Chapter 21: The Mist

Looking over the quest within his hand, the paper seemed yellowed with age. Myez, the Mist. Obscure and impossible to find, only her general location is known: the supercontinent of Thulvane. Though, that seemed to be where most Dragon Priests operated, judging by the fact that's where the War was going on. He really picked the hardest o— He was a Detective in his past life, finding a dragon keen on hiding wouldn't be difficult at all. Why was he worried? Plus, he had Kouga, Valkyr, and Amani with him so it's not like this would be a solo operation—Valkyr was worryingly powerful, Kouga was like a wall, Amani was a Jack of All Trades, and he himself was an ungodly spellblade.

This would be difficult but to call it, or even imply it's impossible, just wasn't realistic and needlessly defeatist. He held the paper in his hand and looked to Valkyr who smirked.

"You should have said you defeated the Tyrant; I would have been considerably less rude if I knew you were strong. Come, we'll defeat Myez."

She offered a hand to Iskatl, and looked to Amani, then whistled for Kouga to come over, which he did.

"I can bring us directly to the Harbor Village within Thulvane, Forthane. I cannot do much more for us, however. My spacial control is powerful, but not all powerful."

Valkyr waved her cloak, like she had before and Iskatl immediately felt damp, and moist as the stench of salt water assailed his sense of smell, causing his nose to crinkle. Immediately, guards pointed spears at them, and the quartet all raised their arms. In the crowd of people there was at the dock, nobody paid any mind to them, or even turned to face them, but one woman escaped the crowd and stepped forward; Izalith. The sun glimmered in the sky at her approach, and its light intensified before she spoke.

"What, pray tell, is the meaning of this? This is a group from my Peacekeeping organization; they're known as the Wartorn Skies, and you point spears at them? I suggest you lot stand down, before I present your heads to your Mad King."

The spears were immediately retracted as Izalith drew her staff, slender and metal with no distinct features, a dark color that seemed to be iron, yet it radiated an immense amount of mana, which caused Iskatl to sneeze. Valkyr found herself giving a curtsy to the Guild Founder before looking to her with a raised eyebrow.

"What are you doing here, ma'am?"

"A little birdie told me a group was finally facing a Dragon Priest, so I thought I'd wish them luck personally. Word travels fast, you know? Especially when you have my ears. Walk with me, you four."

The four nodded and immediately began to follow as Izalith began walking, traveling through the harbor with purpose, her metal staff clinking against the ground distinctly as she moved.

"Twelve Dragon Priests. Of twelve, all remain since their inception. It's stated that they all represent different stages of this War's life. Zyelt, the twelfth, is a warning that the war will soon end. The Grave Dragon has been making moves personally, whilst that woman is hard to place and difficult to find, it isn't impossible. Now, here's a little secret. Tell me, only eleven Dragon Priests have been discovered, the first unknown. If you were to throw a random answer out, who would you say is the first?"

Iskatl didn't know much about the Dragon Priests, but the answer felt obvious to him; opening his lips to speak, he was interrupted by Valkyr.

"The first is obviously Velika. There's twelve, but the first's identity is unknown. They're stated to use dark magic, she uses dark magic. Who else could it even be?"

"Very good. It's all but confirmed so yes, the only person the first could be is in fact Velika. If the first Priest is another, they're well hidden—even better hidden than Myez."

Iskatl looked to Valkyr out of the corner of his eye, who had a neutral expression on her face. Could it be a poker face of sorts?

"Here we are."

Izalith stated, before showing a rather large building. It didn't look like the guild back in the elven lands; it seemed more like someone's house than anything. Izalith guided the four inside, tapping her staff on the oak doors which caused them to open. Afterward, they entered and it was someone's house.

"This is probably the most drab of my homes. The people of Forthane don't like xenos much so they intentionally didn't follow my instructions to the exact measure. They also used cheap materials. Ugh."

"Yes, I noticed." Amani replied with a soft sigh as she pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Anyway. You can all stay here, to make your plan. I've got a map of Thulvane here."

