Chapter 29: Hurry

The six ruby adventurers arrived at the empty and secluded alleyway to activate their rings and open up the portal. The power the blood-like gem possesses was from the demon Azazel. When Priestess Aelia sealed the monster's heart inside the ruby, his portal power can be activated when an exact amount of mana enters the gem.

"Viv, will you be on the lookout?" Lance asked, and Viv nodded.

"With your hawk-like eyes and agility, you can immediately tell us if one's to come."

Without a word, the purple head assassin hopped on top of a wall and started doing his assignment; the group's secret quest relies on him. After all, Viv is more capable at being on guard with his unrivaled reflexes.

"How do we activate the portal again?" Lance asked, unsure if he remembers what they taught them clearly.

"Were you not paying attention when they told us about the gems?" Serene asked him. "They already told us what to do if we were to activate the portal."

He gulped, "I have merely forgotten."

"Which I doubt," she snickers.

All he could do is look at her with a disapproving look.

To not further the team's silent quarrel, Lithea spoke.

"Concentrate your mana towards the gem," everyone looked at her, "that should activate the portal."

All of them got chills when she spoke. Her low, quiet, cold yet soft voice is still new to them.

"Sometimes, I forget she is with us." Lance blurted which earned him a smack from Verin.

Serene's mouth hung open and pointed at her commander, "How dare you!"

Both she and Thenea crushed the confused Lithea in a hug. It was an offense to others but to Lithea, it wasn't. It is true that she often remains quiet which resulted in them not getting used to her speaking, but she also understood why the other ladies sided with her.

Lance could only scratch his head.

"Do you want to do it, Lithea?" Verin suggested.

The priestess looked at both Serene and Thenea whose eyes sparkled in excitement. With her first mission, more like her admission quest, was the first time they have seen her do something, she couldn't blame them.

They gave her a slight nod.

Lithea stood by the wall; she raised her hand and had it face the concrete wall. With the gem facing it, she closed her eyes and concentrated a little mana towards the gem. She felt the mana rushing from her veins towards her ring finger.

When it glowed, she called upon the demon's name, "Azazel heed my request and open up your portal screen. Bring me to the Land of Scorpion."

The gem released a red beam and it slowly spread on the wall, forming an oval portal. Its size is enough for all of them to step into their destination.

"Viv, let us go!" Verin called the guy.

Thenea was the first to enter followed by Serene, then Lance, then Verin, and Viv. She was the last one to enter as she opened the portal gate.

When all of them had arrived at the Land of Scorpion, they felt a great amount of negative energy in the area; it was heavy and almost suffocating. Something bad has happened in this region, and not just the normal criminal activities done by mortals but by something unknown.

What greeted them was not what they had in mind; it was different from the paradise they heard: sparkling crystals covering the building, golden molded frames decorated in each door, and diamond embedded utensils. But this, a dry, asymmetrical house propping on the land is hideous. This isn't the rich land the stories told them.

They all asked themselves a question: is this habitable?

"What is this?" Lithea spoke.

"You felt it too?" Thenea panicked as she scanned the area.

"This is not a good thing," Lance said, "we might have come too late."

Viv tugged Thenea's sleeves and spoke silently, "no people."

With his comment, all of them squinted their eyes and tried to look for a human in hiding but there was no one. Has everyone been abducted? What is their fault for being so late?

"Has anyone been here before?" Serene asked but unfortunately, she was only answered with shaking heads.

"All we could do now is to find the council's hall first," Lance commanded and Verin nodded.

"We could only report to the mistress and be informed of our arrival," he paused for a moment, "if we find her."

What he said lingered on the others' head; it would be a disaster if they could not find anyone in the land. And it would be their fault, and this could lead to the fall of their rank and disbandment. Not only that, those who hated the rank would celebrate and push people how they were right about their incompetence and privilege.

The team agreed and ran towards the gates; their mission was to first look for the council. Unfortunately, before they could reach the tall gates, it closed on them and was attacked with flaming arrows and tons of explosions; they halted.

They were both happy to know there are still people residing inside, and annoyed at how they blindly attacked them without knowing they had come to help.

"What the?!" Both Serene and Verin jumped back when the flaming arrow was thrown towards them.

"Why are they attacking us?" Thenea asked but they too did not know the answer. They could only assume they were protecting themselves from the constant abduction happening.

Lithea has decided to take action and squat down on the rough sand and closed her eyes.

"What are you doing?" Lance wondered.

She summoned her invisible threads to search for a presence. They are about a half kilometer away from the gates, with her unstoppably honing her skills she could reach about two kilometers in diameter and pin the exact area where they could be.

Viv tilted his head and started observing what she's doing, it is slightly different from her meditation, he noted. Her hands were settled on the ground, not on top of her knees.

"Lithea looking."

With his observational skills, Thenea whipped her head to Viv. She wondered how she could possibly be looking for something by feeling the ground, she was not a sensory mage. But then it struck her.

Thenea gasped, "This—"all ears were on her.

"Is she using the invisible thread?" she finished her question.

