The Crusaders came back to the same spot. The sun was ruthless, the air was dry, and the wind blew lightly. The training of sorceresses focused on summoning area-controlling spells. Their primary objective was to gather the vampires in one location and eliminate them with both short- and long-range attacks. Dantenium sparred with Laudis until sunset. The crimson-haired man didn't go easy on the new member. They trained until sunset. After crossing the gates of Zachira, they noticed vendors. The sellers were mostly closing down their stands and shops. Still, some of them were actually opening them. Casinos, brothels, and the slave market were allowed as long as they were active only during the night.
'The freedom of Carola is a bad joke. How can you call an addiction or human trafficking true freedom? There should have been some boundaries of the liberty... At least murders are punished. Still, it's bullshit. Why would you want to live in a country without a guarantee of safety?' thought Laudis, observing the salesmen. They were hanging out ads promoting their businesses.
"Can I ask you a question, Dante?" the youth asked.
"Go for it."
"Why do residents of Carola choose to live there? I think the libertarianism of the nation would discourage the poor, wouldn't it?"
"The rich live here because the taxes are extremely low. Year after year, they only go down. Nowadays, they're around seven percent on everything. They only cover their basic needs, which include: the police, the government workers, the three prisons with their security, and the three courts. Schools are private and optional. Hospitals are just another business. You can always bail out of the prison, even when you commit horrible things."
"You can bail out even from homicide? What about the death penalty? Is it a custom here?" the boy interrupted, trying to comprehend the desert's mentality.
"Indeed. Their answer: 'There isn't a difference between crimes besides their scale.' Most of the Carolans don't follow any religion, which explains why they have a different view on morality than the rest. They were raised in that mentality rather than mature into it. Besides, the government doesn't need to know the reason why you did it. They only want to protect people from your actions, which is imprisonment. Still, you pay the fine depending on your wealth. You are charged with a percentage of your total assets rather than a strict fine. The death penalty was a thing in the past. Nowadays, it's still possible to be sentenced with it, yet it's questionable. The last time it was used was about fifty years ago. Going back to the main topic, the poor people live here because they lack education. Even if they migrated to another country, which, on a side note, is even subsidised, they won't find a job. The poverty-stricken residents are incapable of achieving a high-end, mental workplace. Still, the government provides them. It's one of the two things they are fond of. The first is that every living creature is valuable, except if the creature is a threat to another one. The second law, like I've said, is about the work; every rightful citizen of Carola has a right to a job."
"What about slavery?"
"It works a bit differently than in most countries. There are two possibilities for how you can become a legal slave in Carola. First, you cannot pay for a service or a loan. You become a worker without a salary, that is, a slave. The second, you were captured during a rebellion or the capture of a city. You can die or become a slave with the possibility of freeing yourself. It happens approximately after three to five years," replied Dante, entering the hotel room.
"Didn't we agree to the six p.m.?" asked Gladius, sitting in the living room.
"Yeah... We forgot about it..." responded Solisia with an awkward smile.
"Besides, I've received some information about the city infrastructure. Sit down."
They gathered up on the couch. The paladin dropped a map of the Zachiria with highlighted areas.
"As you can see, there are two notable places we need to look out for. The first one is the canals. They stretch across the whole city, except for the northern part. The second one is the rooftops. The buildings tend to have flat and pretty low roofs. In the past, vampires were fond of the second method. Thus, I wouldn't bet this as their primary tool of the assault. From our rat, I received another notable message. The army we'll face consists of the Mirage Wings. Anybody want to elaborate on their specialisations?" the knight stated, pointing at the marked spots.
"They're natural inhabitants of deserts. They tend to be faster and taller than regular vampires. Their main drawback is weaker magical power," recalled Laudis.
"You're correct. That's pretty much everything we need to know. On the other hand, Sloth isn't a part of Mirage Wing. As well as the other Upper Hands members, they're the regular vampires. If I'm not mistaken, his dominant element is Ice. He also uses a whip as a primary weapon. Is it true, Dante?"
"To be precise, he uses the Whip of Sands. The wounds dealt by it burn like hell and heal only with magical intervention. He can also curse—No, that's the incorrect word to describe it. He's capable of slowing down opponents using his great skill of Ice atomising. The coldness loosens up the warmed muscles. Only the experienced Fire sorcerers can somewhat nullify this effect," the man said, looking at the table.
"How do you know so much about him? Have you met him?" the boy asked, filled with suspicion.
"There are books, you know. I've read some of them," he replied with a clumsy smirk.
"I've read one of them, it was "The Winged Devils" if I remember correctly. Still, nothing was stated about the power of his weapon and the description of the mistakenly named curse."
"'I've said books, not a book. I read multiple, after all, I had to prepare to vampire killing, hadn't I?"
"Yeah, you're right."
"So... Are we done?" wondered Udania, yawning.
"I guess, feel free to rest for now," the paladin responded, standing up from the couch.
The Crusaders were preparing for the night. Dantenium was meditating, practising his mana flow. Gladius was writing a letter. Udania was brushing her hair with a wooden comb. Solisia was in the restroom, refreshing herself after the training. Laudis was sitting on the couch, thinking about the upcoming Sloth's assault.
