Liantinsind slapped his frog. "Fentasen, you cheater!"
The rest of the botsahopper leaped across the rip. Nallil also didn't hesitate to follow despite his earlier complaint. The jump did not end immediately, as they still soared in an upward arc with the wind blowing their face. His soldiers did not express fear in their expressions. Death was just not enough of a deterrent. His lieutenants, on the other hand, had smiles all over their faces as they called each other out.
"Fentasen, get back Here! Or I'm gonna have to jump on your frog," Liantinsind said.
Fentasen grabbed his bow. "Come here if you can. But I'll be sure to put some arrows in your mouth!
Luntelo waved his sword. "Guys, I don't think fighting in this situation is wise."
Jidan tied his long silver hair to prevent them from flapping around. "Let them be, Luntelo. Why don't we have a short spar right now, it'll be a while before we land on the other side."
"No thanks, I prefer we spar when we have a solid ground."
"In that case, why don't you spar with me?" Iadrev stood on his frog and spun his halberd.
Jidan brandished his silver rapier. "You have less advantage in this environment. Are you sure you want to spar?"
"Worry about your own butt, Jidan. Come on, let us fight."
"Sir, is it okay to let them fight in this situation?" Nallil asked.
"If I don't let them fight, won't they get rusty?" Deridiv replied.
Nallil nodded and didn't ask any more questions.
Jidan stood up, one hand behind his back while the other hand pointed a rapier toward his opponent. "Don't cry for help if you fall." He dashed forward. His speed gave him enough momentum to land on the frog without jumping.
"You're quick like an eel. But my weapon can cut you up!"
Iadred whipped his halberd. His target was the thin man. The attack was heavy and sharp. Such was the advantage of using a halberd. If it failed to cut the enemy, it would devastate them with its weight.
"You are slow as ever, Iadred. Even a soilcreep is faster than you." Jidan dodged the strike with a smile. Clearly, the attack didn't mean much to him.
"Comparing me to a pest! You really do have a silver tongue."
Both of them fought on the frog as they all started to arc downward. Their battle would end in a draw, just like their every spar. The change in the environment didn't mean much to them. Even if they fought underwater, they still could fight at full capacity. Deridiv had made sure to train his men in any setting, though he never thought of an aerial fight. Maybe he should implement that to accommodate future combat.
"Fentasen, get back here!"
"Why don't you come here instead? Don't tell me your fat butt can't make it here."
They were still arguing? Usually, they would already be clashing blows by now. Deridiv looked at Liatinsind's behind. Maybe his big butt truly prevented him from jumping. No that wasn't possible.
"Say one more thing about my butt, and I will make you smell it!."
Fentasen grinned. "Come here, then. I will make sure to plug that nasty hole with my arrows."
Brandishing his hammer, Liantinsind stood up and bent his knees. "Here I come!"
"As I would let you!"
An energy arrow shot toward the hammer, disrupting Lian from jumping toward his opponent.
"You cheater!"
More arrows came pouring in at the strong but fat man. He swung his hammer left and right, sending shock waves in the air that knocked all the arrows that came at him.
"You sure don't want to join them, Luntelo?" Deridiv asked.
The blond man shook his head. "I'm good, general."
"What about you, Nallil?"
"I'm good too, general."
Deridiv nodded. If they don't want to play, then he wouldn't force them. A play was something to do for fun. Forcing them wouldn't make it a fun experience. Though he should give them some suggestions to do something fun once in a while. Besides, both of them seemed compatible with each other. Luntelo was a master in the sword. And he would be a perfect teacher for Nallil who had some interest in learning sword techniques.
"Luntelo," Deridiv said.
"Yes, general?"
"Why don't you teach Nallil a thing or two about your art."
Luntelo inspected the young man from top to bottom before he nodded. "He does have some talent. I will teach him my techniques."
Nallil's eyes went wide.
"Don't be too excited, young man," Deridiv said.
"No, it's not that, sir." Nallil furrowed his eyebrows. "It's just, I feel like we are falling to the abyss."
Deridiv looked down toward the abyss where their fall trajectory was headed. And then he looked forward where the land on the other side was still a few kilometers away. Well, the botsahopper could jump twice in mid-air so it was not a problem. But it seemed Nallil did not know about that yet. Then Deridiv should give him an important life lesson for the day.
"Yes, we are falling to the abyss. But what is the problem?" Deridiv said.
Luntelo also looked at the young man with a questioning gaze. This man had always acted modest and such but had some things about pulling off pranks on others.
"Sir, the problem is we are falling to the abyss," Nallil said.
"And?" Deridiv asked.
