by Ryo Mizuno
Ghim, keeping with his grip on Parn, continued to stare at the door until her footsteps had faded.
“Great Magus Wort,” Parn said, turning his furious glare on the old man. “We have a lot of questions for you. That’s why we’re here.”
5
After Karla left, Deedlit eased herself into the now-empty seat. She took a glass and poured herself some wine. Behind her, she heard Etoh let out a long, relieved sigh. With Karla gone, the mood was significantly lighter, but the encounter with her had been such a shock that no one had regained their composure yet.
Parn was conflicted. After what happened, he couldn’t trust the old man—he seemed just as bad as Karla. Wort seemed unconcerned about Parn’s wary attitude. He took a glass of wine and a piece of meat from the platter and began to eat.
“I don’t blame you for distrusting me,” Wort began, his mouth stuffed with food. “All I can say is—I’m the one and only Wort, and I’m not Karla’s ally.” He raised his glass to Parn in a mocking toast; in response, Parn’s glare grew even angrier. The old man kept speaking, not responding to his change in mood. “There’s some truth to what she says—I did once fight at her side. But so did Fahn, Beld, and Neese. We fought our way through the Deepest Labyrinth. Though back then, Karla didn’t look like the beautiful woman she is now—she was a warrior in a clunky mask and armor…” Wort paused to look around the room, and grinned.
“What?! How?!” Parn exclaimed. “I know the saga of the Six Heroes…the last of them, the unnamed warrior-mage. That was Karla?! She was really one of the heroes of the Demon Wars…?!”
“The demons definitely changed the balance of the world,” Slayn said calmly, but his wide eyes betrayed his astonishment.
“Wait, what do you mean?” Woodchuck asked, confused.
“Like the young man here said, Karla was the warrior-mage, one of the Six Heroes.” Wort laughed and raised his glass to his lips. “You might have assumed that she’s lived for the past five hundred years looking exactly as she does now, but that’s a mistake. That kind of magic has never existed, not even in the ancient kingdom. She is powerful, but even the greatest ancient wizards could only extend their lives for two hundred years at most. But Karla came up with a way around that limit.”
“Is it to control someone else’s body?” Ghim mumbled, sinking into his chair.
“Ghim!” Slayn was surprised at Ghim’s insight, but it also made a strange kind of sense, considering some of the dwarf’s behavior. “Does this mean you’re ready to tell us what you’re looking for?”
“Yes,” the dwarf said with a deliberate nod. “It’s time.”
“I didn’t expect a dwarf would be the one to figure this out!” Wort said with a gleeful laugh. “Have you researched ancient magic?”
“Of course not. My kind have nothing to do with magic.”
“And yet you’re the one who first arrived at the truth. Good for you,” Wort replied. “Like this highly intelligent wine barrel of a dwarf says, Karla transferred her consciousness into an object and has kept existing all these years by controlling the mind of anyone who wears it. Did you see the circlet on her forehead? That it Karla’s true form, though whether or not she is truly alive is up for debate. Her consciousness has stayed unchanged for the past five hundred years—since she abandoned her original body. I wouldn’t consider her human; she’s a ghost.”
“So the woman we’re seeing is Karla’s victim,” Parn said. He was slowly beginning to believe the old man, at least a little. He reached for the food and accepted a glass of wine when Deedlit offered it.
“Exactly. When Karla’s latest body is destroyed, the circlet casts a spell to take over the mind of whoever destroyed it. The magic is so powerful that nobody can escape. That’s why Karla can never be defeated—even when someone succeeds, they just turn into the next Karla.”
“I don’t want her defeated. I promised I’d bring that girl back home,” Ghim said glumly.
“You mean the woman Karla is controlling?” Slayn asked.
