Countless waves of illusory blood smashed against a wide expanse of phantom blue flames. The two powerful auras skyrocketed, twisting the atmosphere around Eadon into two conflicting states.
Although the sun was shining brightly in the sky bringing about an unprecedented heat even considering the time of the year, the atmosphere still felt unbearably gloomy and some of the residents of the town suddenly couldn't seem to keep their emotions up.
Some people were walking around with long faces and restless thoughts. Various emotions like hunger, tiredness, and irritation were visible on many faces.
But there was also a surprising number of people who acted in the opposite direction. Some of them suddenly felt spry and youthful, vigorous and full of energy. They moved around with a purpose, seemingly looking for a place to vent their sudden excessive enthusiasm.
An old man who was previously taking care of his flowers in front of a little shop with measured steps and steady hands suddenly lifted his head in laughter before running towards one of the numerous water fountains in the town and jumping inside to the amazement of everyone around him.
The behavior of the people around the vicinity of Eadon suddenly split into two distinct types without anyone noticing.
But up above the walls of the town, three figures looked down at the two clashing auras from above with a grave atmosphere. The shock on their faces was evident.
"I would never believe…..." Sacha started speaking slowly then stopped.
"Never believe what?" Alera spoke out, the undertone of his voice layered with anxiousness.
But Sacha didn't respond and just kept quiet with a thoughtful expression on his face which just served to aggravate Alera some more but he managed to hold himself back.
"This is... wait. Oh…. Now it all makes sense!" Sacha suddenly exclaimed to himself and turned to the old woman who seemed to have just recovered from her shock.
"Branch head, do you have anything to say?" he asked the old woman with a serious expression.
The old woman frowned but she still replied.
"Not at all Archmage. The mages association has always maintained neutrality, we will have no hand in this." She said solemnly.
Sacha nodded before turning to Alera.
"Town lord Alera, I know this must be difficult for you to bear with but I plead your understanding in this matter." He voiced out his words slowly.
Seeing the archmage take on a polite tone, Alera's initial displeasure lessened but he still maintained his facial expression.
"What do you mean, archmage Sacha?" He still didn't miss the suspicious parts though.
Sacha sighed and looked down at the silent battle that seemed to have been going on for ages even though it had only just been a bit less than a minute.
"This scene that you are seeing here…." Sacha spoke gravely even as he saw the phantom flames slowly eroding and overwhelming the illusory blood.
"….. Forget it!"
An obvious frown appeared on the face of Alera Tarmal.
Forget it? Forget this scene that happened which he couldn't explain, created by characters he couldn't recognize, that affected his people, his town, he should forget it?
Alera clearly understood what Sacha meant. In normal situations, something like this would definitely be reported to Kurn and would be taken up by the city lord's castle and might eventually be handled by the kingdom's officials directly if the matter was as serious as he thinks it is.
To not report this matter would result in it being as though it never happened because as of now, the only people worthy enough to see this battle were the three right here.
Alera was quiet as he thought the matter through. On one side was the potential safety of the kingdom and its people, if this matter ended up being of significance to the kingdom's existence, Alera would never be able to live down the guilt if he did nothing about it.
On the other side, was offending an archmage of the 27 mage towers. Something that if he did, he doubted if the kingdom itself would be willing to shield him.
Just as Alera was still thinking the matter through, the phantom flames finally burned out the last bit of illusory blood left.
The three spectators increased their focus as the matter had seemed to reach an end. They couldn't see the figures involved in the fight as the phantom flames and illusory blood covered their view but they would still watch the aftermath and try to guess their identities.
Archmage Sacha watched with glowing eyes and his thoughts were a mystery. He was the only one who seemed to have understood something but he kept his findings to himself for reasons unknown.
Just as the last bit of illusory blood disappeared and the phantom flames raged forward, a bright burst of yellow light erupted from the point where the illusory blood originated.
The light was fairly quiet and came without much fanfare but it silently pushed back the phantom blue flames. The flames, seeing the light took the initiative to retreat to the phantom image with wings and golden irises.
The battlefield was silent once more as the two entities seemed to stare at each other. After a second or two, the yellow light suddenly started moving, twisting and turning as it seemed to take on shape.
The winged phantom image just stared on passively without taking action.
Long flowing yellow robes draped over the entire body and a large hood that covered the head in darkness appeared from within the yellow light. This phantom image was tens of meters tall and matched the phantom image of the blue flames in grandiosity and power.
Seeing this image brought out a gasp from the old woman and Alera. They stared in shock at the large phantom image that seemed to cover the skies of Eadon.
The Yellow Sovereign!
The winged phantom image let out a beautiful cry and suddenly burgeoned out, growing exponentially in size until it matched the size of the phantom image of the Yellow Sovereign.
The three spectators suddenly had no way to stay looking from the skies and took the initiative to take themselves lower so as not to stand above the phantom images.
Seeing such powerful beings, showing any disrespect could earn them a very sad death.
The entire town of Eadon seemed to have been frozen in time ever since the phantom image of the Yellow Sovereign appeared. It was eerily quiet and there were no traces of the usual bustling that were constant in the town.
