Sabre was galloping toward the front line at full speed, while Xers, though temporarily dismissed from his command, was searching for his old friends. The battlefront was getting worse by the minute. Xers had descended into one of the village centers.
"Ask all the villagers if they've seen Hanken and Ahez!"
"Yes, Commander!"
The sorcerers began questioning everyone thoroughly about Hanken and Ahez. One of the villagers stepped forward, claiming he'd seen something.
"Yes, I saw the two boys you mentioned. They were being taken toward the dungeon of the neighboring village by some sorcerers. But one of them was badly injured—he could barely stand."
"W-What?! Which one? What did he look like?"
"He was of medium height, blue eyes, blond hair. (Ahez)"
"A-Ahez! Damn it, I should've known. He couldn't defend himself… Who knows how badly they've beaten him!"
Xers turned around, about to set off for the other village, when the villager called out again.
"H-Hey! Wait! I saw two other kids too—one was chubby, the other tall, looked like some kind of thug."
"T-Those bastards!"
Xers jumped onto his horse and rode off toward the neighboring village with his sorcerers. After about half an hour of travel, they reached a small, shady-looking place hidden from view—an unsafe village mostly inhabited by thugs.
Xers and his sorcerers dismounted, rubbing their hands together in the cold as they walked toward the village houses. They began searching every corner once again. Xers knocked on a door and asked:
"Good day. Have you seen two boys? One with long hair, tall, and the other blue-eyed and blond?"
The villager snapped back harshly:
"Why do you care? What's it to you?"
"I'd suggest you talk properly. I asked a simple question."
"Get lost, kid! I've got no time for you!"
The villager grumbled and turned his back. Xers placed a hand on the man's shoulder. The moment the man turned, Xers struck him with all his strength.
The villager slammed into the ground, dazed for ten or fifteen seconds.
"I asked you a question. Mind answering?"
The villager stayed silent again. This time, Xers began shaking him violently.
"LOOK AT ME! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?! MY FRIENDS ARE IN REAL DANGER! I ASKED YOU A QUESTION!"
"O-Okay! Okay! That house near the well—the door opens into a dungeon."
"THANK YOU!"
Xers rushed to the house by the well. He kicked the door down and descended inside.
He saw Ahez lying on the ground. But Hanken wasn't there.
"AHEZ! AHEZ! WE'RE HERE! WE CAME TO SAVE YOU!"
Ahez didn't respond, still lying motionless.
"A-AHEZ! I'M TALKING TO YOU!"
Xers turned him over—blood dripped from his mouth, and a deep wound stretched across his abdomen.
"A-A-A-AHEZ! AHEEEEEEEZ!"
Someone had killed Ahez.
"Let's clean the body properly and bury him… at least we can give him that. I don't feel well at all."
Xers stormed out, looking up at the sky with fury.
"My face will never smile again… This is my fate."
Xers mounted his horse once more. This time, he set out to find those bullies.
When he returned to camp, he found it had been raided. The enemy army had completely taken control of the San Maero plains. Oddly enough, Xers wasn't sad. The victory of his own clan even brought him a sense of satisfaction.But they still hadn't found Hanken.To find him, they knew they had to track down the bullies. As a final resort, Xers decided to raid the sorcerers headquarters.
Late that night, Xers and his troops finally arrived at the front of the headquarters. Exhausted, Xers dismounted his horse and approached the entrance. The sorcerers standing guard spoke up:
"Thend Xers, you have no right to be here. You were dismissed from command."
As soon as everyone heard that Xers had been discharged, murmurs spread among them.
"W-What?"
"How could that be?"
"I'm not following his orders anymore!"
Everyone suddenly turned against Xers. Then, from inside, a familiar voice echoed out.
"XERS! I'M HERE! HELP ME!!"
The moment Xers heard Hanken's voice, he froze. There was no doubt—he had to go in.He pulled down his mask and charged straight inside. No one expected it.
"H-Hey! What's he doing?!"
As Xers stormed in, the guards rushed after him. Without hesitation, Xers cut down anyone in his way—for his friend.
"YOU WON'T STOP ME! GQ #41!!!"
A massive crack split through the wall of the headquarters. The sorcerers screamed and fled in terror while the guards engaged Xers.
They attacked him from both sides. Xers parried the first guard's strike with his sword.As the second one came from behind, Xers leaped into the air, kicked off the wall, and landed behind him. He drove his sword through the guard, then used Ghost Step to teleport behind the other and struck him down as well.Without wasting another second, Xers smashed through the door and entered. He quickly untied Hanken's bound hands.
"I'm here, Hanken. But they're going to kill us if we stay—let's move, now!"
"Alright, Xers! I'm with you!"
Hanken, unlike Ahez, was in decent condition—just covered in dirt.Xers used GQ #41 again to blow open a hole in the wall.
"GQ #41!!!"
"Whoa! Where did you learn that?!"
"Long story—I'll tell you later. Let's just run for now."
Xers and Hanken darted through the forest, moving fast. The pursuing sorcerers, in full formation, were too slow to keep up.They escaped easily and found a cave deep in the woods. There, they lit a fire and fell asleep.