As a squire, Neia Baraja had long since gotten used to being surrounded by the traditional vestments and the silvery full-plate armour adorned by the members of the Paladin Order. Trying to follow in her mother's footsteps had led her to basically grow up in a military-like environment. The thundering noise of dozens of heavy steel boots marching in unison, the raspy, whip-like shouts of the superiors as they spat their orders, the crisp, high-pitched chimes of what could only be attributed to blades clashing against one another; those were sounds she was all too familiar with, to the point they had almost become second nature to her.

With that said, nothing could prepare her for the experience of advancing along the endlessly spanning army that filled her range of vision, no matter what direction she would look in. Thousands upon thousands of armoured helmets dully reflected in the daze of the midday sun, engulfing the empty plains in a blinding light. Maybe some would find it fitting that the Roble Kingdom's troops themselves were carriers of the holy light that shall banish all darkness, but Neia found it oppressive. Most of the soldiers were on foot, herself included, but she could make out the silhouette of several higher-ranked commanders ahead of her that sat atop their steeds, paving the way forward. Peering into the sea of people, she could make out several exceedingly large carts that popped up like small islands, filled to the brim with huge sacks and multiple wooden cases. They were scattered around but mostly placed next to the middle of the formation, the places that were best protected. It made sense, these supply lines were the backbone of their army, an army she had to constantly remind herself she was part of, so losing even one or two of them would be no insignificant blow.

She had never seen that many people in one place in her life, let alone such a massive deployment of strength. Even the late-night stories her mother used to tell her failed to conjure up any image that could compare. She was no expert, barely even a novice in the subject, but she would have imagined that such a force would be usually rallied in a war against another nation, not against a single monster. six thousand men, led by no less than three of The Nine Colors of the Kingdom, that to her disappointment she hadn't managed to catch a glimpse of yet, their existence known to her only by overhearing some nearby troops. This was clearly overkill, no matter how she looked at it. And that wasn't even taking into account the additional forces aiding them.

It was an experience no amount of training could prepare her for. To her surprise, she found none of the anticipated awe, excitement or even fear dwelling within her, something she found quite disheartening. She had spent most of her life as a loner, even her taking on the role of squire hadn't managed to change that. She had expected things would somehow feel different now, that the experience of marching, camping, sharing supplies, living together, would manage to make her connect in some way to her fellow soldiers. Give her a sense of comradery, of unity, like she was part of something greater than herself. Instead, all it happened was that it made the gulf between her and others all the more apparent. Everybody else made up a joint organism, she was the outlier. It was all she could do to stay out of people's way, to turn up when needed, to don't get in the way lest she found herself missing the ration distribution for the day.

Just after crossing a particularly brutal hill, a deafening trumpet announced they would take a short rest. Neia let out a sigh of relief she didn't know she was holding. The pace that had been set for them could be described at best as "cruel" and at worst as "inhuman", managing to cross over what should have taken a good two weeks in just shy of six days. It was no wonder her legs were aching like every inch of them had been thoroughly covered in thin, sharp needles. The blisters on her feet weren't any better. Walking on them had been a chore to begin with, but a good portion of them had popped, exposing raw flesh to the dust-covered, weary interior that was her boots. She would need to request new ones when they got back, she doubted there was any way of scrubbing off the blood after it had imbued in the material so thoroughly.

After making sure she was not needed for scouting, she picked up her portion for the day and headed to an area as remote as possible, where she almost collapsed to the ground, her back resting on the hard rock of the boulder behind her. While a part of her was relieved for the brief respite, she also was keenly aware of the reason behind setting camp here. This was the last opportunity for the soldiers to rest, to gather up their strength, since they were almost at their destination. The territory that had been terrorised by the fabled monster for the last couple of months. Try as she might, she could not even begin to imagine what sort of creature awaited them ahead, one so utterly terrifying that a whole nation would take arms against it. it didn't help that the accounts of the few survivors, so scarily few you had to wonder if the monster didn't let them go on purpose, had differed almost completely from one another. One spoke of monstrous scales, not unlike those of a snake, others of feathered wings stretching across the sky until they encompassed it in their embrace, and some claws and teeth sharp enough to cut through a mountain. It was a fairly popular theory that the creature could change its appearance in some form or another, a theory that she personally subscribed to. Because she didn't want to think what kind of abominations awaited them otherwise.

She unpacked for lunch, only to be greeted by the usual hard crackers and sand-like porridge. She knew it was stupid to expect anything else, this was the food she had been eating every day for the last week, yet she could never extinguish that tinge of disappointment as she stared at her less than appetizing meal. Unenthusiastically, she began chewing on a cracker, her teeth barely managing to bite into a small edge of its exterior. She could have sworn the rock behind her was easier to chew.

