Outside Aradite, two figures walked calmly towards the church that Elias and Dray had been staying in. The two figures were Arex and Flugel and they were making their way towards where they could feel Elias' mana signature. The both of them came to this continent to meet with Elias but they got sidetracked when they felt a magic signature that seemed like it was a half-devil and half-demon at Uta. They had never felt something like that before and they were curious about what sort of creature could have a magic signature like that, but it ended up being a disappointment when they could no longer feel the magic signature, so they simply continued their journey.
Flugel hummed as Arex stopped walking once they got within a hundred miles of the church. He looked towards Arex and he was surprised to see that Arex's brows were furrowed in worry as he stared in front of him. Is something wrong?
Flugel asked Arex this question curiously and calmly waited for an answer. Flugel knew that Arex was more attuned to feeling mana signatures because of his resonance. Arex's resonance allowed him to switch places with anything in his line of sight and this allowed him to feel mana better than most other people, so it is possible that Arex felt something that Flugel didn't feel and that is what made him stop.
Arex narrowed his eyes and worry before he spoke up.
"Let's go around to the back,"
Flugel rose a brow in shock. What the hell is Arex talking about? They were here to meet with Elias and Arex was saying they should sneak around like animals. Is this his own way of insulting me?
"I'm not in the mood for your jokes right now Arex. If this is just another attempt to fuck with me then you'll regret it. I've had enough of your jokes for the next fifty years at least,"
Arex shook his head and the look on his face told Flugel that Arex was dead serious! Arex knew that Flugel couldn't feel it, but there was something in this church, something unexplainable. Arex has been training his senses for more than five hundred years and he was capable of feeling mana from hundreds of miles away. And Arex could feel that there was a monster within that church and its sense was spread out to the spot right in front of them. If they get any closer, they won't be able to keep their magic signatures hidden and Arex didn't think they would be able to win even if the two of them fought that monster together.
Arex said all this to Flugel and Flugel was shocked! He has never heard Arex talk about any human or demon in this way before! Arex has never avoided a fight with a human or demon and it was very shocking to hear him talk like this.
But if Arex was this cautious, then maybe it would be best to simply avoid this monster. They had a mission to carry out and it wouldn't be sensible to go searching for a fight before they finish their mission. Maybe afterward, we can see what sort of monster this is. Flugel told Arex to lead the way around the back and Arex nodded as they started moving towards the back of the church.
Inside the church, the king - Arthur - hummed from his place kneeling at the altar. His eyes were closed and his palms were joined together as he prayed to the goddess. He opened his blue eyes after a moment and turned towards the left curiously. He thought he felt something just a moment ago. Was that a magic signature? Probably not. I've never felt anything like that before.
Arthur has never met any devil's before and so he couldn't recognize what their magic signature felt like. Arex and Flugel were just outside the king's range and so he wasn't able to grasp their magic signature properly. That was the reason why Arex didn't want to go closer than a hundred miles. He could sense that Arthur's mana was stretched out that far and he was sure that Arthur would immediately sense them if they took even a step closer.
After a moment, Arthur turned back to continue praying as he felt that strange feeling disappear. So long as it didn't come anywhere near his church, then he will ignore it. His senses were stretched out for a hundred miles all around the church. Once it takes even a step closer to the church, he will definitely know about it.
Arex and Flugel managed to travel toward the other side of the church and Arex stopped again when he felt another magic signature. This time he nodded to Flugel and Flugel snapped his finger as a magic circle opened under them and teleported them towards the new magic signature. They appeared inside a cave and they saw Elias standing with his hands folded across his chest. He was staring at them with a cold gaze and the both of them stared right back.
"What the fuck are you doing here? Do you think you can just waltz into Aradite like it's nothing? Are you thinking of starting another great war already?"
Elias said this with a scowl and Arex chuckled while looking around. Flugel rolled his eyes and brought out his book to start reading again as he decided to allow Arex to handle this. They were only here to collect what was theirs and they would leave once Elias provided it to them.
