Oɴ ᴛʜᴇ Pʀᴇᴄɪᴘɪᴄᴇ ᴏғ Mᴀɴɪᴀ

There was a cool, crisp breeze which banished the stillness of the air, causing the elder trees encircling them to animate, woken up from a lasting death of a thousand years. It was the time of the bizarre, when sundown drew near enough to see the darkness swell and stretch, until only wicked shadows remained—and their route lay enveloped in it.

The road to their enemy was quiet. Normally, they would have taken the main passageway up the craggy mountain which grew ever steeper as they travelled, but this was no ordinary stroll up to the scenic peaks of the summit. So, instead, they advanced carefully by way of the wilds and under the protection of the everlasting pines—who danced so spiritedly as their newfound visitors trespassed unwittingly.

Looking behind her, Emilia could no longer see the fading lights of Cramlin twinkling in the darkness. What replaced it, was the ominous gloom of a forest bathed in twilight, and the silence which came with it—save for the rustling of leaves and sounds of careful marching. Above, thin clouds, barely visible in the glow of the young moon, floated lazily over the trees, adding to the eerie feeling deep within her stomach.

Another biting breeze had come up, and it caught the flowing silver locks of her shortened hair in its grasp. Emilia shivered, and considered pulling her hood over her head in order to warm her pointy ears, but ultimately, she decided against it due to the diminished visibility it provided.

In front of her, eight Kingdom Knights including their commander marched stolidly into the darkness, readily alert and ready for any manner of attack—ambush or not. To her side, her close confidant and protector, Wilhelm van Astrea, kept close enough to her where he knew she would be in no danger.

Due to the pathways they took, they had forgone their mounts and travelled on foot, as the element of surprise was more than at play here—which was not surprising, given the fact their small detachment was the central strike team in charge of rescuing Subaru. Instead of barreling straight in with brute force, they were to sneak into the caverns while the other units struck the small cultist camps which surround the domain of Cordor.

They wanted to sneak in, Emilia corrected herself. It was wishful thinking if they expected to walk straight into the proving grounds of the Witch Cult uninvited and undisturbed. Truthfully, she felt a deep pain within her heart, because she knew this wouldn't be just a simple rescue mission; there would be bloodshed, and much of it. Not to mention time was of the upmost importance; so much so every second they spent walking to their destination was another moment Subaru spent under threat of death… or worse.

At that thought, Emilia felt a deepening fear aching inside her. She tried hard to quell it, but it was difficult to banish such thoughts from her mind… and within, her anxiety grew ever still—even if her detached and expressionless face remained unwavering.

She turned a glancing eye to the old knight beside her.

During their preparation back at the garrison and before their departure, Wilhelm had come to her in the privacy of her personal quarters. There, he spoke to her, sharing with her encouraging words none other than a person of his stature could give.

They were not words of folly, nor did they intrude on her in any damaging way. They were simply the parting words of an old knight—one who had borne the pain of loss more than any other, and against all odds, continued on with his life—such as it was. Even though he did not ask of her, she knew that within the pained expression of his journeyed eyes, he wanted her to stay behind and let him fight for her, alone. Wordlessly, he contemplated her weary, lilac eyes, and without a sound, he implored her to stray from harm's way.

Pondering on this, Emilia studied the wooden floor beneath their feet silently, before she swallowed her fear, and found her voice. "I have to go with you," she said, in quiet anguish, to the old knight who stared back at her with a stony guise. Wordlessly, she took Wilhelm's gloved hand in her own. Seeing the unquestioning look on Wilhelm's face, it almost beckoned her to tears.

He did not waver in the face of her words, and continued to look upon her with understanding.

After a moment of continued silence, Wilhelm focused on the frail, quivering hand which had encased his own, and grimaced, before returning his gaze to her sparkling lavender eyes.

She then swallowed hard, saying, "Because if I don't… how can I ever live with myself?"

Much later, when they had finished their preparations and gathered in the main hallways of old to set out on their journey, Wilhelm approached her once more—this time with a gift.

He loosened his grip, and a chain dangled from his outstretched hand, revealing a bejeweled ring on the end of it. It was gold in color and adorned with a flower insignia. Emilia looked up to him wondrously, before opening her palm to receive the small trinket.

"This ring belonged to my dearest Theresia," he said warmly, as his mind wandered to times of their past. "She left it before departing for her final journey… and she did not return. I want you to have it, as it has no use in the possession of an old man such as myself."

Receiving the gift, Emilia bowed and kept silent, as was proper. She could not speak in this moment, nor did she even know what to say in return for such an offering.

The stillness of the moment lasted longer than she could have wanted, and then Wilhelm, deciding nothing else needed to be said, turned on his heel and walked away without so much as a word.

She nodded gratefully and watched him go. Her mouth quivered slightly, eager to say something, but no words came as his heavy footsteps thundered, even as he stepped silently away; making it clear to Emilia his emotions had finally come to the fore.

Emilia's long, dark eyelashes fluttered as she crept along the hidden pathway. With her mind returning to the present, she reached for the necklace dangling at the base of her chest between her breast. Taking the beloved ring in her grasp, she toyed with it, twisting it between her fingers thoughtfully.

She felt a vast number of emotions as the band twirled effortlessly betwixt thumb and forefinger. Sure, there was the feeling of admiration, but there was always the uneasy feeling of trepidation—a feeling which beckoned her to lose control of herself. She couldn't quite understand why Wilhelm parted with such a close heirloom as this, especially in gifting it this way. But even with what little she understood, there remained the undeniable fact she should accept such a gift earnestly and without question.

Enclosing her fist around the treasured bestowal, Emilia's eyes lidded briefly before opening once more, her soft expression hardening itself as she came to a deeper understanding of her feelings. It was there—in her steeled countenance—where the features on her face had matured greatly, and the small innocence from her past self had vanished almost unceremoniously.

She heard a light tread, and to her right, from where darkness invited itself into the world, a voice wove the new beginnings of a ballad. She turned to the sound.

"How are you feeling, my lady?" he inquired softly.

