The Four Continents

The trip back felt like one giant blur. Everything felt vague, like drowning in a knee-deep puddle. Escape was easy; just moving my legs would let me breathe. Yet, somehow that simple act was too much for me.

Therefore, I kept watching the shimmering shapes through the crystal-clear water. It was reality, yet filtered, hidden from my eyes.

Our eventual arrival was met with everything but applause. Bellon took the first excuse to leave us, and as we arrived at night, the dorms were equally as empty except for Francis. 

Did that man ever sleep?

“One mission down!” The only one of us seemingly unaffected by the fight was Aila, who was somehow in higher spirits than before.

“What did we really accomplish?” We had found the villagers safe and sound a bit after the bandits left—not a single casualty among them. Yet their village was still destroyed, houses burned, and lives upended.

“We didn’t defeat Riverlight; hell, we didn’t get anything out of them!” I said, knowing full well that was half the point.

Richard had known full well what would happen; he wanted to see how I would respond. I didn’t intend to disappoint.

“We still defeated a ton of the bandits. Besides, now we know Riverlight is in the country! That’s the organization that’s connected to your friend Lilly, right?”

“To her copycat.”

“Either way, it’s a lead!” Aila said as we walked into the entrance hall.

For once, people were chattering at every table, filling nearly every seat in the house. Francis casually chatted at the bar with a member I had never met, while even more people poured in from the entrance.

“Anything special today?” I asked. I had seen this place busy before in my short time here, but this was another kind of busy. Not to mention, even with the casual chatter, I could feel a vague sense of unease.

“I don’t think so?” Aila said, looking as confused as I was.

With Richard’s report not scheduled until this afternoon, the day was rather free. Forget doing something with it, just dragging myself here was challenging enough.

My muscles ached from the bumpy carriage ride, and a lagging motion sickness made every step a challenge. It was like my body was dead set on making me pay for sitting in that carriage for so long without complaint.

I caught Mia’s eye as she sat at the table next to us. “Hey, anything special happening today?”

“Did you not hear?” She asked, wide-eyed. “General Blackwell is heading into town?”

“Who?” I asked.

“Oh, you wouldn’t know!” Aila said, clearly shocked by the news. “Thein Blackwell is the most famous commander in the entire country! Everyone heard stories when we were kids about him.”

“You too?” Mia chuckled. “My parents always told me the general would come and take me to the front lines for not doing my chores.”

“My parents too…” Aila’s grin faltered. “Anyway, do you know when the general will be here?”

Creek, the room went silent in an instant. A tall man walked through the door, adorned in a light brown uniform with a red cape trailing behind.

He was the kind of man who dominated whatever room he entered. His shoulders stood broad, and his head looked over everyone in the room, except for Francis.

His build reminded me of a professional basketball player, with tanned skin under his uniform and the kind of determination only seen in someone who dedicated themselves to one singular goal. Even compared to the unique soldiers in Unit E, he was clearly on another level.

“It’s good to be back, Unit E!”

The room erupted into cheers at his words. Several of the older members came to greet the man. I could sense their previous stress melting away like butter in the sunlight.

“You know him too?” I asked.

“I wish! Do you think I’m lucky enough to know any celebrities?” She looked over to where General Blackwell was casually greeting our cohort like old friends. “You see his Senn, there on his right hand?”

I narrowed my eyes. The details were hard to make out from here, but I could see a ring of aquamarine water surrounding what looked to be a heart. “Who does that Senn belong to?”

“That’s the thing,” Aila leaned in, whispering. “They say that is East’s mark.”

“East? Like god, the whole creator and all that?”

“Yeah, the only man ever summoned by East, or so they say.” Aila’s tone carried a voice of admiration I hadn’t heard from her before.

It wasn’t anything new, I had been equally as enchanted long ago back in Japan, watching sumo wrestlers and action stars on the TV as a child. Yet for Aila, her hero wasn’t some mystical figure stuck in beyond a digital veil.

“Do you want to go say hi?”

“Me?” Aila almost jumped out of her chair tail-first. “Are you kidding me? I'm nobody.” Yet despite her tone, I could see her tail wag like a dog's. “You go introduce yourself first!”

“I guess,” I sighed. To me, he was nothing more than a rather powerful potential sparring partner. I had long run out of the ability to be nervous of those.

But my meeting would have to wait. As I started to weave my way through the crowd, I could hear General Blackwell start to send everyone back to their seats, followed by a chorus of sighs and familiar farewells.

“I know I kept my sudden visit a secret—not that it prevented anyone from finding out,” he said to a chuckle. “But I am here to give my greetings to Unit E. As the most elite group in the entirety of Gallai, you serve as a shining light for those too weak to protect themselves, especially in these trying times.”

He cleared his throat. “I have never been one to keep people in suspense, so I will reveal my reasoning for this sudden visit.” The room grew quiet as the general let the suspense hang.

Finally, after what felt like an hour, he cleared his throat. “As of last night, the king of Ell was assassinated by the rescorge Lilly.”