Sitting atop his throne, King Lancelot was meeting with a courier who was delivering a letter from a faraway Kingdom across the Northern Empire.
The courier appeared scrawny, with baggy eyes, and ruffled hair; it was evident that he hadn't slept in days.
"Why couldn't they send a delivery owl? This letter must be important." Said Lancelot, holding the envelope in his hand.
"Y-Yes sir! I was accompanied by Feerota Kingdom's strongest Knights of the Holy Order to deliver this letter to you!"
Lancelot frowned at his comment. "You will call me 'Lord', young courier, do not bestow the name 'sir' upon me ever again. Is that understood?"
"Y-Yes my lord! I apologize!" He bowed his head, riddled with fear.
"Do not apologize, you didn't know. Just don't make the same mistake again." Lancelot valued his pride above all else, he wouldn't dare have some lowly commoner call him such trivial titles. "Now then, let us see what the King of Feerota has in store for me." Ripping open the envelope, he pulled out a letter, unfolding its contents.
The young courier and guardsmen of the castle were curious, although they didn't show it on their faces.
"Is this some sort of joke?" He lowered his brows into a frown whilst reading the letter. "Is King Vansbo the VII mocking me? Does he take me as some sort of fool?"
"Uhm..." The courier was confused, as was everyone else.
"Men, throw him into the dungeon, this courier will be executed by tomorrow."
"W-What?! Lord Lancelot, please, what did I do?! I was only delivering a letter!"
"I refuse to believe King Vansbo the VII wrote a letter like this! You must be some trickster in disguise!"
The guardsmen of Castle Secace approached the courier but were stopped by the Knights of the Holy Order.
"We cannot let you pass." One of the knights proclaimed.
"You dare defy one of the Legendary Heroes, Holy Knights?" Said Lancelot.
"Our duty is to protect the courier and provide him a safe trip back to the Feerota Kingdom after his delivery. Hero or not, we will not allow you to execute him for your own sadistic pleasure."
"What did you say?" Lancelot stood up from his throne, causing his men to tremble in their legs.
"Guh...! L-Lord Lancelot's willpower is tremendous..." One of the guardsmen said as they fell to their knees.
The entire castle was rumbling from Lancelot's willpower alone. His eyes were brimming with anger, as was his magical aura that shrouded him; dark in its color.
"Our Nucleus' will be reduced to nothingness!" Another guardsman yelled.
"You can threaten us all you want, we will lay down our lives for the courier." A knight stepped forward, their voice feminine underneath their white holy armor.
"Is that so? Ahahahah!" Lancelot laughed, mutating his expression to one of amusement. "Then lay down your life, you shall!"
The Holy Knights readied their weapons against the tyrannical King, but a voice halted them in place.
"That is enough." Stepping through the entrance of the room, her heels echoed across the throne hall, covered in a robe from head to toe.
The mysterious voice stopped Lancelot from engaging in combat. His eyes widened with concern, realizing the familiar voice, which sent shivers up his spine.
"It's you..." He muttered under his breath. "What are you doing here, Merlin?"
"I've come here to tell you the hard truth, Lancelot."
She didn't care for his titles. It mattered naught.
"What do you mean?" Asked the King with a hint of annoyance.
"The letter speaks the truth, whether you like it or not."
"I refuse to believe this nonsense!" Shouted the Hero.
Merlin chuckled underneath her hood, standing between Lancelot and the Holy Knights.
"Ufufufu~! You live in denial. You can never accept the truth, can you?"
"Watch your tongue, Merlin! You may be the strongest magician across Yggdrasil, but I am still a king!"
"Silence."
Her voice was absolute. And as if on command, Lancelot was forced to be silenced before the Great Magician.
"Your former General, Gunavoe, delivered the message to King Vansbo the VII. He was afraid to contact you directly because of your ruthless demeanor, but he is the one who told King Vansbo that Grimhild Yorgana, one of the former Witches of Calamity, will be your opponent."
Lancelot, through sheer willpower, broke through her magic that silenced him.
"So, the Great Mage I heard about across the entire Northern Empire... and the one I sought to fight, was actually one of the Witches of Calamity?"
Merlin nodded her head.
"Indeed. She's one of the strongest mages out there, perhaps equal to my power."
Lancelot's worried expression would contort into a smile. He chuckled and chuckled... before bursting out into laughter.
"Pwa Ha Ha! Magnificent! I found a worthy opponent! Magnificent, magnificent, magnificent!!!" He lifted his arms into the air before slanting his head back, deranged in his expression. "Grimhild Yorgana, Witch of Destruction! I will be the one to defeat you! Our battle will be spectacular, I am sure of it!"
The Holy Knights gasped, as did the guardsmen.
"Do you truly believe you have what it takes to challenge a Witch, Lancelot?" Asked Merlin.
"I am a hero who saved this world alongside my brethren." He lowered his arms, confident in his smirk. "I was once part of Camelot; a proud Kingdom that could destroy even Legendary Dragons." He gazed upon Merlin, chuckling. "This Witch will surely meet her demise. I will be the one to destroy her, unlike King Arthur who failed in his task!"
