Her Looming Presence

The moment Ashrenne and I stepped outside, we found a large crowd gathering around an individual at the center of a plaza nearby.

“Hear ye, citizens of Cindespoir City!” a disheveled man declared, raising a fist with a scroll. “Our time upon Erudios has drawn near! The wind has carried her words, and I have received them: The Goddess of Spring proclaims her rise from the ashes!”

The surrounding crowd broke into hushed whispers.

“Oh, it’s just one of those guys,” said Ashrenne, crossing her arms.

“Those light blue robes… Isn't he one of Florathea’s worshippers?” I asked.

“Yeah, I don’t know what’s up with them, but every one of her worshippers has lost their minds during the last war. Crazy bastards. I can’t believe they’re still around.”

“Rejoice, children of all life, for our sins shall be forgiven!” the madman hollered. “The divine goddess Florathea rises once more to cleanse the impurities staining our world, for she is benevolent. In her benevolence, she shall bestow us with the ultimate mercy on the night of the full moon, the mercy to depart to her new world! Through death, she will guide our souls to a new world free from filth! We shall suffer from sins and impurities no longer! Surrender your lives, and—”

A gleaming axe swooped over the crowd and crashed in front of the madman. He and the crowd all staggered away from it, wide-eyed and falling silent.

“That’s enough,” said a tall, imposing man with a gruff voice. He walked steadily through the crowd that hurriedly made way for him. The ground under his foot briefly shook with each step, and as he grew closer, the madman started trembling.

If I hadn’t known any better, I would’ve thought a whole giant somehow invaded the city. His build, his piercing red glare, his long, flowing black hair, his noble blue robes that fit so perfectly with his dark armor… There was no doubt about who he was. My heart started hammering through my chest, but it wasn’t out of fear at all.

“Oh my freaking god,” I squealed, cupping my mouth. “It’s him!”

“...Eh?” Ashrenne blinked at me. “You… know him?”

“Who doesn’t?! He’s one of the four demon ambassadors of the alliance! The strongest one out of them all and the coolest guy ever, Lord Wymond, The Infernal Sentinel!”

“How the hell do you know a demon general’s name?!”

“Huh? Uh, from my visions.”

“Right… Anyway, we should get outta here. There’s no point sticking around near trouble.” She turned around and began to step away. “Let’s go.”

“Huh? But…”

Ashrenne made a point. We had no reason to stay here, but even so, my legs wouldn’t budge, because…

Because…

With a huff, Wymond lifted his axe and pointed it at the lunatic. “I advise you to come with me silently, lest you wish for a crueler sentence awaiting your trial.”

…Because Wymond was way too cool for me to miss this! Watching him fight up close was an opportunity of a freaking lifetime! Common sense be damned, I needed to see this!

Starry-eyed, I took cover behind a barrel. “Hold on. I gotta watch this. Just for a minute…”

“Wha—? Hey, are you serious with me, kid?” Ashrenne mumbled. She raised a brow and glanced at the distant scene and back at our spot. “Well, I guess it’s fine if we watch from far away…”

The madman gritted his teeth and pointed back at Wymond. “We loyal followers of Florathea shall never kneel to the likes of you, you foul hellspawns! Begone from our home, and return to where you belong!”

A low rumble erupted somewhere nearby, followed by a series of loud explosions from the nearby buildings. The crowd screamed and scurried away as a group of people in black hoods leaped out of the windows and surrounded Wymond.

Wymond calmly scanned all of them, his expression unfazed. "I see," he said. “So all that ruckus was to lure me into a trap. Very well, I’ll allow you to explain yourselves first.”

“Explaining is unnecessary, because it’s a natural law to eliminate all bearers of sins from our world!” shouted the madman. “Begone, I say!”

“Hm, that’s a fair reason, but…” Wymond gripped his axe and raised it over his shoulders. “I’m afraid you and your accomplices have broken the law here, not me.”

With one mighty swing, he blew all the lunatics off their feet and drove away a few more spectators. I ducked behind the barrel while Ashrenne casually stood beside me as a strong gust of wind whooshed past us.

“According to the city’s laws, disorderly conduct and destruction of private property are prohibited,” said Wymond, pointing his axe at the lunatics. “You’re all under arrest for violating those rules. Once again, I advise you all to come with me peacefully. No one has to get hur—”

One of the followers snuck up behind him and splashed holy water on his back. It sizzled and left some steam, but that was all it did.

Wymond turned around and smacked him with a light swing of his fist, sending him flying over the lingering crowd.

Another hoodlum pulled out a knife from their coat and lunged for his back, but Wymond swiftly stepped out of the way and kneed them in the side. He grabbed them by the scruff and threw them at a few followers in one spot, knocking all of them in one throw.

“That's enough fooling around,” said Wymond, surveying the remaining lunatics. “I’ll offer you one last chance to surrender. If you have any sense of rationale left, I suggest you stop clinging to that traitor you call a goddess.”

“How dare you call her a traitor!” the leader shrieked. “Lady Florathea has never turned her back against humanity. Her kindness remains unwavering, even after the war! And I have proof that she is, without a doubt, still alive and walks on these lands!”

With a trembling arm, he pulled out the scroll he had earlier. “Lady Florathea has returned… Mark my words, she will bestow us the ultimate mercy of—”

Wymond kicked the lunatic in the head and knocked him out cold. He turned to the remaining followers and, with lightning speed, struck each one behind their heads, also sending all of them to dreamland. After finishing up with the last guy, he lowered his axe and turned to the approaching horde of guards. “Gather and lock them all up,” he commanded.

“Yes, sir!”

While the guards followed his order, Ashrenne and I silently departed from the scene and resumed our walk. She whistled and folded her arms. “As expected of a demon ambassador. He’s made pretty clean work out of them.”

“Right?!” I whispered. “He’s so cool!”

“What are you, his fan?” Ashrenne whispered back. “What happened to him being our enemy?”

“I know he’s working for the queen, but hear me out! He’s actually pretty easy to reason with! He’s not so bad, I swear!”

“To reason with? Him?” She frowned and scratched her head. “Seriously, how do you know so much about everything? It’s starting to get kind of… well…”

Creepy. Suspicious. Weird.

She didn’t actually say those words, but I had a feeling she probably would.

It was only after thinking about it that I gradually realized that I really did share a little too much than I should. I swore on my life I only wanted to share at least the important stuff so that they would have time to prepare or even prevent them from coming true.

On that note, I certainly didn't forget to tell Ashrenne her fate, but I'd read too many stories to know that kind of serious stuff shouldn't be talked about in a public area like this. We'd never know if someone malicious like Entrophys could be eavesdropping on us after all.

I gripped my fists and took a deep breath. “I know I’m making myself more suspicious, but I promise you I’m on your side.”

“Huh? Er, well, I guess if you really were some spy, you could’ve sold us out several times by now.”

I blinked. “You… believe me?”

“Yeah? I didn’t mean to give you the impression that I was suspicious, if that’s what you were worried about.”

Huh, am I wrong in my hunch? “Then, what were you about to say?”

“Concerning. It’s concerning you know so much. With all that information, our enemies might eventually decide to investigate you. They might even capture you and make you spill your brains out or even brainwash you!”

“Oh, right. That is kind of worrying…”

“We don’t use such underhanded tactics,” said a third person.

We flinched, whipped around, and raised our heads. Ashrenne turned pale, but I fought back the urge to hop and squeal like a fanboy meeting his idol behind the stage.

Lo and behold, the man, the myth, the legend himself was standing right in front of us.