The world is not as peaceful as it appears, and it never has been. The beautiful city of Sorcertech, Veloria, is a paradise to some people. It's technology; it's magic.
Everyone who lives here believes that they will spend the rest of their lives living in harmony. But that is just what was painted inside their minds.
The rulers of these cities sell all those lies to their people so that they will live peacefully without even thinking about the looming threats from outside.
This world is filled with many wonderful things. Some mountains were so enormous that it seemed the peaks wanted to reach for the sky beyond. Oceans that fill up the world, separating lands.
The lands and oceans that thrived with its flora and fauna, and even the quiet rustle of leaves, carried a gentle promise of peace. It was indeed beautiful, but when there is beauty, there is also ugliness.
When there is good, there is bad, and when there is light, there is bound to be… darkness.
For thousands of years, humanity has been fighting against the looming darkness. It is not just humans, but also other races such as dwarves, elves, and demi-humans, as well as every living being in this world.
Thousands of years ago, the world was invaded by darkness, slowly corrupting every life it touched.
It is said that this world was created by seven gods. They made this beautiful world where many beautiful creatures live in harmony. But one day, all seven gods were killed by the beast of darkness, the demons.
No one knows from where demons come; some say that they are beings not from this world. They come to kill the gods and rule over this world. Demons rule over darkness; everywhere they go, all things will be tainted with pure darkness.
Living beings that are tainted with darkness will become vile, mindless creatures. They will attack anything in sight, spreading on everything until the world is thoroughly tainted with darkness.
One of the easiest ways to identify beings that were tainted with darkness is to look at their eyes. The once-vibrant eyes turn lifeless with looming darkness. Their eyes turn entirely black as if the void was chasing away any lights.
And right now, the creature Eryas is looking at is one of those tainted creatures. The doubts in his mind finally became a reality. Its massive claws clash with the guard sword.
The duel goes back and forth, but in the end, it looks like the tainted creature will win. Eryas needs to do something; he needs to help the city guard fight that abomination. If he wants to get out of here, he needs all the help he can get to increase the chances of survival.
Eryas focuses on the duel in front of him. He carefully examined every detail he could learn, trying to find weaknesses and openings. As a manaless person, he could not fight like others. he needed to rely on trickery. Direct confrontation only means death for him.
The city guard sword clashes with the hideous black claws of the tainted human. Every time it clashes, sparks fly, illuminating the area. The guard seems exhausted from the duel. His movement becomes sluggish at times.
He slowly lost ground; little by little, he moved back, trying to extend the gap. Eryas needs to help him somehow, but he didn't see any openings where he could offer assistance.
Until, at one point, the city guard accidentally stepped onto an unstable rock, which caused him to slip and fall to the ground. The tainted creature did not want to miss the opportunity; it immediately went in with a downward swing of its right-hand claws.
The guard who was in a defenseless position could not do anything but surrender to fate. But in reality, the one who thinks they have the upper hand is the most defenseless.
A knife flies at tremendous speed and lands directly onto the monster's eye. Another knife flies and lands onto the throat, and another one lands directly onto its right palm. The tainted human staggered from the three knives that suddenly flew, stabbing into his body.
The city guard was surprised for a moment, but then realised the chance he had now. Without a moment's waste, the city guard immediately rises and deals a horizontal slash right onto the monster's neck, severing it from its body.
The deformed head spins in the air for a moment before falling onto the ground.
The city guard looked at the harrowing sight in front of him while he panted rapidly. But then he decided not to take a break just yet. He immediately turned in the direction from which the knives came, holding his sword high and preparing for another fight.
He could hear footsteps slowly approaching him. He squinted his eyes, and gradually a figure of a man revealed itself behind the cloud of dust. The man walked toward the city guard cautiously, raising both his hands in the air.
"Sir, please don't attack me. I'm just one of the ordinary, humble citizens of Veloria."
The city guard scanned the battered man. The man looked dirty with dust and blood covering his body. His head had a makeshift bandage wrapped around it, which had now turned almost red.
"I am the city guard of the south district, Edward. What's your name?"
"Eryas, sir."
"Are there any other people with you?"
"Only me, sir."
Edward takes a quick glance at the corpse behind him. He looked at where the knives landed before asking a question.
"These are yours, right? Thank you for your assistance."
Eryas momentarily switches his glance to his knives.
"You're welcome."
"Nice aim you got there. Throwing knives, never heard anybody using those nowadays. Certainly not from someone who claims to be an ordinary humble citizen."
'Crap! How should I deal with this? I couldn't just casually tell him that I was an assassin. A professional trained hitman who goes around killing people. Nope, certainly not going with that.'
"Haha, I used to be in a circus, where I needed to throw knives directly at the fruit on top of a person."
'What the hell! That does not sound convincing at all.'
Edward simply looked at him with a deadpan expression. He didn't know if his story sounded too stupid for Edward to believe. The awkward silence stayed for a moment before Edward broke it.
"Ohh, I used to watch that when I was a child. My parents would always bring me to the circus in another city."
Eryas was dumbfounded.
'Wait, he really believes that?'
Edward continued his words.
"But, you know that carrying weapons around the city is considered a crime, right?"
'Crap! Another blunder. I got focused so much on saving him that I forgot about all these tiny details.'
"It's just out of habit, sir. And self-defense purely. You know, I used to live in a city where there were always bandits and bad people around. So I used to carry a knife all the time, for my own safety."
Edward stared at him for a few seconds. He then slowly lowered his sword and sheathed it in the scabbard. Edward sighed.
"I understand those feelings. The feeling of powerlessness, the feeling of being in constant danger."
Edward's right hand turns into a fist and strikes it on his chest.
"Don't worry, as the city guard of Veloria, I, Edward Ringhem, swore to protect its citizens from any harm."
Eryas, who was already dumbfounded, was left even more so. He didn't know if he was supposed to be impressed or not. The way Edward acts shows that he believed and trusted his story.
From the looks of it, Edward is the type of guy who takes on the pride of his job seriously. So Eryas could relax a little, knowing that Edward is an honest guy. He just smiled awkwardly at Edward before letting out a voice.
"Umm, sir? May I retrieve my knives?"
Edward simply didn't reply; instead, he walked back away from the corpse and gestured for him to go.
"Ohh, just call me Edward"
Eryas nodded on that request. He awkwardly walks towards the body and, slowly, one by one, pulls out the knives. The area around the corpse was covered in a dark, viscous liquid. It is the blood of someone who was tainted by darkness.
Eryas wipes the blade of the knives with his jacket sleeve before putting them back in his pocket. Edward looked at him before asking a question.
"Do you know how to use a sword?"