Death, Devotion, Dissonance

Chapter 83 - Impending Confrontation

<Guess we're going to that area by ourselves.>

<Yes. And now that we have two Castle Cards, maybe we can hope to find one in there,> Evin replied.

<Actually, do you want to visit the Temple first?> the Voice asked after thinking a bit. <I'm getting a bit interested in those Heretics… something tells me that they might offer information on the Unspoken Area.>

<Why do you think so?>

<Hmm, it's mostly a hunch, but I think there's a storyline to this Island,> the Voice began its explanation. <A proper order of things, if you will. And I'm also guessing that only certain areas of the Island are connected to this Storyline. The Tunnels and the Unspoken area are definitely part of the storyline, while the Dungeon and the trials on the Mountain are just extras.>

<With that logic, our meeting with the Ruler should also be part of the Story, right?> Evin guessed.

<Yes. You're starting to use your brain, finally,> the Voice said with fake pride. <Anyhow, you should remember how the Ruler mentioned that Amera was captured by villains hiding in a Temple deep inside the forest, right? I think that was a hint on what action we should take afterwards.>

Evin could see how the Temple would be connected to the Storyline now, and nodded.

<There's also the theming of the locations,> the Voice wasn't finished yet. <The storyline trials all have a darker name and theme to them: a rat-infested underground tunnel, a temple of crazed heretics, and finally, an 'unspoken area'. On the other hand, the extras are all have light-hearted, almost heroical themes: a dungeon with endless riches, the top of a mountain and a fiery volcano.>

<Then by that logic, shouldn't the Cove also be part of the chain?>

<It could be, but since we don't have a five-people group we can trust, we can only ignore it and hope we're not missing anything important. And besides, I don't like areas filled with water, so…> the Voice trailed of before getting back on track. <Whatever the truth might be, I think we should visit the temple first, before visiting the last area. When there's a proper order to things, especially stories, I like to follow it to see what the creator intended for us to see, instead of going against their will.>

Evin thought about its proposal, and despite wanting to oppose it just to spite the Voice, he decided to follow its suggestion.

<Alright, then let's head for the Temple. I also feel like we'll have nothing left to do if we head to the final location on the first day,> Evin replied. <But if I'm correct and Arza went there ahead of us, we might be headed towards an empty trial?>

<I don't think you need to worry about that. I'm sure the Island wasn't designed to run out of things to do on the first day of the week, so the loot inside the Trials must be getting refreshed every time it gets beaten. The biggest example would be the Dungeon. Since half the school year's been buzzing around that place since morning without leaving, I'm pretty confident in my theory.>

Evin didn't need any more convincing, and the two decided to head towards the Temple. But this time, instead of flying, Evin decided to walk. He was using his mana-core non-stop since morning, so naturally, he was starting to feel its toll on his body. Just like any other organ, his mana-core and brain could get strained if Evin overworked them.

And just like his muscles, with more use and training, Evin could reach a level where he would be fine with keeping himself invisible at all times. But that was a distant dream for the time being.

An hour later, Evin arrived at the Temple with a refreshed and well-rested mana-core. The place he arrived at was the lushest area of the forest, with tall and verdant trees towering over the area. And amidst these wonders of nature stood a building completely devoid of the warmth that surrounded it.

'That's an ominous-looking building if I ever saw one,' Evin thought as he observed the temple that seemed like it was pulled out of a fairy-tale of dubious origins.

It was a large rectangular building that reminded him more of a huge tomb, rather than a temple. The main colors of the building in front of him were black and grey, but Evin was sure that those weren't ketricite, but normal stones, which just happened to be black. They didn't exert the same pressure that the Palace exerted, but Evin wasn't sure if some rooms inside would be made of the damn material or not.

But the resemblance to ketricite wasn't the only thing that distressed Evin: all around the temple, Evin could see splashes of red decorating its exterior. His first instinct told him it was blood, but the rational part of his brain told him otherwise. He could only commend the people who prepared this place to make it look as chill-inducing as possible.

Sighing, he made himself invisible and approached the Temple's entrance. The Voice in his head was busy setting up the Air bullet accelerator, and also a layer of Hard Air to prepare for unexpected circumstances. Seeing no one around, Evin opened the door inside with a wary attitude, and immediately felt a burst of mana pulsing on his left.

Instinctively, he dodged backwards, but the enemy attack he was expecting didn't come. As he was wondering what just happened, the Voice explained.

<Well, we're definitely not the only ones exploring the Temple…> the Voice said, pointing towards a Talisman falling into the ground.

Evin quickly recognized it as a Talisman of Warning. It was a twin Talisman designed to send a signal to the other half whenever a change occurred in its immediate surroundings.

<It's a difficult Talisman to make, since both sides need to be drawn in the exact same manner… I think it's Phel's work. No, I'm sure it's Phel's work, because I can recognize his handwriting,> Evin murmured.

Ever since Phel started taking classes in Runes and later Talismans, he became awfully engrossed in the subject, more often than not showing off his drawing skills to Evin.

<I know you're hoping for a passionate reunion, but I don't think you should keep your hopes so high.>

Evin felt conflicted about the reminder, but there wasn't anything he could refute with. He couldn't be so sure if he could rely on Phel anymore since Decatur surely held a much tighter control over the nobles. And knowing about the relationship between Phel's family and Decatur's family, Evin couldn't be surprised if he was enemies with Phel.

'With that assumption, I would most likely be facing all 13 of Decatur's entourage,' Evin realized the existence of a more concerning problem. 'Will I be able to compete with them all?'

He thought seriously about the matter for a few seconds before chuckling lightly. Four months ago, he wouldn't even be considering this question and would be worrying about how to best escape from the Temple unscathed, but now he was actually thinking about fighting 13 nobles who have been training in magic ever since they could talk.

Bella and him held an overwhelming advantage over the 40 commoners who were lead by Dagan, but the enemy this time couldn't be compared to that. In the class standings, Dagan was only below average and Evin was sure that the reason he was able to amass such a large amount of followers was due to his weirdly charismatic attitude.

But if one had to only consider combat capabilities, Decatur's 13-person group was at least five times stronger than Dagan's group in a direct confrontation.

'But whatever the outcome will be, Evin was willing to find it out. Like the Voice said, this was a controlled environment and Evin was sure he wouldn't be able to find a better way to test out his abilities.

With renewed vigor and a cautious mind, Evin headed into the Temple under the protection of illusions.