"You found the dragon didn't you? The wave of mana from her release was strong enough to reach the continent of Mogul so don't even try to hide it. We've waited patiently enough so we've come to collect what you owe us"
Elias narrowed his eyes in annoyance. So they were also running out of patience with him? Dammit. Why did everything have to happen all at the same time? I don't have time to handle all of this.
On the outside, Elias looked calm and composed, but on the inside, his mind was racing. Elias always knew that this would cause an issue. From the very moment he promised Givalich to both the devils and the church, Elias knew a moment like this would come.
You see, the dragon wars that happened a thousand years ago did end with just the death of the dragons. Elias was one of the last to fight against the demon lord and he somehow ended up surviving the confrontation. But he was already on his last leg and there was no chance of him living for more than a day.
It was a devil general that found Elias and saved his life. The man recognized Elias' strength and so he made him into one of his guards. Elias worked for the devil for more than five
hundred years, but once Elias heard the news of the demon lord's death, he immediately went to the devil and struck a deal.
Elias wanted to return to Aradite to kill eh new demon lord, and in exchange, Elias promised to deliver Givalich to them once he was done with defeating the demon lord. The demon lord was an enemy of the devils as well, so it wasn't hard for them to accept the deal.
But here was the problem. When Elias came to Aradite, he realized that things would not be as easy as he thought. He didn't think the humans would hide Givalich with so many seals so he didn't even know where to start looking for the dragon.
Elias needed an ally that he could trust to help him find Givalich. someone that he could use as a tool to achieve his goals. And there were only two groups that knew this continent better than the human. The demons and the church.
Elias hated the demons too much to ever try and align himself with them. He would rather stab himself in the eye than pretend to be a friend to any of those bastards, and so Elias decided to align himself with the church.
And luckily for Elias, his ex-wife Ria was already a member of the church. Elias didn't want to talk to Ria again and he also didn't want to ask for her help ever again! But he needed her to give him an audience with the king. Ria was a rook in the church and she was one of the closest to the king. If anyone could get him to get an audience, then it is her.
After Ria got him the audience he wanted, he went to Arthur and told Arthur about his plan to get rid of the demon lord once and for all. Arthur was interested in the plan, but he lost interest once he heard that Elias would need to find Asgorath for his plan to work.
Arthur might only be a child but he has also heard about Asgorath, and just like everyone else, he thought it was only a myth. Why would Elias be looking for a dragon that no one has ever seen before?
Elias could see that he was losing Arthur's support as time went on. At this rate, Arthur would send him away and tell him that the church is not interested. There was only one bargaining chip that Elias was certain of in this situation and he had no choice but to use it.
"I heard you are planning a crusade on Mogul,"
Once Elias said this, Arthur hummed and his gaze turned cold. He finally looked toward Elias and spoke in a calm voice.
"You heard? And where exactly did you hear of this crusade? I'm sure it was somewhere interesting,"
"Nothing like that. There is no need to get so defensive. It is no longer news around the church that everyone is getting ready for a crusade across the ocean There have been too many movements of goods for it to remain a secret for so long. There is only one continent where the church will want to go and it is not Volcanica. If you are going to Mogul then the only thing I can tell you is that your forces will not be enough to give them a challenge. In fact, the only one that will be able to put up a proper fight is you. The devils will kill the rest of your people without much effort."
Dooon!!
Arthur was no longer smiling as his bloodlust burst out and slammed into Elias like a moving train! A drop of sweat fell down the back of his neck. Damn, that's quite a lot of bloodlust for a child to possess. For him to have this much power at this age, just what the hell did they do to this boy? Should someone that claims to be a follower of god have this much hatred inside them?
But even though the bloodlust was intense, it wasn't enough to drop Elias to the ground. Both Elias and the king were Epic-class, so the king can't drop Elias from only this much bloodlust. The king spoke up with a snarl.
"You better watch your next words very closely Elias. They just might be your last. You might think you can walk in here and speak however you want, but you will not leave this place alive if I decide to kill you,"
Elias continued while ignoring the king's angry look.
"Be that as it may, I can assure you that I have a solution to your problem. I only ask you to support me in my search and at the end of it, I'll deliver a dragon to you. Not just any dragon, the dragon of fire herself, Givalich."
Arthur's eyes widened.
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