"He will be fine. You better train yourself more. The current Rendevis are not the old ones anymore. He will become even stronger than you can imagine." The black sword fell silent again after giving Landelt a warning.
Landelt continued to stare at Rendevis' body. His heart was disappointed because he couldn't train together with Rendevis, his childhood friend.
"Landelt… How long are you going to stand there? Don't you still have work to do?" scolded Anggwen, reminding Landelt of his duty to replace his father who would be late for the meeting.
Landelt gasped in surprise. "Is my father coming soon?"
Anggwen shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. The meeting will take place in the Water Kingdom instead of here, and now there is still enough time before we are too late to get there."
A vortex of wind re-formed enveloping Anggwen until it disappeared from view. Landelt immediately turned his body down through the ground and then disappeared until only a fairly high mound of earth remained. And in an instant the situation there was back to how it was before the chaos.
Rendevis fell unconscious not far from Lordess Faith who was lying not far from where he was. For almost half a day, Rendevis was unconscious. The man seemed to be in a sweet dream and remained motionless even though it was getting late and it was starting to drizzle.
Sweet dreams? Rendevis was running around in his dream. He was dreaming that he was being chased by a python that was very large, black, and had fiery red eyes.
In that dream, Rendevis kept swearing. Crying for the fate of his life which is always being chased, whether it's animals or humans and even invisible creatures. They seemed to be competing to get something from him, which he did not know what it was.
Finally, the man whose clothes were torn here and there was awakened by the raindrops hitting his face.
"Thankfully, the General has finally regained his senses," said Fardemis with relief.
Rendevis woke up from his sleep, blinked his eyes, and then looked around in all directions, looking for something very important to him. When his gaze found the object he was looking for, Rendevis immediately stood up and quickly grabbed a large, black long sword that was fifty meters from where he was.
Wow! Rendevis was shocked and felt so gobsmacked. His body felt lighter this time. He felt he was walking but he was walking on air at an extraordinary speed, making his subordinates chuckle in awe and applaud.
Was this the power that Old Wemble had, which Lordess Faith had then passed on to him?
Shall we continue our journey back, General?" Fardemis looked at Rendevis who was now putting his black sword back into its scabbard, which he placed on his waist."
Rendevis looked up at the sky, which was now starting to turn orange, a sign that twilight had come, becoming a link for a night that would soon replace day.
"The wind was blowing quite hard this afternoon. Maybe it will rain soon. Do we have enough supplies for the next three days?" Rendevis asked Fardemis.
"Enough, General. If we need meat, we can hunt deer or get fish directly from the river…" Fardemis' sentence was cut off when he saw the change in Rendevis' face.
"Is the General all right?"
"I'm fine. Immediately find the right location to set up a tent. Set a maintenance schedule. We take a short break and then in the morning we will continue our journey to the north," ordered Rendevis, which Fardemis immediately carried out.
Rendevis walked down a small river located not far from his resting place with his troops. He began to count the array of stars that stretched in the dark sky above. The atmosphere was starting to get cold, making Rendevis tighten his sweater, which was made of fleece.
Has the meeting started? Then what was the result? Why would the locks of the life elements hold a sudden meeting like this? Rendevis kept thinking about the meeting. Suddenly a voice was heard from behind him.
"Hi, Rendevis…" The gentle greeting made Rendeviis' hair stand on end. I don't like having to meet them at times like this.
"I can hear you, Rendevis…" said the voice again.
"Stop talking with that weird voice!" snapped Rendevis, who instantly silenced the voice.
"What do you need to see me at a time like this?" Rendevis asked without lifting his head. He knew that the person who was talking to him was the one who often made everyone who passed by the river run away.
"Hmm, isn't this the time when we came out of our hiding place, looking for a safer place?" answered the disembodied voice.
"Show yourself, but don't be weird!"
Suddenly out came the figure of an old man with white hair and a long beard that almost touched the water of the river.