"Master Wilhelm?" Emilia murmured. She peered beyond the gloom.

Concealed under the vestiges of shadow, she could only just barely make out the silhouette of the hidden figure. Speechlessly, he came closer into view, revealing himself to her. Contrary to his gentle tone, his serious and unsmiling demeanor bore down upon her as a parent would to his child.

Instinctually, she felt herself avert his probing gaze without the intention of doing so. She paused momentarily under bated breath, before she found the courage to return her eyes to him.

"Tis a worrisome night," Emilia said, her gentle but unsure voice painting what her face could not. "Even so, I am finer now you are by my side."

"Indeed, it is such a night, but do not distress," Wilhelm said, as he moved silently beside her, unwavering. "I will not stray from your presence, my lady, and if you ever find yourself separated from me, I implore you to abandon all notions of combat. I say this delicately, but if I have fallen in combat, surely your only respite would be retreat."

Emilia gasped out loud and looked at him pointedly. "Please, don't speak of such things!"

"I only speak truths," Wilhelm said frankly. "If I am to be true to myself, I would fight until I breathed my last for you, my lady. In that respect, I hope—if I am so unfortunate as to fall before you—my wish of your hasty retreat is honored. I care for nothing but the safety of yourself and our mission."

"But, Master Wilhelm—"

"Please, do not worry," he said, smiling as he interrupted her. "This is the task I have taken up as your most loyal servant and protector. I cannot bear to see the one whom I serve fall in combat, and even though I will do everything within my power to prevent such a thing from happening, I want to make my role within your circle very clear."

Emilia blinked in apprehension, and then nodded. "Very well… If that is your wish, Master Wilhelm, then I will honor it to the best of my capability."

Noticing her reluctance to accept such terms, Wilhelm offered her a gentlemanly smile. "Sometimes, in battle, there is no shame in retreat," His expression, while reflective, went unnoticed in the darkness and did not reach her eyes. "And there is no fear in such things either. Sometimes, we must pick and choose our battles carefully, so we may live to fight another day."

Slowly, Emilia turned her eyes away from Wilhelm once again. Biting her lip nervously, she gazed into the darkness once more as she was disturbed by her own doubts. After a brief introspection, she felt a touch on her shoulder, and a very light squeeze.

"Do not be afraid, Lady Emilia," Wilhelm said soberly, as he consoled her. "Even if you bring nothing else with you tonight, always do your best to remember above all else, that there is no reason to be afraid. Fear is what brings both man and woman to their knees, and to a downfall unbecoming to that of a warrior. Banish your fright, face forward, go without regret, and rip violently what you want from the world—because it will not be given up so easily without strife."

Emilia smiled in return, even if it was thin. "Thank you," she said politely to the gentlemanly knight who guarded her so. "Your words of encouragement restore my spirit… and my spirit is all I will ever need to overcome such fears!"

Facing forward again, Wilhelm smirked to himself beneath the aged and grayed hairs of his beard. Once more, his expression went unbeknownst to her, even if he did not intend to hide it.

The party had been walking up the winding cliffs and through the crags of the mountain pass for quite some time. As they moved so carefully, the familiar vegetation around them began to finally recede, and soon even the luscious trees became more and more sparse, banishing their natural concealment without warning.

They were getting closer and closer to their destination. Emilia could feel it in the pit of her stomach as they continued up the old and forgotten passageway. It was that eerie feeling she felt quite some time ago in the cursed wood. Even as they travelled, the noises of the insects and the moisture in the air had suddenly faded without cause. They were near now, and that meant they were in extreme danger.

Feeling the otherworldly effects around them, the hunting party began to quicken their pace in response. With concrete reason to make haste, they honed their senses and sought fervently to find the hidden hideout of the Witch Cult.

Emilia could feel herself growing more and more desperate by the second. Suddenly, she beckoned them, and then small, translucent blue orbs dotted the air around her, sprinkling the area in an illustrious blue hue. In her distress, she called upon the lesser spirits, and pleaded with them. Even as she probed their secrets, they would betray no hidden location of the Witch Cult to her, and so they fled in directions unknown—returning to the spirit realm whence they came.

It continued like this for quite some time, as the party searched desperately for the nefarious lair of the Witch Cult. By now, the other detachments must have been engaged in combat at their respective targets, which would mean one thing: The Witch Cult now knew of their impending strike. But still, they travelled without interruption, and ne'er did they cross paths with anyone of any consequence.

A strong gust of wind blew chillily through the sinister night, and the party stepped into a desolate clearing basked by a high moonlight. In front of them were several caverns dug deep into Mount Cordor itself. Indistinguishable from one another, their entrances were bathed in shades which made their contents all but impossible to see.

Lingering behind the rest of them, Emilia adjusted her hood back over her unusual hair and pointy ears to hide her identity once more, and cautiously approached the party.

Settling himself comfily against a barren tree, Conwood shouldered his massive great sword, deep in thought. After a moment, he set his weapon down and withdrew his pipe from the pocket of his cloak, before striking a match. Bringing the lip to his mouth, small embers smoldered, and brief puffs of smoke blew quickly from his nose as he lit the pipe.

There was a hostile silence as the party gathered around their leader as he casually smoked his pipe.

Conwood looked at Wilhelm with introspective eyes. He then nodded and blew another long string of smoke from his nose.

Wilhelm stepped forward, sword in hand. "These crevices in the mountain are familiar to my old eyes," he said, as he nodded toward the curious formations. "I believe these are the same caverns we explored in our youth. No doubt their roots grow deep into the mountain itself."

A great many years ago, Conwood and Wilhelm had undertaken a quest inside these caverns to rescue some citizens. It was there they encountered the legendary Sandworm of the Augria Sand Dunes, who had made these natural caverns its den and shelter. Undoubtedly, the patriarch of the worm pod was slain and not before long, words of their chivalry and heroism spread throughout Cramlin. Almost half a century later, the Sandworm was nothing but a myth in the minds of the people who inhabited this land.

"They are indeed the same," Conwood said. "If we enter them, we run the risk of getting lost in their tunnels if we do not keep our wits about us."

