EASTERN FRONTIER

The border between the two worlds, where humanity ends and much grimmer things begin, was rather silent as Lynne and others arrived. Standing at a tall cliff, suspended nearly two hundred meters in the air, they had a decent overview of what lied beneath, all the way until the rampaging sandstorms blocked it.

Eastern Wastelands is mostly a large desert, with only a few greenlands scattered about. Hills roll in a wave-like fashion on and on, but, over the course of endless time, it had caused both beasts and people alike to dig beneath the surface to protect themselves from the endless sandstorms, making it so that there were several dozen sprawling underground cities, alongside a few surface one which mostly act as forts.

Atop the cliff was a campsite, housing roughly fifty thousand soldiers. It had turned into a small, simulated city, with shops, craftsmen quarter, as well as lavish inns. As Leana, Ryn and others went to settle, Lynne, Thalia, Parsia and Fen’er stepped to the cliff’s edge and inspected their new, temporary home.

“At least we can go all out in a desert,” Thalia said nonchalantly. “No cities to ruin and such.”

“To think this is only a spec,” Parsia sighed. “I wonder just how large it actually is.”

“Eh, who cares?” Fen’er said, slightly annoyed. “Let’s just go in there and smoke that Magus or whatever and kick his butt.”

“… and I thought I was the simpleton of the group.” Lynne sneered.

“Anyway, let’s settle first,” Thalia interrupted the two as she pulled them towards the campsite. “And meet the leading Commander while we’re at it.”

The group got settled in a small, cliffside inn, before departing towards the unofficial headquarters of the campsite. It was a stone built tower standing in the very center, with a massive flag fluttering in the wind stuck atop the building.

As they entered, they were welcomed by mostly an empty hall save for a group of people standing around a table in the distance. Among them were Leana and Ryn who were chatting with an older man wearing plated armor with a sword wrapped around his belt. His hair and beard were gray and his face was wrinkled, yet he still exuded youth somehow.

“Ah, you guys are here,” Leana called out as she noticed them. “Come, meet Commander Issac. He’s the one responsible for the stationed army.”

“Welcome fellas,” the man had a thick and deep voice, and a resting face of agitation. “These two bucketheads have already informed me about you four. I don’t care how strong you are – here, it doesn’t matter. Weak and strong die alike because they’re stupid. So don’t flaunt whatever fancy Magic you’ve got because it won’t be of any use when the beasts are sucking on your corpse’s marrow. Got it?”

“Tough crowd,” Lynne smiled as he approached. “But rest assured Commander: we’re as obedient as they come!” Bullshit!!

“Good,” the Commander nodded towards Lynne lightly. No, don’t trust him! He definitely isn’t! “That will make both our lives easier. Still, I offer my gratitude to you all; we rarely get any Mages worth a fuck here, so newcomers are always welcomed.”

“So… most of the army is made up of ordinary soldiers?” Thalia asked.

“Yes.” the Commander nodded.

“How are you guys holding back the beast raids then?” she continued, tilting her head sideways.

“Formations,” the Commander said. “Tools, siege weapons, trickery, traps… all manner of things you Mages never take into account. And, most importantly, sacrifices. All men here know they will die, and they accepted that fate. The best they can do is make their deaths mean something.”

“Uuh… quite a grim outlook.” Lynne said in a low tone.

“It’s the only outlook,” the Commander said harshly. “Whoever comes here hopeful of their return is a fool, and fools die first. And without any reason or worth.”

“Are these the beasts’ nests?” Parsia asked, pointing at the map on the table.

“Hm,” the Commander nodded. “At least the ones we’re aware of. They generally dig roughly ten miles away from the border, but their tunnels reach as little as few hundred meters away. Usually we seal them after a sneak attack, but they just keep digging new ones.”

“Have you ever tried attacking them directly?” Fen’er asked.

“Hah, I see we’ve got an idiot over here,” the Commander said. “A fool. A complete moron who isn’t capable of a complex thought.”

“You--”

“They can’t,” Parsia interrupted, holding her back. “Forget the fact that fighting in sand is nigh impossible, I’m guessing that their nests are mostly underground. Trying to attack them would be suicidal.”

“Ah, we’ve got a man with common sense as well,” the Commander said, giving a thumbs up to Parsia, causing Fen’er to fume with anger. “Indeed, it is as you said. From time to time, when new Mages arrive, they take it upon themselves to clean these nests. They all eventually die because they’re idiots who think highly of themselves. Most of the nests hold only low-ranked beasts, or even ordinary animals. Each nest is commanded – from the distance according to our information – by at least a Seven Evolution Beast. They have a system of communication far more advanced than what mere beasts should be capable of.”

“Hmm,” Lynne hummed lowly as he looked at the map, stroking his chin. “They’re building the nests around the fort we’re currently holding?”

“Yes,” the Commander nodded. “We’ve increased manpower there, but they haven’t attacked directly yet. Mostly just some probing or sneak attacks.”

“Alright,” Lynne said, turning around. “Parsia and Fen’er will stay here. Thalia and I will go to the fort.”

“… I didn’t know you were a Commander kid.”

“I’m not,” Lynne said casually. “But I’m not here to join your forces. I’m here to adventure with my friends.”

“…”

“…”

“…”

“Eh, it’s fine,” Parsia said, sighing. “It’s better this way. Try to figure out where their high ranking beasts are located while you’re out there.”

“Don’t get killed.”

