Chapter 160: I prefer to take life one obstacle at a time. But lately, several have tag-teamed me at once.

Hey Guys!

Whew, I woke up with a big old feeling of imposter syndrome. Then I wrote this chapter and it went away, woo!

Enjoy!

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My guard held Gerial in his arms. Gerial’s hand hung limply towards the ground, blood dripping off his fingers and into the water. The sight of Gerial’s injuries kicked me into action, adrenaline surging through my veins.

"Take him to the nearest church, immediately." I ordered the guard holding him.

The guard nodded and disappeared, another going with him. Gerial’s health was a priority. I turned around and looked at the others.

Each of the remaining five guards straightened. Their auras were out in full force.

"We need to act quickly. You,” I pointed at the nearest. “Inform his father. And you. He was visiting Fue’s Marked one. We don't know what happened, but they need to be informed that an attack occurred.”

Those two guards disappeared and the remaining three crowded around me protectively.

I hadn't seen what lay beyond the portal. The faint smell of fire was still in the air.

Alyssa could have been there with Gerial, but I don't think he would have asked me to close the portal if that was the case.

There had also been the object that fell through the portal the moment it opened. I'd heard clanging on the rocks in front of me, but there was nothing there now.

"What was that?” My gaze darted from side to side. “What fell with us?”

"Master Silver.”

One of the guards responded. Even with his single eyed mask on, I could tell that it was the man that was in charge of communicating with me.

He held something in his palm. A small glowing rock that thrummed with mana. It's bright orange exterior reminded me of the material I used to make my regent in class.

“This came through the portal?” I asked. “What is it?"

The adrenaline was dying down and giving way to tremors that spread across my body. The price of using [celestial convergence] wasn’t cheap. I could feel weakness running across my limbs.

"It's a message.” My guard’s expression hardened. “From the perpetrators.”

I stared at him and then gently grabbed the rock out of his hand. He didn't resist and I knew it was safe. He wouldn't allow me to handle anything dangerous.

The rock itself was nothing special. A simple material that had been thrown alongside Gerial’s body.

It was smooth and it felt warm.

There were faint lines cut deep into its surface. Thin enough to only be viewable from certain angles. I traced the lines with my finger and frowned

It was a symbol.

I tilted the rock at an angle so that I could see the full symbol. Looking at it gave me a headache, and I blinked in surprise.

I’d seen this symbol before.

Where did I see it?

"Master Silver, we must get you and your friend to safety immediately. I will send someone to inform master Gold.”

My guard’s words interrupted my thoughts. He was eyeing his surroundings cautiously and the other two guards were doing the same.

My friend?

I saw a movement at my side and my head shot up.

Oh no.

Roxxy was clutching her arms, confusion and a hint of fear in her eyes as she looked at the people around her. Her gaze drifted downwards into the water. Gerial’s blood had run into the cultivation pool, turning sections of the blue water into pink.

“Roxxy, hey.” I got her attention.

She had seen everything.

I could see the panic in her eyes. Strangers in her home and bloody bodies falling from portals were enough to shock anyone.

“Andross.” Roxxy stared into my eyes. “What's going on? Was that Gerial?”

There wasn't time to explain everything to her. We didn't know the circumstances of Gerial’s injuries, or whether we were safe here.

I took a step toward Roxxy, stepping lightly onto her rock and shifting my posture to be more inviting.

“This is going to take a while to explain, but we’re not safe here.” I made my voice as gentle as I could. "We need to leave. Right now.”

Her expression steeled and she nodded.

Roxxy was good in a crisis. I'd seen that before. Her skin still trembled under her robes, but she was able to put in a tough front until we were safe.

"The portal room." She looked toward the lobby. “I can have us out of here in a minute.”

I shook my head.

"My guards have their own methods of travel." I turned to my head guard. “Am I allowed to access them now?”

I’d known for a long time that my guards didn't use the nexus to travel. Or at least they didn't use the same entrances I did. They didn't walk through my corridors to reach Koshima, and yet they were always where I was. However, I wasn't given access to their methods because the church had limited what I had access to.

My guard nodded and with a kick of his foot he appeared beside Roxxy and I.

He placed a hand on my shoulder and the other on Roxxy’s. I could feel power reverberating through his body. Faint purple mana flowed over us.