She'd present the map on the wall, and point to a Kingdom on the map, "Larkan the Ruined Kingdom" The icon for it on the map seemed scary to put it bluntly. Many doodles that depicted spirits, amongst other things.

"The Ruined Kingdom is the likely answer to where Myez hides. A kingdom blanketed in a thick mist, amongst many other things? She's likely responsible for the mist itself. I would show caution. The Grave Dragon, Velika made that place uninhabitable during her debut. A battle between light and darkness, one where darkness prevailed and the balance of power shifted forever. I say this now. Fighting a Dragon Priest increases one's likelihood of encountering the Grave Dragon substantially—each one that's been pressured has called to a part of her and succeeded."

Iskatl interrupted before she could finish.

"A part of her? The Grave Dragon, she's Valerica's pet, right? So why would she care about keeping them alive?"

"Why, power of course. She gives them all a piece of herself so they might hone it, and when they finally perish she can reclaim that power, enhanced greatly through no effort of hers. A method of freely training her strength."

Iskatl was satisfied with the answer and gave a quick nod.

"So what does Myez have, then?" Amani asked afterward.

"Well, she's a user of Mist Resonance, so Velika in all her wisdom and knowledge gave Myez her eyes. Powerful eyes, supposedly able to see all things. It enables her shrouded style of combat all the more. I think the all seeing bit is a load of nonsense, however. I don't doubt how good her vision is, just the exaggeration that she can see all things."

"Notice. Only one is able to see all things. Sovereign, the King of the Gods." The Reliquary chimed in, in Iskatl's head. He thought it only had access to things he knew, but it seemed more like it only could give him information that Sovereign allowed.

"She definitely can't see everything. If she could, she'd come here now to stop us from confronting Myez."

Valkyr added before Iksatl looked at her.

"Do you think you can take us to Larkan?"

"Yes, but a problem arises; Larkan is a magic dead zone. Resonance doesn't work; mana gets suppressed. Everything just sucks there. Well, unless you have other factors that can bypass the Void Curse."

"Void Curse?.."

Valkyr sighed softly before nodding. "Right. Larkan, the Ruined Kingdom, has a plethora of curses. One of which is the Void Curse. It quite literally devours mana the instant it's used. So, say you use your little Sacred Treasure there, and release its true form? The curse would devour the mana used by you and the sword to strengthen itself, and then your ability would be snuffed out. Three fourths of us are mages, and I'd rather not force poor little Kouga to do all the work."

Iskatl nodded and offered a hand to Valkyr.

"I can handle myself, and so long as the moon is out, there will be no issues with Amani. I don't need magic; it's just helpful. Come on. Take us there and I know we'll succeed."

"It is a fucking Dragon Priest, and you're trying to tell me you can handle it while over half of your power set is suppressed? Give me a break, moron."

"If anything, we can find a way around the curse. I can. So, I ask again as a courtesy. Take us there, please?"

Valkyr groaned before offering a hand to him.

"I will tell you now. I will be less than worthless whilst within Larkan. Amani's power comes from the moon, you're... sniff a demon. Kouga is... Well, Kouga. All I do is magic. The teleport is probably my strongest ability, amongst a few things you haven't taken notice of, but it is all magic. So, if something happens to me, I expect you to make it up to Kouga."

"I won't let anything happen to me, and I know Amani certainly won't, okay?"

Valkyr nodded before Iskatl grabbed her hand. Typically, she waved her cloak when she teleported but this time, Kouga grabbed her arm, and Amani followed suit.

"Good luck, you four. If you win, you'll be hailed as heroes, and I'll grant you items from my personal treasury, 'kay?"

Izalith chuckled softly as a bright orange glow escaped Valkyr's arm—Valkyr couldn't help but glare at Izalith, as the four vanished from the founder's view.

"I know what you are, Valkyr."

Iskatl managed to catch that right before they disappeared. They were on a road, leading from the place they were just in. Ahead was a Kingdom that looked like it was a looking glass to a different world. The air had a distinct darkness that clung to it, and a thick mist covered the area, making it impossible to see any details beyond the mist and the shadows. Yep. This is where Myez was.

