad's Farmers used their pitchforks to momentarily block the bandits.

Their desperate attempt gave them the few crucial seconds needed for the other squads behind them to kill the black ctenosaur riders directly in front of them.

The squad with the broken shields retreated while the immediate squad behind them took their place.

The militia's focused attack left the Brandals with 335 bandits. Sadly, it came at a high cost. Sierra and Adder were left with 197 men.

Adder's double bladed sword precisely struck the back of the bandit's necks. The bandits understood his intent on reaching their Leaders, and continued to block his path.

Because of this Adder's lifebar was reduced to (59,210/120,150 HP). Even if he did manage to break through the blockade of black ctenosaur riders, his lifebar wasn't enough to fight against five Brandal Leaders.

Adder knew that a Brandal Leader had 185,000 HP. It was clear he needed to retreat. He started to make his way back to his battalion.

The black ctenosaur riders were waiting for this moment. As soon as Adder turned his back, multiple throwing daggers were fired at him.

Two Brandal leaders left their post from the back and were riding fast towards the one armed man.

From the front of Sierra's battalion, she saw that the Brandals were aiming for Adder. The bandits were moving in for the kill.

Sierra hesitated to leave the militia, but she saw that as the battle progressed they were equally improving. The red werebear made a beeline towards Adder.

She couldn't imagine losing Smoke's right hand man. Her 'Double Slash' ability proved very effective in clearing her path.

Sierra reached Adder in time. The two Brandal Leaders were only ten feet away from him. Adder saw Sierra running to him, she gave him a signal and Adder nodded.

The red werebear held both her claws together, and made it into a jumping board. Adder leapt on Sierra's claws as she threw him upward, increasing the height of his jump.

Adder leapt high. His aim was to land behind the two Brandal Leaders, but the Brandal Leaders took out their bullwhips and caught him in midair.

The two Brandal Leaders pulled him down to the ground hard. Adder was left with 25% of his lifebar. Sierra quickly pulled off the bullwhips before Adder was dragged away.

The two of them were surrounded. Their two battalions were slowly dying. It looked like a hopeless situation. Sierra tried to think of a way to save at least Adder.

As Sierra was looking around for a way out, she saw a cloud of dust rise up from behind the Brandal Leaders.

A carriage pulled by a stag moose came like the wind and blew past the three Brandal leaders who kept to their posts.

Gandiva's carriage had been upgraded. It had two meter spikes attached to the wheels, and an archer tower on the back.

She asked Tulin to use its strong sturdy horns to plow through the black ctenosaurs who blocked their path.

Gandiva made Tulin stop beside Sierra and Adder.

"Hop on. Let's get back to our militia and regroup."

Sharanga was on top of the archer tower. She kept on attacking the black ctenosaurs with her arrows. She ordered her falcon, Shar to throw the five trap systems on the two Brandal leaders.

The first Brandal leader was caught in the trap which weighed him down with 500 kilos, when the five trap system interlocked.

While, the second Brandal leader managed to block the falcon's thrown trap with his bullwhip. Sierra and Adder got safely on board Gandiva's carriage. They were on their way to the front lines of their battalions.

Everybody's attention was focused on the escaping carriage, that they didn't notice the three meter monster carrying two oversized zweihänders appear as the cloud of dusts settled.

"ROOOOOAAAAAARRRRARRGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

The three meter figure was Konig Mitleid, the maneator king! He released his roar and stunned the three Brandal leaders along with the 35 Snipers.

The maneator king dual wielded two oversized zweihänders with ease. Darius' special zweihänders greatly increased Mitleid's attack power.

Mitleid went after the three Brandal Leaders. Each strike of his zweihänder knocked a Brandal leader off his mount.

Mitleid chopped off the heads of their black ctenosaur mounts with one strike from his giant swords.

The maneator king had the ability 'Beast Monarch' which gave him triple damage against beast type monsters.

Sierra went back to the front lines and defended the militia. The maneator king's appearance boosted the morale of the recruits, and at the same time disorganized the bandits.

The red werebear and the militia started to push the Brandals back. The bandits kept on looking back asking for their next orders, but the Brandal leaders were busy dealing with the maneator king.

As Mitleid swung his zweihänders the head of a Brandal leader flew into the air. The two severely wounded Brandal leaders tied their bullwhips to the maneator's arms.

They hoped to restrain the three meter monster, but Mitleid let out his roar and stunned them once more.

Konig Mitleid used the Brandal leader's own weapons, and pulled the two of them to him. He drove the two zweihänders into the ground, and tied up the bandit leaders with their own bullwhips.

The maneator's sadistic nature was clearly seen, as he repeatedly plunged his zweihänders into the bodies of the restrained Brandal leaders.

He was taunting the 35 Brandal Snipers as their arrows kept coming his way.

"ROOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRR!!!"

Mitleid stunned the bandits in the surrounding area. He then rammed his dual zweihänders into the crotches of the captured Brandal Leaders, and split them clean up to their heads.

It took him less than five minutes to deal with the three Brandal leaders. After which, he proceeded to target the Snipers whose arrows only damaged him for 140 points.

The maneator king ran for the dazed Snipers and slaughtered them. arms, legs, and heads were flying everywhere.

When Mitleid was done with the Snipers, he proceeded to the black ctenosaur riders. The bandits were cowering in fear of what they saw.

Mitleid's fiery eyes were blood red. He decapitated the black ctenosaurs as if their heads were made out of paper.

Sierra, Adder, Gandiva, and Sharanga watched in horror after they finished killing the bandits near them. Mitleid single handedly dealt with 75% out of the 400 Brandal invaders.

However, the gruesome sight was unbearable to watch. Only Adder kept on watching Mitleid.

Body parts were scattered everywhere. Konig Mitleid was panting hard and his blood lust was still in the air. Sierra stepped up, and went closer to the maneator king.

"Hey, it's over. You can calm down now. Mitleid? Are you listening to me? Can you hear me?"

Sierra felt nervous as she drew nearer. Mitleid's barehanded damage against her was already at 23,000 points. She didn't want to find out how much those menacing looking zweihänders could damage her.

The red werebear got in front of the maneator king, and raised her hands. Slowly the blood from Mitleid's eyes receded.

"Is it over? Are you guys alright? I didn't hurt any of you, did I?"

"Yes. we're all okay. You didn't harm any of us. Now, let's go to our hideout and regroup. You're in control now, right?"

Konig Mitleid slowly nodded his head, as he was escorted to Gandiva's war carriage.

* * * * * *

A portion of Verbrannt Castle's courtyard was lit up with campfires. Sierra and Adder managed to survive against the first wave of Brandals, and they knew that it wasn't the last.

Sierra knew that it was all because Konig Mitleid came and rescued them. She knew that he was a tough monster boss, but she didn't know how tough.

Unfortunately, surviving the encounter came at a high price. They came out of Verbrannt castle with 250 men and returned home with only 129.

Sierra and Adder visited the families of those that have died. They tried to console them, but no words could satiate the death of a loved one.

The encounter made Sierra rethink her strategy. Her squad formation was wrong. She consulted with Adder and the newly returned Thyrsus.

Thyrsus came back, and brought along 287 survivors from Dibakar village. A few hours later, Ichaival arrived and brought 312 residents of Quemado village.

* * * * * *

Days passed, and Sierra wanted to stabilize the lives of the refugees. She started plotting out her plans for the Verbrannt.

Verbrannt Castle currently had a total population of 996 individuals, non-combatants included. The castle's grounds alone was almost as big as Nanahuatl Village.

Farmers started to plant broccoli, radishes, lettuces, and turnips. While the Fishermen started to catch fish in the nearby Murray River.

The survivors still lived in tents, but Sierra planned on building them proper homes. She only waited for Sharur and Jinggu to return. So, she could give them the task of gathering quality lumber.

Sierra was in the library of Verbrannt Castle. She was busy plotting out areas on a map, and Laernea was distractingly fidgeting in her background.

"What is it, Laernea?"

"Oh, I was just wondering? If you're not too busy? I'd like to ask you about Smoke?"

"I already told you. He's inside the labyrinth and trying to save the maneators. You were there when I repeated this to Mitleid, right?"

"But, maybe you have some new information from him? Didn't he ever call you back again?"

"For the hundredth time. That was the first and last message that I got from Smoke. Now, please leave me alone."

"Alright, alright. It's just that I find it strange that he never called you back when you told him about all the progress we've done."

Sierra felt guilty. She never replied to Smoke's voice mail. Laernea left her alone after that. Sierra was deep in thought, but this time it was about Smoke.

Maybe there was a good explanation why his message was so short. Or maybe he didn't mean to leave her out of the message.

She smiled as she thought how everything was going so well on her end. Verbrannt Castle was properly reinforced. Additionally, they made an extensive warning system.

Although Vijaya, Sharur, and Jinggu weren't back yet. She still knew that they would bring more recruits with them.

Konig Mitleid had joined them, and he was more than enough to take care of 400 Brandals by himself. Sierra even thought that he could easily take on 1,000 bandits.

Yes, things were going great for Sierra. Which made her decide to give Smoke the benefit of the doubt. She made a mental note to call him as soon as she logged out.

She was going to tell him how they managed to raise their recruits to 500 men.

* * * * * *

Sierra woke up in the King's chamber of Verbrannt Castle. She had just logged in and was enthralled with joy. Smoke replied to her voice mail. This time it was filled with questions about her and he mentioned that he missed being with her.

She immediately wanted to share the news to everyone. She stepped out into the balcony to check where everybody was.

Sierra was speechless when she saw the sight before her. Verbrannt's Castle grounds was filled with refugees. She estimated that with these new arrivals, their population must have doubled.

As she arrived on the grounds, Sierra saw that Adder began to ask for volunteers willing to join their fight against the Brandals.

She saw Sharur and Jinggu catching up with the rest of the private army on the side, but the sight that caught Sierra's attention was the six falcons flying across the sky.

Sierra looked back on Thyrsus, Sharanga, and Ichaival. She saw that their falcons were comfortably perched on their shoulders.

She wondered if there were Hunters in one of the villages they visited, but six Hunters was beyond her imagination. Then she saw Vijaya carrying a special looking staff.

Vijaya's wooden staff was similar to the one Sharanga used to deceive Canalha's bandits. Sierra wondered why Vijaya was carrying such a staff.

Then she heard the brunette WoodElf shriek out like a falcon. Vijaya called the six falcons down. Two of the falcons perched on her shoulders, while the rest perched on the wooden staff.

Sierra wondered how Vijaya increased her falcons.

"Hey, you have six falcons now! That's amazing! How did this happen?"

"Remember you told us to do some special training of our own? Well, as it turns out, I already had a special ability. I just didn't know how to use it. Good thing Adder came along and encouraged me."

"Adder helped you master this ability? Maybe I should have some sparring sessions with him again."

"Not really help, more like enlighten me on the right path."

Sierra nodded politely, as she had no idea what Vijaya meant.

"So, what are the names of these new guys? I'm assuming Vij and Aya are the ones perched on your shoulders?"

"Yes, they are. The names of my new falcons are Utara, Dakhana, Puraba, and Vala."

"What exactly is your new ability?"

"Oh, it's called 'Falcon Tongue'. I can now have a proper conversation with any falcons. Watch this."

Kieeekk keekk kekeke kkeeeek kekkk keeeeeek

Vijaya chittered like a falcon, and promptly Sharanga, Ichaival, and Thyrsus' falcons flew up and circled above them.

Sharanga yelled out to her twin sister.

"I told you to stop doing that! Argh! Grow up already will you?"

Sharanga called back Shar, and so did Ichaival and Thyrsus.

"That was awesome! So I guess this means your attack power has more than doubled right? Do these guys also get the 'Steel Falcon' ability?"

"Uhuh, and not only that I can use them to scout as well."

"Really? I didn't think of that, but you could most definitely use these falcons as scouts. Well, I'm glad you're back and all, but I have something important to tell you. So, I'd like all of us to gather in the throne room."

Swiftly, all the members of Smoke's private army and Konig Mitleid assembled in their converted battle room. Sierra thought that the throne room was the perfect place to hold strategic meetings.

Sierra stood in front of everyone and began their forum.

"Thank you all for coming so quickly. First I'd like to hear the updates from everybody. I think Sharur, Jinggu, and Vijaya have arrived for sometime now, and I'd like myself updated."

Sharur spoke in behalf of his twin brother.

"Jinggu and I have gathered a total of 498 residents from the villages of Bulok, Koyak, and Patah. They were more than happy to join us when we told them that we were forming a united front against the Brandals."

Everybody nodded their heads, and turned their attention to the WoodElf. It was Sharanga's turn to give her updates.

"I needed to acquire these lovely feathered friends. So, I decided to revisit all the villages that we've been to before. I went to Silap, Salah, Nisko, and Poludnie. Surprisingly I convinced a few from the protected villages to join us."

Adder added in his opinion on why they joined them.

"The Cavalry Knights were working for the same man as the Brandals. It's no wonder they would feel suffocated."

Everyone started voicing out their own opinions, and slowly the room was filled with loud chatter. Sierra had to clap her claws to call for everybody's attention.

"Alright, that's enough. Talking isn't going to solve anything. I also have updates, that I'd like to share. Smoke just left me a message."

Everybody was glued in on Sierra. They hadn't heard from their leader in a long time now.

"Apparently, he solved one of the puzzles that Espion's been trying to figure out for months now. I think he should be out of the labyrinth in the next couple of days."

Sierra mumbled to herself that Smoke also mentioned how he missed being with her.

When they heard Sierra's in audible gibberish, Laernea raised her hand and asked.

"What was the last part? I didn't quite hear it clearly."

"Oh, he says that he wishes us luck and to continue on gathering the refugees. He really wants to save all these people."

* * * * * *

It was just days ago when their militia volunteers were only 500 men, but from the residents that Sharur, Jinggu, and Vijaya gathered. They now had 1,500 men and women who were willing to fight with them.

The new arrivals had various jobs. There were Miners, Tailors, Thatchers, Cobblers, Bakers, Barbers, Blacksmiths, Candlemakers, and Carpenters.

Verbrannt started to take shape as a proper village. The OrkElves and their two battalions, quickly gathered the lumber required to build the houses.

Vijaya, together with Ichaival, had their battalions do some fishing. Adder told them to construct another fishing weir, similar to the dam Smoke constructed in Nanahuatl Village.

Their days were spent with either intense training, or rebuilding village structures and resources gathering.

With the aid of the Blacksmiths, the weapons and armors of the militia drastically improved. They used the metals from the loot of their previous battles.

Laernea and Gandiva went back and forth from Verbrannt to Coatl. They made sure that they weren't followed and even took a longer route to be safe.

Sierra asked them to bring medical supplies and other essentials that villagers may need. She likewise asked if they could use the winnings from the Mounted Race event.

The Lioumereans gladly agreed. They already planned on giving all of the money to Smoke in the first place.

Sierra stood on top of the tower and examined the improved Verbrannt Castle. All the refugees had their own homes. They had farmlands and a steady supply of fish.

It was almost a week since they encountered the 400 Brandals. Sierra was proud of herself. Then a notification window popped out in front of her.

Reconstructed: Verbrannt Village

+ Ownership of the Verbrannt Village is given to: Sierra.

The massacred village of Verbrannt has been reborn. Because of your efforts, you've given
the refugees of southern Coatl a new home and a chance at a new life.

Status:
* Happiness: 85%
* Health: 65%
* Food: 10%

Stats:
* Citizens: 3,210
* Offensive Power: 80,000
* Defensive Power: 200,000

Sierra couldn't believe that she now owned an entire village. Right after she closed the notification window, the residents of Verbrannt Village all looked up to the tower, and gave her a small bow.

Then, another notification window popped out.

+ Gained Title: 'Lady of Verbrannt'

This title is awarded to the owner of Verbrannt Village. As such the residents of the village will show fealty to you and will follow your commands.

* +3 to all basic stats
* 10% of all commerce automatically goes to your account.
* Intimacy with the Verbrannts increased to 'Revered Savior'
* You're now responsible for the well being of the Verbrannts.
* If Verbrannt Village is destroyed, the title will be stripped off.

Sierra was having the time of her life. First a village and now a title. Of course she knew that this village truly belonged to Smoke.

Even if he wasn't there in rebuilding it, he was still the main instrument of its reconstruction. She tried fiddling around with the menu, but she couldn't find a transfer ownership option.

As Sierra stayed on top of the tower, she saw an army of around 500 men coming from the north. She wondered why there were no flares up in the sky.

She quickly ordered for all battalions to gather in the main gates. They were going to meet this unidentified army.

Sierra asked Konig Mitleid to stay behind. She wanted to use him as a last resort. She didn't want her strongest card exposed right at the start.

The red werebear stood in front of all ten battalions, with Adder close behind her. They waited in anticipation for the 500 men to come into view.

Sierra was confused when she saw that the 500 men were actually Avendre Mercenaries.

"Stop right there! That's far enough."

All 500 Avendre Mercenaries immediately stopped.

"Who sent you?"

A captain of the Avendre Mercenary stepped forward and carried a contract with him.

"Smoke sent us. We're very sorry for our late arrival. We had a problem gathering 500 men on such short notice."

Sierra took the contract and read it. She saw that it had Smoke's character signature. Sierra gave the contract to Thyrsus. She wanted it double checked.

"It's the real deal. Looks like Smoke sent us some reinforcements."

Sierra took back the contract and raised it in the air.

"Men! We've got ourselves some new allies. Let's give these guys a loud Verbrannt Welcome!"

All the battalions cheered when they heard that the Avendre Mercenaries were on their side. Most of the militia felt that the few days of training wasn't enough to make them combat ready.

* * * * * *

The Verbrannt militia was out on the plains. They endured the heat of the blazing sun. Sierra ordered all combatants to be running large scale combat formations.

This was the third day of practice of war formations. The Avendre Mercenaries were asked to lead every formation at the front. Followed closely by Sierra and Adder's battalion.

Thyrsus and Vijaya's battalions were on the outermost wings. As they had the advantage of their falcon's scouting ability.

Sharanga, Ichaival, Sharur, and Jinggu's battalion were at the center. The members of their battalions were mostly ranged fighters.

While Laernea and Gandiva's battalions were behind Sierra and Adder's. Their battalions were designed to be fast and mobile.

In the middle of their practice. Two purple flares were fired from the northern direction.

Straightaway, Sierra ordered the entire Verbrannt militia to charge at the direction of the purple flares. Two purple flares meant that there were approximately 2,000 invaders.

In less than thirty minutes, Sierra and the entire battalion were on their designated grounds for a northern invasion.

They were formed and ready to face the 2,000 invaders. Their eyes fixed on the horizon, waiting for the horde of black ctenosaur riders to appear.

However, the invaders were not the Brandals. Instead, they were variations of mounted Knights.

The invaders were composed of Zectians and Sonstwelters alike. Sierra stood in front of the invaders, and called out for their leader.