The atmosphere was quiet for a while. None of the two sides talked and the tension in the air seemed to be building up to a suffocating level which left the three spectators stifled.
The Yellow Sovereign suddenly lowered his head to look at the three, his eyes focused on Sacha.
"Archmage, I appreciate the politeness you have shown to my people." His voice was ethereal and seemed to have no origin.
Sacha bowed deeply when he heard his words and replied. "It is my honor, Yellow Sovereign. Your contributions to the wellbeing of the whole of Aelmar are not lost on the 27 mage towers."
The phantom image didn't reply but just raised back his head and turned his gaze back at the winged phantom that seemed to be burning with blue flames.
"Leave us. Tell the town lord that no harm shall befall his town or his people." The Yellow Sovereign said dismissively.
The three figures bowed without hesitation and left. The thoughts running through Alera's head were wild and filled with many questions but he held himself back. As a noble, one thing he was very clear about was that he should not involve himself in the movements of powers above himself or he would just end up as collateral damage.
Besides, the Yellow Sovereign had already guaranteed the safety of his town. Although he didn't know if he could trust the words of such a figure, there was nothing he could do about it anyway.
When the three figures were out of sight, the atmosphere around the two phantom images changed once more, appearing more unreal as if it had been detached from reality.
The Yellow Sovereign stared at the phantom blue image and said in a grave voice. "Your charge-ins are in grave danger"
"I am aware of my problems, undead lord. Of what concern is it to you?" The voice that came out was smooth and calming to the ears and the particular gender was indiscernible.
It would leave any listener wishing they could hear more of it, like a drug that got you addicted.
"All of Aelmar is my concern." The Yellow Sovereign replied.
"You are not worthy." The voice calmly shot back, pride and sarcasm were constantly dripping in its tone.
"Am I not?" the Yellow Sovereign replied with a rhetorical question.
The golden eyes in the flames narrowed slightly but didn't reply and instead changed the topic. "So you have involved yourself. And you have found out who is behind it?"
The Yellow Sovereign sighed deeply and it seemed to echo around the entire space.
"Demons." He said simply.
"The demons? That is impossible, it isn't time yet." The winged phantom replied confidently.
"They grow stronger during each cycle. Who are we to say that it cannot happen?" the Yellow Sovereign asked another rhetorical question.
"There should still be another half a century left. There is definitely something else going on. What are you keeping hidden from me?" The winged phantom interrogated.
"I would be lying if I said there isn't. There is also the involvement of the group called Abyss" He answered the question.
"Abyss?. Have I not heard of this name before? Another group of mortals trying to bite more they can chew." The winged phantom seemed irritated.
"You could say that but seem to forget that I am here, speaking to you on equal terms." The Yellow sovereign said quietly.
"Don't patronize yourself, or them." The winged phantom snapped back.
"There is a natural hierarchy in this world which can't be eliminated with strength alone. That is truth!"
"As the gods will it then." The Yellow sovereign just replied quietly.
The winged phantom narrowed its golden eyes once more but kept quiet. There was silence for a while.
"The people of Abyss, are they the ones who utilize the undesirables?" the winged phantom asked after a while.
The phantom image of the Yellow Sovereign nodded. "As you guessed. It is easy to infer their aim after that."
"They wish to get their hands on the laws from the demons?" the winged phantom asked.
The Yellow sovereign answered with his silence.
"I see…." The winged phantom sounded enlightened.
"Do you require help?" The Yellow Sovereign asked the winged phantom.
"I will take care of my own matters." The answer was dismissive.
"But I have gotten my hands on a good seed. A chosen of a former immortal." The winged phantom added.
"Which immortal title is that?" The Yellow Sovereign seemed interested.
"The Immortal Sculptor." The blue phantom turned its eyes towards the direction of Eadon's mines and peered closely.
The Yellow Sovereign also turned towards the direction and peered closely, saying with an approving tone. "His legacy lives on. That is good, he was an admirable man."
The winged phantom turned its gaze back at the Yellow Sovereign and said pridefully. "Since you think so then you should use your influence to give him a little help later on."
The Yellow Sovereign was quiet for a while before eventually saying. "Okay."
"My time is up. I shall be leaving first then." The winged phantom started fading as it said.
"Let me, then. The identity of your host must be kept secret for now." The Yellow Sovereign offered.
"Do as you wish." The winged phantom replied, its golden eyes glowing brightly.
The surroundings around it shimmered before slowly dissolving out. The phantom blue flames died out like they never appeared in the first place. Only the phantom image of the Yellow Sovereign remained, staring down at the bustling town of Eadon.
A black ring set with a large yellow gem appeared from within the phantom image of the Yellow Sovereign and floated in front of him.
A trace of illusory red blood appeared and floated inside the ring, dyeing the gem with what looked like flecks of blood.
"Sigh! Edgar, you surely are unlucky." The Yellow Sovereign sighed and his phantom image dissolved out too.
From a room in the town lord's castle, the three figures of archmage Sacha, town lord Alera and the old woman who was the branch head of mage's association watched the ring fly across the sky like a streak of yellow light as it disappeared over the tall walls and went into the surrounding forests.