**Moments earlier**
Greed:
We passed quickly through the gray forest. With all three Arabella maids collected, and Code having found us, it was time to head over to where the ice was most dense—which was where Jo was, most likely. However, it seemed that the commotion had died down since I last saw it.
Ophelia was riding piggyback on Milo, ironically. "I can't believe I have been demoted to carrying you of all people," she said with not enough animosity in her tone. There seemed to be a touch of care smoothed in, surprisingly.
Ophelia giggled. "Raeyn appreciates it," she said carefully, watching Milo's reaction to that.
She hesitated, almost like she was fixing her attitude. Like Raeyn would pop out at any moment and put her in her place, even though there'd be no reason for it.
"Relax, she's tired, so she won't be coming out unless she really needs to. Besides, it's all water under the bridge at this point. The stream has long passed."
Milo lowered her eyes as she replied, "I know… I just… feel really bad is all." She breathed heavily, and went on, "I have a younger sister, too… So I get it more than you know."
"Really? Where is she?" Ophelia questioned, soon regretting asking.
"She's back in the Mountain Kingdom… she's not well. But she's being taken care of by caretakers. I send them eterna every now and then to get by. Belle was generous enough to start paying us for our services," Milo said solemnly.
"Sorry to hear…" Ophelia replied a little awkwardly. "Um… If it means anything, we all vouched for you guys to get paid a percentage from our earnings. It took some convincing, but Greedy unsurprisingly convinced Belle after the incident with the Nightbanes."
Milo's eyes widened with surprise. It seemed she didn't truly know the source of her payment. She probably thought it was from Belle's pocket. I almost wished Ophelia never said anything about it, but oh well.
I interjected then, "I don't mean to eavesdrop, but it's true. If it weren't for you, tubs, and doll eyes, Alice would be…" I found the sentence hard to complete. I couldn't imagine the pain of losing one of my crew…
Ulrich seemed to form a humble expression, and Kiki looked at me with sparkling eyes. "Master Greed! Had I known I was receiving your eterna, I would have never accepted it!"—she dug through her pockets in her maid's dress—"H-Here! Take it!" She handed me a wad.
I looked at her incredulously and said, "Kiki… no. That's yours. You earned that. All of you have."
"Master Gree-heed!" she cried, followed by Code's loud, purposeful yawn.
"Dick," I said to him.
"What? I can't be tired? What time is it anyway?"
That was right. Before all this, it was still late morning. But when I checked my comm, not only was there no signal, the time was also replaced by a dash and an exclamation. Like the comm had been rendered obsolete in this place.
"We still don't know what happened, but Ophelia and I deduced that this had to be the workings of two high-level mages: one with some kind of 'Monster Summoning' magic, and the other with wide-range Teleportation magic. It's the only explanation for all these beasts in the forest along with our sudden separation," I recalled.
"I don't disagree with you, but how do you explain the gray, dead trees?" Code replied.
I raised a brow.
"The Forest jurisdiction doesn't have a forest of this kind within it. Well… there's one in the outskirts, but it's claimed by the Mountain Kingdom. The place is called Dead Forest."
"Shocker," I said flatly.
"In any case, this place matches that. So, if I had to deduce even further, not only did we get separated by teleportation, we were also teleported to an entirely different location as well."
We all shared the same reaction to what he said. A mix of surprise and contemplation intertwined.
"Does that mean we're further or closer to Tartarus?" I asked.
Code was silent for a moment before responding. It was like he was trying to figure out why, first…
"Closer."
I pondered hard on that.
If the enemy wanted to separate us, and had the ability to teleport us all at once to great distances, why would they teleport us closer to our destination? They had to have known we were coming… so why?
We sprinted the rest of the way through the gray in silence until we finally saw an opening through the thick of it.
We brushed through into another clearing, immediately seeing Jo and Nash near the center of this field.
"GG—" Jo said as she attempted to rush over, but tripped.
Nash caught her and snickered. "Puppy dog," he teased.
"Let go of me, you… you!"
Nash laughed at her inability to come up with anything good.
She quickly snatched herself out from his grasp and ran over to us.
When she was in jumping distance, she leaped into my arms, and I took a step back as she crashed into me.
Kiki's expression was that of distaste, all the while. I swore I heard her teeth grinding near behind us.
I let loose a sigh and closed my eyes, patting her head as she slowly fell into a temporary sleep.
"Knocked out already," I commented.
"She was goin' through it before I arrived," Nash said with a casual wave as he took his time to meet us. "I see you found our maids."
I blinked. I saw him already the moment I passed the trees, but I was still confused to see him—here. Present. Not in his room… "Weren't you supposed to be hibernating around… now?" I asked.
