Chapter 60: You're Welcome, Wretched Witch

No man’s Land was an oddity indeed. These waters used to be empty sees. It was said that the entire country was created by Merlin and his council. They erected the earth from the seabed and brought forth the change to the terrain. Their actions were done in order to create a new land that was separate from the rest without having to take over another country. Thus, they dubbed the country No Man’s Land.

Adventurers from all around the world as well as tourists were allowed to visit the country without passport or identification. Though they did often caution traveling without adventurers en-ready. This was because the country, with its abundance of mana, had given way to the creation of many wraiths. This however, was a welcomed complication. The abundance of wraiths was often a welcomed training exercise for new adventurers. In some cases, they abducted wraiths from different countries and various high level wraiths to insert in different spots across the country. It allowed for continuous challenge and practice for growing adventurers.

The land itself was also an oddity. There were various different parts of the country, in various islands. It would more accurately be described as an archipelago. In each of these islands the terrain was drastically different than the one before. From 1600 feet in the air, they could all see the grand luster of the country. Merlin truly did an amazing job in this. His creativity was always much greater than hers.

They looked down from their cages. Inora, Ire, and Roy were rather uninterested, as they had all seen No Man’s Land before. But Lusha, Grodd and Rinn could not help but stare in awe. A bird flew at them at insane speeds. It was the same bird that had attacked them in the eastern continent. They must have transported said creature from the country. After-all, these creatures were very abundant there.

It’s sharp shriek echoed loudly before one of the magicians grabbed its beak with his arms and utterly crushed the entire structure. It shrieked in horror before attempting to fly away. Right at that moment, a lightning bolt escaped his hold and the bird was no more. To be skilled in both magic and blessed with physical strength, it was a feat that most couldn’t help but admire. However, he may also be a bit of a hot-head. This was the same magician that had attempted to strike Inora down. The lightning ability he had utilized was a combination of both lightning and flame to cause an explosion upon impact. If there was a scaling for these types of magic, Lusha would put it just possibly 3 steps below a pinnacle skill. Out of 10 steps total.

The magician’s eyes met Lusha’s from the side after his skill had connected. It seemed to suggest either disdain, or discontempt at the fact that Lusha had stopped his ability earlier. Lusha returned the glare with an uninterested look. There was nothing that the man could do that was in any way threatening to her.

They continued the rest of the way in silence. Neither dare talking to each other as they were all being watched heavily. Every single motion that they did was being observed. Every single breath, and eye movement was recorded by various entities. Even with the shackles that they were in, the nervousness of everyone else could easily be observed.

They eventually arrived over the city of Central Integra. The only way to describe it… was amazing. The buildings pierced high into the clouds. Various lights and signs ignited by rivilin stones adorned each building. The streets were full of activity and movement. Even at this time of night, it appeared as if the city never stopped moving. Various restaurants and bars dotted the cityscape. It reminded her of Earl Regalia’s market district, except the buildings were much much higher. It felt like at any moment, one of the spires could scrape them from out of the sky. She could see clearly within each of the buildings, even from this height. It was an interesting thought, to have the residencies continue upwards. Because of the limited space within an island, to continuously build outwards would eventually limit itself, but to proceed to the skies… it was a genius fix. She sometimes envied her student’s creativity.

They began descending over a glorious giant dome-like building with a grand statue of Merlin towering above it. It was the shortest one out of all of them, yet it looked as if it had an air of grandiose to it. They landed and the cage began to disintegrate. Their foreboding shackles still remained on however. “We’ll be continuing forward.” The unit ushered all of them and they walked.

Much to Lusha’s surprise, the building was exponentially bigger on the inside. The ceiling seemed to be further than the clouds. Even more- the building descended downwards. It was a complete reverse of the rest of the buildings here. Just as they were observing the room, the walls began to move inward. Various of the adventurers took to the new colosseum style stage that had just presented itself. The magicians dotted the surroundings above as well.

“So that’s the game… luring within an enclosed space…”

Lusha took the time to observe the surroundings as well. She realized the walls were also made of the same material as the foreboding shackles. A type of mineral called Arem. This would mean the exterior must also be the same. In order for magic to remain trapped within this building, it would not allow a single bit of magic to escape. Of course, Lusha had come to learn that even these minerals have their limits. Unfortunately, she could not exert enough mana to do so at the moment. Should the magicians decide to attack, she would instantly die. Then, what follows next would be her being branded as a demon in honor of her curse. Whatever was about to occur, she could not allow it to break into a fight.

A man coughed from above the podium. Everyone’s attention immediately diverted to him. His robes were fairly humble. It didn’t look like he held great importance at all, yet a large majority of them bowed, save for the HERO rank adventurers who remained keeping an eye on the group below. He had a weird pointed tall hat and his robes draped to just above his ankles. The same with his hands, the sleeves stopped at his elbows. The hems of the clothes were heavily crinkled and he wore one tiny stone tablet creased into his clavicle.