"Invisible thread?" Serene's ears perked, she's heard of this story before. "That power the first ruby warrior used?"

Each of their brows furrowed.

"That very warrior who penetrated the demon's heart?"

Verin nodded, "I have heard of it as well."

"Are they related? I was told that power was passed down within the Sol family." Lance recalled.

Their eyes fixed on the working priestess.

"No," Serene whispered.

Just as they were discussing, Lithea opened her eyes and pointed at one of the houses, and then another, and another, "There was a presence at those houses."

"How many?" Lance asked, readying his bow and arrows.

"Two in this direction," she pointed at the southwest southern side of the area, "five over there, "she pointed at the southeastern southern area, "and lastly, three over there." She pointed at the very center, the gates.

"The gates?" Lance asked.

"Yes, there are three hiding behind the gates."

He nodded but he was already bested by Viv as he already leaped towards the gates as soon as Lithea finished informing them.

"Viv!" Thenea shouted.

"Oi, panda eyes!" Lance panicked.

"Glutton!" Serene joined the two.

The assassin already threw his knives towards the gates and it landed behind the men hiding. Viv landed on top of the gates.

Someone from his left shot an arrow on Viv but it was a novice move and did not hit him, the watching gaze of Lance noticed how terrible the shot was and narrowed his eyes.

"Wait," he raised his hands, "they're probably just citizens of this land."

But Viv already knew that. The knife he threw behind the men has a message engraved on it, 'Ruby Adventurers'.

When the men by the gates heard of it, they recovered the knife and when they read what was engraved, their eyes widened in panic and immediately ordered the others to open the gates. And those who were hiding at the houses Lithea pointed at appeared one by one with bow and arrows at hand, and a butcher's knife.

They hurried towards the gates and they all helped each other in opening the heavy metal gate. Viv jumped down to join in.

Once the gates were fully opened, it revealed the other esteemed adventurers who carry themselves with oozing authority. The citizens cried in regret.

"We are the adventurers sent by the guild!" Lance announced, "We mean no harm."

An elderly man moved forward and clasped his hands, "we are terribly sorry for what our people have caused you, my dear adventurers. We were only being cautious with what had happened in our town in the past months."

Lance nodded in sympathy, "I would also like to apologize for arriving ever so late."

"Oh no! No." The people fussed.

 Lithea activated her divine vision to scan everyone, trying to look for the person who could possibly be behind the abduction, but without finding anyone suspicious, she does not know if she would be happy or sad.

"Clear of malicious intent," she informed Lance. He only nodded to acknowledge her. But in truth, he was surprised at how cooperative their rookie member is. And her skills are very much convenient with their mission.

He stepped forward and his hands moved as he talked, "can any of you show us the way to the council's hall?"

The citizens of the scorpion region murmured with each other, their eyes staring down the earth; heads bowed down, refusing to meet theirs.

"What is happening?" Serene whispered to Lance.

"I am also bewildered with their strange behaviour." He whispered back.

"Viv," Thenea smiled at the assassin and gestured for him to come and stand next to them. And when he's next to her, she reaches to rub his chin, "you did so well!"

Viv's imaginary tail started wagging again.

Serene noticed this and immediately wore a bored look, thinking to herself how no one ever sees a tail forming every time she praises him, or is given a sweet treat.

"Can I please have anyone take me to the hall?" Lance repeated but still, the response was the same.

What could possibly be scaring the residence to refuse to guide them to the council's hall?

"There must be something going on inside the hall," Verin tried to reason out their behaviour.

"Let us think that way for now," Lance said as he studied each face and the expression they wear.

As they tried to get the people to help them, a child ran up to them and asked, panting, "are you guys the adventurers asked from the guild?"

They all looked at each other, a child, a little shorter than Thenea, parted the crowd.

"We are," Lance answered.

"How could I know it is indeed you who was sent to help us?"

"He is a difficult one," Serene uttered.

Lance showed him the scroll with the guild seal on it but the child only shook his head.

"That could be easily replicated."

They were stunned, those who had tried to replicate a guild's seal were thrown into the most dangerous prison of the country, the Abyss. No one has ever escaped the prison and they were locked up there until they died.

The Abyss was located far from the country as it is in the middle of the wrath of the shipwreck ocean. The ocean was named after the many ships drowned at the side of the ocean and is responsible for thousands of pirates and cruisers deaths.

"I assure you this is real," he pressed with an annoyed smile on his face.

The child cockily smiled as he stomped his foot.

Lance could only slowly blink and let out a grungy sigh.

Lithea could no longer watch and stepped forward, she smiled at the child.

The boy blushed at the person in front of him, he could feel an angelic aura with this person and he smiled, entranced with Lithea's wholeness.

"What can I do for you, lady?" he asked.

Lithea only smiled and showed him her ring, "we are the adventurers your council requested."

He nodded, still fascinated with the priestess.

"Could you show us the way to the hall?"

The boy stood straight and placed his hand on his right chest, his pinky and thumb folded behind, "I'd be glad."

Lance's brows twitched, "why this little—"

Verin placed a hand on his mouth, "let's go now."