CHAPTER 4

THUNDEROUS SOUNDS of footsteps from combat boots could be heard from the great hall where the lord of the castle was sitting on his black throne chair. The great hall was a rectangular-shaped room with a thick red carpet, a high ceiling, and glass windows with chairs on both sides. In the top-middle was the black throne chair that only the lord of the castle could occupy.

At that moment, the lord of the castle had his chin propped on the back of his clenched right hand, his elbow resting on the armrest, and his eyes closed while listening to the incoming footsteps.

Alone in the great hall, it only showed how confident the lord of the castle was on his combat ability that he thought he didn't need the protection of his right-hand man, the commander of his warriors, to receive their uninvited guests.

Even after the door to the great hall opened, the lord of the castle didn't open his eyes to greet his uninvited guests. His eyes remained closed.

Without waiting for the lord of the house to greet them, the head of the group that just entered the great hall introduced himself as he knelt on one knee, simultaneously bowing his head.

"I am General Adri of the Infernal Empire, requesting an audience with the warlord."

With his eyes still closed, the lord of the castle, the warlord, spoke, his voice deep and callous. "Speak."

General Adri immediately revealed the purpose of his visit to the warlord's castle. "A prisoner of the empire has escaped, and the empire is seeking for your assistance."

"Oh?" That piqued the warlord's interest. "How do you think I could help? Do you want to borrow my warriors?"

General Adri answered without a thought, "The empire would appreciate it if the warlord lent us his warriors, but the empire would appreciate it more if the warlord himself would hunt the prisoner."

The lord of the castle chuckled coldly at the audacity of the empire to order him around. "You can borrow my warriors, but I'm afraid I must decline the empire's request to personally hunt down the prisoner. I have more important matters to take care of."

General Adri gritted his teeth. He would do anything to get the warlord's help, so he divulged a secret that he knew would get a positive response. "The prisoner who escaped is none other than Sollel, Yther's Mistress of Flame."

The warlord's sharp black eyes opened. "The Mistress of Flame?"

General Adri nodded. "Yes. She escaped with a traitor's help, and we found her outside Beastrela. Unfortunately, she escaped again and burned our soldiers until they couldn't be identified anymore. But even so, the empire believed that the Mistress of Flame is still weak, and after spending all her energy fighting our soldiers, wherever she is now, she's an easy prey."

The warlord straightened his body and looked at the general. "There are strong warriors inside the empire. Why come to me?"

"Because you're one of the seven remaining descendants of Sappher," General Adri answered eloquently. "With your strength, weapons, and combat prowess, you could easily defeat the Mistress of Flame."

The warlord gritted his teeth because he's one of the people who knew the real history of Sappher with the Ytherians. The Kingdom of Sappher was known for their proud warriors and their arcane weapons that could grant its owner an ability that only the owner could wield. And as proud as they were, the warriors of Sappher declared war against the Ytherians to show the whole Azitera their strength, and it was a miserable defeat that caused the decline of Sappher, to the extent that only seven families remained. He came from one of the seven families.

After the decline of Sappher, the seven remaining royal families of Sappher scattered throughout Azitera to strengthen themselves with a vow that someday, they would gather again to defeat the Ytherians. And three generations later, the warlord still hadn't met a descendant of Sappher other than his traveler good friend, Xeke.

The warlord took a deep breath. "Very well. As one of the descendants of Sappher, I will hunt her down, but I will do it alone. You and your soldiers will only slow me down."

The warlord's arrogant tone did not sit well with General Adri. He, too, was a warrior and shouldn't be looked down upon. Not only that, but the warlord was also much younger than the general, and the general believed that young warriors should pay respect to their elders. But even though he felt insulted by the warlord's arrogance, he still nodded and agreed. The emperor's order was clear, and that was to ask the warlord's help to drag the Mistress of Flame back to her prison.

The warlord looked at General Adri's retreat as he left the great hall. When the general was finally out of his sight, he called Gabin, his right-hand man and the commander of his troops.

"Your excellency." Gabin bowed his head and reached out his hands that were holding a simple set of garments: a cloak, two unappealing blades, and a slightly worn-out combat leather boots. "Everything is ready."

The warlord got up from his chair and accepted all the things Gabin was holding out to him. "I will leave the castle to you, Gabin. If anything happened, you know how to contact me."

Gabin bowed his head. "Yes, your excellency. May the deities bless your travel."

The warlord smiled. "I'm already blessed, Gabin."

Gabin smiled because he knew the warlord was speaking facts.

♕♕♕

"WHERE ARE we?" Sollel asked for the third time after sensing that they were lost. Sollel was just following Cira because she said she'll be her guide, but Sollel immediately regretted her decision after walking on plains for three days and sleeping on the ground for two nights. And now they've entered a forest and they're definitely missing.

Cira turned to face Sollel but couldn't look at Sollel's eyes. "This is the shortcut to the Kingdom of Treterra. I'm sure of it, really!"

