"Did you bring someone from Sol…?" Felix asked, cut short by a fit of intense coughing.
Sylvester hastily placed his palm on Felix's neck to check the material of the slave collar and what sort of artifact was used to make it. "Sir Dolorem and a Grand Wizard named Dagorith came with me, but they're in Whiskeypeaks. I know no one else in these lands, especially not someone willing to risk their life to save me."
Felix fell silent, as he felt too much pain and difficulty. Meanwhile, Sylvester focused all his attention on Felix's slave collar and tried to find a way to open it without any setbacks. He infused his magic into it and tried to read the inscriptions of the ancient language on it. The thing was newly made, but he could feel that the Elder Runes were placed on it using some sort of artifact.
"It's supposed to dig into the person's neck if they try to open it forcefully," Sylvester said, his focus unwavering. "The only way to remove it is to replicate the inscription used. Good thing I know. Just give me a few seconds."
Sylvester immediately picked a rock from the muddy ground and rinsed it with the rainwater still pouring from the sky. He then used basic earth manipulation to change the shape of the rock into two semi-circular tubes. With great precision, he delicately etched Elder Runes onto the inner circumference of the tubes, using a tiny scalpel he crafted from solidified light magic at the tip of his index finger.
"Ahk… I can't breathe…" Felix hissed out with shallow breaths; His scaly and burned face had started to ooze blood from its various cracks.
Sylvester quickly finished inscribing the runes he copied and rushed to place the stone tubes he had made. He put them around Felix's neck, ensuring they overlapped with the metallic collar that had been surgically placed.
"This might hurt," Sylvester warned, connecting the joints of the semi-circular stone tubes, completing the rune inscription he had placed.
The reaction was almost immediate, and the rock began to shine. However, it also started to crack since it wasn't a material suitable to hold powerful runes. So Sylvester quickly used earth manipulation to force the rock to stay intact.
"Aaaargh!" Felix growled like an injured lion, kicking his feet while pressing his back against the tree. A sizzling sound of burning flesh erupted from his neck area, a clear sign that the trick was working. To remove the slave collar, his skin had to be burned first.
Sylvester had no idea how long it was going to last, so to ensure Felix could stay alive, he called Miraj to come closer. "Pour some Solarium Crystals into his mouth. It won't help him much, but it will soothe him. Pour some healing potions on his neck as well, near my hands."
Miraj had stayed in the sky, flying the whole time as he didn't want to get dirty in the brawl. But there was no doubt he was distraught by Felix's condition. "Understood, Maxy."
In the middle of the treatment, Felix also tried to push Sylvester away, as the pain was too much. But Sylvester firmly kept his feet grounded, and Felix pressed against the tree.
"You can do it, Felix! Think about Isabella, her smiling face—think about your future. I'll throw you out of the Holy Land's service—you can live the rest of your days as the Duke of Sandwall, King Consort of Queen Isabella Gracia." Sylvester tried to paint a hopeful picture for Felix, diverting his mind from the pain.
The ordeal lasted a few long minutes. It wasn't a lot, but at that moment, it felt as if an hour had passed. Despite the agony, Felix persevered, and finally, a clicking sound came, and the stone with Elder Runes stopped shining.
Felix was still alive, his breath now heavy, which meant the air was entering his body. So Sylvester removed the stone and looked at the wounds. The slave collar also came off and fell to the ground. It was sizzling hot, even turning some water in the mud to steam.
Sylvester carefully checked. There were deep scars on Felix's neck, but overall no major veins were injured. So Sylvester quickly applied healing magic and healing potions. With his Grand Wizard-level magic, it didn't take long to fully patch Felix up. But the marks remained, and they were going to stay.
"Can you breathe properly now?" Sylvester asked, worried since Felix had kept his eyes closed the entire time. However, his chest showed breathing movements.
Felix nodded softly. "I… I just… this peace… after six years."
Sylvester didn't disturb Felix and let him rest. This was probably the first time in six years he felt that relaxed in mind, body, and of course, breath. There were many things Sylvester wanted to know, but he decided to wait.
Soon, Felix drifted into sleep, though still covered in mud from head to toe. So Sylvester simply placed his waterproof sheep-skin tent over him and used a spare one to make his tent since the rain wasn't stopping.
"Today is a great day, Chonky. Let's cook a good meal." Sylvester said and prepared a fire, with Miraj merrily sitting inside the tent and watching Sylvester work. Soon, the sun began to set, and the scent of tasty grilled meat, baked vegetables, and fruit juice wafted through the wilderness.
