Way of the Knights

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"Eh? What happened here?"

This was Henry's first question as soon as they got out of the Trial Gate. The War Gods were shocked upon seeing beast remains and smelled a thick stench of blood. 

"Oh, hey there. I got a bit busy here as you can see." Raven said as soon as he heard them walking closer to him. 

All of them were currently outside of the formation, which is currently in stealth thanks to Raven's adjustments to it. Additionally, Raven just also finished dealing with another wave of beasts. In fact the War Gods even saw him finishing up the last one. 

"What's going on? Why are there Salamanders and Flame Elementals here?" Theo asked as he looked around, inspecting the remains of the beast Raven collectively slain while they were still within the Trial Gate. 

"I don't know either." Raven shrugged. "They just appeared all of a sudden and started attacking me. They also tried to destroy the formation, thankfully I managed to kill them in time and make adjustments to it. Still though, they came in waves. I figured I can't just let them roam free therefore I cleared them up."

"B-but, how can that be?" Logan spoke, "Why are there beasts now? Clearing up the trials are already troublesome, now you're telling me we also have this to deal with?" 

"Well, even if you ask me, I won't know how to answer you. I was surprised too, you see. They just came climbing down on the surface of the mountain out of nowhere." Raven said.

He was originally hoping to ask them about what's going on too but judging from their reaction, it was clear that they too were surprised by the sudden appearance of the beasts. 

"You didn't set up the formation?" Charles asked as he looked around, searching for the formation to hopefully get some shelter. 

"Oh, it's here." Raven said as he lifted his hand, forming a claw and peeling off the 'air' to reveal the interior of the formation, surprising the War Gods for a bit. "I made some enhancements on it. Come, let's go inside." 

Raven then widened the gap and stepped in followed by the War Gods. Once inside, the hole closed up by itself, sealing them within and hiding them from the sight of the potential beasts that may come later. 

The interior of the Formation was much better compared before. Not only did it repulsed the blazing heat off of them, it also provided them with a comfortable environment to rest. The weather inside was adjusted to suit their needs, it automatically changes too. What's more is that, it's hidden from the beasts and also hides their presence from them. 

Once inside, Raven lead them to the where he prepared the meals for them. The War Gods didn't stand on ceremony and began chowing down the food that was prepared for them. 

Raven carefully observed them. Judging from their appearance, it seems that they got a bit lucky this time and got a fairly easy trial. However, he can't be so sure. 

He could still see some injuries on their bodies. They look shallow and on the verge of recovering now that they've eaten the food. There were also signs of exhaustion on their faces but it wasn't as severe compared to the previous ones. 

"We had an okay luck this time around." Henry said after noticing Raven's gaze. He could somewhat tell what Raven was thinking, it's all over his face too. "It isn't hard nor painful. It's just very time consuming."

"What kind of trial was it then?" Raven asked. 

"It tested our secondary expertise." Logan replied, "For me, that would Beast Taming. I was one of the best back at my home town, I'll have you know. I tamed a ferocious Silver Battlewolf when I was but a little boy. Ah! That glorious moment!" He said with a thick nostalgia on his face. 

"It would be Alchemy for me." Theo stated, "I got a pretty decent fire affinity back when I was still young. It wasn't much, in fact my parents deemed me worthless back then since we came from a clan of Alchemists." 

"Well, I wonder about that. Specially now that you're a Flame Keeper and all." Charles commented. "For me it was Fortune Telling."

"Fortune Telling?" Raven was surprised, "Prophets?" 

"Ooh! So you know about that, huh?" Charles were similarly surprised. "Yes, that's right. I'm from a clan of Prophets. People who just can't keep it in their pants and wants to know everything. At the cost of lifespan that is."

"I didn't particularly like that though." Charles added, "I was an oddball when I was a kid. I got some seriously violent tendencies, which is very out of place considering the fact that I was born in the clan of Prophets. Some people even thought that I was adopted. But I was indeed from that clan, I was just naturally violent I guess." 