'Five hundred vampires... Pretty large number. Damn, I need to be stronger. How can I even kill one vampire when I lack the strength to use the Sword Techniques properly? Think, think, think,' he thought, walking around the room. He entered the bedroom and started to change into his nightwear.
'I need to talk with Aamir. Maybe he will help me... No, I need to find the person. The one who helped me stand up this morning. Male, deep voice, and a neutral accent... It's hard for me to remember the other Marked Ones members... Lately, I focused on the one who actually talked with me.'
The youth entered the restroom completely unconsciously, forgetting about the girl. He took a water bucket from the corner. The boy wanted to strip, but he noticed something. The clothes belonging to the Earth sorceress were lying on the basket.
'Huh? Didn't she take those...'
He felt a grinning look on his back.
'Oh, hell no! I completely forgot! She's in there! I'm leaving before she kills!'
Laudis rushed out of the room, slamming the doors with full force. The sound of them caught the attention of the rest.
"What happened?" asked Udania, observing his puzzled face.
"I forgot I have to do a run today. I'm going out."
"It's night already. Also, you shouldn't overtrain," responded Gladius.
"Yeah... So, I will... Eh... Practise my mana flow with Dante!" he replied, running to the other room.
"What do you need, kid? Don't you see I'm training?" the man muttered with irritation.
"Play along, please. I'll practise with you; it wouldn't hurt."
"Whatever you say..."
The boy closed his eyes. He couldn't feel a thing. Despite constantly draining his mana almost completely, he couldn't sense it. The kid focused more and more. Suddenly, he not only felt something, but saw it too. A deep purple arm was holding his heart. Its black nails were wrapped around it, almost like they were a cage. Next to it, there was a long white needle floating just centimeters from the organ. A weird sensation went throughout his whole body.
'No, it—it can't be! Is that hand the source? The source of my techniques?!'
A mark appeared on the limb. It was similar to a tattoo, a white spine stretching on the whole arm. The hand closed up, halting his heartbeat. He opened his eyes. Feeling dizzy, Laudis went with the last ounce of his strength to the couch. He lay on the furniture. A figure appeared standing next to him. It was Solisia; she was talking to him. Yet, not a single sound came to him.
"You know, I can't hear you. Tell me that later," he muttered with a forced smile.
The room began to spin in his head. His sight became darker and darker. The kid distinguished the familiar smell of burned charcoal. He was summoned to the room with the Marked Ones.
'I should probably name this place for my own sake. I guess the Room of Destiny does the thing,' the youth thought, sitting down on the chair.
"So, how's it going?" asked Aamir.
"Yeah, pretty okay."
"Good to hear that. What about that assault?"
"Vampires will probably use the canals to manoeuvre throughout the city. Still, after the sparring, someone helped me stand up. It wasn't you, was it?"
"No."
"I see..."
"It was me," the familiar voice replied.
"Would you like to join our conversation?"
"I have no other choice."
The Second walked to them, holding his chair. He slammed it on the floor and started arguing.
"You're butchering my art! How dare you skip important steps of the technique?! Awful stance, too quick incantation, and lastly the lack of respect to the Sword Techniques!" he shouted, enraged.
"You created them?" wondered Laudis, looking at the man.
"Hell yes, I did! I was chosen to wield a power, a power that only a just man could bear. Whenever I faced my opponent, I was destined to win. That is, as long as the cause was righteous."
The male was bald. He had a long, gray beard, a polished steel armour, and a sword typical of the eastern Mundusia.
"Could you share with us your name?" the Blind Sorcerer wondered, observing him.
"Right! My name is Con Dihot. I am the knight of the Holy Piscarian Empire. I fight against vampires to free humans, and against the barbarians from the East! I defended my country against those brutes from the Kingdom of Carola!"
"You know that he's from the Carola, right?" the youth asked, pointing at Mr. Inceptis.
"Hm... I don't care, I'm dead after all. I fought against your kind in my life; I can rest now. Going back to the main subject. Who taught you my Sword Techniques? I watched your whole fight. Not even a single thing was done correctly."
"Will taught me."
"That idiot... He's a fool to my art! Okay, I saw you had used Cage of Sword. How many do you know?"
"Right, so there is: Sword Technique No.1: Void Creation, Sword Technique No.2: Cage of Sword, and Sword Technique No.0: Heart's Arson."
"Are you sure about the last one?"
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure. Why did you ask?"
"The zeroth technique wasn't supposed to exist. I don't know how many exist now, but I managed to create the first four of them. Still, there was room to fill in. Every new one should be numbered in the growing order..."
"Is that really a big deal? Also, what are the two unknown to me?"
"Sword Technique No.3: Shadow Stepback and Sword Technique No.4: Moon Cutter. I won't elaborate further because I'm not sure if you are a good guy. Tell me, what is the source of that Heart's Arson? What exactly does it do?"
"It makes my heartbeat faster, enhancing my physical abilities. The source? Honestly, I'm not sure. Wait, actually, I saw the possible source. It was a deep purple arm with black nails and a white spine tattoo? Something like that. As soon as I focused more on it, the hand halted my heart action."
"Don't ever use it again!" the man shouted, standing up with force.
"Why shouldn't I?"
"This arm is beyond your control! This arm is beyond the control of any mortal! Swear you won't use it again!"
"Whose arm is this—"
"This is the Arm of Adam Tenbrenum, the First Vampire King!"