Hadjar didn’t argue, even though he doubted that Steppe Fang would’ve been able to kill her. Only Mentor Orune could’ve managed that, and only if Arkemeya stood perfectly still and didn’t resist him.
“The laws of the Heavens and the Earth,” Hadjar explained. “She’s a half-breed, Steppe Fang. Have you ever fought a Dah’Khass half-breed?”
“I haven’t…” He heard the realization in the orc’s voice. “I’ve only heard of them. Old legends say that the King sometimes takes women.”
“Any kind of women?”
“No. Only virgins.”
“That’s what I thought,” Hadjar said. “That’s why he killed Alea and took Irma with him.”
“So that she’d bear him a child?”
“Exactly. That child, conceived on the eve of the Black Star, would be half Dah’Khass and half human.”
Steppe Fang grumbled something. Hadjar got to his feet and went to the opposite wall. Putting his ear to it, he closed his eyes and listened. After a few seconds, he heard a soft sniff. Derek was still unconscious. He wondered if there were still tears running down his cheeks.
“And I think I know whom Alea slept with.”
Steppe Fang said something in his native language.
“Why didn’t he kill us?”
“The King?” Hadjar came back to the wall he shared with the orc’s cell. Still toying with his spatial ring, he tried to calm his mind. He felt like he was missing something important. “Out of greed. They’re preparing an invasion on Lascan, so they’re constantly expanding their army.”
“But there are only three of us.”
“We did practically offer ourselves up to him by coming here.”
“And Alea?”
“He killed her out of frustration. He’d probably planned to increase his chances of success by making not one, but two children.”
“But how did all this help the half-breed get away?”
“The King didn’t succeed with her. She, like the other Dah’Khasses, is outside the laws of the Heavens and the Earth. That’s why they’re hiding here, because they’ll all die if they spend too much time outside the veil.”
Hadjar remembered tales of vampires and their weakness to sunlight. The Dah’Khasses weren’t quite the same as them, but they were similar enough.
“That sounds very strange, Darkhan.”
“You’re right, giant.”
However, it explained why both the gods and the demons wanted to see the Dah’Khasses fail. The former had sent Freya, and the latter — their loyal emissary, Helmer, the Lord of Nightmares. Neither of the factions wanted to let anyone play against the laws of the Heavens and the Earth.
“But you said that she was nearly killed by the World River when she tried to break her oath.”
Hadjar opened his mouth, then closed it, then opened it again, and then swore angrily, cursing his own idiocy.
“You know what, Steppe Fang? I’m a moron. When the light shrouded her before, we were on the border of their lands. The influence of the veil is weaker there.”
“So the oath worked on her there, but not here?”
“So it would seem.” Hadjar nodded. “In other words-”
“In other words,” a voice came from behind the opposite wall, “your mistake cost my fiancée her life.”
Derek had woken up. The first thing he tried to do was break the bars. But he failed as well.
Chapter 607
Derek spent a few seconds trying to break the bars; after realizing the futility of his attempts, he soon gave up and returned to the wall. Like Hadjar had done recently, he slid down with his back against it and fell silent.
Anyone else in this situation would’ve said ‘I’m sorry, Derek’, or something like that, but not Hadjar. He wasn’t going to take the blame for Alea’s death. He felt responsible to a degree, sure, but… Both he and Steppe Fang had warned them that this trip would be anything but safe. It had been their own decision. He wasn’t going to bear the burden of Alea’s death. He was going to-
“It’s my fault,” Derek suddenly said, his voice trembling slightly. “If I’d just listened to my instincts, if I hadn’t agreed to come along, she would’ve… She would’ve… She would’ve…”
“Derek, you-”
“Shut up, Hadjar!” He shouted. “Please, shut up. Shut up before I start blaming you for what happened.”
“Why aren’t we in the fields?” Derek asked, trying to keep his voice calm.
“Who knows?” Hadjar shrugged, glad that they’d moved on with the conversation. “Maybe they changed their mind.”