“Doronetsk.” A man quickly scurried to him and handed him several stacks of sealing tablets. He performed some quick magical rites under his breath and then threw the tablets at the same time. Each individual there was clasped with the tablet instantly.

It stuck onto Lusha’s forehead, Grodd’s, Zari, Ire, Rinn, Roy and Inora all at once. Instantly the world around them became black. This was a feeling that was very familiar to Lusha. It couldn’t be though…what was this? This technique… it was much the same as Merlin’s ability. The one that had placed her in a dreamless sleep. As she sank into it, she couldn’t help but feel the comfort of the ability.

She woke up to a cell, looking up at the ceiling. There was an uncertainty of how long she had been out, but she could estimate that perhaps… more than 6 days had passed. Her strength had returned for the most part. Whenever she had utilized that ability, it usually took more than a week for her to be back at full capacity. This was due to the disparity in mana replenishment, and the max capacity she held. Her replenishment rate was at the same level always. Yet her reservoir had continued to exponentially increase.

Her eyes scanned the room before she got up out of bed. A woman was guarding her cell. She was rather slender and skinny looking. Her sunken eyes indicated that she hadn’t slept often, nor in quite a while. It was almost as if she was a walking skeleton. Her disheveled hair parted around her face and frizzled from the humidity. When she got up, pale green eyes went and met Lusha’s red eyes.

“How long was I out?”

That was the first question she had to ask. The feeling of hunger completely overwhelmed her.

The woman walked away from her cell without so much as a response to her. Lusha watched as the skeletal figure walked away. Lusha could make out the HERO rank pendant she held. Yet, she couldn’t tell who this individual was.

She eventually came back with various magicians and several other HERO rank adventurers. “Lusha Viscirilis of team Infinite?” a voice spoke. Lusha nodded. “We’ll need you to come this w-”

“--Actually, we’d like to take this from here”

Before she could finish two individuals appeared right besides the lady. Lusha could instantly recognize them. It brought her a bit of comfort to at least see a familiar face. These two appeared without so much as a noise. It was as if they simply manifested there. The lady jumped up and curled her lips in annoyance. “I wish you two would stop doing that.”

“Oh lighten up Occra. We’re simply testing your response time. Think of it as-”

The other brother finished the sentence for him. “Training.”

“I’m the one assigned to watch over this one.”

Elim smiled lightly in response to that assertion and handed her a piece of parchment, stamped with the seal of the chancellor. “On the contrary. We’re to be handling all matters regarding her. So do be a dear now and let us be on our way.”

The way Elim spoke condescendingly was purposely done to antagonize her. She glared with an air of pure rage. For a moment, one could feel her mana spike up, however it was just for one tiny moment before it stopped entirely. “I don’t feel like killing everyone around.”

This was Erika. The sole member of team Knoxous. Known for her all encompassing vile miasma she called aura. Not a single person has survived its fumes when she releases it. Though she would prefer to work with others, her endeavor to ever create a team was thwarted by her ability.

Erika stormed off. Elim and Soka looked at each other with a stifled smile. “That was close… you oughtta stop playing with her like that ya know. One contact and everyone here’s dead. Elim brushed him off. “Oh she would never actually lose it.”

“Now then… Lusha Viscirilis…”they opened the gate to her cell and turned their backs on her as if she was not the threatening demon that everyone else had been treating her as before. “Come with us.” Soka turned back to her and gave her a warm smile.

“I trust you’ve been well these past few weeks. That’s right the last time they had seen each other was perhaps little more than a month ago. “You know Lusha… you should-” Whatever he was going to say, he stopped and changed his mind. “We’ve already interviewed everyone else. You’re the final person. You’d end up in another match with a demon, no?”

His eyes were quite inquisiting. Lusha nodded. “It was the same one from the capital city of Godon.” Elim nodded his head. “I see I see. That’s what I’ve been hearing. The casualty toll this time around… was the entire village of Pharolia. It’s not as great a loss as what occurred in Carthage, but still tragic nonetheless.”

Soka immediately changed the conversation. “By the way, was it you who encrystalled the Pharolia tree?”

Lusha nodded. She preferred to keep her talking to a minimum. Though these two continued to act nonchalantly, there was something going on here that she was unaware of. They were perhaps even taking information down from her as they spoke through their air of familiarity.

“I had thought so as much.”

“It is quite beautiful actually. I’d definitely prefer you to be at my funeral one of these days. Who knows, with how often these demons appear, I’m sure you will one day witness my funeral.”

Lusha got exactly what Elim was intending to say. ‘With how often these demons show up around you. When I die, you’ll be there for my funeral.’

They were questioning how often such situations have occurred around her. Situations of mass death, and situations in which demons seem to appear. By now, she is the only individual to witness one of the twelve demon generals twice. That puts her in a category of her own.

