5-22 On the grey

5-22 On the grey

“Out of my way!” Erin roared as she ploughed right through her assailants without even giving them the opportunity to heed her warning.

Her enemies bellowed in fear and agony as they and their peers were torn to pieces right beside each other. Her blade wasn’t the only thing dyed red but also her tails, which she used alongside her sword to cut down her enemies.

To one who knew not the preceding story, one would easily mistake the scene as a mindless one-sided slaughter. In a certain sense, that notion wouldn’t be wrong but it wouldn’t entirely correct either. It was a one-sided slaughter but it was certainly not mindless.

Erin was the victim first until she turned the tables on them. She did no wrong towards them but they came for her head because of a bounty that wasn’t even just in the first place.

Erin’s foes and adversaries were more than a dozen but it was not an issue for her. They were only Acolytes, not Apostles. They were no match for her, especially when she was fueling her strength and prowess with her lust. She made quick work of all those who dared to draw their arms against her.

When respite, whoever remained was keeping their distance. Some had even given all up and ran away with their tails between their legs.

[Erynthea: Level 60 increased to Level 61]

[Skill Points +2 | 4]

[Ability Points +2 | 4]

For all the lives she had taken, it was enough to raise her level by one. A grin involuntarily crept up to her lips but allowed it so. It was quite euphoric after all. However, the dampener was the state of her cleanliness. She was covered in the bits and pieces of her fallen foes and also their blood.

Erin considered this one of the greatest drawbacks in her lust-consumed state, the neglect of her hygiene. It was easy to wash away the blood from her skin and sword but her tails were a whole other difficulty level. Extra attention and care were required.

Be that as it may, now was not the time to be worrying about her cleanliness. Erin looked around, not just with her eyes but also her other senses. She picked up no approaching threats but there were plenty that were at bay, waiting for the right window to strike.

“Come and get me already, you fucking cowards!” Erin growled. Her voice was low but her intent was felt by all those in the vicinity.

Had it not been for her companions who needed her attention more, she would have hunted the cravens down. She stayed her lust and shifted her focus back on track. As she did so, there was an explosion. It was of a smaller scale but her worries only grew.

“It’s coming from the direction of the ugly-looking tower,” said Amyra, who had easily caught up to Erin but she stayed a good distance away while Erin was making quick work of the foolish assailants.

“We better hurry,” Erin muttered and rushed down that direction. With Arcane Armour that was conjured of her current stats, she easily plunged right through all the rocks and trees in her way without taking any harm to herself.

When Erin got within yards of the dirt structure, a horn blared clearly and loudly. Immediately, Erin felt the forest stirring, brought upon by her hiding assailants, who all retreated as abruptly as the arrival of the horn.

“They’re all retreating,” mused Erin. She slowed her pace and continued the rest of the meagre distance with walking.

“They certainly are. Which rabble wouldn’t?” Amyra said.

“You know the horn?” Erin asked.

“It’s the horn that heralds the approach of the Greymoons.”

“The Greymoons?”

“Oh, you are not aware.”

“I am not, so tell me.”

“Basically, they are the kingdom’s army. They hail from the capital. They answered only to the Royal Family and their proxy should there be one.”

“Is it a common occurrence for them to be lurking about in an area such as this?”

“We are approximately only around two days away from an important town, Port Ikon.”

“Ah, is that so?” Erin vaguely remembered Rigetta telling her about Port Ikon but since they would be circumventing that town, she didn’t give it much thought.

“Best we laid down our arms for now. The Greymoons don’t discriminate.”

“What about adventurers?”

“They’ll arrest anyone who doesn’t comply with their wishes.”

“Is that even allowed?”

Amyra shrugged. “I do not know for certain. If you ignore or defy their so-called requests, they will arrest you. That’s for certain. However—” Amyra smirked, eyeing Erin from up to down. “As always, it is a different story when it comes to the Faerie-kin.”

“Good to know,” Erin said and proverbially stowed away her swords. She flicked the blood off her tails as much as she could but the results were unsatisfactory for her. She then took a deep breath, expelling her foul demeanour that could have exploded at any moment and plunged her into a frenzy.

Thankfully, her will and sanity were stronger than her lust.

Erin went around the structure and she stumbled upon a hole that was large enough for an individual to fit through. As she marched towards the hole, familiar faces emerged from it and those familiar faces brought her peace of mind.

Siv was the first to notice Erin and she gave her Mistress a gentle wave of greeting that contrasted the circumstances of their reunion.

“Erin!” yelled Lyra upon spotting her lover. She ran towards Erin and leapt into her embrace. “Thank the Divines! You are safe.”

“Of course, I would be. Have you forgotten about—”

“And that’s precisely what I’m referring to.” Lyra narrowed her gaze. “You don’t have the blank stare, so that means you haven’t gotten yourself killed recently.”

“How rude. You made it sound as if—”

Lyra’s narrowed gaze turned into a glare.

And Erin took it as a sign to be silent.

“Ah, see. She’s fine and in one piece,” cheered Lilian who limped her way out of the hole with Siv acting as her crutch.

“Are you alright, Lilian?” Erin asked.

“I’m fine, dear. This fortress of ours took quite a lot out of me to conjure.”

