Chapter 25 - Seperation

Blüt lurched up, heavy body unable to control itself as he flung backwards, falling flat onto his backside. His face had changed, expression blank as if all the malice in him had been erased. He was almost childlike.

He stumbled to his feet, legs still uneasy like a toddler learning to walk. Cluelessly, he scanned the village, finally getting his magical assailant within view. Luna shivered under his gaze. Even though he clearly wasn’t operating at full capacity, there was such innate evil in his eyes.

She wasn’t subject to it for long. Blüt turned, simply walking out of the village and into the dark forest, parting the trees with his bulging body as he left. For hours after, rustling leaves could still be heard, growing ever more distant.

The adrenaline faded from everyone. Luna leaned against a building, breathing heavily. She had exerted herself, but that wasn’t why she was hyperventilating.

Blüt had died. She watched it happen. She made it happen. Her perception of reality was so warped by what she had seen, she simply couldn’t comprehend the world around her anymore. If she lived in a world where dead men could rise…

Sol on the other hand, collapsed from pure exhaustion, his decimated body finally giving out. His arms no longer functioned, flopping at his sides like deflated balloons.

Clint alone remained upright, the fire that was Marrie’s home the only thing standing with him.

Sol’s eyes flickered open, something warm spreading across his back. Instinctually he righted himself with his arms, flinging himself into a sitting position. It took him a minute to realise that he shouldn’t have been able to do that.

He found Marrie kneeled behind him, an embracing healing magic pouring out from her hands and into his body. It was different to Renee’s, less practical and learned, more thorough and consuming, the same sensation as a hot drink on a cold day.

It was also far beyond what an ordinary Auf should be capable of. Though this was of little concern to Luna at this moment. Though she had finally accepted Blüt’s resurrection, she still struggled to decipher what exactly she had felt when casting Detect Magic. “I’ve never felt anything like that before…” She muttered, retreating into her thoughts.

“That magic was so powerful, it totally overwhelmed me. It hijacked a simple Detect Magic and turned it into some kind of distress signal.” She monologued internally “I’m supposed to have the greatest mana reserves in Gallia. For someone to totally overwhelm me magically. That shouldn’t be possible…”. She stopped herself on that last thought. Since meeting Clint, she had learned to doubt the very concept of impossibility.

“In that case. I have to just accept it. As insane as it seems, that impossibility happened. Along with one other.” She thought, placing a hand on her chin and staring into space. “There was another impossibility too. Even though his brain was destroyed, Blüt rose from the dead.” She nodded, the pieces coming together now. “They have to be connected. Whatever Blüt’s regeneration is, it's not his own. There’s no way someone could cast a spell post-mortem like that… Maybe some fringe cases, but to heal their own body? No, the caster must be someone external.” She concluded.

She would spend the next night pondering this possibility, attempting to draw connections to the vague memories of a little girl she had seen, but she found only one conclusion. “No matter what, that Ogre needs to die.”

The atmosphere in the village was strange. Opinion was split on whether it was a victory or a defeat. Of course the Ogre survived and Marrie’s tavern was lost, but in terms of Blüt’s visits, it was a relatively successful one, with no blood shed and only one building destroyed.

To Marrie though, this was nothing but the absolute worst case scenario. Blüt had taken everything from her. Everything but the picture she had saved, which she held so tightly to her chest that no one could ever catch a glimpse of it.

Everyone in the village was sympathetic to her, and grateful to the adventurers who had fought back the Ogre, so they were given stay in the mayor’s home for the night. His house was one of the only other buildings not destroyed in one of Blüt’s rampages, original roof and walls still intact. It was spacious too, having enough room even for the larger humans, though they all had to share a bedroom.

It was an uneasy rest where no one could quite get to sleep. Sol and Luna sat cross-legged, staring into the floorboards below, while Marrie clung to her picture still. As before, only Clint remained standing.

Eventually, Sol spoke up. “Marrie, how long has Blüt been ruling this village?”

“Eight years.” She answered instantly, taking no time at all to recall the number.

“Eight years… This whole time, part of Gallia has been ruled by a vassal of the Demon King? How didn’t we know about this?” Sol lamented.

“The Adventurer’s Guild was destroyed. No one ever reported it.” Luna added, not really answering.

“Yes, but that doesn’t make sense either! Someone surely must have noticed in all that time! It’s impossible for this kind of information not to get out!” Sol bit his thumbnail, struggling with the conundrum.

“He doesn’t allow us to tell outsiders. It’s been a well kept secret for a long time.” Marrie clarified.

“No, even then, the guild should have realised when they stopped receiving correspondence out of Lillinberg. Unless you guys fake that to cover it up?” Luna theorised.

“No… Not as far as I know.” Marrie seemed genuinely confused.

“So this just didn’t get reported? Ever? It doesn’t make any sense.” Sol muttered.

“Nevermind that for now.” Luna sighed. “What matters is getting rid of him. If he’s in control, Lillinberg becomes a valuable outpost for the Rhine if they decide to invade. We’re not even at war but we’ve already lost a key piece of territory…”

“Get rid of him, huh… Easier said than done.” Sol sighed. “I mean, you blew up his whole head and he just got right up.”