"That being said, even if I am like the way I am, I still learned how to properly tell someone's fortune. In fact, I was quite talented with it too. However, I wasn't comfortable in the fact that I need to spend my own lifespan just to tell someone else's fate. Adding the fact that some people just don't understand the risks of peering through Heavenly Secrets, I just kind of left it behind. Instead I focused on fulfilling my violent tendencies." 

"It's even worse now since he's using his Prophecy in battle. In short, when you face him, know that he can tell what your next move is, so it's a pain in the ass to fight against." Henry commented, earning a glare from Charles. 

"Remember that this person was once the same person who was responsible for you. Now you can see what kind of shitty personality he has." Charles told Raven. 

"Hey! Stop slandering me! I just stated the truth aren't I?" Henry complained after hearing Charles comment. Charles didn't reply but snorted instead and went back to his food. 

"Well, it would be Calligraphy for me." Henry then told Raven about his secondary expertise. "My father was a famous Scribe you see, and I idolized him when I was growing up. Unfortunately, due to an accident, he was unable to continue, there he became a teacher instead. He taught me well, and I still go back to it every now and then." 

"Ohhh!" Raven had an expression of understanding on his face, "Well, what were the requirements for you to clear the trial then?" 

"For me, it is to create a Passage that is filled with my Sword Intent." Henry replied. 

"Sound troublesome." Logan commented, 

"That it does. In fact, it might not only 'sounds' troublesome." Theo added.

"It took me three fucking years to do it. So yeah, it is troublesome." Henry snorted as he aggressively sliced of the meat on his plate. 

"Mine's hateful." Logan stated, "I have to tame an Arcane Wyrm." 

"Oh, goodness gracious. Poor you." Raven instinctively commented. 

"Man, that sucks." Henry commented. 

"Stop it you guys, you're making me cry!" Logan complained while looking downcast. 

"Arcane Wyrm, it's those right?" Theo asked, "The winged lizards that has knowledge of Fire, Ice, Thunder and Earth Laws from birth?" 

"Yeah, they are." Logan nodded softly. 

"Well, knowing that you're still here with us, means that you managed to tame one so good job." Charles commented, "Yet still, you must've been through a lot. Do you need a hug?"

"Fuck you." Logan spat, causing the rest to laugh at his misery. 

"Hearing about your task makes me feel a bit better about mine." Theo said, "Well, that doesn't mean it isn't troublesome though." 

"What did it want you to concoct?" Raven asked. 

"Boundless Nature Pill." 

"Oof!" Raven's face twitched after hearing that. Well, he had some experience on Alchemy himself so he knew about the Boundless Nature Pill.

In short, that pill can already be considered as a Spiritual Treasure since - just like the name implies, it is filled with the boundless power of nature itself. This pill is not to be consumed, it works like a weapon almost since once it's effects were trigger, it could lay waste to a whole planet. 

"Geez, what's up with that? It seems that the trials were working against you." Charles commented. "Now, spill. How many cauldrons have you ruined?"

"Roughly 300." Theo said in shaky voice. "All of them exploded on my face." 

"Oh, poor you." Henry commented. "Don't worry, I'll find you some pretty ladies at the next checkpoint." 

"Shut it, you!" Theo's face reddened as he heard Henry comment. He then looked at Charles and asked: "Well, how about you? What was your trial?"

"Well, it's quite simple really." Charles said, "It revolves around Prophecy, the only difference is that, in there I didn't need to worry about my lifespan being spent. I just needed to take 200 costumers and make sure to be completely honest with them." 

"By being honest, you mean you need to tell them everything that you see? What happens if you see them dying?" Henry asked. 

"Well, it's rules so...yeah, I need to tell them." Charles said while smiling wryly. 

"That's rough buddy." Theo patted Charles' shoulders. 

"Oh, well. It seems that you guys managed just fine. So just rest easy, okay?" Raven said as he stood up. 

"Where are you...oh, there are some Flame Elementals." Theo commented.

"Just take it easy. Leave those to me." Raven said as he stepped out of the formation. 

P

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