Consumed by sanguis

A dark streak paralleled the clouds below as it flew at a tremendous speed. Kaloum had adjusted his destination to the west of Bellamy, where a small territory ruled by a baron was. Next to the barony was a forest that had a serene lake in the centre.

Kaloum alighted from the high sky while passing through the dampened clouds. Like any magician there was, whenever they cast a flying spell, the spell had air filtering runes and protective mechanisms, as the air above was treachous with the change of air pressure.

Kaloum saw the towering trees from a distance. He propelled his speed by putting more mana into the tier 6 spell, Wings of the night. When the green scenery was at his feet, a dark lump broke out from his chest and fell into the forest. Kaloum didn't spare a reaction to such phenomena as he went along his way.

Soon enough, the lake was in sight. Under the two moons of distinct colour and size, the lake appeared ethereal, as if countless undines were holding a banquet aloft on its surface, with the moons as chandeliers: but, it was merely a reflection.

The cycle of the moons was as unpredictable as it could get in Mundus. A night could be without any moons accompanying it. The following night, a single one would be seen, and the next one—the two of them would illuminate the dark side of Mundus. However, the next cycle might be different, and so on.

Kaloum hovered above the lake as he conjured a small translucent blade, tier 1 neutral spell, Creation. He poked the blade at his finger as a drop of blood dripped from it into the lake. He waved his hand as the small wound and blade disappeared all together.

The drop of blood that fell on the pristine yet serene lake didn't amount to anything to the water as it was drowned by it—until Kaloum quietly said in Ekiyan, "Open before me, gate."

The lake, as if responding to Kaloum's words, twisted into a small whirlpool, breaking its long-standing serenity. Hazy blueish fog converged over the vortex of water as Kaloum approached it and entered it, feet first.

***

In a damp corridor with tiles and a red carpet, a bluish mist seeped out of the ground as it swirled into a vortex before a man of pale skin and dark clothes came out of it floating, head first.

When his whole body crossed over, the misty vortex retreated, as he walked on the lengthy red carpet. After a few minutes of walking, Kaloum came across a double black door. He waved his hand, opening it.

The view of a solemn hall was taken in by his eyes. A hall fit for a king. The interior was minimalist but the materials used to build this hall were of extraordinary quality. The walls and ceiling were leaden, as a chandelier draped from it, yet it was as dim as it could be. A throne was rooted at the other end of the hall. However, someone else was standing next to it, touching its armrest with their hand covered by a black glove.

Kaloum's countenance morphed into surprise. 'What is the lord doing here?'

As if answering his questions, the person who he addressed as the lord spoke with a soothing voice, "Instead of a king, you should be an actor, Kaloum. Even I think I pale in terms of you when it comes to faking a persona. For 30 years, you have been at bay, waiting for the day you reclaim your kingdom back. And that day is nearer than ever, a joyous moment, no? Come join me for a drink."

The lord wore a long, yet elegant gray scholarly robe that dragged along the floor. They had long wavy black hair, and donned a mask with the same colour as their attire. The mask had no holes. They retreated from the throne with steady steps as they arrived in the middle of the hall. With a snap of their fingers that echoed across the king's courtroom, appeared a round table, two chairs, two wine glasses and a bottle of champagne.

Sitting on one of the chairs, they beckoned with their hand for Kaloum to sit.

Kaloum warily glanced at them before taking their offer. This being, whether they could be called a human or not, was an ally he recently acquired. For a trade of equivalent exchange, Kaloum would be supplied with great power to overthrow the academy, and the Ekiya kingdom's regime, and they would receive a map that his ancestors guarded for centuries.

At first he was sceptical of their words when they came to him with such a deal, until he saw them prove their worth with his own eyes. They were a group with few members that he had never heard of, yet the strength they possessed was nothing to scoff at.

The centre of this group was this being they called the lord. At every meeting Kaloum has had with them, an uncomfortable feeling nestles in his heart. And this one was no exception. Actually, it could be regarded worse since he was entirely alone with the lord.