A Cavalry Lord stepped forward. It was Macher, the one who betrayed Smoke when he was disguised as Ilad.

Macher imprisoned Smoke inside the labyrinth. For that the Duke gave him the advance job of Cavalry Lord.

When Duke Burmistrz's 400 Brandals were killed, he gave Macher a quest to gather as many Knights to slaughter Smoke, Sierra, and their militia.

Macher stood a safe distance away from the red werebear. He was aware of how deadly she was. He yelled out to her, for everybody to hear their conversation.

"Hi! The name's Macher. I'm the leader of these fine Knights, and you must be the famous Sierra?"

As soon as she heard his name, Sierra boiled with rage. It took all her self control not to run at him and slit his throat.

"Why are you here? We've done nothing to offend Coatl City."

"That may be true for now, but Duke Burmistrz sent us to squash the next rebels. Your gathered militia is a high threat to all the villages under the Duke's protection."

The members of the militia all shouted at Macher. They called him a liar and a thief. Sierra raised her hand and asked them to be silent.

"As you can see. I think you have it backwards."

Sierra stepped closer to the gathered 2,000 Knights from Coatl City.

"Listen, I'm sure all of you have heard the rumors about Duke Burmistrz. About how he was a former High Commander of the 'Ladrones del Mundo'. Well, let me tell you that those rumors were false!"

Everybody was stunned when they heard Sierra. They thought that she was against the Duke.

"Because he isn't a former member he still presently is! In fact, he's also the leader of the Brandals, and he goes by the name Ultimo Maire, Brandal King."

Macher interjected Sierra's accusations.

"LIES! What this werebear is saying are all LIES! All of you have witnessed the progress that Coatl City has undergone. Those rumors came from the other royals who want to overthrow Duke Burmistrz."

Sierra shouted at the top of her voice.

"Where do you think the money for Coatl's events are coming from? All of them are from the scattered villages outside of Coatl. Sure the city may look rich, but the outer villages are in shambles. Only the ones who pay the Duke's protection tax are saved from the Brandals!"

The militia all yelled in agreement to Sierra's proclamation.

Macher felt the uncertainty in his gathered Knights.

"People! Remember that all of us are sharing the same quest. This is a special quest only given to the trusted Knights who have proven their worth to Coatl! We're here to stop their rebellion. You shouldn't believe what these vagabonds are saying."

Slowly, the 2,000 Knights were split in two. One side remained behind Macher, while another was being led to the side by a busty Aqua Knight.

Macher and Sierra vigilantly watched the third faction being formed. The Aqua Knight leader of the new group spoke out.

"Sierra, is it true that Ilad has joined Smoke?"

Sierra wondered why the female Aqua Knight asked about Smoke's disguised character, but answered her anyway.

"Yes, Ilad is a part of our group. Why do you ask?"

"I'm Mamelon. I was one of the leaders of Ilad's Non Aggression Pact, and most of the others behind have wanted to join Smoke for a long time now. But I'm joining you because I trust Ilad. With that said, we would like to join you in this quest of protecting these people."

At first, Sierra was confused at what Mamelon was saying. Then, she realized that Smoke's NAP members thought they were on a quest. She instantly took advantage of their misconception.

"That's right! Smoke, Ilad, and I are on a quest of not only protecting them, but also liberating the people of Coatl. Furthermore, We have reason to believe that this is a Series Quest. The final quest should be related to ending the tyranny of Duke Burmistrz."

Macher couldn't believe what he was hearing. He scanned the Knights behind Mamelon and estimated that there were around 800 of them.

"Mamelon! Don't be a fool! If you join them, then all of you will become wanted criminals in Coatl. Do you really want that? Do you want an entire main city against you?"

The voluptuous Aqua Knight faced the crowd behind her.

"I think going against a main city sounds fun. Are you guys with me?"

"YEAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"

"HOOHHAAA!"

"We'll follow you wherever you lead us, Mamelon!"

With a sneer on her face, Mamelon faced Macher.

"I think that answers your question."

Macher's face became disconcerted. He was fuming with anger as he yelled.

"YOU'LL ALL PAY FOR THIS! Do you really think you have a chance against us?"

Macher opened his party window and was about to remove all the members who had joined Sierra's side.

"Don't bother, we've already left your party."

Slowly, Mamelon's Knights started to join Sierra's side.

The Cavalry Lord had doubts that he could win. His 1,200 Knights versus 1,500 militia, 500 Avendre Mercenaries, and 800 Knights was next to impossible.

Sierra made a 'Whisper Message' to her forces to be on their toes. She wasn't sure if Mamelon was truly on their side.

Macher was about to sound his retreat when he saw one red flare up in the sky. It came from the south. Sierra saw Macher staring above, and she instinctively followed his gaze.

Dread overcame Sierra when she saw the red flare. She quickly called for the Commanders to look up. They immediately looked back to her, to ask for their orders.

One red flare meant that there was an approaching army of approximately 5,000.

Sierra was still racking her brains on what to do, when she heard Macher call out.

"CHARGE!"

Macher assumed that the flare was Sierra's men warning her of another attack from the south. Duke Burmistrz told him that he would have Macher attack the north while the Brandals attack the south.

Fortunately, Mamelon and her Knights countered Macher's charge with their own. Sierra knew that if they left, their new allies would all die.

Sierra decided to gamble on Konig Mitleid's strength. She ordered most of the battalions to help the maneator king.

She sent the battalions of Adder, Sharur, Jinggu, Laernea, Gandiva, Thyrsus, and Vijaya. All seven battalions consisted of 1,050 militia.

Sierra was left with 450 militia, and 500 Avendre Mercenaries. When she saw them leave, she ordered the command to attack Macher and his Knights.

* * * * * *

Konig Mitleid stared at the vast army of Brandals gathered in the southern plains. He was watching them march from on top of Verbrannt Castle's tower.

The maneator king waited for Sierra to come back, but the Brandal's catapults were almost in range of their castle.

Mitleid leapt from on top of the tower, and made a loud crashing sound when he landed on the ground. He stepped out of the large crater that he made from his jump.

He knew Sierra would be mad, but this was an emergency. He ran straight past the gates, and ordered the remaining militia left to defend the castle with their lives.

Mitleid thought that the Duke must have been furious to have sent this many men. Mitleid wanted to rip all of them out, but he kept repeating to himself that he should focus on the catapults.

The maneator was troubled because whenever he was in his 'Blood Rage' state he had no control over his actions.

He was afraid that the catapults would be in range, and he would focus only on his attackers. Mitleid spent many days around the forest of Verbrannt Castle when he helped gather the lumber.

Mitleid knew the fastest way to where the Brandals' catapults were. He decided to stay far away from any bandit until he was directly facing the line of catapults.

A few minutes passed, and he was where he wanted to be. He leapt out from the forest and roared with all his might!

"RRROOOOAAAAARRRRAAAAHHHHHHGGGHHH!"

Mitleid used this opportunity to slaughter the stunned Brandals. No one was going to attack him in their dazed states. It took only two swings from his dual zweihänders to demolish the catapults.

He quickly destroyed two of his targets, he still had eighteen left to go. Arrows struck his body, when he finished destroying his fourth catapult.

The Brandals had recovered from being stunned, and went after the maneator king. Any black ctenosaur rider who struck him had their heads lopped off.

The maneator king lost count of all the Brandals that he killed. He estimated he had at least eliminated 700 of them.

When he reached his twelfth catapult, both his hands had bullwhips attached to it. The Brandal leaders had come to stop him.

He pulled them to him as he did with the previous Brandal leaders and slaughtered them. After he was done chopping their bodies into pieces, he proceeded to his thirteenth catapult.

Mitleid raised both his hands and was about to swing down his dual zweihänders when five bullwhips were attached to his right hand.

He tried to pull the five Brandal leaders, but they were pulling him back. Two more bullwhips were added to his right hand.

Mitleid tried pulling harder, but then ten bullwhips were suddenly attached to his left hand. Konig Mitleid looked up to the sky.

The Brandal leaders knocked both of his zweihänders out of his hands.

The maneator was about to let out his roar when two Brandal leaders came from the front and wrapped their bullwhips on his muzzle and his jaw.

The Brandal leaders had silenced his roar! He tried shaking the two bandits off of him, but they held on to him firmly.

Next, six bullwhips were attached to each of his legs. The Brandals pushed him down, and made him face the sky. When he was pinned down, additional ropes were nailed down on the ground to hold him.

A Brandal leader stepped over the Mitleid's chest, as the rest of them held him down.

"We heard you like to torture people. Why don't you have a taste of your own medicine!"

Four Brandal leaders carried jagged swords, and stood on both sides of Mitleid. They started to saw off his hands, while other Brandal leaders were on top of him. They were stabbing him with their swords.

After his hands were sawed off, the jagged sword wielding Brandals went for both his hooves. The Brandals encircled around the captured maneator. They laughed and jeered at him.

Konig Mitleid was held down and was surrounded by 32 Brandal Leaders. The maneator's lifebar was quickly dwindling down. Mitleid's lifebar displayed (195,227/300,000 HP).

The blood gushed out from Mitleid's severed hands and hooves, which gave him a ‘Bleeding Status'.

Chapter Ten: A Village against a City

Before he was captured, Konig Mitleid was the devil incarnate. He slaughtered many of the Brandals before the bandits were able to capture him.

If only Mitleid didn't focus all his attention on the catapults, he wouldn't have been caught by the bandits.

The Maneator was painfully sprawled and pinned down on the ground. The Brandals circled around, as they kept on taunting him.

After they severed his hands and hooves, the Brandal leaders with the jagged swords went higher up on Mitleid's limbs. They started to chop off his arms and legs.

Due to his 'Bleeding Status' and the continuous attacks by the Brandal leaders, Konig Mitleid was now dying. His life bar displayed (62,197/300,000 HP).

Mitleid's heroic act destroyed more than half of the Brandals' catapults and eliminated almost a fourth of the bandits' five thousand strong army.

The Maneator King stared blankly at the sky. He felt the Brandal leaders' jagged swords and throwing knives being plunged into various parts of his body.

However, his mind blocked the pain brought by the Brandals' tortures. Instead, he was reminded of all his wrongdoings.

How he slaughtered the men sent down to be executed in the labyrinth. How he accidentally killed his Maneator brothers when his 'Blood Rage' state was activated. Finally, how he mercilessly tortured Smoke for hours.

Even if he wasn't in complete control of himself in all of those heinous acts, it was still his hands that did all the evil work.

Mitleid wanted to repent for all the immorality and wickedness he committed, but it was clear that he would go to the afterlife without the chance to redeem himself.

The Maneator thought he deserved such a horrific death. He only hoped that before he perished, he would be able to see his liberated brothers from the labyrinth.

Sadly, it was clear that he wouldn't get to do any of that. As such thoughts ran through Konig Mitleid's head, a bolt enhanced with fire came and blew away the Brandal leader who stood on top of his chest.

A few seconds later, a torrent of poison bolts attacked the bandits. The surprise ranged attack knocked all of the Brandal leaders away from the Maneator King.

Laernea and Gandiva's war carriages ran side by side as they led the way for their 1,050 militia's spear like formation.

They had their stag moose, Tulin and Bilis, run at an adequate pace. This let the men on foot to keep up with their stride.

The Lioumerean's war carriages had twenty of their best Fishermen on board. They were given the task to target the black ctenosaur riders in front of their path.

Each war carriage also had a turret on top of it. There, Sharur and Jinggu's 'Repeating Ballistae' were installed.

It was a collaborative work from Darius and Sharanga as they were looking for a way to improve the OrkElves' heavy ballistae. The new ranged weapons were so heavy that they had to be attached to the turrets.

Despite the weapons' increased weight, Sharanga increased its attack speed and power damage. With the Repeating Ballistae, the OrkElves' attack increased by threefolds.

In order to enhance their scouting abilities, Thyrsus and Vijaya had war chariots attached to their dirus wolves. They had one of their Lieutenants drive the chariot while they scanned the whole battlefield.

Vijaya took the right side while Thyrsus took the left. Vijaya relied on her six falcons to detect which of the men on her side where dying.

She had the falcons spread out in pairs of two. Before one of her volunteers' shield were broken, the falcons would dive in and attack the enemy.

This gave the injured militia the opportunity to switch out with a fresh volunteer. Vijaya also helped by continuously attacking the enemies with her Hunter's bow and poison arrows.

Gone were the days when she solely relied on her falcon's damage. She knew that each arrow meant an increased chance at their survival.

Thyrsus Fischer observed Vijaya's regained confidence as she executed an outstanding defense with her falcons. He used to pity her when her twin sister, Sharanga, started to get more attention than her.

Nevertheless, he knew that it was only a matter of time before she would earn an impressive ability like her 'Falcon Tongue'.

Ever since they were young, Thyrsus witnessed his friends' prominent lives while he lived a mediocre one.

Vijaya had her looks and personality, and even if Sharanga was shy, she still shared her twin sister's face.

Raised by their raped mother, the OrkElves, Sharur and Jinggu, had their innate Strength and Dexterity, and the Nanahuatlanos' sympathy.

Ichaival was famous for being the village clown, while Laernea and Gandiva were the problematic trouble makers.

Thyrsus thought that he would have everybody's respect and admiration, if he focused his attention on his studies and behaved himself.

However, the years went on and he was still the forgettable kid in the village. He even had to say his last name before the residents remembered that he was Peitro Fischer's son.

Thyrsus talked to Darius about his dilemma, and the wise Beggar Legati asked him if any of his friends ever forgot him.

From there he got the idea to forcibly insert himself, into the lives of the people who he wants to remember him.

If his talents were not visible to the masses, then he personally got to know each individual and showed them his abilities.

For Smoke, Sierra, and Darius; Thyrsus made sure that they knew of his reconnaissance ability and tactical prowess.

He privately got to know all of the 1,500 men and women volunteers in their militia. He knew their full names, their former villages, and their professions.

Thyrsus relied on his great memory to build a strong rapport with all of them. His hard work in getting to know all of them, made him the most trusted commander in the entire militia.

Multiple volunteers on Thyrsus' side got switched out even when their life bars were still in the safe zones.

Thyrsus emphasized on everyone's safety which gave them an impenetrable defense in their spear like formation.

With both the head and the sides of their spear formation secured, Adder positioned himself to guard the rear on foot.

Adder received an improved weapon as well. Darius enhanced his BlitzTod into the double bladed BlitzSturm. His new weapon almost had the same damage potential as one of Mitleid's zweihänders.

Adder gathered the Blacksmiths in their militia who had the ability to use 'Shield Smite'. The Blacksmiths made sure to repel all of the bandits who tried to go after them.

The one-armed man commanded and defended the militia, as he watched their forces pierce through the thousands of surprised Brandals.

As they got closer to the pinned down Maneator King,  sprawled on the ground, Laernea and Gandiva went in opposite directions.

Laernea took her war carriage to the left, while Gandiva took hers to the right. The meter long spikes attached to the sides of their wheels, ripped through the legs of the black ctenosaurs that stayed within its range.

From on top of the turrets attached to the war carriages, Sharur and Jinggu kept on attacking with their flood of poison bolts.

However, the blown away Brandal leaders regrouped themselves and immediately ordered their bandits to block the war carriages exits.

Each of the Lioumereans were forced to make a half-circle run with Konig Mitleid as their central point.

The Brandals had seen through their plan and blocked any chance of escape. Adder told Vijaya and Thyrsus to form a barricade.

The two Hunters ordered their special defensive militia members to be ready to deploy their long barbed poles.

After the Lioumereans ran in a semi-circle direction, Vijaya and Thyrsus ordered these men to start deploying the barbed poles in a fixed distance from one another.

The barbed poles were activated, the moment the last militia member was within their circle. The barbed wires extended out, and connected with the poles closest to them. They created a barbed circular fence around Mitleid.

Adder and Vijaya immediately went to free Mitleid from his bonds. Vijaya tried to apply first aid, but Mitleid's 'Bleeding Status' wasn't removed.

Mitleid's several wounds were beyond help. They needed the healing powers of at least an Arch Bishop to remove his 'Bleeding Status'.

The militia's pitchforks and spears managed to fend off the black ctenosaur riders, but the Brandal leaders who weren't hit by the OrkElves' poison bolts sprang over their barbed fence.

Adder had to leave Mitleid's side as he faced one of the Brandal leaders inside their inner defense. Vijaya tried her best and kept on applying bandages to Mitleid's wounds.

Arrows from the Brandal Snipers were constantly flying in towards them, so Vijaya ordered her six falcons to specifically target the culprits.

Vijaya trained her ability 'Steel Falcon' to Advance Level 2. Her falcons became immune to most arrow attacks.

Behind the barbed fences, Laernea and Gandiva kept riding their war carriages in opposite directions.

This gave the OrkElves an even wider range of picking out the Brandal leaders trying to come back in.

Thyrsus stayed near the center of their defensive formation and kept a close eye on the militia members who were about to fall.

With his bird's eye view of the battle, Thyrsus swiftly gave out instructions to support the dying men and women. He quickly replaced them with the uninjured volunteers.

Thyrsus wished that one of Smoke's private army members was a Priest and had an AOE healing ability.

Currently, they only had first aiders in the militia. Their abilities were only at the Beginner level. They amateurly applied bandages to the injured.

Death was imminent to the gravely wounded. The absence of a reliable healer was their militia's greatest downfall.

Adder scanned around their defensive formation, and knew that it could not last. He shouted at Thyrsus and asked for his best estimate.

"How long?"

Thyrsus looked through his falcon's eyes and yelled back.

"Ten minutes tops."

Adder blocked an incoming bullwhip with his upgraded double bladed sword, BlitzStrum. He was about to leap over the Brandal leader when he received a call from Smoke.

The one-armed man tumbled over, and his right leg was caught by the Brandal's bullwhip. Thyrsus sent his falcon to attack the Brandal leader's head, while he targeted the bandit's back.

Adder answered Smoke's call, as he used his BlitzSturm to free himself from the bullwhip and charged towards the bandit.

"Hello? Adder? Can you hear me?"

"Yeah, I'm here."

"We just got out of the labyrinth. I spoke to Sierra, and she updated me with the situation. Where exactly are you?"

Adder dodged the Brandal leader's throwing knives and lunged his long double bladed sword into the bandit's stomach.

"Sorry, can't talk. We're about three kilometers south of Verbrannt castle."

"I understand. We'll be there in about fifteen minutes."

"Wait, Smoke! Hurry, Mitleid's dying! Thyrsus said we only have ten minutes left..."

Smoke wasn't able to hear Adder's last message, as the call was already dropped.

Adder went to where Thyrsus stood. He rode Thyrsus' war chariot, and yelled at the top of his lungs.

"Everybody! Smoke's coming in fifteen minutes. We just have to last these next few minutes!"

