The battle ended at dusk. Many of the Misfits were injured and exhausted, but by some miracle, none of them lost their life. Lia was sitting on one of the ruined battlements, letting Louise use healing magic and fixing up her innards while Solren and Rinzen stood close, discussing the previous events.
"Our vanguard squadron is still pursuing fleeing Undead while a platoon from the House of Marduk has entered the sub-realm and begun eradicating their remaining Intelligent Variants," Solren stated after receiving a message from the frontlines. "The region should be stabilized in a few days."
"All is well then!" Lia grinned, glancing at Rinzen, "Any news of Lakhmu?"
"Yes." She smiled a little, "He fought off the Undead, but he escaped."
"Same as our Mother's adversary..." Solren murmured, unhappy with the outcome.
"Was she really using Palvina's body…?" Lia asked herself, letting out a somewhat sad sigh.
"Whoever the body belonged to, it was destroyed, but the soul escaped back into No-Space. It wasn't fully eradicated."
"Both of those things were strong," Solren mumbled, looking towards the distance. "If there are more of those… we are in a pinch."
"No wonder Erias raised so many Ascendri." Lia nodded, feeling the weight of the situation. "These types of Undead leaders can only be killed by the top mages of the realm!"
"Agreed." The three answered at the same time while Louise finished her spell. "There!" She continued, "You should be feeling better now, but I think some potions and rest would do well!"
"Mhm! Thanks~!" Lia stretched, feeling exhausted, but Rinzen let out a long sigh before she could stand up. "What is it?" She looked up at her, feeling the heavy air escaping her lungs.
"I received news that this was not the only place to burst forth with Undead. There were multiple others. The region that was hit the hardest was the Hosue of Honu. One sub-realm opened up straight into a city… at least 50,000 dead. It has been contained by their army and Master Rangi… but the estimated losses go beyond 250,000… Including the purge after the main horde was wiped out. Worse, some Intelligent Variants still escaped."
"Damn it…" Lia, Louise, and Solren clicked their tongue at the same time.
"Almost all of the bordering Houses were hit at the same time; the total losses on our side are still unknown. Although we managed to get through this without major injuries or death… We were lucky."
"What comes next?" Lia asked, looking at her and Solren, waiting for instructions, expecting orders coming directly from the Six, from her Mother.
"The Misfits will be responsible for restoring peace in this region." Solren explained, "You must visit all the cities and settlements, conduct an investigation, search for infiltration, and establish martial law. You will be delegated resources from the neighboring Houses with awoken Three Ri warriors."
"Wait!" Lia waved her hand, "I am to command people at that… power level?!"
"Not command per se." Rinzen tilted her head, "But after investigating a major city, if you deem it necessary, you can report to us, to the Six, and we will dispatch someone at that stage to take up residence and guard against Undead suspicion."
"Oh, I see!" Lia nodded, scratching her chin, "Phew! I wouldn't want someone that strong under me; I would be nervous about screwing something up and getting berated!" She blushed sheepishly, making Solren chuckle, rubbing her head.
"Try keeping the morale high! The Realm is starting to realize what is happening; civilian unrest will start growing; it is unavoidable. Still, we want to avoid it as much as possible! That is the hotbed for the Undead to infiltrate." Solren continued explaining thoughtfully, "Many of the young ones from the Houses are being sent out to control the unaffiliated kingdoms; your group is responsible for this one area. You have complete authority to make decisions on the spot and answer questions later!"
"Heavy…" Lia sighed but nodded, acknowledging her and the Misfits' new role.
"This includes the fairies in your dungeon."
"Ah…" She flinched, just now remembering them. "I will… deal with them tomorrow! I am beaten!"
"All is good." Solren nodded, looking proudly at his sister, "You killed someone a tier above you… I am proud of you."
"Teehee~!" She smiled happily with a V-sign, "I am our Mother's daughter, am I not?"
…
….
……
It was early morning when Lia woke up to a popping sound and found Lucian standing in her room, looking down at her with a kind smile.
"Good morning…" She moaned, sitting up, wearing only a loose shirt. "What happened?"
"A lot." Lucian answered but did not explain, "I came because I spoke with Lakhmu. I am taking Hajna to the Academy. Because of recent events, Somia and I have many questions for her, and… she wants her knowledge. Erias wants her knowledge to be exact."
"Oh!" Lia's eyes opened wide in an instant, "Really now? Tsk… I wanted to speak with her more!"