Wilhelm looked at Conwood expressionlessly for what seemed an unusually long amount of time. "Therefore, we should split up," he said at last, in a stern voice which betrayed no fear. "In order to find whom we are looking for, it is more than likely we will have to cover the entire expanse of the cavern."

"In that case—" Conwood started, before he caught something shining brightly in the corner of his eye.

"Hyuma—!"

A large sheet of ice erected in front of the knights as a torrent of fire crashed chaotically against it. Like a fragile pane of glass, it shattered into a thousand tiny pieces and sent fragments of it in every direction. Particles of flame conflagrated the area, burning what little vegetation remained in the vicinity, and bathing the area in a low, red light.

As the smoke began to clear, and before anyone else knew what was happening, Wilhelm had already disappeared with a torrent of speed no human eye could possibly follow.

He plunged his blade into one cultist's chest, rending him in two in an almost inhuman display of strength right afterwards with an upward swing. A geyser of fresh blood gushed from the corpse as it split apart in two even halves—and before each section fell to the floor, discarded, Wilhelm had already granted death to two more unfortunate souls.

"Everyone, to arms!" Wilhelm roared in a bestial fury, as he sank his blade into another enemy without a second's thought.

Emilia, having just recovered from the shockwave of the detonation resulting from her ice barrier against the fireball, readied herself. Shock spread across her face as she witnessed what was happening around them.

An unknown number of cultists surround the area. When had they had gotten there? They could never know for sure, but they were closing in on them, and fast. From all directions, cloaked enemies spilled in from the forest, dotting the plateau in dark swabs of a paintbrush. Out of the darkness, large fireballs lit the area in a hellish light as they were flung through the air with wild abandon.

One of those stray balls of fire struck an unlucky knight, engulfing him in an explosion which sent him flying off into the distance. Conwood just stared as the combusted knight tumbled down the mountainside into the darkness until he was out of view.

Enraged, he leapt with the strength of someone half his age and brought his great sword down on the skull of one of the hooded figures, crushing him in a horrendous cascade of warm blood and gore which splattered against his face. Wiping the blood from his eyes to clear his sight, he readied his weapon low for another furious strike just as another cultist lunged at him with a dagger. Catching him midleap, the cultist never knew he died as the great sword lobbed him in two from shoulder to hip, bifurcating him.

"Look alive, men!" he spit into the starry night sky. "There are Witch Cultists encroaching from all directions!"

There was screaming everywhere and a growing pandemonium which began to morph into a deluge of frenzied chaos and destruction. As the battle raged on further, it became less and less clear who would emerge the victor. Even as several cultists were cut down for every knight slain, they continued to flood endlessly from the darkness.

In the distance, a touch of silver flashed as it caught the shining light of the overhanging moon.

A bloodied dagger whizzed through the air near her silver hair, as Emilia ducked just in time to dodge a haphazard strike from a cultist.

"El Hyuma!"

From her pale outstretched hand, a clear pillar of ice shot itself into the cultist square through the chest. A part of the spear jutting out his back was painted red as it nailed him against a tree, letting his blood flow down the rotted stump like a river from his now-lifeless body.

Without warning, she felt a 'thud' against her side, and instantly the breath was knocked from her lungs. Tumbling against the ground roughly before finally coming to a halt, it took her too long to realize she had just been kicked with a monstrous force unlike any other.

Coughing up blood, a dizzied Emilia sprung back up to her knees, trying to stand. The pain wracked her body only now, letting her feel her cracked ribs and some other internal damage as well. Shakily, she needed both hands to stand back up, and with hazy eyes, she caught the glimpse of her assailant mere seconds before he brought down a killing blow.

"El Hyuma!"

As the panicked, desperate chant escaped her throat once more, mana mixed with blood pooling in her mouth to form a javelin of crimson-red ice. The lance shot through the night sky at a speed almost impossible to dodge, but the hooded figure was also no ordinary assassin.

Turning his body in a mad pirouette both animalistic and devilish in its performance, the cultist effortlessly dodged the incoming ice as it whirled harmlessly by him and crashed into the rocks of the mountain.

Emilia's wearied eyes widened as the wicked figure leapt and roared toward her, its speed one she could not react to in time to defend herself. She raised her hands in folly and slurred an incantation, but it wasn't fast enough…

"Uuuaaaah!"

A roar, and then a steady stream of bright red blood shot out like a jet stream from the headless corpse as it floated through the air comically.

Wilhelm's blade had cut through the cultists neck like warm butter, severing his spinal column and ending his life in mid-swing before he could ever hope to reach Emilia. Its body tumbled to the ground and rag-dolled against the rocky surface of the mountain, sending its body off the cliff and into the darkness below.

Landing gracefully, Wilhelm casually flicked his blade to the side to clean off the freshly-spilt blood with the stroke of a calligraphy brush.

Hastily, he scanned the whole area for both friend and foe, before his eyes settled on the injured girl he had just rescued from a sure and cold death.

He reached out his gloved hand to her. "Are you okay, my lady?" Wilhelm said, a hint of worry laden in his gentle voice.

Emilia coughed, as she wiped a small trickle of blood from her mouth. "I think I'm okay," she said breathlessly. "I just had the wind knocked out of me, but I should be able to keep going…"

She trailed off as she observed Wilhelm's resolute form.

He was almost covered from head to toe in both blood and gore. His normally gray and white hair was now painted red with the life source of his enemies. Likewise, he did not yet appear to have suffered many wounds, but it was difficult to tell what blood was his and what wasn't.

"You really are a demon," she whispered quietly.

"You're right," Wilhelm acknowledged, almost chuckling. "But never mind that. Because… there's much work to do!"

Emilia just watched as Wilhelm readied his blade and lunged toward a crowd of cultists who were in combat with the other knights. With bated breath, she watched as he effortlessly cut through them, as if he were honing his skills against defenseless stalks of bamboo in his backyard. His primal rage echoed through the dark night, as his shining holy sword cut through enemy after enemy. Its reflective blade glimmered in the moonlight as it danced to and from one body to another indiscriminately and with lust, rage and fury unlike any other.

