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A man of the cloth was sitting on his knees in a room without windows or any sort of aperture. The room was empty for the majority portion. An altar stood lonely in the middle and the man was kneeling in front of it. Candles were lit on the altar around a small statue of a man in simple robes but his face was severely disfigured.

The priest was muttering the prayers of his god with his eyes closed when the still wind in the room began to move, fluttering the candle flames. He opened his eyes.

“Varus,” the man said.

The Seraphim, Varus, had somehow appeared beside the man of the cloth. Varus was wearing an extravagant set of attire that was a far contrast to the priest’s attire.

“Elliot,” Varus greeted. “Seems like I caught you at a bad time.”

“And that means anything to you?” the priest asked with a vexed tone.

“Nope, not in the slightest,” Varus admitted it in a blatant manner. “Never could understand how a man could devote his free will to a being of a higher power just so he won’t be… lost in life.”

“And I don’t expect you to ever understand that. Why are you here?”

“A job.”

“No,” the priest, Elliot, instantly refuted.

“A hundred gold.”

“My answer is still no. Your ilk dabbles in the forbidden practices of harnessing Demonic essence. My god will look upon me more than just unfavourably if I involve myself in your business. My soul will be condemned.”

“Your god will do no such thing. I haven’t told you the best part, Elliot. The mark is someone you know of but hasn’t had the pleasure to meet.”

Elliot turned his gaze slowly to Varus. “And who might that be?”

“A Fox-kin who goes by the name of Erynthea. Familiar sounding? It should be. She's the one who killed Ba’al, your fellow Apostle.”

Elliot scoffed. “Ba’al. A menacing yet laughable name.”

“It is laughable if we interpret it in the common tongue.”

“I was never close to my fellow Apostle. What's more, she is already a mark among my fellow Apostles. We will hunt her down in due time. What’s the rush?”

“She has been a nuisance in a lot of my employer’s ventures. He wants her dead or alive. If you can deliver her alive, double the reward.”

Elliot furrowed his brows. “And why come to me of all others?”

“Because our mutual friend will be passing by the main road leading to your village in about a day if the road is fair and without troubles for her.”

The priest sniggered. “Even if she’s a Divine Apostle, she’s still a Fae. I doubt I can capture her alive knowing her abilities. And if I kill her right then and there, the Spirits will be greatly displeased. My village is small and secluded. We will have no one to turn to when the Spirits become displeased.”

“Oh, Elliot… need I remind you that you are not among your peers right now and I have around a hundred and twenty-two reasons for you to reconsider my offer.”

Elliot rose to his feet with rage flaring on his face. “You dare threaten my village in my presence!?” Chains emerged from the darkness of the room and coiled themselves around Varus.

Varus wasn’t the least concerned about his supposed predicament. “These simple chains will not hold me, Elliot. I notice there are barbs on them, do you presume these shallow juts will cut me? Or did you forget the difference in our levels?”

“You underestimate me, Varus. I am a Divine Apostle,” Elliot said, clenching his fist and the chains closed in around Varus.

“I know but do you know that our mutual friend is not just a Divine Apostle. She’s also an Outworlder.”

The chains stopped moving as Varus widened his eyes. “You lie…” he said.

“Wouldn’t lie about this. I speak only the truth just like how I said when there are two hundred and twenty-two reasons for you to reconsider.”

Elliot’s rage had receded partially but the chains were still hovering around the Seraphim.

“If you managed to kill her, you will garner the favours of the old deities. You know how much they hate Outworlders. Well, most of them.”

“I remember our level difference which begs the question, why don’t you kill her or capture her yourself? Won’t you garner your employer and the deities’ favour, then?”

Varus simpered. “I would if I wasn’t in an established nation like the Yorun Kingdom. People of my level are… constantly being observed by the Arch Mages in the capital. I’m no fool, Elliot. You’ll have to try harder.”

Elliot didn’t offer a response and merely glared at Varus in deep contemplation.

“Well, I leave you to your own thoughts but remember, I speak only the truth.” Varus took out a dealing card from his coat pocket and threw it into the air. Symbols began glowing on both sides of the card and the glow grew into an intense flash. When the bright light faded, Varus was gone.

The chains disappeared as Elliot soughed his exasperation and plight. Only then did he realize how much he was shivering despite his resilient and defiant display. It was inevitable when being in the presence of a high-level individual, especially one who was renowned for their heinous nature.

“Damn it…” he breathed in resignation. He didn’t want to do it but for the sake of his village, he had to. He dusted his attire with a few light pats and promptly left the prayer room, to prepare for his eventual battle against the Fox-kin, Erynthea.

****

The thunder roared to herald the arrival of a rainstorm. Lightning flashed in the shrouds of the grey clouds that were congregating in the sky. It was only afternoon but it could be mistaken as dusk in the present weather. A storm was brewing and a downpour was imminent.

Amidst such a bleak prospect, a six-legged horse-like creature with antlers was speeding through the vast and seemingly unending forest like there was no tomorrow. On the back of the creature, sat three individuals who were all great beauties in their own right. One was a human and the other were Fae, an Elf and a Dryad. The human, Aera, was simply slung on the back in her unconscious state.

“Lilian, we need more haste!” Nivia shouted as she glanced over her shoulder and saw her pursuers with a number that greatly outmatched theirs. Her dread only grew when she noticed a raptor-like creature with a long slithery tail and a skull for a head was in the midst of their pursuers. It had wings but it wasn’t flying though it sure was running like it was flying.

“Impossible! With us three on her back, this is as fast as Joan can run!” Lilian replied with a similar volume of voice.

