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Chapter 720: Dark World

"I need to arrest him to receive the promotion," said Lyle as he ruffled through his hair. "However, the thing is… he is a friend of mine and a part of the rebellion. He supplied most of us with medals, but I need to bring him in for the next part of our plan."

"Oh, then you know where he is?"

"…no," said Lyle with a sigh. "We had a falling out a few months ago because of something I did, which I don't regret, but Gray disapproved of it. He left the rebellion after that, and I have no idea where he is now."

"I need to hear the full story since I'm a part of this now."

"That is only natural," said Lyle as he pulled a chair and sat down. "The truth is, someone else knew about our plan, and he was the former commander of the Holy Knights, Zonas Mantra."

"The grandfather that you arrested," added Arthur, to which Lyle nodded. "It seems this Gray did not approve of this arrest, did he?"

"He agreed with my grandfather, who wanted the rebellion to stop. Zonas was a friend of his uncle, and the fact that I arrested him made Gray distrust me."

"Was Zonas a part of the rebellion?"

"No, he was loyal to the emperor, almost too loyal. However, a year ago, the emperor issued a secret order. The rest of the empire did not know about it; almost no one did, except for me. Zonas was supposed to visit Runera… and kill a certain person."

"What are the odds?" muttered Arthur with amusement, and Lyle shrugged in response. "Your grandfather was asked to kill me during the Runes Apprentice Cup."

"Indeed, but he refused, believing the emperor was making a mistake. His decision to disobey the ruler was not taken lightly, and an arrest warrant was issued in his name. It was then that I thought this was a good chance to rebel, but Zonas refused, saying that the timing was wrong."

"Did you arrest Zonas to gain favor with the emperor and facilitate your plans?" asked Arthur, but Lyle shook his head with the same apathetic expression.

"The arrest did make me a captain, but the reason I did was not for that. Zonas was my grandfather, but he wanted to stop us from rebelling against the empire. I had to arrest him before that happened."

"He could have spilled the beans."

"Zonas could never give away his grandson," smiled Lyle, almost with pride. "Even as that grandson arrested him, Zonas refused to tell the truth about us. So in the end, he was imprisoned."

"How come you didn't rebel at that time?"

"We were too lacking without Zonas, who was our hope to take down the empire. With him gone, we needed to recruit more people and gather more allies."

"You have quite a complicated situation here, Lyle, and you aren't necessarily the one in the right. However, it does not matter since I need to stop the executions myself."

"Is someone you know getting executed?"

"A friend," Arthur said as he looked out the window. "It's also my fault that she was arrested, just like your grandfather. You might act like a heartless man, but I know the real reason you wanted to stop the execution is to save him."

"If we can save them and overthrow the emperor, then it's best if we do," said Lyle while looking at the floor. "I will do my best to find Gray tomorrow."

"And I will tag along since I can probably find him faster than any tracker you have," said Arthur. "Before we proceed, I have a question. You said that your blessing makes your life short, so I know this rebellion isn't to obtain power or wealth. So why do you do it?"

"For revenge," said Lyle without skipping a beat, and then he left his chair and walked toward the window. "Tomorrow, we will visit Helios, the City of Warriors."

***

The view from atop the walls was breathtaking, as the city's ancient buildings made it seem like a painting. Arthur stood beside Lyle atop the walls of Helios. As he scanned the city, he realized there were four ancient pillars that were taller than anything else in the city.

"What are those?" asked Arthur, and Lyle knew his meaning without specifying the questions.

"Those are the Origin Pillars. You can say that Ilios was built around these pillars, which are as old as the world itself. The legend is that the world's elements are derived from these four monuments."

"Origin Pillars," muttered Arthur the name as he stared at them. He could feel nothing from them, not even a whiff of mana. However, any onlooker can tell that these monuments weren't manmade. "Are they also special?"

"As far as we are concerned: no," said Lyle as he stepped over the edge. "They are just ancient heirlooms of the empire without any power left within them. Follow me, and try to avoid being seen by anyone. The emperor has instilled fear into the citizens, so anything suspicious will be reported."

"Go, and I will be wherever you are," said Arthur as he waved his hand. Lyle looked at him with doubt over his shoulder before he nodded and turned into the wind.

Arthur was left alone, and he kept in mind the place Lyle was going to go and teleport there. As he was standing there, he felt unusual energy from behind. When he turned to see what it was, Arthur realized that a familiar presence had appeared in a faraway mountain range.

"This feeling…" muttered Arthur with a frown. "I had the same feeling when I met the Seika of Light back in The City of Herbs, Herav. At that time, the events' beginning led me to Freda and Solomon."

Arthur almost felt nostalgic, and he almost had the urge to ditch Lyle and seek the presence which has just appeared. However, he knew that it was useless to do so. No reason made him desire meeting a Seika La Vega or anyone that can hold the powers of creation.

Since the presence came from a nearby mountain range, Arthur expected its carrier to visit Helios soon. So, he turned around and teleported to where Lyle was and appeared in a room. Lyle was sitting on the bed, waiting.

"Are we having a sleepover?" asked Arthur when he saw that Rain was also there, sitting on a different bed and looking away from him.

"Maybe later when we have the time," said Lyle as he stood up. "Rain booked this room for a month, and you can use it in the meanwhile. I have to return to the Light Chamber and see what I can find about Gray. In the meantime, you and Rain will check the underground world and black market."

"That's fine by me, but I should change how I look," said Arthur as he held his face, and it started changing into something else. "I never expected my plain features would be so recognizable."

"The drawbacks of fame," said Lyle before he turned toward Rain and hesitated to say something but decided against it. "Until we meet again."

After Lyle left by turning into the wind, Arthur and Rain remained alone in the room. Finally, after a few minutes of silence and ensuring that Lyle was gone, Rain turned toward Arthur.

"Walk behind me and don't talk to anyone. These people know me, but they don't know you. As far as they care, you are a customer of mine. If you see a knight, then find the nearest hiding spot and teleport. Unfortunately, you don't have a medal, so you'll be arrested immediately."

"Understood."

Rain stared at Arthur, nodding, and she huffed before standing and walking toward the door. Arthur followed her as he examined her clothes, which looked nothing like before. Now, she was wearing a revealing dress, and every man they walked past looked at her with lust.

Arthur realized that, true to her words, this world was her oyster. Everyone knew and greeted her, with more than a few men coming over to beg for a night. However, with a few words from the tanned, white-haired beauty, they all left satisfied despite being turned down.

"It seems you're popular," said Arthur as he followed after her through the deserted ally, away from the eyes of the crowds. Rain did not answer and led him down some stairs, which seemed to lead underground.

Knock, knock!

Cling!

"Password?" asked a pair of eyes from behind the door Rain knocked, and she ran her finger across her lips in response. The small window closed, and the door was unlocked.

"Welcome to The Dark World, dear guests," said the short man behind the door as he flung it open. Arthur followed after Rain as he watched the scene inside, a casino filled with people.