"I don't hibernate. I close off…" He shook his head and rolled his eyes. "And if I have no signal, I'm forced to cut it short."
"So, you're telling me, you can step out of your room at any time?" I asked as I felt Code's temper rising after overhearing that.
"I mean yeah… How else am I supposed to go to the bathroom?"
Code and I erupted immediately, and he merely observed us with a disregarded expression.
"Anyway… When I do that, I come out with less Lives than I do after my standard two weeks. Right now, I'm back to only three Lives," Nash said. "Was actually five, but I needed to adapt to Jo's ice, and then force-adapt her before you all came."
"I guess that makes sense…" I reluctantly replied.
Code scowled and crossed his arms, looking away now. He hadn't said a word, but it was as if he was the visual to my commentary.
"And, as you can see." Nash pointed with his thumb over his shoulder. "We took care of things here."
When I saw the rest of the field, it was only filled with the remnants of faded monsters fluttering in the sky. It looked like glowing volcanic ash with how much there was.
"Oculus Fiends?"
"Yup. A lot of them. Even a few Grand ones, but we took care of them easily."
"I see." I watched Jo's peaceful face, remembering the first time we had met… "I'm just glad you two are okay."
Nash raised a brow and said, "You okay? You're not normally all 'touchy-feely'."
"Shh!" Code announced suddenly.
We all readied ourselves when we heard his signal, looking directly at the spot he was facing, which was far off from this large clearing.
The outline of a figure appeared; it walked slowly toward us as it glowed a single green eye…
I sighed. "Calm down, losers… it's just one of us."
When he was revealed past the shadows he came from, Havoc yawned and said, "Holy Keeper… Finally! Yo, Code. Make me a sandwich!"
"I'M NOT YOUR GODDAMN BUTLER!" He looked over to Ulrich. "No offense."
"None taken…" Ulrich replied blandly.
"Well, there's another idiot found… Now we just need Star, Alice, Brand, the Idiot King, Yuna, and the Den," I said. "Man, I really hope Envy is still contained…"
As Havoc made his way over to us, we heard a loud crash, followed by an ungodly roar.
The clouds gathered, and it seemed to drizzle lightly now.
We heard the monstrous roar again as the ground trembled from it. And when I heard it the second time, I knew it sounded familiar.
"Fuck…"
"What is it?" Code asked.
"That… doesn't sound good."
"You don't say?" he said irritably.
A flock of birds flew off in the distance over some trees, and what rose in the horizon was a terrifying sight.
We first saw the massive pillar-sized horns, then the beastly face—like another evolution past Great Behemoth. When it opened its mouth, an orb formed in the sky, and we watched like helpless fools.
It shot the beam out, blasting half of the forest to cinders to our left.
We covered our eyes as a storm-like wind surged past us. But it wasn't over.
The enormous blast began moving toward us…
"Move," I uttered as the beam started gaining speed. "I said fucking move!"
We began to run, heading back into the forest from another angle as the clearing we once solicited obliterated to smithereens.
The beam behind us was so large that it seemed closer than it was, and if we didn't keep moving, it would eventually be.
It was then that I saw a black blade fly overhead like a jet.
My eyes followed it all the way back to the beast's head in the distance, stopping the massive beam blast immediately.
"There's my dogs!" an obnoxious man's voice echoed in our ears, sight unseen.
"Idiot King?"
"In the flesh!" he said, like he had somehow heard me from wherever he was.
We then heard the groaning of nearly rusted metal, followed by the stomps of heavy trudging ahead of us.
When we finally saw the smoke from its chimneys through the top of the trees, we couldn't help but feel a sense of relief.
"Thank the fucking Keeper," Code said.
"I second that. I've been needing to take a fat shit this whole time…" Havoc added.
"Why didn't you just go where you stand? Isn't that what you animals do?" Nash commented.
"Here we fucking go again with the animal references. On that note, since you can step out of your room at any given time, why don't you make yourself useful around the Den, you lazy fuck."
"That's hilarious coming from you of all people," Code said blandly.
"Could y'all just fuck already," I teased.
"Fuck you, Cap—Greed!" they all barked angrily.
The Wolves Den at last made its entrance as it toppled a few dead trees at its wake. Daz was on the balcony with Yuna, who was howling at the sight of us.
"Well, what are you all waiting for?" Idiot King—Daz called to us.
Everyone quickly made their way inside as I handed Jo over to Nash, and leaped upward along the Den to reach Daz on the balcony.
I perched over the rails when I arrived. "Envy is still contained?" I asked.
"Of course! I never left the Wolves Den after all," he replied. "The enemy probably couldn't separate me from here. It's the only explanation."
"Good."
