CHAPTER 38: AMBUSH FROM THE PROMISE

Asahi, Aletha, and Akwan kept behind the wall as the sound of metal boots scraped the dirt.

(TAP) (TAP)

Their breaths quickened, eyes fixed on a strange object hovering above the earth, its presence thickening the air.

Akwan whispered vital information to the others, keeping his gaze low and signaling them to avoid looking at the source of the footsteps.

"The Nation of Wraileza is the most advanced of the eight," he said, dodging a scanning laser. "They use their own magic."

"Doesn’t everyone in the world use enchanted soil as magic?" Asahi said, clueless, as Aletha stared just as confused. "Or even hand magic for that matter?"

"Yes, but this is different," Akwan said, grabbing a canister of blue soil. "Power from The Promise comes from The Queen of Wraileza."

He drew in a sharp breath, grabbed Asahi and Aletha by their sleeves, and pulled them quickly behind a massive tree trunk, using its rough bark as cover from prying eyes.

"It is rumored that The Queen has an entire army that could rival the world. It seems she grasped this corner of the planet, too."

Boots tapped relentlessly as Akwan shot a wary glance at the others, ready to act.

"That’s not the only faction that denies Soil. There’s another: The Ending," Akwan said, finding an opening in the trees and sprinting down the hill. "They’re rebellious, cursed humans and monsters who want only destruction. The Princess gives them orders and is a force herself."

A dark purple beam pierced through the forests, toppling trees and crashing them into the ground. Asahi and Aletha’s hearts leaped in shock.

Before they could react, their bodies locked in place as the device let out a piercing, mechanical scream.

"Intruder!"

Asahi and Aletha’s hearts pounded faster, adrenaline surging through their veins.

Akwan and the wanderers watched the obsidian black box slowly unfurl its steel from its luminescent core, revealing two dark arms and three hardened, bulky legs.

The mechanized golem growled and snarled, stepping over as Asahi, Aletha, and Akwan stayed put.

"Don’t move a muscle."

(CLICK)

Without warning, the machine unleashed a barrage of missiles at the wanderers. Asahi and Aletha bolted from cover, weaving and ducking between shrieking projectiles as explosions thundered just behind them. The device fixed its blazing blue eye on their path, while the metal golem tore through the trees in pursuit.

As Akwan stepped back, a dark-haired woman seized his throat and lifted him. She slammed him down with brute force. Dazed, Akwan heard the golem’s rage echo.

[Scanning for potential targets.]

The gears attached to the golem’s eye twisted and wound, clicking as it scanned rapidly in all four directions.

Akwan, drained of all strength and mana, collapsed to the ground. The robot moved in, about to catch the three when—

"Sectorfobian Mechanism 402, you’re worthless at scanning," a woman said, her deep voice sharp. "The Queen will be disappointed in your rusted gears."

Behind the machine stood a woman with cascading dark hair, sharp lavender eyes, and porcelain skin. A purple ribbon hugged her collar, and a gleam of blue wove through her bangs. Atop her head, a bluish-violet rose crowned her striking appearance.

The mechanism let out a metallic sigh as she strode toward the steel golem, smoke curling through the forest in her wake.

"Master Lyssa, there were intruders detected here."

In a flash, the woman drove her fist through the device, sending a cascade of sparking wires spilling out. The mechanism crumpled to its knees, its posture pleading for mercy from this fearsome stranger.

"Please, I was only doing my duty."

A wild fury seized her, and she struck again, crushing the golem beneath her bare hands. Lyssa screamed in frustration, her high heels grinding into the metal.

"Since when did I say you could speak?" she turned to Asahi and Aletha. "Don’t bark orders at your master, you worthless junk! I knew you were a mistake in her factory."

Asahi and Aletha stared, wide-eyed and silent, as the sharp staccato of high heels echoed across the ground.

"Servants," she snapped, "I sense something off. Leave me. Understood?"

They all bowed and replied with certainty.

"Yes, Master Lyssa!"

Lyssa swung her chains, heels scraping the ground as her voice sliced the air at the three.

"Idiots! I know you are in there." She said. "Come on out, you can’t hide from me all day."

Asahi and Aletha froze, rigid as stone, Lyssa’s furious screams reverberating around them.

"I hope we are safe." Aletha trembled.

As the silent minutes elapsed, the patience of Lyssa started to burn away. She gritted her teeth and clenched her fingers with her fierce black glove, brutally stomping on the ground.

"Get up now!" she ordered, then hurled her chains down, unleashing a powerful gravitational force.

Her chains struck hard, sending rocks skyward and dragging Asahi and Aletha into view.

"There you are," Lyssa commented with a sick smile.

With hiding no longer an option, they braced themselves to act.

After a moment’s hesitation, Asahi and Aletha sprang from the divot and charged straight at the woman. Lyssa watched them approach, chuckling harshly as a purple barrier materialized suddenly between them and her.

"Ah, and who must you be?" She asked, lowering her chains. "Are you two from our nation?"

Asahi clenched his fists and slammed his eyes shut, yelling as his and Aletha’s eyes blazed with fury.

"No, we are the Adtraic," Asahi said. "Owners of the World. Do anything else or..."

