Jarret was walking to the infirmary when he overheard his men talking.
“Bandits… What makes them suddenly so bold? They still retained some common sense and are not attacking the town directly but travelers, caravans, farms... everything outside the walls got attacked. Hells and Damnations, what is happening?”
“Apparently, they got news we’re lacking in manpower. With the people we lost in the Beast Tide… and considering the condition of Franco and the others, we really are shorthanded.”
“Fools, the lot of them. Captain Heskins led the guards and went out in force. The radicals died fighting and the majority surrendered and went to the slammer. Their broken bones should remind them of their folly for the months to come.”
“True. Cap looked like a fierce metal typhoon that time, battling a dozen bandits alone. Damn it! I regret I’m too weak to be of help. If only I- Captain Heskins, sir!” The guard promptly gave Jarret a salute.
“Carry on,” Jarret replied before going to the infirmary. Leaving a pair of awkward guards.
“He looked haggard,” one of the guards said.
“Can you blame him? This month has been a disaster... troubles after troubles.”
Jarret was looking at Franco whose face was covered with a white sheet. The guilt swallowed him from head to toe, a silent desolation. Seeing Franco’s bandaged shoulders made him recall the healer’s words earlier.
“My sympathies, Captain Heskins, he is with the Radiant Lady now. His injury was too grave and the treatment was too late,” the most senior healer said apologetically.
It was the issue of affinity. Victor who had his leg severed was undergoing treatment and the healers were in the process of attaching the nerves. Because Victor was an earth Pathseeker and there were healers using the same affinity. Franco had one of the rarer affinities, dust. Unfortunately, no healers were capable of using an affinity compatible with Franco’s dust in Osemore.
Pathseekers injuries were hard to cure, this was widely known.
To receive positive results, they need to be treated with healing Artes from the same affinity or it wouldn't be as effective. A healing Arte from water Pathseeker might only show 20% of its effect when used on a fire Pathseeker.
Naturally, the Level of the healer still played a major part in this. A high Level and experienced Pathseeker might be able to help Franco no matter what his or her affinity was but no one in Osemore could do that right now.
Jarret was a metal Pathseeker, he wasn’t suited for healing. The first aid he had given Franco was not enough. With the help of Philip who Cain only strangled, the two brought the other three to town. By the time Jarret reached Osemore, the healers told him Franco’s chance was slim. Even if he survived, Franco would be a cripple since they couldn’t reattach his arms. Once again because of the incompatible affinity.
Not long after that, reports of bandits attacking the surroundings of Osemore reached his ears. Like rats they came, Jarret didn’t even have time to reorganize his thoughts.
What’s worse, they lacked the manpower to cover such a huge area. If there were still adventurers in town then normally they would issue an emergency quest and bolster their manpower but that well was dried by their own hand.
In fact, some bandits were former local adventurers who became jobless after the adventurer business in Osemore got abolished. They returned with a vengeance against the town’s decision. Jarret didn’t make the rules banning adventurers from Osemore but he supported it. The town was currently in a tight spot and it was like giving someone a kick when they were down.
Jarret couldn’t deny he felt a little regret for the hasty decision.
The church gave the much needed help but it was nowhere near enough. Jarret made a difficult choice to leave some areas uncontested for the scums in favor of the more important areas.
And so there were people who died because of his call.
When Franco exhaled his last breath, Jarret was bashing bandit’s skulls with his fist. The fact Jarret couldn’t be there with him at the end was another knife to his conscience.
Only now after the bandit threat had been contained, he had the time to visit Franco.
“...I’m sorry, old friend.” Jarret’s voice was heavy with the weight of guilt. This was his fault, thought Jarret. If he didn’t bring Franco to pursue Cain, would Franco be in this situation right now?
As Jarret turned around, he saw Roger standing behind him. His bandaged stomach had a touch of red on it and his face was as pale as a ghost.
“You’re going?” Roger asked.
“...Yes,” Jarret noticed Roger’s tone carried his disapproval.
“Do not... do this. Cain is strange. He might be a Level 2. You might die, Jarret!” Roger spoke passionately.
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“...I must make things right,” Jarret felt his guilt become heavier with each passing second.
“Even if you defeat him, so what? It won't bring Franco back! It won't bring Sigma back! Let the fucker go, the Goddess will mete out his judgement soon enough.”
Jarret didn't reply, he simply walked towards Roger, towards the exit.
“I won't let you do this! This isn’t you. Get your head straight, man! Kate needs you, Jarret. If she lost you too, she-”
Jarret gave Roger a chop behind his neck, incapacitating him.
“Franco… wouldn’t want this… ” Roger said before losing consciousness.
“I’m sorry, Roger,” Jarret left both of his injured friends that he would trust with his own life. On the way, guilt, regret, ire, these emotions festered in his mind like a sickness.
“Captain Heskins, all men are standing by.”
