亚洲综合中美

‘Kion,’ a straight-face nulled on his intent, ‘-he has enough power to defeat me later down the line, there’s greater room to grow. Eira didn’t account for the potential, quite a rudimentary mistake. She thinks my actions were whimsical or made her believe so. Manipulating the thoughts of those around me still stays strong, good to know I’ve still got it. The hero’s conveniently out of the picture, my actions were heartfelt and sincere, I meant no malice whilst offering the opportunities. I meant my words and it reflected, how liberating.’

The princess returned to the capital; the news of the tremendous defeat would take a few days to settle internal affairs. ‘He wants to be a crime fighter,’ paused at the southern path, adjoined to the fields of wheat and once stained tree, ‘-the agency should give and provide what he wishes.’ A phone call to Odgar resolved the issue, an order from the boss couldn’t be dismissed.

The populous grew, most were stationed around the village square. Large tables were brought, the hostages wiped their sorrow to prepare a feast. The underlying reason was of celebration, they knew the Baron would return victorious. Fruits and vegetables prepared; hunters returned with ample produce. éclair stood arms crossed and intently listening to demands. Separate from the mass of housewives sat Haru and the adventurers, including those who witnessed the fight. The traumatic images lingered, some fully etched into innocent minds, others left flabbergasted. God knew how many would recover, the mind could only heal so much. Repeated attempts at forgetting never garnered the requested results.

“Glenda’s destroyed,” said a bystander, “-I saw the ground rise.”

“Really?” interjected another, “-I saw a massive tree spring from nowhere, it covered the whole of the town.”

“What about the bodies,” murmured Haru, “-if left unchecked, we could have a plague on our hands.”

.....

“I know,” muffled Ling, “-there was so much slaughter, the hospice can’t handle such numbers.”

A purple rift sparked into the streets, “-hands up mister,” cried a little kid, “-my name’s Raulf Serlo, are you one of the bad guys?”

“Pardon me?” knelt Kion, “-you’re Raulf Serlo?” he wondered with a blemished expression.

“Don’t mind him,” said another following behind, “-that’s Ota, the self-proclaim strongest fighter in Oda village.”

“Ohh,” the face glowed, “-you’re the gamemaster,” the sword soon fell, “-come on mister, can I play more games, please, please?” he hugged Igna’s leg, “-please, please!”

“Chill out kid,” chuckled Igna, “-I’ll let you play, behave for now.”

“POPS!” a fiery portal opened to the side, “-I’M BACK,” a rocket blasted to a complete stop.

“I told you,” they twirled to a stop, “-stop trying to spear people,” he gave a mild chop.

“Sorry not sorry,” quick to slither out the hold, “-who are you!” he pointed.

“No who are you!” returned Ota.

“My name’s Draconis Haggard,” he smiled to revealed sharpened canines, “-a demon lord,” he tiptoed to give an illusion of floating.

“WOOW,” gawked the awestruck Ota, “-demon lord, so cool!”

“Draconis, Ota, why don’t you boys go play,” added Igna, “-hold back,” a glare resulted in an honest, ‘-yes pops.’

Alta and Ulia knew not what to think, such a display of affection and kindness was far from what had been shown. Kion’s thoughts muddled, a confusing Inesa elbowed out. Noise welled from deep inside; a simple gesture led the others towards a glowing crowd.

“Master,” bowed éclair, “-welcome back. Might I presume we’ve won the fight?”

“Yes,” he smiled.

“I see the culprits of the attack lay in thy shadows,” the eyes narrowed, “-shall I dispose of them?” a flash of killing intent stole their breaths, Ulia coughed from fear alone. Inesa held her neck, as for Alta, her face lowered in shame.

“No need,” gestured Igna, “-they’ve surrendered.”

“Why are they here then?” fired a stray adventurer. The busy crowd caught notice, chopping and preparation halted, those affected ambled to surround their position. First in the crowd was Haru, “-why are the invaders here?” she gritted.

“Traitors!” cried another, “-all of them, we ought to burn them to the stakes. Such punishment is befitting the oppressors.”

*Mana Control: Earth Element Variant – Mud Wall,* cracks outlined a circle of which elevated Igna and the hero a few feet up. “Hear me, people of Glenda!” loud and clear, “-I, Baron Igna Haggard, have defeated and reclaimed our beloved town. The number of casualties were kept at a minimum, or so I hope. I apologize for the people killed,” he bowed, “-without the people, a town is nothing more than empty construction. Thou art the heart and soul of what we call home. The war against the Empire is hard. We’ve lost most of the garrisoned guards, I saw friends die for the sake of dying. The horrendous actions were unsanctioned,” briskly pointing to Kion, “-will the people I vow to protect stoop to their level and stone these people for the sake of retribution. What will revenge accomplish, tis but a fading sense of accomplishment? What then, tell me, will you be able to live with the guilt of hurting the innocent?”

“What’s innocent about them,” cried an onlooker, “-they killed right before my eyes.”

“And so have I,” returned Igna, “-I’m sure my nickname of being the Devil has started to gain traction. In no way shape or form am I the embodiment of righteousness, I’m the same as you, I’m an Ardanian, and at my core, I live with a directive and vague concept of good and evil. I won’t bother in directing thy opinions. Shun them, hate them, my stance is firm and unshakable. Kion showed mercy to my people, the nightwalkers, Alta and Ulia only attacked men charged of defending the town, as for Inesa, she was but a spy. Her mouth might have spouted lecherous words and degrading comments, what then, will words break our spirit or we shall rise beyond it, tell me, what’s the right thing to do!”

“A leader must lead by example,” said the Elder, “-Baron Igna has decided, us, the people, must honor the will of our Lord.”

