The Two's Bond

"I was drafted for a mission by Minwoo, and he was being dragged for a battle against the main enemy of the Mages. That was the last time I saw him alive. Thinking back, I wish I should've helped the Mages instead."

"Minwoo's mission was an easy one, but I haven't been active for a good few months. At least, if I had been with Ash, we would have said our proper goodbyes..."

Bryan's tone changed to a much more saddened voice, with eyes looking at the soup that reminded him of his fallen comrade. I sighed, understanding the weight of the words that the boy spoke. But, unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to say goodbye either.

"After his death, I was being sent away to the Urnsfield Domain for a month-long covert operation. It was known as the Umbra Mission, but I didn't kill any of the main enemies or help with the main battle. Around that time, I lost contact with Minwoo."

"I did witness the carnage that was dealt by the Mages' battle. But since Minwoo didn't tell me to go into action, I remained in the shadows. After defeating Tiamat, the Five Kings returned to their Domains to recuperate."

"Baron Tuazon headed to Teuton first to appoint the new King there. I haven't met the new leader yet, but she seems quite inexperienced. However, I heard from the rest that she has a heart of gold. I then got a letter from the Campania, using Minwoo's seal."

"It was his handwriting, so I thought it must be from him. But it turns out that he had died before the main war killed Yan. I only found that out when I was doing what the letter told me to," recalled Bryan, pointing to an old wax seal hanging on the wall.

It was small, so I had to squint to see the fine details of the wax seal. It was dark red, probably due to aging, but it still looked grand. The symbol was two katanas crossing blades with each other. Behind the swords were two serpents intertwined with one another.

"What did the letter tell you?" I asked, drinking more of the soup.

I hadn't realized how hungry I was until Bryan started talking about Ashley. It was my second round, and Bryan went to bring the entire pot into the room.

"Well, it was the last instruction from him to join the Arks and serve under Lady Mavislin Roydon. He explained what happened to him and why he would be losing contact with me. Minwoo wrote the letter in the way that he would give it to me after his death."

"But then again, his handwriting was easily forgeable, so I still need someone else to confirm. So I went and looked for the Valkyrie to ask her to place me into her Ark, the Barren Pillars. And be it good or bad luck, when I caught up to the Valkyrie, they were battling the main enemy."

"The leader of the Husks. The enemy had tossed them out of the battle, and the other senior Mages were fighting the real deal while they tried another way in. And I expected to find Mavislin alone, not with someone that had died months before the Umbra incident."

"But it seems that the Marksman Pillar wasn't human anymore. Instead, he was stronger as a Mage and still possessed the crest of the Barren Pillars, making him connected to Mavislin."

"Wait, give me a second... Ashley was still alive?! I thought he was dead..."

"I thought so as well, in which he replied that he was. He explained that the human part of him was dead. He lost his humanity completely when his head got severed from his neck. But since Mavislin used a spell to entrap the remains of Ashley, he was able to come back in a spiritual form."

"He became a Familiar of some sorts, using Mavislin's Elemental Energy to keep him in this realm. Then, when he isn't needed, he would return to the place called Euphoria."

"But my goodness, when he returned as a fully-fledged Mage, Ashley wasn't kidding that he was no longer the same as before."

"His Aura was grander, and his Elemental Energy output was thrice the amount as before. He was faster than before, and Ash purely made his bullets out of his powers. If he had been born a Mage, he would have been on par with Mavislin. "

"The way he fought was brilliant, as if he hadn't lost the feel of combat despite being inactive for over three months. If that beast weren't so powerful, Ashley would have won. That being was a cheat since it couldn't die. Well, same for Ash, but it ran before it dealt real damage."