This man, he was something else entirely… Indeed, he was a demon beyond compare—a man truly befitting of the honorary title which inspired both fear and admiration… and as the Sword Demon dashed from foe to foe, no member of the infernal Witch Cult was spared any mercy as he viciously cut them down without quarter. In between this continual attack, other knights fared well against their adversaries, but their stamina was dwindling.

From higher ground, Emilia watched helplessly as the cult members continuously threw themselves upon her allies with all their might. Their numbers greatly exceeded their own, and soon, she realized this battle was no longer a battle of stealth or power, but one of attrition.

She came to a bitter realization, and if to make it a point, she saw one of the Kingdom Knights fall under the dagger of a genderless and enshrouded foe. His body fell limp to the ground as the cult member plunged his dagger into his back over and over, until surely, the man was dead.

Shock crossed her face and hot tears lidded her gentle lashes delicately.

Coming to her senses, she closed her eyes in focus and channeled the dwindling reservoir of mana she had left—even beginning to tap into her od as she felt her well growing more and more barren every second.

Heat began to brim at the edges of her pallid fingertips, and suddenly she felt an overwhelming vastness of energy burst through her gate without warning. The dam within herself ruptured, and out poured an intensity unlike any other. Feeling this new surge of power, she stretched out her arms to draw it into a singular space in the direction of her enemy.

The sizzling tingle of heat bit at her cheeks as a magical fireball erected from nowhere in front of her. Soon, it grew bigger, and before long, the tiny sun beamed radiantly in the darkness as it hovered patiently in front of Emilia. It swelled further, until it grew large enough it dwarfed even her own size, and then she felt something shrink inside herself…

It was ready.

Her eyes shot open, revealing piercing aquamarine pupils leading a determined stare.

"Al Goa!"

Emilia chanted, her voice a resounding roar as the fireball quaked in her grasp—and then with a synthetic shriek, it was sent barreling toward everyone with no possibility of stopping it now.

As the powerful magic whistled through the darkness, the blackened night sky was suddenly banished in dazzling shades of red. As a result, the oxygen in the air was eradicated as it was sucked callously into the raging flaming meteor, and the thing was no doubt starving.

The shrill call was like music to his ears. Turning his eye briefly, Wilhelm's calm expression warped immediately as he saw what sang so beautifully through the night sky. "Everyone!" he beckoned to his allies around him. "Take cover, now!"

Conwood and the rest of the knights, taking heed of the warning, broke from their combat trance as the raging ball of fire soared toward them. They dashed behind rocks, jumped over cliffs, and did what they could in order to escape the devastation which was about to meet their battlefield.

Without warning, the ball of fire suddenly separated into several pieces, and mysteriously it homed in on the unfortunate cultists who lay in wait for their untimely end. Some were keen enough to vanish out of sight, with several of them morphing into the shadows themselves and disappearing into the night.

However, not all were so lucky.

The inferno splashed itself against the rocky mountainside cliff of Mount Cordor. Sprawling, endless eternal flames canvassed themselves over every inch of the sacred land, shaping the world into something reminiscent of hell itself. The flames, now penetrating deep into the well-lit sky, spread with ardor even against land which would not normally burn.

Up on the cliff from whence the fireball came, a lone girl lay unconscious on the precipice. After quite some time, she found herself returning to the waking world once more.

Emilia, with her throat burning from the parched air, gasped as she peered down at the devastation. She had collapsed from the infernal spell, the utilization of such a thing irreparably damaging to someone even like herself.

"Did… I… do this?" she uttered in disbelief. Her voice broke as she observed the hellish landscape beneath her.

What remained of a vast number of cultists, was in its place a raging and all-consuming fire which would take hours to burn out. Some who had barely been lucky enough to escape the fiery demise, rolled around on the floor and flailed madly as they tried to extinguish the never-ending flames on their body. Soon enough, their swinging and thrashing ceased, signifying their passing into the netherworld.

She could not avert her gaze as mournful tears spilled down from her amethyst eyes. Emilia was not keen on taking life, nor did she ever want to, and deeply it affected her so. However, in times like these, when such things were necessary and without ill repute, she had hardened her resolve enough to take such actions.

Wiping the trickling tears from her eyes, she continued to lay splayed out on her knees amidst the chaos and desolation. From all appearances, she was completely lost to the ruin in front of her, as she sat there in a ponderous introspective none could comprehend.

Eventually, she even went unaware of the soft footsteps emanating from behind her.

"Lady Emilia?" Wilhelm beckoned, stepping in carefully from behind her. "Are you injured… Are you hurt?"

His blue eyes beneath thick gray eyebrows had rested upon her unmoving form as she sat there on both knees. There, she remained wordless as she viewed the destruction in front of them, paying no heed to the old man who had called her name.

By now, he had stepped resoundingly in front of her. His stance was just past shoulder length, and he rest one gloved hand on the hilt of his sheathed heirloom of a sword. His giant presence commanded even the attention from the most insane of the world, yet she still stared through him as if he weren't there at all.

With his free hand he reached out to her. "The Witch Cult has retreated down the mountain and into the forest," he said as gently as he could to her. "And… I fear there will be reinforcements on the way, so we must make haste if we are to rescue Master Subaru."

The familiar name called to her in some way nothing else did. Slowly, the gleam in her normally vibrant eyes returned once more, and she blinked. Her eyes flittered unexpectedly, allowing Wilhelm back into her world once more. There, she observed his gentle hand which hovered patiently in front of her.

She shook her head from side to side, no doubt to banish the impeding thoughts of her own mind. In taking his hand, he helped her pleasantly to her feet. As he had done so, she broke way from his grasp once more, and then bowed deeply in front of him, guilt overtaking her entire being.

With her voice low and unsure, she murmured, "I am eternally sorry for what I just did!"

Wilhelm then realized what her worry was, and he smiled. "You have nothing to apologize for, my lady," he said as he went to touch her bowed shoulder in comfort. "Your attack was both well-timed and marvelously executed, and it turned the tide of the battle immediately in our favor. If anything, I should be apologizing to you for letting the battle get so out of hand."