"Owners?" She asked. "I haven’t heard that term in a long time."

As a silent gust brooded upon the air, Lyssa threatened.

"Or else what? What can you do to a woman like me?" she taunted, whipping her chains skyward. "Will you just stand there with your weak, white-haired shrew? If you’re an owner of Gincad, prove it!"

Aletha gritted her teeth. Her powers were weak, but adrenaline kept her standing between Asahi and danger.

Yet, at the same time, just as she was about to throw a fist at the woman, Asahi stopped her and whispered.

"Don’t make the situation worse than it already is."

"But... Asahi, you were..."

Lyssa mocked Asahi, staring in disbelief. She shook her head, her aqua eyes boring into him, eyebrow raised.

"Oh, is this the supposed owner of the world challenging me?!"

A tense silence lingered before Asahi hesitantly replied.

"Yes."

"Ooo, a determined soul." She applauded, clapping her hands back and forth. "Well, this will be fun."

In a heartbeat, she launched herself backward, flipping through the air to land atop shattered steel. Gripping her chain, she hurled herself into the treetops.

"Let’s make a deal, like my homeland’s tradition," Lyssa bowed to Asahi, Aletha, and Akwan. "If I win, I capture the boy and kick you away. If you win, you all go free. Refuse, and I shoot you both with this..."

(SWIPE)

With a flick of her wrist, an obsidian pistol slid from her pocket, gleaming with menace.

Sharp-edged and strong, this pistol could knock anyone out from a distance. In exchange for its reveal,

Fear flickered across Asahi and Aletha’s faces as their minds raced for escape. Asahi whispered, catching Lyssa’s smug smile.

"Strange."

As Lyssa awaited an answer, Akwan and Aletha questioned.

"Are you really going to accept this?"

"Are you out of your mind?"

Asahi, channeling the resolve of an ancient ruler, gritted his teeth, yanked Aletha by the arm, and pulled her behind him as the chains cracked against the brittle ground behind them.

"Time’s ticking, Ruler." She taunted with smiling lips.

"Don’t worry, Aletha," Asahi whispered, hearing the chains jingle. " If I don’t win, flee from this forest while she’s distracted."

"But Asahi, I don’t want to leave you," she said. "What would happen?"

"Sis, don’t worry about it," Asahi said with a wink. "There must be a trade-off somehow."

"You know, bro, I sometimes hate the way you think," Aletha admitted as she pushed her ponytail to the side. "But oh well."

Before Asahi could finish his reply, Lyssa interrupted.

"That’s it, I’m--"

The shadows of the forest covered the three of them. And after the silence, Asahi stepped forward to Lyssa and agreed.

"I accept your challenge."

Lyssa let out a quiet chuckle, her smile brimming with unshakable confidence.

"Hm. You actually do have the confidence to face me."

After hearing much of Lyssa’s taunts, the thought of leaving Aletha behind with a bloody corpse was already tantalizing enough. But what truly triggered her was...

"I am the original owner of this world!" Asahi exclaimed, hanging his arms in the air. "I refuse to be defeated by a mortal such as you."

"Original owner?" She retraced their words. "Oh, please, this has to be some sort of joke. I can’t wait to end your miserable life."

Lyssa cracked her black chain against the ground, dropping into a battle stance, her eyes burning with threat.

"That’s it. You have angered me far more than ever. Time to suppress your claims."

In a flash, Lyssa charged at Asahi and Aletha, hatred blazing across her face. She had no interest in capturing Asahi for herself; he was merely a prize to be delivered elsewhere.

"Come here, you brats! Come to the hands of the Queen of Wraileza!"

Asahi and Aletha found themselves empty-handed, their Soul Storage offering no help. They dodged blow after blow, desperate to reach the forest’s edge.

. . .

Akwan was spent, his mana reserves drained to the last drop. One more spell and he would collapse. So, instead of magic,

"RUN!"

They ran—faster than fear itself, sprinting until the world blurred. Freedom was almost within reach.

Just as soon as Lyssa could get any closer to the three, a massive cyan shadow formed in front of them, deflecting the attack and knocking Lyssa into the air.

Asahi and Aletha could never have imagined an outsider stepping into their fight. Asahi instinctively shielded Aletha, eyes fixed on the silhouette as the dust began to clear.

They were not even a shadow at all.

Instead, a tall man with flowing dark hair and an armored chest stood before them. The dust obscured his features, but to Asahi, one name fit perfectly.

"T... Telos?"

Even with vision clouded by dust, Aletha and Akwan felt a surge of gratitude for this unexpected savior.

Lyssa, on the other hand, was even more thrilled than she was previously.

Rather than retreat in anger, Lyssa gripped her chains, eyes narrowed, and charged at the stranger, her hair streaming behind her as she screamed.

"Oh, someone plans to interfere with me? Fine, four is better than one."

Suddenly, with just one sound of the shadow’s deep voice, Lyssa’s body was knocked up into the air while Asahi, Aletha, and Akwan stood there, clueless.

"Divine Suppress."

(WOOSH)

"H... Huh?!" Lyssa said with a genuine look of shock.

In an instant, the battle’s momentum shifted, the mysterious man’s arrival turning the tide against Lyssa.