"I assume you didn't take us closer to avoid your spell complicating due to the curse?"

Iskatl asked, to which Valkyr nodded before he looked to Kouga.

"Kouga. You and I on point. Amani, I want you to stick close to Valkyr. If it comes a choice between protecting me, and protecting her I want you to protect her first and foremost. I can protect myself. This is a Dragon Priest we're after, so I won't tolerate any rash decisions. Got it?"

The other three nodded before Iskatl bounded forward. He couldn't use magic so he had to rely purely on his physicals. Maybe he could make use of his enhanced senses to detect mana sources involving the curse but otherwise, it would seem he had to conserve as much mana as he could. His demon's blood made his mana enhance his physical capabilities so the less of it he used the better off he'd be in this fight.

He closed his eyes, then opened them to narrowed slits. He could feel Valkyr glaring at him from behind as he followed the road down into the Ruined Kingdom.

"So why did Velika curse this place, Valkyr? You seem to know a lot about her."

"Well, it was unintentional. Believe it or not. A battle with the Dragon of Light, a battle of fates at that and the aftermath of their fight was the curse. The mist and miasma work in tandem to hide a certain scar within the sky that the Light Dragon produced. An attack with enough potency to tear through the Earth's atmosphere, and leave behind a mark which would be remembered for time immemorial. Unless you're within Larkan, it cannot be seen."

Blinking twice, he'd exhale deeply. Did she just say that?

Finally, down the road enough they reached the place where normal air and the miasma met. Pressing his hand against the miasma, Iskatl felt his body almost shut down as his scales throbbed and convulsed across his body. He stepped forward and took the plunge into the Abyss.

"Stick close and listen to make sure we don't part."

He could see through the mist easily, surprisingly, but the miasma was a different story. Pressing a hand against his chest, Iskatl let out a breath as he coughed. His scales shifted and throbbed, and before he knew it, he could breathe easily. Being a World Serpent certainly had perks, that couldn't be denied at all. He felt his eyes adjust, and it became easier to see.

This place was like the aftermath of a nuclear war; all the soil was barren, lacking any form of plants aside from two strange flowers which had a strange mana reading which he chose to ignore.

"Kouga. Are you there?"

"Right here. Amani?"

"Here. Valkyr?"

"Yes."

"Good. Let's keep on."

Ruins spread across the land, no buildings with any distinct shape, there were just varying degrees of ruins with different levels of damage. There was uninhabitable, then there was the Kingdom of Larkan. It felt surreal. People used to live here? He couldn't imagine it.

Ahead, there was a castle. It was as ruined as the rest of the Kingdom, but it was a castle so it still stood strong in spite of everything. Various towers of it lie crumbled, entire walls were destroyed, but it was still possible to make out that it was a castle so that had to count for something.

There was no way. She couldn't be. He refused to believe it. A being titled, "The Obscure", would not be inside a damned castle! It was asinine to even think ab—He sensed a dragon's mana coming from the castle and sighed.

"I can sense her ahead. It seems the Obscure isn't so obscure after all. Get ready. You especially, Amani."

Amani nodded before Iskatl looked to Kouga who was tightening the straps on his gauntlets. He was ready, that was for sure. He looked to Valkyr and took his helmet off before holding it out to her, a smile plastered across his face.

"Valkyr, hold onto this for me, okay?"

She smiled softly and nodded as she held his helmet close to her chest. It had a ton of heft to it and she seemingly didn't struggle with carrying it which made Iskatl raise an eyebrow. She'd sigh softly and then looked Iskatl directly in the eyes.

"Keep staring at me, Iskatl. See where it gets you."

Kouga chuckled sheepishly as he stood between the two.

"Lets all calm down, okay?"

Iskatl nodded before gesturing to the castle as he approached the giant doors and went to open them, they were locked and wouldn't open.

"Iskatl, I think you're mistaken. We approach this place as guests, obviously we should knock."

Kouga stated before pulling his arm back then punching the doors, causing the entire castle entryway to rumble before the doors flew off their hinges and onto the floor. These doors were at least 10 times his size, but not even half of this behemoth's strength.

