Chapter 19 - The Adventure begins

The blue and warm sky had to retire as the sun feeling tired, set off to sleep. Like a wheel spinning, not long after, the forgotten yet present moon made its grand appearance with his comrades, the stars who sparkled a thousand flames. Unlike the sun who radiated light and heat upon this vast land, the moon weak and feeble, could naught but borrow the power of the sun to enlighten the night for us to see. None praises the moon, all are bewitched by the all mighty sun, revered as a god by some beliefs. The moon was deemed unholy and cast off as an exile, such cruel fate even an entity as magnanimous as the moon could not stand against the collective thoughts of thousands and even millions. Under said starry night laid Staxius, cold and shivering from the wind who blew off their fire.

The babe, unknown once but now family, Staxius held her with all his might, close to his chest where all the heat was generated. The once tender breeze turned into a needle who pierced through clothes and flesh, straight for the bone. Painful, our hero naught but grit his teeth for he didn't want the babe to feel uncomfortable. Impressed, Undrar decided to help her newfound companions, millenniums stuck in the hall of rebirth had made her weaker in physical form compared to the spiritual form where she's a demi-god.

"Can you stop shivering, it's getting annoying." She voiced her frustration.

"Shut the hell up Undrar, you can't feel this cold, it's so bad I'm practically dying here, man talk about impulsive, I had to go and take this babe with me. However, seeing her sleep so peacefully in my arms does heat me from within, is this why father didn't let me leave his side even on the countless battlefields we visited."

"Fine, I'll help you, by the way, your mannerism has changed, the way you speak is more friendly now compared to when I first met you." *Snap* With an effortless motion, Undrar conjured a comforting blue flame, the purest out of the bunch.

"Could you have done that from the start? Well, I'm grateful, this will get me through the night just fine, I hope Eira sleeps peacefully. Also, whatever are you talking about. My manner of speech won't simply change over a span of two weeks, I've grown accustomed to your company, hence my familiarity. Besides, you're a mighty demi-goddess who I can't but feel obliged to lower my head upon glancing up at your flawless face in fear of disrespect. " His tone changed from friendly to the usual formal speech.

"Glad to see you're still the same, I didn't imply that I disliked the change, it's a side of you I'd never have hoped to see."

"Very well, I shall be the way I was a few seconds ago. So, when is your physical form going to be ready?"

"In about a year or so,"

"A YEAR?"

"I'm pulling your leg, in a month or so, do you wish to see me that badly?" She smirked.

"I've seen more than enough," *Foo.*

The memories came rushing down as if a piece of meat thrown onto the ground surrounded by hungry rats. The first defeat without getting physically or magically attacked.

*Gulp,* "I..."

"No need to threat, I've promised not to do that anymore, I was only asking because Eira will need someone else besides her in this crucial phase. Those pair of b.o.o.b.s might come in handy for once, feed my child with your divine…" He smirked.

Instantly, Undrar covered her chest with her arm's crossed. Embarrassed, Staxius had managed to render her speechless once again, he laughed.

"I was only joking, I've taken this responsibility on my own, using dark arts, I'll train her mana link from the outside. If she ever wants to be acknowledged by her real parents, she will need to be strong, very strong. I just need someone as a mother figure beside her, I don't want her to grow up like someone who's never experienced the motherly bond. You'll be traveling with me from now on, so why not be a big sister or something, forget the mother part, thinking about it now, you're not cut out for it." He pulled out his tongue.

"Don't mock me, I may only be suited for combat, however, that doesn't discard my credibility to love and care for someone." She pouted.

"Ha-ha-ha, thanks for being such a good sport, *Yawn,* it's getting lat…"

"I wonder if he was being honest when he asked me to be Eira's mother. Knowing him, it's probably hollow words. Perhaps being sarcastic even though it's said to be the lowest form of wit. Where will our adventures guide us in this god-forsaken land of Hidros." She reflected as she gradually dozed off.

*Waaaa, waaaaah,* The moment the sun reappeared from its daily nap, Eira woke everyone. The tone was so high it pierced the unsuspecting Staxius's ears into deafness.

"Mhmmm," He rubbed his eyes as the babe laid on the ground, n.a.k.e.d, the sand and rocks may have pricked her once or twice when he let go of her grip in the morning.

"Shit, Eira are you ok, I'm so sorry, I was careless, please forgive me." With a smile, Staxius cleaned her pale skin which turned red from the rough ground. Eira luckily wasn't injured, maybe in an act of revenge or plain insolence, after he picked her up, she urinated on him.

Meanwhile, Undrar also woke, she saw Staxius getting pissed on, she laughed so hard it nearly ripped her vocal cords. The babe giggled, our hero stared, an adorable yet deadly stare off. A few hours later, he cleaned up his only pair of trousers and gave Eira his still bloodied coat, warm and peaceful, Eira continued her nap.

"Staxius, listen, we can't stand on this beach for much longer, it's suicide."

"Didn't you say being in my mind makes your head explode?"

"I'm resting, so it's fine."