Everyone in the militia had heard about Smoke. He was the charismatic leader that assembled their commanders, and made them into his private army.

That alone made every militia member respect Smoke. Adder's short speech revitalized the militia volunteers. With their boosted morale, they gave out their all defending the barbed fences for the next fifteen minutes.

* * * * * *

It was ten minutes after Smoke called Adder. He and his group were still hidden inside Otaczac forest, as they watched a sea of black scaly ctenosaurs encroach over the barbed fences of the helpless militia.

Irritated, Smoke scratched his head. As if he was searching for a solution to come out of his scalp. This was the complete opposite of the welcome back party he was expecting.

Smoke tried to calm himself down by checking his newly acquired treasures. He was able to use three out of the seven items that the Tenebris' guardian allowed him to take out of their treasury.

With pride and gusto, the DarkElf looked at his 'Sable Wizard's Surcoat', 'Lunar Gravity Boots', and 'Digger's Wand'.

The 'Sable Wizard's Surcoat' was a black armor made out of hard leather and chainmail. It had a lower defense than his gora plate, but it had special attributes.

It gave complete immunity against curses, an increased bonus experience by 15%, and 10% resistance to all elements.

The 'Lunar Gravity Boots' was made of black leather with silver stitchings. It enabled the wearer to reduce the effects of Zectas' gravity.

This gave the wearer an increased movement speed of 25% and an increased leaping power of 50%.

The legendary Lunar Gravity Boots also had an active ability called 'Lunar Eclipse'. Once activated, a casting circle with a diameter of five meters appears on the ground.

Anyone who stood inside the casting circle receives the boot's passive effects for five minutes.

The 'Digger's Wand' was a bronze wand with a length of fourteen inches. It increased the wearer's Earth alignment by 20% and had the active abilities 'Tunneling' and 'Trenching'.

The three treasures were amazing beyond words. However, all of Smoke's equipment looked like they were about to break. This was due to his single stone Beggar rank.

His worn-out hooded cloak covered his ragged surcoat and tattered boots. His wand, looked like a rusty wand instead of its sleek bronze color.

When he was disguised as Ilad, the Flame Knight. He used Igniz's dark purple flames to coat his rusty armor. This time he didn't use Igniz's energy in order to keep Smoke and Ilad's individuality.

Smoke smiled as he finished his battle simulation in his mind. He pointed his Digger's Wand on the space in front of them and pointed it again towards the center of the militia's defensive formation.

Finally, he activated its 'Tunneling' ability. The muffled sound of moving earth was heard, and a circular hole opened on the ground.

Smoke then activated his boot's 'Lunar Eclipse' ability, and his four companions reflexively stepped inside the casting circle.

A blue light engulfed them. After they received the boot's effects, they immediately ran inside the tunnel.

The DarkElf ordered Igniz to light their path as they pushed on towards the tunnel's exit. Smoke estimated that with their increased movement speed they would be out of the underground passage in less than two minutes.

Smoke, Espion, and three maneators jumped out of the tunnel. The Brandals broke through portions of the barbed fence.

There were black ctenosaurs caught in the barbed wire and were trampled over by the other bandits. Dying militia members were scattered on the ground.

With his increased jumping ability, Smoke leapt to the center near Thyrsus. He soared up to the sky and activated his wand's 'Trenching' ability. He created a circular trench outside of the barbed fences.

The trench had a circumference of 450 meters. Its depth was four meters with a gap of six meters. Trenches were meant to be used as a defensive countermeasure against the enemy's ranged attacks.

However, Smoke used it to drop the Brandals out of their defensive formation. The DarkElf looked around, and saw Konig Mitleid dying on the ground.

One more attack, and the Maneator King would be dead. With his 'Earth Manipulation' ability, Smoke quickly constructed twelve towers from the ground and it skyrocketed upwards.

The circular towers were scattered inside their defensive formation. The creation of the towers and trench came at a cost, and left Smoke with 5% of his maximum Mana.

Each tower was made from the hardened mixture of rocks and earth. The dispersed structures had a height of a two story building, with stairs protruding out on its walls.

Straightaway, Adder added Smoke to their party and switched the leadership of the seven battalions to him. Smoke opened a group call to the entire militia in the area.

"Everybody, hurry and climb up the tower. The staircases will automatically retract in five minutes."

The 297 survivors immediately scrambled for the nearest tower for survival. Each tower had less than twenty-five people huddled closely together.

Smoke created a special tower with Mitleid, Adder, Espion, Thyrsus, and the three maneators on top of it.

This specific tower had no stairs, and it rapidly rose to the height of a four-story building.

Konig Mitleid's vision was blurry. Yet, despite his unclear sight he felt a familiar presence. Mitleid called out Smoke's name.

Smoke went near Mitleid. The DarkElf asked Thyrsus to help him sit Konig Mitleid on the Earth throne that he created.

"Mitleid, I'm here. Let me have Igniz cauterize your wounds to remove your Bleeding Status."

“Aagguhh, Aagguh."

The Maneator King coughed out blood from his mouth as he spoke.

"Come here, we have to hurry. I don't think I have much time left, and don't bother trying to save me. I'll only get the Burned Status if you do that."

Konig Mitleid coughed up more blood.

"I know that my time has come. I deserve this cruel death, but I didn't think the great god, Cuezaltzin, would answer my prayers. He has given me a chance at redemption."

Mitleid stared at the three maneators behind Smoke. The DarkElf called the three Maneators over to them.

"I don't know if you've heard, but the Maneators were wiped out by the Tenebris. They were replaced by a new monster called Krampus. These three noble Maneators were the only ones I managed to save."

Smoke asked the tallest Maneator, armed with his Rzeka glaive to step forward. The bulky red Maneator stepped in front of Konig Mitleid and bowed down.

"Name is... Stark Rind. Honor is mine to see you... King of Maneators!"

Next, was the shortest Maneator with Smoke's bullwhip. The orange maneator stood at a height of 2.5 meters. He knelt down beside Stark, and rapidly introduced himself to their King.

"You're Konig Mitleid! I've been counting the hours that I could finally see your face, and now that I'm here, I see that you're more intimidating than I imagined. Oh, right my name is Rasant Rind. It's a privilege to be in your service."

Lastly, was the Maneator armed with Smoke's Gora Shield and Flamdius Sword. He got down on his knees beside his two brothers.

The gray Maneator spoke in a dignified voice.

"Smoke has told us all of your heroic deeds your majesty. I am called Weise Rind. We three shall live our lives upholding the great name of the Maneators. We shall carry your teachings when you unified the different classes of Maneators."

"HAHAHAHA! Aagguhh, Aagguh."

Konig Mitleid coughed up more blood as he laughed hard. Everybody was confused why Mitleid reacted that way to the Maneator's introduction.

"Forgive me for laughing. I'm just very happy to see that I'm not the last Maneator. Smoke, you've done the impossible! You've freed all the living maneators inside the labyrinth."

Mitleid changed his gaze towards the three maneators who knelt in front of him.

"Brothers, please stand. I should be the one kneeling before you, but I'm having trouble just sitting down. When I look at the three of you, I know that I could die in peace. You three will change how the world remembers the Maneators. I'm expecting great things from you, and I know that you won't disappoint me."

After Mitleid's speech, a notification window popped up in front of Smoke.

+ Completed Quest!
Liberate the Maneators under Coatl City

You were not able to save Konig Mitleid's original brothers, but you've preserved the Maneator's legacy by freeing the three maneators you've created inside the labyrinth.

Rewards:
* Konig Mitleid's Inheritance
* 3,000,000 exp

+ Level Up!

The DarkElf was in a daze. He couldn't believe the experience he got from Konig Mitleid's quest. He was about to thank the Maneator when suddenly, Mitleid's voice became serious.

"Smoke, You're now the Maneator King. Albeit you only have three subjects, but I think these three are worth more than an army. Now, before I breathe my last dying breath. Let me give you your inheritance, and kneel before me."

The DarkElf's eyes grew even bigger. He thought that he received all the rewards from Mitleid's quest.

Konig Mitleid lifted his handless arms and dripped his blood over the DarkElf's white ponytailed hair.

+ Gained Title: 'Maneator King'

This title is awarded to Konig Mitleid's heir. As such, all maneators will show fealty to you and will follow your commands.

* +5 to all basic stats
* Intimacy with the Maneators increased to 'Worshipped King'
* You're now responsible for the well being of all Maneators.
* If all the Maneators are dead, the title will be stripped off.

"You have been anointed with my blood. It now flows within you, and with it you have become my representative. Lead the maneators well and protect them with your life. Spread the greatness of the Maneator and fulfill my repentance."

+ Gained Ability: Beast Monarch

+ Gained Ability: Maneator's Roar

+ Gained Ability: Blood Rage

The abilities' description flooded Smoke's view that he wasn't able to read all the abilities in detail.

"Mitleid, this is too much. I don't know how to thank you... But I think we should still try to cauterize your wounds."

"No, it's useless. Even if an Arch Bishop was here, it would still end up in my death. The Tenebris' curse would counter any form of Light healing. Besides, it's better this way. I'm leaving the maneators in good hands, with you as their King."

Konig Mitleid looked at the three maneators and called out to them.

"Weise, Stark, Rasant, could you indulge a request from your former King? I'd like to see how you three fight before I go meet my judgement."

The three maneators respectfully bowed down their heads. As they solemnly looked up to Konig Mitleid, all three of them let out their loudest roars.

All three maneators gave Konig Mitleid their final bow to him and leapt down, straight to the ground.

A deep crater was created by the three behemoths. After they landed, they quickly scattered in different directions.

Smoke asked Adder and Espion to join the three maneators down below. Unlike the maneators who hopped directly from the four-story tower, Adder had to jump to the nearest shorter tower and fought the bandits on top of it.

Espion decided not to jump. Instead, he nailed his rope made out of wolf spider thread, on the floor of their tower. He then speedily rapelled downwards.

The young Spy used his sideways momentum to swing himself to the top of his targeted tower. Swiftly, Espion equipped his green dual knives, and became a blur as he attacked the bandits.

The DarkElf also ordered Thyrsus to maintain his station in the tallest structure, and order the militia to support the troubled towers.

Smoke used his 'Telefax Vision' ability to scan the entire battlefield. The Brandals had four black ctenosaurs piled on top of each other in order to cross the trench that the DarkElf created.

These black ctenosaurs were extremely well trained. The Brandals had to travel through various terrains which forced them to teach the lizard mounts to form intricate formations.

The Brandals used the same technique on Smoke's towers. This time they made steps out of the black ctenosaurs.

The first step had one black ctenosaur, followed by two of piled on top of each other, and was completed by three lizard mounts stacked together.

The war chariots of Laernea and Gandiva with Sharur and Jinggu on top, protected six towers altogether.

Vijaya with her six falcons managed to defend two towers that were close to each other.

Adder cleared out the Brandals on the tower where he landed on, and ran down to the next tower closest to him.

Rasant, the fastest Maneator, ran towards the furthest towers. He took out his borrowed bullwhip and attacked the Brandal leader blocking his path.

Like an orange blur, Rasant dodged the bandits' attacks, and coiled his bullwhip around the Brandal leader's neck.

The orange Maneator pulled the bandit to him, and stabbed the bandit rapidly with Espion's throwing knives.

With the Brandal leader's life bar almost depleted, Rasant snapped the bandit's neck like a twig.

Rasant laughed at the corpse of the Brandal leader. He then looted the bandit's bullwhip and equipped it for himself.

With an evil smile, Rasant dual wielded the two bullwhips. Ruthlessly, Rasant flogged all the bandits within his range on the way to the furthest towers.

Weise, the smartest Maneator, aimed for the neglected towers in the middle. He searched for the optimum position which allowed him to defend three towers.

The gray Maneator was armed with Smoke's Gora shield and Flamdius sword. With a calculated look, Weise cleverly aimed for the weak joints of the bandits and blocked all of their attacks simultaneously.

Stark, the strongest Maneator, went for the undefended towers closest to him. With Smoke's Rzeka glaive, Stark forcefully dealt with the black ctenosaurs riders in only three strikes.

A stroke for each arm and a clean slice across the bandit's neck, but the Brandal leaders were a different story.

Angrily, Stark executed ten strikes of the Rzeka glaive in order to dispose of the Brandal leaders. The Maneator shouted in frustration as it took him longer to kill the leaders.

Filled with content, Konig Mitleid sat on his throne and watched the three maneators slaughter the Brandals below.

Smoke wanted to join the battle, but decided to wait for Mitleid to die before he left the Maneator's side.

"Smoke, if you don't mind? Can you send my zweihänders to Stark? I think he'll have a quicker time dealing with the Brandals if he'll use them."

The DarkElf inspected the two massive swords and carefully set them down.

"I'll give it to him as soon as the time comes."

"Alright. Then you better give the swords to Stark now because my time's up."

Smoke patted Mitleid's right shoulder and grasped it firmly. Mitleid spoke to Smoke for one last time.

"No words could remove the pain that I've inflicted upon you, but know that I'll spend all of eternity regretting it in the afterlife. Forgive me, Smoke..."

- Maneator King: Konig Mitleid has died.

Smoke stared blankly at Mitleid's body as it slowly started to fade. He remembered how he used to hate this Maneator to his core, but now a tear shed from Smoke's eye.

As Konig Mitleid's body disappeared, item drops started to appear. Smoke reflexively picked all of them up.

+ Acquired Maneator hide.

+ Acquired Maneator horns.

+ Acquired Maneator hooves.

+ Acquired Maneator embryo.

+ Acquired Maneator dna - hybrid class.

+ Acquired Maneator essence.

Smoke smiled with tears. Mitleid left him with enough materials to create one more Maneator. Sadly, Smoke could only give life to a Maneator inside the labyrinth.

The DarkElf placed the zweihänders inside his backpack window. He couldn't give it to Stark because the red Maneator was still at level 101, and the zweihänders' level requirement was 300.

Smoke pulled up his hooded cloak over his blood drenched hair, and wiped the tears from his eyes. He took in a deep breath before he scanned the battlefield.

Smoke asked Thyrsus to estimate how many bandits were left. After scouting with his falcon's eye, Thyrsus answered back with 3,102 Brandals. They were outnumbered ten to one, and against seasoned marauders.

The DarkElf glanced over the scattered towers and found that four towers were outside of anyone's defensive reach.

Smoke thought that the militia had suffered enough. He wouldn't allow anyone else to die on that day.

He used his 'Lunar Gravity Boots' and jumped up to the sky. He then spread his hooded cloak, and glided through the air.

"Igniz, create firewalls below the undefended towers."

Smoke dove down to one of the undefended towers and stunned the Brandals on top of it. This particular tower only had five militia members left.

The survivors stood closely together with their backs against each other. They were shocked to hear Smoke's loud landing.

The DarkElf took out his improved 'Power Chainsaw Bow' which he transmuted inside the labyrinth. Masterfully, he released a multitude of arrows.

Smoke's fire enchanted arrows dealt 12,500 damage points against the black ctenosaur riders. It only took him one volley of eight arrows to take down a mounted bandit.

After he finished the five black ctenosaur riders on the tower he stood on, he targeted the black ctenosaur lizards which formed a ladder formation towards a different tower.

It only took two arrows from Smoke to kill the lizard mounts. As his damage against the monsters were tripled by his inherited ability, Beast Monarch.

When Smoke targeted a Brandal leader on the ground below him, his power chainsaw bow revealed a damage of only 9,000 points.

He switched targets and struck the bandit's mount instead. The Brandal leader fell down on the ground, and tried to scrambled to his feet trying to avoid Smoke's arrows.

Smoke took advantage of the bandit's exposed back and turned him into a human pincushion with sixteen arrows stuck to the Brandal leader's spine.

The DarkElf stopped attacking with his arrows. He only had 3,192 arrows left and there were still 2,812 black ctenosaur riders to kill.

Smoke assessed his situation. The most threatening aspect about the Brandals was their great maneuverability.

Which made him decide to focus all of his attacks on their mounts. With his 'Lunar Gravity Boots' and 'Hooded Cloak of Cologus', Smoke made his way around the battlefield with ease.

Five hours passed, and the DarkElf finally used up his last arrow. He killed a total of 1,596 black ctenosaurs.

He destroyed the ladders that the Brandals created with their lizard mounts, and temporarily secured the safety of the survivors.

Despite their valiant efforts, they still lost more volunteers and were left with only 212 militia members. Whereas, the Brandal horde still had 1,216 black ctenosaurs, 2,102 bandits, and 32 Brandal leaders. They were still outnumbered five to one.

Everyone on Smoke's side was exhausted. They were out of arrows and bolts. All of Smoke's men stayed on top of the towers for safety.

Smoke elevated the ground around Laernea and Gandiva's war carriages, and raised them to the top of different towers.

It had been ten minutes since the Brandals' last attacks. In the lull of the bandits' attacks, Smoke ordered Espion and Rasant to collect the arrows, bolts, and fishing spears scattered on the ground below them.

After they took their meals, the two fastest members on foot immediately obeyed their orders. Smoke smirked as he remembered his first time meeting Espion.

The young Spy was a spoiled brat. Espion had to lose his right eye in their first battle against a Krampus before he saw that he should obey Smoke's commands.

Smoke assumed that this break had two purposes. First was to reorganize the ranks of the bandits and second was to give them a mental breakdown.

Most of the militia survivors felt the coming of their death. This made them easier targets for the bandits.

The DarkElf was racking his head for a plan that would ensure their survival. They already suffered enough loses of their militia.

Smoke didn't want Mitleid's death to be in vain. He wanted to save all 212 survivors, even if it meant dying.

As the DarkElf was thinking of a strategy, he received a call from Sierra.

"Hi, how are you guys doing? All of the militia survived, right? Please tell me you wiped out all the Brandals when you arrived."

Hearing Sierra's questions made Smoke remember the dying faces of the militia volunteers and the last moments he had with Konig Mitleid.

"I'm so sorry... If only I was stronger, or faster. I could've saved them."

"No! Don't tell me someone from the private army died?"

"Konig Mitleid... He's gone now, and so is 75% of our militia. At least Mitleid saw the maneators I saved from the labyrinth... Do you remember when I was still working for your uncle and I was telling you about the monstrous Maneator?"

Sierra didn't respond, but Smoke heard audible sobs.

"Who would've thought that the monster who tortured me would become a close friend."

The werebear spoke after she finally found her words.

"I didn't tell you this, but Konig Mitleid was the friend who rescued us from before. He looked dangerous when he was in his Blood Rage state, but I pitied him when he snapped out of it. It's a scary thing... losing control of your own body."

"Sierra, what about the battle on your side? Is it over?"

"Yeah, we managed to defeat Macher's invasion, but the weasel was so sneaky that he was able to escape. He ditched ten Knights from his private army in order for him to escape."

"Listen, I don't know how much longer we can last. We're out of ammunition, and the Brandals aren't giving us enough time to recover our HPs. How many are left on your side?"