“Joan?! You named her Joan?!”

Lilian rolled her eyes. “That’s not important, Nivia.”

“Yeah, it isn’t. What’s important is that we have a Vile Raptor behind us.”

“Spirits guide us…” Lilian muttered solemnly in response. “No other choice… Nivia, keep them off for a few minutes.”

“What are you going to do?” Nivia asked.

“Flora Eruption,” Lilian answered as she gulped.

“Can you even cast a spell of that magnitude?”

She took out four blue shimmering stones from her pouch. “These four Mana cells will be enough.”

“Mana cells? Where did you even get them?”

“I made them myself.”

“You know how to make Mana cells?”

“You would know too if you weren’t so eager to leave home.”

Nivia clicked her tongue “I have been to every corner of the forest. It’s not my fault that it couldn’t be any bigger.”

Lilian tittered. “You were always a very adventurous child. Just buy me some time. Five minutes or less.”

Nivia sighed. “I can manage five minutes,” she said with a nod.

Lilian cupped her hands with the Mana cells inside her palms and closed her eyes. She began chanting and lights started pouring from the gaps between her intertwined fingers.

Nivia hopped in her seat and twirled around, sitting with her back against Lilian’s and her eyes facing their rear. She nocked two arrows to her short bow and drew the string. She murmured a chant and glittering winds were infused into the arrow. After heaving a deep breath, she released the bowstring, launching the arrows at their pursuers.

The arrows flew true to their marks, guided by the winds. One of the pursuers attempted to cut it down with his sword but the arrow circled him and struck his heart from behind. The other arrow pierced through the throat of a Tiger-kin who tried to repel the arrow with his paws but he was much too slow to perceive the arrow correctly. The arrows continued in their travels even after taking down their marks. They went for their next marks.

Some of the pursuers stopped giving chase upon seeing the death of their companions and the peculiarity of Nivia’s ability. It was an adept tier of Wind Magic, Guiding Breeze. It functioned a lot like Seeker except that the caster had to manually steer the arrows themself. For someone of Nivia’s talent, it was a facile task for her.

While the majority of the pursuers were still giving chase, Nivia was relieved that her opponents were less than before, albeit only a minor difference, and her pursuers were slowing their haste out of caution. She willed the arrows to hunt down the remaining pursuers. However, before the arrows could find their marks, the Vile Raptor swiped the arrows off the air with its tail. It snickered at Nivia.

“Did you just laugh at me?” Nivia muttered in disbelief. She nocked another arrow to her bow and drew the string. She uttered a chant different from the last and imbued the arrow and bow with magic. She released her fingers and the arrow flew off the string like a projectile being shot out of a cannon. The arrow plough through the trees in its way without being slowed down by the slightest. A few of the pursuers were unfortunate enough to be in the arrow’s path and they were pulverized into bits and pieces.

The Vile Raptor smirked and spun its whole body, smacking the fierce arrow into the ground with its tail. The ground burst into clouds of smoke and its tail remained unharmed.

“By the Spirits…” Nivia gasped. “Just what level are you…?”

The Vile Raptor screeched its sense of superiority into the air before resuming the chase. Invigorated and inspired by their bestial ally, the pursuers began running with more haste than before.

Nivia clicked her tongue. She withdrew her bow and unsheathed her twin short swords. She slashed at the air before pushing it with her elbow, sending blades of winds towards her pursuers. As this spell was significantly slower than her arrows, it had merely slowed her pursuers down instead of harming any of them at all. The Vile Raptor simply let the wind blades brush past it without drawing a single cut.

The Vile Raptor laughed at Nivia’s helplessness in an uproarious manner, unbefitting of a mindless beast but closely resembling the nature of a human. It grabbed a fallen long with its tail and threw it at Nivia without a look of strain on its face.

Nivia cast a quick spell and used the wind to repel the log away before it could come crashing down on her. Before she could think of retaliating, the Vile Raptor leapt into the air with its wings spread. They weren’t flapping but they were slowing the body’s descent. As the Vile Raptor slowly glided near Nivia, it closed its wings and let itself dove down like a hawk swooping in on a prey.

Nivia could only widen her eyes. She didn’t know any magic or had any skill that could pull her out of this predicament. She could only pray.

“I’m done!” Lilian uttered as she opened her eyes and splayed out her arms. The Mana cells were no longer in her palms but a lump of blue orb took their place.

Lilian’s voice was a blessing and tremendous relief to Nivia’s ears.

“By the blessings and the authority of the Great Spirits, I hereby command thee to rise to my call, Flora Eruption!” she chanted out loud.

Roots and vines immediately erupted from the ground and trees grew at an unimaginable rate. The rampant growth of the plants and trees caught the Vile Raptor in its descent and the other pursuers were crushed by the frenzied flowers that ruptured into their bodies in response to their desperation for the much-needed nutrients for their rampant growth. The Vile Raptor struggled to break off of its natural prison but the plants were growing faster than they could destroy. In a matter of seconds, the might of nature's growth began crushing the Vile Raptor to make room for the abrupt growth. The screams, throes, and shrieks of their pursuers could be heard vividly but silence ensued after a while.

A smile appeared on Lilian’s face shortly before her consciousness left her. Nivia immediately turned around and cradled Lilian into her arms to prevent her from falling off the Kiral.

Nivia heaved a huge sigh of relief. “That was… close…” She patted her chest to ease her beating heart. “Aedan… where are you? I need you…” she muttered, although there was no one close or awake to hear those words escaping her lips.