"That's preposterous!" For a second, Edwin felt the pressure from his Vice-captain's energy squash him to the ground. Alas, William Von Kruitz was nowhere near the level of the Corp's Captain. Instinctively, the Krin circulated his own energy, and the pressure vanished. The backlash hit the Vice-captain, forcing him to take a timid step back.

In a throne room occupied by so many experienced warriors, only princess Serena missed the rapid exchange. The Crown Prince wore a half-smile at seeing his opponent humiliated by a mere squire, while General Bianco and King Bartholomew kept their bearing unmoved, faking ignorance to give sir Von Kruitz face. Edwin's heart skipped a beat. He might have just made a powerful enemy. Damn it! Why did it have to happen a week before the knighting ceremony! For a moment, he looked at the colorful ceiling above his head. I hope you are having fun, gods. 'Cause I am not!

The King cleared his throat, and all the gazes fell on him once more. "The King of Skies sends his ultimatum. What do you think, Lieutenant-General?"

Bianco Von Revolt put his wrinkly hand on his chin. "Seven years..." started the General with the raspy voice of an ancient, wise man. "The Avians' offensive has slowly escalated, chipping away at our forces on the borders. From the start, their wings have given them an enormous mobility advantage, especially around the Dragonfire Mountains to the south and the Red Peaks to the east. Not only that, their tactics are unorthodox. We spent a century building the best army for frontal assaults, battles on open fields. Instead, the Avians wait for the Fog, then hit our camps with lightning-quick aerial raids. Our sorcerers and martial masters are the only ones keeping them in check. Without them, we would've lost already."

Vice-captain Von Kruitz lowered his head in shame after hearing those words. Even after twenty years of diligent training, he had yet to reach the level of martial master. That was the only reason he was in the throne room and not on the battlefield. That thought had haunted him for seven years now.

The General took a deep breath, and his free hand moved behind his back. "This is not all. Now that the pass of Gruht is lost, it will dramatically reduce the flow of supplies from the Central Alliance. Moreover, the Borian Empire, nominally our ally in this war, keeps delaying their promised support. They see us as their shield against the Avians. If the war keeps up for a couple more years, there will be no question of who has the real power in the North. Hells, if we have not fallen by the end of the war, they might even invade us the day after to finish the job!"

Edwin listened with a concerned look. He had known that the war had been tough on the kingdom, but this was the first time hearing such a bleak description.

The King nodded, the General's assessment seemingly not far from his own. "Do we have a chance against a full-powered assault?"

"Hard to say," answered the General following a sigh. "They are yet to send their experts, while ours are already on the field. Then there's the Aeto family. I hear they are all monsters, with First Princess Rangi known as the best talent on the Continent. Finally, the King of Skies. If he takes part in the assault, we will not see the end of the year."

"Father! It is not the time for weakness!" Prince Kaveat said, vehemently stepping in front of the throne ahead of Edwin. "We need to strike first, surprise them with a mighty force, and we need to do it now!"

"And how do you propose we do that, your Highness?" Asked the Knight Corp's Vice-Captain wryly. "Our main forces need to hold their ground and defend the largest towns. And even if we could muster such 'mighty' force, we do not know where the Avians' bases are."

"Sir Von Kruitz, every word that comes out of your mouth does nothing more than bring further shame to your name," said the prince while snickering. "Spymaster! Tell them what you have discovered."

The air in the room grew colder while the shadow of a dark cloud loomed over the throne room. The light from the tall windows dimmed like an animal running from a predator. The unmistakable clicking sound of a woman's heels stepping on the stone pavement echoed through the tall chamber, announcing her arrival.

Edwin's body lowered in a fighting stance, his combat instincts kicking in after sensing a dangerous presence. He turned left towards the sound and saw a shadowed figure elegantly stop a step behind the Crown Prince. As a ray of sunlight penetrated the room once more, he discovered a slim figure, covered head to toe by a simple yet elegant silver cloak. The glossy fabric hugged her perfect curves, betraying at least one aspect of her identity. Two pale, delicate hands escaped from their long sleeves. They were clean, her nails orderly to an almost obsessive level. Under the hood of her cloak, she wore a white porcelain mask that hid all facial features but a pair of cold emerald eyes.