“Oh. We’re here.”

This was a different hall now. As the double doors opened before them. She walked into a dimly lit room. The silhouettes of various individuals- over 40 of them filled the room. Elim and Soka got into place, and then the lights turned on.

The presence of all of them were tremendous. Lusha could quickly estimate a hard fought battle if she were to face them all. But of course, she felt confident in her victory. As foolish as it would be to face them all, there were none of them that stood close to the great dragons. Though, without knowing their abilities, there was a high chance that she was underestimating her opponents. Especially the two that stood in front of her. They shared an aura unlike anyone else within the room- nor anyone else she had ever seen.

Another thing that Lusha first noted, was that every single individual in this room were those of H.E.R.O Rank. But the two that stood in front of her, possessed a different title. Their tags were only described once before in Merlin’s book. “God-Platinum.” -Individuals said to be stronger than Merlin by multitudes. Though Merlin’s book was out-dated, Lusha was not sure how many God-Platinum individuals existed to date. But some have been noted to exist even during Merlin’s days.

One of the God-platinum adventurers approached her first. He appeared to be almost in his 40’s. His breath continued to show in the surroundings every time he exhaled. He wore nothing but black sweatpants, and a loose fitted blue T-shirt. A scarf covered his neck and almost sequestered his God-Platinum tag. Aside from that, he wore no shoes. He wasn’t particularly muscular or intimidating in any way. But one could already feel his constant need to suppress his aura.

This was a feat that Lusha had to utilize a seal in order to do so successfully sequester her entire potential. The man scratched his head and pushed his black ponytail to the side. “Lusha Viscirilis…” His voice was deeper than it would seem.

“Have a seat.”

As he said that, a throne of ice appeared before him and her. She sat down as instructed. After-all, there was no true danger. That was- until she felt the throne she had sat upon. This was ice that never melts. She could immediately feel it. It was also much stronger than that of the dragon. A sense of excitement crept over Lusha’s heart. To think, that a being like that existed in this era.

“Calm your heart… I will not kill you- at least, not without talking with you first.”

So the throne she sat upon could also feel everything going on internally. This was a lie detector test.

“Tell me… what is your name?”

“Lusha Viscirilis of Team Infinite.”

Immediately, the ice could feel the lie told. Even if it was what she considered her name was, the fact that it was pronounced incorrectly, told the man everything he needed to know. He paused for a second, and then decided to continue with the dialogue.

“Are you a demon, human, demi-human, goblin, orc, wyvern, dragon, wraith, apparition, or spirit?”

“I’m a human.”

The man nodded. “Then tell me… why do you masquerade under the name Lusha Viscirilis?”

Lusha paused… “My name is Lusha Viscirilis… it is what my teacher called me.”

“What were you called before?”

“....” she paused as she struggled to even remember what the accurate pronunciation was. “L-Lucia. Lucia Viscirilis.”

“I see. Lucia Viscirilis. If there’s one thing I despise. It’s liars.”

“Just know, that if you were to lie again as you did previously about your name, you will be encased in ice within less than a fraction of an infinitesimal second. The fact that you have touched the throne has already sealed your fate.”

Lusha nodded. This one was truly a threat. This was her worst nightmare, to be encased and trapped in an endless loop of death and rebirth. That is exactly what would occur should she be encased in the ice. Should that happen, her desire to die will never truly be realized. It would be substituted for something like this endless loop.

“Understood.” Lusha stated, nonchalantly.

“Now tell me… how was it that you ended up in Pharolia village?”

“I had taken an adventurers guild mission. Just as I was leaving Earl Regalia’s estate in Goumei, a mission had presented itself to me for my rank.”

“But there were no missions within the HQ for Pharolia village, nor is it within any official records.”

Lusha nodded. “That is so. During my time in Pharolia village, I had come to realize that the mission was not authentic. It was a subterfuge. The young boy from the Ozun family had created the parchment utilizing inscription magic.”

“Which boy?”

“Zari Ozun. Though he does not appear to be, he is heavily talented with inscription magic.”

Everyone remained completely silent and looked forward at the situation occurring. Not a single individual dared move. It felt as if she was surrounded by an army of statues.

“I see… now I’m going to ask you another question… and please- do not lie to me. Your other companions may very well meet their end should they attempt to sequester this fact again.”

“How did the demon meet its end.”

Lusha realized her grave mistake. She had asked each of them to sequester her involvement in all of this. But she did not imagine an individual like this would be performing the interrogation. They would have had to tell him lies and could possibly have already perished.

She hesitated for a second… thinking about how to best answer this. Finally she decided the approach of truth was the best way. “I faced the demon. Alone. But it was not me who dealt the finishing blow”

“Do you mean to tell me you were evenly matched with the demon that required both Aman and Gagan to defeat. He gave a look to the duo of team Exalt, who stood within the crowd as well. “Yes.”