"You can come and visit any time, you know…" He walked closer, sitting on the edge of the bed, flicking her forehead, "Anyway… I brought you some gifts!" With a snap of his finger, hundreds of boxes appeared in the room, clogging it up completely.
"What are those?" She asked curiously, forgetting to complain about the sudden abuse, holding her red forehead.
"Bracelets. Somia is releasing them to your group and most of the awoken Three Ri mages. It is the perfect device to keep in touch quickly and efficiently."
"Woah! Awesome! It was time!" She laughed, already missing the wondrous artifacts of the Academy.
"These are a bit… different." Lucian raised a hand before she could climb out and get one for herself. "Listen to me before you jump headfirst into it and get disappointed!"
"Okay, okaaaay!" She pursed her lips, remaining sitting. "I'm all ears!"
"These ones had been modified by her. Somia can't stretch her consciousness so far to cover the Realm, so these ones have many functions missing in them. It can magically scan and display your area as a map, but only as far as your senses go! It will depend on you!"
"Logical." She mused, thinking about it for a little. "I bet then that many of the academy-related functions will be missing too?"
"Very much so! Its main function will be long-range communications and quick, efficient exchange of information. Somia was developing a stand-alone system for it that can send and receive messages; you just need your thoughts to be fed into it via your mana, and the recipient will get it with minimal delay."
"Awesome! This would be extremely useful on the battlefield!"
"That is what it has been developed for, and you will be the first testing group! Somia hopes that by talking with Hajna, she could further improve it, and we can roll out a more complete version, giving the Houses another edge."
"With Hajna implemented into them?" Lia asked, furrowing her brows, catching onto what Somia must have been thinking.
"I don't know the details; she does not share much!" Lucian shrugged, feeling a bit annoyed by it. "But she wants to meet her as soon as possible. I guess she wants to make her version of Hajna and use it to create the second generation of bracelets. One that can be spread outside of the Academy."
"Hm… I see. Well… She is a weird one, so I don't know how these works, but… oh well! I will take these and distribute them amongst my people!" She shrugged, waving away her thoughts, focusing on the new gift the Misfits had just received. "I think I already know a use for them!"
"The fairies?" Her teacher smiled knowingly. "Should be enough in this batch to give each of them one!"
"You know me way too well~!" Lia giggled, winking at him, receiving another chop from Lucian, landing square on the top of her head. "Owie!"
"You were a pain in my buttocks for three years. So I do… But… nice work."
"Were you worried?" She asked, sticking her tongue out and surprised to see Lucian's expression soften.
"I was. I saw too many good friends die to the Undead. I lost people I loved, torn apart before my eyes. I don't want to lose anyone else who I care about."
"I am Lia Amarin! Heh! You don't have to worry about me!" She said proudly, puffing out her chest and slapping it.
"That is why I am more worried about you than any other mages…"
…
….
……
"You utter fool of a woman!" An angry voice roared while Loonah's injured, extremely transparent soul stood on her spot as the Supreme Elders were having an emergency meeting. Their leader, Che, only had a projection out as he was still in retreat from his own injuries. "You have just thrown the Sect Master's plans into disarray with your insubordination! If you were not someone who was with us since the old eras, your soul would be forfeit!"
"..." Loonah had nothing to say, so she just lowered her head, but her green eyes were glowing with defiance.
"Be lenient with her…" Yuya expressed, her voice kind, her face showing worry for Loonah, but everyone present knew she was mocking the Supreme Elder, "She lost so much power and subordinates…"
"You…" Loonah raised her head but couldn't say more as Che interrupted.
"Shut up! Both of you!" His eyes were rageful, spitting green fire as he scanned the rest, some nodding back at him, somewhat easing his anger. "At least some of the others were smart enough to use it and place agents into key locations. But if any of you place your own gains and pride before the Sect's, I am going to offer your souls personally to the Sect Master!"
"I…" Loonah spoke up, finding her voice in the end, "I have something to report."
"Out with it…" Che groaned, trying not to shout at her.
"I had a part of me in all of my subordinates… I have a few pieces of information that came back to me before they perished."
"We already heard your report." Killieth snorted, standing next to her sister, Yuya. "The only good you had in it was that we know the Amarins' numbers."
"Not just that." Loonah ignored his tone, continuing, watching only Che, "One of my surviving Grand Elder reported that the Marduk's leader is close to ascending to Tier 9… naturally. Also… he shows insight in combining two elements; Fire and Light. They are not like the Amarin's leader, but a combination of two elements with good synergy is still dangerous."