“Yeah. I know who she is. I couldn’t believe it when I first saw her portrait, and even after we met her, I still had my doubts. But when she cast a holy spell of Marfa, I knew it was true. Her name is Leylia, and she’s the daughter of Neese, Marfa’s high priestess—and one of the Six Heroes. Neese is a friend of mine; I told her that I’d bring her missing child back to her if I could.” Ghim sighed. “This also explains the riddle she told me—that her daughter is alive, but doesn’t exist. That really does describe Leylia in her current state. After all, Karla isn’t alive, but she certainly does exist.”
“So that’s your story,” Slayn sighed, struck with admiration.
“Hold on…so we can’t beat Karla? But we can’t just let that witch get away with this!” Parn shouted in frustration.
“Were you listening?” Deedlit huffed in exasperation. “We can’t fight her! Even if we win, the magic of the circlet will take over our minds!”
“Then how do we rescue the girl?!” Ghim shouted, looking at all of them for help.
“There may be a way,” said Wort, glancing at each of them in turn. “It’s very dangerous…but not impossible if you have the courage.” Wort stood up, strode to a stone wall, and tapped it. The wall shuddered and opened, revealing a small room full of what looked like useless clutter. He disappeared into the room but kept shouting back to them. “The magic of the circlet activates when the body is destroyed, so all you have to do is tear it off her while she’s still alive.”
“Easier said than done,” Etoh chimed in, calling out in Wort’s general direction. “I’m sure you know how difficult that would be. The witch uses powerful ancient magic. Capturing her will be far more difficult than killing her.”
“Obviously,” Wort replied. They could hear him rummaging through something. “Ah, finally!” he exclaimed, sounding delighted. He emerged from the room, holding a small stick. “Like the priest said, you have no chance of beating her head-on. And, no offence, but you lot aren’t heroes like Beld or Fahn—even your wizard here isn’t as well versed in the ancient language as I am.” Wort casually tossed the stick onto the table. “So I’ll give you this magic wand—it’s a relic of the ancient kingdom. Cast the spell correctly, and its magic will be released.”
“What does it do?” Slayn asked, picking up the stick with great interest. It wasn’t made of any metal or wood he recognized, and it had ancient runes carved into its surface. “Te-u-ra? Is that the spell?”
“Yes. I think you’ll find it quite useful—it nullifies all magic around it. Of course, that means you won’t be able to use your own magic, either.”
“So we can use it to keep her from casting any spells and capture her alive!” Parn said excitedly.
“I’ll be useful at that point, I bet,” Woodchuck declared. “I can sneak up behind her and snatch that thing off her forehead.” He’d gotten bored listening to them, but he knew it was finally his time to shine. “But what will we do with this circlet?” he said. “Destroy it? Sell it? It looks like a valuable piece of jewelry.”
“It would be wise to destroy it while the wand’s magic is in effect. Leave it and who knows when it’ll find another victim.”
“But isn’t there a way to resist its control? You know, take her magic powers but leave your own consciousness intact? Maybe there’s a way to defeat the spell that takes you over if you know what’s coming. Then you could bring back some of this lost ancient magic.”
“Are you out of your mind, thief?” Wort glared at Woodchuck. “If you could resist the spell, then yes, you would obtain all of Karla’s knowledge and memories. And that would be priceless. But it’s impossible. Think about it. Many of the people who Karla has dominated over the years must have been powerful—they had to defeat her, after all. But they all fell to the circlet’s spell. You shouldn’t entertain such foolish thoughts.”
“I guess,” Woodchuck said with a shrug.
“That’s all I have to say to
you. Return to Fahn and tell him all of this. And make sure he knows—I will not pick a side, and Karla will no longer assist Beld, either. You all, however, can fight to your hearts’ content.”
“Can you tell us one more thing?” Parn asked, leaning forward.
“What is it?”
“Tell us where to find Karla.”
Chapter V:
The Final Battle
1
In the afternoon, the blazing sunshine was abruptly replaced by a sky full of dark clouds. Lightning flashed, and large raindrops began to fall.
The soldier guarding the Roid castle gates didn’t even have time to put on his rain gear—instead, he quickly took refuge in the shed to continue his duty from within.
He tensed as he saw a cluster of dark shadows approach through the sheets of rain.