Thalia merely shook her head and ran over, catching up to him, while Leana and Ryn remained silent, their eyes focused on Lynne’s back. The Commander frowned but said nothing, sighing as Lynne and Thalia left the building.

“Will they be okay?” he asked in the end.

“You have a skewed outlook on what a strong Magus is, Commander,” Parsia said, smiling lightly. “If it was just beasts gathering randomly and attacking us, we would have gone and cleaned up the mess the moment we arrived here.”

“It’s not?” the Commander asked as he arched his brow.

“You’re not dumb,” Fen’er sneered. “You already figured it out yourselves, so stop playing a fool.”

“… did your parents never teach you to respect Elderly?”

“No,” Fen’er shook her head. “They taught me to respect the strong. Which you clearly are not.”

“…”

“…”

**

Thalia and Lynne were standing at the cliff’s edge, looking down on the desert, when the monkey and the bird appeared on Lynne’s shoulders. The wind began blowing lightly and the sun above slowly disappeared behind the darkening clouds.

“Should we cause a ruckus to draw them out?” Lynne asked.

“They already know we’re here,” Thalia said. “What’s the point? Besides, you should really break into Grand Realm before we do any major fighting.”

“Ugh, you make it sound like it’s as easy as eating a cake…” Lynne grunted, frustrated.

“You’ve been trying?” Thalia asked.

“Of course I have! But… mastering both Skyfire and Hellfire? What bullshit is that? ‘Oh, Skyfire? Its property is life. Hellfire? Oh, that’s destruction.’ What the hell does that even mean?”

“Eh, you’ll figure it out,” Thalia encouraged him, smiling lightly. “How are other Laws going?”

“…”

“Sorry.”

“I was told I’m talented in this shit! Where the hell is that talent, huh? I’m not seeing it! You have talent! You’re already Lunar Emperor, and you’re barely older than me!”

“Ha ha, yeah, but I’ve been training since I was five, you moron,” she slapped him lightly. “Besides, what you can do as Celestial Magus when you go all out… it’s kind of discouraging, honestly.”

“Ugh, come on, let’s go. Now I’m depressed.”

“Well, that was easy.”

“… you were trying to make me depressed?”

“You were starting to get a bit cocky, though, so I had to take you down a bit.”

“You’re supposed to say ‘go down on you a bit’.”

“Eeh? But you have bathed in weeks.”

“… that’s true.”

“Let’s go.”

“Aye.”

The two casually leapt off the cliff, letting the air brush against their faces. As they were about the crash into the earth beneath, both roused wind gently beneath their feet, slowing down their falling speed, causing them to land gently on the ground. Rocks and sand, as far as the eye can see. Only sounds of the distant sandstorms echoed, causing the world to appear slightly eerie.

Instead of walking through the sand, both levitated slightly above the ground as they moved forward, occasionally spreading their senses in case of a sudden attack. The fort was located roughly nine miles from the border, and, with their current speed, it would take them about half an hour to get there.

Halfway there, Thalia suddenly frowned as she came to a halt, glancing sideways; because of the rampaging sandstorm, their sight was limited, and the only thing they saw was the sand itself.

“What is it?” Lynne asked.

“I smell blood.” Thalia replied.

“Beasts?”

“No, human,” Thalia said, frowning further. “Come.”

Cutting left, they walked for about hundred meters, passing a small hill, before coming to a stop. Out of the sand a hand was sticking out, the fingers bent oddly, blood dried atop the skin. Thalia casually waved her hand, causing the sand to disperse, revealing a corpse beneath.

It was headless, seemingly ripped apart by force, while the body was riddled with holes.

“It’s fresh,” Lynne said, frowning as well. “A few hours at most.”

“Yeah,” Thalia nodded. “Look at his clothes. He’s definitely one of the soldiers.”

“A scout?”

“No,” Thalia shook her head. “Scouts are usually ordinary soldiers, but I sense a decent remnant aura. He was most-likely a Magus, in the early stages of Magus Realm.”

“… considering where we found him, could it be that he was trying to get back to the border? But why?”

“He was coming from flat east,” Thalia said, looking sideways. “From the direction the fort is at.”

“… ugh, don’t tell me…”

“Let’s hurry.”

Lynne grabbed her hand as his eyes narrowed, his expression serious. Space around them suddenly bent and distorted as the two disappeared almost immediately. Reappearing nearly a mile further, Lynne kept cutting through the space without wasting too much Mana.

After less than a minute, they appeared in the sky, looking down. The sight caused them to frown and sigh; beneath lay a fort, with thousands of beasts surrounding it, as soldiers atop the walls defended it. Mages hovered in the air, battling evolved beasts, while a group of humans stood at the far edge of the beasts’ group, observing the spectacle.

“You go and help defend the wall,” Lynne said. “I’ll go and have a talk with our friends down there.”

“Be careful,” Thalia cautioned. “One of them is Empyrean Child by the looks of it.”

“Maybe I’ll finally get to see the meaning and wonder of Skyfire and Hellfire and be inspired.”

“… sure, just don’t get killed in the process.”

“Who do you take me for, an idiot?” Lynne said, smiling. “Wait, don’t answer that.”

“Let’s go.”

“Aye.”

The two separated in the sky, quickly bolting towards their destinations. Thalia took out her spear as she aimed directly at the main group in front of the fort’s walls, while Lynne didn’t take out a weapon, but casually kept flying towards the group of humans. The leader was a man in his thirties, his hair and eyes crimson, and he quickly noticed Lynne, gazing up to the sky.

“Looks like we have company,” the man said calmly. “This should be interesting.”