Edwin quickly took note of two things. The first was that he had not felt even an ounce of her presence when he entered the room. As a Krin and as a martial warrior, he was confident in his senses. Yet, she had so effortlessly tricked them. Deep down, he wondered if that silver cloak had anything to do with it. The second was that the figure had not knelt the King. When added to princess Serena's look, full of jealousy and admiration, and to the way she had instantly answered to the Crown Prince's call, it seemed this 'Spymaster' shared a strange relationship with the royal family.

"My shadows have found an Avian encampment on the eastern bank of river Shammar," she spoke, and her low voice sounded like a soothing melody, almost lullaby-like. It was too stark of a contrast against her eery presence. "The camp is much too large for their current numbers."

"They are preparing for the main force..." continued General Bianco. The young Krin noticed how the old General had not been bothered by the Spymaster's sudden entrance. It was almost like he was used to it. Not only that, he had not doubted her words for even a second. That was high praise from someone of his caliber. "

"Even if the information were accurate, it's too risky to send someone there. The Corp has no knight to spare at the moment. No wonder they sent a squire to bring such an important message," argued Von Krutz.

"And how would you know, Vice-captain? Have you ever even seen a real Knight in your life?" Asked Kaveat with obvious vitriol in his speech.

Edwin noticed the knight's hands twitch. He was sure that, were they not in the throne room, the Vice-captain would've already unsheathed his greatsword.

After the prince got the reaction he wanted, his face turned serious, and his gaze returned to the King. "Father, the project I have told you about in the past. Thanks to the Spymaster, we have reached the final stages of testing. I just need your approval, and I will win you this war before the tenth day!"

For the first time, Edwin saw King Bartholomew's expression change, though only just slightly. "Kaveat! Did I not warn you to stop those senseless experiments? We have already talked about this. I will never approve them!" The King's voice was firm. The Krin knew not the context of those words, but he was sure the King would never budge.

"So what? You would prefer letting the kingdom fall to those damned birds!?"

The King's emotionless expression returned, as did his ever-judging gaze. "Some things should never exist," he declared in a more ominous tone than usual.

"Coward!" The Crown Prince shouted. Then he turned around and headed to the double-doored gate opposite to his father's throne. The Spymaster faithfully followed behind him, a clear sign of where her allegiance fell. Edwin stepped to the side of the purple carpet to let them out, and, for a moment, her emerald eyes met his. He felt his internal energy scream. If they fought, he would not even know how he died.

The King got up, the muscles in his body bulging with power. "Kaveat of house Gothric," his powerful voice echoed through the throne room, "I have not raised you to be so disrespectful!"

The Crown Prince halted his steps. "You have not raised me at all," he whispered without turning around. He resumed to the exit, courteously opening the door for the mysterious silver-cloaked woman, then slamming it shut behind him.

The King stood there in silence, as did everyone else. No one would dare make a sound, especially Edwin, who felt like all this was way above his paygrade. Well, not that they paid squires. Even Princess Serena was avoiding eye contact, keeping her head low to the ground.

Finally, the Krin heard a sigh coming from the imposing figure of King Bartholomew, and he watched him fall back on his throne.

There was only one person who could break the silence now. "I might have a solution, your Majesty," said Lieutenant-General Bianco, his voice still unmoved by the recent events. "A solution to the war, that is. And hopefully to the Borian Empire as well."

The King laughed wrily. "Well, old friend. Solving one problem is already more than I am used to," he said, self-deprecatingly repeating the words of some of his aristocratic opposition. "Speak."

"Our enemy's ultimatum is clear. They will invade our lands soon. The Spymaster's intel did nothing but confirm that, as did the attack at the pass of Gruht. The Empire observes our every movement, waiting for a moment of weakness to strike. However, there is still one force that could swing the situation in our favor. I say we ask High Priestess Celestia for her support."