Nallil blinked a few times. "Shouldn't we do something?"
"Why are you so scared?" Luntelo said. "If falling into the World Rip could scare you, I'm afraid you would not go far in the art of the sword."
Deridiv held his laughter when he looked at Nallil's confused expression. The young man must be in turmoil right now. He probably regretted joining the black legion where everyone was a madman, hahaha.
Nallil sighed. "At least I would die among my heroes," he whispered.
Hero. Now that made him feel bad for the man. Nallil thought of him as a hero but he made fun of him instead. Childish. Truly Childish.
The botsahopper fell to the abyss, darkness almost engulfing their entire squadron.
Nallil closed his eyes and grabbed Deridiv's arm.
And then the giant frog kicked up the air and soared into the sky once again.
The wind blew toward the young man's face. It revealed not fear, not bravery, but... pity.
"You may open your eyes, Nallil," Deridiv said.
Nallil opened his eyes. "We are not falling?!"
"Of course not. This frog can jump in mid-air," Deridiv said.
"I... I see." Nallil smiled. "Thank you, general."
"What for?" Deridiv asked.
"For everything you've done for this kingdom. I've had some doubts about this fight against the rebels. You killed a lot of people, general. Our people. But then I realized. The rebels are traitors. They are not part of us anymore. Enemies. That is what they are to us."
Deridiv set his gaze forward. Were they truly enemies? He didn't know. He couldn't think. It was hard to think about. And he couldn't help but recall something his father had said: Your fight will be harder, son. For your enemies will come from within.
My enemies come from within... so they are the enemy.
"Yes, Nallil. They are the enemy. They threatened the integrity of our kingdom. And we need to eliminate them before more and more of our friends get swayed.
The ground became closer as the frog arced downward. When they landed, the ground shook and burst. Dirt and grass were thrown away by the impact.
Truly, this thing wasn't environmentally friendly. It was a pity that the prairie would be destroyed. But he had no choice.
Deridiv took off his helmet. It was a full-type plate that covered his entire face with a ring of spikes on top. The protection wasn't that good and he mainly used it to give fear to the enemies. Years of experience taught him that it was quite effective.
"Let's go. We have a city to take."
They continued their journey. And one hour later, they arrive in front of a tall wall made of black stone.
"Is this the city?" Deridiv asked.
"I don't know, sir," Nallil said. The black scouts did not tell me the specific description of the city."
Deridiv set his gaze toward the top of the wall. "When they say isolated city. I did not know what they meant was a cage."
The enormous wall covered everything within it. With its height, no amount of skill would be enough to climb it.
"Sir, there is a hole on the wall."
A few meters beside the closed gate was a hole large enough for two adult doomhound to pass through. The rebel forces didn't bother to fix the wall. But why?
"Let's enter the city," Deridiv said.
The botsahopper crawled toward the wall. Their versatile ability impressed Deridiv. Going to Deathland was a worthwhile trip. He should tame more of these creatures.
When they entered the city, nothing particular caught their eyes. People walked around the street. They wore the same clothes any commoner would wear—a leather jacket, a simple shirt, and pants.
Deridiv passed a meat seller that looked at him with a frown.
"There's no sign of the rebel forces here," Nallil said.
Luntelo bumped into a pedestrian and quickly helped her to her feet. The woman tipped her wide-brimmed hat with a smile. "I apologize," she said before leaving.
"The economy seems bad," Luntelo said.
"Why? There's a lot of people buying and selling in this place," Nallil asked.
"That woman earlier tried to steal my pocket knife. I don't think any sane person would try to rob a full-plated soldier with a huge sword on his back."
"What do you think, Jidan?" Deridiv asked.
The man flicked his green eyes left and right. "The rebel forces are here. But they're hiding. Look at what the people sell. Do you see any ironware?"
The various stalls on the side of the road primarily sold food and consumables. There were some that offered leather bags and cheap clothes. But Deridiv only saw two stalls of their kind. They looked around to look for any signs of someone selling anything made out of metal.
"Maybe they're not in this section of the market?" Deridiv said.
Jidan shook his head. "This is the only section the market has."
"What's the big deal? So what if they don't sell ironware?"
Jidan raised two fingers. "There are two possibilities. One, the city does not produce any metal. Two, the rebel forces are taking the metal to create weapons for their army."
"Let's ask someone if that is true," Deridiv said.
Jidan grabbed his hand. "Don't. Watch their eyes, Deridiv. How do they look at you?"
It was subtle but anywhere he looked, people would give him a side glance.
"If you think it was because of your armor, then you are wrong," Jidan said. He moved closer to his ear. "All of these people are our enemies."