บท 19: The Two Empires of Chaos and Order
The closer they became to the wall, the higher it became.
Kai was no stranger to defensive walls. In his previous life, all animals had become giant monsters. The technology had advanced because of the virus-affected beasts' materials, but it wasn't enough to keep them all safe. To defend against a beasts' rush, Essence Cultivators had built walls, so high that at their highest they kissed clouds.
All those walls paled compared to what Kai was seeing now.
From his right to left, there was nothing but the wall. If it curved somewhere, then the turn must have been miles away, hidden in the barren lands they had come out of.
Ser Tussy, the silver-armored knight, hadn't been so quiet after their battle. He was jesting freely, cursing loudly, but most of the time, he was boasting of his battles.
Wooooooooooo!
A loud, piercing call welcomed them.
The sky was orange-pink of the morning, and the little skylight made the doors aglow like rippling waters. When the doors had opened into a slit, they stopped.
Apparently, the gap was enough for the rider and the walkers to pass through them.
A sudden noise hit Kai's ears as if the entire world had come alive. They hadn't seen a single sign of life beyond the Wall, and this noise seemed to fill the gap all by itself. In just a single glance, Kai could see dozens of horse carts rushing left and right in the distance.
"Ser Tussy, what took you so long?" a voice came from Kai's right, addressing the knight. "The others had come and gone hours ago." He was a middle-aged man, with light brown hair and eyes of the same color. A pointy chin, and a pointier beard besides. He was lean and was wearing a leather jacket for armor. He smiled at the mounted knight, but Kai noticed a sign of apprehension too.
"Stuart," Morgan nodded, opening his visor, drops of sweat trickling down from his nose. "Your captain will be glad this time. These six should come in handy in the next major battle."
Stuart smiled back, turning his face to look at the almost dead men and a woman. And then his smile disappeared. "Cough! My Lord, there are seven of them," the man said. "You must have counted wrong."
Ser Morgan twisted his waist, his armor creaking from the action. With one hand, he reached out and grabbed Kai's shoulder.
Kai could have tried to dodge, or worse, he could have attacked if he had the strength to do so. Instead, he found himself on the horse, sitting behind the knight.
"Are you calling me a liar now, Stuart?" Morgan asked coldly. "If I said there are six, then six they are."
Kai saw Stuart gritting his teeth, his bony cheeks failing to hide the bumps over his molars.
Morgan narrowed his eyes.
Stuart suddenly laughed. "Haha! Yes, my lord," he said. "You are right. Now that I have looked again, they are six indeed. I've become old. Perhaps I should ask the captain to retire these old bones."
Ser Tussy just chuckled in reply and brought the destrier to a trot in no time.
"Where are we headed?" Kai asked, not worried about the knight's intentions at all.
All his actions, subtle responses, and even the bloodlust he had shown during he battle was nothing but a part of manipulating the knight to get what he wanted. Kai preferred working alone, but it didn't mean he would waste his time collecting information, too.
"No need to worry, kid." The knight reined the destrier, bringing it to a stop. He looked back and whispered, "I am taking you in my personal squad. You are too worthy for those shit-stained units."
Ser Tussy brought him to an inn miles into the city.
Even then, Kai had no way to tell how deep the city ran from the Wall.
When the other Contestants saw Morgan without the helm, they all gave him a wide berth. Kai secretly noticed that people knew him well in this part of the city.
Kai stuffed meat after meat in his mouth, hunger still clinging to his guts.
"Haha!" the knight laughed, tearing a chicken leg for himself. "Eat, eat. I will take care of the bill."
Kai noticed the innkeeper grimacing at those words. It seemed it wasn't the first time for Ser Tussy to take care of the bills.
"Are all these people Contestants?" Kai asked, taking a pause. "How big is this city?"
"Wait!" Suddenly, Morgan frowned, rubbing his chin. "How come I never asked your name?!"
"Red," Kai casually said.
"Well, most of them are technically Contestants," the knight continued, pointing out all the other customers and inn's staff. "But some give up on power sooner than others. They never joined their battles, so naturally, they never went to a Random World. Isn't that right, Putin?"
The innkeeper growled at Morgan, serving two cups of beer. He was balding, and a few of his front teeth were missing. He looked into Kai's eyes for a moment and then left without replying.
"Heh!" Ser Tussy sniggered. "The city is enormous, Red. How big? Let's say it's big enough to call it a… Planet?"
What?! Kai's eyes almost popped out, and he even forgot to bite off the meat on his lips.