Feeling his touch and the words of encouragement wash over her, she raised her head once more. "You mean… I didn't injure any of our friends?" Emilia breathlessly asked him, almost afraid of any answer he would give. "I saw the fires stricken upon the land… and I could only have concluded such…"

Nodding gingerly, Wilhelm withdrew his hand from her. "Indeed, by luck or the Dragon's will, we narrowly escaped that ravenous firepit!" he exclaimed. There was a newfound growing pride in his voice. "But forget about that trifling matter… I have never witnessed one weave such a firestorm in all the years of my long life—and your courage, you must have banished every ounce of your fear in that moment to harness such a power!"

"Oh, I see," she replied, a wave of instant relief washing over her like a warm summer's current.

She did not even pay heed to his most joyous praise of her abilities. Weakly, Emilia struggled to conceal the fact she was shaking. It wasn't from fear, but from the fragile state of her body.

Noticing this, a more concerned look graced Wilhelm's old features. "Have you spent all of your latent mana?" he asked her out of concern.

"Latent…?" Emilia questioned him in return, but then said, "Ah, yes… I believe so. My head feels so faint right now… and my body hungers for rest even if I cannot get it. I did not mean to release so much of my mana so quickly like that… There is no doubt I lost control."

Wilhelm nodded, and then reached into his bloodstained pouch, before withdrawing a small purple nut.

With great concern, he held out the curious bite-sized morsel for Emilia to take. "As I am sure you are aware, this is a Bokko fruit," he said as he handed it to her. "If you eat just one of these by itself, you should not suffer any long-lasting damage to your gate. Just try not to drink any water for the time being, as it will amplify its negative effects."

Emilia looked at the thing between her two fingers with apprehension. Even if they were an important asset to any magic user, she was not a fan of their taste, or side effects for that matter.

With mild dread, she popped the fruit into her mouth—and to banish its disgusting taste, she swallowed it whole without chewing. After a moment, she felt goose bumps grace her sweaty skin, and the pale thin hairs on her arm stood up in attention. Slowly, the swelling of blood within her head began to clear once more, and she felt herself return to normal once again.

"Thank you, Master Wilhelm!" Emilia said as she bowed graciously to him once more. "You certainly think of everything."

"As any servant would…" Wilhelm replied in short.

Emilia gave him one of her sweet smiles which normally only one other would receive.

She was more than fortunate to have Wilhelm van Astrea as one of her closest allies. Not only was he a force to be reckoned with, but he was also very wise beyond his years. His mind was that of a master strategist; one who had been through battles and adventures innumerable in their quantity. His experience on the battlefield was unmatched, and in times like these, she felt herself the luckiest in the world.

And so she continued smiling at him, as he stepped forward and surveyed the battlefield with perceptive eyes.

Trudging up the rocky hillside of the mountain was Conwood Melahau, followed by three of his knights—the other four having perished unfortunately in the battle just moments before. His blood-splattered great sword was thrown over his shoulder casually. His old armor was battered and dented in, and even charred in some places.

Quickly, Emilia readjusted her hood back over her to conceal her elven ears and silver hair.

Stepping in front of Wilhelm, he turned to the side and took a drag on his pipe and expelled the smoke slowly without a care in the world.

And as he turned sideways, Emilia could see a crimson-red dagger jutting out of his back near his left shoulder. He had a knife sticking out of him?! she thought.

Letting a cry escape her lips, she dashed over to Conwood and drew her hands near the assailing dagger.

As her hands moved closer to it, he grimaced and pulled away slightly. "Just leave the bastard in there," he said as he let out another puff of smoke. "It's stuck in there good between the bone, and I don't feel like removing it right now."

With confusion spread across her face, she just nodded at him and respected his wishes. She then looked over their party, and realized they were missing almost half of their men.

A feeling of dread blanketed Emilia's thoughts. "We have lost so many…" she said, her voice trailing off as she came to the sudden realization. "Can any of them be saved?"

A very tense period ensued between the six adventurers. Stern expressions took foothold on both Wilhelm and Conwood as they pondered their losses. However, both realized this was just another part of warfare, and they had come too far to let such feelings hinder their abilities now.

With a frown, Conwood affirmed her fears. "They have already passed onto the next life, and their gallantry will be remembered for all eternity. They go before the Divine Dragon in great honor."

Averting her downcast eyes, Emilia said, "I see… and I will pray for their safe journey to the calm and peaceful lands beyond the endless waters of the Great Waterfall…"

The six bowed their heads and paid their respects to the fallen who had given their lives for a cause both selfless and honorable. For just a moment, they would catch their breath before they marched dutifully into the caverns themselves, and finally into the lair of the enemy.

While they did not know what awaited them deep inside the ancient caves, they had a good idea of what to expect from the Witch Cult after their latest battle with them. They had put up a solid fight, and if it wasn't for Emilia's trump card, they would have found themselves overwhelmed and in a precarious situation.

The time was now midnight, and the date of yesterday had now come and gone, carrying with it the hopes and dreams of the past. For a fleeting moment, the party gathered their wits about them, but now they had to set off into the depths of the enemy. Due to their losses and decreased size, they would have to split into groups of two.

As if by careful design, Wilhelm decided he would partner up with Emilia and tackle the first cavern, while Conwood would lead his knights through the second one.

And so the fellowship went their separate ways, and Wilhelm and Emilia found themselves creeping along the long winding corridors of a cavern far forgotten to the world. At first, the pair could see nothing as they traversed areas unknown to the common eye. But after some time, there shone something deep within the darkness, and they found themselves straying toward it like curious bugs to a lamp.

Emilia and Wilhelm stepped nearer to the mysterious green light as its luminescence vibrated almost hypnotically.

"This is indeed lagmite," Wilhelm stated plainly as he stepped closer to the natural light. "If we follow these crystal structures, we should find ourselves travelling deeper and deeper into the center of the cave. In fact, if my memory serves me well, at the very core of this ancient gallery lies a vast expanse of lagmite clusters—much like where you would find a pyroxene crystal."

