Chapter 56: Four Kings

Woosh! Woosh!

Blurs of blue and red sped through the sandy dunes, sending waves of beige colored particles scattering in all directions as Jak and Mako tore through the area at breakneck speeds. No longer operating at a casual sprint, the two youths had amped their movement up to the maximum, setting their sights on the colossal tree far into the distance.

A tree that only continued to grow the closer the rookies got to it.

"It’s hard to believe something so massive was hiding beneath us this entire time." Mako kept his head low as he barreled forward, keeping as much unwanted sand from his mouth as possible. "You would think that the BloodClaws or those at the same level would sense it."

Jak shook his head. "The forest probably threw them off. Hard to sense anything with all that fluctuating mana."

"It also doesn’t help that we’re already dealing with a large scale threat on the surface." Mako fell in line behind Knox, of whom was leading the way. "The thought never occurred that the problem was actually underground. Or rather, at least not THAT far underground."

"It’s also possible that its an effect of the True Magic spell. Could explain why it was undetectable."

True Magic.

It was the secondary stage of ones magic, one completely separated from the standard base elemental magic wielded by the common populace. Stronger in every conceivable way, it allowed the user to tap into their very soul and utilize the mana within it rather than that of the body. Just like how every soul was unique, no persons True Magic was exactly the same, manifesting in a way that personified the core of who the user truly was. Those who had unlocked their True Magic were almost guaranteed a victory against those who hadn’t, with very few exceptions. The big cost factor to its usage however is that unlocking it was an extremely difficult feat, as it required the wielder to recognize who they truly were.

Which made sense since they had to peer into their own soul to harness its mana.

The largest benefit to unlocking True Magic, aside from the obviously enormous stat boost, were spell effects.

In exchange for the time it took to cast, either via chanting or set up time, various effects could be added to any particular spell created by the user. Aside from the obvious fact of having to keep it in line with the wielders True Magic, there were almost countless effects that could be added. The more powerful the effect, the longer it took the spell to activate and the more mana it required. Once completed though, the payoff was said to be quite worth it.

As their opponent was a Rift Hunter class at the bare minimum, access to True Magic was almost a surefire thing. Though the enormous tree the size of an entire Continent could be achieved via other means, such as an Artifact, it was definitely the work of the unknown enemy.

With all that being said, Jak and Mako had to watch out for any spell effects branching off from the World Tree in addition to the mysterious Mage.

"If they have True Magic, then we stand no chance." Mako spit out a few globs of sand that had entered his mouth. "Our only option is to find any BloodClaws and round up a good number of fighters. Assuming they aren’t tussling with the Mage already."

Jak didn’t say anything as the two youths blitzed through the cold stretch of desert, an uneasy feeling in his gut. He highly doubted that the Mage in question would make an appearance if he or she hadn’t already planned to win from the very beginning.

Of course, he prayed that he was wrong.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

Piedra- The Long Rock World

Tak. Tak. Tak. Tak.

Pieces of shredded metal and pulverized rock were scattered in all directions, parted by two sets of footprints as they made their way through the distorted lands stretched out before them. All around, lengthy craters dotted the immediate area, various cracks and gouges within the earth stretching on for miles around. Into the distance, chunks of nearby mountains were missing whilst others had been completely flattened altogether, leaving an area of unusually smooth earth.

"I suppose this is where it all went down." Lunah stopped at the precipice of the small hill he was on, kicking loose a bit of rubble in the process. "That or we just barely missed a top of the line party. Shame. Bet the wine would’ve been amazing."

Jakoben rolled his eyes as he made his way up the terrain, following just behind the Buttermoth Rift Hunter.

"Is now really the time for jokes sir?" - Jakoben

"Is it ever not?" - Lunah

"You’re incorrigible." - Jakoben

"You mean irresistible?" - Lunah

"No. Not at all." - Jakoben

Lunah smirked as he took in the sights splayed out before him. "Let’s return to that line of conversation some other time-"

"-Or perhaps never-"

"-It seems we have company." The King’s smirk gradually shifted from a light hearted expression to one of caution and intense scrutiny. "Appears we were beaten to the punch. How quaint."

Just below the small hill and its various offshoots, milling atop the shredded and dented slab of unknown metal, were five distinct individuals. Each one possessed an air of power and confidence, the atmosphere itself radiating from their very presence. Even if one had no clue as to the identity of the figures, one could easily deduce that they were not ones to be trifled with; they were beings resting on a completely different plane of existence. Standing above even Rift Hunters.

And Lunah was unfortunately acquainted with almost all of them.

