The two continued in companionable silence, the distant sounds of the Aeni fading into the background.
After walking several hours without any stop, they reached the edge of the forest, revealing a hidden path that led to Tosva's village.
The village, nestled in a clearing, exuded an air of quiet resilience. A palisade of sturdy wood surrounded the settlement, and the inhabitants moved with purpose.
As Elias entered the village, he felt a mixture of curiosity and trepidation.
Tosva guided Elias through the village, introducing him to the wary but welcoming inhabitants.
A sense of camaraderie pervaded the air, a stark contrast to the chaos he had left behind in Eldora. The villagers exchanged cautious glances, but Tosva's presence seemed to reassure them.
As they approached the village center, Tosva spoke to Elias in a hushed tone. "We have a council that leads our village. They'll want to meet you and understand your abilities. Don't worry; they mean no harm."
Tosva left his side briefly and returned, informing him that they would be entering the hall of the elders.
Elias nodded, steeling himself for the upcoming encounter. The council, comprised of elders and skilled warriors, gathered in a circular hut adorned with symbols that hinted at a rich history. They scrutinized Elias with a mix of curiosity and wariness.
One elder, a wise-looking female with silver hair, stepped forward. "Welcome to Yume village. Tosva speaks highly of your strength, Elias. We need every able fighter to join our cause."
Elias, meeting the elder's gaze, spoke resolutely, "I'll be honored to join your cause."
The elder gave a glance at Tosva, who gestured with a nod and smiled at Elias. "We will give you the chance to prove yourself. In the meantime, rest and recover. Tomorrow, we discuss our plans against the Aeni nest we recently discovered."
Elias was pleasantly surprised by how they planned on deploying him directly to the battlefield, instead of training him.
Didn't Tosva tell him that each one would go through mandatory training to become a warrior class?
Why is the reality different from what he imagined?
Elias didn't understand what was going on and he planned to ask Tosva. However, once he settled in a new residence, the latter disappeared. Elias was informed by a warrior that Tosva left for another mission.
The only person he knew was no longer beside him, and Elias couldn't help but become more nervous as that feeling of being watched never disappeared.
Due to these suspicious glances and wariness from the villagers, who seemed to be avoiding him, he couldn't make any conversation.
Since he was too tired from all the fights and subsequently walking for hours, Elias washed himself and slept on the cold stone bed.
As lunchtime arrived, the silver-haired wise-looking elder, who first welcomed him, entered the house with a tray of food in her hands.
Elias was taken aback by her hospitality. "Elder Kasol, this..."
More than half a day later;
By the time of midnight, the entire village gathered at a large open space filled with strange markings and mystical symbols drawn on the ground, using the blood drawn from Elias.
Almost disfigured Elias, near to his death and in an unconscious state, was placed in the circle and the elders started manipulating natural energy in their surroundings.
Meanwhile, Elias' consciousness found itself in a strange place. It was a plain white room with a pitch-black humanoid creature chained in the center.
"Free me and I shall grant you the power, Elias..." "Why hesitate when you are on the brink of death?" "Don't you want to destroy this cursed world?" "If you to live, then, you should kill everyone who wants to kill you..."
Influenced by its words, his spirit walked to the creature.
Back to the outside, the ritual was at its peak.
A scarlet translucent barrier was slowly forming over the village as Elias' life force was being slipped away at a rapid rate.
Half a minute more, the barrier would have been completed, but something happened.
Elias, who was unconscious, for several hours, suddenly had a layer of black energy covering him.
The cuts and wounds were recovered instantly before his appearance changed. It wasn't Aeni he transformed into.
It was something else entirely, something sinister.
The village elders, alarmed by the halt of their ritual and the sudden transformation of Elias, conjured weapons out of natural energy.
"Gashhhaaaaa..."
The creature started going on a rampage, killing every elder, each with a single strike, before going on massacring the rest of the villagers.
The warriors fought but they were no match for the creature.
In the end, except for the warriors like Tosva who were away, every single villager including children became a victim.
But, the creature wasn't done yet.
Filled with rage, fueled by Elias' hatred for Tosva who deceived him and the surviving villagers of Eldora who were ungrateful, the creature went on its way to destroy the survivors.
Back to the present;
Roughly a few minutes after it was done with the rest of the survivors, Elias' former villagers, and rushed away into the forest to look for Tosva, Azzy arrived there to see the dead bodies on the streets, "Damn it. I was late." He clenched his fist and set his sights on the forest. "I need to kill it at all costs. A Protos being cannot roam in these lands."