Merlin grinned.
"Then allow me to grant you this." Lifting her hand, magic swirled above her palm until the shard of a blade manifested.
"Could that be... a piece of Excalibur?" Asked Lancelot.
"Indeed. It is a gift, but do not relay this information to King Arthur, this is between me and you."
Lancelot took the shard of Excalibur, nodding his head.
"Of course. You've always been unpredictable, Merlin. Could this be another one of your schemes?"
She chuckled with a sultry laugh. "Does it look like I'm the type of person to scheme something?"
Lancelot chuckled and faced the Holy Knights.
"Members of the Holy Order, you're dismissed. Tell King Vansbo that I am in his debt."
"Understood." One of the knights bowed their head before escorting the courier outside of Castle Secace.
"So, Gunavoe is still loyal to me even after I banished him from Mesnil Kingdom? Kufufu, he will make a good spy in the future. Perhaps he deserves to be put back into my ranks."
"Finally showing appreciation for once?" Said Merlin, mockingly.
+
Nightfall was upon them. Grimhild, Jean, Kyto, and Elizabeth were steadily traveling through the open plains of the Northern Empire until they reached the entrance of the Ashen Burial Grounds.
The Four Horses of the Apocalypse halted in their tracks, waiting on Grimhild's command.
"We will travel on foot." Said the witch, hopping out of the carriage.
"W-Wait a minute, you can't be serious! Why would we do something so dangerous?" Asked Elizabeth.
"Spirits aren't welcome here." Muttered Grimhild. "The Elohim were buried in these parts, and they tend to dislike the Elufray spirits."
"Huh?" Jean was puzzled. "Didn't you say that was rumors though?"
"No, Jean, I said that their souls 'wandering' these plains are rumors. The Elohim cannot return from their grave after being slain by Excalibur, it's impossible." Grimhild approached the entry into the Ashen Burial Grounds. Ahead of them looked like a barren wasteland with no wildlife and even plants. It was akin to a desert.
"Ah, I see..." Jean hopped off the carriage as Elizabeth and Kyto hesitated.
"Beyond our physical world exists a metaphysical plain where all spirits reside, known as the At'ama; the world of the Elufray and Alufray." Grimhild gazed into the distance, capturing their attention. "The Elufray are spirits born from the fears of the world. They cannot truly die unless the fear they personify is removed from the At'ama, ensuring their immortality as long as mortals fear them. With the Alufray, they're spirits who embody a collective idea that keeps certain aspects of the world functioning." She glanced behind her at the Four Horses of the Apocalypse. "These spirits I summoned are Elufray, the kind of spirits that the Elohim despises."
The Four Horses nodded their head.
"Why the hell would the Elohim despise the Elufray?" Asked Kyto.
"Because the Elufray are known to be violent spirits that would make even the Giants look like saints."
Kyto gazed at the skeletal horses, mutating his expression into confusion.
"You could've fooled me..."
"Where is At'ama located, Grimhild?" Asked Elizabeth.
"Everything within our physical world also has a shadow of itself within a different realm; this realm is the At'ama. It exists on the flip side of Yggdrasil. Think of it like a coin; the physical world is heads, and the spiritual world is tails. It's by far the most important dimension since Spirits can help keep certain parts of the world functioning properly. The Elufray ensures that fears are always maintained so that mortals can keep their survival instinct by responding to danger, allowing them to avoid hazardous scenarios, while the Alufray exists to keep a collective idea true. If any of them were to die, they would only reincarnate within At'ama."
"...They sound unbeatable. Is there a way to kill them? I've never met one except for these horses, but now I'm a bit worried." Asked Kyto out of curiosity.
"Only with certain spells, however, erasing an Elufray spirit's abstract body can remove certain fears of the world, which can bring disorder to Yggdrasil, so I'd advise you to be cautious with how you deal with them."
"You're saying all of this as if we'll be running into a bunch of Elufray spirits, Grimhild..." Muttered Elizabeth.
"Oh." Grimhild glanced at the Rozenheart, smirking. "That's because we are."
"What?!" They all shouted.
"Magicians that made contracts with Elufray spirits have wandered into the Ashen Burial Grounds and had their spirits trapped in these parts from the Elohim's magical power." Grimhild chuckled at the thought. "An Elohim's divine mana is like a poison to the Elufray spirits; it corrodes their body into nothingness. Sadly for them, the Ashen Burial Ground is surrounded by the Elohim's mana like a forcefield, entrapping them for all eternity."
"That's horrible...!" Said Elizabeth.
"Blame the magicians who brought them here without proper knowledge. They most likely summoned their Elufray inside the Ashen Burial Grounds to fight against bandits, but unknowingly trapped their spirits for all of eternity. Once trapped inside this place, a magician cannot retrieve their spirit, nor can a spirit go back to At'ama."
"It's sounding like a bad idea to cross this area..." Proclaimed Kyto.
"You have no choice, this is also a learning experience for you as well. Now then, follow me." Grimhild finally set foot into the Ashen Burial Grounds, moving on to their next adventure.