“I don’t think so,” Steppe Fang said. “Their kind isn’t the merciful sort.”
Hadjar continued fiddling with his spatial ring. If the orcs knew as much about artifacts as they did about alchemy, they might’ve had a chance, but… The only good thing was that the Dah’Khasses didn’t know much about artifacts either. They would’ve picked the wreckage of the ‘Drunken Goose’ clean long ago if they did. But if they couldn’t use artifacts, how had they blocked their ability to release energy?
The ring reflected a ray of dim light, blinding Hadjar. Blinking, he raised it to his face and smiled broadly. The Dah’Khasses probably didn’t know what it was, otherwise, they would’ve taken it. Still, artifacts like his spatial ring were much less common than Imperial blades or armor. In distant Kingdoms, people believed that only an Emperor could possess an Imperial blade, and spatial artifacts were nothing more than a legend.
Rising to his feet, Hadjar put the ring on his finger, the one in which he’d enlarged his meridians, and prayed to the High Heavens that his idea would work. The amount of energy in his finger wasn’t enough to power any Technique, but it was enough to power the ring. Who could’ve known that his experiment with the ‘Path through the Clouds’ meditation Technique would come in handy one day?
Giving a mental order, Hadjar released his energy. It moved slower than usual, but it made its way into the ring. A moment later, the steel bars of his cage were inside it, leaving behind a round hole big enough for a man to get through.
“Seems like we won’t be meeting our forefathers just yet.” Hadjar smiled and went out into the corridor.
Like the cell itself, it was dark and damp. His energy moved slowly, but it was once again flowing through his meridians. Hadjar quietly moved to Steppe Fang’s cell. Just as he’d expected, the orc was sitting with his back against the wall. He looked like a caged circus bear.
“How did you do that?” The orc asked, eyes widening in surprise.
Hadjar tossed his ring up and caught it in midair.
“The human path of cultivation doesn’t seem so bad anymore, does it?” He winked.
The orc smiled, baring his lower fangs, and rushed to the bars of his cell.
“Get me out of here, Darkhan.”
“What are you guys doing over there?” Derek asked, hearing the commotion.
Hadjar didn’t waste time answering him. Instead, he focused and managed to gather enough energy to make a hole in these bars that was wider than the one in his cell. As he emerged into the corridor, Steppe Fang cracked his neck and shoulders. Despite the loss of the dagger and the utter failure of their assassination attempt, he was in a fighting mood. There was no doubt or apathy in his eyes, which explained why the orcs had been able to fight against the Dah’Khasses for thousands of years: words like ‘surrender’ and ‘defeat’ didn’t exist in their vocabulary.
“What’s going on?”
Exchanging wary glances, the two of them approached Derek’s cell. The young man was sitting on the floor, looking rather depressed. As soon as they became visible in the light of the crystal torch, he jumped up and grabbed the bars.
“How did you…? It doesn’t matter. Get me out of here!”
Hadjar looked at him. He knew perfectly well what was going on in Derek’s vengeance-driven mind. Right now, he hated the Dah’Khasses as much as he hated Darnassus. The latter had taken aw
ay his mother, and the former his beloved. Hadjar knew well that the flames of revenge gave one strength and the will to live, but when they died down… Besides, in such a state, Derek wouldn’t be able to keep his cool and think clearly, which was something they needed him to do.
“What are you waiting for? Get on with it!”
“Derek,” Hadjar said softly, “are you sure you want to come with us?”
The young man’s eyes flashed.
“You already asked me that before and-”
“It led to a tragedy,” Hadjar interrupted him. “We aren’t going to run away, Derek. We’re still going to kill the King.”
“I understand that,” he said. “And if you think I’ll go mad with grief and let you down, you’re mistaken. I’m still alive, Hadjar, which means that I’m fine.”
Hadjar sighed.
“Make up your mind quickly, North Wind,” Steppe Fang whispered. “We are in the heart of their nest. We don’t have any time to waste!”
“Damn it!”