Drawing her eyes to the viridian green hue, Emilia curiously analyzed it. "You are right," she said. "Although, this lagmite is not pure enough to be even considered in housing a Great Spirit."

Wilhelm nodded and said, "In recollection, a crystal such as the one you were in search for is originally colorless. It will only take hold of a color once it is impacted by an outside force, whether that be a Great Spirit or something else entirely."

Emilia drew a careful breath and looked around the empty halls for a moment, thinking. She said, "Do you think we are in the right cavern? This place feels so abandoned, like no one has taken these steps in a lifetime."

"I do not know," Wilhelm replied with a hint if disappointment lacing his words. "Even so, we must continue our travels and hope for the best."

She grew quiet. "We must hurry then, Master Wilhelm," she said, almost too quiet for him to hear. Then, in a voice tinged with desperation: "We must find Subaru, and quickly. I feel as if something terrible has befallen him…"

Suddenly, around them, lights of red, blue, green and other colors of the rainbow sprouted up all along the winding walls and ceilings of the cavern. It lit the area brilliantly enough to where they could finally see what was in front of them. And what surprised them was immediately to their left: a massive cliff which seemed to travel down for an eternity.

Stepping back from the ledge, Emilia drew another slow breath and looked around the caverns, now lit by new formations of lagmite. In innumerable colors they twinkled in the darkness, silently taunting the intruders of the cavern.

Then abruptly, a horrendous vibration shook the very foundations of said cavern. The force of it was as strong as an earthquake striking just underneath their feet. In an instant, both Wilhelm and Emilia braced themselves, but only Wilhelm knew what tread their way.

No, it writhed, and crashed against the wall—its massive expanse taking up so much of the cavern the very idea it lived inside this complex was almost laughable.

Wilhelm's sword was already drawn before Emilia could react to their newfound visitor. In a slash too quick to see, Wilhelm effortlessly cut off a piece of the shining lagmite. Picking it up in his left hand, he held it against the darkness to reveal what made such a ruckus.

For an instant, Emilia doubted her own eyes.

It was a worm, yes, but not just any worm. It was a creature of such terrible scale it could have been considered monstrous by even the standards of a giant.

"The Sandworm of Augria," he whispered, introducing their new foe. He appeared to be lost in recollection of the memory of a long-lost friend.

The creature was blind. It had no eyes—that was unmistakable—and as Wilhelm shined the light toward its presence, it paid no heed, nor did it shy away from such a thing. In fact, such a creature who bathed himself in an immeasurable darkness for hundreds of years had no use for eyes, and this proved it. Its long and limber body twisted and toured around the curvature of the cavern, making it impossible to see just how long the thing was. It had no arms or legs to help its squirming body along the surface of the rock—but indeed, it had lengthy, infernal horns which jutted out from above its darkened brow, a shrewd reminder of its vaunted bloodline.

Wilhelm had fought this beast before, he thought—but this one was different. It was larger—much larger, in fact, than the one he had fought all those years ago. It was as if it had been tainted by and fed off some dark magic for a century.

Wilhelm's eyes met face-to-face with the worm, and it let out a reverberating wail which threatened to collapse the cavern itself.

"Aaaaah!"

Wilhelm released a bestial roar of his own and leapt at it with an almost animalistic fury.

Putting all his strength into a hundred furious cuts, his blade met the slippery and flexible skin of the motionless Sandworm in every way possible. However, he found his cuts ineffective as its devilish layer of armor protected it like no other.

But just like the worm's defenses were unbreakable, Wilhelm was relentless in his own way—and still he continued his strikes with all the speed of his youthful self. Every time his blade collapsed against the skin of the worm, he could feel it cut deeper and deeper than it had just seconds before. Soon enough, he finally broke through—and he was graced with the sight of blood spilling into the air.

And the damned worm let out another assailing wail which sent Wilhelm flying back in a shockwave of pure sound.

Overwhelmed by the audible attack, Wilhelm crashed against the walls of the cavern and collapsed to the floor. Catching his breath, he got up and leapt at the worm for yet another furious attack.

Emilia, standing by the wayside, just watched as the man dashed madly toward the worm to strike it down with sheer power alone. At this moment in time, she knew her gate was far too overused to attempt any high-level spell, and no low-level magic would have affected this ancient and terrible creature.

Suddenly, it struck without warning, and its long winding tail which was just moments ago wrapped around the cavern's walls sprung up with a speed unlike anything Wilhelm had ever seen. It came crashing down upon him with the weight of a thousand tons, and he was woefully prepared to absorb such an attack.

Wilhelm let out a bloodcurdling yell of pain as its tail crushed him against the rocks of the cavern.

"Master Wilhelm!" Emilia shrieked as she saw his crumpled form splay across the ground. He had been crushed by the full weight of the things tail.

Furiously, she concocted a basic chant, and several ice pillars formed around her from the mana inside her. Following this, she whispered another incantation and the pillars coalesced into a single solid spear of ice. It floated mysteriously above her, ready to strike at any moment.

She was too weak to cast an Al level spell immediately, so in her desperation, she haphazardly put one together through other means. While weaker than a true high-level incantation, this would be the best shot she had.

With an outstretched hand she threw the spear into the worm's side, blanketing the area in particles of ice. The worm roared vigorously as it was struck, which made Emilia smile as if she had succeeded. But as the icy mist of her improvised Hyuma dissipated, the long winding shadow in the darkness moved yet again.

The worm was untouched—and her spell had no effect on the devilish creature. Its skin was as tough as steel, she understood that now. She should have figured, because if Wilhelm had trouble breaking through its skin, what more could she do herself?

Without reason, the worm retreated slightly back around the curvature of the cave, assessing its new enemy. It was a smart beast for certain, as having disabled one of its enemies, it was intelligent enough to understand common battle tactic.

Having fell back around the corner for a moment, it kicked up dust, dirt, and debris, making it almost impossible to see anything in the shade of the cavern. It took a moment for Emilia to accidentally find the limp body of Wilhelm in the darkness of the shadow.

