In a manor deep underground where the first thing that anyone would see were many floor-to-ceiling windows which displayed beautiful scenes from all over the continent, a man who was wreathed in darkness could be seen meditating on the floor in one of the rooms.
In front of him lay a communication trinket, and as it flashed, he instantly caught it up in his hands to hear the message that was being sent.
"Report has been confirmed. A powerful landing party from the Church has been spotted on the western sh.o.r.e of the continent. The report says that it is being headed by the King of Lanthanor, who has been exposed to be a traitor on the side of the Church. As was already communicated to the Heroes of the Big Four, all of his rights and positions have been terminated. This report is also meant to silence all those who were demanding further investigation. An emergency conscription is being made- all Exalted Warriors, Champions and Heroes must head to their nearest Wartime Armoury and collect the sets of armor and weapons that have been made in secret for use in this situation. It is compulsory to use these items. The list of the Armories is given below. The troops shall gather and deploy in one hour. All those who do not attend will be charged with treason against the continent, and burned until death. This is the official edict of the Big Four, pa.s.sed by the High Council, and presided upon by the temporary Head."
As soon as the message ended, the darkness around the man started to surge uncontrollably, reflecting his emotions which were quite frazzled.
However… Rather than panic, it with excitement that was coursing through him.
A few moments later, just as he was about to set out, he received the message that a guest had entered his premises.
Going to his meditation room, he found a weak old man who looked like he was ready to collapse at any moment, but his eyes were so clear that they seemed to pierce through the very fabric of reality.
"Chief! I take it that you wish to work together?"
The Chief of the Fortress of Unyielding Might nodded as he heard this, before saying, "Indeed. I trust that kid, but we have to be on alert. I"m quite surprised by this news regarding the armor and weapons - I wonder who made them, and where all these new Heroes whom we have never heard about are coming out from. Oh, fine, I"m kidding - everyone who is knowledgeable has always known about the hidden force on our continent, and although we knew no details before, we always expected it to be quite powerful."
The last sentence was said in reply to the scoffing sound made by Rayen, and with a nod, he said, "All right, then. The Head is not taking part - he"s still too weak. So, I guess we"re the only allies he has. If worst comes to worst… What do we do?"
The answer was given in an instant, without even thinking for a moment.
"What do we do? Of course, if we can make a difference… We fight."
"Good. What use is a life of hundreds of hundreds of years if you don"t even use it once to do something you believe in? Let"s go."
Saying so, Rayen disappeared, and a second later, the Chief had gotten a smile on his face after hearing those words also teleported away.
A few seconds later, they were at the closest place where a Wartime Armoury had been set up- The Sect of Hedon.
As Heroes, they had a separate place where they were supposed to collect their armor, but on the way, they witnessed all of the Exalted Warrior and Champions who were gathered in the ground being outfitted.
On the faces of many of the Exalted Warriors, fear could be seen, and although it wasn"t that visible in the case of the Champions, they, too, could not really hide their fidgeting, which was a symbol of how tense they were.
This was war, and none of them knew whether they would return.
Rayen and the Chief both wished that they could say with certainty that it was definitely all a sham, but they couldn"t really be sure, as there might be factors that they could not think about.
At the same time, watching the Champions, Rayen thought back to his own son, who was hidden quite thoroughly by the king who had wanted him to be a hidden trump card who could emerge if there was no other option. His son had been tight-lipped regarding whether he had been contacted by the king recently, but seeing his eyes, Rayen had known that something might be up, but that he must have been prevented from finding out due to the absolute discretion with which everything was being done.
As he sighed, he looked up to see that they had finally approached the place set for Heroes, and it was just a normal room with a table on which two piles of trinkets could be seen.
The first pile was comprised of trinkets that looked like round s.h.i.+elds which were half the size of a closed fist, and the other was filled with trinkets of various shapes- swords, spears, halberds, and all kinds of weapons that could be imaginable.
As soon as the two of them appeared, a Hero whom they had never seen before despite being in the Big Four for so long spoke.
"Same trinkets for all Heroes- I don"t care if you just broke through, or have been languis.h.i.+ng at some level for the past hundred years. Pick your armor trinket here, and then pick your weapon of choice from this pile. These weapons do not change form - so pick the ones that you are most comfortable with. If minor changes need to be made to turn them into the exact form that you are used to fighting with, then bring them to me. Proceed."
The Chief frowned as he heard his tone, but without saying anything, the two of them walked forward and picked up the trinkets.
The Chief picked a staff, and Rayen picked a dagger after they had picked an armor trinket each.
After binding them all with their blood, they first activated the armor trinkets, and a second later, both of them were covered by dazzling, golden armor that appeared for a few moments and then disappeared into their skin.
Surprise appeared on both of their faces, because they could feel its strength - it was more powerful than any defensive trinket that they had ever seen, and they marveled at just how safe they felt. With it, they would not be defeated even if they were at the mercy of a typical Hero for an entire minute, and as for the barrier that was inbuilt, it could hold out against at least 100 full powered Exalted Hero-level attacks, which was something unimaginable on the continent.
At least… That was what they had thought.
"Don"t gawk so much. Move."
For the first time… The Chief and Rayen found out how it must feel when they, or at least, those from the Big Four looked down on those from the Central Continent.
They could tell that they were being seen as bugs, just like many were used to doing in the case of the general population of Angaria, but before they could say anything to retort, a heavy pressure formed above them.
From it, one thing became clear, and it made them move to the side without saying a single word.
The one in front of them was a Peak Hero, and he was not someone they could contend with, even if they fought together.
This was what their instincts that had been honed through multiple battles told them, and it was only after a few seconds that they finally regained their senses.