"How much rest does one need, either way, we are leaving soon, I've figured out where we are.

Poseidon Strand, we are all the way in the northeast from Oxshield. From where we stand, facing south, if we walked towards the east, we'll reach the border of Kreston. Sadly, that place is filled with people from the church and other not so virtuous cults. From what I got told by my dad, that place is somewhere you never want to venture alone, it's deadlier than the darkest streets in the capital.

As it stands now, we need to head for Krigi, my old home is there, that is if the nobles have decided to leave it alone, it's a long walk. A carriage would be… oh shit, I completely forgot about the nobles we killed yesterday, HOW CAN I BE SO CARELESS."

He sprinted through the sand which flew with every step he took, the bloodied battlefield was in sight, closer than expected. The young boy's corpse was still present, none looted his reward, the blade, once shining, laid dull, with all the blood from its former master. With a quick glance, he spotted everything valuable, some clothes which would be nice, in the carriage he found an expensive, rigid looking backpack. More stuff, they had food, bread, some pie, and apple juice. They went on a picnic to kill people. Staxius wondered as the search for valuables continued, more weapons he could sell, arrows and finally the crest, gold and genuine, the thing that represented a family in this day and age.

Without this crest, a family is naught but a lie. This is what separates noble blood from commoners. There is also a special rule about these golden insignia, anyone who holds any crest from any family whether he killed or stole it is immediately the head of said family.

The more of this trinket a person has, the more powerful his considered. Even the royal family possesses one of this. Sadly, before being officially recognized by the kingdom, one must form a blood contract with the ornament, thus it will enter the person's name into the archive which is rarely checked by anyone.

"The hunt was good I'm guessing?" Undrar spoke still in his mind.

"Yes… What are you doing here, I told you to watch over EIRA, you stupid GODDESS."

He ran as if his life depended on it, he ran, faster than ever, he ran, out of breath, his child was in sight, still peacefully sleeping, a heart once-troubled now calmed, he ran, for Eira was someone he swore to watch over.

"Phew, Undrar I told you, wait never mind, I didn't say anything did I?"

"…" She just shook her head in disappointment.

"No matter, I've found something interesting, a noble family's crest. How could a boy have possession of something so important, a coup d'état? It's that sorcerers doing, I'm sure of it."

"So what family is it?"

"No clue and I don't care, all noble factions in Dorchester live near the border to Oxshield in, you guessed it, noble district… Hold up, what happens if one acquires the royal crest? Don't I effectively become the king… I say that as if it's easy. Waging war against Hidros with another kingdom is probably easier than stealin… That's not such a bad idea now, what do you think Undrar?"

"I don't know, either by force or using your wit, I'm here for better or for worse, nonetheless I need to remind you that you have Eira to worry about. Maybe slowly infiltrate noble homes and steal their crests, build power that way and ascend until you can lead a revolution. From what I've seen, the populous here in Dorchester isn't happy."

"Undrar you're amazing, Hidros is divided into six provinces each ruled by a duchess or duke in a council of nobles. There are eight to ten nobles in each region, what if I overthrew one of said district, for example, Dorchester. The population will fight under the cause of a peaceful life, we've had enough of our home being treated as a battlefield. After the revolution, we can be self-sustained by our lands, declare independence and take Hidros out from the inside. Such a task will be as if breaking a mountain with only a pebble, but it's plausible. It's been decided, this is our goal for now, stage a coup against the council ruling Dorchester."

"You spout nonsense so nonchalantly it's unbelievable, the dream you speak of isn't that far as you think, it can be pulled off, if not, just kill everyone, I mean, it will be your job in the near future." She chuckled.

"Funny, very funny, look I'm laughing out loud."

"Stop it with the sarcasm and form the blood pact already."

"Fine," With a small cut, the golden crest in form of a sunflower changed into the face of a dragon,

the family name Haggard was burnt into the pages of the archive in the capital. The current title was Baron, beside his family name, Haggard, his strength as a mage was also inscribed, an A-rank mage, common but powerful, breaking into the S-rank is a task people have taken years to accomplish. All this information was transferred over to the backside of the crest, it was like a record book for his strength, accomplishments, and status. The reason why Staxius trusted the crest system is that it was said to originate from the stars, ancient magic no one can decipher much less alter its basic structure.

"Staxius… why is your crest my face thousands of years ago?" She asked with frustration in her tone.

"Don't speak so loudly, you'll wake Eira," he chuckled.

"Aright, time is about ten o'clock, we are heading out, I've got provisions to last us a few days."

Without looking back, the walk inside the profound, shadowy, and ominous forest began, Eira close to his chest, one arm holding her butt and one pushing her back closer to him, he walked. A massive backpack on his shoulder, a makeshift necklace with the dragon crest hanging, a sword on his belt, and Undrar on his shoulder continually pestering him, with no money, nothing to his name and not even clothes for his daughter who was now wearing her father's bloodied coat, neither did he feel pain nor felt as if it was a burden, with a smile on his face, the adventure began at last.