Village Head's Debauchery

Azarok nodded thoughtfully. "As a god's chosen, I am always prepared for death. Since this seems like a mission of certain death, I was simply ensuring that you were prepared and not leaving anything behind," he responded gruffly.

"Well, you don't need to worry about your Captain being afraid of death because I am more than prepared for it. Nonetheless, some of us might not make it out alive, and the ones who do might do so with life-crippling injuries. So, ensure that everyone is prepared to encounter anything within the Vylkr Veil Phenomenon," the Captain responded.

"What if we encounter a god or demigod?" Azarok asked, furrowing his brows. He was aware that the scale of this disruption could not be produced through ordinary means.

The Captain snorted in response. "If we encounter a god or a demigod, then I'll tie myself to a rope and hang myself because there would be no use fighting. However, you shouldn't be using your delusions to judge our current dilemma as though such beings are like sand and are easy to find. The highest we should be ready to encounter is a Divine apostle, and even that is a stretch considering where we currently are."

"My guess is either two unknown extremely formidable gods' chosens fighting against each other, or we are about to be the first to witness another catastrophe brought on by the emergence of the Vylkr vines. Neither of these is a comforting assumption since it means that we lose the chance to collect the divine artefact and complete this mission," she responded, glancing back at the Sleeping Fox Runaway City in the distance, which remained idle and appeared to make no effort to move from their position.

"Also, I'm beginning to think that the Sleeping Fox Runaway City has not yet sent their gods' chosen ones over because they want to use us to test the waters before making any movements. How irritating!" she added, clicking her tongue against her cheeks in annoyance as she refocused her gaze forward.

Azarok briefly shifted his attention to the Sleeping Fox Runaway City before refocusing on his Captain and nodding. "It's irritating indeed. But unfortunately, there's nothing we can do about it. I'll go and prepare the rest of the unit so they can give their last prayers before we proceed," he replied with a gruff, turning around to walk away and speak with the others.

The Captain nodded, watching him leave before shifting her attention toward the Vylkr veil phenomenon. "Tch!" she clicked her tongue against her cheek in annoyance again as she folded her arms together and calmed down her trembling body.

…........

The Village Chief's Compound

"It's finally over," Orion muttered, his gaze fixed on the unfolding scene above as the Vylkr-infested clouds reclaimed the sky.

Since they were shielded by the Primordial barrier, they saw only the temporarily cleared sky and the distant cyclone of Vylkr energy, at a distance from the floating territory. Orion knew anyone looking up at that moment would have seen it before the darkness returned.

During that brief respite, he failed to catch sight of Aegis of the Arctic Deity or his assailant. At that moment, Orion didn't need confirmation that Aegis of the Arctic Deity was no more.

"He's dead," Orion murmured to himself, his heart heavy with the loss of a god who had left a lasting impact on him since their first meeting.

"Yes, he is. It seems that he sacrificed his life for one final attack to eliminate the last remaining Vylkrspawn that had attacked him," Aerialia responded, her expression filled with sadness.

Aurora shifted her gaze from the sky to Orion. "Are you okay, Orion?" she asked, concern evident in her voice.

"Yes, don't worry, I'm fine," Orion replied, nodding firmly.

"I'm asking because your eyes are a little wet," Aurora pointed out, extending her right hand towards Orion's face to wipe away the tiny tear droplets around his eyes.

"Oh! It's nothing. I might have looked at the sun too long, and it stung my eyes," Orion explained, feeling Aurora's warm palm as she gently wiped away the moisture.

Aurora nodded silently and withdrew her hand once she was done.

"Did any of you notice that other thing as well?" Orion redirected the conversation.

Aurora nodded knowingly. "I saw it too, but I couldn't quite figure out what it was."

"I know what it was," Aerialia interjected, drawing Orion and Aurora's focus.

"You do?" Orion turned to Aerialia, curious about her revelation.

Aerialia nodded, "I initially doubted my eyes, but since both of you saw it too, I must have seen it correctly. What you all just witnessed was the formation of an artefact. As you know, artefacts are created by natural beings or beings who can shape them based on their strengths. While I had my reservations initially, considering the Vylkr energy as a manifestation of the Omnithriallian's will and a destructive force in the natural world, it is still a form of energy."

"Under certain conditions, it's conceivable that Vylkr energy could also produce an artefact. Based on what we've observed, burning a four-star Vylkr vine alongside other Vylkr vines seems to be one of those conditions," Aerialia explained, observing the shocked expressions on Orion and Aurora's faces.

"A Vylkr artifact!" Orion exclaimed, his expression filled with shock and disbelief. "But... there's no way that should be possible," he added.

The Vylkr energy was alreadyextremelyvicious and dangerous, so the idea of it potentially forming an artefact was hard for Orion to accept.

Beside him, Aurora's lips parted in disbelief, her face reflecting astonishment.

"Whether you choose to believe me or not, you witnessed the formation yourself. All that's left is for us to wait until its completion and then confirm whether it's truly a Vylkr artefact," Aerialia responded, shaking her head wearily.

"Doesn't that mean the main reason why the Vylkrspawns appeared here was because of the emergence of a Vylkr artefact?" Orion responded, his eyes widening in realization.