CHAPTER 7 (PART 2): KILL THE LEADER

An hour had passed when they returned to the village. It was already midnight, so the streets had fallen dark and empty. As they entered the Chief’s Den, Eleanor sprang up from her desk, her face in shock and delighted. Luna reported their success and assured the old woman that there would be no more bandits attacking them ever again.

"Oh may Glaceus bless you!" Eleanor said, holding her chest in relief. She called the guard to get the brown bag on the side of her desk, seemingly filled with coins. "Please take our token of appreciation. I know it may not be enough—"

"Just keep it, Chieftess," Arth said, cutting her off.

Luna turned her head to him with a questioning look. She faked a cough, pulled Arth's cloak towards her, and whispered. "What do you think are you doing? That is their pay. We don't want to return to the guild empty-handed. Boss will definitely get mad, I’m telling you."

"But the village needs this more, Luna. They had enough losses already, and the people here are starving for days," Arth whispered back.

"This is not the time for heroism … now don’t give me that look,” Luna pointed a finger at him. “The boss ..."

“Please.”

Luna shut her eyes, took a deep breath, and finally resigned.

"We can't take this, Chieftess," Arth told Eleanor. "Please, just use that to cover all the supplies you've lost."

Eleanor's pale eyes widened. "You have a golden heart, young man," she held Arth's hand and shook it many times. “Thank you for your kindness.”

"We'll be taking our leave now," Luna said, dragging Arth’s hood with her towards the exit. The elder thanked them again before the two stepped out of the tent.

"Okay, what was that?" Luna asked him incredulously as they rode their horses back towards the north.

"Luna, didn't you see the poor people earlier? Even the children are suffering from hunger. And I just hate seeing that."

"Explain that to the boss when we get there," she replied, returning her gaze forward. "And don't you say I agreed to this. It was only you, you hear me?"

Arth shrugged.

"Just … don't do it next time, okay? I understand your point, Arth, but it's also our job. We’re not heroes … we’re not compensated by the kingdom … we are rebels. Do you get what I’m saying?"

"If you say so.”

Dawn was breaking when the two arrived at their hideout. Arth let out a tired yawn as he made his way through the hall back to his room. He unexpectedly came across Janshai, dressed in his usual black cloak. His dark, red eyes stared at Arth while walking towards his direction.

"Uh... morning," Arth greeted, but Janshai just walked past him, not speaking a word.

Arth scratched his head, then shrugged. He went directly inside his room, jumped unto his bed, and took his rest at last.

***

A sudden ring of the bell awoke Arth from his sleep. He groaned, frustrated, pressing his face on the soft pillow. ‘Hell, what time is it? It feels like I only had few minutes of sleep!’

He rose on his bed and sighed heavily. Looking through the glass window told him it was now late in the morning.

Arth massaged his painful arms. He was too lazy to change his white-sleeved clothing, so he just walked out of his room like a frail, old man, and headed to the dining area. Only Robert, Luna and Lucas were on the table. He wondered if Alice had yet to come back from her mission.

Arth sat on the chair beside Robert, trying to fix his messy hair to the side. There was a bowl of rice with eggs and grilled fish served in front of him.

"Morning bro! Congratulations on your first mission!" Robert tapped Arth’s back so hard that he almost choked his food. "Luna told us how you single-handedly took down their leader."

"Beginner's luck, I guess?" Arth said, coughing hard.

"Beginner’s luck? Are you kidding me? Bro, I call that as talent!" Robert said. "Right, boss?"

Lucas cleared his throat after drinking his wine, then he turned his attention to Arth. "Luna also told me why you both returned here penniless," the boss said, raising an eyebrow.

Arth smiled apologetically. "Sorry, boss. It's just—“

"I understand. She told me the reason of your refusal," Lucas’ face darkened, “But never do it again.”

Arth nodded like a dog, and then he continued eating the rice on his bowl. He thought he would be punished or something. The boss had always been scary and intimidating for him.

"Anyway, Arth, you’ll be coming with me together with Robert," Lucas continued. "We'll give you your first training today. Luna reported her observations in your fighting style last night. Hearing her thoughts, I should say that you need more practice and experience."

"We'll train you as hard as a rock, bro," Robert said, grinning.

