Can't We Just Be Allowed To Sleep in Peace?
As predicted by Lambard, the monster parade was taken care of in just a few minutes. Each and every assessor is now working on clearing the remains of the Korvacs. All the salvageable parts of the monsters are now being dismantled by them. This will be handy as an additional source of funds for them once they return to the Kingdom.
"Oh, lucky! A large magic core from this guy!" Vince said as he pulled out a magic core from the Korvac's body. "How much can I sell it for?" her asked his colleagues.
Eisen was silent, while Rose pretended she did not hear anything. Seeing them disinterested in the topic, Vince decided to drop it and focus on working on salvaging their remains. It took them hours to salvage all the monster parts. Now, they only needed a place where they can leave it for the time being. Bringing it with them will only slow them down.
Luckily for them, Lambard proposed to leave them inside the dome he just created. With that, everyone started gathering the materials inside the dome.
"Ha ha! Work your asses to the bone, boys!" said Deirera as she munched on a big piece of meat still attached to its bones. She is resting atop one giant rock, overseeing the entire operation like a supervisor.
"Why not join them then?" said Marcus as he rested his head on the rock. Beside him was Gladius, doing the exact same thing.
"What? Me? You're gonna make a girl do the heavy lifting? What a brute!" Deirera said teasingly. Her image doesn't exactly elicit what you would describe as a 'girl' but nonetheless, she is still a woman, so he decided to drop the topic and discuss it no further.
Gladius was beside himself and his axe, wiping the dirt and blood that it got from the early-morning battle. The durability of his axe is unparalleled. Even after cleaving through, flesh, blood, and bones, not a dent can be seen on its surface. An assessor once asked what the axe was made of, but Gladius only replied that the material was "out-of-this-world", and denied to elaborate any further.
"Still, I've gotta say, there are quite a number of skilled assessors this time around. Our positions as leaders may be swept under our feet in no time," she said as she took another bite of the meat she was carrying. If it helps, the meat she was munching on since earlier was that of a Korvacs.
"Isn't that a good thing," Gladius remarked. "That means that the assessors can be assured to have a brighter future,".
"Hmm... yeah, but still, they have to get more experience before they can really face what's out there," she said.
Gladius and Marcus nodded in agreement. As they looked at the other members of the force gathering the materials, they can't help but feel somewhat sentimental despite being hardened warriors.
"Oh! What do you think was that about, that meteor spell that Lambard shot off into the distance?" asked Deirera.
"The mage must have had his reasons, but I think that you might have an inkling to what it was for, right?" the 'Red Knight' Franz, said as he approached the group. His signature red armor was now cleaned, returning to its silvery appearance.
"Franz ... yeah. The demons, probably," she said.
"Then that must mean that they are observing us, but since when?" asked Marcus, caressing his beard as he tries to think of something. "Ahhhh! This is hard, my brain is not made for critical thinking! Just where is that Lambard-guy when we need him?" he angrily exclaimed as he exhausted his brain thinking of something complicated.
On the other side of the campsite, Lambard was speaking with Kreig.
"Yeah, so that is basically my hypothesis. I think we should be more careful once we left for our respective areas, just to be sure," he said.
"Hmm. Well noted, can I ask you to relay that information to the other leaders?" Kreig asked. Lambard nodded and started heading off to look for the others. Kreig isn't much of a talker, but everyone knows the authority he holds within the assessors. Being the one to have served the force the longest, and one of the few that managed to live through and survive the "Great Fall" 20 years ago that almost lead to the total destruction of the force and the other kingdoms, he is well-respected as the "Sword Saint". Some of the assessors in the force have been trained by him, including Eisen and Rembrandt.
With a large sword as long as he was tall, he walked to the assessors and gave his thanks for their efforts.
"Once you're done, grab a meal, and prepare for departure," he declared. The assessors nodded in his instructions and hurried their pace.
They still have a long day ahead of them.
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Back at Ancdam.
Fei found herself woken up by a great burst of magic she sensed in the North. Her eyes still half-closed, she looked outside her window, still wearing her nightgown, and looked toward the direction where she is sensing the immense amount of magic being conveyed in a single point.
"What was that?" she asked. She can clearly sense the magic being hurriedly condensed, but who the caster was or what the nature of the magic was, she can only guess that it is one incredible spell.
(Oh! It stopped)
She can no longer feel the drawing effect that she was feeling earlier. Her eyes still fixated into the distance, she was then instead surprised to see the sun finally showing up.
"The sun is earlier today than usual," she commented. However, the 'sun' that she was mentioning was starting to get bigger and bigger much faster than what is anticipated of it. "Wait, that's no sun!" she exclaimed, figuring out that what she was seeing was not the bright and warm sun that rises on the horizon every morning, but a huge mass of burning sphere!
Following its radiance with her eyes, Fe can clearly see at it landed on a portion of the mountains, taking a clear chunk off of it. The impact was too powerful that the sound of the blast, as well as the vibrations in the air even shooked the entirety of the Lunar Tear tavern and the surrounding buildings. Glass windows started to shatter, breaking into several pieces and inciting the people of Ancdam to wake up earlier than usual.
Fei saw Sofia peering from her own window, looking in the same direction she was staring at. "Sofia!" she called out to her. "Did you see that?"
Sofia looked at her in turn, nodding at her question.
"Yeah, it is unmistakably the [Meteor] spell," she said. "But, that spell requires a group of mages to create," she said.
"Do you think Eisen and the others are okay?" she asked, deeply concerned about their well-being.
"That's what I would like to ask as well. Why not try asking him through that instant message note that he left for you?" Sofia suggested to her senior.
"Oh, right! I'll contact him right away!"
Fei scrambles as she looks for the item Eisen left her. She then started writing on it furiously, the details of which includes asking him what the earlier explosion was about, and if he is safe or not. She waited as the message disappeared from her note, indicating that the message was relayed to the recipient. Soon after, a message started appearing on her note. She ran towards the window and informed Sofia that she got a reply.
"Oh? That was awfully quick. What does it say?" she asked her senior. Fei started reading the contents of the message.
[We're safe. A monster parade of Korvacs happened early in the morning, so Lambard used a [Meteor] spell to drive them off. No one is hurt. We will resume our trip after a quick break.]
"Oh, so they're fine. Thank goodness!" Fei sighed in relief after hearing the most important news of the day. "Wait, Lambard? Where did I hear that name before?"
"Yeah. I'm positive that I've heard of the name before, perhaps back in the academy, but I can't really recall what he was known for," Sofia agreed as well. The name was ringing a bell to her, but she couldn't just quite recall what it was.
"Well, what's important is that they are safe," said Fei.
"You mean that 'Eisen' is safe, right?" Sofia rebutted her comment.
"Hmm. Yeah, of course, and the others as well," Fei replied.
"Hmmm... okay, if that's what you say,"
"I don't get what you were trying to say, but I am really sleepy, so, I'll be going back to sleep again," Fei said as she closed her windows and went back to her bed. She immediately fell asleep with the note still in her hands.
Sofia watched as she herself went back to get a well-deserved rest.