The Seclusion Church.
That was the name of the cultists that introduced the religion of Yanoxism. The belief that the world was created by the will of the Greater Beings, existences greater than the cosmos itself that the Seclusion Church claims they themselves created the cosmos.
The Greater Beings took shape of the greatest existences that inhabitant the cosmos.
There were only six. The Being of Sun, the Being of Moon, the Being of Star, the Being of World, the Being of Creation, and the Being of Abyss. These were the greatest of all existences ever said to exist for they were the ones who created all of existence.
Each of these were sacred, their cosmic symbols to never be tarnished.
They were praised as the greatest of beings, capable of controlling eternity and twilight. With a single fragment of their will were they able to create an entire solar system.
They were beyond the comprehension of any being that they simply couldn't take a form that any could perceive. They were only able to exist in the forms that represent them, never to set foot in the very worlds they made.
Such was the rule that the greatest of them all, the King, made.
Yet if they were unable to enter a world they themselves created, what if one of these Beings entered a world one of their own created...?
-----
Kryva stopped in front of a pair of double doors.
The presence behind her stopped as well, waiting for her to speak.
"This is where I train. It's nothing fancy since I've never been that big on training. Kirva and my mother have their own room to train in."
She felt nervous about showing Houvdon where she held her regular training sessions, even before the whole "Supreme Oracle" incident.
The red-head didn't want her current male obsession to judge her based on the appearance of her training room.
Scratch that, her only male obsession.
"Are you waiting for something?" Of course, he was completely oblivious to her inner turmoil, only looking at the literal and definitive meaning of things. If there was something she learned from the short amount of time she had spent with him, it was that he completely lacked the knowledge of anything to do with the customs and traditions of gender differences.
He treated her as of she wasn't a female.
"No." She relaxed herself, opening the double doors widely. She stepped through first and she knew that Houvdon was following her inside.
It was spacious, the wooden floor waxed and spotless. Kryva flicked her fingers, the torches lined against the wall lighting up as her flame magic did its work.
She turned to see Houvdon's impressed look at the level of control she had over her flame. Yet still, the look faded to leave determination in its place. She looked away as her face grew hot upon staring at his own handsome face for far too long.
With the torches giving light to the entirety of the room, the male was able to see just how spacious yet empty it was. On the right side of the doorway they entered from, was a glass shelf that displayed elegant fabrics, almost like robes.
On the left side was a stand that held up different types of staffs, crafted from all different woods and materials found throughout the region of Achen.
There was not a single bladed weapon as Houvdon suspected. After all, blades only belonged to the lower ones that were unable to control the might of their magic.
Kryva paused, rubbing her upper arm nervously. "Well, I don't know how to start. I've never actually trained with anyone else before."
The far more experienced magician narrowed his eyes. "You misunderstand Kryva." He stepped forward, walking just past her slightly so she can only see his side. He kept his side to her, closing his eyes concentrating. He felt the familiar pull as thin threads of light form from his fingers. Despite glowing brilliantly from his magic, they were practically invisible.
"Huh?" The syllable left her opened lips in confusion, the male taking this sound as an affirmation to continue.
"When I first trained, I wasn't trained to be stronger." His voice grew cold as he remembered the first days he had used his magic. "I was given a gift that I could never reject in my desperation. Upon receiving my gift, did I know my fate."
His words were mixed, filled with exhaustion yet contained determination. Filled with despair, yet full of blind hope. His words were full of meaning, even if the young girl did not know what his words truly meant.
"I wasn't trained. I was taught how to survive. Only through knowing how to survive, will you truly grow stronger." He turned his head, his amber eyes opening to meet her red and purple.
"I'm going to do the same to you."
Upon those words did her eyes widen. Houvdon turned to her quickly, his fingers pulling on the strings of light he had created. Torches were pulled from their place on the wall, heading straight towards Kryva.
She ducked under the flames threatening to mar her face, only to roll away as blades of light struck the wood where she once squatted at to avoid the torches.
The wooden sticks landed on the hardwood at the same time Houvdon's summoned swords dug into the floor, the flame extinguishing from the torchs' end upon hitting the ground. The swords made of eternal light shattered moments after they struck, akin to glass.
He lifted his right arm so all five fingers were pointed at her. His brow was furrowed, almost as if he didn't believe a noblewoman had just been able to avoid his simple, yet quick and effective attack.
She looked at him, bewildered at his actions, her mind not catching up to her instincts to survive and avoid the danger.
"You wanted to become stronger. This is how I earned the attention of the Delusional lands." He continued to lecture as a dozen blades of light formed behind him in a loose crescent formed from his shoulders up. "And this is how I earned a spot as a candidate to the Council of Nobles."
The blades pointed at her before they shot one after another quickly.
She gasped at how quick they crossed the short distance between them. Despite it only being mere meters, it was still faster than she expected. She threw her hands up, unconsciously conjuring flames in the direction her hands moved. Flames erupted from the ground upwards, forming a sort of barrier between the weapons of light aiming to skewer her.
Every sword shattered the moment it struck her wall of flame. The wall of flame died out only seconds after the last sword shattered as she looked at her hands shakily. She looked back at Houvdon, who only raised up his other hand.
Instead of pointing his other hand at her, he clutched his upper arm. He furrowed his brow as his concentration went deeper.
Her eyes widened as she saw threads of light appear from thin air, almost as if they were already there and had just only been unveiled to the world.
