Emperor's Reckoning

"Oi orc chief!" shouted Nora before he gritted his teeth. The orc was his strongest bet to find that blonde woman. He still couldn't believe how it would only take one glance away before she was gone right before their very eyes. (They are quick on their feet).

"What is it?"

"Use your senses! Track the woman down!" shouted Nora. "Why are you wasting your time with her? Don't you realize the clock is ticking! And every second it does!" He furrowed his brows as he said solemnly, "He is inching closer!"

(Crap!) Sylviana gritted her teeth. Combined with the fatigue that she had and the constant excruciating battle that she fought internally, she was on the brink of losing it. Her shoulders could no longer be stiffened as her fingers started to slip from the infamous spear.

"Hmm!" the orc made a low growl as he furrowed his brows.

(Shit, he is going for older sister!) thought Jugen before he made a forced smirk. "I see that you are afraid of him."

"Hmm? What are you talking about you straw?" the chief orc immediately answered back.

Everyone else was nodding at Jugen. The nearest ones could see the shaking of his feet, and they couldn't help but be proud of their marksman. One slap was definitely enough to erase his soul out of this life, but he tried his best not to break his voice with cold sweat coursing down from his temples. The true meaning of courage was being displayed by the ones that stood the farthest from the battlefield.

"Hmph! Speak for yourself! I just don't want any necessary troubles!" answered the chief orc as he closed his eyes. However, his ears immediately twitched before he caught an arrow that was about to puncture his eyelids. "What are you planning?" he broke the arrow-like a twig with a pinch of his thumb.

(That idiot) thought Nora before he looked at the idle orcs, "Oi! You guys! Go and find her!"

"Y-Yes!" the orc immediately spread out their senses wide.

"I found it! She is at the nearby forest!" said one orc.

"He is right! I sensed her there too!" added another one.

"Good!" the chief grinned before he gave a Jugen a glare. "I will have your head later."

The orc turned and looked at the nearby forest. There was literally no one that could stop him from advancing, however, his brows furrowed as a maid stood right in front of her. "And who are you?"

Fei bowed, "It doesn't matter who I am, I am who I am." she smiled.

"It seems like you're asking to die here," uttered the orc.

"Fei!" Sylviana shouted. "What are you doing?! Get out of there."

Fei feigned to hear her master's word. She was smiling, looking at the giant orc in front of her. She couldn't feel the tremendous power that was withheld inside the green-skinned, but perhaps it was for the best.

"You shall not pass here without my death."

"Then die!" shouted Nora.

"As if!" Argeon immediately intercepted Nora's move in an instant.

"Tch! You rendering fool! Why don't you get it! I'm here for a noble cause!"

"It doesn't look noble to me," answered Argeon. "Me being a principal of an academy where I rarely showed up is nobler than whatever you're doing, after all, if you're so noble, then why do you need to hide behind a mask?"

"Speak for yourself, this is our group code."

"Well, you're code is shit!"

"Hmph!" Nora kicked Argeon right in the abdomens to the latter's surprise. Their cultivation level had a gap like that of the moon and the earth. There was hardly anything that he could do than lay down his body right at him. Every second was precious.

Argeon immediately lost his conciousness as he fell with a thud. (Fuck) was his last thought before he closed his eyes.

"We have no more time to waste! Go get her!" (Why are the others taking so long? Are those guardians really that hard to deal with).

"Shut up!" the chieftain replied as he crossed his arms. "You guys hold the line here, I will get her myself."

Fei immediately put one foot forward with one knife in her hand.

"You're not alone little Fei," the trio immediately got together as they stood right beside her.

"My hips might break, but at least it would take a leader of an orc to do so, not pathetically fell down in a bathroom," uttered Crux.

"Useless!" The chief didn't let another word spurt out from their mouth as he leaped against the sky.

"Not so fast!" Fei and the rest immediately jumped to intercept his advance.

"Hmph!" the orc snorted before he slapped them away with his arms. Their mana-coat protection immediately shredded before the four of them came crashing to the ground. There was hardly any resistance at all.

"Damn, they didn't stand a chance," uttered Jugen as he helplessly saw the chieftain advancing further into the forest. "Godspeed Fenrir."

...

"They are really buying every second they can get," uttered Connak.

"I think they are too late, that stupidly powerful orc is going after her, there is no wa— Huh?" the king raised his brows before he darted to the side and saw a dove go past them. "A dove..?"

"Is there something that you find off, Your Majesty?" asked Agist.

"That bird, I don't think a dove would fly across this region."

"Hmm, that is odd, Your Majesty," Connak nodded.

...

"Clemora did you hear?!" Biane crashed open the door to her sister's office.

Clemora immediately nodded, "I just received the news, we shall aid."

"En!" Biane nodded. "I have assembled the army, all they need now is our approval."

Clemora nodded, "We will use our Returning Jade Stone to get there as fast as possible."

"We only have twenty, Returning Jade Stone, the rest will have to rush there on their own," added Biane.

"Then we will do that, big sister," said Clemora as she stood up. "Please lead."

"En," Biane nodded before she surprised Clemora by walking to her balcony.

(Wait a minute... you assembled right at the back of my office?!).

"We are going!" shouted Biane as she held her greatsword with one hand. "There are only twenty Returning Jade, two will be used by us! The rest, you guys decide! For those that have not had the chance to use Returning Jade Stone, we all will wait for your arrival in Nostria! Godspeed!" she crushed the stone in her hand before shooting toward the sky amidst the cheers of her army.

"Heh," Clemora smirked before her smile vanished as she darted at the army, "Don't be late."

She immediately followed her big sister before the blushes of their army.

...

"A cloaked person has been sighted in Nostria, they are in great peril as of right now," said Riku as she bowed at a figure whose pupils are vertical.

Her words brought a tremble to the person she was talking to. "Cloaked person, you say?"

"That's right, the orcs are working together with a cloaked person, the recent blasts and black clouds hovering on top of their kingdom further intensify the truth of this matter. Nostria is under attack."

"Then the Mist Clan shall answer," the woman stood up. "As the head of the Mist Clan, tell all of our swordsman and swordswomen, elders, and the like! Nostria is the symbol of Deo, if they could take that down, then forever our world will be bullied! Immediate action!"

"Yes, Master Reka!!"

...

"Princess Aelina! Words have traveled from our friends that Nostria is under attack," said one of the guards as he said over a door.

"What?!" she raised her brows, "Is that true? What did father do?"

"His majesty immediately gave out an order to aid the kingdom, princess, with the prince leading them."

"Alright, thank you for your information, you may leave."

"Yes, princess."

"What should I do..." Aelina put her hand across her heart before she closed her eyes. Sounds of waves immediately crashed against her mind as she was drowning in her own reverie. The strong back where she coiled her arms around his neck. The atmosphere of the wild storm as he climbed up the impossible cliffs.

The princess opened her sharp eyes. "I have to do what I believe is right to do, you might have soared to the heavens, but look at me. I shall prove it to you, that I'm better than Luna!"

She leered at the pristine armor in her room before she saw her own reflection on that metal.

...

Meanwhile inside the forest.

Fenrir was coursing the forest tirelessly with Karina dragging the dirt on her clothes.

"Wu?" his ears thumped as he heard a tree tumbling down from the path behind him.

"Grr!!" he glared forward as he pumped his legs at a faster rate.

"R... Run... Away... Fenrir," a weak voice made his goosebumps rose as he leered over to the woman he was dragging.