A massive bird of prey blasted out of the cave and was free falling into the bottomless ravine below. Darius' nape hair stood up upon sensing the huge amount of Arcane Energy that was suddenly rising in the area. He knows what he's up against.
'A Rank 1 Mage!' Darius muttered inwardly. 'That fat bastard must have sent one of his dogs to hunt Maria again!'
Darius made a quick decision in a snap of his mind.
"Skallgard. Return to the village, tell our men to prepare for another onslaught." Whispered Darius in Skallgard's ear. He didn't want the Rank 1 Mage inside the cave to notice his arrival.
The mute Archer promptly fled the scene.
Bjorn, on the other hand, unsheathed his longsword. He also knew that he would fight a Rank 1 Mage anytime soon, however, he was undaunted even in the face of the bleakest moment like this.
Likewise, Darius also drew his father's anti-mage sword from its scabbard. He didn't quite understand the attributes of his sword, but it proved able to nullify any magic to an extent.
The two nodded at each other, then proceeded to climb the cliff to reach the cave a few hundred feet above them.
Upon reaching the entrance, they found Barley was laid weakly, his body was full of scratch wounds, Darius was glad that Mr. Barley was still breathing.
Darius' attention shifted toward the blonde young man who was squatting beside Barley, applying healing magic to his body.
The blonde young man was around Darius' age, a tad older, maybe.
His slender and tall figure was donned in a red winter cloak, accentuated with gold lining on the edge. A handful of nobility badges and medals hung on his left chest. A proud noble who didn't even bother to hide his identity.
His eyes were as bright as the blue sky in summer. He seemed like a calm and reasonable person, however, he exuded an aura that made Darius shiver.
"Hm?" The blonde young man turned his head, gazing at Darius. "You must be the new Chief of Undine Village, I presume?"
Darius tightened his grip on the handle and readied his stance.
"Relax, I mean this old man no harm, at least for now. He was lucky, the Sea Halberd didn't flock to him when I arrived." Said the blonde young man.
"My name is Geoffrey, the Knight-in-chief of Alesund City. And as for why I am here, I do believe you might have figured it out."
Though Geoffrey was a very charismatic and well-spoken person, somehow, Darius could sense the devious insanity that lurked beneath the blonde young man's charming smile.
'This man is not a simple Rank 1 Mage!' Darius thought.
He brandished the anti-mage sword frontward as the blonde young man walked toward him.
"Take one more step, I dare you."
Geoffrey raised one of his eyebrows, "Bold, I like it… If we ought to fight here, you might survive my spell, but how about the two? They wouldn't even have the chance."
Darius gritted his teeth, Geoffrey was right, as mere mortals, Bjorn and Barley were likely to become collateral in their fight.
"I just want to talk with the Flame Heart lady. I shall guarantee the lives of your people, I promise."
Bjorn promptly whispered in Darius' ear. "Don't fall into his scheme, Chief. All nobles are double-headed snakes! We can't trust his words."
Darius nodded, he understood what Bjorn was trying to imply. Yet again, Darius didn't have any choice left.
"Take Mr. Barley with you and tell 'her' to come here, alone."
"But… Chief—" Bjorn was hesitant, but he then understood the weight of Darius' responsibility to keep the village safe.
***
By the time Bjorn returned to the village, he wasted no time and informed Maria about the situation. Maria rummaged the tool cupboard, hiding a dagger in the fold of her dress. If things went south, she would not yield without a fight.
When she left the house, the villagers, meanwhile, were well prepared for the upcoming onslaught that might come once more.
Aunty Esther stepped out from the crowd, she gave Maria a small leather pouch. "Here, take this poison with you."
Maria squinted her eyes as she opened the pouch. It was powdered Autumn Death Cap Mushroom, a very poisonous one that could even kill an adult wolf in a minute.
"Thank you, Aunt Esther."
Thus, Maria and the thick-bearded man headed to the Westiff and arrived a few hours before dark.
Maria tightened the rope around her waist and climbed the cliff alone, trusting herself with just a single rope. Even though she rarely had physical training, she was quite agile and reached the cave's entrance a few moments later.
She then found Darius staring daggers at the blonde young man before him.
"Darius?" Maria was bemused, why would he be alone with a noble inside the cave?
"Lady Flame Heart," Geoffrey bowed eloquently, he then tried to reach Maria's hand but was halted by Darius' sword right on his neck.
"You came to speak." Darius glared at him. "Speak."
Geoffrey sighed, "His Excellency, Baron Roger Von Gill, had bestowed me a mission to bring the Flame Heart to Alesund. Both of you must be wondering why that fat piggy is obsessed with her heart, right?"
Darius and Maria were silent, this very question had been buried deep in their mind.
"Oh my… You both don't know?" Geoffrey chuckled. "Fine, I will humor you two."
"Flame Heart, the Eldunari, is a crystalized heart of a dragon. And you, milady, as the last Roseflame that inherited the dragon's heart, you should know how many people out there who sought the last Flame Heart."
Although it was new for Darius, he remained calm and assessed the situation objectively.
Geoffrey, on the other hand, his true nature began to slip, he was so excited to play with their mind.
"However! I hate it if I had to spill innocent blood. So, Lady Flame Heart, would you come with me to Alesund in peace? I will guarantee your safety, and of course, your chastity from that fat piggy. We need you to awaken your power that has been in slumber within this forsaken village!"
While Darius' logic was in sway due to Geoffrey's honeyed words that seemed able to hypnotize him, Alexa, the Magical AI woman chimed in to clear Darius' mind.
[He's lying, Master Darius! You are under the influence of his Vox Elemental magic!]