"The battle just finished a few seconds ago. I still have to do a head count, but I think we have 400 militia members, 350 Avendre Mercenaries, 190 Zectian Knights, and 410 Sonstwelter Knights."

"That's alot, but even if your group joins us, will only have enough to match the Brandals' numbers."

"We could do a two pronged attack? We'll attack from the sides and draw their attention, while you attack them from the opposite direction."

Smoke smiled. The two pronged attack was one of the first war tactics he had discussed with Sierra. He quickly pushed the thought to the back of his head, and focused on the battle at hand.

"No, we can't do that. We may win, but at what cost? I don't want to lose anyone else."

"Well, you better think of something fast. Before the Brandals make their move. While you're thinking, we're already on our way to you. We should be there in twenty minutes."

Smoke was glad that Sierra had 1,300 men coming to their aid, but fighting the Brandals head on was suicide.

TIDINGK!

The DarkElf suddenly heard a sound. It was an indication that his life bar and mana bar had completely recovered.

An idea came to Smoke's mind when he realized that his Mana was at full capacity.

Smoke sent an order to his group channel. He told them to stay safely on top of the tower, regardless of what they were about to see.

The DarkElf left Adder in charge. He then briskly took all 4,000 of his arrows from Espion and Rasant.

After he gave out his instructions, Smoke used his 'Telefax Vision' ability. From a distance he confirmed that the Brandals were still huddled closely together.

The Brandal leaders were still discussing their final attack, and the black ctenosaur riders were busy applying bandages to their own wounds.

Some of the bandits had even built campfires. They were cooking a meal while waiting for their leaders' orders.

Smoke grinned from ear to ear. The Brandals' had given him the perfect scenario!

Immediately, Smoke left Adder in charge of the whole battalion. He then leapt up to the sky with Igniz orbiting around him.

Armed with his Digger's Wand, the DarkElf expanded his hooded cloak and expertly glided his way towards the Brandals' encampment.

Smoke activated the Digger's Wand when he was directly above the huddled Brandals. He created a trench that had a circumference of 600 meters.

He didn't stop there. He reactivated the same ability but this time only slightly smaller. With this method, Smoke doubled the gap of the trench.

The DarkElf wanted to be sure that the Brandals could not escape their trap.

When the trenches were done, Smoke glided around the Brandal's encampment. He followed the path of the trench that he created.

As Smoke flew over the wide excavation, he ordered Igniz to cover the trench in a sea of flames. Igniz gave Smoke an astonished look.

This was Igniz's first time creating such a long firewall, but after he saw the DarkElf's eyes, the dark ember sprite obeyed.

Igniz saw that Smoke was determined to finish the Brandals alone. After they covered the entire trench in flames, Smoke ordered his symbiote to do the same on the Brandal's encampment.

The dark ember sprite was wobbly. Igniz weirdly flew around and was about to faint. Nevertheless, Smoke's symbiote complied. Igniz covered the entire area, until he finally consumed his last energy.

Igniz started to fall down from the sky. The dark ember sprite had consumed Smoke's last MP. The DarkElf briskly caught Igniz and placed him inside his special pocket designed for his symbiote.

As he glided in the air, Smoke checked his 'Status Window' and saw that he was out of Mana. The DarkElf gambled on his increased Wisdom stat. He thought that his MP regeneration was enough for this grandiose plan to work.

Nevertheless, Smoke decided to push through with the second phase of his plan. He switched out his Digger's Wand, and took out one of the boss weapons he got from inside the labyrinth.

The DarkElf smirked as he heard the screams of the bandits below him. Despite their high resistance to Fire, the Brandals still received the 'Burned Status'.

Smoke could have simply used Igniz's flames as he did now, and not endanger himself against the bandits.

However, Smoke needed a bait worthy of the Brandals' attention. Otherwise, they would have leapt outside of their encampment and tried to climb out of the trenches.

Smoke shouted at the top of his lungs as he remained gliding above the bandits.

“Hear me you Brandal Scum! The name's Smoke! I'm the leader of this rebellion. I'm sure that you will be handsomely rewarded by Ultimo Maire if you can kill me, but I doubt that any of you pathetic losers can take me! You're only used to fighting Farmers and Fishermen!”

The Brandals were enraged at Smoke's audacity, and were looking for a way to attack him in midair.

Forcefully, Smoke dove down to the sea of flames below him. The DarkElf welcomed Igniz's flames as he was immune to its damage.

THUD!

The DarkElf stunned five Brandal Leaders as he landed at the center of their formation. The impact of Smoke's landing blew them away.

Smoke was whirling his deadly 'Chain and Sickle of Dasende' with his right hand, while he kept the heavy iron ball ready with his left. He recalled the three major reasons why this plan was only applicable now.

First, was the Brandals huddled formation. From the time Smoke arrived, this was the only occurrence where the bandits were all in one place.

Second, was his Mana. Smoke had depleted his mana from creating the first trench and raising the towers.

Third, was his weapon. The 'Chain and Sickle of Dasende' wasn't usable near allies. It would wreak havoc against friend and foe alike.

The DarkElf created a whirlwind as he rapidly spun his Dasende over his head. The whirlwind slowly became larger and larger as Smoke extended its chain.

Before the bandits recovered from their stunned state, Smoke targeted the necks of the leaders mounted on the back of their black ctenosaurs.

Smoke killed all five Brandal leaders on his sickle's fourth orbit. The DarkElf ran in every direction.

He slashed the opponents who got near him and bashed the bandits who were farther away with Dasende's iron ball.

Igniz's sea of flames slowly damaged all the Brandals. The ordinary bandits were left with 60% of their life while the Brandal leaders had 85%.

With his 'Lunar Gravity Boots', the DarkElf leapt up as soon as his regenerated Mana allowed him to use his items' active abilities.

The DarkElf stunned the four bandits below with the force from his landing as he used his 'Hooded Cloak of Cologus', and massacred the four black ctenosaur riders.

Gradually, Igniz's flames died out. Which revealed the soot covered ground. Sporadic smoke was coming out of burnt earth.

This time, the DarkElf went after the bandits on foot. As the bandits were running towards him, He knocked fifteen of the bandits down with a sweep from his long iron chain.

With his opponents down, he alternated hitting them with the weight and the sickle. As he kept attacking the fallen bandits, the other bandits on foot had him surrounded.

As Smoke looked around his enemies, his 'Chain and Sickle of Dasende' glowed. This indicated that his Mana was enough to use its active ability, 'Cyclone of Slaughter'.

Encircled by the Brandals, Smoke activated the ability. His movement and attack speed were increased ten folds. The DarkElf spun around with extreme speed that his weight and sickle created sixteen afterimages.

The Brandals within Smoke's reach were either slashed by the sickle or blown away by the weight. The ability lasted ten seconds which created a pile of dead bodies.

Slowly, the bandits started to back off. This time, the twenty-seven Brandal leaders stepped forward and faced the DarkElf.

* * * * * *

Adder along with everyone else watched Smoke fly off to the Brandals encampment, but as soon as he saw Smoke dig the trench and cover the enemies base with flames, he knew that his leader was on a suicide mission.

The one-armed man instantly called the other members of Smoke's private army, and told them to rush to Smoke's aid.

Smoke's second in command ordered the Maneators; Weise, Stark, and Rasant to bring Laernea and Gandiva's carriages down from their towers.

No one questioned Adder as they rode on the Lioumereans' carriages. Adder left Thyrsus in charge, to take care of the surviving militia members.

The trench was still covered in flames when they arrived at the Brandals encampment. They saw glimpses of Smoke jumping up and heard his loud landing as he crushed the bandits.

All of them wanted to cross the trench, but Igniz's flames prevented them. Adder decided to use this time to target the bandits that were away from Smoke.

The one-armed man ordered them to fire all of their projectile weapons. Forthwith; Sharur, Jinggu, Laernea, Gandiva, and Vijaya unleashed their bolts and arrows against the Brandals.

Ten minutes passed, and they saw that the flames inside the trenches started to subside. Some of the Brandals were jumping into the trench, as they tried to escape from the flames.

Adder reflexively ordered to focus fire on the bandits in the ditch. They would quickly be outnumbered if they managed to climb out of the four meter deep trench.

Adder, Espion, Weise, Stark, and Rasant spread themselves out. They targeted the bandits that started to crawl their way out of the trench.

Twenty minutes passed, and all of Igniz's flames were gone. Adder and everyone else finally saw Smoke. Their leader was clearly struggling.

The DarkElf dodged the Brandal leader's whips, but the bandit's throwing knives hit their mark.

The three Maneators were overwhelmed at the sight of their injured King. Weise, Stark, and Rasant leapt into the trench and plowed their way through the bandits. Espion followed the Maneators lead and trailed after them.

They blew past their enemies and rapidly scaled the other side. Stark led the way with his Rzeka glaive while Weise, Rasant and Espion covered his back and followed closely behind him.

Rasant's dual bullwhips momentarily distracted the Brandals. They thought that one of their leaders were caught by the maneators.

Weise dictated the direction where Stark should go next. The gray Maneator was constantly searching for the most efficient path towards their King.

Espion positioned himself inside the Maneators' triangle formation. This was one of the formations Smoke created for them inside the labyrinth.

The young Spy weaved in and out between the Maneators, attacking the bandits with Smoke's green dual knives and his blinding speed.

Adder watched Espion and the three Maneators gradually make their way to where Smoke was. He remained behind and led the attack on the bandits inside the trenches.

Thirty minutes passed, and Adder saw movements from the opposite side of the plains. Sierra had finally arrived with her reinforcements.

Everyone in Sierra's army stood in awe at the sight before them. One man was inside the swarm of Brandals, and fought heroically against the bandits.

The 410 Sonstwelters recognized the long white haired DarkElf as Smoke. They saw him turn into a blur as he attacked the bandits with his chain and sickle.

The Brandals' encampment looked like a huge black-and-gray arena as it was encircled inside a trench. The area was covered in soot and gray smoke was escaping from the ground.

Smoke's fight against the Brandals was brilliant, but his life bar was already in the red. Sierra ordered her army to charge the Brandals.

As Smoke's battle pushed on, Sierra noticed a shift in the bandits movements. She noticed that three Maneators were trying to create a path for Smoke to escape.

However, the Brandals were gathering towards Espion and the Maneators. Sierra arrived to where Adder and the other battalion commanders were positioned.

"Adder, what's the plan?"

The one-armed man gave Sierra a quick smile of relief.

"We have to cover Espion and the Maneators' escape route, so they can get Smoke out of that death trap."

Sierra nodded. She quickly delegated the plan to Mamelon and the Captain of the Avendre Mercenaries. Both groups instantly responded and dove into the trench.

All of their ranged attackers targeted the bandits that blocked Smoke's escape path, while the militia members and the Avendre Mercenaries spread around the trench attacking the bandits that tried to escape.

The red werebear led the charge. She didn't know how Smoke did it, but most of the Brandals were left with only 50% of their life bars.

Sierra and 600 various Knights started to reopen the closed escape path. They pushed onwards, and massacred the injured bandits.

The red werebear and the Knights haphazardly fought through twenty meters of bandits. She was afraid that she was too late to reach Smoke in time.

Desperately, Smoke stood on top of an earth platform and used his power chainsaw bow to attack the bandits. He switched out his chain and sickle because he was afraid he would injure his companions.

Espion, Weise, Stark, and Rasant formed a circle around Smoke's platform. The four fighters on the ground trusted each other completely, and only focused on the enemies that were in front of them.

Their five man team held their formation until Sierra arrived. The injured Brandals had no chance against the combined might of Sierra and 600 Knights.

After Sierra and the Knights cleared a path to Smoke, the red werebear went directly to where he stood. The DarkElf gave her a reassuring smile.

Smoke unequipped his bow and opened up his arms expecting a hug, when Sierra's claw came out of nowhere and clonked him in the head.

"Ouch! I thought you came here to save me?"

Sierra was genuinely angry at Smoke.

"I thought you told me that you didn't want anyone else to die?"

Smoke grimaced and raised both his hands in surrender.

"I said, I didn't want to lose anyone else. Besides, I knew you would get here in time. Or at least I hoped."

"See, you weren't sure we would make it. Even if we do revive, you should treasure our lives here in Zectas. Think about the Zectians who sacrificed their lives to preserve yours. Don't you think you're mocking them by sacrificing yourself like this?"

"I know that, but isn't it unfair if I wasn't prepared to offer my own life as they would do the same thing for me? We've lost the lives of almost a thousand men! Even if we're inside Zectas, it feels all too real for me."

Sierra remained silent and kept on glaring at Smoke. She knew that he had a point but so did she.

"Anyway, let's not fight over this now. We still have to deal with these Brandal bastards."

As the two of them spoke, Smoke felt that someone was watching him. He looked around and noticed that some of the Sonstwelter Knights kept on glancing over his direction.

Smoke quickly unequipped his hooded cloak, and fought on with the thought to suppress his secret abilities. He kept in mind to only use the actions he performed in his videos.

An hour passed as they went on to butcher the Brandals. When the last bandit fell, a notification message appeared in front of everyone in the battlefield.

+ Quest: Liberate Coatl from Corruption
Liberation Quest
Level: A

Remove Duke Burmistrz from his place of power, and free the entire region of Coatl
from his men corrupt Cavalry Knights and ruthless Brandals.

Note: Accepting this quest makes you a wanted criminal in Coatl
for as long as Duke Burmistrz is mayor of Coatl.

Accept the Quest? [YES/NO]

* * * * * *

Somberly, Nash reviewed his latest video feed for the tenth time. His last video where he pretended he was training himself as Ilad, only got him a check of $10,000.

He was close to the required number of views for the $15,000 check, but unfortunately he ran out of time.

Nash was hopeful for the check to be $15,000. Donny had lost miserably at the national competition of the AUTOMATA (Amateur Unarmed Tournament Open Martial Art Techniques Association).

The general aura around their house was depressing. He thought a short vacation was something that his entire family needed, but a vacation meant he would need money.

This made him decide to upload his latest video feed as soon as possible. Nash would have loved to show his adventures inside the labyrinth, but that would only confirm that Smoke and Ilad were the same person.

For the latest video, he chose his battle against the Brandals. It was a video in honor of Konig Mitleid's heroic sacrifice and of those militia members who offered their lives for Verbrannt village.

Nash carefully edited out the parts where he glided with his hooded cape, or jumped high with his lunar boots. He did include the part where he used his chain and sickle.

Apparently, Sherry and the other Sonstwelters saw him using it when they came to rescue him. Rumors had spread that Nash's advance hidden job in Zectas was that of a Ninja Weapon Master.

Normally, these rumors about his hidden job would have brought a smile to his face. Yet, today his depressed gloomy face remained.

After he was done uploading his battle with the Brandals, Nash clicked on the most active thread in all of Zectas' history.

TriTank: So, what if you've finally met Smoke? Meeting someone unimportant is just that... unimportant.

BlackStar: Why do you need to bash Smoke so much? Even if you've done something extra ordinary does that really give you the right to talk trash against him? I bet you haven't even accomplished half of the things he's done.

TriTank: If you only knew who I really am, I bet you'd bow down before me.

SmokeDisciple1093: @BlackStar, I completely agree. BTW, This is sort of a secret or maybe not so much since I'm posting it here. Anyway, Smoke's going to go against Coatl city's mayor. Our master's going after a city!

Albarn: But doesn't Tristan already have a city? I've heard that you earn an insane amount of zecs owning a city. Isn't Smoke just following after Tristan's footsteps? Just as Tristan is following Amahan's?

DKid: This isn't the same at all. Tristan was given Tonacci city. I guess slaying a dragon is an amazing feat as it is, but I think going against a city is even harder. Can you imagine fighting against an entire army of a main city? The city guards alone are already a force to be reckon with.

TriTank: If what you're saying is true, then I'd pay good money to see Smoke get slaughtered by that city. Which city is he trying to take over anyway? Is it Coatl? That's where he got his new accomplice right? Some Flame Knight named Ilad?

BlackStar: @TriTank, you sure know a lot about Smoke, for someone who thinks he's unimportant.

Hepburn: I know the attentions mostly on Smoke and Tristan at the moment, but I have a strong feeling that we'll be hearing something big from the northern continent soon. I don't think Amahan's idly doing nothing up there.

Asura: Well, I still have my money on Tristan. I know that he can be a bit of an ass, but anyone with that much power tends to be an ass anyway.

Nash turned off his desktop and was about to head downstairs. He took his eskrima sticks with him as he was about to leave his room.

He planned on beating his frustrations on a hanged tire. He needed to keep himself from thinking about Konig Mitleid's death.

* * * * * *

Grief and sorrow blanketed over Verbrannt Castle. However, the residents refused to give in to the pain in their hearts.

They kept themselves busy with the farming, fishing, and other menial tasks. Various defensive projects were on the works outside of the Castle walls.

Everybody looked for different ways to help out and improve their situation. Which was why Ichaival Jackal was busy helping out the residents in Verbrannt village. Especially the families of those who had died in the last battle against the Brandals.

He filled their water tanks to the brim, chopped their firewood into a neat pile, and even entertained the children with a few of his parlor tricks.

Ichaival was known as Nanahuatl's village clown, but all of that was to cover his grief over his mother's death when he was five.

As he carried another bucket full of water, Ichavail stopped and looked over Sharanga's shop as she was experimenting on her new defensive weapon.

Throughout his entire life, there was only one person who saw through his facade. It was Sharanga Sundara when they were eight years old.

Ichaival was catching frogs near the river when Sharanga happened to pass by. The young WoodElf was usually quiet and kept only to herself or her twin sister.

However, on that particular day Sharanga stopped walking and sat near him. She told him that it was okay to cry.

She went on to say that she cries herself to sleep at night as the memory of her own parents were starting to fade.

Ichaival got really angry with her. He couldn't believe how some abandoned kid could possibly understand his feelings.

So, he got one of his captured frogs and shoved it down Sharanga's blouse. He kept teasing her as he ran away.

From that day on Ichaival's love for Sharanga grew, but he didn't know how to show it. He always resorted into pranking her instead.

Yet, now that they were older, Ichaival thought that he would act properly and show her how he truly feels. Sadly for him, Sharanga only sees him as the boy who kept on playing jokes at her.

Ichaival's gaze on Sharanga was disrupted when Adder stepped in front of him, and told him that they were summoned to the war room.

* * * * * *

Smoke and Sierra were having a heated argument in the throne room, as they waited for everyone in their private army to arrive.

"Why can't you understand? If you created a guild and invited more people in to join, then I think we would have a good chance of getting 10,000 Sonstwelters like Tristan."

"Sierra, it's you who can't understand. You can't trust these Sonstwelters. They'll always have a hidden agenda of their own."

The red werebear stared at the DarkElf with frustration.

"Then what about your Non Aggression Pact members? Why did you do that? Isn't that the same thing as making a guild?"