"Sorry, is this spot free by any chance?" Taken by surprise, Neia hurried to respond, briefly forgetting about the food she was in the middle of consuming. Trying her best to recover as she nearly choked, it was all she could do to offer a small, hurried nod.

"Thank you!" the person, a short-haired man barely in his twenties, cheerily responded as she patted her on the back to help her. "I'm Peter, Peter Mauk."

"Neia Baraja" she curtly responded, sounding way rougher than she intended. She was really no good when it came to social interaction. The man beside her didn't seem to mind though.

"Nice to meet you! This here is my team." He said, making her aware for the first time of the other people currently taking a seat around her. "Lukrut, our ranger," he said pointing to a smug-looking man carrying a bow, not unlike her own. "Dyne, our druid" This time it was a larger man, with a well-trimmed beard and what looked like a friendly disposition, "And, of course, our magic caster over there, Ninya". Rounding out the group, she was a short-haired girl that couldn't be much older than her, an unassuming circular staff laid by her side. "Proud to announce before you, the silver-ranked adventuring team, the Swords of Darkness."

As everybody did their greeting, Neia realised she also had to respond. Cursing her thoughts for blanking on her when she needed them most, she said the first thing that came to her mind.

"Never hear of you." Which immediately wanted to make her crawl into a hole and die.

To her surprise, she was met with loud laughter.

"I'd be surprised if you did, we aren't that well known."

"We aren't even in Re-Estize right now, it would have been a nice surprise to find out we have attained international fame already."

"I-I think it's a bit too early for that for us."

Neia could only stare in disbelief as the team around her joked around, messing with one another. She had always been told that her eyes, beady black pupils slanted upwards that she inherited from her father, make her seem like she was glaring at others. Combined with the dark circles around them, when it came to the image of an unapproachable, downright shady person, she fitted the bill to perfection. Having people acting so carefree and friendly towards her was an entirely new experience, one she was completely unaccustomed to.

"It's been getting worse recently." Lukrut complained, "there's a new upcoming team that has a similar name to ours, so people end up confusing us with them. It kind of pisses me off, can't we sue them or something?"

"Now now," Peter tried to pacify him, "You can't exactly blame them for that. "Darkness" isn't that much of an original name to begin with, we shot our foot when it came to that aspect. Plus," he said as he brought his hands to his head, lazily stretching across the small patch of grass "when you hear about some of the stuff they've been doing, it actually helps when people confuse the two of our groups. We end up with better-paid jobs, most of the time."

"I had they hunted down a dragon and two really powerful monsters from the Great Forest. They must be really something if they can accomplish that with just two members." Ninya said, genuine awe in her voice.

"Really? I heard that it was a Fire Salamander and two Stone Giants." Dyne chimed in. "You can't trust every rumour you come across. Before you joined in, somebody got drunk once and started a story about how our leader once wrestled an orc to the ground bare-handedly. You should see the look on people's faces when we stopped by the Guild."

"What do you mean, somebody?! It was you two idiots that started that!" Peter responded, revolted, causing Ninya to giggle slightly.

"That, so? I don't really remember. Do you, Lukrut?"

"Not a clue what he's talking about."

"You goddamn lousy drunks!"

"Is that team, Darkness, here?" Neia asked. Listening to them bicker pointlessly with one another had unconsciously made her lower her guard, and the genuine curiosity spawned from the opportunity of learning about real adventurers managed to overcome her shyness.

"Not this time, but there are plenty of big shots around," Peter responded, pointing into the distance to other groups of people, similarly seated in the same fashion as them. The fact that, from an outsider's perspective, she looked like she was part of their group wasn't lost on her.

Compared to the dull plate and helmets she was used to, the people around her stuck out like sore thumbs. Some of them were dressed no different than a travelling merchant or even somebody you might find on the street, but they were the minority. Colourful cloaks, strange exotic garbing that fitted either too tightly or too loosely around the body, mismatched pieces of attire that complimented one another about as well as Lizard-tail and a Widow-Claw, everywhere she looked beckoned a new discovery for her.

Sure, there were still a good number of armoured individuals, but even those were stylised in the most exotic manner she could think of. It was as if every one of them was secretly engaged in a battle to one-up one another. Which, now that she thought about it, might have been the case. From what she heard, the reputation of an adventurer was sometimes just as important as their prowess, so it would make sense for them to try and stand out as much as possible. Just with a quick look around, she found no two people who dressed the same.

The only thing that they all shared in common was that posture, that loose-fitted yet still-on-guard stance, so distinct but so subtle that she didn't almost didn't pick up on it. It was only when she looked back at the legion of soldiers and she noticed the rigidness almost mechanical movement they displayed, that she realised the difference. Wild and boisterous, unshackled by the borders of any one nation, with their heart on their sleeves and their sword by their side, these were the adventures she had heard so much about.

