First Seal

THE Bleakfield town located at the southern border of the Empire has succumbed to eerie silence and darkness as the sky cast murky shadows of an impending storm. Despite it being a small town, it is unusual for it to be ridden with people. Although the local Lord informed Ivelin that some of the citizens decided to abandon their homes and move to the farthest town they could get to, to keep away from the harm brought about by rogue Kevaldi warriors pillaging their homes, some still decided to stay.

However, the situation has gotten worse. The knights tasked to keep the safety of the residents have been wiped out, and some were grievously injured. The local Lord even asked for help in the Adventurer's Guild and hired Adventurers to do the job, but they were also beaten with ease. And that's how he was assigned to do the task while the Commander is gone for a while. As the Vice-Commander of the Black Knights, he must fulfil his liege's command even at the risk of his own life. Failure is not an option. That's why although he is only a given a small elite force to take care of the problem, they have to crush their opponents even if they are the infamous warmongers from the uncivilized kingdom of Kevaldi.

When it comes to combat prowess, they always stand at the top. The Black Knights belong to the Elite forces working under the direct command of Emperor Rasmussen, the strongest man in the Empire. And what sets them apart from the other group of knights is their ability to use magic. Emperor Rasmussen ultimately created an elite force that not only focuses on unparalleled combat ability but also handpicked those who can wield magic. People fear them, and at the same time, admires them. And for consecutive years, they successfully maintained their influence and reputation as the strongest, among others.

Suddenly, one of the knights emerges from one of the dilapidated houses and walks towards his direction. "Vice-Commander, the residents are gone, it's as if they run away in haste or disappear in the middle of the night. There were signs of forced entry, and some of their valuables are strewn across the floor."

Ivelin frowns as he stares at the rows of abandoned houses. "How about those Kevaldi bastards?"

"We found huge tracks of footsteps heading towards the forest. I already sent a group of Knights to scour the area,"

"Turn over the houses if you must! Find clues to where the town's people went. I'm heading to the forest to help search the area."

The knight pumps his fist to his left chest and bows deeply. "Yes, Vice-Commander!" he answered in a loud and hard tone before scampering away to do as he ordered.

The moment Ivelin step foot inside Bleakfield, the first thought that came into his mind is that it must have been quite some time since the remaining residents left. The town is by no means poor. Despite its location at the border, they are earning sufficient gold coins because of their harvest. And this is not the first time that he has visited this place. From what he remembers, although the houses are old and rustic, it is still well-maintained.

Looking at it now, the windows have been shattered off its hinges. It creaks and groans with every sway of the wind. The floorboards inside the houses are rotting that stepping into it will send someone's feet under the ground. Wild plants also start creeping around the area, and their fields have been left unattended for so long. And from the reports sent to the capital, those bastards may have been stealing to the town's people, but there were no reported cases of killings of the civilians. Ivelin thought that they must have only been interested in stealing crops and valuables. However, now that the people were missing, he doesn't know what to think anymore.

"Let's go Bolt" Ivelin gently touch his black mount's neck and kick his hide using his heels to spur him to sprint. In just a few minutes, he is sprinting out of the town and towards the nearby forest.

Yet, before Ivelin can even enter the forest, his ears pick up distinct howls of beasts coming from the direction of the unusually dark woods. Bolt abruptly comes into a complete halt that almost thrown Ivelin off his saddle if not for his tight hold in his reins. Ivelin's mount starts whinnying while his body and head toss in every direction as if trying to get away from that place. In a few moments, his teeth gnash in anger as he stares at the specific path a short distance away from the entrance.

Ivelin instantly detected a white-armoured knight riding a white mount while it trots towards their direction. And he is sure that he is not one of them. Black Knights are known for riding a black steed with their dark capes flying from their backs as they speeded down their paths in lightning speed.

Abruptly, the white knight suddenly stops in his tracks and stares towards his direction. Despite his face being completely covered, Ivelin thought that he flashes him a sinister grin before he disappears from inside the forest. At that time, Ivelin initially felt that he needs to apprehend him. However, as soon as he vanished, he noticed a dark smoke slowly edging its way out of the forest.