Sollel just nodded at Cira and urged her to move forward. And as Sollel followed Cira deep into the forest, she left traces of burnt leaves along the way, just to make sure that they were not going in circles. Hours later, Sollel saw the same leaves she burnt.

Sollel looked around. All she could see were trees and grasses. There's not even a single path that she could see. "We're lost, aren't we?"

Cira looked away and pretended to look for a path that could lead them out of the forest.

Sollel sighed. "What happened to 'I know everything there is to know about Azitera'?"

Cira looked at Sollel and bit her lower lip. "Azitera...changed while I was in Beastrela?"

Sollel stared blankly at Cira and was about to scold her for hiding the fact that they were lost when she heard a rustling sound. Seeing that Cira was about to speak, Sollel signaled her not to say a word. Cira immediately held her tongue and readied her bow and arrow.

Sollel felt hopeless while the rustling sound got nearer and nearer. She didn't have any weapon, and even if she could find a sword, it would melt in an instant after using her blood of flame. Basically, all she could rely for now was her ball of flame.

As the rustling sound got nearer, Sollel summoned a ball of flame in her hand while carefully backing away, not making a sound. And from the thick trees, Sollel and Cira finally saw where the rustling sound was coming from.

A huge black wolf with red eyes baring its fangs at them entered their line of sight, saliva dripping from its mouth. Sollel wanted to stay low, not wanting to make a sound, when she saw how the black wolf was looking at them. It looked hungry, ready to devour its prey—and they were its prey.

Before the black wolf could attack, Sollel threw the ball of flame in her hand to the black wolf, and then she started running. "Cira! Run!"

Sollel's worry of Cira's well-being was unfounded when she saw Cira running and sliding on the tree branches, expertly jumping from tree to tree like an elven warrior who were experts in forest battles. Seeing Cira safe, Sollel kept conjuring ball of flames one after another, throwing it to the black wolf while running. But her flames couldn't penetrate the black wolf's thick fur.

I need a bigger ball of flame, Sollel thought frustratedly. Back in the day, it would only take one ball of flame to destroy this beast, but now with her current strength, she was no match for it. All she could do was run and hope that her ball of flames could somehow distract the beast.

And as Sollel kept throwing her ball of flames to the black wolf, Cira, who was running and sliding on tree branches, shot her arrows at the black wolf. Cira's aim was precise that even Sollel was impressed with the elf's agility and aim.

"Head north, Your Highness!" Cira shouted while shooting the black wolf with her arrows. "I can see an exit!"

Listening to Cira, Sollel faced the black wolf and gathered the biggest ball of flame she could conjure in her hand. When the black wolf was only a meter away, Sollel released her ball of flame, blasting the black wolf into the air, a few meters away. Then Sollel started running north again, relieved to see that Cira was indeed right—there's an exit. She could already see the trees thinning as she got nearer and nearer to the exit.

Cira jumped down from the tree and landed beside Sollel. The two ran as fast as they could to the exit of the forest, while the black wolf—now with an injured eye—chased them furiously. It was angry because of the damage that Sollel's flame had done to its left eye.

Hearing the black wolf's angry roar behind them, Cira and Sollel ran faster than the wind. They both had a triumphant smile when they reached the end of the forest. Without stopping, the two continued running until there was a safe distance between them and the forest. Their smile widened when they saw that the black wolf had stopped at the edge of the forest, glaring at them.

Cira giggled and danced to mock the black wolf, and together with Sollel, the two turned around at the same time to continue their journey. But their smiles instantly disappeared when they saw what was in front of them.

There was a wide grayish rocky plain, so wide that they couldn't see the end of it. Two active volcanos were on each side, both spewing sulfur gases and ash. And in the middle of the two enormous active volcanoes was a wide path made of flat ash rock; there were also rock formations out of ashes.

Something clicked in Sollel's mind upon seeing it. "The ash terrain?"

Cira's eyes widened when she heard what Queen Sollel said. The ash terrain was harmful to any creature in Azitera. No wonder the black wolf didn't continue chasing them; it was afraid for its life.

The ash terrain looked calm, and the falling ashes from the volcanoes could be mistaken as a pretty snow, but it was all a lie. The air in the ash terrain was toxic and harmful to the body, not to mention the heat that would consume them as they go deeper into the ash terrain. If humans tried to cross the ash terrain, they'd die in half a day, halflings would probably die within two days, while other races could probably survive up to four days.

Unfortunately, to cross the ash terrain, seven days were needed.

Sollel and Cira both came from a long-lived race. Sollel could definitely make it out alive because of her indomitable body, but for Cira, it would be a challenge.

"Let's go back to the forest and kill that black wolf," said Sollel. She'd rather risk her life fighting the wolf than to cross the ash terrain. Maybe if her strength was like before, she could even walk slowly and enjoy the heat, but with her strength and body, not to mention the toxic air in the ash terrain, it would drain her.

"Ahm..." Cira immediately turned around, eager to go back to the forest, but she didn't dare take a step when she saw a pack of black wolves at the edge of the forest, looking at them hungrily. "I don't think that's an option anymore, Your Highness."

