Chapter 6: The Next Step

"Well now, what will we do about this?" one Holy Knight questioned, looking over the incident reports. Multiples of them, from all across the region. "It seems they have started to move finally, after eight years of silence and rumors".

"I do believe we should act quickly, and with extreme prejudice" another Holy Knight mentioned, as she looked at her sword. "Such traitors to the realm must be brought down as soon as possible, and it should be done by some of our best".

"So us then?" a smaller Holy Knight mentioned, looking at his greataxe that had a blade on each end, at opposite sides. "After all, other Holy Knights, weaker then us, have failed. And unlike them, we have someone who has had experience fighting them. Isn't that right, Holy Knight Gira?"

The trio of HOly Knights turned and looked at the girl who stood there, wearing her armor. Holy Knight Gira, the young and promising Holy Knight who clashed with the Captain of the Seven Deadly Sins, the Sin of Sloth, Azalen.

"I only faced the one, but he held strength and power that rivaled some of the Grand Masters it felt. Yet, I felt like he also could not make full use of it. Is it possible that wherever he has been left him weakened?"

"Hmmm, that is a good question, but it is also good to know he has been weakened. That improves our odds greatly, even with two other Sins there. Furthermore, we know that the Sin of Pride is missing two of his Sacred Treasures, one of them being kept in Skytower, the other in the Royal Vault".

"And the final one?"

"...unknown. No one can really remember them clearly".

"So then, we have one unknown, the Captain, and the Sin of Pride. How much do we know about them?"

"The Captain was a famous slacker, apparently. Often sleeping in, only showing up when it was absolutely vital. Supposedly there was one or two other sins around involved in keeping him active enough to do his job. He once attended royal court in pyjammas. That said, it was considered that pushing him too far, in making him active, was a bad idea. Then there is the Sin of Pride. Anin. ALso appearing as a young boy, he was entirely shameless. He once went to a royal knighting ceremony completely naked, drank a bunch of booze with their captain, and then they were both found naked and asleep in the king's bed".

"Wait, are they..."

"No, Anin is just like that, and in his drunk state, the Captain did not want to deal with the hassle of cleaning his own clothes if he threw up".

"Seriously?"

"Like I said, unreasonably lazy".

"Are the rest of the sins all this unstable?"

"Oh no, these are the tame ones. Well, Anin can get murderous sometimes, but...there are others who are far more bloody. Such as the Sin of Wraith, Seth".

"Then, it is wise in our decision. We shall move out, and eliminate them immediately. Thankfully, something has happened recently we can make use of".

"You know, we can bathe ourselves" Azalen mentioned as they walked down a path, wearing their normal traveling clothes. They were currently heading south, towards hte center of the region, as Azalen figured they would encounter the others more easily that way. Though, he seemed to be protesting a little.

"COme on, Cap!" Anin said as he ran over to him and drooped his arm around Azalen's shoulder. "We both know its way more fun to bathe with friends anyways!"

Anin was wearing some black trousers that cut off above the knees, he had no shoes, preferring to leave them bare, additionally, he has no undershirt and choose to cover his chest in bandages and a red tattered scarf. He would normally wear a black jacket with fur lining as well, but it was extremely hot that day and he didn't feel like wearing it.

"And I still think..."

"No, Anin" Azalen mentioned. "We want to avoid the Holy Knights attention. So we wont walk naked".

"Fine...but what abou..."

"No, we will not pretend to be a traveling circus either".

"COuld we..."

"No, I wont freeze the entire region. I jsut said we are trying to avoid attention!"

"Fiiine..." he said, as he then looked over at Zaylen. "But then, I can check him out right?"

"Dont go too far".

"Yaaay!"

"Wait, what? What did he mean by that? What did you mean?"

"Ah don't worry, you will be fine. Probably. Anin, try to remember to untie him when you are done".

"Kaaaay".

"Wait, wait?! What?!"

"Don't worry, he has zero interest in doing anything perverted. He is totally innocent!"

"Though I am curious about how you will react to various things".

"Eh?! Ehhhhhhhh?!"

Maria then walked up to Azalen as they walked.

"Alright, so, what is your real plan?"

"What do you mean?"

"There is no way you would come up with searching and wandering on your own, not unless something was driving you. No, by all rights you should have just sat down in the town where you sent up that huge beacon, and then waited for all of us".

"If I did that, I would get attacked by Holy Knights all the time. It would be bothersome".

"Uh huh...so what is your real reason?" Maria asked, trying to make Azalen forget his suspicion...but it failed.

"That is my real reason" he said, though Maria did not believe it. Something did not quite add up to her. Normally, she might just give him a bath, make him do chores, or some sort of threat to make him speak honestly, but...whatever secret he was keeping was compelling him to be more active, so that wouldn't really work.

The Captain had secrets, everyone knew that. But no one was really sure what those secrets were, or how much of an impact they would have.

And then, as they were thinking that, a flier flew over and hit Azalen right in the face.

"...what the..." he said as he picked it up, only to see what the content was. It said Sin of Wraith, captured and being put on display at Kairo Village, by the HOly Knights that captured him.