"What is it?" Rendevis asked without the slightest preamble, staring intently at the figure in front of him.
The floating old man sat on one of the stones which were slightly smaller in size than the one Rendevis was sitting on. "What are you doing here?" Instead of answering Rendevis' question, the figure asked a question in return.
"If there's no information you can share with me, then get out of here!" expel Rendevis. He didn't have time to chat right now. His body felt extremely tired. Wemble's power, which was now within his body, still needed time to cultivate. He needs energy intake to control it faster.
The old figure tapped his old stick against the water, creating small ripples in the stream. Without further ado, he said something that took Rendevis by surprise.
"Join us, Rendevis. You will be our leader in all regions in any part of the world. All will submit under your orders."
Rendevis stared at the figure very seriously. "Strange offer. After all, who are you speaking on behalf of?"
The figure fell silent.
"I can't enter your world. Your world and mine are very different, and I don't want to ruin my friendship with your leaders. If I join you it will mean that I will die, and become your army. And that will never happen!" said Rendevis firmly.
"You're wrong, Rendevis. What I mean here is not to be my army or anyone from my world, but to be our ally."
"Ally? Why am I your ally? Our world is different. What is our struggle together?"
The figure fell silent and complained in his heart. How hard it is to seduce this man. From the past until now, Rendevis has not received a single offer. All flatly rejected.
"Help us to rule the world!"
Rendevis' body instantly stiffened. He stood up and held the hilt of his sword. "You repeat what you said once again, then this sword will send you straight to hell!" Rendevis hissed furiously.
"W-Loh, W-Why do you have to use a sword? We can have a good talk here?" the figure trembled. Rendevis' black sword prowess was well known throughout the universe. He could directly meet the guardians of hell with just one slash, and that wasn't a good choice for him.
"There's nothing more to talk about. Once again you appear before me and say the same words, then I will not hesitate to invite all of you to fight!" expel Rendevis.
The figure disappeared immediately, without a trace, leaving Rendevis feeling irritated. He kicked a pebble that was right in front of his feet. What exactly are they looking for? Power? Then if they have mastered all, what will they get. Rendevis thought about this over and over again but he couldn't find the answer.
-0-
Rendevis stepped back towards the tent that had been set up by his men. "What are you doing?" He saw some soldiers were grilling fish, while others were preparing the spices they had prepared in their lunch bags.
"Making dinner, General," answered a soldier and then handed Rendevis a glass of hot spiced drink.
"Thank you." Rendevis then sat down with his soldiers, listening to their stories about their wives, occasionally sipping the drink in his hand.
Rendevis listened in silence. The average soldier is still young. Those who are married make up only about ten percent of the total. They usually tell stories about their life after marriage, the envy those who are not married. Rendevis sometimes chuckled with them, imagining what his men were talking about.
Fardemis took his place beside Rendevis. "The general didn't tell the story?" asked the young man, taking a sip of the spiced drink that had just been poured into his glass.
"What am I going to tell you? Every day I'm on the streets. You are the witnesses yourself."
"Hmm, why doesn't the General immediately find a partner? Our lives will become more colorful, General. There will be a scolding of a woman who will disturb our sleep every morning. If it rains heavily, there will be a blanket that will warm us," said Darnis, while practicing his style, which immediately provoked various comments from others.
Rendevis just chuckled. He Had imagined in his mind getting married. However, the shadow of the safety of the woman who would be his companion prevented him from making it happen. It was too dangerous for Rendevis, and he didn't want anything bad to happen to his family. What's more, he is currently the target of many kingdoms.
The night was getting late, and the bonfire in the middle began to dim. Some of the soldiers were already lost in their dreams, except for a few who were on guard duty. Rendevis rose from his seat, past Fardemis who had slumped in his place.
Suddenly the fire that had previously started to dim, now flared again, getting bigger and bigger creating a bright beam of light. Rendevis frowned. Who's visiting in the middle of the night like this?