"Powerful, indeed," said Rayen, referring to what the Chief had said before, and the man nodded in reply.
The activated the weapons, too, and after finding out that they were also more powerful than almost any that could be found in the Big Four, they realized just why all the demands and requests by the Heroes to use their ownarmorr and weapons had been turned down. Anything they had would not even compare to these items, and it would be foolish to not go to war with the best equipment possible.
The next half-hour was supposed to be used by them to get used to their new weapons. Of course, this was mostly for the Fighters, as the Mages had only received a common trinket that would amplify their spells.
The Chief was done in 10 minutes, and Rayen was done soon after him.
As the one-hour mark approached, they were given coordinates, and as both of them teleported to that place, a marvelous sight was presented to them.
They were in the air above a flat plain that led to the Endless Sea, and on it, thousands of individuals all wearing the same kind of armor that had appeared on their bodies before were present.
The design was all the same - there was a broad chest piece with extensions up to one"s forearms that were made of interlocking scales which had no gaps in between each, and the legs were covered in the same way, all the way up to one"s foot. They presented a gallant look, and it seemed that only the colors differentiated those with different power levels - the Exalted Warriors wore bronze, the Champions were in silver, and the Heroes were in gold.
"The a.s.sembly is complete. Move out, and prepare for victory!"
These words were uttered by the temporary Head, who was curiously the same person who had been shot down by the real Head previously in one of the more recent meetings of the High Council.
It seemed that nothing else was needed, and although it looked like an underwhelming start to what would definitely be a showdown that would decide the fates of millions, it soon became clear why that was so.
As they started to march forward, they saw that a different force was already present in front of them.
It only had 300 individuals, but the feeling it gave… Surpa.s.sed anything that everyone present had ever felt.
Each and every one of these individuals was wearing the same kind of armor as them, but theirs stood out the most, as it was a dazzling red that seemed to swallow up the gazes of all those who were looking at it.
It was obvious that this was the powerful vanguard, and that they were only a supporting force would be called upon if necessary.
Rayen and the Chief had already expected this, so they said nothing, but soon, they became completely tongue-tied as they lay their eyes on their enemy for the first time.
After crossing the plains, they came upon the sh.o.r.e, where the first thing that stood out was a gigantic barrier that looked as if it reached the heavens.
And behind it… Stood a single man whom everyone recognized.
His hands folded, he had an easy smile on his face, as if everything was under his control.
He was wearing black robes with twin crimson dragons embroidered on his shoulders whose bodies coiled around him, and it was almost as if they were real, waiting to leap off and pounce on all of them.
Behind him… stood 500 hulking giants.
There was no other way to describe them- each giant was at least 20 feet(6 m) tall, and their entire bodies were covered with white robes that had the image of a saintly man in the midst of preaching to some unseen group embroidered on the front.
This image was known to all - it was that of St. Rect.i.tude, the founder of the Church of Rect.i.tude, and it was the symbol of the dreaded force whose shadow had been upon them for all these years.
Because of their position, it looked like there was no way for any surprise attack to be made, and hence, it would be a direct a.s.sault.
As soon as the group of 300 reached within 10 km of the barrier, which was quite a short distance for Heroes, they paused, as if readying themselves for a charge.
However… Startling everyone present, a regal voice reverberated throughout the expanse where the army of Angaria was present.
"One moment," it said, and following these words, the most unbelievable transformation came upon the force that was already making many Warriors shake in their boots.
THUMP!
Together, all of the giants fell to their knees and obediently bent their heads, as if presenting themselves to be killed.
As the entire continent watched on in shock, the King went onto his knees, too.
In a voice that could clearly be heard by all who were present, he spoke again, and this time, his proclamation was even more shocking than his actions.
"The invasion…is all a sham. There is no such thing, but I did manage to find a couple of hundred Heroes whom I"m ready to pledge to Angaria, and also offer myself up to be captured. It doesn"t matter whether you believe me or not- you can capture me first, and then find the truth later. I only have one condition, though. Have the Overseer return the executive powers that have been given to him. Do it in front of me, and the moment it is done, I shall make myself and all these Heroes lose consciousness. If it doesn"t happen, you can simply reverse it, so you lose nothing. Make your decision- a fight where I might lose, but still take a large chunk of you with me, or a force who will swear and fight on your side when the real invasion arrives. Choose."
Overseer? Executive powers?
What was he talking about?
These were the questions that came in the minds of most of those who were present, but in the group of three hundred, many eyes were turning to the center of where they stood.
In that place, there was a figure who was covered completely in dark robes, and as all the gazes of the Heroes of the Order settled upon him, it was obvious what they were asking.
Would he do it?
They had evaluated the proposal, and although it made no sense, they found no harm in trying it out. In fact, the small faction who had always doubted the Overseer was even overjoyed, and they looked forward to seeing it happen.
Under the dark robes, though, the being who had emerged from the body of the Overseer had an extremely enraged expression on its face.
For a few moments, it looked like it was struggling to make a decision.
Giving back the powers would mean going back into a slumber, and after waking up, there was no way that it wanted to slip back into that state where it could do nothing, and only watch while its dumbed-down form followed the rules and acted as a "good" inhabitant of the continent it wanted to control.
After a few more moments, though, it looked like it had come to a decision, and in its mind, it said:
"You think you"re smart, you little rascal? You think you can force me to reveal myself, and then turn all those who don"t support me against me? Hahahaha…Fenoras thought himself to be very smart, too. But look where that got him. You underestimate me too much. It has been 17, 862 years since I went to sleep. I have waited and counted every d.a.m.n second for this day to come, and no one- NO ONE shall come in my way. I shall start my bloodshed…with you.