He then showed the picture to the others.

"...its a trap" Maria pointed out.

"Its completely a trap, Cap!" Anin added.

"Even I can tell its clearly a trap" Zaylen concluded.

"Oh good, so we are all clear on the fact its a trap right?"

"""Naturally""".

"So, what are we going to do then?"

"Well, on the off chance it is Seth, I suppose we should go and see".

"So we are going to have some sort of super complicated plan to scout it out?"

"Will we have the three of you dress up as girls and infiltrate the village like that?"

"Are we going to slaughter everyone who gets in our way?"

"Uhhhh...I have a plan. Its fine, everything will be good" Azalen said, looking off to the side. "I will tell you it when we get there though, in case I need to iron out any details based on what we notice along the way".

"So, that was the Sin of Wraith, Seth the Bloody?" one Holy Knight said to another as they closed a dark cage. "To think they went so far to contain him".

"Well, admittedly, I heard it took quite a bit of effort. But then, a Holy Knight ended up falling right on top of him by surprise. And she even survived, apparently after beign blasted away by a powerful opponent".

"Really, who?"

"Some Holy Knight named Gira".

"Gira sounds dangerous, and sturdy, to do something like that".

That was when the three stepped outside, and saw a half naked Half Seraphim man stuck in magical stockades, held in place by High Level Quanentine Spell Beads. They would prevent him from moving an inch. Right now, a crowd of villagers was being allowed to vent their frustrations out on him, the Holy Knights using Seth as a symbol for all their anger and rage. Blaming all the problems on them.

And as they approached, the female Holy Knight in question, Gira, walked over to them.

"Have you secured the area?"

"Yes, Lady Gira".

"Good. Also, I have not seen any children in the crowd yet..."

"Well, he is one of the Sins. We didn't want to risk it".

"And the bonds? Do we think they may not hold?"

"I was told to be prepared for anything and everything. In case of a sudden attack, we are to be prepared. We have magic barriers all around the perimeter, and we are fully mobilized. The moment they launch an attack, we will know about it! We have countless guards manned at the gate as well!"

"I see...you did alert them to what they looked like?"

"Of course!" he said, when suddenly knocking could be heard from the gate. "Ah, that must be our scouts, having returned from their mission".

As he gave an order, the gate was then pulled open by two soldiers...and they saw the one standing there.

"Yo!" Azalen said with a smile as he waved his hand. The two guards who were standing at attention also looking shocked. "I think you have something of mine, I have come to pick it up!"

Several Holy Knights realized who it was instantly.

"Its him! Its the Captain of the Seven Deadly Sins! Attack now, kill him before he strikes!"

However, Gira noticed something odd.

"Wait! Don't do it! He is already..."

However, as Azalen snapped his fingers, all of the Holy Knights went flying.

"What, Gira-chan?" he asked with an innocent smile.

Just as I thought...he is already awake!

"Harmonious Seal!"

"Paralysis Arrow!"

"Intense Gravity!"

Suddenly, he was hit with the combined magical power of three Holy Knights. His power being sealed, an arrow grazing him and paralyzing him, and gravity being increased upon him by a lot.

"Ha. Even if you seem more awake and alert today, you cant possibly hope to overcome us all".

"We are the ultimate capture squad. Our combination is able to capture anyone, even a member of the Seven Deadly Sins!"

"You are powerless before us".

"Wait, no...his Sacred Treasure isn't..."

Suddenly, as the three Holy Knights who seemed to be in charge came out, a spear knocked into all of them and sent them flying, while a second spear cut across the Spell Fields and neutralized them, letting him stand up despite the paralysis.

"I see...I was curious how you captured Seth, but now I understand. As a Half Seraphim, he would naturally be affected more by Gravity, and paralysis would hurt his ability to attack with his wings. And then with abilities being sealed, that would probably capture a great deal of us. Anin?"

"Hmmm...I gotta say, I wouldn't be phased by the Paralysis or the gravity" a young boy said as he walked through the gate, carrying two unconscious guards behind him and throwing them on the ground.

"You are all so amazing...and scary..." Zaylen said, toting his own two guards. He was not as powerful as the rest of them, but he was easily in an above average class of his own.

"I think I am fairly normal" Maria mentioned...

Not personality wise!

The three of them thought that, while Maria saw Seth. "...who the fuck did this to him?"

Suddenly, the four of them were being pelted by rotton tomatoes and other things, including rocks, by the villagers.

"This is your doing!"

"You are the people making our children suffer!"

"Our crops are weaker thanks to you!"

As those words were spoken, Zaylen went over to Azalen.

"What are they talking about?"

"Hmm...according to the Spirits of this land, it seems there is something interfering with the crops, making it hard to pay their taxes and...oh. So its that..."

"Its what?"

"Someone seems to have stuck their sword into the ground, and charged it with mana to seal the crops in this region".

"Wait wait, so someone did this to them?"

"Yeah...by the way" Azalen started, as a huge rock smashed into Zaylen's head and crumbled. "I know how I am protecting myself, but how are you standing there unphased?"

"Oh, I wrapped myself in a thin Ark Barrier. Notice how I am glowing slightly?"