Kaloum eyed the glass of wine that they poured for him before taking it. He didn't check if it was poisoned, as he knew they still needed the map, and it would be a foolish mistake to kill him now. Even if he entertained the idea of him being poisoned, it would only weaken him for a few minutes before being detoxified by his mana. A mage of the dark element's mana had certain immunity to toxic substances.

When he took a sip of the drink, he spoke, "It is patience and an oath with my ancestors that has made me such."

What he said was the truth. Kaloum was a cautious person in general. He wouldn't take action unless the chances of success were high. This is why he made an alliance with this group. Knowing that they seemed to be in a hurry to find the map, Kaloum had the leverage of not being betrayed easily.

A chuckle escaped out of the lord's mask. "Indeed. If we hadn't reached our hands to you, you would still have secretly gathered like-minded individuals for years until you succeeded in your goal—thankfully for both of us, we saved ourselves from an arduous journey of time and effort."

'Mhm, that is why I'm also disregarding your insolent behaviour. You have your uses… Now that I think about it, It is past the gathering time. Where are those people of mine?'

He looked across the table as the sight of the lord's drink still filled to the brim was taken in by his dark eyes… Why did they pour themselves a drink if they weren't going to touch it? Something's amiss.

He raised his eyes to the lord's level and met the mask that seemed to pull in his thoughts. Gazing at it absentmindedly, Kaloum went back to drinking his wine as if the previous plaguing suspicion he had didn't even exist.

As he was about to bring the glass to his thin mouth, his hand stopped and threw it straight at the lord. However, it was seemingly stopped by something invisible before it could reach them.

During that time, Kaloum phased through the shadows to retrace his steps near the door he came in from.

His heart thumped like a fox that just saw a lion's savage mouth heading their way. Trains of thoughts besieged his mind. 'That was close, I almost got hypnotised. If not for my main fighting style, which is interlinked with hypnosis, I would have been a lost cause.'

The lord sat in their chair like nothing had happened. They stood up and snapped their fingers as the materials he conjured previously vanished: the broken glass and wine not being an exception.

They held their hand on their forehead. "Now that was rude of you, Kaloum. What if you had tainted my gorgeous robe with wine? You know, it cost me a lot to get one of these—around your entire fortune's worth I think… I'm just kidding, it's only a third of your fortune." The lord chuckled as he said that, amused by his own words.

This… Ignoring their ridiculous words, he spat with hostility, "My people should have arrived a while ago, but they aren't here. And just now you tried to get a hold of my mind. What is the meaning of this?"

Depending on their answer, Kaloum was certainly going to kill them or ask for recompense. He hoped that whatever the lord was going to utter would be something beneficial for both of them, otherwise everything would crumble, and he might not even be able to reclaim his land in this generation.

If a fight was to break out, the chances of him dying was high. Although that would spell the end of life, as long as his son was still alive, he would hold the banner of revenge that had been passed on for generations.

"Now, now, don't be so livid over a small accident. I just wanted to see if the legend was true about you being skilled at mind manipulations and you didn't disappoint me," saying such words, he walked back to the throne and sat on it.

"As for your other question… Haa, Kaloum, your eyes have deteriorated. They are all in this hall yet you didn't even notice them? I even offered you the blood of your beloved offspring to commemorate your lifelong goal you were about to achieve."

'…What is he talking about-.' his mind froze as he suddenly felt the sensation of the ground being moist. Kaloum slowly lowered his head and was met with an unusual red floor. It was a pool of blood. Cleanly severed limbs, torsos, and heads. They sprawled every nook of the place. It was a scene of carnage.

"Wh- what is this?" Kaloum, stuttered a question, not believing what he saw.

"Eh, you don't recognise your own people? That's Baron Francis's head to your left, and your son's arm to your right. If you are wondering where the head is, you just ignored it as it was greeting you at the door when you walked into the hall. that's bad parenting you know-"

Before the lord could finish their sentence, a dark javelin propelled towards them, but it was stopped by a wall unseen to the naked eye.

With eyes void of light, Kaloum started to cast countless spells as mana circulated across his whole body with fervor.