"See these guys over there," Lukrut said, hunching over to get closer to her and Peter. The group she was pointing to was among the closest to her, spanning the same amount of members as the Swords of Darkness. Neia wasn't situated at a good angle to get a good look at them, but only the silhouette of the massive man in the group that looked like he could cradle Dyne in his arms was enough of a clue to figure out they were no pushovers. "These are Kralgra. They are a pretty big deal back in Re-Estize, anybody that has an interest in the profession has heard of them at least once. Sky Wolf is also here, but I don't see them right now. They are both Mithril-class adventurers."

"And if you think that's impressive, look at that team by the cart," Peter said, directing her towards another group in the distance. They were pretty far away, but Neia's eyesight has always been pretty good, so she could make out some of them. There was a large man covered head to toe in white tattoos and what looked like... a red-haired gorilla? "They are Silver Thread Bird, an actual Adamantite team all the way from the Baharuth Empire. I'm surprised they made it in time."

"Adamantite?" She asked, a bit confused.

"The highest rank an adventurer can achieve," Dyne explained. "There is only a handful of them in the whole world, so they are akin to national treasures at that point."

"With so many famous groups like that around here, there's barely going to remain anything for us after they split the reward," Lukrut complained, earning himself a slap to the back of his head from his leader.

"If you wanted to strike rich and leave the profession after this job, you shouldn't have come," Peter said nonchalantly as the ranger massaged the spot where he was hit. "We're still gonna make a pretty penny out of this, but that's not the main goal here. The prestige will get after participating in such an expedition, fighting shoulder by shoulder with high-ranked adventurers, will be easily worth three times the effort for the whole thing."

"Maybe we're gonna make it to Gold rank by the end of the year, even" Dyne added, taking out his own lunch and offering it forward. Neia could see it wasn't the usual rations, but actual meat. "Want some, kid? You must have gotten sick of eating mud and stones by now. I know I had."

"Is it alright?" she asked, bringing a hand to her mouth to hide the slight drooling getting out. "Any hunting was strictly forbidden unless given express permission."

"We haven't heard anything about that. Not like it would have stopped us, anyway. We were hired by the Kingdom to act as support, not as part of the army. We're pretty much an autonomous group that just travels with them." The druid explained. It made sense, and it would explain the general distaste she saw her fellow soldiers harbour towards the adventurers. From their point of you, they must see them as vagrants who laze around and do what they want while they have stuck at the whims and fancies of their superiors. The fact that she was hanging around with them right now probably didn't earn her any points in their books.

"T-then...Thank you." She said as she gratefully accepted the food. Her voice came out as nothing more than a whisper, but they must have heard her since they were all grinning at her strangely for some reason.

As they all began to eat and chat, Neia somehow found herself in the middle of their discussion. She was bombarded with questions from every direction, forced to violently wrestle with her asocial nature for every response she would manage to give back. She was awkward, she was rude, and she kept waiting for one or all of them to finally get sick of her, but to her growing sense of shock that never happened.

"So you're a squire? What are you doing in an expedition like this, then?" their mage asked.

"I'm pretty good at scouting ahead. Not many in the Paladins have those skills, so I'm convenient to have around."

"But isn't that what we're here for?" Ninya continued. "They could just ask around, there are plenty of rangers and thieves that can do the job. Not that you wouldn't be able to do it or anything." she hurriedly added, but Neia felt inclined to agree.

"Well, it's more like-."

"Because those stuck-up tin cans with a stick coming from their behind don't trust us one bit."Lukrut finished for her. Not how she would have put it, but she nodded nonetheless. "Honestly, you're wasted on them, you should just join us instead when we're done with the whole deal. It'd be much more fun!"

"I-I..."

"I always wanted another girl in the group!"

"It'd be more comfortable having an actual competent ranger in our team."

"Do you want to have a go at it, beardy?"

"Knock it off, all of you. You're overwhelming her." Peter said, before turning to her and giving her a slight smile. "Sorry about them. Of course, we'd love to have you with us, but I know it's a big commitment. No pressure."

Neia briefly tried to imagine it, accepting their offer and coming back to Re-Estize with them, travelling with people that actually seemed to enjoy her company. No more scared looks thrown her way, no more people shifting back when she passed through. It might have sounded appealing, but she couldn't really picture it. Maybe she just lacked enough imagination, but she knew this wasn't a path she would ever take.

"I appreciate it, but I can't. My wish is to become a paladin of the Holy Kingdom. I'm sorry." Her words did hang around in the air for a bit too long, but the mood didn't seem to plummet as she expected.

