The old world ended eons ago. The divine war that caused it is known only to the oldest powerhouses of the first generation. Among them were two of the three major churches- The churches of Twilight and The temple of the mind. Each church has a number of archbishops who oversaw their activities. But standing at the very top of the hierarchy were the saints, who were said to be the apostles of their deities. Although, the number of archbishops were unclear, each church had three Saints.
People also believed that the Saints often received revelations from their patron gods and thus it was rumored that the movement of Saints coincided with the will of a deity.
That was the significance of Saint Maria's appearance in Nova City. The gravity of the initially dire situation had now skyrocketed.
Everyone in the room immediately stood to greet the Saint.
"You shouldn't be so alarmed. Despite my choice of attire, my visit shouldn't warrant any conflict at all", Saint Maria spoke with a smile. Her beautiful smile beamed, causing the tense individuals to relax a bit.
"Although that might have been different if any of the other two had come instead", She added causing their tension to climb back up.
"Greetings, Saint Maria. We were just discussing the contents of the message sent by the Church. But we weren't expecting you so soon", Commander Bale spoke.
"I prefer to work fast. I myself received the report just hours ago", the saint responded.
"Normally, it would just be a special team of unshadowed agents led by two archbishops but this situation is a bit different", she added.
"Because of the unidentified group?", Bale asked.
"Precisely. The failure of operation Doom and now the demise of an archbishop, the church has lost much but we managed to gain something this time. Archbishop Walter managed to leaved behind some information before is death", the saint said.
"Are they present here in Nova city?", Reina interjected.
"The church believes so. We initially guessed that one of the top guild masters might have been a member but you all passed the test", Saint Maria said.
"What test?", Norman asked.
"There's no need to be alarmed. Like I said, you already passed. If you had failed, winterbell would have destroyed your soul", She said gesturing to her sword.
Everyone besides the saint looked at the sword as suspended in the air. It pulsed silently, gently washing them with its' power. Each individual had similar thought. What grade was it? How did it test us?, And more importantly was it a Sacred weapon or a Cursed one?
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10:50am, Nova City.
Travelers Haven (Seth's Hotel)
"To what do I owe this unwanted visit?", Seth asked looking at the visitor at his door.
"Why do you always say the harshest things? You haven't changed from our days in the military?", Cain asked with a grin.
"You've been avoiding me every since the dungeon raid", He added.
"I was raised to avoid trouble wherever I find it", Seth replied bluntly.
"Still as blunt as ever I see. Anyways, I want to speak with the old man, can you make that happen?", Cain asked.
"And you're still as callous as ever if you think I can just make that happen", Seth replied.
"Oh but I think you can... newly appointed war bishop of House Dacre and I'm sure the old man will want to hear that I've decided to take Rio as my pupil".
Seth was at a loss for words. "Come in and lock the door".
Taking his gauntlet from a coffee table, he fiddled with it for a few moments.
"This is an unexpected surprise. To think Nova City is not only hosting a saint but also the renowned Cain Volt. To what do I owe this call?", an old voice spoke from the gauntlet.
"If you knew all that, then don't suddenly ask why I'm calling, you old geezer", Cain hissed.
"So you've take an interest in my grandson...why?", the old man asked.
"Maybe I've just decided it's time I take a pupil or maybe I just like him or maybe...just maybe its because your grandson is a natural born sorcerer with both mana and soul cores? And what was the last thing.... I remember now... why is your grandson's soul element chaos?".
The room suddenly got darker, everything suddenly seemed heavier, moving even just a little became harder. Both Seth and Cain found it increasingly hard to breath and almost collapsed to their knees until a sigh escaped from the gauntlet... everything went back to normal.
"To think you've learnt so much in the short time you were with him, well there's no harm in telling you then. As you're aware, House Dacre has produced numerous talents since its genesis as a noble house. Our most recent one, Baron, Rio's older brother, is years ahead of his peers in terms of strength".
Rio's latent talent far exceeds his brothers'. And as you mentioned, he possesses a dreadful soul element. His existence is.... dangerous.
Seth considered everything the patriarch had spoken with a calm demeanor. The patriarch was right, his nephews' existence was conflicting and thus required the attention of all the elders of House Dacre and was also the reason why he had a second mission. His first was issued by the current head of the house, Rio's father to retrieve him while the second was to determine if he posed a threat due to his special nature as a berserker and eliminate him. It was issued by the patriarch himself.
