"Those that know the origin of magic,
Those that realize she is not everlasting,
Even those that happen to come across this door,
All are welcome.
Confident that no person will find this until long after my demise,
I made this to warn you of the repeating future.
Please hear me.
Even if it takes until every last plant is gone,
Even when the last humans die out,
α?dαsηθνε| Even after the gods have finished their game,
She must be stopped."
The ancient inscription lay at the base of a waterfall cascading twenty-feet from the cavern's only entrance, and although fresh eyes read them for the first time in months, ripples quickly blurred their contents.
The source of the disturbance lay on his back with a broad smile plastered across his beaten face. "I win," Wilhelm announced as he slowly got to his feet.
Ver Dilen looked down at his shattered armor helplessly. "I underestimated you," he sighed.
Wilhelm hardly believed that his gamble paid off, earning him the sweet taste of payback. It was as if Ver Dilen existed to antagonize. They only met three weeks ago, yet he abused his position to assign Wilhelm mountains of pointless tasks around the encampment such as shoveling horse excrement into a pile, which was literally unproductive amongst a constantly marching troupe. He also made Wilhelm sweep leaves out of tents every morning or painstakingly harvest morning dew into a bucket until it was full. He'd then berate Wilhelm in front of the entire camp if there was any oversight, no matter how small and insignificant it was.
Wilhelm endured it all, believing that there was at least a reason behind it. It was only when Sindre said so (though Wilhelm would have done it anyway) that he snapped at Ver Dilen for insulting his parents. Even though he had faith in the goddess and owed the monastery his life many times over, he couldn't take it anymore, leading to the events of a few minutes prior when ripples first disturbed the platform's newfound tranquility.
Wilhelm dashed across the platform, white flames trailing off his body like a comet.
Ver Dilen's eyes reflected the oncoming threat, but upholding his self-imposed handicap meant that he wouldn't move as fast as he could. He could only brace for impact.
Wilhelm dropkicked Ver Dilen with enough force to send him skidding back, the mournful creak of his armor echoing throughout the cavern. Suddenly, intense pain jolted through Wilhelm's legs - backlash from overusing his aura. There was no other option; only brute force could overcome skill. He leapt back to his feet hoping to see at least a bit of damage, however reality quickly shattered his hopes like a cold shower.
The arrogant image of Ver Dilen remained standing tall, shaking out his pained wrists with a smirk. "That one almost hurt." He seemed unable to speak outside of taunts.
Wilhelm clenched his teeth and pushed onwards, ignoring the accumulating sluggishness. He returned two hits for every blow he took. Every step. Every kick. Every turn and punch, a numbing pain slowly swallowed his concentration as his aura slowly receded.
After what felt like an eternity, Ver Dilen's back unexpectedly met the far wall, causing his calm expression to break and exposing the worry hidden beneath it. His armor, looking like a heap of scrap metal and leather, had long since lost its enchantment due to one of the fist-sized dents in its engravings.ραпdαs `n?ν?| сom
The faces of Dag, Merlin, and Sindre flashed through Wilhelm's mind as his remaining aura flared. He sucked down as much air as his lungs could hold, preparing for the final sprint.
Ver Dilen's eyes darted every which way. He feigned a dash towards the left, then ducked right, but Wilhelm's fist homed into his right side, resulting in an ear-splitting crunch of flesh against metal.
Wilhelm frowned, wondering why the cracked section of armor he'd struck felt like a solid mass, contrasting against what he saw.
Ver Dilen cursed under his breath, coiled against the back wall, and sprang out directly at Wilhelm, who sidestepped, condensed life esence around his fist, and threw it into his left side.
This time Wilhelm felt the point of impact splinter as he sent Ver Dilen to the ground with a splash, yet the armor seemed whole to the naked eye, furthering his confusion. Nonetheless his goal remained the same as he stomped down at Ver Dilen, but his muscles locked up as another jolt of pain paralyzed him for a half-second. Ver Dilen flashed a toothy smile as he latched onto Wilhelm's outstretched ankle, then yanked.
Wilhelm blinked and found himself on the ground in a daze. He remembered a shiver running down his spine as Ver Dilen yanked his leg again. He remembered his stomach lurching, the floor rushing towards him, and a painful flash of white. He didn't know how much time had passed when he opened his eyes again, but his entire body ached and his aura had vanished.
Ver Dilen chuckled, yanked his leg, and raised him into the air for a second time.
Seeing the ground rapidly rise towards him, fear slapped Wilhelm wide awake. He threw every ounce of mana into a magic circle. Ver Dilen glanced down to see a pillar of ice rushing towards him. He leapt out of the way, but not before releasing his grip on Wilhelm's leg mid-throw.
Wilhelm landed hard on the ground, rolling several times until he came to a stop. Laying flat on his back, he looked over at Ver Dilen with a smile plastered across his beaten face.
Ver Dilen might have dodged the pillar of ice, but he hadn't expected the pillar to suddenly branch out like a tree and stab into the half-inch crack in his armor where Sindre's arrow had landed. The initial crack spiderwebbed through Ver Dilen's armor, then shattered.
"I win," Wilhelm announced as he slowly got to his feet, coughing twice.
Ver Dilen looked down at his shattered armor helplessly. "I underestimated you," he sighed.
Wilhelm stood in a state of pure bliss, utterly and completely exhausted. He slowly raised a fist into the air. After all, the hero was supposed to prevail against ridiculous odds. It had been so long, he'd nearly forgotten what it felt like, however it soon seemed hollow, purposeless. 'But what will I do after this? Why did I do this again?' He thought to himself as he lowered his arm with a sigh. 'What am I fighting for?'
Ver Dilen walked up to Wilhelm and patted him on the shoulder, though Wilhelm shrugged it off and asked, "What the hell is your problem? Why do you hate me so much?"
"I don't hate you at all. I was told that you were feeling down," Ver Dilen explained innocently, as if the matter was as simple as fetching water from a well.
Wilhelm titled his head to the side. "I-I don't know what you want from me."
"I never wanted anything from you," he said, much to Wilhelm's shock. "I just explain better with my fists."
"Explain what!?" Wilhelm shouted, forgetting how exhausted he was and clutching his stomach as a wave of nausea passed through him.
Ver Dilen shrugged. "If I knew how to phrase it, I would have said it," he said, then kicked Wilhelm down into the water.
Wilhelm let out a pained groan as he scrambled into a stance. "I won already! Let me g-" He froze as Ver Dilen's body shimmered, the illusion fading around his in-tact armor, except different. Cracks had replaced the formerly-whole sections of the armor, and vice versa. Wilhelm swallowed his saliva and prayed to the goddess to give him strength.
Ver Dilen stared at Wilhelm's face and let out a malicious laugh. "You didn't think it was strange that the damaged portions of my armor were in the easiest spots to defend? By the way I forgot to mention that I'm your new mentor. Welcome to your first lesson."
This content is taken from fr(e)ewebn(o)vel.𝓬𝓸𝓶