"Is this the doing of the Golden Claw?" Another Supreme Elder asked, his voice deep and heavy.
"Could be…" Che answered, crossing his arms. "They were a tricky bunch, saw through our Sect Master's ploy, and escaped before we could gobble up their souls. They are sure to try and compete with us to be the new leaders of our Realm when we come back and exact our vengeance against those… Immortals!"
"They want the same thing as us!" Yuya rolled her eyes, "Be the only voice!"
"Yes." Che nodded but continued in the same, careful tone, "We still didn't find their sub-realm… they hid it well. That bastard slippery fox and the strange fish of theirs are good at avoiding our eyes. Sect Master also suspects that they were behind Erias's appearance… we capture him, and we get our hands on them too!"
Everybody thought the same at that moment… he just failed to do it and now was forced to retreat and recuperate… but nobody was brave enough to bring it up.
"There is more." Loonah continued. "One of my Elders sent back a message before his death. He said he suspected that there was a young mage who managed to combine opposing elements. He had no proof, just a hunch… but he died."
"It was an elder," Yuya argued at once for the sake of going against her at any cost. "They are not the strongest amongst us! Heh… His death proves his weakness!"
"His death could also prove his conjecture being true." Loonah argued, "It is logical that someone like that is hidden and being let grow naturally, gaining experience while shielding him or her from our eyes!"
"Someone like that wouldn't be outside without proper protection!" Killiath joined in, backing his sister, but then Loonah's smile finally curled into a smug smirk.
"She was where Lakhmu, the leader of the Marduks, fought off my Grand Elder."
"That-"
"Stop already!" Che shouted at them. "It is something we ought to investigate! We have already been disturbed in our plans; we will modify them accordingly!" He said, and his voice was filled with strength and authority. "You already slipped down once; you are not better." He looked at Yuya with one eye, "I will consider that when reporting to the Sect Master..."
"..." Yuya said nothing, ignoring his accusing gaze and the shock of the others… although she was also surprised Che knew about it.
"This meeting is adjourned! We will continue it later; I must consult with the Sect Master first! But if there are more down there who are combining elements… we will have to flip the table. We can't let the Golden Claw Sect come out on top, not after all we did to save the Realm! To save all the souls from being consumed by that monster lurking on the outside!"
The battle ended at dusk. Many of the Misfits were injured and exhausted, but by some miracle, none of them lost their life. Lia was sitting on one of the ruined battlements, letting Louise use healing magic and fixing up her innards while Solren and Rinzen stood close, discussing the previous events.
"Our vanguard squadron is still pursuing fleeing Undead while a platoon from the House of Marduk has entered the sub-realm and begun eradicating their remaining Intelligent Variants," Solren stated after receiving a message from the frontlines. "The region should be stabilized in a few days."
"All is well then!" Lia grinned, glancing at Rinzen, "Any news of Lakhmu?"
"Yes." She smiled a little, "He fought off the Undead, but he escaped."
"Same as our Mother's adversary..." Solren murmured, unhappy with the outcome.
"Was she really using Palvina's body…?" Lia asked herself, letting out a somewhat sad sigh.
"Whoever the body belonged to, it was destroyed, but the soul escaped back into No-Space. It wasn't fully eradicated."
"Both of those things were strong," Solren mumbled, looking towards the distance. "If there are more of those… we are in a pinch."
"No wonder Erias raised so many Ascendri." Lia nodded, feeling the weight of the situation. "These types of Undead leaders can only be killed by the top mages of the realm!"
"Agreed." The three answered at the same time while Louise finished her spell. "There!" She continued, "You should be feeling better now, but I think some potions and rest would do well!"
"Mhm! Thanks~!" Lia stretched, feeling exhausted, but Rinzen let out a long sigh before she could stand up. "What is it?" She looked up at her, feeling the heavy air escaping her lungs.
"I received news that this was not the only place to burst forth with Undead. There were multiple others. The region that was hit the hardest was the Hosue of Honu. One sub-realm opened up straight into a city… at least 50,000 dead. It has been contained by their army and Master Rangi… but the estimated losses go beyond 250,000… Including the purge after the main horde was wiped out. Worse, some Intelligent Variants still escaped."
"Damn it…" Lia, Louise, and Solren clicked their tongue at the same time.
"Almost all of the bordering Houses were hit at the same time; the total losses on our side are still unknown. Although we managed to get through this without major injuries or death… We were lucky."
"What comes next?" Lia asked, looking at her and Solren, waiting for instructions, expecting orders coming directly from the Six, from her Mother.