“Next time he won’t be so lucky.” Luna insisted coldly. “He’s off guard now, his brain likely hasn’t fully regenerated… If we pursue him, we might be able to discover the source of his power.”

“Smart! Since he’s so big he probably won’t notice if we tail him for a few days. You can track him with Detect Magic too! It’ll be just like the Dire Deer.” Sol grew enthused at the prospect of a rematch. “Then if we can cut off his immortality…”

They talked into the night, plotting their route and discussing their approach. Marrie retreated to bed earlier than the others, concealing the picture she carried with her under the covers with her. Clint listened, but did not speak. He simply watched out the window at the fire that was Marrie’s house. He stayed awake until it finally burned itself out.

The next morning, Clint was gone before anyone else awoke. It was little cause for concern. He was a mystery at the best of times, but he didn’t seem like the type to abandon here. With their plan set the night before, the twins decided to resolve things with Marrie before leaving. They agreed to go with her to inspect the wreckage of her house, something she could not face alone.

Sure enough, her home was nothing but a pile of ash and charcoal. She sobbed at the sight of it, burying her face into her free hand. Luna placed a hand on her shoulder, while Sol spoke comforting words to her.

They got so caught up in this that they didn’t notice Clint in front of them. His jacket was off for the first time, the long sleeves of his shirt rolled up. He looked like a labourer, which in this case, he was. He walked to the pile, lifted a piece of charred wood from it, carried it over to one of several carriages and dumped it inside. Then he returned to repeat the process. He did this four or so times before the others noticed him.

“Clint? What are you doing?” Luna inquired.

Clint shrugged another lump of wood onto his shoulder. “Cleanin’ up.”

“Okay? Good. We are due to leave soon though, we have to follow Blüt before his tracks disappear.” She walked alongside him, shadowing his movements.

“Get goin’ then.” He said plainly.

“What? What do you mean?” Luna paused but Clint kept walking. She had to jog to catch up. “You’re coming, aren’t you?”

“No.” Clint replied, tossing the burned rafter into the carriage.

“What? Why not?” Luna protested, standing in front of Clint.

He simply walked around her. “That thing can’t die. No sense in tryin’ to kill it.”

“I told you, I have a theory!” Luna chased after him again.

“A theory. That’s it.” Clint grabbed his next piece of wood.

“We’ll figure something out! I told you, it must be something external, so if we can just-” She began.

Clint finally stopped, putting the wood down in front of him. “What if he just can’t die?” He asked. “If he can’t die, you ain’t helpin’ anyone chasin’ him.”

“We have to try!” Sol butted in.

Clint shrugged. “You can try, sure. But if you wanna do somethin’ useful.” He nodded toward the pile of burnt wood. “Start there.”

“Oh, come on!” Luna complained, stepping up to him as she had so many times before recently. “There’s an immortal, evil creature like that out there, and you want us to just ignore it!”

“I didn’t say that.” Clint sighed.

“Even if we rebuild this place, so what? It’ll just get destroyed again next time! That thing has to die! That’s the only solution!” Luna growled, all her restrained fury coming out through her throat from the pit of her stomach.

“That’s fine, but you can’t kill it. You don’t even have an idea of how to.” Clint spoke calmly and reasonably, only further enraging Luna.

“So what! I’d rather risk my life on a 1% chance to end that beast now than let it live for one more day!” Luna could hardly explain her own anger. Just the thought of Blüt brought an unknowable fury to her, one that wasn’t entirely her own. Every time she imagined him, she imagined the suffering he had caused, she saw the burned houses and crushed bodies, she heard the cries of that little girl.

“I don’t gamble ‘less I like the odds.” Clint deflected. “As you are now… I think 1 in 100 is generous.” With those final words, he returned to his task, lifting the wood back onto his shoulder.

Luna’s fists clenched. Just like before, her first instinct was to punch him. She exhaled deeply through her nose, allowing the rage to dissipate. It still burned hot at her core, but it no longer possessed her. “Even so. I can’t do nothing.” She insisted.

“When I cast Detect Magic… I saw things, things I’ve never seen before. It was like some incredible force invaded my brain. It showed me all the suffering he’s caused. All that pain, I could feel it… There was this little girl and… She just wouldn’t stop crying.” The words spilled out of Luna as she confessed. Clint stopped in his tracks at the mention of the girl. “I don’t know if it even means anything, but I can’t stand by after seeing something like that. I just can’t.”

Luna took a deep breath and turned away. Though it seemed like a last second appeal to Clint’s heart, she never looked back at him. It was a declaration to herself, he just happened to hear it.

Newfound resolve steeled Luna’s body as she made her way out of Lillinberg, Sol following behind her. So many times, she had told herself she would kill Blüt, so many times she had declared that he had to die… But now, instead, she was motivated by something different. Something far more noble.

No matter what. Even if there was less than a 1% chance. She would end that little girl’s suffering.

Current Party: Luna Dragoneart, Sol Dragoneart

Bullets Remaining: 5