Smoke did a face palm, as he tried to let Sierra understand his reason.

"Those two are completely different. The NAP members had strict rules that prevented them from betraying me, but even then I was caught by Macher. "

"Wait a minute, I thought that Macher's men weren't a part of your NAP? Also, there are other benefits that we could get as a guild."

"I know that... But I just can't bring myself to trust any of them."

Thyrsus knocked on the throne room's door and walked in. He came to tell them that everyone had assembled in the war room.

Smoke and Sierra abruptly ended their discussion and silently followed Thyrsus.

The DarkElf sat at the center of a long rectangular table. Sierra sat at his right side, while Adder to his left.

The other members were spread throughout the table. Ichaival had to ask Espion to change seats with him, so he could sit next to Sharanga.

With everybody settled down, Smoke started their meeting.

"I would like to thank everyone for all your heroic actions in the last battle. We may have survived that army of Brandals, but I wouldn't call it a victory. We've suffered too many casualties, and I'd like us to have a moment of silence to remember Konig Mitleid and those who laid down their lives for our cause."

The war room was filled with solemn silence.

"Now, I'd like to formally introduce to you the newest members of our family. The young Spy with the eye patch, is called Espion. Then we have the tall burly red Maneator, he is called Stark. The hyperactive orange Maneator is Rasant. Finally, the gray Maneator who is quietly observing all of us is called Weise."

The four new members gave a nod and other various forms of acknowledgement as the war room erupted with applause.

Smoke proceeded with the meeting once everybody was done clapping.

"Our biggest concern at the moment is Duke Burmistrz next attack. I don't think we could survive another one, as we are now."

The DarkElf quickly glanced over at the red werebear.

"Which is why Sierra has brought up the idea to create a guild with other Sonstwelters, and I'd like to hear your opinions about this matter."

Thyrsus quickly added in his thoughts.

"I think that it's a great idea. I'm sure you probably know this, but Sonstwelters have special abilities that are beyond us ordinary Zectians... I got to know all of those martyrs and I don't want to see any more of militia members die"

Laernea and Gandiva raised their hands simultaneously.

The lioness Lioumerean spoke first.

"I understand what you're saying, Thyrsus. Nevertheless, I still don't recommend being allies with other Sonstwelters. From our experience, those guys only bring trouble. Of course, Smoke and Sierra are a special case."

Espion interjected Laernea's argument.

"I've had vast experiences with Sonstwelters myself, but desperate times calls for desperate measures."

Gandiva contended Espion's point.

"Wouldn't that make us vulnerable to spies? I mean Macher is a Sonstwelter and he works for the Duke."

Sharur raised his own point.

"If this was Sierra's idea then I'm sure she has a good reason for bringing this up. I say we go with it and create a guild with the other Sonstwelters."

Ichaival, Sharanga, Vijaya, Jinggu also raised their point of views about the matter. Everybody had their own ideas, and the war room was filled with loud disputes and raised voices.

Sierra clapped her werebear claws loudly to call everyone's attention.

"Smoke and I had a similar discussion as what all of you are having now, but the fact remains that we need more manpower. I don't see any other way to increase our army quickly."

Espion had something to say that he thought Smoke and everyone else might have not known yet.

"Do you know how many men are under Duke Burmistrz? He has a standing army of 80,000 in Coatl city, while his main Brandal force of 120,000 bandits are out attacking Centzo city. We'll have more information on their numbers, when my Da Caid arrives from Coatl."

Smoke affirmed what Espion said.

"Yeah, I heard about it from Macher too. The bastard said that the Duke promised him Centzo city if he continues to work under him. What I didn't know was that the Duke had that many men. I thought he only had around 20,000 at most."

Everyone fell silent. There was no way they could overcome those numbers. No one said it, but all of them secretly thought that they were doomed if they stayed in Verbrannt Castle.

Smoke composed himself and took control of the awkward silence.

"Those are unwinnable odds, but we owe it to the people of Coatl and the martyrs that have died, to save this region."

The DarkElf took in a deep breath before he spoke.

"Given this new information, I think we have no other choice but to create a guild with other Sonstwelters. However, I don't want to be the guild leader."

Smoke looked at Sierra.

"This was your idea, so I'd like you to take charge over the Sonstwelters. I'm fine with the Zectians. You can deal with the Sonstwelters yourself."

"But they're only willing to join if you're at the helm. Argh! Just when I thought you weren't being stubborn you say something like this."

Weise quickly said something before another fight broke out.

"I've read various books on war and politics. I think that Smoke should still play the role of Guild Leader, but Sierra takes charge of the Sonstwelters. Smoke doesn't need to directly talk to any of them. I'm sure you can allow something like this, right?"

Smoke gave no response, but he also didn't say no.

Not to be outdone by the gray Maneator, Thyrsus quickly added on to what Weise was saying.

"I'm not 100% sure but I think a guild can also have special rules similar to what Smoke created for the Non Aggression Pact members. If we apply that then that should give everyone whose apprehensive about the other Sonstwelters some assurance."

Smoke nodded and said.

"Fine, I guess I can do that."

The private army members who wanted to create a guild clapped their hands while those that opposed the idea remained stoic.

Smoke looked around the war room and thought that surviving against Duke Burmistrz was doable, he just didn't know how to do it.

The DarkElf also had one more information that he hasn't told anyone yet. From his time in the labyrinth, he found the location of the 'Witches of Wysteria' in one of the books in the Tenebris library.

The witches were the ones that placed a curse on Sierra when she visited Repormatl village. Their location was said to be in the desolate lands to the west, Veneficatl Valley.

Side Story: The Labyrinth Escape

There were six tables in the Tenebris laboratory. Most of them were occupied with flasks, burners, tubes, and other objects that Smoke had never seen before.

One of these six tables only had drawings, sketches and a manual entitled 'How to Create a Maneator'. Smoke quickly grabbed the book which triggered a progress bar to appear.

The DarkElf held the worn-out manual in his right hand. He sighed as he noticed it would still take another four hours to complete.

Espion and Igniz excitedly explored the laboratory together. They gave each other mischievous glances as they looked around.

They found the laboratory to be both mesmerizing and creepy at the same time. The first things that the young Spy noticed were the floor and the ceiling.

Five blood crystals were attached to the ceiling of the Tenebris' laboratory. Directly below it was a gigantic casting circle with five pentagrams designed to form a star.

These were the most prominent features of the laboratory, but Smoke only noticed the stacks of books on the six shelves and the ones scattered on the floor.

Smoke's mouth was salivating. He began to imagine all the acquired knowledge that he could get out of the mountain of books found in the laboratory.

The DarkElf grabbed another manual entitled 'Potion Instructions: Cervisiarius' with his left hand. The progress bar for this manual displayed fourteen minutes.

Smoke had Espion help him find ability tomes from the stacks of books. He also held the books that had less than five minutes for him to acquire their knowledge.

He stored the books that would take longer than five minutes to read into his backpack. He thought he would acquire their knowledge while traveling.

With his Wisdom stat at 87, he was able to greatly reduce the needed amount of time on the progress bars. In fact, most of the books in the library only required him to hold them for nine to thirty seconds.

Unfortunately, most of the books were manuals, lab notes, and experiment results. These books contained similar information.

Books that are almost identical gave little improvement to the Wisdom stat, but Smoke chose to consume them nonetheless.

He even acquired the knowledge of a manual entitled 'Cleaning Procedures of The Tenebris Laboratory'.

As they searched on for the ability tomes, Smoke noticed Espion touch his right eye patch. Smoke placed a small gauze over to stop the blood from flowing.

"Are you alright? Is the eye still bleeding?"

"A little bit. I don't think your First Aid ability is anything to write home about."

Espion smirked as he tried to laugh the pain away.

Smoke was forced to remember the time when he was up against the lamias. Adder sacrificed his left arm in order to save his life.

The DarkElf was guilty that Espion's right eye lost its sight. The eyeball was still there, but the young Spy's right eye was now completely clouded.

He was secretly hopeful that someday he could find a Healer that had the ability to restore Espion's sight.

Two hours passed, and they were able to gather a total of nine ability tomes. Smoke was even more disappointed with the books in the Laboratory because he thought that there would be at least twenty ability tomes within the mountain of books.

The ability tomes that they found were entitled; 'Wind Manipulation','Lightning Manipulation','Thunder Storm', 'Ice Wall', 'Mana Shield', 'Volcano', 'Soul Drain','Lightning Golem', and 'Water Golem'.

Wind Manipulation and Lightning Manipulation ability tomes were the same as his Earth Manipulation tome and required a 50% affinity with their respective elements.

Thunder Storm was a melded elemental ability and required 80% on both Wind and Lightning. The Ice Wall ability tome had the same affinity requirement, but for Water and Wind.

Water Golem and Lightning Golem tomes though required an 85% affinity for their specific elements.

Smoke was even more disheartened by the ability tomes because out of the five elements, he could only master Earth and Fire to 100% without any negative effects of the other elements.

The Mana Shield, Soul Drain, and Volcano tomes were the only ability tomes that Smoke was really happy about.

Mana Shield had no elemental affinity requirement, but it did have a prerequisite of 600 Intelligence.

Soul Drain required 70% Dark elemental affinity, but he hadn't decided whether to master Light or Dark yet, so this ability tome still had potential.

Finally, the melded ability of Earth and Fire, The Volcano. He was still far from the tome's requirements, but he knew that it wouldn't take long for him to acquire it.

He opened his Affinity Window to check on his current stats.

+ Affinities

Fire: 75%
Earth: 60%
Poison: 20%
Lightning: 5%

The DarkElf was disappointed, but tried to look for the silver lining in the books that he found. If there were Wind Golem and Lightning Golem ability tomes, then it was safe to assume that there were also Earth and Fire Golem tomes.

While he was picturing his Fire and Earth golems’ appearance, the progress bar for the manual 'How to Create a Maneator' was finally completed.

+ Maneator Creation

Consumable Ingredients:
1 Embryo
2 Horns
2 Hooves
1 Maneator DNA
1 Maneator Essence
1 flask of Cervisiarius potion.

Non-Consumable Ingredients:
1 Elemental Catalyst
1 Attribute Disc

Procedures:
1. Place the dna, essence, elemental catalyst,
and attribute disc onto one of the pentagram patterns.
2. Pile the Horns and Hooves onto one of the pentagram patterns.
3. Place the embryo at the center of the casting circle.
4. Trace the giant pentagram formation connected
with the smaller pentagram patterns with a Cervisiarius potion.
5. Kneel at the front of the casting circle with both hands touching the diagram.
6. Chant these words to activate casting circle:
'comminuet autem, et ponet eam coniungere vivere'

note: Needs 90,000 Mana.

Smoke quickly checked his maximum mana. He smiled as he saw his mana bar appear ( 94,870/94,870 MP). He was glad he stuck to his decision of raising Intelligence and Wisdom.

Afterwards, he turned towards Espion and Igniz.

"Alright, The manual only says embryo. I think we can use the embryo from the krampus. We only need to look for an Attribute Disc, an Essence, and Maneator DNA. I'm not sure what they look like exactly, but just bring me anything that you think fits their names. I'll start making the Cervisiarius potion."

Straightaway, Espion and Ingiz began searching for disc-like objects in the laboratory. They accidentally knocked over some of the flasks, beakers, and other objects down to the floor.

Guiltily, Espion and Igniz stopped what they were doing and slowly turned to Smoke. The DarkElf didn't mind the broken apparatus and kept on making his potion concoction.

Thirty minutes passed and Smoke finished his Cervisiarius potion. Yet, Espion and Igniz were still searching for the three lacking ingredients.

Espion caught Smoke looking over his direction.

"Umm, I don't think it's in the laboratory. Maybe it's in a different part of the labyrinth?"

Smoke was irritated. He was very close to making his first Maneator but was being delayed by the missing ingredients.

"Did you check everywhere?"

"Yeah, the tables, the shelves. Those are the only things in this room."

When Espion said that, Smoke remembered his acquired knowledge from one of the manuals. It was the cleaning procedure of the laboratory.

'The manual said that the books needed to be stacked neatly into the shelves, any excess books should be placed on top of the tables, and the floor must be spotless. Only then could you proceed to clean the stockroom.'

"Espion, we need to put the books back into the shelves and pile the excess books on top of the desks."

The young Spy started putting the books into the shelves, while Smoke took the broom and dustpan placed inconspicuously beside one of the shelves and began sweeping the floor.

After Smoke gathered the broken glass and placed it into a huge beaker, he helped Espion stack up the books.

The DarkElf thought that it was very tricky to put such a menial condition as cleaning a laboratory in order to open a hidden chamber.

When they were done tidying up the laboratory, a loud clicking sound resounded inside the laboratory. Two of the shelves parted from each other and revealed the hidden stockroom.

Smoke, Espion, and Igniz scoured the dusty stockroom for the lacking ingredients. There were three rusty cabinets inside the chamber.

The DarkElf found ten Maneator Essences while Espion found twenty Maneator DNA samples. Now, they were only missing an attribute disc.

With his mouth, Igniz opened a drawer in the middle cabinet. He accidentally dropped multiple attribute discs on the floor and shattered them to pieces.

The dark ember sprite froze. He was afraid that he had broken all of the attribute discs.

"IGNIZ! What in the world is wrong with you today? First the flasks and now this? Why in the world did you open the drawer by yourself?!"

Espion tried to defend Igniz and said.

"I... I was the one who broke the equipment."

The young Spy quickly searched through the pile of broken discs and shot his hand up in the air.

"I've got one! It's okay, Smoke. There's still an intact attribute disc."

Smoke calmed down a little once he saw Espion holding the unbroken disc. A wave of guilt flashed over the DarkElf as he had just snapped at his symbiote.

"Igniz, come here."

The dark purple symbiote floated slowly towards Smoke.

"Listen, you have to be careful all the time. What if the disc was a consumable ingredient? Then we would only be able to make one Maneator."

Igniz flew three feet away from the broken pieces and radiated more light than usual. His illuminated light revealed one more attribute disc. The disc rolled unscathed from the fall.

Smoke walked towards his symbiote and picked up the attribute disc from the floor.

"I guess you're being a wise-ass and telling me that we can make two Maneators, huh?"

Igniz smiled brightly as the dark ember sprite reciprocated Smoke's smile.

Smoke examined the gathered ingredients. He started with the twenty Maneator DNA samples. There were many DNA samples but only three of them were distinct.

The three distinct Maneator DNA types were: Agility Class, Intelligence Class, and Strength Class.

Next, the DarkElf examined the two attribute discs.

+ Arma Dominus

Attack Focused Disc

Gives your creature:
+ Increased Attack Power
+ Increased Movement Speed
+ Enforced Loyalty
+ Treated as an Assassin on weapon restrictions
- Decreased Life
- Decreased Defense
- Sadistic Nature

+ Dominus Custos

Defense Focused Disc

Gives your creature:
+ Increased Defense
+ Increased Life
+ Enforced Loyalty
+ Treated as a Knight on weapon restrictions
- Decreased Movement Speed
- Decreased Attack Speed
- Irate Nature

After careful consideration Smoke decided on the components for his first Maneator.

Smoke prepared the ingredients. The Embryo, Hooves, Horns, Maneator Essence, Maneator DNA - Intelligence Class, Dominus Custos Attribute Disc, Flask of Cervisiarius Potion, and the Earth enhancing clay stone which he got from Mount Gliseloc.

First, the DarkElf placed all the ingredients into their respective pentagram and the embryo at the center of the wide casting circle.

Next, he traced the pentagram formations with the golden liquid from the Cervisiarius Potion.

Finally, he placed his palms on the front base of the casting circle and cried out 'comminuet autem, et ponet eam coniungere vivere'.

Smoke's 90,000 Mana was consumed.

Bright red lights shone from the blood crystals on the ceiling.  The blood lights changed the golden liquid inside the casting circle and turned it sangria red.

The three consumable ingredients disappeared with a blur, and a body started to take shape inside the center of the casting circle.

In less than two minutes the body of a gray Maneator stepped out of the casting circle. He was 2.8 meters tall and was of a smaller build than Konig Mitleid's.

Worried that something went wrong, Smoke eagerly stepped in front of the gray Maneator and spoke to it.

"Hi... Do you know what you are? Can you understand me? Can you talk at all?"

"Of course, Master. I am your loyal servant. Please feel free to give me a name."

Smoke smiled with relief. He was afraid that he had produced a faulty Maneator.

"Hmm, a name, huh? What about Weise Rind?"

The gray maneator bowed down before Smoke and declared his intentions.

"I, Weise Rind, would humbly like to serve under you as a member of your private army."

"I gladly accept."

+ Weise Rind has joined your Personal Army
Weise Rind is the first Maneator that the DarkElf named Smoke has created. He is a Guardian and has high Intelligence.

Level: 96
Job: Guardian
Loyalty: 100
Favorite Weapon: None
Equipped Weapon: None

Abilities:

Shield Mastery: Gains double the defensive value from a shield.
Shield Smack: Strikes a single target with a shield and stuns target.
Reflect Damage: Physical damage is returned near a small radius.
Vanguard Force: Temporarily increases HP and DEF.
Maneator Regen: Increases Health Regen rate by 300%.

Smoke noticed that Weise's level was the same as his, which led him to believe that it must have been based on the creator's level.

As Espion watched Weise become a member of Smoke's private army, he felt that he was missing out on something.

The young Spy had only known Smoke for a short time, but he knew that he could learn to become a better host for his father's Beggar Job if he followed the DarkElf.

"Smoke, I know that you don't have to say yes, but I'd also like to be a part of your private army."

The DarkElf was surprised at Espion's words.

"Are you sure? Being a part of my army means that you'll be leaving your home, and who knows when you'll get to see your family and friends again."

Espion touched his right eye patch, and remembered that if it wasn't for Smoke he could have died.

"I understand that, but my main goal is to be a worthy successor of my father. I think I could do that if I followed you."

"Alright, I'd gladly accept you to be a part of my private army as well."

+ Espion Tetu has joined your Personal Army
Espion Tetu is the son of Beggar Evocati Caid. He seeks to be a deserving recipient of his father's legacy.

Level: 88
Job: Spy
Loyalty: 90
Favorite Weapon: Blades of Manuset Veritas (Dual Knives)
Equipped Weapon: Tails of the Virile and Fecund Lizards (Dual Knives)

Abilities:

Stealth: Partially hides presence.
Dual Wield: Handles two weapons simultaneously.
Knife Mastery: 100% increased damage from using knife weapons.
Mental Map: Navigates through complex areas.
Bronzen Owl Ears: 500 meter hearing range, increases dodge rate.

After Smoke formally accepted Espion as part of his personal army. He gave Weise his flamdius sword and his gora shield.

Smoke could potentially create ten Maneators based from the ingredients in the stockroom, but he needed to look for more embryos.

The DarkElf thought about the three krampus monsters outside the laboratory who were after them.