Running her hands over the soft contours of his face blindly, he stirred slightly. "…Lady Emilia?" Wilhelm called weakly into the darkness as he felt her soft hands run gently over him.

"Master Wilhelm!" Emilia yelped once more as she heard the low growl of his voice. Immediately, she chanted, "Mana of Water, please grant thy healing!"

Pressing a soft palm down onto Wilhelm's motionless body, warmth spread across him briefly. A small blue light emanated carefully from the palms of her hand, basking him in a bluish hue. As his body came into sight once more, she noticed his left arm had been twisted horribly, clearly broken in several places.

Wilhelm gave her a soft smile as he felt the heat wash over him, the gentleness of her energy pouring into him like a calmly flowing stream.

Having been completely crushed by the worm, his body was in too much shock to feel any pain. He had not expected such an attack, or else he would have parried it with ease. He realized now why the worm was hiding its length behind the twists and turns of the cavern. It was trying to goad him into striking first, so it could counterattack. It was devilishly smart, indeed.

After less than a minute under the touch of Emilia, Wilhelm sat up.

"Wait, please!" she said to him. She pressed gently against his chest to lay him back down. "Your arm is not fully healed as of yet!"

Pushing her to the side, Wilhelm shook his head. "Do not worry over it… I have always fought with one arm anyway. Besides… look what comes this way."

As if interested in the drama happening in front of it, the worm peeked its head around the corners of the cavern once more. Blanketed in darkness, it was almost impossible to see save for the rumbling of its movements and the silhouette it barely eked out.

Propping himself up with his beloved wife's sword, Wilhelm grimaced deeply at the foreboding shadow which stared them down. Turning to Emilia, he said, "Please, go and find Master Subaru…"

Emilia was quiet. "What do you mean?" she asked, almost breathlessly. "You're coming with me too… I shan't leave you here by yourself with this monster!"

"I won't let myself fall to this beast," Wilhelm said beneath a smirk. "As wounded as I may be, I would never let myself fall in battle. I know I said I would never leave your side, but at this point, it is too dangerous for you to be around this creature."

Emilia remembered what Wilhelm had told her—that he would never stray from her side. In that respect, he would always be there to protect her, even if he died for her. Yet here, he wanted her to go on without him in order to reach the one they came to rescue. He knew this battle would take quite some time, and with her near, it would be more difficult to worry about the safety of both of them combined. He needed to be alone to fight this one, she realized.

Because that's just how useless she was to him right now. Just like when she was with Subaru.

She gripped his gloved hand and gave him a gentle squeeze. Smiling down upon him, she forcibly said, "Please be careful, Master Wilhelm… I really wish to see your services continue in the foreseeable future."

Wordlessly, he smiled and nodded at her, before he stood up straight as if he were never wounded in the first place. With a terrible glint in his eye, he glared at the monstrous hidden demon beast with the fury of a demon himself.

He knew he would be victorious against such a creature, but how long it took, or how he would manage it, were questions which he's not sure of the answers to. Yet, he did not have time to ask these questions, nor did they have the time to squabble with a mindless beast such as this while Subaru still drew breath.

He would finish this meaningless battle as quickly as permitted.

With a flick of his blade, he leapt at the shadows once again and Emilia watched him vanish into the darkness. She heard his bestial cries of anger as he fought with the grotesque creature, and she heard the wails of the worm and the rumble of the cavern as it banged itself against the walls indiscriminately, even though she could no longer keep the two combatants in her sight.

Turning on her heels into the other direction, she ran.

And she ran as fast as she could, because she knew of nothing else other than to find her Subaru—the one person she had come all this way for. And so, she travelled along the cavern walls, following the lagmite crystals as Wilhelm had advised her, and before long, the crystals grew in quantity and expanded in size. No longer were they mere tiny clusters near the entrance to the cavern—now, they were massive literal sprawling hives gleaming brightly and magically among the darkness.

By now, her footsteps were the only sounds which emanated throughout the cavern. She took them carefully as she crossed a winding pathway adjacent to a cliff. One misstep, and she'd have her earlier curiosity of how deep this cliff fell answered. So, she trod more than carefully, hugging the wall and following the glimmering lagmite crystals.

After quite some time, the narrow passageway lifted and expanded into a larger one. As she walked along it, she came across something she did not expect.

There were two corpses on the ground. The shadowy black-robed figures were unmistakable in their identity, even if they were well hidden from sight.

Walking up to one of the corpses, Emilia inspected it curiously. There were no visible wounds on the cultist, no blood, no anything which would make it obvious the individual was truly dead. Yet, the cultist laid sprawled out against the cavern floor as if they had been thrown and left there to die.

As she looked over the robe of the cultist, she suddenly hatched an idea.

Quickly, she removed their robe and undergarments. The person under the robe came into view, revealing the lifeless face of a brown-haired woman maybe a little bit older than herself. Cultists came from all walks of life, and even someone who appeared normal such as her could have held a sinister secret all along.

Carefully, Emilia took the accursed robe and put it on over her own garments, disguising herself perfectly with the addition of this cave's depth and darkness.

Leaving the two lifeless bodies where they lay, Emilia continued along the well-lit pathway of the cavern, until finally she came to something she knew was out of the ordinary.

Rusted bars jutted up from the stone in the ground and into the rock above, sealing the area beyond it off entirely. With the remains of two cultists close by, she realized this was no mere coincidence.

She felt a nervous tingle echo throughout her belly.

Silently, she stepped up to the rusted bars and pressed her hands to it. As her soft hands caressed the peculiar bars, she felt something uneasy within them. She searched deeper, and deeper, before she found her answer: It was an illusion.

In realizing this, she focused her mana deep into the bars themselves before they began to fade out of sight. Soon, their transparency turned to nothingness, and within her own grasp the bars ceased to exist entirely.

Stepping through the crevice in the wall, Emilia was met with a most deterring sight.

There was a large amount of lagmite clusters in this massive expanse of a chamber, yes—but they were all a nefarious blood-red. The entire chamber was painted in scarlet… and it wasn't just the red color which unnerved her—it was the vibrating luminescence of it in the rhythm of a heartbeat.