Sollel turned around and gritted her teeth when she saw a pack of black wolves glaring at them, baring their fangs, as if they were challenging them to go back so they could rip them apart.

Sollel sighed and looked at the ash terrain in front of them. What choice do we have? Be eaten or cross the ash terrain while praying to the deities for their safety?

"How long would it take to cross the ash terrain?" Sollel asked Cira.

"Seven days," Cira answered. She felt guilty for not informing the queen earlier that they were lost. Maybe if she said anything, they would not be in their situation now. "I'm sorry. This is all my fault. I should've told you earlier that we were lost. I really thought we were going the right way. I just want us to reach Treterra fast."

"No use blaming yourself," Sollel answered while observing the ash terrain. "Let's just cross this hellish terrain."

Cira nodded firmly before she took out two leaves from her satchel. "Here, Your Highness. Eat this. This are areca leaves. It can protect our body from toxins for a few days. Though you can only consume one leaf every week, or it'll turn to poison if you took two leaves within the same week."

Sollel did not want to take it since her blood could combat and purify any toxins that entered her body, but she realized how the plant could help her conserve her strength. If her blood continued combating and purifying the toxins that would enter her for seven days, it would have a negative impact on her body, weakening her, for sure. I can't have that, she thought.

"I will save the areca leaf when we arrive at the center of ash terrain," Sollel advised Cira. "But you should consume it now. You may be long-lived, but you can still die."

Cira shuddered at that and hurriedly consumed one areca leaf. "I'm ready, Queen Sollel."

Sollel nodded and took a deep breath before she bravely took a step forward while Cira was behind her, following her lead.

Sollel led the first day of their journey to cross the ash terrain. They didn't stop to rest or sleep. On the second day, still far from the center of the ash terrain, Sollel started to feel the heat, while Cira already felt the burning sensation of the two active volcanoes sandwiching them in between.

On their third day, Cira's body was begging for rest, and the effect of the areca leaves was fading, but she kept going. Cira couldn't voice out her complain, seeing how the queen caught her breath from time to time, tired just like she was.

On their third night, Sollel finally wanted to rest for a bit, but the problem was...where? Everywhere they turned, all they could see was a mountain of ash rock, and if someone touched it, they would burn.

The two enormous volcanoes were hundreds of kilometers apart, but the heat on the center between them still felt as if the craters were nearby. It was blistering hot. Well, for Cira it was, but for Sollel, she could only feel a little.

Sollel took the areca leaves she was hiding and ate it, and then she turned to Cira. "Are the areca leaves still in effect?" The toxic in the air was getting thicker.

Cira shook her head while trying to dry her sweat. "Don't worry. I'll try to use the essence in my body to heal myself, but it'll slow me down."

"Do it," Sollel ordered Cira. "Dragging your dead body will be more arduous than slowing down."

Cira looked at Sollel flatly and spoke with sarcasm. "Thank you for your worry, Your Highness."

Sollel nodded. "You're welcome."

Cira just sighed at how earnest Sollel sounded.

Stopping for a few minutes, the two realized that they wouldn't be able to rest even if they wanted to, so they continued walking until they reached the ash rock mountain—the center of the ash terrain.

Sweating, dehydrated, and exhausted, Sollel and Cira started climbing the ash rock mountain. The climb took a whole day and half a night. When they reached the top, Sollel and Cira expected a hellish temperature, but to their surprise, the heat was not as high as they assumed and anticipated. Still, they didn't stick around and continued climbing down after they ate Cira's dried meat provision and drank a little water from Cira's water canteen.

Cira was full of blisters and burns; if not for Sollel's fire essence being wrapped around her, she would've died—but Cira didn't know that. She had no idea that Sollel was spreading her fire essence to protect her from the blistering heat of the ash terrain.

On their fifth day, Sollel and Cira were already at the foot of the mountain. Their hike continued. On their sixth day, the two finally started seeing vegetation. And when Cira saw a tree, the elf climbed it and slept on one of the tree branches without a care in the world. The temperature already dropped down, and they could finally rest.

Seeing that Cira would be asleep for a couple of hours, Sollel sat on the ground and leaned on the bark of the tree that Cira was sleeping on and closed her eyes, not to sleep but to plan ahead.

This can't continue. To safely reach the Kingdom of Treterra, we need a proper guide that can also protect us, she thought. If Sollel was not mistaken, beside the ash terrain was a human settlement, the small town of Ashmire. And if her memory served her right, there was a guild of hunters in that town.

Maybe we could employ someone from the guild of hunters. It was the only plan Sollel could think of at the moment since she was still weak.

Sollel took a deep breath and concentrated to feel her flame. After six days in ash terrain, after being immersed in high temperature for six days, Sollel's strength did not change. I wonder where I can find a fire stone. Its essence can definitely help me recover a bit of my strength.

Sighing, Sollel thought of a plan since her elf guide was not reliable. To get to Gatria, Sollel needed to think ahead and prepare.