"A 'thank you' would suffice…"
I faced back toward the Grade 0 Kaiju in the distance. "I just came back from fighting one of these… How the hell are these monsters showing up here?"
"Well," he replied. "Kaijus are endemic to the Mountain Kingdom. I'm sure you already deduced that we are that far ahead in our journey, no?"
I didn't reply.
"Still… Kaijus this close along the borders of the Forest jurisdiction are almost nonexistent—as with the many other beasts that I encountered on my way here…"
"So you ran into those, too, huh?"
"Oculus Fiends habitat are normally ruins and caves—sometimes abandoned towns or other constructs. Not forests. And they're usually endemic to the Sky jurisdiction; though recent encounters have spread toward the Mountain as well… this is still abnormal. I suspect it was the doing of a high ranking mage. However, I don't sense his presence anymore. Instead, I sensed that Kaiju over there, which was why I came running."
"Neat."
"You really need to start addressing me with more respect."
"You need to stop asking me for favors."
"No promises," he said as he raised a hand, and the black blade he sent toward the massive beast came flying back like an order. "By the way, I'll be looking forward to my 'thank you' after this."
The Kaiju whipped its head toward us, bellowing again, and another blast of wind surged.
"My, my… yelling is not the answer," Daz said as he summoned more black blades—Arc Slayers.
The Kaiju began charging another beam, and this time it was pointed in our direction; Daz continued summoning his Arc Slayers in the air all the while.
"Hurry up, Idiot King!"
"You do not rush perfection. Would you press on Belle if she were here in my stead?"
"Belle would have finished the job by now."
"That's true…"
"Keeper, come on!"
The Kaiju unleashed its beam blast, and it burned a destructive path toward us, cindering—wiping this part of the forest.
Daz then raised the Arc Slayer in his hand and threw up a single-handed hand sign, chanting,
"Nullifying Magic: Grade 0 Slayer."
Right then, the other blades joined it, linking endlessly until it became one, giant Arc Slayer. The size of it rivaled our home, as we all saw its shadow from different parts of the Den, literally just over our heads.
The massive beam was only yards away from us now, and at last, Daz threw down the gigantic Arc Slayer, splitting the beam in two as it flooded past us to our sides, avoiding us completely. The blade, in turn, sent a black blade slash back toward the Kaiju, severing it between its shoulder and head.
The beast cried in agony upon the critical strike as its massive arm fell, rupturing the ground, dragging it now.
"And, last but not least…" Daz said as he let go of the giant blade, and it began to suspend on its own.
When it was directly overhead, he didn't even need to chant another incantation. He merely flicked a hand forward, pointing to the beast, and the enormous blade was sent flying.
The thing bolted like a turbo-powered airship, slicing through the air at a devastating speed until it met its target.
And when it reached the Kaiju, it pierced through it like fucking paper.
The beast's roars were halted in an instant, and before it could even comprehend what had happened, the giant Arc Slayer exploded, engulfing the Kaiju within its ruin.
The eruption rivaled the size of a mountain, and could probably be seen as far as the edges of this Dead Forest.
What had taken Ryo, Snow, Zeno, and Rex a team effort to do, Daz had done in a handful of moves. One spell to be exact… I had almost forgotten how strong he was. And I had almost forgotten that SS rank mages could manage a Grade 0 with a single, powerful spell. Much like Belle did when she took care of that Grade 0 Colossal Sand Dragon some time ago.
This was the power of an Arcane King.
The smoke from the explosion took minutes to even start fading. And from its dispersing, the remnants of the Kaiju faded quietly like black ash in the gray sky.
Daz faced me at last. From a focused, grave expression, to now one of forgetful glee. He closed his eyes and smiled as he said, "I shall take my thanks in the form of your unwavering devotion to me! Now, please… don't be shy. You may bow in my presence!"
Just like that, my awe had turned into antipathy.
"You're your own reason why I can't bring myself to outwardly respect you…" I responded as I hopped down from the railings and threw my hands in my pockets, walking away from him now.
"Aw, come on! I beat that Grade 0 in one move!"
"One incantation, sure—but three moves, technically. Belle beat a Colossal Sand Dragon with one."
"Must you always compare me to Belle!? I know she's the second strongest in the Valley… Well… third strongest now… but she's still under me by a few good paces!"
"You're the one who brought her up… I'm just bringing it back. You did this to yourself, Idiot King."
That was right. That other Chosen mage had come back to take Idiot Kings place in the Valley until he returned. Just how strong was that guy?
