18 High Risk High Reward

"Do any of you know the name Zistel? It's very important, a lot might depend on it. My companions are the Four Chosen, the heroes who protect the kingdom. They desperately need your help, do any of you know this inscription?"

Marah held up sheets of paper on which she had painted some of the characters.

When Grae looked around, the residents just stared at him in disgust. Almost everyone had a nasty look on their face and kept their distance from the group. Everyone was confused, it seemed as if the group would cause 100 years of bad luck. No one wanted to say anything even after they knew who they were dealing with. But the group did not give up, they set up camp outside the village and thought about what they could do now.

"Can't we just force them to spill their information?"

"We won't use force Blade, this isn't the way of the chosen ones who protect the kingdom."

"Maybe they have some demands or a counter offer?"

"And what would that be Luke? Our clothes or that we put on a magic show for them? We're not a circus and I hardly think they'd be interested in anything from us."

"There must be some important reason why they are keeping the secrets. Even after they knew we were the protectors of the kingdom, not a single one responded. It seems that they are under a curse or hypnosis."

"I rather think that the village is hostile to the kingdom. I have a feeling that something bad must have happened."

Suddenly there was a rustling in the bushes beside them. Everyone drew their weapons and walked toward the sound.

"P-please don't kill me, I-I'm here to help you."

A little boy barely older than 12 stood in front of them with a scared face. He had panic in his eyes when he saw the evil face of the warrior.

"Damn it Blade, now put your weapon away. Don't you see there is no danger here?"

"Oh, force of habit. Sorry."

Marah slowly walked up to him to reassure him.

"Hey, what's your name little guy?"

" I'm L-Leo, please don't kill me."

Everyone except Marah froze for a second when they heard that name.

"We're not going to kill you, you don't have to worry.

Why are you out here all alone?"

"My parents don't allow me to go out at night, but sometimes I sneak out anyway. When I saw you, I could hardly believe it. I have heard many stories, but now you are standing in front of me. A young girl who can hardly be defeated in battle. A healer with glasses who can make huge waves. Then an archer with evil eyes who barely speaks. And a warrior with a huge sword whose pride is bigger than the weapon he wields and often trips over."

"H-Hey that's unfair, who described me like that? Tell me boy and I'll shut him up. I've never tripped over my pride before."

"Hehe, he described me and Adrian pretty well for that. True isn't it?"

Adrian looked at Luke with evil eyes, Luke interpreted it as yes.

"I'm not as invincible as you say, unfortunately, but soon I will be."

"And what about me, the general who personally trained and leads the Chosen?"

The little boy shook his head nervously.

The group began to smile as they saw Grae's disappointed face.

"B-but I didn't just want to see you people. I-I know where the signs are, in a cave at the edge of the forest they are marked on stones. I used to go there to play with the other kids until Mom stopped me from going there. It should be somewhere about that way. But the inhabitants do have something against you, even my parents said that you are evil but I didn't believe them and wanted to see you again myself."

The group took hope from the boy's words, now maybe they had a new clue.

"I hope the information is true pipsqueak, because we're running out of time!"

"Blade, you better stop talking, it's better for everyone involved."

"What, we're really running out of time, aren't we?"

The others thanked the boy, Marah gave him a necklace with a wolf as a pendant. The boy's eyes lit up, his joy boundless.

"Just promise me one thing Leo, always take care of your parents and always be nice to others. And hide the pendant from others, don't get into trouble. Don't show it to anyone, not to your friends and certainly not to your parents. Because it is our little secret. My name is Marah by the way, but don't tell your parents. Now hurry back to the village before anyone else finds out."

"Yes I will, I'll take care of my parents. Th-thank you for the gift M-Marah."

The group just grinned when they saw the boy's smile.

"You are not evil as they all say."

Then he ran back towards the village with a big smile on his face.

Grae walked up to Marah who was lost in thought.

"Was it really necessary to give him a pendant? You know there's no going back."

"One last time! I want to see with my own eyes if the old Leo is still in him."

The next morning they set out for the cave. Sure enough, it was hidden in the bushes, the letters were scattered on the wall, and light was shining from inside. When they entered the cave there were torches everywhere left and right. Suddenly they stepped on a loose stone that triggered a trap, one step further and they would have fallen into a seemingly endless depth.

After a while they heard a voice, as they got closer they heard a swoosh from the darkness further back. Suddenly arrows raced at them head-on. At the last moment they parried the arrows except for one. Luke did not manage to form a shield in time. Before the arrow could hit him, Adrian shot an arrow that stopped the other one. The splinters hit Luke directly in the face. His left cheek began to bleed but he held back the sounds of pain and had a bandage put on it.

Suddenly the voice came from all directions, they were completely lost in the cave. Grae closed his eyes and walked towards a wall, he rammed his body against it and the wall broke. Behind it stood an old lady holding a bomb in front of her in a panic.

"Don't come any closer or I'll blow everything up"

Her hands were shaking and one eye was completely red. She did not take her eyes off the group.

"We're not here to hurt you, we just have a few questions."

"That's what the last ones said before they captured me."

"Listen lady, we really need your help with something. There's more at stake here than you can possibly imagine."