"I guess the other Kings were made aware of the situation as well." Jakoben took a stance next to the Buttermoth at the top of the hill. "Word travels fast."

"With the number of worlds possessed by each of them, it only makes sense." Lunah let out a sigh before making his way down the hill, sliding gracefully instead of walking. "Otherwise they wouldn’t be able to call themselves Kings."

"Agreed."

As the Emerald King and his companion moved closer to the meandering individuals, they each turned their heads, giving the duo a small once over before bothering to properly react. Two of them, a larger woman with bright, bubblegum pink hair and a well endowed woman with hair blacker than black, flashed looks of disgust the moment they looked away. The other three stopped what they were doing, perusing the landscape and overturning the surrounding rubble, and made their way over to them.

"Butterfly gramps!! You made it!!"

Lunah’s green eyes flicked over to the figure on the immediate right, a figure floating over on a thick bed of hovering sand.

Kiden Nerost calmly stepped down from his cloud of beige, allowing the particles to disperse among the ensuing gusts of wind. Smiling brightly, the young man moved ahead of the other two, getting up close and personal with the green haired king.

"Ah yes. You must be the SandMan Of HeartFord. I’m surprised to see you here." The Emerald King smiled a tad, though anyone could see it was entirely forced. Without mentioning the violation of personal space, Lunah took a solid step backwards. "Rumors had it that our newest king was a heavy sports eccentric. I half expected our first meeting to be on the field. Or at least with you dressed up in a uniform."

Grinning, the individual turned his body left and right, showing off his outfit. "It’s a bit stuffy honestly. However, my followers insisted that I don a look befitting my stature."

"Your followers are quite wise."

A light brown tunic that reached just above the ankles with black pants seen from the side where a chunk of the tunics fabric was missing. A slightly brighter colored belt, similar to a sash or a haramaki, wrapped around the waist of the tunic, securing it in place with pieces of rope dangling beneath it. Fastened to the collar of the tunic was a scarf the same shade as the sash, hiding a small portion of Kidens mouth. The sleeves of the upper fabric were uneven, and just underneath both were long arm bands. The left arm band was striped with black and beige lines while the left armband ended in a poofy cuff that was also covered in black and beige lines.

Though it gave the look of an above average Adventurer or even regular Rift Hunter, Kiden managed to make it look quite distinguished, pairing well with his sandy colored locks and youthful expression.

Turning around, Kiden showed off his back. There, resting dead center of the tunic was the head of a maroon colored Vox Bull, the symbol for the Earth Hero Demeter.

"Custom made. It was actually my sister who fashioned it for me."

"It suits you well." Lunah reached out and touched the poofy sleeve, rubbing the silky smooth fabric betwixt thumb and forefinger. "Made from the silk of a Labda Beetle. The designs are very well thought out, with careful attention to detail as well as the designated wearer. The buttons were fashioned from-"

"AHEM!!"

The sound of overly loud throat clearing snapped Lunah back to reality, the Buttermoth having slipped into his own little world of designer clothes. With an embarrassed laugh, the Emerald King took a step back towards Jakoben, the same one who had coughed at him in the first place.

When Lunah had finally diverted his attention away from Kiden, the other two individuals took the opportunity to make their presence known. Quickly taking a knee, the two black haired figures lowered their heads, offering their respects to the Buttermoth Rift Hunter. Though initially surprised, it took less than a second to understand what was happening as well as who they were. The images of a Vox Rabbit and a Vox Wolf flashing at him respectively, sewn onto their outfits.

"Sir. Judith Alminah, Knight of his majesty Licelle Madont!!"

"Upin Iopal, Knight of Lady-"

"Nianna Mapel, Direct descendant of the Water Hero Mapel and current King of Blue." Lunah finished Upin’s small introduction. "Understood. There’s no need for you ladies to bow to me. Especially gorgeous young women such as yourselves. Please. Stand."

As the two females rose back onto their feet, their eyes seemed to grow glossy and dull, and they began to swoon ever so gently. Their faces flushed and their breathing grew heavy, as if they had just finished the most hard-core workout in existence.

Jakoben pinched Lunahs back, just below the wing.

"Oh. Right." Waving his hand in front of the girls, Lunah snapped his fingers, eyes glowing ever so briefly. "My apologies. It wasn’t intentional."

The moment the snapping sound reached their ears, the two women immediately regained some semblance of clarity. The fogginness in their eyes rapidly disappeared, leaving them blinking in utter confusion. Having no idea as to what just happened, they hastily retreated from the Buttermoth, giving the demihuman a final bow before backing away. Taking their place were the two women from before, the ones whom had looked away from Lunah in disgust.

