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"Sigh..."
A heavy sigh echoed throughout the dimly lit room as a maimed 26-year-old man named Adam, sat on an expedient bed inside the room. After his sigh, a heavy stillness permeated the entire room. Sounds of wood getting burnt inside the fireplace cackled inside the room along with radiating the much-needed warmth and light in the chilling exuberance of Winter, enough for life to sustain.
Adam was deep in thought about the entire saga of the 4th Hero which he inherently acquired from Hagrid and was busy planning on how he would go about this issue.
Tapping his lifeless leg, Adam pushed himself down and lay on the bed. Closing his eyes, he started contemplating the 4th Hero's fate.
'He did what he said he would do, huh'
'He did live a fulfilling life; full of vibrance and power and yeah...women.But his death seems a bit suspicious to me.'
Adam frowned as the thought of the unnatural death of the 4th Hero entered his mind.
'From what I know, he was a proud man. I don't think he would succumb to such depravity in this new world. Well, I don't know. He was paralysed from the waist down so, maybe he was living life in this new world, perhaps. His S2-S4 nerve pathways* were also blocked so...
'And I can't also overlook any other possible mutations after he emerged from the tower or some other immunological problems he faced. I did get a fever as well.'
'Most people will overlook this but, I didn't get a fever due to the snow. It was due to my body adapting to the new environment. I'm glad it happened or else it would be a problem if I didn't undergo the test of fever every new resident would undergo.'
'But the thing with the 4th Hero....it still makes me a bit suspicious. If the church wanted to kill him then, it's understandable but the thing with his unnatural sex drive and PTSD like after effects....it bothers me..'
"Wait!.."Adam blurted out suddenly as his eyebrows creased and his eyes jerked open, sitting straight up.
'Or..it could be a mutation after he came into this world. Even in my Era, there had been instances where people would undergo mutations in their DNA in every new or challenging environment. Even Basic Evolutionary theory supports it! Yeah...that's not a far-fetched deduction.'
'And this being a new world or to be precise a magical world filled with a cosmic energy called Mana, maybe he underwent some kind of mutation, just like the people who acquired magical powers after the Meteor struck the Earth's surface.'
'But why in his nether region though?.. Shouldn't he grow Dragon horns or revamp into a werewolf or something? It's so confusing...'
'Sigh'
Adam sighed again as he plopped on his bed and closed his eyes.
" Or it could be some curse or an after-effect of using some Heaven-defying ability bestowed upon him by some revered Goddess like the Pope speculated; I don't know... " he muttered.
Adam was in a dilemma as to what happened to his friend in this new world. He might have dismissed this issue as a natural cause of death in a seemingly unnatural world but as a scientist as well as a filial stepson, it was his duty to learn about this new world and uncover its secrets. And the death of his friend fell into that category. At least he had something to work with.
However, despite hearing about the cruel nature of the new world, Adam was excited to explore it. From what he could deduce from the lecture Hagrid gave him, there were tall mountains where Mystical Dragons and Dragonoids resided. Beautiful and charming Elves who lived in the Great Forests, protecting the World Tree and Barbarian Orcs who lived isolated, far away from the hubbub of civilisation, silently prostrating themselves in front of the Great Sun; and many more species like Trolls, Mermaids and so much more!
Adam already had an ambitious glint in his eyes, oozing with vigour as he thought about the fascinating things he would experience and the secrets he would uncover in this new world.
He already dreamt of tall Victorian-Era Castles, a lively tavern where Adventures grouped up and a Bar wench who attended to them, filling their wooden mugs full of cheap beer. A bard stood right beside her, singing the mighty tales of the Great Heros and Mercenaries. Some joined the bard with his singing, while others tried to woo the wench. And with occasional infightings and countless treachery for a mere number of coins. It was lively and full of adventure yet deadly and a playground for the strong; a death bed for the weak.
Adam broke out of his stupor as soon as he thought about death. Sweeping his eyes towards his weak legs, he cracked a broken smile, shaking his head.
"It seems I'm dreaming of Fantasy inside a fantasy," Adam muttered utterly dejected.
However, he wasn't the man to give up easily, so he hardened his face and decided to make plans and live in reality. His face exuded determination and hardened will as he decided to face the world. But first...
He needed power...overwhelming power.... even if he was in a wheelchair. And for that, he decided to consult Hagrid after dinner.
And about Hagrid...
He had a motive behind the narration of the 4th Heros History. And Hagrid revealed his motive but first, he gave an introduction.
Hagrid revealed that he is a 200-year-old Half-giant from the 4th hero's bloodline and a descendent of the 6th Generation of his family of Half-Giants.
As for how this supposedly exiled Heros family came into play? It was due to the Orc Princess. And from here on it was classified information which Hagrid shared with him.
Hagrid said that after the Orc princess escaped from the Empire along with her children and other Harem members, she started traversing through the Exiled lands and chanced upon a dungeon created by the 4th Hero, deep in the forests.
There, along with the other Harem members which amounted to 30, excluding the ones killed in the crossfire during the assassinations and the numerous children, set up a village beside it.