Hadjar directed energy into his ring and focused. A few seconds later, Derek was out of his cell and standing next to them. He, like Steppe Fang, was burning with determination. But while the orc fought for the sake of his tribe, Derek fought for himself. It had taken Hadjar almost twenty years to understand what Azrea’s mother had told him and finally realize that the path of revenge was a path that lead to nowhere.
They heard footsteps coming from the direction of the spiral staircase.
“By the Evening Stars,” Hadjar hissed.
All three of them hid in a niche where the light of the crystal torches couldn’t reach.
Having gathered enough energy, Hadjar summoned the Black Blade, which immediately materialized in his hand. Unlike Derek, who’d been stripped of his daggers and Heaven level armor, the only way to disarm Hadjar was to kill him. By the Evening Stars and the High Heavens, the Dah’Khasses would soon wish that they’d done just that.
As soon as a foot appeared on the stairs, Hadjar plunged his sword into it.
“You won’t fool me twice!” He shouted and grabbed Arkemeya. Throwing her to the stone floor, he was about to allow the Black Blade to devour her Spirit when something suddenly dawned on him.
“You’re an idiot, Hadjar Darkhan,” she hissed.
At that moment, Hadjar realized what Helmer had wanted from him. The Lord of Nightmares needed this half-breed.
Chapter 608
“So, it was you.” Hadjar placed his knees on her forearms and pointed the tip of the Black Blade at her throat. Arkemeya’s black hair was spread out on the floor, framing her head like a halo. “It was you all along.”
“You finally got it! At last!” She laughed and narrowed her eyes. “Can you even imagine what it took to bring the Prince there?”
“The Prince?”
“I had to pull every string and call in every debt I’d ever been owed! And when that spoiled bastard finally agreed to go with me to the border… You took me hostage! Me! Not him! What were you thinking, Darkhan? Or have you not touched a woman for so long that you wanted to sleep with me so badly it made you stupid?”
Gradually, the missing pieces of the puzzle came together. He truly had been naive to believe in things like coincidence and luck. He’d never been handed anything in his life for free, after all. He’d even had to pay a monstrous price for the dragon heart that was currently beating within his chest.
“She’s getting into your head again, Darkhan!” Steppe Fang roared. He clenched his fists and stepped forward. “I’ll smash her head-”
“Without your axes, you can’t do shit, you stupid animal,” Arkemeya said and sent a small amount of energy into her hairpin. Derek’s daggers and Steppe Fang’s axes materialized on the floor with a rattle.
“Yeah, you guessed it.” Arkemeya grimaced. “You got to keep your spatial ring thanks to me.”
“Why?”
Arkemeya rolled her eyes and turned away. She spotted the holes in the bars.
“How did you-” She paused as Hadjar pressed down on his blade. “By the Evening Stars! Put your sword away!”
“I’ll repeat: why did you leave me my ring? I’m warning you-”
“I wanted you to know that I’m on your side, you fool!”
Contrary to his promises, Derek lost his temper. Grabbing one of his daggers off the floor, he lashed out at Arkemeya, but was stopped by… Steppe Fang. The fact that she’d returned their weapons to them seemed to have changed his mind.
“I’ll kill the bitch!”
“Watch your tongue,” Arkemeya hissed. “You’re on thin ice, human!”
“Alea is dead because of you!” Derek shouted.
Hadjar was starting to regret letting him out of his cell. He would’ve been better off staying in it. If they’d won, they would’ve come back for him. And if they’d failed… Well, he would’ve been sent to the fields anyway.
“She died because you were too weak to protect her!”
Hadjar pressed down even harder on his blade. Steppe Fang covered Derek’s mouth with his hand.
“You two, calm down!” Hadjar glanced warily at the spiral staircase. “Now, Arkemeya, tell us everything. No tricks this time. I’m getting tired of them.”
“I was with the King when he found out the five of you had broken past the veil, and I volunteered to go to the border to find you. And as usual, he decided to use me. He ordered me to fool you.”