Peering into the darkness, Emilia squinted. Vaguely, just past the crystals, near the ledge of a cliff, she could just barely see a figure cloaked in a long, black robe. Whoever it was had their back turned to her, and it stood there motionlessly, unaware of her intruding presence.

Quietly, she stepped over to the hidden figure. She didn't make as much as a single sound as she moved closer and closer to the unknown individual. In preparation, she readied the palm of her hand as she moved toward the unmoving figure cloaked in darkness. Ready to strike at a moment's notice, she stepped as close as she could get to identify him.

Though, as she got closer, she could hear something vague in the distance coming from the hooded figure.

It sounded like a chant, as it echoed in the shadows. Its sound was familiar, yes, but how the words were spoken seemed distant, as if uttered by a mysterious stranger. She focused on the odd but familiar individual, yet she couldn't pinpoint what unnerved her about him. It didn't matter, however, because she would soon find out.

Her footsteps thudded around as it was caught in the echo chamber of the cavern, undoubtedly revealing her presence to whomever lay beyond the darkness. And yet he didn't move a muscle in response. No, he just continued to stare away from her into the darkness of the ravine in front of him. His chanting too, had stopped, and he was now wordless as he peered into the pit of nothing. After a small period of silence, she heard the voice again:

"I have her love…"

Emilia's eyes widened. She knew that voice could be no one else. "Subaru…?" she called out nervously.

As her gentle voice echoed through the vast expanse of the cavern, the cloaked boy finally stirred. Turning slightly, he peered at her in his peripheral vision, and on his darkened features, she could see he was smiling.

"Subaru!"

Emilia couldn't contain her yelp as she immediately recognized the soft features of his face. In excitement, she jumped to him and threw her arms around him, almost sending him off the ledge of the cliff. He returned her embrace as she collided into him, catching him off guard. She buried her face in the crook of his neck and whispered sweet things into him, tickling him, although he did not stir.

Briefly, she pulled away and said, "Oh, my love! My lovely Subaru! I was sooo worried about you… I had missed you so much!"

In response, Subaru just smiled softly and looked her straight in the eye.

Looking him over, her happy smile curved backwards slightly, almost to a frown. She could tell something about him had changed significantly. Even though they had been separated for only a day, it was almost like he was an entirely different person. His usual tan complexion was now colorless, and sickly-looking… and his normally hazel eyes were now almost a different color entirely. They were… gray? No, maybe it just appeared that way in the darkness which surround them. They were now far enough away from the reddened lagmite to stray handily into the shadows.

But still, she felt there was something so different about him, but she could not pinpoint it to any singular detail. It was almost as if his entire being had changed in some odd way, but she couldn't quite put a finger on it.

"Subaru, my dearest," she whispered. "Is there something wrong? Are you injured in any way? Did they hurt you, or do something to you? Please, let me know so I can help you."

He just shook his head negatively, and said, "No, there is nothing wrong with me. In fact… if you are with me, everything in the world is exactly the way it should be."

"Oh, Subaru…" she whispered to him breathlessly in response. "We have been separated for only a day, but it has felt like an eternity for me… I'm so glad you are safe!"

He stared at her with a big grin on his face. "For once, you and I can come to an agreement," he said, reaching around with his hand to stroke her nape. "I don't ever want you to leave; in fact… I want you to be next to my side like this, forever. So please, don't leave me anymore."

Emilia felt tears welling up in her eye as she spoke. "I'm never going to leave you, Subaru!" She now sobbed gently against him, as he stroked the back of her head lovingly. She felt like she wanted to cry for hours. She realized if she was with Subaru like this, even crying felt good. And in this mood, deep within an ancient cavern inside a mountain as old as time itself, she felt it fitting they shared this moment together, as ill-timed and poorly conceived as it was.

With a conscious effort, Subaru pushed himself against her, and in a moment's notice, their lips collided as one.

She thought they would never kiss like this again. Deep within her heart, over the past day, she had silently been mourning Subaru. Even if she did not want to admit it, she had feared the worst for him, and already, she was feeling the effects of it.

So now, to be mashed against him like this in a ravenous whirlpool of emotions, she felt herself slipping. Even sober as she was right now, she felt the undying need to break down the physical and emotional barriers between herself and Subaru.

And so, she kissed him full upon the lips without ever wanting to disengage. While exploring his mouth, she felt herself trip and both she and Subaru fell to the rocky floor without a care in the world.

Subaru was already lost in whatever lustful emotions he was feeling right now. She could feel his hands snaking up under her darkened robe to delve deep wherever they wanted. And she didn't care where he touched her, not here—not now. Even though he had felt so foreign to her just moments ago, his kiss and physical touch reminded her of a Subaru she had already experienced before. His need was the same, as was the artform of his lovemaking.

Within their hazy stream of emotions, they found their clothes discarded lazily to the side, and she lay over Subaru, naked and wanting. Her cheeks were painted beet red as he delved into the cream of her neck once more, leaving small, careful bites along the way.

The entire world was lost to the two as they shared in the heated passion of lovemaking on the cold cavern floor. Forgotten to them were the battles which had just transpired, and the battles which were still happening even as they made love. The only thing which remained was a hazy reflection of their world together; the only one which mattered. It was the one she and Subaru shared together—and the one they had just come so close to losing forever.

Subaru pressed himself against Emilia with more lust than anything now, as he had completely lost himself into the pleasures of her body. She too, paid no attention to such trifling matters anymore, as she abandoned the world of the emotion for the world of the physical.

She was swamped in pleasure now, and he too, as he made love to her as if it were the last night they were ever going to share together. Even if it went unknown to Emilia, that was how Subaru felt in this moment, because in his nadir, she had returned to him sooner than he could ever have hoped.

It was all he dreamed of, as he stood there endlessly, staring into the darkness below. To the average person, it appeared as if he were looking at nothing—just a bottomless pit leading to nowhere.

But in that darkness, he saw one face and one face only.

He saw her.

And deep within the throngs of their love and passion, Emilia found herself deafened to the world, even as Subaru fervidly breathed out a name not her own.