"The Misfits will be responsible for restoring peace in this region." Solren explained, "You must visit all the cities and settlements, conduct an investigation, search for infiltration, and establish martial law. You will be delegated resources from the neighboring Houses with awoken Three Ri warriors."
"Wait!" Lia waved her hand, "I am to command people at that… power level?!"
"Not command per se." Rinzen tilted her head, "But after investigating a major city, if you deem it necessary, you can report to us, to the Six, and we will dispatch someone at that stage to take up residence and guard against Undead suspicion."
"Oh, I see!" Lia nodded, scratching her chin, "Phew! I wouldn't want someone that strong under me; I would be nervous about screwing something up and getting berated!" She blushed sheepishly, making Solren chuckle, rubbing her head.
"Try keeping the morale high! The Realm is starting to realize what is happening; civilian unrest will start growing; it is unavoidable. Still, we want to avoid it as much as possible! That is the hotbed for the Undead to infiltrate." Solren continued explaining thoughtfully, "Many of the young ones from the Houses are being sent out to control the unaffiliated kingdoms; your group is responsible for this one area. You have complete authority to make decisions on the spot and answer questions later!"
"Heavy…" Lia sighed but nodded, acknowledging her and the Misfits' new role.
"This includes the fairies in your dungeon."
"Ah…" She flinched, just now remembering them. "I will… deal with them tomorrow! I am beaten!"
"All is good." Solren nodded, looking proudly at his sister, "You killed someone a tier above you… I am proud of you."
"Teehee~!" She smiled happily with a V-sign, "I am our Mother's daughter, am I not?"
…
….
……
It was early morning when Lia woke up to a popping sound and found Lucian standing in her room, looking down at her with a kind smile.
"Good morning…" She moaned, sitting up, wearing only a loose shirt. "What happened?"
"A lot." Lucian answered but did not explain, "I came because I spoke with Lakhmu. I am taking Hajna to the Academy. Because of recent events, Somia and I have many questions for her, and… she wants her knowledge. Erias wants her knowledge to be exact."
"Oh!" Lia's eyes opened wide in an instant, "Really now? Tsk… I wanted to speak with her more!"
"You can come and visit any time, you know…" He walked closer, sitting on the edge of the bed, flicking her forehead, "Anyway… I brought you some gifts!" With a snap of his finger, hundreds of boxes appeared in the room, clogging it up completely.
"What are those?" She asked curiously, forgetting to complain about the sudden abuse, holding her red forehead.
"Bracelets. Somia is releasing them to your group and most of the awoken Three Ri mages. It is the perfect device to keep in touch quickly and efficiently."
"Woah! Awesome! It was time!" She laughed, already missing the wondrous artifacts of the Academy.
"These are a bit… different." Lucian raised a hand before she could climb out and get one for herself. "Listen to me before you jump headfirst into it and get disappointed!"
"Okay, okaaaay!" She pursed her lips, remaining sitting. "I'm all ears!"
"These ones had been modified by her. Somia can't stretch her consciousness so far to cover the Realm, so these ones have many functions missing in them. It can magically scan and display your area as a map, but only as far as your senses go! It will depend on you!"
"Logical." She mused, thinking about it for a little. "I bet then that many of the academy-related functions will be missing too?"
"Very much so! Its main function will be long-range communications and quick, efficient exchange of information. Somia was developing a stand-alone system for it that can send and receive messages; you just need your thoughts to be fed into it via your mana, and the recipient will get it with minimal delay."
"Awesome! This would be extremely useful on the battlefield!"
"That is what it has been developed for, and you will be the first testing group! Somia hopes that by talking with Hajna, she could further improve it, and we can roll out a more complete version, giving the Houses another edge."
"With Hajna implemented into them?" Lia asked, furrowing her brows, catching onto what Somia must have been thinking.
"I don't know the details; she does not share much!" Lucian shrugged, feeling a bit annoyed by it. "But she wants to meet her as soon as possible. I guess she wants to make her version of Hajna and use it to create the second generation of bracelets. One that can be spread outside of the Academy."
"Hm… I see. Well… She is a weird one, so I don't know how these works, but… oh well! I will take these and distribute them amongst my people!" She shrugged, waving away her thoughts, focusing on the new gift the Misfits had just received. "I think I already know a use for them!"
"The fairies?" Her teacher smiled knowingly. "Should be enough in this batch to give each of them one!"