After cooking, Sylvester went to wake up Felix. Thinking it would be more comfortable for Felix to relax, Sylvester attempted to remove his armor. However, a shocking revelation came his way when he tried.
'It's not budging.' He mumbled and attempted to take off the gauntlet instead of the shoulder plate. Yet, once again, he failed. 'Why is it so tight?'
Just to be safe, he utilized his Elder Magic and scanned Felix's body by sending a wave of Solarium into him. It was similar to a thorough body check, but at that moment, it was something that left Sylvester even more distressed.
After retracting his Solarium, he silently looked at Felix's sleeping face. It was unrecognizable. The skin looked burned black, with so many dry cracks and wounds, and even his eyelids were almost non-existent. Moreover, the armor had melded with his skin, as his skin had grown into it, becoming one with it. It was impossible to remove it now without skinning Felix's entire body.
"How much did you suffer?" Sylvester asked softly, a fleeting image of Felix's old cheerful face passing through his thoughts.
What happened to Felix taught Sylvester a great lesson. Although he liked the possibility of instant justice, such as beheading a rapist or a murderer, it was only helpful in his case as he could smell lies. But, in general, instant justice could also lead to unintended victims—Felix was an example. If the Pope had conducted a proper investigation and followed the due process of law, Felix wouldn't have suffered such a fate.
"You look like a worried mother." Felix suddenly spoke, slowly opening his eyes. At last, there was the scent of hope now.
Sylvester chuckled and sat down cross-legged before Felix. "Is this armor cursed or something?"
"This… maybe it is cursed. It was placed onto me years ago, piece by piece, burned and healed into my skin, so I can never take it off. A supposed reminder of my eternal slavery." Felix raised his gauntlet and looked at his hand. "The Church isn't really that great, is it, Max?"
Sylvester sighed and made the metallic plates he had set behind fly over to them, already filled with food. "You don't need to convince me, brother. I've known since I arrived in the Holy Land. And apparently, there's been a grand conspiracy going on, uncovered by Gab. Popes and Saint Scepters have played games we can't even begin to understand. It's the reason why I'm here; Some clue sits in Deca Imperia—or so said Shadow Knight."
Felix gobbled down the food with much delight, finally free from worrying about the orders from the Pope. Though things remained utterly bad, he relished these few moments of calm. "I heard you killed the Shadow of Masan. Was the person strong?"
"Yes and no, it was honestly underwhelming. She turned out to be the wife of the Emperor's elder brother—long story short, everyone died. But what about you, a Platinum Knight!" Sylvester exclaimed with delight as he poured more food onto Felix's plate.
"Hah… And you're a Grand Wizard as well as Platinum Knight!" Felix responded with the same reaction. "It seems our hardships ended up strengthening us rather than breaking us… I'm glad I didn't give up, even though I was almost on the edge of doing so."
Sylvester nodded vigorously. It was a lesson he had learned a long time ago. Strength only favors the brave, and the basic rule was high risk, high reward. Fighting the Bloodlings, the stronger wizards, and whatnot had helped him immensely. Even if it left him almost dead on occasions.
"You know…" Felix started, and suddenly an intense scent of sadness swept around them. "The Church lied about Markus back then."
The instant that name was spoken, all the memories of their childhood friend flooded Sylvester's mind. A brown-haired kid with average talent, from a poor family. Very thin, almost malnourished, yet very optimistic and a risk-taker.
Sylvester's eyes lost all their radiance and turned sharp. Veins appeared to cover his forehead. "What about him?"
"He didn't die back then, just after graduation." Felix continued speaking, his gloomy feelings pouring out through his words. "Remember that blood test they did before handing us our priest mitre? They had found a hint of Snake Beastkins' bloodline in his blood—They forced him into slavery for the Church, and he worked for them as a spy in Beastaria, among the Beastkins. Markus was alive, Sylvester…"
Sylvester's fists clenched, and his jaw tightened. "What do you mean 'was'?"
Felix's eyes turned red with anger, and he mistakenly clenched the metal glass in his gauntlet tightly. "He… He died at the age of twenty, a year after your 'death.' He died working for the damn Church while digging a tunnel through Greenpeaks to spy on the dragons—the tunnel collapsed, and the entire mountain weighed down on his body. Alone, thousands of feet under the dirt—HE DIED!"
Felix's aura of anger made the air heavy, and small tears flowed from his reddened eyes. "He was just trying his best to live, Max… The Church made him a slave, erased his existence, and made him take the vow to never try to reach us or his own family—he lived without hope for years, in despair!"
"He didn't die." Sylvester felt his eyes well up too, but his body felt powerless. "H-He was murdered… by the Church."
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