The King looked at the old General like he had gone senile. "We have already done that. The Church will not take part in this war. She was clear on that."

"That was five years ago. But now, things have changed. Alcia is the Goddess' sacred region, where her prophet Saint Lucius built her Cathedral. And now, a nation of pagans that worships their King of Skyes as if he was a divine being, threatens to invade that sacred land..."

The King's face morphed into a smile. "I see... that might just be enough."

"I think it is, your Majesty," the General said, smiling back.

Edwin did not understand. Thankfully, the Vice-captain was just as clueless as he was. "If I may, what are you talking about?"

"Oh, youngster. We are talking about a crusade!"

Edwin shook. He had heard about crusades, the last weapon of the Church of Light. However, the last one had happened almost fifty years ago, so most had no memories of it.

The King rose on his feet once more, walking down the stairs to reach the Lieutenant-General. "Very well, Bianco. Tell me what you need."

"The High Priestess should have finished her prayers by now. Assign me an official escort to the Cathedral, and I will convince her."

"Very well. Vice-captain William Von Krutz, squire Edwin Ghen, we are a bit shorthanded. I ask you to accompany the General to Saint Lucius Cathedral. This mission, though simple, is of the utmost importance."

The knight and the squire instantly knelt. "Yes, your Majesty!"

Edwin struggled to contain his excitement. A mission assigned directly by the King! Brother, have you ever had one?

***

A few weeks before, somewhere in the Deep North...

A colossal gate shimmered silver light, well hidden behind a dense mist. A giant metallic humanoid with nine pairs of wings floated in front of the door, ever-watchful for any who would dare approach. One pair of arms held an enormous sword of the same metal, while the other pair stood crossed over the purple crystal on its chest.

The colossal door shook, sending ripples through the sea and the air. A dazzling silver light conquered the clearing. However, the winged guardian remained unmoving in the air. It was not its job to guard that side of the door.

Suddenly, pale white chains of ethereal energy flew behind it, locking around its ankles, arms, neck. It struggled, trying to free itself from those chains. But it could not as they held it in place without signs of budging.

"Notice: Under attack from an unknown source. Identifying threat: Ral-"

Before the mechanical voice could complete its sentence, a dense ray of white energy shot from somewhere beyond the gate, effortlessly breaking through the transparent purple barrier around the guardian and penetrating its back. The ray passed through the metallic body, hitting the purple gem on the humanoid's chest with surgical precision. The crystal shattered in uncountable fragments, sending crackling purple sparks through the air.

"Error: Soul gem removed-d-d. Power Loss: Imminent-t-t. Failure. FAiLurE. faILure. F-a-i--"

The robotic voice slowed down, becoming graver and graver until it was no more. The ethereal chains vanished, letting the giant body of the winged guardian fall ruinously to the sea. It hit the water surface with an earth-shattering impact, sending waves tens of meters high in all directions.

When the aftereffects of the metallic body ended, so did the ripples from the colossal gate. The blinding silver radiance retreated as the guardian sank to the depths of the Northern Sea.

A boat made of a strange dark metal floated over the stirred water in front of the gate. A young man with ashen blonde hair and enchanting green eyes sat on it with a dark expression. He wore a tattered dark cloak and not much more. However, he did not tremble in the freezing air of the Deep North. Close to him was another figure, almost the same height but made of pale white light. The heavenly figure was that of a beautiful young woman with long hair and gracious features. She floated with lightness, moving mid-air with nimbleness unobtainable for any material body. Contrary to the man, she was smiling brightly.

"We did it, Rall. We are out!" Tui shouted happily, knowing that the man understood her thoughts by heart.

Rall's eyes rose to the sky, covered by dark clouds. Then his gaze lowered to where the guardian had fallen, signaled by some still-lingering foam. "Billy, I hope you can rest in peace now, wherever you are," he said solemnly. He waited in silence for a minute, then his head rose once more.

His gaze landed on the ghostly figures in the Fog. They were looking at him in horror, gnashing their maws and flailing their ghostly arms. This time, his expression was full of determination.

"Let's start the show."