"You know me way too well~!" Lia giggled, winking at him, receiving another chop from Lucian, landing square on the top of her head. "Owie!"
"You were a pain in my buttocks for three years. So I do… But… nice work."
"Were you worried?" She asked, sticking her tongue out and surprised to see Lucian's expression soften.
"I was. I saw too many good friends die to the Undead. I lost people I loved, torn apart before my eyes. I don't want to lose anyone else who I care about."
"I am Lia Amarin! Heh! You don't have to worry about me!" She said proudly, puffing out her chest and slapping it.
"That is why I am more worried about you than any other mages…"
…
….
……
"You utter fool of a woman!" An angry voice roared while Loonah's injured, extremely transparent soul stood on her spot as the Supreme Elders were having an emergency meeting. Their leader, Che, only had a projection out as he was still in retreat from his own injuries. "You have just thrown the Sect Master's plans into disarray with your insubordination! If you were not someone who was with us since the old eras, your soul would be forfeit!"
"..." Loonah had nothing to say, so she just lowered her head, but her green eyes were glowing with defiance.
"Be lenient with her…" Yuya expressed, her voice kind, her face showing worry for Loonah, but everyone present knew she was mocking the Supreme Elder, "She lost so much power and subordinates…"
"You…" Loonah raised her head but couldn't say more as Che interrupted.
"Shut up! Both of you!" His eyes were rageful, spitting green fire as he scanned the rest, some nodding back at him, somewhat easing his anger. "At least some of the others were smart enough to use it and place agents into key locations. But if any of you place your own gains and pride before the Sect's, I am going to offer your souls personally to the Sect Master!"
"I…" Loonah spoke up, finding her voice in the end, "I have something to report."
"Out with it…" Che groaned, trying not to shout at her.
"I had a part of me in all of my subordinates… I have a few pieces of information that came back to me before they perished."
"We already heard your report." Killieth snorted, standing next to her sister, Yuya. "The only good you had in it was that we know the Amarins' numbers."
"Not just that." Loonah ignored his tone, continuing, watching only Che, "One of my surviving Grand Elder reported that the Marduk's leader is close to ascending to Tier 9… naturally. Also… he shows insight in combining two elements; Fire and Light. They are not like the Amarin's leader, but a combination of two elements with good synergy is still dangerous."
"Is this the doing of the Golden Claw?" Another Supreme Elder asked, his voice deep and heavy.
"Could be…" Che answered, crossing his arms. "They were a tricky bunch, saw through our Sect Master's ploy, and escaped before we could gobble up their souls. They are sure to try and compete with us to be the new leaders of our Realm when we come back and exact our vengeance against those… Immortals!"
"They want the same thing as us!" Yuya rolled her eyes, "Be the only voice!"
"Yes." Che nodded but continued in the same, careful tone, "We still didn't find their sub-realm… they hid it well. That bastard slippery fox and the strange fish of theirs are good at avoiding our eyes. Sect Master also suspects that they were behind Erias's appearance… we capture him, and we get our hands on them too!"
Everybody thought the same at that moment… he just failed to do it and now was forced to retreat and recuperate… but nobody was brave enough to bring it up.
"There is more." Loonah continued. "One of my Elders sent back a message before his death. He said he suspected that there was a young mage who managed to combine opposing elements. He had no proof, just a hunch… but he died."
"It was an elder," Yuya argued at once for the sake of going against her at any cost. "They are not the strongest amongst us! Heh… His death proves his weakness!"
"His death could also prove his conjecture being true." Loonah argued, "It is logical that someone like that is hidden and being let grow naturally, gaining experience while shielding him or her from our eyes!"
"Someone like that wouldn't be outside without proper protection!" Killiath joined in, backing his sister, but then Loonah's smile finally curled into a smug smirk.
"She was where Lakhmu, the leader of the Marduks, fought off my Grand Elder."
"That-"
"Stop already!" Che shouted at them. "It is something we ought to investigate! We have already been disturbed in our plans; we will modify them accordingly!" He said, and his voice was filled with strength and authority. "You already slipped down once; you are not better." He looked at Yuya with one eye, "I will consider that when reporting to the Sect Master..."
"..." Yuya said nothing, ignoring his accusing gaze and the shock of the others… although she was also surprised Che knew about it.
"This meeting is adjourned! We will continue it later; I must consult with the Sect Master first! But if there are more down there who are combining elements… we will have to flip the table. We can't let the Golden Claw Sect come out on top, not after all we did to save the Realm! To save all the souls from being consumed by that monster lurking on the outside!"
