The Ancients World

Sally stands up and draws her sword. I smile and stand up myself. I flex my wings and get ready to try out her new power. "I'm going to test my new skill out on you. Hopefully, this time I can do something to those wings." I chuckle, knowing that she can't. Her class is strong, but her weapon has to be legendary or higher to damage my wings. I get into a defensive stance and use my hand to tell her to bring it.

She bursts forth with speed she didn't have before. I bring my wings up to block her attack, and she collides with them hard, but I feel no pain in my wings and no drop in health. "You have way too much power for the level that you are..." I give her a head tilt knowing she is right. I have way more power than Blue Chaos ever did when he had this class to start out. The potential of my power is several times higher than his ever was.

She jumps back and quits attacking. She isn't even tired out from the heavy assault she produced. I flex my entire body, including my wings, and launch at her with speed she couldn't keep up with before. She dodges and avoids the swings of my wings. She is moving much faster now. She definitely got a huge stat boost from the legacy class. "You are much stronger now, Sally. You have access to real power now, and you can do whatever you want with it." She grins with happiness when I say that.

Sally is a sweet and kind person despite what happened to her as a child and the years that followed. It takes an incredible will and desire to live to come out the way she did. She jumps back and sheaths her weapon. "It's all thanks to your help. I wouldn't have been here now if you didn't ask me to come with you. It's like fate brought us together..." I know that she likes me a lot, and she knows I know. She has attempted to get me to feel the same way, but I don't.

I relax my wings and fold them slightly behind my back. They aren't toggled off, just out of the way. "One's life is determined by the choices one makes. I chose to invite you along, but you chose to join me. You only have yourself to thank. You'd still be working in that inn if you decided to ignore the offer. It was your own faith that there are good people out there not out to hurt you. You have gone through more personal growth than I ever could." She blushes at my words.

I'm not trying to get her to blush. She needs to hear how far she has come. It can really help a person with issues if you tell them the good things they have done, to show them that they are a better person than they think themselves to be. "You'll give a girl the wrong idea with words that sweet..." I chuckle as she says that. She gives a light one too. "Now that we have completed this, is it time for The Holy City?" I nod my head slowly as she looks at me.

Some of the most influential and richest people reside in The Holy City. Not only are the people born from noble blood obsessed with blood purity. They are extremely racist to other species and non-noble pure-bloods. "You must already know about the state The Holy City is in with that expression. I won't force you to go, Sally... I'm not liking the idea of walking around a bunch of racists. I have to, though, to get my mana aura." She looks at me in annoyance and huffs as she turns her head away.

I don't think that was what she wanted to hear. "I'm going to be there for you, Zern. After all, you've done for me, how can I abandon the mission because of some racists assholes. You are not getting rid of me that easily, Zern." I should've known better. I wanted to give her one last out before it gets tough. She walks up to me and hugs me. Her forehead comes up to my bottom lip. She is much taller than most women. "I care about you... No matter what happens, I'm sticking right by your side..." I put my right hand on top of her head and wrap my left arm around her.

The least I can do is hug her back. She hugs me longer than I'd like her to, but I'll let it slide. The moments we have spent together are probably the most trust she has shown a man. I can't throw that back in her face right now. "Enough of this mushy crap. Let's get a move on. I want to get to The Holy City by tomorrow morning." She lets go and looks up at me with damp eyes. She dries them and nods her head.

I kneel on the ground, and she climbs on my back. I launch off the ground once she is secure and quickly reach an altitude above the clouds. "I'm never going to get tired of this..." I hear her whisper as we fly at a slower speed than our journey to the fairy kingdom. Instead of sitting up, she lays on my back and hugs me tightly from behind. She is taking advantage of the situation. I can tell her to stop, but I'm not that cold-hearted. I'll let her cling from the ride. As Cera and Sally travel to The Holy City, there is a meeting about the war. It's between all the rulers and the church. Many are present with holograms. The Pope is the first to speak, listing off the reports from the most recent conflict.

This war has started up again from its previous silent state. From these reports, the monsters have even stronger creatures and larger forces. Many civilians are looking to the church for support. As the Pope, it's my job to fulfill the people's needs to the best of my abilities. "I just sent copies of the reports to all of you. Please read through them and speak your mind as you please." Multiple copies are sent out at my command, and many are silently reading the reports.

The news is dire indeed. The war is going to escalate soon. We will mount an offensive of our own if we wish to win this war. Constantly defending against attacks will only make us weaker in the long term. "I heard that the monster forces had been bolstered, but not to this degree..." Queen Fiona Heartfire the 1st speaks her thoughts out loud. Her country is having an economic boom thanks to the fairy's new kingdom. Many smaller countries are demanding aid from her. She has yet to respond to any of them.

The country of Salamander will be a hub of new activity for a very long time. Fiona is lucky to have them in her kingdom. "As you can see from the reports and the countries that have suffered attacks, the enemy is getting stronger. I want to propose an idea to all of you." I hope they'll give this a chance. Many stay silent, waiting for my words. "I say we launch full-scale invasions of the countries that have already been taken or are close to it. We need to show the people and monsters we aren't going to sit around and allow all this to happen." Many stay silent at my proclamation.

However, none are openly objecting. The problem is moving such large forces in unison and establishing a new chain of command. If all the kingdoms combine their efforts, then the force we'll have will be stronger than anything before it. The only problem with this is the coalition. "I understand what you are saying, Alex, but the coalition isn't going anywhere. So we'll all have to discuss a way around it." Gregory already knows what this topic implies.

I'm more than willing to leave the coalition alone, but I have to step on some toes with this war. "If any of you have an idea on how we can work around this, please speak your minds. The sooner the kingdom's forces are combined, the faster we can retaliate in this war." Many mute their holograms so they can speak with their advisors and generals. This might be the day we see the first unification of all human kingdoms since the great war thousands of years ago.

The holograms unmute, and I hear Gregory speak first. "The coalition and the remaining kingdoms aligned with the church are will to combine forces, on one condition though." The church can fulfill most things, and it shouldn't be too hard. "We want the cooperation of the elven kingdoms. Their magic and fighter will greatly help bolster our forces. I know that this entails what you and the church consider heresy, but this is the condition we have laid out. Contact me or any of the coalition members when you have come to a decision." All of the holograms turn off in that instant.

I'm very upset right now, and at the same time understanding. The help of the elves will tip this war in our favor. I'll talk to the council about it, until then. I have much to go over with reports about the war. Hopefully, the son is revealed soon, he could help us greatly in this war. I'm going to start losing my hair if the stress continues to be this bad. I don't do bald.