1 Chapter 01: The Summoning
A girl with long black hair, walking fast while embracing a massive book, turned left and right to make sure that no one saw her when she reached one of the huts. She entered the hut quickly to put the massive book on the table and browsed through it in a hurry. She stopped at one of the pages and began to read it quickly.
"This is it. I found it."
She pulled the dusty rug from the floor to reveal a drawing of a magic circle under it. She took out a talisman with a blackbird drawing from her pocket. Then she placed it in the middle of the magic circle and recited some spells.
"In the name of the Old Era, I am the granddaughter of nobles and the descendant of humans. I ask you, venerable guardian, bearer of the holy staff and smasher of fetters, Ashtria, to heed my call."
The magic circle shone brightly, and then out of nowhere, appeared in the middle of the room, a black mercury substance that started to move and change shape at full speed. Seconds later, the lightning surrounded the black matter, beginning to shrink.
*boom*
The black matter exploded so powerfully that the entire hut shook.
"Ahhh"
Involuntarily the girl screamed in shock, and right in the middle of the circle appeared the shadow of a man standing in the white smoke.
For a moment, the girl stared at the shadow, not believing that she had succeeded, until the shadow started coughing and screaming at her.
"Open the windows. I'll die from suffocation."
The girl jumped to the window and opened it, and after a while, the smoke cleared to reveal the features of the shadow. He was a young man of moderate stature with white hair and crimson eyes.
As soon as the girl saw the young man standing in front of her, she was stunned, as she expected him to be an adult man. But, despite that, she lowered her head in respect, initiating a salute.
"My esteemed guardian, I am glad that you have answered my call. I have summoned you from the Immortals world to help us save humankind from the horrors of the upcoming war by eliminating the enemy of humankind, the King of Oris, so that peace may prevail in our world."
The young man lifted his hair, revealing his scarlet eyes, from which emanated a cold ray staring at the girl.
"Killing the king of the Oris? How would this stop the war? All they have to do then is appoint another king, and it's over."
The logical young man's words surprised and confused her simultaneously. She didn't want to give up, so she stuttered:
"However, appointing a new king is not simple. That would cause chaos in their kingdom and among the ranks of the Oris armies."
"No, not necessarily. The title of king for them is not hereditary. The council of elders is the one who chooses the kings, and the army is under the command of the generals, not the king."
Just thinking about all the effort, she put in to create the magic circle to summon the guard would be useless, made the girl frustrated.
However, she was still determined to find the solution, she won't surrender after she had succeeded in summoning the guardian, so she said firmly.
"Sir, kill them all, the king, the council, the leaders. This way, we will ensure peace."
The young man raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"And what do you think humans will do with the Oris after winning? Won't they slaughter everyone, women, old men, and even children? Is this your idea of peace?"
"Impossible. We humans wouldn't exterminate an entire other race."
"You are right. You will not completely exterminate them. You will leave some to have a fate worse than death, and enslaving the rest is the best way to show the glories of your victories."
The way the young man spoke was there a hidden hatred in it. He acted like a person who lived the matter and knew its secrets, so the girl became afraid and asked.
"Why do I feel that you hate humans and defend the Oris? We creatures of peace, we cant have peace because of them."
*haha* the young man bursts out laughing.
"Humans are peaceful? This is the funniest joke I've ever heard. If that's the case, why would they refuse the king of Oris' proposal for a truce?"
The girl's eyes widened as she listened to his words in disbelief. When the young man noticed this, he realized how ignorant she was of the situation.
"Don't you know that the king of Oris, the first enemy of humankind that you seek to kill, is fully prepared to give up all the lands they have occupied in exchange for the Ancestral Island, and as a sign of his good intentions, he is ready to free dozens of captives?"
The girl couldn't believe the guard's words at all, so she screamed.
"Honorable Guardian, your words cannot be true. Oris are violent and irrational. They will not initiate peace."
"They are irrational, huh? The Oris have many different races under their command, yet they coexist in perfect harmony. Can you say the same about humans, girl? If your wish is to spread peace in this world, you should think of killing human kings. They are the problem."
The girl is still shocked and unable to accept the truth because the Holy Guardian knows all the facts. Also, for the first time, she thought that she knew nothing about the Oris other than what she had heard about them.
"My esteemed guardian, are you saying that we are wrong?"
"Sure, you humans are the wicked and the root of the affliction, but tell me, who is this venerable holy guardian that you keep mentioning?"
The girl raised her finger at him and pointed at him.
"Are you not the esteemed guardian, protector, and breaker of chains, Ashtria?"
"Ashtria…..? Isn't that the name of that mythical character? Isn't it supposed to be an imaginary character? Don't tell me that you used the magic circle to summon someone out of your imagination."
Confusion appeared on the girl's face, disturbed by his sarcasm.
"Who are you then? If you weren't Ashtria?"
"Who am I? Well, that's not an easy question. Am I the traitorous hybrid of his friends and his master, Or am I the Plague, the most despicable, who killed thousands of innocents? Even my mother committed suicide because of me. Most likely, she could not show her face to the public, which is normal after I killed my younger sister with these hands. My memory is a bit chaotic. Ah, I remember my name now. It is Tai Jin. Nice to meet you."