"Always the philanderer. Truly the scum of the lands. Dirty sack of garbage."

The Pastel King- Sakura Yermind

"Piece of rotten meat. Not even fit to lick the scuffs of my boots. Filthy womanizing bàstar?."

The Onyx King- Elena Knox

"Such foul language from such beautiful women.....well, one of you at least." Lunah side eyed Sakura, the woman with pink hair. "I don’t hold the words of a fat toad in high regards. You’re better off waiting for a paralyzed man to walk than for me to care about your childish insults."

The glares from the two women shifted from disgust to looks of intense anger, bloodlust dripping from their very beings. Thick waves of magic shot outwards, cracking the ground beneath them. Upin and Judith fell backwards, knocked off balance from the sudden surge of condensed mana. Instead of being intimidated by them however, Lunah matched them, tucking his hands into his pockets as he let loose a small portion of his own magic. The air turned heated and a battle looked unavoidable, both sides unwilling to be the bigger person and back down.

CLAP!!

The magic disappeared. Vanished without a trace.

The clashing of auras was halted in its tracks, as if it had never been there in the first place. Even the bloodlust was gone, replaced by an overwhelming confusion from Sakura and Elena as well as the two female Knights.

"You three are supposed to be Kings." Jakoben lowered his clasped hands. "Quit acting like children. Have some dignity!"

"YOU DARE SPEAK TO A KING??!!" Sakura raised her hand towards the yellow haired individual.

"Don’t bother trying to use magic." Lunah shook his head, taking his hands out of his pockets. "You’re already caught under his spell. Any magic, abilities, runes, and so on won’t function within its range."

"That is so freaking cool!!" Kiden let some of his sand trickle through his fingers, the beige particles no longer floating. "A True Magic spell that shuts everything down. Even that of a Colored King. Fascinating!!"

"In the prospect of war and peace, titles definitely matter. Therefore, it’s easy to throw around reputation and the power thats backing it in order to reach a desired goal. To Colored Kings, power is everything." Jakoben stepped in between the three Kings, elbowing them apart. "So, when possessing no power at all, how will you all handle yourselves? With violence, like the uncivilized dregs of society? Or like proper royalty? What will it be?"

For what felt like an eternity, no one said a single word to each other, everyone contemplating their own actions and innermost thoughts. After a few minutes of glancing back and forth from person to person, they each stood down, resigning themselves to the spell restricting their every move.

"I’m only here for one thing." Lunah was the first to speak up. "Perhaps the same reason as all of you. Kenma Iroas."

"His body isn’t here." Sakura answered the question without it even being asked. "According to my findings, the same organization that sealed him hid him away in an unknown location."

"More than likely, it was done so his allies couldn’t free him." Jakoben crossed his arms over his chest. "If he was freed so soon afterwards, it would defeat the purpose."

Elena frowned deeply, clearly bothered by the whole topic. "But what IS the purpose?"

No one answered.

Kenma Iroas. An unrivaled Mage that stood at the top, regarded as the strongest being to exist within the last century. To even claim he was the strongest in the last millenia wouldn’t have been a stretch, surpassing the very definition of what it meant to be a Mage. The Golem God was widely seen as untouchable, and everyone treated him as such, the very thought of fighting him akin to suicide.

Rooting himself in the Eastern Continent, no Guilds dared to lay claim to any Worlds within the area without consulting him first for fear of backlash. Stronger than all of the 8 Kings put together, no one had the backbone to even THINK about striking Kenma or any of his allies. With most sealing techniques being broken through and the man being nigh unkillable, it was a wonder what anyone was after by foolishly lashing out at the man. In regards to Elena’s question, there WAS no logical purpose.

Or at least, none that the Kings could see in that moment.

"We could ask Sir Dynamite." Kiden tilted his head. "My informant said that the Crimson King was involved in Golem Gramps’ sealing."

Lunah clapped the Beige King on the shoulder, giving him a thumbs up. "That...is a great idea SandMan."

"Licelle called a Roundtable Parley in around three months time." Elena brushed her hair out of her face. "He’ll have to come out of hiding then. Otherwise he’s liable to make an enemy of the other Kings."

"Very well." Lunah turned around and began walking away. "Then I’ll see you women at the Roundtable. Try not to die until then.....or don’t. I don’t really care."

"Piece of shit." Sakura muttered, her double chin jiggling.

"Sack of garbage." Elena spat at the ground of the retreating Buttermoth.