Chapter 80, Before the Sun has Even Cleared the Horizon

"Growth!" Growth was taking down as many familiars as it could but there are so many that even Growth can't handle it by himself.

"Hyaa!" Alistar slashes the familiars in half while Theo and Reinhardt spears them.

"I, Autumn, emplore the leaves, fall and whither and signal a change in the world order, dance upon the wind and paint the earth with your hue, Fallen Leaves!" Autumn's chant causes a large storm of leaves to start and kill the familiars quickly and easily.

While we kill the familiars, a blast of light burst out and we turn to see a group of people fighting against the Chimeras. Are they Braves or part military forces?

"Autumn!" A voice called out to Autumn so we turn to see a man with crimson hair and amber eyes with white skin dressed in a soldier uniform.

"Chase!" She exclaimed. "Over here!"

"Are you alright?!" He exclaimed as he hugged her and then his gaze fell on us. "Who are you?"

"Ah, they're not our enemy." Autumn said as she noticed the man reaching for his gun. "This is Arata, he is someone who knows the White Tiger. This is Chase, he and I are childhood friends."

"I'm Arata, nice to meet you." I smiled and offered my hand but he seemed somewhat hesitant so I retract my hand and simply smile. "Well it's fine."

Just then Will, Theo and Andrew came frashing to the ground to our left. We turn our heads to see a giant tiger with white fur and black stripes for an instant before it disappears again. That was... the White Tiger.

"Will! Theo! Andrew!" I ran for the three who were in bad shape.

"These look pretty bad." Zhen answered.

"Growth!" I called Growth to my side. "Heal them."

Growth began healing the three when Van descends on us. He is holding his book and seems to be reading very rapidly before he looks up with a calm face but underneath he seemed to be restless and feeling uneasy.

"Is something wrong?" I asked when the Chronicle appears before me.

The pages flip and the stop at the drawing of the White Tiger and the description emerges. The words glow and I begin reading them aloud.

"The one who rules the west, represents fall and oversees the balance between summer and winter. When the Spirit is injured, weak or unable to fulfill its duties, the balance between summer and winter shall waver?!" I exclaimed when I read it and even more so when I continued reading. "When the White Tiger is badly injured, it may resort to draining Vi or even Life Energy. Should the White Tiger go rampant and take life without reason or purpose, it must be slain."

"What happens if we slay it?" Leon asked.

"The balance will be restored however... the barrier that repels the Chimeras will weaken for one or two centuries." I answered as I read what was written in the Chronicle.

"Anything about healing it?" Ethan asked.

"Here! Let's see here... The White Tiger can heal itself or be healed by others. If healed by others, the Leaves must be used." I read aloud. "Hmm... it's in Ancient Text but it seems to be a spell for healing the White Tiger and how to use it."

"Arata, can you please help the White Tiger?" Autumn asked me with puppy dog eyes. "The White Tiger has been a part of our Continent for many centuries and has always protected us. Please."

"Don't worry. We came here to help it not kill it." I answered her.

"You may want to hurry on that." Chase said. "What what I heard, the Empire, Republic, Principal and Kingdom are planning to lead forces to subjugate the White Tiger."

"Do you kbow where it is?" Alistar asked.

"Yeah. Do you have a map?" He asked.

"Growth." At my command Growth became a map of the west.

"He's here. At the center of the west, the Ancient City." He answered as his fingers pointed to the very center of the west. "It's a very difficult place to enter but since it's close to the boundaries of the four powers and does not belong to any of the four there won't be any problems."

"What do you mean?" Angie asked.

"The Ancient City isn't a part of the four powers but rather an isolated area that is believed to be a scared place." Theo answered. "It abounds in Vi and resources that are valuable to Braves. We heard about it when Lia and I came here to look for Arata."

"Anything else you can tell us?" I asked.

"The Ancient City is as it says, an old city that dates back to before the Chimeras emerged in this world. It is a ruins of sorts that houses ancient architecture that to this day remains unexplored." Lia answered. "The place is dangerous as the structures are old and crumbling, what's more the city isn't mapped and the amount of Vi is so abnormal that they can distort the function of Articles."

"Yes. It can even interrupt the power of Braves." Autumb stated. "It is a very dangerous place but I suppose it makes for the safest hiding spot."

"Even if it's dangerous, we have to go there." I answered. "Everyone get ready, we'll depart immediately."

"I'd love to go with you but I have to report to work." Chase said and we nodded. "I'll leave Autumn in your hands."

"Okay." I answered.

We need to get ready and depart immediately, I have to translate the text here as well and figure out what the Leaves are. The streets are littered with bodies of dead familiars and people alike. It's a lot to take in before the sun has even cleared the horizon. But we can't stop here, we have to move and stop the White Tiger immediately.

I gaze at the sun rising to our east and can't help but feel the ominous wind blowing. I hope nothing bad happens but... my premonitions have never missed before though lately I haven't had any I can still feel something brewing.