“Who goes there?” he called out nervously to the six figures.
“My name is Parn,” the lead shadow answered, lowering his cloak to show his face and immediately getting soaked. “We’ve journeyed from the Great Magus’s mansion on orders from King Fahn. Please send word of our return to His Majesty.”
“Sir Parn!” the guard cried joyously. More than a month had passed since they had left Roid. “I’m glad you’re safe! I’ll have them open the gates.” The guard stepped out of his shed, ignoring the rain, and waved to the guard beyond the moat to lower the drawbridge.
Fahn was in a war council with Elm and Kashue when he received the news, and he requested that the returning adventurers be brought there to speak to them all.
Parn and his companions were led through the castle and into a room containing dry clothes and steaming hot towels to wipe themselves down with. Parn finished pulling on a light hemp shirt, then caught sight of an approaching servant. His eyes widened in surprise.
“What’s this?” he asked, looking at the armor the servant presented him with. It wasn’t his father’s breastplate, but a white one with a shining silver crest—a cross on the left breast.
“His Majesty’s orders.” The servant bowed.
“I’m happy for you,” Deedlit said with a soft smile. She had changed into a loosely tailored grass-green outfit with a silk sash wrapped casually around her waist. Her hair still stuck damply to her forehead.
Parn shot her a grin as he buckled the new breastplate, then hung his father’s sword at his hip. The sword fit perfectly against the new armor as if they’d been made as a set.
“Let’s go,” he nodded to his friends.
Slayn wore a white Sage’s robe, identical to what Elm wore. Etoh was dressed in a Pharis cleric’s gown and had been given a ceremonial mace. Ghim changed into clean underclothes but wore his own mithril chain mail and garb over it, as well as his own battle axe on his back. Woodchuck changed but also put his own armor back on—he’d dried the leather armor and long black boots by the fireplace.
The group made their way to the room where King Fahn waited, which was in one of the castle’s spires. There were no windows, and they couldn’t even hear the fierce rain outside. Even so, a gentle breeze somehow kept it from feeling stuffy.
Deedlit glanced at the ceiling, looking conflicted. “Thank you for working so hard,” she murmured.
Parn glanced at her quizzically.
“Is it Sylph?” Slayn asked.
Deedlit nodded and raised her right hand into the air. The breeze stopped momentarily, then resumed.
The wind elemental was trapped in this room by some kind of spell, probably working to prevent any sound from getting in or out. This was not Deedlit’s kind of magic. It was ancient magic, tied to a magical device built in the days of the ancient kingdom. Elemental users like Deedlit controlled them to cast spells, or sometimes confined one in an object and thus put it to work. However, they wouldn’t enslave and exploit an elemental for hundreds of years. Deedlit couldn’t help but feel resentful at the treatment, though she tried not to let it show on her face.
There was a round table in the center of the room, with Fahn, Kashue, and Elm seated around it. On the table was a bottle, several unfinished glasses of wine, and a map of the area around Roid marked with colored lines.
“Well done, all of you,” King Fahn declared. The group bowed their heads at the praise. Kashue rose from his seat and stood before Parn, looking him up and down.
“That Holy Knight’s armor suits you now.” Kashue laughed, and he shook Parn’s hand firmly. “I have nothing more to teach you. I knew you’d all make it back, but it was a tough journey, wasn’t it?”
“It was,” Parn agreed. “The ruins of the stone kingdom are swarming with monsters. I think one day we should work with Moss to wipe them out, once and for all.”
“How valiant,” Kashue said, laughing loudly this time.
“Now then.” Fahn motioned Parn alone over to his side, gaze solemn. “Parn will be formally inducted into the Order of Knights soon, but for now we have business to discuss. I’d like Parn, Lord Slayn, and Lord Etoh to remain here and join our war council. The rest of you can make yourselves comfortable elsewhere and receive your rewards. You have my gratitude for aiding Parn and fulfilling this quest.”
