Failing

"Master Lo-an, has there been anything out of ordinary in or around Tilon recently?"

 The figure on the black courser dismounted and removed his hood, exposing a scarred faced wrinkled old man with an eye patch on his left eye, having shoulder length grayed hair. 

"You do know I'm not a part of that village. Though, there has actually been a daily increase of the occasional wailing and cries going on recently— I'm awakened by a woman nowadays instead, frustrating indeed."

"Wails? What are they grieving about."

"Ah, the missing teenagers each day. Mostly the females are sold to the Red-Light District, while the males are sent off to who knew where."

"What? And there's been no requests made to NobleHouse Allan to investigate this? Didn't Zeke grow up in Tilon? He wouldn't allow such atrocities at his doorstep." Vans had also dismounted, his hood was off, exposing his short dark brown hair with a few strands of gray hair and obsidian eyes could be seen. His face resembling that of Kaleb though slightly older with a sharper jawline.

"Of course the young Lord Allan wouldn't. However, since having been crippled for years now, the noblehouse slowly crumbles down. No one knows who makes the decisions now, a lowborns have no say. They are left to bear with the transgressions of the Fern Guild, since they rule Tilon nowadays." Lo-an said, his face true to his words and bearing no trace of surprise like Mia and Van's did.

"NobleHouse Allan has done nothing about it? It's their fief and one of the best." Mia chimed in, uncovering her head though still mounted on the horse's back.

"You're right, it's their fief and a best one, yet handing over it's management in the hands of a guild was also their decision too." Lo-an stated, his tone full of caution and a warning to not get involved like he hadn't.

"That would've made some sense, it's common to have a guild managing a village. But not one working towards it's destruction— who does that." Mia expressed only to get a response of the old man's slight shaking of head in disagreement.

"The Allans apparentl—"

"Helllllllllllllp!!!" A scream resounded throughout the forest, barely hearing it, as it came from farther away. However, Vans's had clearly heard more than a scream, for he could also perceive running footsteps and sharp breathes. As whoever she was, the growls and laughter coming from a few miles after her weren't welcoming.

"How cruel these Ferns are." Vans mumbled under his breath, his eyes instantly lighting up with a silver flame as he slid his hood back on. 

"Please do go to the mansion ahead of us Master Lo-an, use my tag incase of any doubts there." Like a puff of smoke, he was gone after ending his last sentence, leaving only Mia and Lo-an on the path. 

"He left, what about the tag?" Lo-an was confused, only to have something dropped in his hands by Mia. A white and gold rectangular shaped metallic thing, having quite the weight even for a spiritualist like himself. It had both sides similar with each having the carving of a soaring eagle engraved on it. Definitely something a noble like the Elmore's would carry or his wife of course.

"Mia, it would be better to convince him. The Ferns are an Upper Fifth Rate Guild, their Guildmaster isn't all that powerful yet he's a vassal of NobleHouse Allan with proof." 

"Master." Mia voiced, fastening the reins of the white horses to a nearby tree. "If there's one thing I'll do, it wouldn't be adding wood to the fire rather than quenching it."

"But—"

"No buts." She politely cut in. "If it's a matter of guilds, then you'll know more than most about the Halo Guild and not to mention the backing of RoyalHouse Martin."

The old man stood there dumbfounded, not by the mention of an affiliation with a RoyalHouse— though he wasn't aware of that. However, the fact that a guild at the Northern Province also being an Upper Third Rate would even have an issue with one so low and far, wasn't going to make sense to anyone.

'Weren't they acting out of their own will? Does the NobleHouse Elmore now have a higher influence for them to do so?' Lo-an wondered watching Mia hop of the ground onto the nearby tree, continuing from one to the other disappearing from his line of sight.

"I think I've been locked up in my room for so long. Elmores can now be unconcerned about the Allans, such a world." The old man exhaled, mounting up his courser and placing the tag in his storage ring. Putting on his hood once again, he kicked and galloped away, soon disappeared heading deeper into the forest.

*WHOOOSH!

*TAP-TAP-TATAPTAP!

*WHOOOSH!

Vans large and chiseled frame could be seen as he swept past each tree not hopping on one after the other. Instead, he was moving so fast it sounded like he was simply walking from one to the other, despite the distances between each tree.

'She fell, I've got to go faster!' Vans thought loudly, manipulating more aura to his legs while opening up his heartcore to draw in more energy from the environment at the same time. A feat only few could achieve, unless they were of the power level from a Manipulator and above. The invisible energy in around barging straight into his body, his speed significantly increased. Though it still wasn't enough to reach there as fast as he wanted.

'No! No! No! No!' He could hear her heavy breathes and their ominous laughs, the growling of their beasts. They were closer to her than he was, and he feared he'd not get there in time. If there was one thing he didn't want happening, it'd be her being murdered.

However, the heavens seemed to turn a blind eye to his plea for about reaching there. He could hear it, she screamed the loudest she'd ever done, the soreness of her throat being felt through her voice. As what followed afterwards, was him hearing a weapon being drawn out from its hold. Soon the sound of searing flesh and a cracking bone was was heard.

"Nooooooooo!!!" 

"Huh?" A figure with spiky hair, wearing beast skin clothing voiced. Having a hand on a dagger with it's blade, embedded in the throat of the body he had one knee on. 

Having jumped meters up in the sky, Vans gaze was nowhere but on the body. 'They killed you.' He whispered in his thoughts. Able to see her face with his flaming eyes, it widened as he didn't just see a helpless girl he wanted to save, rather the face of someone he knew. The way her dead gaze fell on him, her eyes lifeless, full of nothing but pain and an urge for freedom brought back memories, igniting something in him.

"I'm sorry… for failing… to save you, Yannah." Vans mumbled under his breath.

Those down below did nothing but watch as the unknown figure came down towards them, gravity surely not sparing to speed up the fall. It was to his advantage though, for his blood boiled more every second he could see them still breathing.

"Haaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!!!" A great sword slowly formed up in his hands, one with a white and gold handle— a double-edged sword. Meters away from hitting the ground, a large amount of silver aura lit up the sword. For it shone so bright that those below, envisioned it as the sun descending upon them.

"DIEEEEE!!!"

*KRACKA- BOO-BOO BOOM!!!