Houvdon pulled his arm towards himself, the threads tightening around her wrists as she found herself being jerked violently to his feet, landing on her front side with a soft "omph".
She looked upwards to see him gazing at her with an unknown expression.
She frowned at herself, disappointed at losing to him in mere seconds.
"A good effort." Houvdon's hand relaxed and the threads wrapped around her wrist faded. "You didn't last very long despite your quick reactions. It is unusual to have such a high reflexes when never fought in a duel before."
He held out his hand for her to grab to pull her upwards to her feet. She reached upwards and grasped his hand. The moment their hands connected, she felt sparks ignite on the skin that had contact with his.
As he pulled his hand back to bring her to her feet, she looked into his eyes to see if there was any sign that he felt the electricity that was in her palm.
His eyes were as emotionless as ever, but she saw something lurking behind his guarded cold eyes.
They stood facing each other, their bodies almost touching each other. Kryva found her legs rooted in place, unable to move away from the man whose face and body would leave any woman's body burn with desire.
He didn't pull away either, his hand remaining clasped with hers, simply staring at her as his eyes studied her face.
She didn't know for how long they stood, just looking into each other's eyes. With every passing moment, she felt her face turn warmer and warmer, until it was on the verge of burning. Simply standing so close to him caused her to turn into those school girls she had read about.
A knock echoed throughout her training room as a servant struck the wood to gain her attention without entering.
"My Lady, are you in there?"
Houvdon pulled away quickly, recovering from the unusual actions he had just performed. He frowned as he looked away from her, choosing to look directly at the door as if he can see through it.
The Princess gave one last look at the Prince, before heading to the door. She opened it to see a frantic servant about to knock a second time.
"Yes? What is the matter?"
The servant was restless, almost unsure of himself. He pushed forward in his message despite his reluctance. "Kirva has asked for me to retrieve you. Something has happened outside."
She looked back at Houvdon, their eyes meeting. She knew that his thoughts were the same as hers, thinking back to just a short while ago when he was in her room.
He had said that something was happening, yet he couldn't pinpoint what exactly besides the strange actions of nature.
He stepped forward and gently pushed Kryva to the side. The servant's eyes widened as he recognized the male that towered over him despite meeting him for the first time. "P-Prince-"
"Take us to Kirva now." His tone was cold, his eyes narrowing at the servant. It differed from the reserved and guarded tone he had used to speak to her just moments before.
The servant looked as if he wanted to question the reason for the presence of such a grand figure well-known throughout the entirety of the Delusional lands, but decided against it. A servant had no right to question a noble's actions or reason.
But most of all, such was the authority of the one recognized as the strongest of the current generation of mages.
"Y-yes sir." The servant continued to stutter. Houvdon walked out almost as if it was normal for him to be within her manor.
Come to think of it, Kryva still hadn't found out how he had managed to get inside of her home, let alone her room. He hadn't sneaked in, it was still evening.
She snapped out of her thoughts and hurriedly followed the quickly moving duo, not wanting to be left behind.
-----
The doorknob turned with a quiet, yet audible sound. The door was pushed open, and the black haired girl with red streaks stepped in. Walking in right after her was the golden haired male.
"Sister...and Houvdon?"
Despite being confused at Houvdon's presence, Kirva Pellemeur did not turn around. He continued to gaze out of the window, looking out into the distance.
"What happened Kirva?" There was no malicious intent when Houvdon said the red-eyed male's name. Instead, his tone was mixed with respect and friendliness.
Kryva didn't know the two of them had already met.
"Why are you of all people here, Houvdon? What business do you have to pay us a visit?" Kirva still did not look at them, almost as if the thing he was viewing would disappear the moment he would take his eyes off of it.
"I was teaching your sister."
"You?" Kirva gave a silent chuckle, his red eyes still looking out into the horizon. "Weren't you the one who declared to the entire school that you cannot teach anyone since your specific technique cannot be taught, only granted? Even Luna has said that you haven't taught her or your friend Zylaorfier anything."
"I wasn't teaching Kryva how I managed to reach such a high proficiency with my magic. I was helping her draw it out in an a situation where she wouldn't have time to think. She impressed me."
Kirva did not continue the subject of her training any longer. Instead, he pointed out of the window. "Houvdon...do you know what is happening out there?"
Kryva stood rooted, her mind still processing the quick exchange between her brother and the Prince. Her mind paralyzed her body in confusion as Houvdon stepped away from her to head to the window.
She was brought back to reality when she heard Houvdon's sharp intake.
"Take a look Kryva." His eyes hardened yet held a hint of disbelief at whatever he and Kirva were looking at. "To think that they would march upon their own lands."
She was forced to press herself to Houvdon's side, as neither he nor her brother moved to make space for her to look out of the window. She attempted to ignore the feeling of his arm's coldness against her own arm. Even if he wasn't warm, she felt herself flush at the closeness between the two.
She let out a gasp as her jaw practically dropped to the floor upon looking at the center of both of the mage's attention, her mind already forgetting of the contact between her and Houvdon.
"What...is happening?"
Marching towards the Pellemeur manor were thousands upon thousands of knights.
-----
𝕮𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 𝕰𝖓𝖉
𝕭𝖊𝖌𝖎𝖓 𝕬𝖗𝖈 յ: 𝕿𝖔 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝕽𝖎𝖘𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝕾𝖚𝖓