And to prevent any form of retaliation, the Orc Princess naturally made a pact with the Demon Beast Alliance and the Barbarian Orcs of the Exiled lands, effectively acquiring the lands beside it and settling there. However, what she leveraged to stay there, was still a mystery.
And from there on, the village continued to grow effectively.
Fast forward to 200 years in future, the small village had transformed into an Iron fortress akin to a small-sized kingdom. Little by little, under the leadership of the Half breed council headed by the revered princess, turned Half-Orc queen, it thrived extensively. Trade routes were developed, and housing complexes were made. Majestic statues of the 4th Hero were erected as well to honour his sacrifice. But the most development the small kingdom faced over the past couple of years was the sudden influx of half-breed refugees from all across the world as they were mostly slaves and exiled half-breeds left to die in the Exiled lands, which naturally increased the manpower required to run the small kingdom.
It also had quite a sizable army, filled with bloodthirsty half-breeds waiting patiently over the years to wage a crusade on both the Elven and Human Empires, for the numerous atrocities they had been subjected to. Even though the motives of the Orc Queen and the refugees were different, they were united under one banner.
The Banner of Revenge.
The Council was out there, waiting and amassing an army to take revenge on the Human Empire for killing their Hero whereas the common half-breed civilians wanted revenge on both the Elven and Human Empires.
Two different ideologies. Yet the same goal.
Hence, from a Ragtag group of misfits to a small-sized Kingdom.
The Lapsus Kingdom.A home to misfits and refugees.
And Hagrid was a resident of that kingdom.
In fact, he was a servant under one of the core members of the Half Breed council. Hence, he was given the job of finding potential Half Breeds and helping them reach their Kingdom after he fulfilled his militaristic duties in the army as a retirement job.
It was the lowest form of job nonetheless, but Hagrid did it regardless of his relatively high position in the council. Furthermore, he was a powerful Mage!
Adam was astonished to hear that the Half-Giant was a Mage! He expected him to be a Barbarian or a warrior conceivably, but a Mage? It was a real surprise to Adam.
However, after losing his wife and child in the last skirmish against the Human Empire after the death of the 4th Hero, he decided to take up the job of guiding unfortunate half-breeds to a refuge.
A home, perhaps.
Hence, he found Adam.
Adam was already dying by the time he was found and although Hagrid had a duty to find unfortunate half-breeds, he didn't actively pursue them. So, when he saw Adam succumbing to death, he was left behind. However, as soon as he saw the mark on his wrist glowing with a bluish light, it piqued his interest and hence he was saved.
Adam sweeped his eyes off the mark on his wrist and ran his fingers over it. Caressing over the mark, he mentally thanked his Step Father for providing him with the etching or else he wouldn't have survived.
Moving on, Adam also acquired some sensitive knowledge which Hagrid was not allowed to share. Some secrets. Some corruption from the time he was present. And some dirt on some Nobles of the Lapsus Kingdom.
As to why he told him these, it was for a reason.
Hagrid wanted revenge. For the death of his wife and children.
As for what reason he had requested Adam. It was because Adam was not some common half-breed, but his kin.
Hagrid told him that he had been guiding poor Halfbreeds to the Lapsus Kingdom for at least a decade but not once did he find any of his kin among them. As all of the kins of the previous hero were supposed to have gathered inside the kingdom for the last 100 years, it was determined that no other kin was left to incorporate inside the Kingdom.
However, seeing that Adam was, his kin, he decided to save him. Hagrid concluded that if by chance Adam was saved by him, he would be indebted to Hagrid for saving his life and hence he would request Adam for taking his revenge. But on whom? Hagrid didn't say so and would only say it after he accepted his request.
However, it was a futile plan of making someone do your bidding. But, even a beggar held onto the hope for a better life, so why can't Hagrid do so?
Therefore, Hagrid requested Adam to take his revenge and in return, Hagrid would take him to the Kingdom and give him other sensitive information to survive in the Kingdom.
However, if Hagrid was a mage, a powerful one at the very least, why couldn't he take his revenge himself? Why Adam? He could have commissioned someone else, right?
Adam did ask this question to Hagrid as he found it suspicious. But to his surprise, Hagrid revealed a faint smile.
He looked Adam in the eye and said.
"It's not that I don't t want to. But, because I can't do so."
And following that, his entire being started glowing in a purplish hue. The air inside the cabin grew still and a blinding purple light engulfed the entire room.
Adam closed his eyes to prevent the onslaught of light from entering his eyes. However, when the light became relatively dim; he slowly opened his eyes.
And what he saw in front of him, made his eyes turn wide in surprise.
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*[S2-S4 pathway:The nerves that control a man's ability to have a reflex erection are located in the sacral area (S2–S4) of the spinal cord. Most paralyzed men can have a reflex erection with physical stimulation unless the S2–S4 pathway is damaged. Spasticity is known to interfere with sexual activity in some people with SCI. And in the case of the 4th Hero, he was affected in this area. But he was a horny asshole which will be further elaborated on in future chapters.]
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