“What happened to the five-thousand men?” inquired a knowledgeable stranger.

He made note of the unfamiliar person, ‘-he might be of some use,’ side-glancing éclair, the butler nodded. “They were killed,” proclaimed Igna, “-my companions and I defeated their army. The empire shan’t dare break a nonaggression pact ever again!”

“LONG LIVE LORD IGNA!” echoed around the village, “LONG LIVE THE LORD!”

*Dispel,* the platform crumbled, “-Hear me, people of Oda village, I have a proposition.”

“Which is?” frowned the Elder.

“Let’s take the celebration to Glenda, Oda village is a little cramped. A portal shall be manifested for the occasion, after all, we’ve just won against seven-thousand men.”

“HELL YEAH!” ran across the cacophonous crowd, young and old, excitement filled their hearts and screamed out the pearly white smiles. The joy of having won such a difficult battle, those experienced in the war were impressed and grateful. Tuesday the 6th of May would forever be remembered as the Birth of Glenda’s Devil. Reservations aside, the portal doorway was erected inside the Guild house. The expectation of a destroyed town and corpse-filled streets stumped the moment they arrived. Apart from scorched walls, few bullet holes, and the destruction of an abandoned building, all remained the same. Damage sustained was minimal. Intherna and Gophy kindly burnt any trace of death, two thousand men made for the afterlife without recognition. The evening drew close, the natives of town went about their business. Stray merchants stumbled into the middle of a sudden festival. éclair was tasked with inviting people from Apid and Upen village since they were part of Igna’s barony.

A serious analysis foretold of how many people actually lived in Glenda, take away the traveling merchants and the populous remained in the thousands. Details aside, éclair’s evacuation secretly divided the flock, some were sent to the abandoned fortress and others to various outposts. All and all, the town regrouped in full.

‘I’m tired,’ yawned Igna. The watchtower stretched up high, the wooden door gave to a vexing flight of stairs, “-follow me,” said Igna. The higher, the more grew other presence. Stomps and trembles of the stone stairs dulled the chattery, Igna immediately halted at the door and gave three imminent taps.

“Mind if I let myself inside my room,” the lock clicked.

“Igna,” exhaled Lampard, “-you scared the shit out of me,” he panted.

“The party’s all here,” the key casually flew onto the desk, “-Jen and Anna’s party,” he settled into an office chair. “-Rena, Frost, and Anna seem to be in rough shape,” confidently leaned into a stare-down, “-can I have an explanation of what’s happened?”

Silence bound Frost and Cole, Ila seemed to be in a daze. “-Anna, might filling in the details?” she coughed and hoisted against the bedrest.

“We were played for fools.”

“Never mind,” the hands shrugged away the explanation, “-I can’t be asked to deal in intrigue for right now. Kion, take over, would you?” he eased into a napping posture, Vanesa stumbled into bed with the others. An awkward silence stretched; the hero exchanged few glances.

“Question,” Jen broke the ice.

“Go ahead.”

“Angelic mana’s practically overflowing your aura, you’re from the church...” her eyes narrowed.

“Yes, I’m Kion Hurworth, the summoned Hero. You’re a trained saint, the aura speaks so.”

Pleasantries went back and forth, the situation rolled onto the table. Enemies made allies on a whim. Rena and Jen were astounded, Leonard and Lampard all but chuckled. Tis the sort of person Igna was.

An hour elapsed, the mind swam up the depths of thought, ‘-I didn’t use my element. Summoning Origin’s knowledge came naturally. No backlash to my body or soul, the bond’s strong, stronger I’d wager. We’re truly one of the same. He’s such a humble bragger, what he brings is knowledge and no combat prowess, I’d so enjoy giving him a mild slap. What happened today is something I’ll never forget.’

“Oh, my other self,” said a fleeting whisper, “-you’re a big ol’ whimsical idiot,” resonating laughter floated about, “-the life shown so far has truly been fulfilling. I’m happy, words can’t express how much emotion brings pleasure. The joy’s trickled into thy side. Every elapsed moment, we grow into the perfect being. With the ability to swap from stone-cold and blissful, as well as sharing a middle ground, I’m no longer a bystander for my name’s Igna Haggard. Go on, wake up, it’s been an hour already.’

*Smack,* the air blew out the lung, ‘-what the?’ the eyes reopened to an energetic Draconis.

“Pops, pops, pops,” he hopped about the stone-cold floor, “-wake up, wake up, wake up. The festival’s ongoing,” the head swayed in a daunting demonic hum.

“Whatever,” rolling the eyes, “-Kion and Alta,” sat upright, “-what of the others?”

The former nervously scratched his head, “-Inesa and Ulia instantly clicked with Jen and Rena. They’re a wholesome group of friends, especially Jen, she was adamant in setting differences aside when Frost spoke of us as enemies.”

“All for the better I suppose,” he stood, “-what about you two?”

“I chose to stay, I’m ashamed to take part in the celebrations.”

“Guilty about the fight,” a brotherly pat gave reassurance, “-the hero’s dead. You’re a new man.” Along the mini pep-talk, the graceful Alta threw intent glances.

“Excuse you,” returned Igna, “-though I don’t hate the attention, could I please know why I’m being gawked at so methodically?”

“M-me?” her voice squeaked.

“No, the wall behind,” he returned sarcastically.

“U-u-Uhm, I...” she paused to recompose, “-I was impressed by the speech. With the emphasis and strain on words, I’m moved. There aren’t many people able to stand to such a crowd and speak wholeheartedly, and appeal to their emotions, it’s amazing.”

“I appreciate the compliment, thank you, Alta.”