"The Wall covers the entire city if that's what you are thinking," Morgan said, giving words to Kai's thoughts. "What would you have expected? Not all ascend the floors. They stay here, they eat here, they shit here, and they fuck here. Where would their children go? So either they become slaves, or worse…"
Becoming slaves isn't worse? Kai thought as Morgan trailed off, drinking a huge mouthful of beer.
"… Or worse, they become Contestants." The knight completed.
Kai silently mulled over the knight's words and their meaning. His stomach was almost full, and the tiredness had all but receded.
"You have an Ability?" Ser Tussy asked, finally mentioning the elephant in the room.
Kai nodded again, feigning a prideful expression.
"Good," the knight nodded. "I need Contestants like you."
Kai neither accepted the offer nor rejected it.
"Let me give you a brief explanation before leaving," Morgan said as a serving boy took away all the empty plates. "Each Floor has two regions. One is called Chaos' Valley, where the Chaos' Contestants gather. The other is called Order's Peak. Both Chaos' Valley and Order's Peak, from 1st to the 7th Set, are ruled by two Empires."
The knight took out a dull, bronze-colored badge and pushed it into Kai's hands. Kai felt its cool surface and turned it upside down.
On one side it had the sigil of the Empire; a twisted red and blue Yin-Yang like symbol, with uncountable weapons jutting out from the red side.
On the other side, a silver-colored helm was carved on it.
"I am a member of Silver Hunters Guild," Ser Morgan whispered. "The 1st Floor's branch of the Guild is under my command. When you reach there, ask for Marine Roland, and show him the badge. He will know what to do. Reaching the 2nd floor will be a piece of cake for you. Kill as many as you can in the next battle and ascend in a single go. I will wait for you there."
They walked out of the inn without paying the bill.
When the knight took the reign of the destrier, Kai remembered something and asked, "Where do I go now from here?"
Morgan closed his visor, and a blue light shimmered around him. He outstretched his hand and pointed at the end of the street. Kai saw a two-story building there. At the top of the building, there was a banner fluttering with the image of a silver helm.
"Remember the words of the R'lyeh Empire," Ser Morgan Tussy said. "Blood and War!"
"Blood and War!" Kai repeated, almost rolling his eyes, and then the question struck him. "What is the name of the Empire ruling Order's Peak?"
The blue light had become almost blinding. But the knight passed the answer before disappearing.
Kai's face became ash. There was such a surprise on his face that he couldn't think anything, all thoughts vanishing to the furthest boundary of reality.
How… How… Kai muttered, remembering the name.
That name was…
… The Stormborn Empire!
Kai never knew how or when he reached the guild's gate.
"Oi! Pretty rat! I won't ask again," the shout came abruptly, making Kai finally see where he was. He was at the steps leading to the Guild's main door. A guard was standing in front of him, wearing a half-open shirt and loose pants. A poorly drawn tattoo of a silver helm glistened brightly under the noon sun on his right cheek.
The guard's eyes were mean, and the look he was giving Kai had nothing but disgust. Kai stood there confused, his ragged appearance betraying his true strength.
"What do you want?" the guard asked, and not for the first time given his tone. "We have no spare Mission Credits to give to the likes of you. Bugger off! Or you will get more than you have bargained for."
"I am not here for Mission Credits," Kai said, taking his mind off the nonsense thoughts. "I need to see Marine Roland."
The guard burst into a shrill laugh. Kai didn't pay any heed to him and reached for the badge in his half-pant's pocket.
His Perception screamed danger out of nowhere!
A kick! The guard's foot was coming towards his chest.
Anger exploded within Kai. His feet slithered, and the kick brushed past him.
Elementary Slither Footsteps!
The guard lost his balance. He would have fallen, if it wasn't for Kai holding the guard's outstretched leg, like a wooden stick. Kai's other hand blurred, landing on the guard's knee.
Snap!
The guard's knee bent backward.
Ahhh!
The scream that followed was scarcely any man could hear and ignore. The guard fell, his other leg losing its strength.
More guards came running out of the door, hearing the commotion. They all looked the same, and there were three of them. Burly, brute, and unreasonable. They saw the guard. They also saw Kai letting go of one of the legs. Then, they charged.
Kai slithered.
He slid in and out of guards' attacks, rubbing his feet on the ground as if he was oil on steel.
Snap!
Bones broke like twigs. With his two years of experience and knowledge of human and beasts' bodies, Kai knew exactly where to attack to inflict the most damage.
Snap!!
By the time Kai wrapped his fingers around a guard's throat, the two others were lying on the ground. One had his ankle broken. The other's elbow didn't look like an elbow anymore.
Suddenly, he felt a burst of power coming from his side.
A huge fist flooded Kai's vision, appearing in the corner of his eyes with unmatched and unavoidable momentum.
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