He was a space magician.

"The magic must be given permission to work." He looked at us.

He had mine and we both looked at Roxxy. She nodded, her fingers clenching and unclenching as her nerves wracked across her body.

The mana around us shifted as Roxxy gave her permission, and I found myself standing in a marble corridor.

White and gold marked the passageways. There was purple mana all around us, swirling in puddles of liquid.

We were in the nexus world.

I observed the walls around me. None of them were alive and breathing. That meant that we weren't within the nexus itself.

There was a flash of light and my other guards appeared alongside a very surprised Gold.

"Please move over here, master Silver.” My head guard gestured with his hand down the corridor.

I followed him and raised my arm as I heard the flapping of wings. Gold landed on me and hopped up to my shoulder, chirping up a storm.

Roxxy was beside me, the edges of her robe dripping water along the purple puddles. They’d dipped into the cultivation pool when she’d panicked.

She was listening intently to Gold’s chirps and gave him a comforting pat on the head.

The initial panic had left her eyes and was replaced by determination.

Corridor after corridor blurred by as we rushed through the compound. There was no time for sightseeing.

The gravity of the situation was starting to hit me as we looped through corridors. My guards were purposefully obscuring the paths. Not for me, but for anybody following us.

Gerial was injured.

I hadn't gotten a good look at his injuries, but I didn't need to. I could see they were bad.

My fingers were curled around the rock bearing the symbol. I put it inside my inventory. The item itself was harmless, but what it represented could shake the world.

Nobody attacked a Marked one without expecting a war in return.

"Master Silver.” My guard’s voice broke me out of my thoughts. “Through here.”

He had stopped in front of a door. It was ordinary wood. Normally I wouldn't give it a second glance compared to our surroundings.

The door opened for me as I reached it and I stepped through it, making sure Roxxy was still beside me.

Underneath my feet I heard a crunch. My shoe had landed on gravel.

I was inside a courtyard.

The scent of nature tickled my nose and a garden of dirt and flowers greeted me. Underneath my foot was the beginning of a gravel path, and above my head was a stone ceiling with a transparent skylight orb in the middle.

In the middle of the courtyard was a single tree. Its petals shimmering different colours and I could see different types of mana floating off them.

The moment we were all through the portal it closed behind us.

"Greetings, master Silver.” A new voice echoed across the courtyard.

I turned towards the voice and saw a man walking towards me. He wore a purple robe, a one-eyed mask hanging loosely from its side.

He was flanked by several dozen knights. Each of them wore armour and held swords in their hands.

"My name is Kavenaugh, bishop of the church.” He bowed low. "I would like to ask you to reside in my compound until we figure out what is happening.

I apologise for my abruptness, the circumstances under which we meet do not afford us much leniency.”

His knights all radiated pressure, but none of it was directed at me. They were watching out for any pursuers or intruders following us from the nexus world.

“I understand. Keep me updated about Gerial at all times.” I nodded at him and I saw a flicker of relief cross his features. “Gerial was visiting Fue's Marked one today. I would like to know what has happened to her."

Kavenaugh’s expression immediately hardened, a flicker of sorrow crossing his features.

"We have been informed that she has been attacked as well.” He spoke. "All the assailants involved in that attack have been dealt with. Please, follow me."

He bowed again and then turned around.

I strode in front of him. The bishop did the same dance Ophelio did, where he kept me in front of him at all times while simultaneously guiding me through the unknown complex.

We quickly left the courtyard behind.

My steps echoed throughout the empty stone hallways and corridors of the giant church. There had been activity here recently, but the entire area had been vacated.

A line of guards flanked me, Gold and Roxxy.

Each one carried a sword and at their head was my lead guard.

There was no report or information on what had happened to Gerial. There was only silence in the surroundings.

We quickly reached a pair of golden doors, and I could see earth mana peeking through them, beckoning me.

"We have prepared this room for you.” Bishop Kavenaugh stopped. "Please use it to rest and relax. We will prepare separate accommodations for your companions."

I turned toward him and paused.

There was a trembling hand at the corner of my eye. It was Roxxy’s.

"I'll stay with my friends.” I left no room for argument. “Please give me reports on everything that’s happened, and how Gerial’s condition is.”