Even though her story sounded plausible, Hadjar felt like she was trying to deceive him and so he didn’t put the Black Blade away.
“I can’t disobey his orders because of the mark. No one can.”
“You mean the mark that you used to control the gates and the fog?”
Arkemeya nodded. “It’s our equivalent of a blood oath, except it has more options and is managed directly by the King.”
“So the glow I saw was made by it?”
“No. I did swear a real oath to you. That is, my human half did. The farther we got from the veil, the weaker my Dah’Khass half became and the more I felt the power of the laws of the Heavens and the Earth.”
“That’s why you aren’t a good fit for your father’s-”
“He isn’t my father!” Arkemeya exclaimed. “My true father was my mother’s husband. The fact that the King raped her and raised me doesn’t make that monster my father.”
Another piece of the puzzle fell into place.
“Go on,” Hadjar said. “You mentioned that the King sent you on a mission.”
“When I realized that I was going to have to obey his order, I used all my connections and the favors I was owed to set my plan in motion. I persuaded the Prince to go with me. The only thing that wasn’t part of my plan was running into Takemeya.”
“What position does she hold?”
“That stupid bitch? None! She monitors the fields. She’s a lousy commoner.”
Her insult stung Hadjar a little. After all, before he’d become a fully-fledged disciple of ‘The Holy Sky’ School, most people had looked at him like he was a second-class citizen. He knew his own worth, of course, but it had still been unpleasant to endure…
“When we reached our destination, I cast my net…”
“…and I fell right into it.”
“Fell into it? You tore it apart! You took me hostage and forced an oath on me! You almost ruined everything!”
“Ruined?” Derek broke free of Steppe Fang’s grip for a moment. “Ruined!”
The orc, still managing to look calm and collected, put his hand over the young man’s mouth once again.
“As a result, I almost fried my brain trying to think of a way to not break your oath while not defying the King’s order. Fortunately, in here, far from the border, my demonic half is stronger and I don’t feel the pressure of the oath. That’s why I was able to break it.”
“And take us to the King.”
“You idiot! From the moment you broke through the veil, he started preparing for your
arrival. He even planned to take one of your friends as his new bride. You arrived just when he needed you. Damned monster…”
Hadjar looked into Arkemeya’s eyes and found a genuine hatred for the Dah’Khasses’ King in them. He wondered what it was like to grow up surrounded by enemies. He felt like he understood her.
“But there’s still hope. The King was too distracted to immediately send you to the fields, preferring to focus on the ritual. I had hoped that he would be. That animal never misses a chance to… I managed to intercept the convoy and send you here, claiming that I wanted to do some experiments on you first. And the rest-”
“Alea is dead,” Steppe Fang said heavily. “She was our friend. Her death is your fault.”
“Even if all of you had died,” Arkemeya hissed in response, “I would’ve called this a success. Or do you think it’s that easy to kill a Nameless who’s lived for almost a hundred thousand years? He sees through everything!”
“Only on the night of the Black Star-”
“He’s blinded by his lust for power and his desire to break free from the Prince of Demons,” Arkemeya interrupted him. “That’s why now is the best time to kill the monster. I’ll avenge my mother and father, and you’ll fulfill your mission, whatever that is.”
“We’ll be devoured by the other Dah’Khasses.”
Arkemeya smiled widely.
“You won’t,” she hissed. “As soon as the King is gone, the veil will fall. We’ll have to hide somewhere for the night, and they’ll all be dead by morning.”
Hadjar nodded. There was no point in the King continuing to toy with them. Arkemeya had no reason to risk her life if her story wasn’t true. As strange as it sounded, he believed every word she’d just said. In her position, he would’ve done the same. No, he had done the same. For some reason, she reminded him of the witch from the Islands who’d preferred to live amongst the wolves…
“That all sounds great, but even with your help, we can’t kill a Nameless. We aren’t strong enough,” Hadjar admitted ruefully.
Dragon Heart: Land of Demons. LitRPG Wuxia Series: Book 7 Page 29