Chapter 90: Gears in Motion

"Demons weren't spotted?" I asked in surprise after Victoria finished speaking. "Then what about the reports that claim they did?"

She shrugged. "I don't know." She glanced at the Kestler brothers who were sitting on the couch. "My people have checked the places and none of them could confirm what the reports said. All they claimed to have seen was an increase of wildlife. Rampaging beasts, signs that creatures of legend have started to wake up." She glanced at me as her lips formed a smile. "Such as that phoenix you killed."

I flinched. The phoenix Vixia had defeated was indeed a creature of legend, but it hadn't just woken up – it was simply cursed by an Ereth god, Rohir.

"What do you think is happening?" Vincent chimed in. "If its not demons, does that mean we have another enemy?"

Victoria shook her head and fiddled with her long, maroon hair. "I don't think it's as simple as that," She replied. "I think there's something else going on behind the scenes. Something the Ereth aren't telling us." Her ominous words left a bad taste my mouth. She was right – something felt off.

I took a deep breath. "You're right." I glanced at Vincent and Joshua. "I'll head to Stonepatch Village now – Rina and Alex might be in danger. I want to make sure they're fine. I'll probably be back before the next match. If I'm not…" I hesitated. "I'll be back." I finally said. I was not going to die. Not now, not after everything I'd been through.

"Be careful." Vincent warned me after a moment's hesitation. "Things may have changed – the path might be more dangerous."

I nodded. Any number of rampaging beasts could have taken over areas along the road. Even the skies could be filled with danger.

"What about Erik?" Victoria suddenly asked. I paused. How much did I want to tell her? How much did I trust her?

"We had an argument," I said after a moment's hesitation. "So, I'd appreciate if you could keep an eye on him. I don't think he wants to see me for a while." I looked at my hands. I somewhat regretted using my flames against the young paladin.

"What happened?" Joshua asked, leaning forward. I could see the glimmer of curiosity in his eyes.

"It's nothing," I said with a sigh. "Nothing but a misunderstanding." I shook my head. While our argument – no, our fight – troubled me greatly, I didn't have time to worry about it now. I had to focus on those who might be in danger.

I pushed myself up and glanced at Victoria. "Can I count on you to keep the girls safe while I'm gone?" I asked. While our relationship consisted of threatening each other, I knew she cared about Vincent and Joshua. She wouldn't let anything happen to their friends, especially since they're innocent.

"Of course. Try to come back alive." She said with a faint smile. I chuckled, then motioned to the door.

"Kai, hang on." Vincent shot up and hurried after me. "Let me come with you to the city gates."

"Sure," I said, somewhat confused. Did he want to talk about something in private?

After bidding farewell to Victoria and Joshua, we left the room. As we made our way to the city gates, Vincent remained silent. Only once we were out of the city – and out of the view of Ereth guards did he finally speak.

"Thanks, Kai." He said with a low voice. "Victoria told us about what you did. She said she'd never have contacted us if you hadn't forced her hand."

I smiled. "Anyone would have done the same. I'm glad you three have found each other." I glanced at the sky. The sun had set; it was already dark out. "I have to hurry if I'm to make it back in time Vincent. Take care of the others for me, would you?" I asked as I summoned my wings.

"You take care of yourself," He said with a faint smile. "We'll be fine."

I laughed. "See you in two days."

With those words, I leapt into the air. As my massive wings carried me to the sky, I adjusted my bearing. With my wings beating with a steady rhythm, I soared through the sky.

Soon, I felt the exhaustion set in as my muscles started to burn and my body to ache. I focused – could I do it again? Suddenly, a burst of magic spread through my body. My wings, seemingly caught on fire, left a trail of embers behind them. As Fallen Grace enhanced my body even further, I felt the wind hitting my face strengthen. With anger burning within my heart and worry filling my mind, I flew towards Stonepatch Village.

Hours passed. I could hear nothing but the blowing wind and the rhythmic beat of my wings. I glanced at my hands – was I strong enough to take on anything that was powerful enough to threaten Rina and Alex?

I couldn't answer that with a yes. With a sigh, I summoned my interface and glanced at my status panel.

'Kai Friseal – Level 80 Soul Keeper | Exp: 65000/70000 - - Souls 100/100 + 889- - Mana:1940

STR: 10 – CON: 10 – DEX: 100 – INT: 100 – WIS: 91'

I glanced down, where more text could be seen.

'Skill points available: 60 – New skills unlocked'

I hadn't given any skill points to any new skills in a very long while. It was mostly due to all these new skills being mostly useless – I didn't need a mass heal that required me to stand still as I cast it. Same for this 'Ritual of the Night' thing. Summoning darkness that blinded me too wasn't very sensible in the thick of battle.

I scoured the list, hoping to find at least something useful. I needed more power. Long minutes passed as I looked in vain. Eventually, I gave up. I probably had to wait for level 100 before anything useful popped up. That was when my power would grow significantly.

A sudden pain cut through my mind. I let out a shout as I barely managed to stay in the air. It felt as if something had cut into my arm. The pain disappeared as soon as it appeared – I almost thought I was hallucinating.

But this was no hallucination – that pain was real. But I wasn't the one it belonged to.

"Asher!" I shouted into his mind. "What the hell happened?"

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