"What should possibly depend on it as far as I'm concerned, I've been here for years and I've hardly had any problems."

"Please it is very urgent, you are the only one who can help us with this.

Grae took the box and slowly put it down. The old woman opened the box easily, the black smoke doing nothing to her.

"Why should I help you, what do I get out of it...where did you get this?! Th-these must be fakes."

"These documents come directly from the capital of the kingdom and have been locked in a sealed chamber for a very long time."

Hesitantly, she took one of the scrolls while slowly putting down the bomb.

"T-this is hard to believe. How is that possible? All these centuries everyone thought they were destroyed, yet here they are."

The woman looked at the remaining documents and took a deep breath. With a turn of her hand, she removed the black smoke and turned the documents into normal books and scrolls. She removed the bomb and was no longer hostile to the group.

"Alright, I will help you as long as it is within my knowledge. But the documents will stay here. That is the only demand I have."

"I think they are better off here anyway. So we can fulfill your request."

"Hey lady, how do you know how to read these signs? You're not a liar are you?"

Everyone cursed Blade with an evil look, his unfriendliness was never ending.

"My name is not Lady, my name is Kirazil. I am the last generation of Druids, for centuries our heritage has been passed on. But I have no interest in creating another generation, the danger of our knowledge is too high. It was my father who taught me this and I will fulfill his wish. "

The group became suspicious and doubted her words. Druids had actually died out long ago, at least the books said so.

"Why should I lie? These documents are incredibly valuable, but their value can only be determined by their truth. Only we can understand these signs, I only need to look at them without ever having seen them before. This skill was inherited only by the Druids. The elves have tried as well, but never understood the meaning behind it."

"Okay, let's get straight to the point. I think explaining the books will take some time, we desperately need information to prevent chaos."

"Chaos has always existed, preventing it completely is impossible. Still, I like your stubborn and naive attitude so let's get started. What is it about these writings that you so desire?"

The group told about the events of the last years, especially about the return of the Erezal and especially about Leo and his powers. Kirazil listened to them while she read the documents. She made a serious and frightened face while listening to the stories.

"The return of the Erezal was inevitable, it could have taken centuries, but they would definitely have reappeared. I have never heard of the Chosen, your world sounds fascinating, but it has never been seen by anyone else. The Goddess will have a plan that you will not like. I'm not surprised that the red portals are related to the disappearance of your friend, he worries me the most. If what you say really happened, then this world is in great danger. I can't give you more information right now, but I may have a solution to the problem. There is a way you could become far more powerful, but it is only temporary and could cost you your life. Just as there is black magic, there is also light magic which is also called holy magic. This magic was used by the goddess herself and only direct descendants can use it. But these descendants have died out due to the dangers of this world, so light magic is no longer existent in this world. However, if my theory is correct, you could be really successful. The goddess sent the descendants to war against the dark creatures that invaded this world. That could have been these portals, but that is only a theory. You come from an unknown world and have been blessed by the Goddess with a power that has yet to show its true potential. The danger your friend represents could be the key. His powers mirror the cursed powers in the books. There are two choices for you: either try to protect the kingdom your way, or risk dying here for a power that surpasses even his powers?

"Choose wisely!"

A white talking raven appeared behind the group scaring everone.

"Gekorat, you shall not frighten our guests."

The raven landed on the old woman's shoulder and squawked at her.

"It's fun though, it's been so long since a human set foot in the cave. Of course I'm going to scare the hell out of them."

"These humans are friendly for once though, they brought me something very important."

"More important than me?...Hard to believe but from the look on your face I can see you are speaking the truth."

"Gekorat is one of the snow ravens, these ravens can live up to 200 years but hardly any exist anymore."

"Hey don't say that, just because I haven't seen one in this kingdom doesn't mean I'm completely alone. Let's see what the humans brought you."

The raven sat down on one of the books and flipped through the pages with his beak.

"So these are the ancient writings you've been longing for. I suppose you want to help them."

"I have no choice. The value is too high to just keep it without giving something back."

"I will never understand this law of the Druids."

After a short vote they accepted her offer, stopping Leo in their condition would be the end of them.

"When do we start training?"

"Oh, it's not training in that sense. We will go further into the cave, there is a room with a large altar. I assume you know the Krystal so you know roughly the basics already. However, the only color that this Krystal produces is a bright white. It could last 3 days or 3 years, pray to her that your blessing is stronger than you think."

"So you heard it, get ready, this is going to be a tough work."

"Oh and the pretty warrior, for you I have seen another sword art in the book. You surprisingly have a little bit of mana we can augment. However, the bit of black magic in you could devour you. All these techniques are temporary, for if they were not you might as well be called gods."

"Gekorat bring me the potions and put them to the altar."

"You don't want to waste them on them, do you?! You know what that means Kirazil, do you really want to end it like that?"

"I've told you a hundred times that I'll be the last of us. You're also 199 years old, so we won't have much time left. I'd rather see the world get exciting again and everything change once more, don't you think Gekorat?"

"It's hard to argue with you old lady."

The raven sat down on her shoulder and let her pet him. It was the first and last time that Kirazil played such a big role in the fate of this world.

But Gekorat knew what danger she could possibly bring into the world with it.