“I didn’t follow him for a reward,” Deedlit said, shaking her head. Her stomach turned. Fahn’s words made it sound like Parn was no longer one of them.
“Likewise. I don’t need a reward. Give our shares to this man,” Parn said, motioning toward Woodchuck.
“Hey, thanks,” the thief declared shamelessly.
“How you divide it is up to you.” Fahn nodded magnanimously, then turned his attention back to the map. The guards escorted Deedlit, Woodchuck, and Ghim out, and the door closed behind them.
“There is a meal waiting for you in the guest room,” a servant informed them politely.
‘I figured as much,’ Woodchuck said. He shot a look back at the closed doors but obediently followed the servant.
“Well, this is dull,” Deedlit yawned and folded her hands behind her head.
“Have you lost your manners?” Ghim scoffed.
“Traveling with you lot did it to me,” Deedlit shot back.
“That sounds about right,” Woodchuck smirked with a sidelong glance at Ghim. “We’re lucky we get to fill our bellies, anyway.”
“True,” Ghim replied with a sigh. “That council will go on for a while…”
2
“To think that Karla was the warrior-mage all along…” Fahn groaned, then trailed off, lost in thought. He was shocked to discover that he’d been involved in one of Karla’s plots, but the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. During the war with the demon gods, Karla—a masked warrior-mage at the time—had tried to use everyone around her as pawns, including all her companions and even the demon gods themselves.
Now, she had robbed a young woman of her future and prevented the unification of Lodoss. In Karla’s mind, Fahn and Beld had come out of that war prepared to unify the island, so she plotted and set them against each other and pushed them toward mutual destruction.
But even knowing that didn’t mean he could prevent the coming battle. A showdown with Beld was inevitable.
“The Great Magus Wort claimed that Karla won’t assist Marmo anymore, but I’m not sure if we should trust him…” Parn said hesitantly.
“If the witch is truly this obsessed with balance, then she no longer has a reason to be on Marmo’s side,” Kashue replied with a bitter smile.
“We heard some rumors during our travels. Are things really that bad?”
“Honestly, yes.” Kashue gestured to the map as he explained the current situation.
During the month they had been gone, the tide of the battle had turned over and over. The first turning point was when Moss and Alania entered the war as allies of Valis. In particular, Jester the Dragon’s Eye, ruler of Highland, had rushed to their aid even before the rest of the Kingdom of Moss. He’d joined them out of his own sense of justice, and as leader of the Dragon Knights, he’d lent them considerable mil
itary power. The thirteen Dragon Knights had taken their dragon steeds and broken through the Marmo army deployed to the south of Kanon, then used that momentum to make their way to Marmo proper and set the port city on the north tip of the island on fire. Once the news spread, the people of Lodoss felt confident and called for their own countries to join the fray—the rest of Moss and Alania finally rose in opposition and closed in on Kanon from the north and by sea.
Many thought that Marmo’s fate was sealed, and for a time the allied forces had almost made it to Shining Hill, Kanon’s royal castle. But several more incidents shook their alliance.
The first was the assassination of Kadomos VII, King of Alania, by his younger brother, Duke Laster. His entire family was murdered, including the infant prince, and Alania was plunged into a fierce civil war between supporters of the Duke and his opponents.
At the same time, one of Moss’s factions, “Dragon Scale” Venon, rose in sudden revolt against the royal castle of Moss’s ruler, “Dragon Flame” Harkane. In Flaim, the Tribe of Fire emerged from their hiding places in the mountains to attack the capital city of Blade while its king was absent.
And from Marmo itself, the main force of dark elves led by Chief Luzeev made landfall. As the armies of Alania and Moss returned home, the army of Valis was left behind to be tormented by the dark elves’ evil spells. If not for Kashue’s help, the Valis army might have been annihilated.
Despite the uprising of desert savages, Kashue did not bring his troops home. He’d been expecting an attack while he was away, so he’d left his land in the hands of his right-hand man, Shadam. The people of Flaim were all brave warriors, so he was confident that they’d prevail against the threat even without his aid.