Chapter 18: Heirloom

Chapter 18: Heirloom

'Priestess?' he said inwardly, his gaze towards Anna changed as he realized why she looked this young.

Priests or priestesses were blessed by the holy race through the church and the pure light affinity vitalizes their bodies, making them revert to their younger looks.

"What?" she queried in a shy tone. Her cheeks became ruddy because Cristian had been staring for a while.

"I'm short of words. I could never imagine walking beside such a beautiful priestess." The red hue on her cheeks became more pronounced. She quickened her steps and created a gap between them.

Cristian chuckled as her innocent and shy nature made her extremely cute. Sheila snorted and went after her sister.

The soldiers gazed at the sisters with respect and at him with curiosity. His inspection revealed that there weren't any guests, merchants, or travelers that had entered this small town for years!

This would have been a huge dilemma without the current protection of being some warrior. "How did you know I'm the one you're looking for?" he tuned his question in such a way that Anna had no suspicion.

"Well, I was told by the seer that I would find you at the Nile stream, and fret not. The chief shall grant you a suitable weapon."

She flashed a heartwarming smile and, together with Sheila; they went straight to the stone manor that dominated the center of the town.

"Halt!" a guard clad in brown leather armor hollered whilst his grip on the wooden shaft of his long spear tightened.

The other guard grabbed the touch, hung on the square pillar, and raised it. His irises dilated when he spotted Anna's iconic white robe. It had golden embroidery at the helm and sides.

He kicked the ground, dust rose, and the sand made the first guard turn. "The priestess," he whispered, but his dumb partner frowned.

"It's the priestess you oaf!" With clenched teeth and saliva spilling out, he spoke in a higher tone.

"Hehe," Anna, who had arrived at this point, giggled "It's nothing, Olah, you are just performing your duty." her warm tone diffused the guard's tension.

They were quite stunned to see a stranger with such a charming face that they feared he would corrupt the minds of their wives.

They opened the thick wooden door, and the trio walked in. A few moments later, Derek found himself before the chief of Darkston.

The gray-haired man sat on a wooden throne. His cloudy eyes peered into the void, whilst a dark, desolate aura hovered above him.

A thick bear's fur coat, much thicker than Cristian's, gave him an air of authority. The wrinkles on his face doubled as a wry smile appeared on his lips.

"Don't trouble yourself, priestess Anna. Go back to the city because we are doomed." His deep aged tone was laced with a thick sense of desolation, echoed in the spacious room.

The candles placed at calculated positions illuminated the room, and Cristian could see different stuffed animal heads.

"We have found the warrior I spoke about. With his help, we can kill the Dark Wolf Lord." Anna said with fervor. Cristian felt stunned due to the amount of trust she had in him.

"A warrior? Heh. how can a single warrior help us?" The chief lost hope long ago. From the moment he found out they wouldn't receive help from other towns, his hope went up in smoke. noVe(lb(In

"CHIEF! He can help us. He's the only one that has survived against Medusa!" Shelia, who kept silent all this while, yelled.

Her overbearing gait revealed she had little respect for the chief, who had been nothing but a coward when the reality of being left alone to face the Dark Wolf Lord hit him.

"He fought Medusa? Is she dead?" his murky eyes glowed as he queried about Medusa's possible demise. It would be one good news that would accompany him to his grave.

"Sadly, she's not." the blue-haired beauty shot a glance at Cristian and sighed. "The highest level we have is just 37, and it's you, Shelia. You have gone against him a couple of times and you know he would never allow you to get close enough to cast a spell. If a mage of your caliber can't stop him, then what makes you think he will?"

A sigh echoed, and they turned to Cristian, who had swallowed enough of this miserable drama. He wasn't here to stand and watch this bag of bones spout rubbish about their doom.

The chief is no longer young, so death might be less scary for him, but he had an unknown but probably bright adventurous life ahead of him.

He had figured out his role in all this. The warrior who didn't arrive, and they mistook him for the same person, was meant to take Sheila close enough for her to kill the dungeon lord.

None of their warriors were strong enough, so they needed a capable shield, but the warrior did not consider their offer and ignored it. And he might do the same.

Cristian would lend a hand to save people in need, especially with their lives at stake, but only when he had the capacity.

The moment he heard the highest level, Cristian no longer took himself as being weak and he suspected Anna had the protection of a powerful being, which was why he couldn't manipulate or see her thoughts.

Sheila's shoulders trembled. She could not imagine that they came back here to help the town, but this spineless old man just sat on his comfy chair and wallowed in despair. She had thrown herself into danger for this town while both he and his equally spineless son hid behind the sturdy stones of their manor.

Suddenly, Cristian placed his palm on her shoulder, causing her to turn. A smile graced his lips and his eyes glowed with ghastly green flames.

[Eyes of truth and mind, activated.]

"I've got this."

His reassuring tone stunned her. And Sheila stood to the side. She wanted to see how Cristian would either make a fool of himself and get thrown out by the guards or turn the situation around, which was almost impossible.

"Hey, old man. Give me a weapon and tonight to get some things done, then I would make sure your mage gets the head of that dungeon lord." the ghastly flames in his eyes flashed in the chief's murky eyes and his irises lost their glow.

'Give him your best weapon and the town will live. He can do it, not many can survive from Medusa.'

While these thoughts sounded like him, the chief had no idea. It was Cristian manipulating his weak-willed mind.

Cristian couldn't be happier when he realized manipulating the thoughts of those with lower stats did not consume mana.

The chief was indeed higher than him in level, but Cristian had the advantage of his new race, which boosted his stats to rival those ranging from level 20 to level 30!

But to utilize his stats, which had a mix of both mage and warrior but leaned more toward the warrior path, he needed a weapon.

Cristian's language surprised Anna and Sheila, for he previously talked like a noble and now, his tone and aura reminded them of his identity as a warrior.

They watched in shock as the stubborn chief agreed, called his son, and told him to get their heirloom.

Both girls had no idea that the chief's family had an heirloom, and he never bothered telling them about it when it might have been of help.

They patiently waited for a few minutes, and distant footsteps rang. Soon the chief's son, clad in a thick furry coat, head warmer, loose brown pants, and thick leather boots, walked into the hall with a weapon.

He presented it to his father, who caressed the scabbard with a passionate gaze. His murky eyes cleared and memories of his family's glory days flashed through them.

With a grunt, he stood up, each step deep and filled with purpose; both girls and the chief's son watched as the chief stood before Cristian.

"This is your payment, brave warrior. I hope you treat it with love and care, for it will also protect you from the Thorn's touch."

Cristian's eyes flashed when he heard that unfamiliar name, but he shrugged it off and took the great sword.

The strange design of the crossguard made him feel awe, for it resembled those weapons owned by game characters, which made him drool.

The hilt looked thin compared to the broad blade hidden by the scabbard. 'Inspect,' he said inwardly, but nothing happened.

Cristian feared the sort of thing. He shot a glance at the old man, who stared at him with eager eyes. Waiting for him to draw the blade.

~Shing!~

The sound of metal sliding against metal rang loudly as he pulled out the blade. The silvery surface shone mildly, whilst Cristian and the sisters admired the craftsmanship.

At that moment, texts appeared on his retina.

[...]