Within the castle, the first thing they saw was a woman with silver hair sitting on a throne. Even through the intense noise, she was sleeping like a baby. Mist escaped her body with every breath, as if seeping from her pores. She had horns on her head, akin to a deer's antlers, and she wore a black dress that one would wear at a funeral. Covering her face was a thick black veil which obscured it and made her facial features impossible to discern, even with Iskatl's vision.

Aside from her strangely heavy sleeping and those features, he couldn't make out much. Then, Iskatl was shoved by Kouga, and a loud clang was heard as claws slashed against metal and the entire castle rumbled as the wolf struck back. The dragon went flying into the throne she pretended to sit atop.

"That's a good look for you. Ehh... Iskatl, you just hang back with the girls. I got this."

He'd grin as he adjusted his vambraces before he walked over to the dragon from across the room. The mist was thick, and impossible to see through, but Kouga managed to see even greater than Iskatl did, despite his wondrous eyes.

Cracks formed in the ground as Kouga dashed the remaining distance to get to Myez. Myez gasped for air as she stood up before her voice rumbled around the room.

"How did you notice?! The mist double was perfect! Damn you!"

Kouga said nothing in return, as he went to punch Myez who moved out of his way. His blow packed with enough force to separate mist from the air. It was like watching a bodybuilder try to catch a mosquito.

"I thought Dragon Priests were supposed to be strong. What is this? I can't help but be disappointed. I expected a challenge, yet here I am able to do all the work!"

Kouga laughed as he went to hit the Dragon Priest again! His target was replaced with a cloud of mist as another clang echoed through the room. The Dragon Priest couldn't even graze his armor. A wrist grabbed before he slammed her to the ground, and laughed.

"Is this it?!"

Another fist to the dragon's chest before she disappeared in another cloud of mist. If anything else, she was fast.

Kouga tilted his head as he sniffed the air for her. Turning, he'd punch a clawed hand as it went to slash at him again, enough force behind the blow to snap the dragon's arm and send her flying into the wall.

"Can you tell me? How many innocents have you killed? All you dragons have killed at least one. So I'm wondering how cruel I should be."

Kouga asked coldly as he walked over to the disabled dragon slowly. Residing within a place where magic was inaccessible was of no consequence to the demon of Alkutha.

"Can you answer? Or are you too stunned by my immense power?"

He'd blink, and she was gone. He knew where she was already but had grown tired of these games.

"I'll assume it's more than ten and less than a thousand. You don't seem very capable of much, it's like this title is all you have, and all you'll be after we're done here; Obscure."

Kouga gripped the top of his chest plate and pulled it off before letting it plummet to the ground. The castle quaked, and rumbled from the weight of the world plummeting down to it. Iskatl looked on in horror, it was as if two tectonic plates had joined together for their first honeymoon.

Gauntlets would follow, plummeting to the ground, and leaving behind a crater of atlesean proportions. Myez looked stunned, as she gazed at her opponent who would kick off a greave in her direction, causing it to smash into her chest. It felt like the Grave Dragon herself, disappointed in her performance, had shown such.

"Can you tell me, monster? Not knowing the number of innocents you've slaughtered is eating away at me."

Iskatl blinked, and Kouga was gone. It was as if Atlas had let go of the Earth, and was now moving freely amongst us mortals. Kouga slammed his fist into Myez with enough force to shake mountains, the ruined castle beginning to crumble before his might.

"I'll just pretend it's in the thousands!"

Before the Dragon Priest, or even the structure could recover from his first blow, three more erupted from nowhere. It felt as if an earthquake was ongoing, every brutal attack from the predator, caused the castle to quake. Kouga had a wide smile on his face as he laid into her viciously, every punch Iskatl witnessed he could tell that he missed at least three more.

"Come on! Fight back! Is this all you have? Mist and tricks?!"

Kouga continued slamming his fists into Myez before the roof collapsed in on itself under the force of his strikes, and it would have crushed her if the genuine beast didn't simply catch the piece of the roof which had fallen.