When he looks over to the foliage, Ivelin is instantly overwhelmed with immense dread and anxiety. There were no gusts of wind, but the smell coming from the woods is so strong and revolting. The strong scent of burning and rotten flesh assaulted his nose, making his stomach churns in disgust. In an instant, the entire forest is swallowed by a dark mass of sinister aura. And when the black smoke quickly slithers towards his direction as if trying to capture him, Ivelin's heart stilled in recognition.

It's not just any black smoke; it's a miasma that should only be found to the bottomless pit of the netherworld. It is a poisonous and noxious air that could instantly cause decay and dissolve anything it touches even a human body until there is nothing left. It is common knowledge that no one will be able to survive the fatality of the miasma!

"Cast a barrier!" Ivelin screamed at the top of his lungs when he felt some of his comrades' head towards his direction at full speed. Though, Ivelin's warning was too late for them. He was able to put up his magic barrier but not for the others. He watches in horror as the other knights' opens their mouth in a silent scream as miasma swallows them and liquefy their bodies until a pool of black liquid was left.

For the first time after many years, Ivelin's heart slams hard against his chest as he swiftly steers Bolt and signals him using his body to turn back to the town. A rush of adrenaline filled his veins while Ivelin races back to the town and warn the remaining Knights while maintaining his magic barrier. From the state of things, it is evident that the unit who was assigned to scour the area couldn't have survived. His forces cannot afford to be crippled even further. A thick black miasma like this only means one thing, there must be a hole in the barrier that separates the human world from the netherworld. They need to cast a spell that will separate Bleakfield from the rest because any moment now, swarms of demons will infest and attack the area. He needs to immediately send a message to the Emperor to inform him of the grave situation.

The Vice-Commander of the Black Knights gathered his remaining forces and instructed them to cast a strong magic barrier that will seal the Bleakfield town until reinforcements arrive. Unfortunately, to his frustration, only a handful of knights that are quite adept in casting a barrier spell remained alive. They also did not bring any magic devices that will aid them in this situation, misguided with the thought they will only have to deal with the warmongers. And his mistakes resulted in his comrades' death, something that he has to take responsibility for.

Ivelin turned towards one of the knights and gave his second order. "Go and help the other nearby villages to evacuate their people far away from this place. We cannot afford to have any more casualties."

"Yes, Vice-Commander! I will do as you say!" he immediately left along with another knight in a hurry. Now that the two knights are gone, and the other five are assigned to maintain the barrier. There are only three of them, including him, who can fight.

After tying Ivelin's letter addressed to His Imperial Majesty to one of his summoned beast Geyser, the massive grey bird flies off into the sky at lightning speed. Ivelin just hopes that Emperor Rasmussen will be able to receive his letter immediately. He gritted his teeth in anger and frustration. They need to hold out until help arrives.

The Knights went into their position and started casting magic to seal the town, and suddenly hundreds of footsteps coming from the direction of woods resounded like a rumbling of an earthquake. As the hordes of demon drew nearer towards their path, the surrounding area has grown pitch black, and the greenery instantly turns into ashes. Even from a long distance, Ivelin can immediately make out the swarms of demons and their horrid appearances.

Ultimately, it will take only a few minutes before the monsters reach the entrance of the village. The knights' chants have become louder and faster, knowing well that failure to cast a barrier means their ultimate death.

"The other two remaining knights, follow me! We need to stall them as long as we can until the barrier is cast."

His orders are met with a silent nod while his comrades brandish their weapons to get ready for combat. Ivelin can feel their tension and undeniable fear seizing their strength to speak. He feels the same. Just the demons' monstrous aura is enough to overwhelm his senses and drains his power. But Ivelin needs to remain steadfast. There is only a miniscule chance of surviving, but he will gladly hold unto it. It is never an option to give up. Even if he dies in the end, he will do it valiantly befitting of as a member of Black Knights.