"Well, it can't be helped then. You better become the best damn Paladin this place has ever seen, you hear?"

"That's a bit disappointing, but we'll have to continue making do with Lukrut, I suppose."

"Seriously, what's with you guys? Why am I being the punching bag today?"

Neia couldn't help but let out a little chuckle, that slowly build up into all-out laughter. The others soon joined in, and she soon found herself clutching her sides in pain, a sensation new to her. It was at that moment that she spotted something fluttering at the edge of her vision. A white purer than any snow, gently blown away by the gentle afternoon breeze. She turned around, but she couldn't spot the figure again. She could make out a couple of people dressed in white, but she was sure it wasn't them. "Why do I feel it reminded me of something? I can't put my finger on it."

"Is something wrong?" Ninya asked.

"No, it's fine." She shook her head. "I just thought I saw someone."

Their discussion was interrupted by the return of the horn, which signalled the start of the proceedings for the departure. She hurriedly chomped down on her remaining meal, before getting up in order to return to her station.

"Good luck out there! Find us after all of this is over, we'd love to have lunch together again." The Swords Of Darkness waved her goodbye.

She waved back, but her heart wasn't in it. There was now a growing pit in her stomach that wasn't there a second ago. A sense of foreboding, perhaps? She quickly banished the thought. She only needed to look around to see the frankly absurd fighting power they had on their side. There was no place left for grim thoughts to weigh her down. She had no reason to worry, she was sure everything was going to be alright.

Hungry. Starving. She was brought food, but it didn't satisfy her. She wanted something else. Something alive. Something she could rip apart with her claws, chew with her teeth. It would taste foul, she knew, but she still desired it. It was the only thing that could quench her hunger. Except nothing could. She was always hungry. Hungry to consume. Hungry to kill. Kill. Kill. Maybe madness had taken over her once more. She would at least be satisfied with that. But no, her mind was clear. She was aware of what she was doing, but she couldn't stop it. Because of the hate. It flowed through her veins, like the blood of the humans she could consume. It painted her thoughts. Not twisting her, she was already twisted beyond belief. But emboldening her. Making her give in to her instinct once more. Be the monster once more. That was her nature, she knew of it. She could have controlled herself, find peace in her solitude just as she did before. Maybe she could have gone back to Master; the idea was tempting. But she couldn't. Because of them. They have come for her again. To disturb her slumber, to slay her. Just because she was a monster. They came for her as they had come for her sisters. Her sisters, her dear sisters. She had lost them. It had been her fault. But also theirs. Because they kept coming. Because they had wanted to be the great hero that slayed the beast. Because they hated her. And she hated them back. Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate. She wanted to slaughter them. To maim and cripple them. To rip out their hearts from their chests. To drown in their blood and organs. To terrify them until they were too scared to come. Until she was left alone again.

She could feel them approaching her. This wasn't actually her territory, it was just lent to her, but she could tell. They were many. A lot more than previous times. Didn't matter. They would all die. Her hatred would be unleashed on them. And they will fall. Because none of them were him. The one who stopped her. He was not here, pretenders were in his place. So it wasn't important how many of them. They would all die. They will be corpses, she would feed on them. Will she then be satisfied? No, she will never be. She will keep wanting more and more, just as she does now. She knows this but doesn't fight it. Because every inch of her body is screaming at her. Screaming to kill. Screaming to crush and cut and slash and shatter and smash and ruin and destroy and massacre and murder and slay. They had no hope to match her. They didn't deserve any hope. She rose from the ground. She would have wished for a mirror. Master had brought her one, but she had shattered it. Now she regretted it. She would have wanted to see her expression in the mirror right now. What did she look like? Were her features twisted by her anger and rage? Was she grinning, ecstatic in anticipation that she would soon be able to release to vent her hatred? Was her face of the stone mask, devoid of any emotion, just the realization that she was fulfilling her purpose? She didn't know. She wanted to, but it didn't matter.

They were almost here now. Soon, she will start killing them. The realization filled her with some sort of emotion, but she couldn't identify it. Because it had been drowned out by the hate. Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate. She inhaled, letting the air fill in her lungs, soaking it in magical power. This was it. Now it began. She screamed.

Author's notes:

Originally, this chapter should have come out just after the first ten, but I keep pushing it off. If I had to say why, it was because I knew I had to do a lot of research on the Holy Kingdom beforehand. It's been a long time since I read that volume, and the anime for it didn't come out yet, so it was a bit of a chore. I did enjoy actually writing the chapter, though. More than I thought I would, since for the most part it's just set up for the next 2-3 chapters. Anyways, I'm hungry now. See ya!