"Of course, master Silver.” Kavenaugh and the knights bowed low.

The door was smooth under my skin as I pushed it open.

Roxxy followed me inside. She was quieter than usual, taking everything in with wide eyes.

The church hadn't moved me into the same area that Gerial was in. I couldn't feel his presence anywhere nearby, and it wouldn't be safe for them to keep both Marked ones in a single location.

I heard the doors close behind me and a weight lifted off my shoulders.

Literally.

Gold flew through the air and landed on a nearby table. There were snacks laid out on top of it. Bird treats were included.

The room itself was simple. A large bed was placed against the back wall and a couple of chairs crowded the table that Gold was hopping onto.

There were also pot plants in each corner of the room.

Each one was shaped like a candle and appeared to be made of stone. They all emitted earth mana, expunging it into the air.

"I need to message my dad.” Roxxy’s voice floated into my ears.

It jolted me out of my thoughts.

Her dad, Etrias, would come home to an empty house and a cultivation room filled with blood. It would save a lot of trouble if Roxxy was allowed to warn him away from the area.

I didn't know if anyone had followed Gerial to Roxxy’s estate.

“You can, but please don’t mention anything about Gerial. Or the church.” I turned to Roxxy.

She nodded.

Initial information was scarce and causing a public panic wouldn't end well for anyone. She was keeping more of a level head than I was expecting.

"I’m going to tell him not to head home for a few hours.” Roxxy flashed me a weak smile. “There's no need to get him panicking.”

She brought out her texting regent and showed me the message she was sending.

Just in case, I messaged my guards to let me know any updates about the safety of her estate. Her father would also be under protection.

I wasn't sure how they would explain this to him.

Most likely they wouldn't.

"Okay.” Roxxy put her regent down and it disappeared. "There's so much I want to know and talk about.”

She took a deep breath.

"First, I need to get comfortable, so I don't scream my head off.”

Roxxy kneaded her neck with her hand and made her way to the bed. Her robes left a trail of water along the carpet. She didn't care.

She collapsed onto the bed, laying on her back and staring at the ceiling.

"This is a lot to take in." Her head tilted toward me. “It's weird if you're standing over me like that. Join me.”

Gold clacked his beak in amusement.

Roxxy’s attitude was a good sign. Amanda had been afraid to talk to me with authority when she'd found out.

I flopped down onto the bed beside her and stared at the ceiling.

There was a mosaic of a giant eye staring back at me.

I grimaced.

Then I shook my head lightly. Roxxy needed my full attention. Unlike William and Amanda, there was no day or longer buffer period for Roxxy to relax and absorb the information.

She was thrust into the situation and only I could provide answers.

I also had selfish reasons for focusing on her troubles. It took my mind away from what had happened to Gerial. I knew as little as she did about that and it terrified me.

My friend was injured. Badly.

I didn't know why, or by who, but I couldn't find out by my own power. I could only wait for the church to investigate, and that knowledge gnawed at my nerves.

Roxxy was silent.

The quiet enveloped us, the events of the day taking their toll on our minds.

Then she shuffled and turned her gaze towards me.

"What was that?" She asked.

That was a big question. One that I couldn't answer even if I wanted to.

Roxxy saw my expression and shook her head.

"Not— not this whole thing. I mean the rock. The one that fell with Gerial.”

I stared at her, my thoughts grinding to a halt as I tried to remember what she was talking about.

Then it all came back to me.

In the rush I'd forgotten about the rock. It had dropped alongside Gerial after I'd opened the portal.

My guard hadn't asked for it back, either because he'd memorised it or because he was afraid to take something that I'd claimed.

Or both.

He'd told me it was a message.

I raised my palm and the rock appeared in it.

The surface of the rock glowed with gentle light, a property of the material itself and not the symbol attached to it. I put the rock up to my eye level and examined the inscription.

The symbol inscribed into it was familiar.

"What is it?” Roxxy stared at the symbol, frowning.

Because of how the lines were structured, she couldn’t see it from her angle, but I had a perfect view.

I searched through my memories, dozens of symbols flashing through my mind as I tried to find the origin of this one. It looked familiar, and I quickly remembered why.

It was the symbol of a divine.

My heart sank.

"This is the symbol of Artus.”