"Oh no, I'm the one who decides when we're done!"

Myez had been beaten to a point she couldn't form words, Kouga threw the brick formation at the wall before one last attack was thrown, and a shriek emanated from the dragon. Mist ceased to be, and miasma dispersed. The area was normal now, and the dragon's eyes glowed pink, seen even through the veil.

Kouga went to dodge a telegraphed attack, but before he knew it, the dragon's claws were sticking out of his back, causing him to gasp as he coughed up blood. A head tilt from Myez as she smiled softly.

"What's the matter? What happened to all that energy from before, boy? Where'd it go? Weak, right? I think that's you, dull bastard."

"Scylla's Spear, First Configuration: Light of the End."

A black light escaped Amani's hand and washed over Myez, before it fizzled out completely, as Amani fell to a knee.

"That's quite the interesting ability you have there. I think I'll be borrowing it now. Velika's Spear, First Configuration: Shadow of the Beginning."

At that, Amani's ability was perfectly replicated, though instead of black light, a pillar of shadow escaped from the impaled Kouga who pulled away from Myez and backed away quickly as he panted heavily.

"Are you fucking serious? The Dragon Priest can copy spells now?"

Iskatl gave her yet another side eye before he stepped forth and drew his blade. This can't go on any longer. She's already copied a Scylla's Spear Configuration, she couldn't be allowed to copy anything more.

Iskatl dashed forward, and found himself tripping on a rock, as Myez gazed at him from the side of her eye. Huh?

Myez dashed toward Kouga, only to slash her claws at him a multitude of times. Each strike seemed like it should miss, based on Kouga's reflexes and Myez' lack of form, but they struck true nonetheless. Iskatl stared at this in disbelief. Kouga was beating her with no issue, and now she had a second phase more or less. These dragons were always so annoying...

Flames covered his legs as Iskatl dashed toward the Dragon Priest, and slashed at her with his blade before narrowly missing. He'd blink twice before he noticed right as he missed, an attack from Kouga struck true.

"Overwhelm her! Her eyes have a trigger! They work on one person at a time!"

Amani heard that and smirked, before raising a hand. Multiple wisps of light form. Overwhelm her? Moonlight resonance made that all too easy. About twelve wisps, and two beams escaped from each wisp, all aimed at Myez. Half of them missed, the other half struck true. Valkyr didn't do anything but watch Myez intently. She went to attack Kouga and missed, Iskatl's blade occupying her back as he whispered in her ear.

"Do you mind?"

Kouga punched the blade out of her back and Iskatl laughed loudly. Slashes from Iskatl, and punches from Kouga proved enough to overwhelm her as is, but the beams from Amani are what sealed the deal. What was Valkyr doing? She just seemed intently focused on Myez, who exploded in a burst of mist, sending the boys flying away from her. She looked directly at Valkyr, their eyes locking before the mage smirked softly.

"Are you afraid of it, Myez? Our Lady's Will? Well, my Lady. Yours is a mere bastardization of mine."

Myez locked eyes with her, and it felt like she lost all the strength in her body, as she went still. Iskatl took this opportunity to slash her head from her shoulders before Valkyr gasped deeply. Myez' body immediately began to melt, before only her head remained.

"In a battle of wills, you lost Myez. The weakest of the twelve, the weakest of any. A failure."

Valkyr stepped forward and approached Myez' severed head with a smile. She reached down and closed those eyes before nodding softly. A pulse of mana escaped her head before it melted as well.

"Did we win?.."

"I think so, Kouga."

Valkyr looked to the other three and sighed.

"I will explain later. For now, we must go. I'm sure that Velika will encroach upon us if we linger any longer."

"Monarch status attained! Greetings, Iskatl. Along the ascension path, the next would be an Emperor, then a Sovereign, though there are branches in between. Nameplates enabled, Reliquary access expanded. Ruler Resonance acquired. Title: Justice Monarch. Judgment Resonance acquired as a result of one's titled. Congratulations. Next objective to achieve your goal would be to find Astalon Thulvane, within the middle of the continent, and then join his efforts in the War."

That was... A lot.