At the moment, they still didn't stand a chance against them. This was based on their last battle with a krampus named Herzog Popanz.

Although Smoke had gained a Maneator, Weise was still clearly weaker than any of the krampus monsters. This was why he decided that it was time for them to gain some levels and battle experience.

Immediately, Smoke's party went towards the nearest great hall. There, they attacked the swarm of fire salamanders, crested newts, and wolf spiders head on.

Smoke estimated that there were a total of 600 monsters inside this particular great hall.

The DarkElf ordered Igniz to create two firewalls that would funnel the monsters into a narrower path. The firewall did not faze the monsters, but it did force them to follow Smoke's intended direction.

Weise stood at the front lines with his gora shield and flamdius sword in hand. With his green dual knives, Espion swiftly moved in and out behind the gray Maneator.

The DarkElf would occasionally dive in with his 'Swirling Iron of Death', the weapon dropped by the krampus they defeated earlier.

Smoke's aim was to raise their levels and team efficiency, but he also wanted to increase his Agility of the Horned Rabbit.

With Weise as a dependable Guardian, he was confident that he could risk lowering his life up to 30% and still be able to retreat safely behind Weise and Espion's formation.

Espion and Weise followed the DarkElf's orders without question. This made the new formation into a great success.

Weise took the damage from the monsters and stunned them, while Espion dealt the killing blows. Smoke's dodge rate against the fire salamanders and crested newts was slowly increasing.

The DarkElf was now able to dodge seven of these monsters simultaneously. This allowed him stay longer inside the throng of monsters.

Most monsters were also blown away by Smoke's iron chains and brought into Espion and Weise's direction, which made Espion's part easier. The young Spy focused on attacking the monsters with the lower HPs.

Six Hours passed, and they still were in the same great hall fighting some 230 monsters composed of fire salamanders and crested newts. The wolf spiders ran away after Smoke and Igniz decided to hunt them down.

It was supposed to be Smoke's scheduled break but decided to stay after he saw Espion, Weise, and Igniz giving it their all.

Smoke had skipped many planned breaks before. He prepared himself mentally for the bloody nose and painful migraines that were guaranteed to come.

Another three hours passed and they finally cleared the great hall. Smoke and Weise did not gain a level but Espion gained two.

Smoke didn't mind, since his Agility of the Horned Rabbit's experience bar grew significantly. His targeted ability would soon reach Advance Level 7 and give him +510 Agility.

As they didn't know the exact location of the krampus monsters, they always made sure to keep a look out for the three beasts.

Smoke and his personal army repeated their great hall hunting for the next three days. They were able to clear eight great halls in that span of time.

In the past few days, Smoke and his men stayed within the same 30% region of the labyrinth. They had mastered the respawn times of the great halls within this area.

Espion chose this region because he had not encountered the krampus monsters in this area before.

However, the DarkElf thought that it was time for them to face the three krampus. He wanted them to venture outside of their safe zone.

Smoke was now at Level 97, Weise was still at Level 96, and Espion at Level 92. The young Spy gained the most experience.

With their gained battle experience and levels, the DarkElf wanted to test their mettle against the three krampus but he needed to fight them on a one on one situation. Smoke gave Espion the order to start looking for the krampus.

The five to ten monsters that they met along the passageways no longer challenged Smoke and his men. Anyone of them could now solo that number of monsters.

They young Spy led the way in a straight line towards the great hall that the krampus monsters had frequented before.

They cleared all the monsters in their path, but they were extra vigilant whenever they were in a great hall. Smoke made sure that they always had two escape routes.

After twelve hours they finally caught a glimpse of the krampus in one of the passageways. but so did the humongous monsters.

The three krampus immediately gave chase. Smoke and his men ran for their lives. The DarkElf wished he had one of Sharanga's five trap systems to hold at least one of the krampus.

Smoke had observed from their last encounter with the three krampus that the tunnels were only big enough to fit one krampus at a time.

This was the perfect scenario that the DarkElf was looking for. Smoke's back was exposed which the krampus directly behind him was fully aware of.

The monster launched his long iron chain against Smoke, but the DarkElf easily dodged it with his increased Agility of the Horned Rabbit and Cunning of the Dire Fox abilities.

Although the krampus' iron chains had a long reach it was still classified as a melee weapon, which was detectable by Smoke's ability.

The krampus tried ricocheting the iron chain on the walls of the tunnel, but Smoke avoided them nonetheless. The DarkElf then ordered Igniz to create a fire directly behind him as they ran.

These krampus had a high resistance to fire, but even the smallest damage could mean the difference between life and death.

Smoke kept on dodging the krampus’ iron chains until the gray maneator stood ten feet away from the tunnel's exit.

The DarkElf saw that Weise was already in position and gave him a quick nod. It was time for them to initiate his plan.

The chasing krampus in the lead never ceased its attacks with its iron chain. All of which were dodged by Smoke.

However, as Smoke approached Weise he did not run away from the krampus but charged right at the monster with a surprise attack.

Smoke fluidly equipped his Armored Armadillo Shield. He bashed the krampus in front, and stunned it for one second.

The two krampus at the back threw their own iron chains at Smoke, but missed him because of their limited view.

This was how Smoke planned on dealing with the three krampus, one monster at a time. The DarkElf stood behind the right side of the gray Maneator and switched his weapon to his powersaw bow.

The tunnel not only forced the krampus to stay in a straight line, it also limited the monsters' attack range.

The stunned krampus recovered and charged at Smoke and his men. The DarkElf attacked the enraged monster with his poisoned arrows while Espion launched his throwing knives from the left side of Weise.

When the krampus drew near them, Smoke and Espion quickly switched weapons. The DarkElf equipped his Armored Armadillo Shield on his left land and the electro charged bullwhip on his right.

Espion switched to the Tails of the Virile and Fecund Lizards knives. Smoke told him to use the green dual knives paralysis ability when the krampus got within range.

Smoke had given them all a specific task. Weise would block the attacks from the krampus in front while Smoke will deflect the iron chains from the two krampus at the back.

The DarkElf gave the slicing and dicing task to Espion. The young Spy timed his counter attacks precisely. Igniz was tasked to constantly create a firewall behind them.

The dark ember sprite was ordered to prevent the fire salamanders, crested newts, and wolf spiders from bothering them. The three of them needed to focus on the krampus inside the tunnel all the time.

Espion waited for the krampus in the front to finish its iron chain attack before he stepped in with the green dual knives.

The young Spy used the active paralysis ability of the Tails of the Virile and Fecund Lizards. The paralysis duration lasted between zero to twenty seconds.

The ability depended on the resistance level of the target. In the case of the leading krampus, the paralysis effect only lasted five seconds.

Espion had complete trust in Smoke. He didn't bother to dodge the other iron chains of the two krampus' stuck inside the tunnel, the young Spy knew that he would be protected by his leader.

There were multiple times when the two iron chains came out in unison. Smoke blocked one of the chains with his Armored Armadillo Shield while repelling the other with the bullwhip.

Weise on the other hand remained focused to his given task. He bravely took the incoming damage from the krampus in front of him. His lifebar displayed (210,196/222,900 HP).

The gray Maneator defended with his gora shield but the krampus still managed to hit him for 4,000 damage points on each attack.

Weise had the highest defense out of the three of them, otherwise if Smoke or Espion took the krampus' attack it could have been as high as 12,000 damage points.

Espion's attacks on the krampus were slow but calculated. He managed to reduce their targeted krampus' life bar to (202,680/280,000 HP).

The three krampus they were up against were clearly weaker than Herzog Popanz, the krampus who blinded Espion.

The injured krampus tried to break out of the tunnel by charging its horns directly at Weise.

Smoke told Weise to reserve his 'Shield Smack' ability for such a situation. The gray Maneator brought his gora shield to his front and stunned the krampus inside the tunnel.

The krampus in the middle was pushed by the last krampus with its iron chain which damaged the middle krampus' back.

This irritated the middle krampus, and the two krampus began to fight each other. The Tenebris designed these beasts to be easily angered killers.

It wasn't until they heard the cry of the krampus in front that the two came to their senses and stopped fighting each other.

The krampus monsters had no problem fighting with each other, but the beasts could not tolerate any of their kin being killed by another creature.

The DarkElf's plan worked well so far, but there were several scenarios that could collapse the entire strategy in one go.

"Everyone, stay focused on your tasks!"

No one responded, but Smoke knew that everybody remained vigilant. All of them played their roles to the best of their abilities.

It had only been ten minutes but to Smoke and his men it felt like an hour. The krampus in front was finally left with 5% of its maximum life.

After Espion delivered the killing blow, the krampus next in line stepped forward. The beast was enraged by the death of its kin.

The second monstrous krampus charged with all its might and Weise met it with his shield to stun the beast. Yet, the krampus was unfazed.

The monster was about to come out of the tunnel, until Smoke used his Armored Armadillo Shield to perform a second stun and held the beast a step away from the exit.

The first krampus' body started to fade and its loot started to appear. Smoke's gaze went to the coveted embryo. He needed it in order to make another Maneator.

However, the krampus monsters knew of the embryo's importance. It was one of the limited things the Tenebris instilled into the beasts.

Smoke jumped in to grab the embryo, but the current krampus in front snapped out of its dazed state and stomped on it. The monster broke it in half and the embryo slowly disappeared.

The DarkElf's back was exposed as he dove down to get the embryo. The krampus’ iron chains knocked Smoke down to the ground.

Igniz sensed that Smoke's life was in danger. The dark ember sprite left his position and went to help the DarkElf.

The krampus kept on attacking Smoke with its iron chain. Weise stepped in and blocked the next blow.

Espion tried to paralyze the monster, but an attack from the last krampus at the back blew him away.

Igniz caught the krampus off guard. The dark purple flaming sprite went for the krampus' left eye. The damage made the krampus step back and cover its injured eye.

Espion swiftly pulled Smoke behind Weise. The DarkElf recovered from the back attacks, but he was damaged for 40% of his maximum life.

"Igniz, thanks for the rescue, bud! But you need to get back in position. We can't have the other monsters attack us from behind."

The dark ember sprite quickly went back to create the firewalls.

Smoke, Weise, and Espion resumed their battle formation. This time they were lucky to have regained their position, but next time could result in a disastrous scenario.

This made the DarkElf decided to settle for one embryo, and ordered his men to kill the second krampus without any intention of grabbing the Maneator component.

With their heightened focus, Smoke and his men killed the second krampus. The last krampus followed its predecessor's action and stepped on the krampus embryo.

Weise focused on defending the last krampus' attacks, while Smoke and Espion dealt lightning damages.

Smoke and his men killed the last krampus in less than seven minutes. Only Espion leveled up in their battle against the three krampus monsters.

+ Acquired iron chains: 'Heavy Iron Chains'.

+ Acquired krampus hide.

+ Acquired krampus horns.

+ Acquired krampus hooves.

+ Acquired krampus embryo.

+ Acquired 1/3 confidential labyrinth map.

As the DarkElf half heartedly collected the sole krampus embryo, he finally noticed a torn out piece of the labyrinth's map.

He quickly searched through the hides, horns, and hooves until he found the other two pieces of the map.

Smoke placed all three pieces of the map together, and the parchment merged into one map.

+ Gained Confidential Labyrinth Map

+ Confidential Map of Zuchthaus Labyrinth

* Reveals Exit of Labyrinth
* Reveals Labyrinth Treasure Room

A full map of the labyrinth appeared in front of Smoke with two blinking Xs. One was labeled exit while the other treasure room.

Smoke's grin reached ear to ear, but before anything else he needed to get back to the laboratory to make his second Maneator.

* * * * * *

The DarkElf repeated the same process from the last time. He placed the components inside the huge casting circle.

For his second Maneator he thought that he should have more firepower, which was why he decided to use the Arma Dominus attribute disc coupled with Agility based Maneator DNA.

The embryo started to take shape. A few more seconds and a smaller Maneator than Weise stepped out of the giant casting circle.

Confident from his previous success with Weise, Smoke walked towards the orange Maneator unperturbed.

"Hello there! I'm your creator, Smoke, and we are your new family. Weise is clearly your older brother and just think of Espion as a distant cousin."

Weise and Espion walked closer towards the orange Maneator.

Igniz flamboyantly orbited around Smoke when his name wasn't mentioned.

"And of course you have the very powerful dark ember sprite as a guardian angel. This guy's name is Igniz."

The orange Maneator answered Smoke in a dizzyingly fast talk.

"Nice to meet you all! It is an honor to be created by you, master Smoke. I know I just got my awareness but I suddenly feel the need to run and explore and run some more. Are we going to leave soon? I feel that we've stayed in this one place way too long now. When do we leave? Also, what's my name? Do I have a name? How long do you think it will take you to give me a name?"

Smoke had to grab hold of the orange Maneator to stop him from speaking.

"Alright! How about Rasant Rind?"

"Rasant Rind? Sounds perfect! Thanks! Now that we have that settled, what's next? Oh and I see that most of you have weapons and I don't have one. Do I get a weapon? What weapon am I getting? Can I get a green knife like Espion? Or do I get a wavy sword like big bro Weise?"

"I'm giving you this bullwhip and iron chain. I think you could do some serious damage with these two weapons."

Rasant quickly tried out his bullwhip and cracked it in the air. Afterwards, he tried the iron chain. With the iron chain's longer reach, the orange Maneator broke most of the apparatus in the laboratory and almost damaged Smoke and everyone else.

"I just remembered that if I'm going to give you the bullwhip I'd be stuck with just my bow. I need to improve my bow's damage if that's the case. So, if you don't mind can you return the iron chain?"

Smoke made a quick excuse to relieve Rasant of the iron chain and prevented them from being damaged in the future.

The DarkElf also realized that what he said was true and performed the transmutation process on his powersaw bow.

He used all the iron chain weapons found and transmuted his powersaw bow into a power chainsaw bow. The bow's shape and color changed.

His bow was now made of wood and metal. The damage also increased by twice as much.

"Oh, right! I was so excited with trying everything out in this world that I forgot to formally give my allegiance to you. If you don't mind I would like to offer my life to you and serve as a member of your personal army."

Smoke was astounded by Rasant's rapid chatter.

"Of course, I'd be honored to accept."

+ Rasant Rind has joined your Personal Army
Rasant Rind is the second Maneator that the DarkElf named Smoke has created. He was molded to be an Assailant and has high Agility.

Level: 97
Job: Assailant
Loyalty: 100
Favorite Weapon: None
Equipped Weapon: bullwhip

Abilities:

Rapid Reflexes: Gains double the dodge rate from total Agility.
Rapid Strike:   Gains double the attack speed from total Agility.
Rapid Movement: Gains double movement speed from total Agility.
Dual Wield:     Handles two weapons simultaneously.
Vanguard Force: Temporarily increases HP and DEF.
Scourge of the Beast III: 50% Increased damage against Beast type monsters.

With his second Maneator in tow, Smoke and his men headed towards the labyrinth's treasure room.

* * * * * *

As they followed the confidential labyrinth map, Weise thought to teach his younger brother how to read. Rasant obliged. He was eager to do anything.

Smoke thought that Rasant had too much energy to spare, any form of task was welcome to exhaust the orange Maneator's enthusiasm.

After a day's travel, the confidential labyrinth map led Smoke and his men to an empty great hall. It guided Smoke to the center of the vast chamber.

There, the DarkElf found a discreetly hidden keyhole on the floor of the expansive room. Smoke instantly thought to use Mitleid's key.

As Smoke turned the key, selected pillars out of the hundreds inside the great hall began to glow a luminous red color.

The red glowing pillars formed a teleportation circle. Smoke and his men were caught in a flash of light. When they were finally able to see they had already been transported.

- Entered Treasure Room of Zuchthaus

- The Guardian of the Treasure Room is a Level 700 Monster.
- Suggested level for entering the treasure room N/A.

For a split second, the DarkElf was afraid when he saw the game notification. He had never encountered a level 700 monster before, but he was also curious why the suggested level was N/A.

"Everyone! Weapons Out!"

Before Smoke, Igniz, Espion, Weise, and Rasant could do anything, a gigantic lion claw came at them and slashed them all to the ground.

The monster was still lying down on all four legs when it attacked. It had the body of a lion with a wings of a great condor, and a head of male man.

The great sphinx was 5 meters from the ground to its head, 4 meters from its left paw to its right, and had a body length of 18 meters.

With with one attack, Smoke and his men were reduced to 2% of their maximum lives.

"Intruders? Andrais can't recall the last time there was anyone brave enough to venture here or are you people just idiots who have no idea who you're up against?."

Smoke tried to get a hold of the situation. He desperately tried to look around the room, but it was empty, except for the golden radiating sphinx in front of them.

The DarkElf resented himself. How could he have placed Igniz, Espion, Weise, and Rasant in such a dangerous situation. They currently had no chance of winning against a level 700 monster.

"Igniz, Espion, Weise, Rasant, forgive me for bringing you into this mess. I had no idea that we would be up against such a legendary monster."

Smoke sincerely apologized to his men before they would be killed. As a sonstwelter he could revive, but these moments could very well be the last moments his Zectian companions had.

The great sphinx curiously draw near the DarkElf.

"DarkElf, you speak highly of your men and treat them as family. Andrais thinks that killing you now would only bring back Andrais' boredom faster. Also, Andrais appreciates such acts of heroism and valor because of this, Andrais shall test your wits. Answer all of Andrais' questions correctly, and not only will Andrais let you escape Andrais shall even reward you."

Smoke couldn't begin to explain the wave of solace that went through him.

"Oh, great Andrais. I'm truly grateful for giving me this test, but may I place my life alone? I wish for my companions to be free in exchange for my own life."

The great sphinx angrily raised his right claw and was about to strike the DarkElf down. Fortunately for Smoke, Andrais managed to stop himself.

"Ignorant DarkElf! You are in no position to give Andrais conditions! Make one wrong answer and you're all dead."

Smoke immediately knelt to the ground and bowed down. He quickly signalled his men to do the same.

In a hushed voice he told his men to hide their weapons and to make no attempt of attacking the great sphinx.

"Forgive my ignorance, oh merciful Andrais. I was only afraid for their lives, but no excuse could be valid enough to question your authority. Please do with us what you will."

The DarkElf desperately tried to get on the great sphinx's good nature.

"Stop it! Cease your pathetic attempts of appeasing Andrais. For now Andrais shall continue to let you live. Are you ready to answer Andrais' first question?"

"Of course. We are only alive by your gracious will."

"A convicted criminal was given a chance at salvation. There were three rooms with an exit that led to his freedom. The first room was completely filled with flames, the second room was filled with hidden Assassins equipped with sharp blades, and the third had three lions that haven't eaten in a year. Which room should the criminal pick?"

Rasant quickly answered before Smoke.

"The room filled with Fire. If he has high tolerance to Fire like Smoke then he could pass that room with ease..."