"War Bishop Seth, what is the result of your evaluation?", the patriarch asked.
"The young master appears the same, Elder Zaheer. Natural-born berserkers would have already started showing the usual signs of influence I noticed none of them", Seth replied with a bow.
"They may be hidden or even repressed. I don't have to remind you of the last time something like this happened, Zaheer?", Cain asked.
"I don't think any of the old fossils like me can forget about that. We all played an active role but information about that period has been deemed unnecessary for future generations", Zaheer replied.
"Then what are you planning? By not dealing with this now, you risk the fate of our continent. Can House Dacre deal with the consequences?", Cain asked.
"What am I planning you ask? I simply catering and spoiling my grandson. What grandfather would be able to refuse his grandkids.
Seth, you are permitted to proceed at your discretion. As for you, Cain, what you tell the council is your business but before you condemn my grandson to a life of fear, how about to meet with him again?", Zaheer asked.
"As you wish, Elder", Seth replied with a bow.
"Why would I meet him again?", Cain asked.
"To find another goal maybe or to find some other form of excitement now that you stand at the top of the hierarchy of adventurers?", Zaheer responded with a teasing tone.
"The rankings won't be announced until the year ends, so how the hell do you already know about it, you old geezer", Cain spat out.
"It's a seers' vocation to know about a lot of things".
"Seth, do well to keep Rio away from the saint in the city. And I believe he should be ready to craft his first relic. Instruct him. That will be all".
"I really hate oracles", Cain muttered while Seth simply bowed as the transmission ended.
Seth placed fixed the gauntlet back onto his wrist and sat down to think.
A a few moments Cain asked,
"So what are you going to do?"
"Follow my orders. If the young master is a risk, I will deal with it", Seth replied.
"Don't you mean him?", Cain asked but recieved no response.
Cain started to leave, holding the door knob he said, "Have some pride in your status. You need to learn to stop being so stiff all the time".
"If every mage and sorcerer acted so freely like you, the world would be a more chaotic place, my callous senior".
"Exactly, chaos is what we need for this world that has become such a bore", Cain joked.
"If you're so bored why not challenge a death zone. I'm sure you'd be more than entertained".
"I'm not that bored", Cain replied then vanished.
'So even the great Paragon of Darkness is wary of the death zones. How discouraging', Seth thought.
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Noon, Nova City outskirts
Serpent Fang base
Four of the five heads were presently in the room.
"Where's Tiv?", a brawny man asked.
"She's still reeling from the incident", Claudia responded.
"How the hell were we discovered by agents from the church?", a member named Skar asked.
"No forget that. For now, we have to find out who that guy is", the brawny man said.
"And do what Klaus? We all saw how easily he tore those agents apart. And you want to find him? Why the hell should we do that?", the fourth member spat angrily.
"Relax. For now, we lay low. The city guards and the guild will probably have to deal with the church", Claudia said.
While the meeting was going on. Tiv sat outside the base in silence. A bloody scene was playing over and over again in her mind. The perpetrators' name was unknown. All she remembered was the sound of flesh being torn apart, bones crushing and screams of humans.
She was by no means a good person but that level of brutally felt extreme, even for her.
'We were lucky to get away when we did, or we might have ended up like them', She thought.
Sitting outdoors always helped her gather her thoughts and the cool spring breeze made staying outside all the more pleasant.
'It's a bit cooler than usual. Hopefully, we'll still have nice weather for another month or so', Tiv thought to herself as she casually turned her head.
What she saw was a sword suspended in the air. It emitted a silent but chilly aura. Standing beside it was a breathtaking woman dressed in a simple white and silver armour.
The Grade 1 Cursed Relic, Winterbell, had led Saint Maria right to the den of the Serpent Fangs.
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3pm, Ankewelt City
Inside an unknown tavern, a stranger just finished a bottle of barley beer. The stranger bought some food in a bag and went up to a room.
Upon entering the room, the stranger found a black envelope on the bed. The contents of the letter were brief but after reading them the strange grinned.
The contents were:
Package received, lay low for now. Welcome to the Black Rose, Mr Silas.
With a snap of his fingers, the letter ignited, only ashes remained.