Arth raised his head and looked at the boss with tired eyes. He never even had enough sleep. But aside from his exhaustion and laziness, a sudden excitement awoke him, since it would be a true privilege for him to be trained by a divine knight.

After breakfast, they immediately headed out to the woods. The morning air gave a foggy ambiance in the snow forest. Arth had his blue cloak on with its hood covering his black hair. Robert was on a brown, winter garment, and Lucas had his white-colored cloak, with enough length to reach his ankles.

"So, bro," Robert said in a hushed voice, placing an arm around Arth's shoulders while they followed Lucas through the forest. "Did something happen between you and Luna last night?"

Arth stormed his brows, blinking his blue eyes in confusion. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"I have to say, don't let her big breasts seduce you, bro," Robert chuckled, "She may be hot, but hell she's already over a hundred years old! Who would want to bed with a person of that kind of age?"

"I’m not!" Arth replied in a defensive tone, his face heating up. ‘What a pervert!’

"By the way, why didn't she come with us?" Arth asked.

"Oh, it’s one of the rules in our guild, bro. At least one member must be left in the hideout,” Robert said as a matter-of-factly. "No matter what."

Arth nodded. "Wait, you never told me yet about the rules."

"Don't worry. You'll know each one when you violate one."

Arth looked at him sharply. Robert just chuckled, rubbing Arth’s head playfully.

A few minutes after, Lucas finally took a stop, and then looked around the environment surrounding them.

"Okay, this area is clear," Lucas turned to the both of them. "Since there are no beasts around, we can start training here.”

"Arth, did Chief Gregor teach you any kind of magic?" Lucas asked.

"Only one, I think … it’s the basic spell called Ice King’s Footprint. It’s the only one I’m able to cast," Arth replied, frowning. "But I rarely use magic during battles. I don't want to use up all of my strength … since I'm not certain what could possibly happen after. I might not have the energy left to deal with whatever may come."

Lucas cocked his head, still looking at him. "It is not strength, Arth. You actually thought that the one we use for casting spells is our … strength?"

"Wait, am I wrong?" Arth looked at Robert.

Robert nodded with a hint of grimace on his face.

"Then I'll have to explain everything to you first," Lucas sighed, "We are able to cast spells because of our magic circuits. It is like our veins, carrying another magical liquid, like our blood that flows through our body.” He showed his opened palm. It flashed and shone brighter, where a golden liquid came out of his palm, floating into the air, like glowing ribbons circling him. “This is the magical liquid I’m speaking of … it’s called alar.”

"Alar? But why do I feel like my strength was depleted after overusing my magic?"

"When your alar is already used up, your body will begin consuming your own physical energy. That's the reason why you already feel weak, tired," Lucas replied. "Knights like us can only cast a few spells because our magical circuits cannot carry a lot of alar, compared to mages who can store a tremendous amount in their magic circuits, allowing them to perform powerful spells."

Arth nodded slowly.

"However, it's still important for us knights to use magic in a fight as part of our strategies. It will greatly affect the outcome of the battle when used wisely. But like you said, never use all of your alar in a battle. You don't know what can happen after that … and you might end up exhausted and unprepared."

"Hey, boss. What about Empyreal Abilities?” Robert asked Lucas.  “Are we also going to tell him that?”

Arth furrowed his brows, more curious. ‘Empyreal Abilities?’

Lucas shook his head. "We will … but not for now."

"What are Empyreal Abilities?" Arth made himself ask.

"It's a hidden ability from Empyreal Weapons, Arth. But now’s not the time for us to discuss that. Let's just focus now on what matters most … the basics," Lucas said. "Luna told me that you’ve never used magic last night."

"Yeah, that's impressive, bro!" Robert told him.

"Why? Am I supposed to use magic during the battle?"

"Only when necessary, but when you're dealing with powerful opponents, strength and speed won't be enough. And that could potentially increase the risk, not using magic," Lucas explained. "So that's why today, we will train you on increasing your magic circuits, so that you can have more alar to use on our future battles. Because I’m telling you this ..."

Lucas walked towards Arth, and then placed a hand on his right shoulder. "You're going to play a very significant role in our upcoming battles soon. We will need you, your skills, and your strength. And we will work hard to prepare you for it."

Lucas removed his hand from Arth's shoulder and turned his back. "Now, unsheathe your sword. We have a lot of work to do."