At the town’s gate, Jarret looked in front of him. 20 Pathseekers, guardians of Osemore. All clad in full battle gear, ready to deploy.
Guilt to himself, by letting a murderer loose and his men injured under his very nose.
Regret to himself, that he didn’t mobilize the full force at his disposal to pursue the vile adventurer.
Ire to Cain of Ur, the source of it all.
“Once again, this is not an order…” The Captain paused. “Franco is dead,” Jarret looked into their eyes, the bond between every guard that they forged under his leadership. The will he found in their gaze made him proud. “Who among you will help avenge him?”
And so they roared. As one, they roared. Just as his father did, Jarret made them his family, brothers-in-arms. Men and women united by a singular purpose. The loss of one was felt by all.
One person had provoked them.
As one, they responded.
“Onward!” Jarret led his men to war.
Viers was reeling in pain, it felt like someone cut his arm with a sword of fire.
In Sigma’s soulspace, Viers was fighting against the system’s defense mechanism.
Viers called them drones.
They had the shape of a sphere with a center eye as its core. The smallest of them was the size of a basketball while the biggest had a diameter of 3 meters. There were dozens of them and they shot bullets, missiles, and laser beams. Viers found it funny that their ‘lasers’ were not true lasers. It did not travel at the speed of light. It might even be slower than bullets, just like a Stormtrooper’s blaster.
Viers stabbed one of the smaller drones with his sword and it disintegrated into bits of data. Viers had destroyed many but their numbers kept increasing.
The soulspace was a grid, the lines emitted dark yellow color. The grid extended as far as the eyes could see as if it was limitless. The sky was jet black and there was a white-shining pillar in the center of the soulspace. Despite the dark space, Viers could see the drones clearly.
Viers had to defend himself from their attacks or his soul would be injured.
The drones could fly while Viers could not. He was at a disadvantage. He dodged a laser aimed at his head and thrust his sword to the eye of one of the spheres nearby. He jumped before the sphere exploded, landing on the ground after a backflip.
Viers created a shield to block a concentrated laser beam from five drones. It held for three seconds before it melted and Viers dodged out of the way not a second too soon.
The white pillar was the access-point to Sigma/Renji’s soul. Viers had breached the primary defense system and got inside its defenses, now the system wanted to purge him out.
Viers was like a virus that had infiltrated the body. To combat the infection, the body deployed white blood cells to destroy him. White blood cells’ job was to fight infectious disease and foreign invaders, an apt description of the drones.
[Malicious intelligence is damaged. Intensifying countermeasures.]
“You’re so proactive for a system. Most of your kind are more passive, learn more from your brother and sister!” Viers shouted to the sky.
They don't give me the chance to access Sigma. At this rate, let alone soul search him for valuable information, I might actually die from this! Should I back out now?
Viers was considering his options while dealing with the drones.
“Lord Viers, allow me to help you!”
“Let me out! I’ll help you deal with those things.”
Farley and Clarissa’s voices reached him. They were watching via V-stream.
I figured it might come to this one day, Viers thought. “Paina?”
“…Yes. I’ll help too. As much as I can.”
“Good. Come to me!” Viers raised his right hand to the sky.
The drones didn’t stay still, they focused their laser beams at Viers.
A bridge of rainbow descended from the dark heavens, three women he knew well appeared ready to fight. Viers mimicked the Bifrost so they would appear more dramatic. Like a scene from the movies, they took care of the drones’ attacks with a flourish. They each had their own way of dealing with the lasers. Farley twisted it, Paina curved it, Clarissa burned it.
Farley with her spear, Paina held a staff, but Clarissa appeared empty-handed. With Viers’ permission and help, Farley and Paina had the weapons they used when they were still alive but Clarissa said she didn’t need weapons so the lamia appeared empty-handed. Viers only gave Clarissa a glance then returned his eyes to the front, to the drones. He stood on the same line as the girls.
This was in Sigma’s soulspace, the domain of the soul. Viers had no problem calling the trio’s soul from inside him.
“Who said the power of friendship is exclusive for the good guys? I have it too,” Viers gloated.
“Friendship, is that what we have?” Clarissa asked.
“Of course, no matter how shallow that friendship is. I never wanted any of you to die.” Viers smiled. Except for Farley, when I thought she deceived me. Not anymore of course, Viers added in his head, still smiling. “And you don’t want me to die, so we’re buddies.”
[Additional malicious entities detected. Allocating more resources for purging.]
Viers pointed the tip of his sword to the biggest sphere, behind dozens and dozens of drones. “That is the objective. Get the big one then the other drones should stop.”
“How do you know?” Paina asked.
“It’s a common pattern. That eyeball just screams ‘boss’ doesn’t it? Let’s go!”
If this was a manga, Viers imagined this scene would be a two-page spread. Four people against hundreds of black spheres controlled by the system.