The DarkElf quickly held his hand over Rasant's mouth and stopped the orange Maneator from talking.

"That isn't our answer. Rasant was just thinking out loud for us. The condition for the convict to have high Fire resistance is not a sure answer."

Smoke pondered on the three rooms for a few more seconds and finally spoke.

"It is the room filled with lions."

Confused at the answer, Rasant immediately turned to the DarkElf.

"Why? Do you think the convict has a high dodge rate and can fight the lions barehanded?"

Andrais looked to Smoke. The great sphinx indicated that he wanted to hear the DarkElf's reason for choosing the lions.

"Well, the two other rooms only has a slim chance at survival, but the room filled with the dead lions is a sure thing."

Rasant asked Smoke once more.

"But the sphinx didn't say the lions were dead?"

To which Smoke replied with.

"Three lions can't survive for a year without eating. Even if they became cannibals and ate each other, they would still die in that span of time."

"Ahhh!"

Exclaimed the orange Maneator as he finally realized the answer.

"Good choice DarkElf. Next, Andrais would like to hear your orange Maneator answer this one by himself."

Everyone in Smoke's party shuddered. Rasant had always shown his rash personality. They could only hope that it was a yes or no question.

"Tell me eager Maneator, what happens once in a second, twice in a millennium, but never occurs in the course of a lifetime?"

Without a second thought Rasant answered the great sphinx.

"Easy, the letter 'N' Weise recently taught me how to read. I find the letters 'N' and 'Q' to be quite amusing."

The great sphinx smiled. He was amused at the orange Maneator.

"Correct."

Andrais grabbed Rasant with his claws and pushed him to a different side.

"Now, I want the young Spy to answer this one. A man wanted to enter an exclusive tavern but had no idea on the password of the secret entrance. He patiently waited within an earshot of the door. A tavern member walked up to the door and knocked. The doorman opened the small peep hole and said, 'twelve.' To which the member replied, 'six'. The first tavern member was allowed entry. Minutes passed, and a second member arrived at the secret tavern door. This time the doorman said, 'six.' The member answered, 'three' and was allowed inside. After hearing that much, the man thought he had cracked the code. He confidently walked up to the door and knocked. The doorman said ,'ten' and the man boldly answered, 'five.' But he was denied access to the tavern. Tell me, young Spy. What should the man have answered?"

Espion thought that he was very lucky with his question. It was common for a Spy to decode passwords and messages.

The young Spy was mumbling to himself for a couple of minutes. Slowly he exhausted all the possible answers in his head.

"The man should have said three."

The great sphinx snickered.

"Tell Andrais your reason, young Spy."

The great sphinx asked. As he wanted to hear Espion's logic.

"That's because the tavern members answered the length of the spelled out number and not the half of the number. Imagine if the doorman said seven? He would have to answer with three and a half."

"Very good!"

Once more, Andrais separated them. He grabbed Espion and placed him together with Rasant.

"Next, Andrais wishes to have the wise looking gray Maneator answer this one."

Weise readied himself and listened closely to the great sphinx.

"Lost in the forest, you luckily find a broken-down wooden bridge which crosses a dangerous looking ravine. The ravine is too threatening to try anything else to cross it except by using the bridge. You need to make sure if you can cross the bridge safely. Fortunately, you recognize the town over the bridge to be, 'Veritasitus'. Everybody who lives there are cursed to tell lies or truths. You're tired and you know there is a main road to your hometown if you go to Veritasitus. Then, you see three people across the bridge.

You shout out over to them: 'Are you truth-sayers?'

The first man says something inaudible.

The second person yells, 'The first one says he's a truth-sayer.'

Then, the third one there bellows, 'No, that's not what he said. The first one said he was a liar-sayer.'

Well, gray Maneator, which should you ask to know if the bridge is safe to cross?"

Weise sat down and started writing into his imaginary paper. He kept thinking out loud to himself about how the three men could act.

"If I assume that the first man is a liar and the question was 'Are you a truth-sayer' what would be his response? It needs to be a lie so he would say he was a truth-sayer. On the other hand if he was a real truth-sayer then he would still have to say that he was indeed a truth-sayer. With this much I know that the second man is also a truth-sayer because regardless if the first person was a truth-sayer or not he was sure to say that he was a truth-sayer. I don't need to think about the last person, he is only there as a distraction."

The gray Maneator looked to the great sphinx and answered him.

"I will ask the second man if the bridge is safe enough to cross."

Andrais chuckled as he set Weise aside with Rasant and Espion.

"Now, it's your turn. Dark ember sprite. Step forward little purple fireball."

Smoke was troubled. Igniz did not have the ability to talk, the DarkElf had no idea how his symbiote could answer.

"There is a rich impatient man. He wants to fill up an entire room that has a volume of twenty cubic feet in a second. Tell Andrais, what should you use to fill up the room?"

Igniz smiled as he heard his question from Andrais.

The dark ember sprite floated closer to the great sphinx and shone a bright purple light to best of his ability. Igniz's radiance temporarily blinded Smoke and his companions.

"Very well done. Andrais is pleased to have such smart intruders. Now, you may join your friends to the side."

Igniz flew towards Espion and the Maneators. The great sphinx returns his focus to the DarkElf.

"You're the last one DarkElf."

Smoke readied himself. He wasn't sure if he was prepared for the great sphinx's question, but he had a gut feeling that he could answer it without a hitch.

"Tell Andrais, how many questions has Andrais asked all of you?"

Rasant yelled out loud without thinking.

"Alright! It's five. I mean there are five of us and he has asked us once, right?"

The DarkElf replied in a much louder voice.

"Andrais is very kind to give us such individually tailored questions. The first question you gave me was based on my experience of poverty and hunger. The question you gave Rasant favored his rash and impatient personality. You gave Espion, our spy, a code breaking question which he had trained to for. For Weise, you gave him a question that played well to his intellectual advantage. You even managed for my trustworthy symbiote to answer one of your questions."

Smoke paused and stared directly into the great sphinx's eyes.

"All of this tells me to play to my strengths. To doubt the obvious, to carefully observe the situation, and to understand the fine print. You don't mean to ask me just the highlighted questions. You've been counting since the start of our conversation. You didn't ask us five questions but a total of seven instead."

The great sphinx stood up from his laid back position and stretched out his front legs like a cat. Andrais' hind legs started to scratch his body, and his wings lifted up.

Andrais uttered 'Opes Apparere Locus', and the empty room was filled with a variety of magical equipments. The items in the treasure room were usable only to variations of Mage and Acolyte Jobs.

"You have entertained Andrais and for that your reward shall be these seven items."

Smoke's weird ecstatic grin came out once more. Laid out before him were the treasures: 'Sable Wizard's Surcoat', 'Lunar Gravity Boots', 'Digger's Wand', 'Storm Staff of Ehactl', 'Mirror of Meztli', 'Gloves of Itzli', 'Ring of Ezikill'.

Due to the high level requirements and elemental affinities the DarkElf could only use the first three treasures of the labyrinth.

The Sable Wizard's Surcoat was a black armor made out of hard leather and chainmail. It had a lower defense than his gora plate, but its special properties outweighed the defense.

It was only because the Sable Wizard Surcoat had immunity against curses, 10% resistance to all elements, and an increased bonus experience by 15%. These special effects made him decide to switch armors.

Smoke had to catch up to the higher level Sonstwelters soon and this armor was his ticket. In all of the Sonstwelters Amahan still had the highest level 169, while Tristan held the seventh spot at level 151.

It had almost been a year and Smoke was only 72 levels behind Amahan. Of course the DarkElf knew that it was much harder to increase your level as it went up.

The Lunar Gravity Boots increased his movement speed and gave him a leaping ability. It also had an AOE ability that shared the boot's passive abilities to the party members inside the casting circle.

The Digger's Wand increased his Earth affinity. It also had two active abilities the Tunneling and Trenching.

The Storm Staff of Ehactl required its user to be at least level 700, have a Wind affinity of 70%, and intimacy of 70% to the Ehactlastic Church. It was said that the wind god, Ehactl, himself blessed the staff.

It could create a tornado with a diameter of 200 meters. The tornado's duration depended on its caster's Mana.

The Mirror of Meztli was a gift from the goddess of the moon to her believers. It required its user to be at least level 600, have a Light affinity of 80%, and an intimacy of 80% with the Meztlinian Church.

It could display what your targeted individual was currently seeing. Provided that you have that individual's blood and dripped it over the mirror.

The Gloves of Itzli required its user to have a minimum level of 500, an affinity of 70% to Lightning, and an intimacy of 70% to the Itzlitites Church.

It reduced the casting time for channeled abilities. It also increased the user's Dexterity by 30 points.

Channeled abilities had massive AOE. It could heal an entire battalion or wipe it out completely.

Finally, Smoke's coveted item, the Ring of Ezikill. It required its user to be at least level 500, have a Dark affinity of 50%, and be a member of the Ezikill Church.

Once a month it had the ability to resurrect a dead Sonstwelter instantaneously. Provided the wearer had charged the ring with 10,000 kills from creatures of the same level as the Sonstwelter.

Smoke gratefully stored the treasures into his backpack window. Suddenly, the great sphinx bellowed out once more.

Slowly, the treasures began to disappear. The DarkElf lost his chance to enjoy the sights of the other treasures.

Andrais signalled Smoke to join his companions.

"Know this DarkElf. You may have lived today, but enter the treasure room once more and you shall have Andrais as your enemy. Finally, receive this last reward.”

+ Gained 1,000,000 exp.

+ Level Up!

”Andrais foresees that you will come here in the future. Andrais wishes for a worthy opponent."

Smoke and his whole party received a tremendous amount of experience as the room began to be engulfed in a bright light.

Those were the last words Smoke and his men heard, as they were teleported back into the great hall with the well hidden keyhole.

Smoke looked to his men and with a forced smile and spoke to them.

"HAHAHA. Well, that was some adventure. Why don't we eat up first and rest before we head for the labyrinth's exit."

* * * * * *

It took them a day's travel to reach the exit. Smoke led the way, but Rasant found ways to step in front of the DarkElf and dealt with the monsters that blocked their way. The rest of them simply watched the orange Maneator go on a rampage.

This time the confidential map of the labyrinth led them to the only underground spring inside the maze. The only area that was not covered in marble.

Smoke had only been here once. He thought to try his Earth Manipulation ability, but the ground did not bend to his will.

As the map instructed, the DarkElf stood in front of a seven meter boulder. He ordered his men to search the entire boulder.

After they combed the enormous rock, Espion found a well hidden keyhole behind it.

It was a tight squeeze just to get to the keyhole. There was no way they could have found this if they didn't know to search the giant boulder.

The huge stone started to shake after Smoke turned the key. Quickly, he stepped aside as the giant rock rolled over and revealed a hidden staircase.

Smoked led the way down the staircase.

"Everybody, gather around me. We have to be ready! We don't know if we have to face another level 700 monster. Move closer, I'll cast my boot's active ability."

As the DarkElf activated his boots' 'Lunar Eclipse' ability, Espion mumbled.

"Sure! It's not like we stand a chance if there was another monster like Andrais."

The Lunar Eclipse's casting circle glowed with Smoke at its center. Everyone inside the circle received the boots' passive effects for five minutes.

With all their preparations completed, the DarkElf and his men walked down into a cavernous chamber. Inside they saw an oddly misshapen monument at the center. The room was almost three times the size of the Tenebris laboratory.

There were eight tunnels that looked exactly the same as the ones in the level above. Smoke assumed that one of these pathways led to the outside world.

Smoke and his men remained vigilant, with their weapons at the ready. The DarkElf asked his symbiote to brighten up the room.

The misshapen structure became clearer as Ingiz increased his luminance. It was a motionless gigantic krampus in a fetal position.

The monster's head was tucked close to its stomach and its hands and knees formed a lumpy spherical shape.

Smoke examined the inanimate krampus from afar.

"I think it's best if we stay away from that thing and pray that it remains lifeless."

Right after Smoke uttered those words, the monstrous krampus began to move from its folded position.

"Attack!"

The DarkElf yelled and together with his men they took the initiative.

With his upgraded power chainsaw bow, Smoke moved to a better tactical position and began to launch a series of fire arrows. Espion, Weise, and Rasant ran straight for the groggy krampus.

Igniz attacked from mid-air with a fire cage which trapped the behemoth in its half fetal position. Rasant was next to attack with his electro charged bullwhip.

The orange Maneator aimed for the bent arms, while Espion positioned himself at the back. There, he made multiple afterimages of himself as he slashed through the krampus with blinding speed.

After calculating the krampus’ potential weak spots, Weise started to stab the krampus' sides with his flamdius sword. The gray Maneator wanted to contribute as much damage as he could before he portrayed the role of a tank.

Smoke ran towards the krampus' right side, opposite of where Weise was attacking. Their joint damage revealed the krampus' life bar and name. Dasist Dasende (389,197/400,000 HP).

Their damage only enraged Dasende. The monstrous krampus swung its left arm and broke free from Igniz's fire cage. Its arm smashed into Weise's shield, and slammed the gray Maneator into the wall.

Espion and Rasant reflexively stepped back. Since they didn't know Dasende's reach and attack speed.

As Agility attackers with lower health points, Smoked taught them to be wary of the opponent's capabilities.

Although, Rasant's rash mannerism often made him charge against the fire salamanders and crested newts that they met before.

Dasist Dasende stood up to its full height of four meters. This krampus was almost twice the size of any of the three unnamed krampus who were chasing after them.

Dasende picked up its weapon from where it slept. It was a weighted chain and sickle. Dasende snarled at Smoke and his men, as it began swirling the sickle.

In a blink of an eye, Dasende's sickle disappeared and swirled towards the DarkElf. Smoke was able to dodge with his increased Cunning of the Dire Fox ability.

However, the sickle's motion continued on towards the rest of Smoke's men. Espion leapt upwards to escape while Rasant dove down to the ground.

Weise had to strengthen his hold on his gora shield as it collided with Dasende's sickle. The gray Maneator managed to plant his hooves firmly on the ground which prevented him from being blown away.

Igniz blitz towards Dasende's eyes but the krampus' chains were being waved around the krampus' body and blocked the dark ember sprite's path.

Smoke constantly changed positions and kept on attacking Dasist Dasende with a mix of fire arrows and poison arrows. His improved power chainsaw bow caused a 740-1172 damage on each attack.

Yet, Dasist Dasende's chains blocked more than 50% of the DarkElf's arrows. Rasant tried to grab the chain with his electro charged bullwhip, but the orange Maneator could not hold on to it for more than two seconds.

Dasende began spinning its deadly weapon once more, but this time he held onto the weighted end. The iron ball flew past Smoke and went swerved towards Weise's shield.

The gray Maneator knew that if he took the attack head on, it could only result in a disastrous end. Weise quickly estimated the required angle and adjusted his shield accordingly.

The krampus' iron ball was deflected by the inclined shield and flew upward. It smashed into the cavern's wall.

The massive damage from Dasende's iron ball caused a section of the wall to crumble and blocked the entrance of one of the tunnels.

Smoke had thought about entering the tunnels and attacking the krampus from inside. He was glad that he dismissed that idea.

As the DarkElf smiled, another realization suddenly came to him. What if that blocked tunnel was the exit out of the labyrinth.

He wanted to shout to his men to avoid blocking the tunnels with debris, but their safety was his top priority.

Dasist Dasende readied his iron ball attack for a second time. Smoke quickly switched weapons and equipped his Rzeka glaive.

"Weise, be ready to take the attack. Espion, Rasant, follow my lead and let's disable his weapon."

All of Smoke's men readied themselves to comply to their leader's orders. Weise inclined his shield once more.

As soon as Dasende's iron ball was diverted, Smoke leapt over the chains and plunged his Rzeka glaive into it. The chain was stuck to the ground.

The DarkElf targeted the chains because he knew one attack from his glaive could not sever the krampus' arm.

Espion threw his throwing knives and targeted the holes on the chains, while Rasant caught a hold of Dasende's right hand.

Unfortunately, Espion's throwing knife missed their mark. Rasant held onto the krampus, but it was only for five seconds.

Dasist Dasende flicked its wrist and the part of the chain that was not caught by Espion's throwing knives came straight for the orange Maneator.

Rasant was forced to let go of the krampus. Dasende's sickle came at the agile Maneator and nicked his right horn as Rasant barely dodged it.

Smoke released his end of the chain with the weighted sickle and leapt over to the orange Maneator.

The DarkElf drove his Rzeka glaive into the ground with his right hand. He held on tight, and remained suspended in a handstand position.

Dasende intentionally aimed its sickle to go in a circular motion, but was stopped by the solid silver glaive stuck on the ground.

The krampus' sickle started to swirl around Smoke's glaive instead.

"Everyone, same plan!"

Espion targeted for the holes in the chains once more, while Rasant coiled his bullwhip on to Dasende's right hand.

This time was different because Weise was closer to the krampus and executed his Shield Smack attack. The krampus was stunned for three seconds.

Igniz instantly followed up on the gray Maneator's attack with two giant fireballs to the krampus' eyes.

With the krampus' right hand still caught in his bullwhip, Rasant ran towards Dasende's back and entangled the krampus' left hand.

Rasant handcuffed Dasist Dasende with his bullwhip. As the krampus was being attacked from three sides, Espion focused on one task.

With inhuman speed, the young Spy kept on slashing the krampus' right hand in order to remove the monster's deadly weapon.

Smoke smoothly switched weapons and stunned Dasende once more with his Armored Armadillo Shield, but only for one more second.

This precious second gave Espion enough time to slice off the krampus' right hand.

Dasist Dasende snapped out of its stunned state and broke free from Rasant's bullwhips. The orange Maneator was thrown seven meters away as the krampus shook him of its arm.

Weise stood in front of the krampus and taunted it with his flamdius sword. The krampus tried to pick up its weapon, but the gray Maneator kicked it out of the krampus' reach.

Espion ran up the back of the gigantic four meter behemoth and began to attack the neck of the krampus with his green dual knives.

Dasist Dasende widened its stance and was about to let out a roar, but Igniz who was attacking from above caught on quickly.

The dark ember sprite unleashed a rain of fireballs into the throat of the krampus. Dasende's eyes watered up in tears, as its internal organs were damaged from Igniz's flames.

After the krampus took Igniz's attack, its face was made to look up the ceiling. Weise grabbed the opportunity and bashed his shield against Dasende's torso.

Rasant caught Dasende's left arm with his bullwhip as Espion kept on attacking the back of the krampus' neck.

With his Rzeka glaive, Smoke leapt up and slashed the front of the krampus' neck with his most damaging weapon.

The DarkElf performed three swings with his lengthy glaive and finally the krampus' neck gushed out with blood.

Coupled with Espion's continuous blows, Smoke delivered the final blow and killed the colossal krampus.

+ Your party has dealt a fatal blow to the krampus: Dasist Dasende.