“....”

Elim and Soka quickly chimed in, as if to speak out of turn, even in the face of this current individual. “Um..I–f I may.” The man nodded. “This was the same lady involved in the earlier Carthage incident. She had claimed to help defeat the previous demon in the Carthage incident with the help of Nuon a month ago.”

“And what of it?”

“We did test her in combat. I believe… if she were truly to try her best, neither me nor Soka could defeat her.”

The man appeared perplexed by this. He combed his hands through his hair one more time, as he often did when he was thinking. “I’ll keep this in mind.”

“So you faced the demon by yourself. Tell us all you know about the creature.” He gave a glance to Gagan and Aman, signifying that they should be paying extra attention to everything going on.

“The demonoid… I cannot quite describe it right.” Lusha began. “He was tall. Taller than anyone I’d seen save for maybe Gagan and Nuon. Though he held no muscular mass like them. Eyes that looked down upon even the stars, and a smile composed of impure delight.”

They all listened attentively. “It moved too fast for me to follow. And could change whatever occurred in the moment. I would land a fatal blow, and it would come back unscathed.

Gagan’s eyes opened in shock. Confirming the validity of his statements. She continued. “I utilized an ability that linked everything together, even with the demon. At that moment, I saw multiple variations of myself. Multiple variations of the demon, multiple situations…”

The man held his hand out, signifying her to stop. “How… what are you saying? Gagan…explain.”

It was evident the man had not yet read the report given by Gagan. It was only given to the chancellor and kept under the orders of silence. Gagan shook his head. “I cannot yet divulge this. If it was just you here, I could give the report. However… I’m under obligation to not speak a single statement. I’m sorry, Regalt.”

Regalt looked perplexed and sat down on the throne that appeared behind him. He kept a hand to his temple. “Continue…”

“Yes… this demon had the ability to cross between various different realities. The only way it had not worked on me was because I had access to an ability… similar to Spiders eye.” She shared a glance with Gagan.

“What is this ab- no. nevermind. Then how did this demon perish?”

“Another ally of his had appeared and killed him.”

This was the bombshell of the interview. This had now meant that Lusha had seen not 1, not 2, but 3 demons in total. Regalt could not find any fallacy in her statement. He could only hold his breath.

“This other demon… called himself Cyrn. I could not ever imagine facing him should he have decided to attack.”

Regalt instantly realized the lie there. She was confident enough to face the demon that had appeared. However, not at the moment that it had appeared. “Then… this is the last question I have to ask you.”

“The people of Pharolia village… how did they die.”

Lusha did not hesitate. “Because of me.”

“Every single one of them had died due to the nature of the ability I had used. It was the only way to defeat the demon.”

There was a lie there however, this lie was greater than any lie she had told yet, and it was unintentional. The fact of the matter was, that not every single one of them had died due to her ability. In fact, there were quite the scores of dead individuals due to the young Zari.

When Regalt glared at her in her lie. She instantly realized what was stated. “How did they die?”

“It was by my hands.” She yet again lied. This time it was on purpose. She had already witnessed just how much Zari had gone through. To then subject him to the blame of all the people he had killed under the orders of the demon, it was not a judgment she felt fair in delivering.

“Well. I don’t suppose I care much about that anyway. You’ve told the truth about your involvement within the whole ordeal. You will have to answer to the chancellor regarding the ability you used… but I was not told to pry into such details.”

“I was told to pass the judgment on you as I see fit however.” Regalt stood up. “From here on Lusha Viscirilis.”

“You will struggle, and crawl. You will lament the days you chose the actions you chose to get you here. You will regret the sorrows and pain you’ve caused for others in your pursuit for power.”

“From this point on, Lusha Viscirlis… of team Infinite,”

He walked over to her and stood over the woman. “You are now-”

“The newest hero rank adventurer.”

He presented to her a tag. That etched her symbol upon it. It was the symbol for infinity, one selected directly by him. He thought it fit her calling.

The tag glistened with its translucent color encased over platinum and diamond on the inside. She looked in awe. This was not what she had expected to conclude from this meeting. As her eyes met everyones, there were many signs of relief on the faces of everyone there. It was uncertain whether this would happen.

Lusha took the tag into her hands and a gleam of appreciation showed upon her face. She had now advanced much closer to her goal than ever. It was as if one was walking and all the sudden made leaps and bounds ahead of the rate she was doing. Just now, she had met every single HERO rank adventurer. And even met two God-Platinum adventurers.

This was now the beginning of a new chapter. Things would for sure be going her way now. Especially with how many opportunities now shown to her.

She smiled and thanked Regalt. Though the look that she had received was much different than anyone elses. Regalt leaned over and whispered to her so hushed that only she could hear.

“You’re welcome… Wretched Witch.”