“So it was you.”

“Of course, sweetheart.” Lilian tittered. “Who else but me?”

“Erin!” Nivia exclaimed as she trod up to Erin. “Were you hurt in any— Oh, what am I saying? Of course, you were. You’re Erynthea. It would be a miracle if you’re not hurt in any way.”

Erin was about to retort but she couldn’t, not after seeing the approving nods everyone was giving. She could only lower her head in defeat.

“We held out on our own, Erin…” said Aera softly.

“Yes, you all certainly did. I’m glad and proud.” Erin smiled warmly. “Though I must admit…, I was sceptical but you have proven me wrong.”

“You wouldn’t be entirely wrong, Erin,” Lyra said. “We were lucky. The horn of the kingdom’s army scared those zealots away. Had it not been for the horn, I don’t think we would have fared as well as we did.”

“The past is the past now, Lyra. What matters is that you all are safe.”

“And we should keep moving,” Amyra added. “I can’t speak for all of you but I wouldn’t want to be caught by the army. Though we have three Fae amongst us, I still won’t recommend us to loiter around until the army arrives.”

“W-why?” Aera asked. “Have we done something wrong?”

“Oh, you sweet naive child.” Lilian snickered. “It does not matter. They will find a reason to make trouble with us, no matter how petty or small the reason is.”

“Why would they do such a thing?”

“I’m afraid I cannot give you an answer to that. The reasons varied between individuals.”

“Oh… I see…”

“Come on, let’s keep moving,” Erin said.

With the army quickly approaching them, they made themselves scarce of the area. To avoid the army, they had to take a detour, a scenic route that extended their journey by a day. The path they took followed a hollow trail that was hidden by the dead floras.

At a glance, one might think some dark magic had been practised within the area but in truth, it was just a simple matter of the soil turning infertile by the whims of time and nature. Still, despite knowing so, it only gave Erin and her companions little comfort.

The other little comfort they found was that it was not a long trek. In just two hours, they made it through the withered trees and they were back on the green paths. However, their relief was brief. The egress of the withered forest took them to a small hill that overlooked the forest spreading before them.

They were able to see far off into the distance and what they saw soured the flowery mood amongst them that was just beginning to bud.

“What is that?” Aera asked.

“An outpost,” Lyra answered grimly. “Damn it. Looks like we will be crossing paths with the soldiers regardless of our paths.”

“Siv, Amyra, is there another path we can take?” Erin inquired.

“I wish there was,” Amyra muttered.

“Unfortunately, there is not, Mistress,” answered Siv.

Erin clicked her tongue. “It is inevitable, then. Let us hope these soldiers aren’t so… touchy or—”

“Death-wishy?”

Erin frowned. “We will not be killing anyone here, Amyra.”

Amyra shrugged. “It’s just a suggestion.”

With heavy hearts, the group continued on with their path. The rain had yet to stop but it was no longer a hindrance. The rain had become just showers of droplets. They had already been through a downpour. A little bit of rain now was nothing to them.

Gradually, they approached the outpost that spanned for a few miles. If the walls were taller and made of stones instead of just stakes, it would have been called a fortress.

The scouts of the outpost spotted the approach of Erin and the rest. The scouts alerted the other soldiers and in no time at all, riders were dispatched towards them.

“Here they come,” Lyra muttered.

“Everyone, don’t do anything until I say so, understand?”

Everyone nodded, including Amyra.

“Especially you, Amyra. Not a word. And don’t look at them like they were some unworthy prey.”

“Your words are my command, milady.”

The riders met Erin and her companions halfway. The riders surrounded the group and their hands were on the hilt of their swords.

“Halt!” cried the captain of the riders. “State your names and affairs.”

Erin stepped forward from her group, revealing her beauty that instantly drew gasps of awe from the soldiers staring down at her. They were utterly mesmerised by her. The captain recovered his composure first and he shouted for his men to do the same.

Erin smirked and let loose her tails, flourishing all seven of them.

The awes from the soldiers were even louder this time and the captain was no different. Eyes and mouth were wide agape.

“My name is Erynthea, an adventurer. These are my lovely companions. May I know the reason for this confrontation? Last I heard, there were no checkpoints in this area, much less a large outpost.”

Hearing her question, the captain shook his head to regain his composure. Thankfully, his helmet hid his flustered expression. “Forgive our discourtesy, Lady Fae.” Despite his elevated heartbeat, his tone was firm. “There have been reports and sightings of many unsavoury individuals lurking around. These unsavoury individuals were all part of a cult or a Faith.”

“I see.” Erin nodded. “Well, as you can tell, my friends and I are not one of them. We are merely adventurers, on our way to our next adventuring ground.”

“Whether you are part of the rabble or not, we shall be the judge of that.”

“I have my adventurer tag, perhaps that would suffice as—”

“You will be coming with us, Lady Fae. And your friends too.”

“Where to?” Erin questioned.

“You will know when we get there.”

“Oh? Is there a reason why you can’t tell us here and now?”

“My lady, if you do not come with us right here and now, then I will have no choice but to—”

“Wait! Wait!” came a sudden shout, filled with urgency, from behind the captain.