Swarm of demons with varying sizes and physical appearance approaches them in a frenzy. Some monsters were covered in jagged scales while some have wings and inhumanly dark complexions that they almost look like shadows. However, from what Ivelin can see, they are all sporting a pair of horns and tails. It is the first time he'd seen these many demons in one place. His opponents were usually humans, and his battlefield is covered with human blood, not of those of the demons. It's been a long time since they were a demon attack like this. From the historical records, the last sighting of demons happened fifty years ago.

From one side, a mob of ghouls sprints towards them with incredible speed. Despite they're emaciated body and humanoid-like decaying skin that are tight- stretched over their skeleton, they are advancing steadily more than the others. Their razor-sharp teeth gleam as they flash him a menacing grin, and their sunken eyes burned like hot coals as they stare at them like he is a food to be devoured.

Ivelin swiftly takes out his sword from its scabbard and plunges it to the ground intertwining it with his mana. It creates a massive bolt of his ice magic and instantly encasing the advancing ghouls in chunks of ice. However, before he can even take a pause, a winged-demon appears from behind swooping down with his talons and barely slicing his head off. With his heightened senses, Ivelin dodges with only a scratch on his neck, but he can't exactly fight off a flying demon.

A fire arrow whizzed past him and struck the winged-demon on its head before setting it into flames. The demon's high-pitched shriek reverberates around them, alerting its other comrades before its charred remains fell to the ground with a loud thud. Ivelin looked over the direction of the dark-haired knight and gave him a thumbs-up. The paralyzing fear that has overwhelmed them earlier has been replaced with a determined look on this face as they face off the other demons.

"I will take care of the winged-demons Vice-Commander!"

Ivelin nodded. "Even if you have to struggle in disgrace, I command you to fulfil your job!"

"As you wish, Vice-Commander!"

"We will not disappoint you!"

Unlike the ghouls and the winged-demon, the shadow monsters hang around in the background. They are waiting for the right opportunity to strike. And Ivelin doesn't want to waste any more time. He pulls his sword from the ground and advances. A simple slash of his sword won't kill the undead. He reinforces his magic to his long sword and cut through his opponents with tremendous speed and power. With every cut of his sword, the demons we're encased in ice. And with Ivelin's polished twists and turns, he was able to keep his blade in constant motion while skirting along the battlefield without missing a step or pausing once until his foe has fallen and became one of his ice-sculptures.

Ivelin felt a sharp sense of relief, thinking that if he keeps going, they might be able to survive until he hears a roar filled with battle rage that the impact of sound waves made his weapon trembles in response. Out of nowhere, a massive naked man who almost looks like a giant appears behind Ivelin, his soaring height casting a shadow on the ground. With its bare hands, he effortlessly lifted Ivelin off the ground and imprisoned his body. He screams in ferocious pain as his body is crushed like rag-doll. Ivelin felt every bone in his body breaks, and the sound is similar to that when he is eating his favourite snack crackers. Even when he is starting to lose consciousness, he couldn't help but gasp out a bitter laugh.

A string of curses went inside his head, but he has no strength to open his mouth. When the giant creature unfurls his fisted hand, Ivelin felt his broken body slowly falling to the ground. He caught a glimpse of the monster's burning scarlet eyes as he grins at him viciously. He felt like his toy that it had gotten sick off. How he wished he can wipe off that smirk from his face. When Ivelin tries to move, his bones rattle in pain and strike his internal organs, and gurgles of blood appear on the side of his mouth.

"Ha! How long until I land on the ground?" Ivelin whispers inside his head. He feels frighteningly cold, and he can almost hear a melodic sound signalling his end even though it feels like he hasn't fought enough.

"Ahhh, it's getting dark. It's embarrassing to be easily beaten like this."

When Ivelin is barely hanging in between consciousness, he felt strong arms gently encircling around his body before settling him into the ground. When he tries to open his heavy eyelids, Ivelin instantly recognizes the familiar strong back of his liege.

"I will take care of everything," his Master plainly stated. It was a simple declaration devoid of any warm and concern. As if he is only stating a fact. However, it was the most reassuring statement that he heard this day. Now, he won't have to fight back the darkness swallowing his senses.