"Ah ah, cool".

"Captain...can you please fucking save Seth already?"

"Why do I have to? He could easily break that barrier himself!"

"He is probably paralyzed and sealed".

"Ooohhh...speaking of which".

The group looked over at the HOly Knights who had once again stood up and head their bearings straight.

"You will regret giving us the time to heal! Mind Seal!"

Suddenly, Azalen felt affected in a different way.

"We have now sealed your mind inside its own body, and made you unable to...gah?!" The Holy Knight said as she was sent flying after being hit with the spear.

"These guys seem pretty smart, but...they dont really seem to get your Magic Power or abilities, do they Cap" Anin said, as he looked over at Seth. "I wonder what they did to him?"

"I have some idea" Azalen said, standing up again. "Damnit...she totally made my brain reset and such. How annoying".

"You know how to fix Seth?" Maria asked.

"Of course. Its really obvious to me, the Captain, waht they did. They sealed him inside his own mind, probably a loop of his worst moments of his life" Azalen replied, as he walked over to the stockhold and leaned in to whisper something into Seth's ear.

As he did, Anin noticed a reaction. "Oh! Whatever Cap said got a reaction".

"What? You sure?"

"Yeah, he just got really aroused physical..."

And then in that instant, Seth seemed to move as he broke out of the restraints like they were nothing, while another Holy Knight came to slash at them both. Azalen however knocked him away with his spear.

And then, Seth punched Azalen in the face and sent him flying into the mud.

"What was that for?!"

"For taking so long to wake up, you idiot!"

"Oh come on! What I said was not a lie!"

"Haaaaaa? I think I would know notice if someone had been in love with me, and remember it happening!"

"The...Seth, what do you remember?"

"...thats not the point..."

"I knew it! You are missing a huge chuck of your memories, aren't you! From the day everything went to hell right? What else! Because I know you should rembmer other things!"

"Stop screwing around, Captain! I would totally remember that! Yeah, I am missing a lot, but I would remember someone being in love with me!"

"Haaaa? Damnit, I knew you were oblivious..."

"Me? You are the lazy one! How many girls hit on you, how many female Holy Knights, hit on you? But all you could do was have your little crush, just because one girl's spirit supposedly indicated she was your soul mate!"

"Shut up and die!" Gira shouted, finally getting her own hit in and striking Azalen's back while another Holy Knight came to strike Seth. Seth got knocked into the nearby building, while Azalen grabbed Gira and flung her...very far away. Then he turned back to the other guy who was swinging his sword down at him, and knocked him away with his Spear.

And then, Seth burst out of the building he was knocked into.

"See! You are so lazy! We could have hit each others targets, but you instead just defend yourself and let me get hit!"

"Wow...are you done?"

The final Holy Knight left standing came back at them, but was then knocked out from behind by Anin.

"No! Next time, dont nap for eight years!" Seth shouted, as he started taking deep breaths. "Okay, now I am done".

Zaylen meanwhile stared at them in disblief.

"Did they...did they argue while defending against Holy Knights, or did they fend off Holy Knights while arguing?"

"Whichever one has arguing as the first and main action" Maria said, as Azalen walked over to one of the weaker HOly Knights.

"Where are they?"

"Please, jsut let us go! We have not hurt anyone!"

"Where. Are. They".

"But how do..."

"Tell me where they are, or I will let Anin run his playful experiments on you".

Anin then approached holding a dagger while having a childish yet evil expression.

"HIIIIII! In the back, in the back!"

Azalen then threw him through the door, walking through the now open hole himself. He passed the various cowering Knights as if they were nothing, and approached the back room, kicking the door wide open.

Seth meanwhile went towards Maria.

"Umm, do you know what..." Seth started, when Maria went and kissed him right on the lips.

"I am so happy you are okay".

"Ahh...hmm...that feels really nice...anyways, do you know what is going on here?"

"Something seems to have pissed the Captain off. He was calm as we were heading here, but once we made it to the village, he seemed really pissed off about something" Maria told him, grabbing hold of his hand.

"Ah..." he said as they walked in behind him, while Azalen cut open a bunch of cages. And as light poured into them, they saw children, shackled up and naked, ready for transport.

"Oi oi, this is becoming a pattern, isn't it?"

"How did you know?"

"I was listening in as I approached, with help from the Spirits. I heard Gira speak about the lack of children in the crowd, and for some reason they blamed us for their children suffering. Its the same as that one place...I am not sure why, but all the signs indicate that Children are being abducted, and whoever is doing it doesn't seem to care about feelings, emotions, or humanity. And at this level...whatever is going on can't be good".

Azalen then looked south again.

"Now Maria, I leave Seth to you to have him explain how he got caught".

"Ah ah wait! Azale...ow ow ow!" Seth said, as he tried to get away by was caught by an ear pinch.

"Don't worry Seth, I am sure you will remember everything for me".

"...I feel like the Sins only get crazier and crazier from here...".

"And that makes it more fun!"

And so, the Sin Count went up to four.

AN: Seth is in trouble! Think he forgot something important? Either way, seems very susipcious!