Before I could dwell too deep on the thought, I heard the yelling of multiple individuals at once. It sounded like three people…
When I looked over the side of the balcony, I saw a mechanical male speeding toward us with a blonde girl with pigtails under his arm, and a girl with pink hair and horns over his shoulder, facing the other way…
"PUT ME DOWN YOU STUPID IDIOT CYBORG!" Star shouted.
"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO ME LIKE THAT AFTER I GENUINELY SAVED YOU BACK THERE!!" Brand barked.
"YOU GENUINELY SUCK FAT DI—"
"WOULD YOU TWO STOP ARGUING FOR ONCE IN MY GODDAMN EXISTENCE!? I SWEAR, EVERY FUCKING TIME YOU TWO ARE EVEN NEAR EACH OTHER, I NEVER HEAR THE END OF THIS POINTLESS BICKERING!" Alice snapped, and they both looked at her like she was insane.
I speed dialed Code, and when he picked up, I said, "Stop the Den real quick"—I looked over to them once again, and I couldn't help but smirk at their wellbeing—"the vacuum, bone princess, and pipsqueak just arrived."
***
Now that everyone was back, we each shared our experiences out in that Dead Forest.
From the look of things, our deductions were spot on.
Unknown monster horde. Unnatural Grade 1 gatherings. And then our mass separation, and widespread teleportation… all of it had been the doings of two individuals: Riot Gang Head Officers Jinxu and Gorran. At least, that was the confirmation upon Star, Brand, and Alice's return.
According to Daz, Jinxu was an SS rank mage—though in ability only, and was ranked fourth on the Riot Gang Head Officer roster; he also led a bandit group called the Chimerabroods, similar to Drakthor's Nightbanes.
Brand stated that, had Jinxu been at full strength, he didn't know if he would have been able to defeat him like he did. It was only because he exhausted so much of his mana on Grade 1's in an attempt to take me down, and those Oculus Fiends to keep everyone else busy, that he was only able to summon lesser Graded beasts and utilize his 'once-a-day' mimic ability.
Still, I was elated that a mere member of the Black Wolves had taken down a Head Officer—and an SS rank one to bat.
Along with Drakthor, whom I had taken down about two months ago, Jinxu was now taken out of the picture as well, leaving eight Head Officers of Riot Gang left…
The other one that was seen today, Gorran, had apparently disappeared after Jinxu sacrificed himself to summon that Kaiju. And he was nowhere to be found since.
This was one of his very few sightings, so Daz didn't have much info on him aside from his ranking within Riot Gang, which was sixth.
On top of that, if they were informed of our route, why did they choose to teleport us closer on the path to Tartarus?
"I have a suspicion as to why, which is why we need to at least step back over the boarder of the Forest jurisdiction first," Daz suggested. "With all the members of the Black Wolves retrieved, the Den in one piece, and Envy still secured, the only thing left now is to get out of this Keeperforsaken forest—sooner rather than later."
"Yeah, that's the problem…" Code replied.
"We're out of fuel… We're fucking stuck here. Fuck me," I finished his sentence.
"Yeah… sorry, I was roaming around this forest just trying to find you all. So I might have used the last of it…" Daz said meekly.
"Clearly," I replied flatly. "How did our tanks get slashed anyway? I thought you got sensors going at all times, Code?"
"I do," he replied. "Problem is the same as when the Nightbanes infiltrated the Den back then. Someone tipped them off."
"Last time, it was Envy. Could he have done it again?"
"Doubt it," Daz interjected. "He is contained in Tartarus Cell. If he can't use his abilities in there right now, he can't use them outside either. Simple rules."
"And if it was an unknown entity, I would have sensed it immediately," Code implied.
"You're not saying…"
"I don't know."
Code had already expressed to me his exhaustion of betrayal. But right now… it seemed to be the only logical… No. I refuse to even consider that there might be an inside man among us.
I looked at each of them: Code, Ophelia (Raeyn), Havoc, Brand, Jo, Alice, Nash, the Arabella maids: Kiki, Milo, Ulrich, and even, dare I say, Daz…
It was then that we all heard a booming voice echo from what sounded like a megaphone all around us. "Valley knights! Step out of the castle and surrender!"
"What the hell?"
As we opened the double doors of the Den, there were dozens of airships with mana-powered artillery pointed right at us…
"You are on unauthorized grounds within the Mountain jurisdiction. Surrender yourselves immediately, or you will force our hand." The airships began charging their weapons while the unseen Mountain mage continued, "And after we annihilate you, we will send troops to the Valley, and finish the war you have just now started."
I looked around, and we were surrounded. And with no gas in the tank, we were sitting sparrowducks… The only thought that came to mind, and effortlessly expressed without so much as a doubt, was a single word that undeniably described our situation. It was the ideal word. A word I'd write in cursive then frame.
"Fuck."