+ Your party killed the krampus: Dasist Dasende.

+ Your party gained 600,000 exp.

+ Level Up!

As the body of the krampus, Dasist Dasende. started to fade away, it left behind some precious loot.

+ Acquired Labyrinth Exit Map.

+ Acquired krampus hide.

+ Acquired krampus horns.

+ Acquired krampus hooves.

+ Acquired krampus embryo.

Smoke quickly ran to where Weise kicked the krampus' deadly weapon and picked it up.

+ Acquired rare iron chains: 'Chain and Sickle of Dasende'.

After the DarkElf safely stowed away the loot, he looked to his men and checked for any injuries.

Aside from Rasant's scratched horn, and Weise's damaged shield, his party looked to be in one piece.

"Alright! Let's rest up, eat some medicinal soup and after we've recovered, head back to the laboratory and create one more Maneator brother."

* * * * * *

Smoke expertly prepared the ingredients of his third Maneator. It took him less than five minutes to prepare everything.

For his third Maneator he thought that he should have one more tank. Weise had a dependable defense, but he lacked Strength.

The DarkElf used Dasist Dasende's embryo, a Maneator DNA - Strenght Class, and a Dominus Custos Attribute Disc.

A bright light filled the entire laboratory as Smoke poured 90,000 of his Mana into the wide casting circle. The embryo at the center slowly started to form into a Maneator.

Two minutes later, the tallest of Smoke's Maneators stepped out. The DarkElf's latest creation stood at a height of 3.3 meters. The Maneator was slightly taller than Konig Mitleid himself.

Smoke thought that it must have been Dasende's embryo that caused such a big difference in height.

The bulky red Maneator looked around and bowed down to his knees once he saw Smoke.

"Ma...aster, I... obey you."

The DarkElf instantly noticed the lack of Intelligence as the red Maneator had trouble speaking.

"We are all your family here. My name is Smoke, and your name shall be Stark Rind. Your brothers Weise, and Rasant shall guide you. I'll also tell you about the greatest Maneator King, Konig Mitleid, and how he escaped these walls. You will be serving under him. All three of you will."

The red Maneator was pleased with his name, and was eager to hear about this great Maneator King. Weise and Rasant was also excited to hear about Konig Mitleid.

"But before anything else, do you want to join my personal army?"

"Uh... Yes! I follow master. Yes! I join you."

"It is an honor to have you join us."

+ Stark Rind has joined your Personal Army
Stark Rind is the third Maneator that the DarkElf named Smoke has created. He was molded to be a Guardian and has high Strength.

Level: 99
Job: Guardian
Loyalty: 100
Favorite Weapon: None
Equipped Weapon: None

Abilities:

PoleArm Mastery: Gains 100% proficiency from polearm weapons.
Lightning Spear: A polearm exclusive attack which stuns the opponent.
Chained Lives: Receives a portion of your allies' damage.
Berserk: Lowers defense in exchange for attack power.
Maneator Regen: Increases Health Regen rate by 300%.

Smoke noticed that even though he used the Dominus Custos Attribute Disc most of Stark's abilities were offensive.

With the DarkElf's third Maneator in tow, he ordered his men to head back to the exit.

This time Stark was placed beside Espion in front. Smoke wanted him to gain some battle experience as they headed back to the surface.

* * * * * *

Smoke followed the Labyrinth Exit Map's direction and walked into the right tunnel. He had Igniz with him at the front to light their path.

Piles of bones were scattered in their way, as they traveled the inclined tunnel upward. A stifling air passed Smoke and his Cunning of the Dire Fox ability warned him that they were surrounded.

The skeletons started to move and joined together. Igniz immediately blasted away the enemies with his fireballs.

The skeletons turned out to be level 60 skeleton warriors with a maximum life of 40,000 HP.

Smoke and his party laughed at the monsters that blocked their escape. These Undead creatures were well below their levels and were even weak against Fire.

The DarkElf had Igniz, Rasant, and Stark deal with the monsters as he held on to two books from the Tenebris laboratory.

Espion and Weise stayed close to Smoke and protected him from the stray skeleton warriors that went past the three battle mongers.

The lengthy tunnel took them almost a day to reach the exit. When they were out of the tunnel they found that it was blocked by a wall of rootstock.

Smoke and his men had to hack through thick roots which Igniz had burnt. Once they stepped outside, the DarkElf understood why Sierra could never find the mausoleum.

The white mausoleum was now covered with trees. Even now, the mausoleums exit appeared to lead into a cave hidden inside the forest.

Smoke quickly called Sierra to tell her that they were finally out.

The DarkElf expected to hear a happy Sierra, but only heard her distressed voice. Sierra and the rest of his private army were being attacked from the north by Macher and his Knights, while a Brandal horde was coming from the south.

Smoke looked to his fellow survivors of the labyrinth. He thought that they would be tired from their ordeal inside the labyrinth, but their eyes were blazing with fire.

All of Smoke's men wanted to run straight towards the rest of their family members and rescue them.

Zectas Appendix

Sonstwelter – Real World Player

Zectian - NPC

Smoke (Nash Smoak)

Sonstwelter
Race: DarkElf
Job: Beggar

Title: Savior of Condortl - Honorary Chief of Condortl

Guild: <None>

Organization: Verum de Mendicantibus

Abaven Adder
Zectian
Race: Human
Job: Warrior
Title: Commander of Smoke's private army.
Guild: <None>
Organization: Smoke's private army.

Note: Formerly next in line to be chief of Condortl. Lost his left limb in order to save Smoke.

Sharur Attrayant
Zectian
Race: OrkElf
Job: Range Sieger
Title: <None>
Guild: <None>
Organization: Smoke's private army.

Note: Twin brother of Jinggu. Idolizes Smoke and Adder.

Sharanga Sundara
Zectian
Race: WoodElf
Job: Huntress
Title: <None>
Guild: <None>
Organization: Smoke's private army.

Note: Twin sister to Vijaya. Specializes in Traps and other ingenious enhancements.

Jinggu Attrayant
Zectian
Race: OrkElf
Job: Range Sieger
Title: <None>
Guild: <None>
Organization: Smoke's private army.

Note: Twin brother of Sharur. Idolizes Smoke and Sierra.

Vijaya Sundara
Zectian
Race: WoodElf
Job: Huntress
Title: <None>
Guild: <None>
Organization: Smoke's private army.

Note: Twin sister to Sharanga. Is the only Huntress who has 2 falcons.

Laernea Lowe
Zectian
Race: Lioness Limourean
Job: Pathfinder
Title: <None>
Guild: <None>
Organization: Smoke's private army.
Note: Her stag moose is called Bilis.

Ichaival Jackal
Zectian
Race: Human
Job: Hunter
Title: <None>
Guild: <None>
Organization: Smoke's private army.

Note: Son of James Jackal (Nanahuatl's resident Tailor). He's madly in love with Sharanga.

Gandiva Macan
Zectian
Race: Tigress Limourean
Job: Pathfinder
Title: <None>
Guild: <None>
Organization: Smoke's private army.

Note: Her stag moose is called Tulin.

Espion Têtu
Zectian
Race: Human
Job: Spy
Title: <None>
Guild: <None>
Organization: Smoke's private army.

Note: Son of Beggar Evocatti Caid.

Weise Rind
Zectian
Race: Maneator
Job: Guardian
Title: <None>
Guild: <None>

Organization: Smoke's first Maneator. Has high Intelligence and specializes in Defense.

Rasant Rind
Zectian
Race: Maneator
Job: Assailant
Title: <None>
Guild: <None>

Organization: Smoke's second Maneator. Has high Agility and specializes in Offense.

Stark Rind
Zectian
Race: Maneator
Job: Guardian
Title: <None>
Guild: <None>

Organization: Smoke's third Maneator. Has high Strength and specializes in Defense.

Sierra (Sherry Levine)
Sonstwelter
Race: Werebear / HighElf
Job: Acolyte
Title: Lady of Verbrannt
Guild: <None>
Organization: <None>

Tristan (Tristan ?????)

Sonstwelter
Race: Human
Job: Paladin Lord

Title: Baron of Tonaci, Guildmaster of DraccoRicco

Guild: DracoRicco

Organization: ?????

Note: Currently the only person who owns a main city. Has the largest private army of NPCs at 300 members.

CURRENT MEMBERS | FORMER MEMBERS:

Aurora (?????)
Sonstwelter
Race: Human
Job: Arch Bishop
Title: Commander of DraccoRicco
Guild: DracoRicco

Organization: <None>

Damien (?????)

Sonstwelter

Race: Human

Job: Ranger

Title: ?????

Guild: ?????

Organization: ?????

Bones (?????)
Sonstwelter
Race: Human
Job: Shadow Phantom
Title: Commander of DraccoRicco
Guild: DracoRicco

Organization: <None>

Trisha (?????)

Sonstwelter

Race: Human

Job: Dancer

Title: ?????

Guild: ?????

Organization: ?????

Veiz (?????)

Sonstwelter

Race: Human

Job: Wizard

Title: ?????

Guild: ?????

Organization: ?????

Amahan (?????)
Sonstwelter
Race: Human
Job: Exorcist
Title: Guildmaster of Decane
Guild: Decane
Organization: ?????

Note: Currently the highest level player in Zectas. Currently exploring the uncharted northern regions.

Hilot (?????)
Sonstwelter
Race: LightElf
Job: Arch Bishop
Title: <None>
Guild: Decane

Organization: <None>

Tirador (?????)
Sonstwelter
Race: Tiger Lioumerean
Job: Heavy Cannooner
Title: <None>
Guild: Decane
Organization: <None>

Tambal (?????)
Sonstwelter
Race: Human
Job: Arch Bishop
Title: <None>
Guild: Decane

Organization: <None>

Baskog (?????)
Sonstwelter
Race: Human
Job: Palladin
Title: <None>
Guild: Decane

Organization: <None>

Atiman (?????)
Sonstwelter
Race: Human
Job: Shadow Priest
Title: <None>
Guild: Decane

Organization: <None>

Ligon (?????)

Sonstwelter
Race: Lion Lioumerean
Job: High Knight
Title: <None>
Guild: Decane

Organization: <None>

Magikera (?????)
Sonstwelter
Race: HighElf
Job: Aero Magus
Title: <None>
Guild: Decane

Organization: <None>

Puthaw (?????)
Sonstwelter
Race: Panther Lioumerean
Job: Melee Sieger
Title: <None>
Guild: Decane

Organization: <None>

Bato (?????)
Sonstwelter
Race: Cheetah Lioumerean
Job: Fire Knight
Title: <None>
Guild: Decane

Organization: <None>

Macher (?????)

Sonstwelter

Race: Human

Job: Cavalry Knight

Title: ?????

Guild: ?????

Organization: ????

Note: Helped Smoke get into Coatl city. Proposed to be partners with Smoke in the Mounted Racing event. Revealed to be working for Duke Burmistrz, was promised to own Tonaci City.

Sagen(?????)

Sonstwelter
Race: Human
Job: Swordsman
Title: ?????
Guild: Feras
Organization: ????

Note: Won against Smoke's younger brother in the real world. Was defeated by Smoke in the ‘Swordsman to Knight Tournament’.

Mamelon(?????)

Sonstwelter
Race: Human
Job: Aqua Knight
Title: ?????
Guild: Confiance
Organization: ????

Note: One of the leaders of the NAP Smoke created during the mounted race. Joined Sierra's fight against Macher near Verbrannt.

NPCs:

Darius
Zectian
Race: Human
Job: Beggar Legati
Title: ?????
Guild: <None>

Organization: Verum de Mendicantibus (Secret Society of Beggars)

Note: Smoke's most trusted NPC. He's the one who gave Smoke's hidden job. Nanahuatl's savior. Currently forced to stay within Nanahuatl.

Kumbaba
Zectian
Race: DarkElf
Job: Beggar Imperator

Title: Imperator of the secret society of Beggars

Guild: <None>

Organizations: Verum de Mendicantibus (Secret Society of Beggars) , Domitor Arva

Note: Was once the strongest mortal alive. Sacrificed his life to save the world from his son.

Giro
Zectian
Race: DarkElf
Job: Beggar Legati
Title: ?????
Guild: <None>

Organizations: Verum de Mendicantibus (Secret Society of Beggars)

Note: Was corrupted by the power of the essence diamond. Turned into a half Demon.

Franz Briar
Zectian
Race: Human
Job: Farmer
Title: Former Briar Family Head
Guild: <None>
Organizations: <None>

Note: Gave Smoke the quest on gathering root crops.

James Jackal
Zectian
Race: Human
Job: Tailor
Title: Former Jackal Family Head
Guild: <None>
Organizations: <None>

Note: Gave Smoke the quest on liberating Condortl village.

Howard Hide
Zectian
Race: Human
Job: Tanner
Title: Former Hide Family Head
Guild: <None>
Organizations: <None>

Note: Gave Smoke the quest on liberating Condortl village.

Peitro Fischer
Zectian
Race: Human
Job: Fisherman
Title: Former Fishcer Family Head
Guild: <None>
Organizations: <None>

Note: Gave Smoke the quest on clearing Murray river from the murlocks.

Nenek
Zectian
Race: Human
Job: Moon Priestess
Title: ?????
Guild: <None>
Organizations: ?????
Note: Sierra's Beginner guide.

Zauberer
Zectian
Race: Human
Job: Alchemist
Title: ?????
Guild: <None>
Organizations: ?????
Note: Sierra's potions guide.

Vico
Zectian
Race: Human
Job: Battle Priest
Title: ?????
Guild: <None>
Organizations: ?????
Note: Sierra's mace guide.

Madam Dawny
Zectian
Race: Human
Job: Retired Adventurer
Title: ?????
Guild: <None>
Organizations: ?????

Note: Mysterious benefactor of Smoke and his men.

Duke Burmistrz
Zectian
Race: Human
Job: ?????
Title: Mayor of Coatl City
Guild: <None>
Organizations: ?????

Note: Business minded mayor of Coatl. Revealed to be true leader of the Brandals. AKA Ultimo Maire.

Caid
Zectian
Race: Human
Job: Beggar Evocati
Title: Boss of Noir Emporiom
Guild: ?????

Organizations: Verum de Mendicantibus (Secret Society of Beggars)

Note: A Beggar that had inherited his abilities from his Beggar father.

High General Lizardo

Zectian

Race: Lizardite

Job: ?????

Title: High General of the Lizardites, ?????

Guild: ?????

Organizations: ?????

Note: One of the leaders of the great Reptilian Race.

Spyteria
Zectian
Race: Lizardite
Job: Assassin
Title: <None>
Guild: ?????
Organizations: ?????

Note: formerly assigned to follow Smoke around.

Alteria
Zectian
Race: Lizardite
Job: Assassin

Title: Commander of the Fecund & Virile Lizard

Guild: ?????

Organizations: ?????

Note: Leader of the Lizardites who conquered Condortl village.

Aquaria
Zectian
Race: Lamia
Job: Ice Elementalist
Title: <None>
Guild: ?????
Organizations: ?????

Note: leader of the lamias and murlocks who almost killed Smoke.

Netteria

Zectian
Race: Lizardite
Job: Assassin
Title: <None>
Guild: ?????
Organizations: ?????

Note: Lizardo's spy for the Brandals.

Ultimo Maire AKA Duke Burmistrz

Zectian

Race: Human

Job: ?????

Title: Supreme Leader of the Brandals, ?????

Guild: ?????

Organizations: ?????

Note: Allies with High General Lizardo.

Smoke and Sierra's Status Window

Character Name: Smoke

Race: Dark Elf

Alignment: Neutral

Level: 100

Money: 20,000,000

Fame: 887

Job: Beggar

Title:
Condortl Savior (+2)

Pet: None

Life: 94, 242 HP

Mana: 54,807 MP

DEX: 605(+15)

STR: 145(+9)

AGI: 30 (+489)

VIT: 10 (+379)

INT: 140(+32)

Wisdom: 10 (+9)

Leadership: 10 (+9)

Charisma: 1 (+9)

Luck: 999

Atk Speed:58(+12)

Move Speed:61(+10)

Defense:10(+2,503)

Power Chainsaw Bow

Wpn Dmg: 135-148(1/4)

Attack: 7,888-8,548

Chain & Sickle of Dasende

Wpn Dmg:245-257(1/4)

Attack: 4,135-4,348

Magic Resistance:

Fire:       85%
Dark:     54%
Poison: 44%
Wind:    19%
Water:   20%
Earth:    20%
Lightining: 20%

Elemental Affinity:

Fire:            75%
Earth:         60%
Poison:      20%
Wind:         5%

Lightning: 5%

Equipment Effects

*Hooded Cape of Cologus
+20% (1/4)Earth Affinity, +20%(1/4) Wind Affinity,
+20(1/4) Strength, +20(1/4) Dexterity
*Claws of Chiropterra
+15%(1/4)Earth Affinity
*Heart of ReenTe
+30(1/4) Vitality
*Sable Wizard's Surcoat
+510(1/4) Defense, +10% All Resistance(1/4), + 10% Bonus Exp (1/4)
* Lunar Gravity Boots
+Increased movement speed + 10
*Beggar Belt [1 stone]

Skills Effects

* Agility of the Horned Rabbit (Agility + 510)
* Cooking (Vitality + 67)
* Dual Wield (Attack Speed + 71)
* Knife Mastery (Knife Damage + 66%)
* Bow Master (Bow Damage + 84%)

Character Name: Sierra

Race: WereBear

Alignment: ChaoticEvil

Level:99

Money: 50,000

Fame: 312

Job:Acolyte

Title: Lady of Verbrannt + 3

Pet: None

Life: 259,100 HP

Mana: 56,025 MP

DEX:10 (+3)

STR:40 (+203)

AGI: 10 (+3)

VIT: 50 (+203)

INT:30 (+3)

Endurance: 610 (+3)

Leadership: 1 (+3)

Charisma: 1 (+3)

Luck: 1 (+3)

Atk Speed: 26

Move Speed: 21

Defense:1,000(+3,000)

WereBear Claws

Wpn Dmg:120-125

Attack: 3535-3848

Magic Resistance:

Fire:       20%

Poison: 20%
Wind:    20%
Water:   20%
Earth:    20%

Elemental Affinity:

Equipment Effects

* None

Skills Effects

* WereBear Resistance (20% on Fire,Earth,Wind,Water,Lightning)
* WereBear Constitution (+200 Vitality, +200 Strength and Defense +3,000)

Table of Contents

- Chapter One: The Heraldic City

- Chapter Two: Anger Management

- Chapter Three: Cuezaltzinity or Tlaltezinism

- Chapter Four: Missing Mausoleum
- Chapter Five: Single Stone Beggar
- Chapter Six: Mounted Race
- Chapter Seven: Fortunate Misfortune
- Chapter Eight: The Last Maneator
- Chapter Nine: Remember Verbrannt
- Chapter Ten: A Village against a City