Quest: Book 4 Page 4

4

  After we had the farewell with everybody, I set out with Feshert, the goal is the only commerce city in my fiefdom--the Wanpu city.

  When we were selecting the horses, Feshert robbed my that white horse, and kicked his that all black stupid horse to me, on the way he also kept saying in rodomontade that the white color matched him pretty well, could it be said that the black color match me well?

  Feshert picked sixty people from his "Close Guards" to set off with us together, actually I thought that the name "Close Guards" is really dumb, but what else could I do? This was thought of by Feshert who thought hard for a whole night.

  Sixty people were divided into two groups, a group searched in the front, a group guarded at the back, they all disguised as the mercenaries. The close guards originally have nearly all kinds of races, it is quite like it that they disguised the mercenaries.

  Now the identities for me and Feshert are two probation sorcerers, of course we walked lonely in the middle all by ourselves.

  "Hey! I said White Cloud, we don't have to walk this fast, right?" In order to revenge, Feshert especially gave "White Cloud" this calling to me.

  "Dead Crow!" I didn't have the good spirit to speak to him, "our time is used for making money! Shut your mouth up!"

  A few days of hurry rush all the way, we passed through a vast area of depopulated zone between the Darkness city and the Wanpu city, as we got closer and closer to the shore, even the oncoming wind brought to us with the smell of the sea, we could have met one or two pedestrians on the road occasionally.

  "Two childes!" A member of the close guards came riding the horse to us from far away, "we found a village in front, Mr. Jack said that it's getting dark, he wanted me to ask you whether to rest in this village today or not."

  "How big is this village?" The teasing Abu Feshert had restored the seriousness in an instant, "who is the headman of this village?"

  "The village is not that large, we found the headman and had some contacts with him," the close guard member said, "it looks normal."

  Feshert nodded his head at him, the close guard had a warrior salute to us, and then he left riding his horse.

  "Oh, right! Kone," after we slowed down our speed, Feshert asked me, "why didn't you bring Hairt and Moah to come with us this time?"

  "They are not too appropriate to come with us this time," I looked at the sunset clouds in the sky and said, "coming out with us once, it's not as good as staying in the Darkness city to train the troops well for them, and they can accept those several uncles' guidance."

  "Then why do you bring Jack and Marf with us?"

  "Why you this guy is so stupid?" I said, "the characters of Jack and Marf are not appropriate for the army, now they are still suitable for the job as the intermediate officers, but they can't become the generals, their achievements should be in other fields."

  "That's why... Then you think what kind of generals Hairt and Moah will become?"

  "I think..." the shadow of the small village appeared on the horizon, I looked at the outlines of the village, then I spoke slowly, "Hairt will become a scheming general, his attack will be the nightmare for all the defenders. And Moah, his character is unusually composed, following the rules but not rigid... If match him with a good staff officer, his achievement will be not lower than Hairt's."

  "Really?" Feshert was in dubitation.

  "You don't believe in me?" I said, "then we can have a bet for this."

  "I'm not going to bet with you," Feshert said, "you will be rascal if you lose."

  I was considering to take some practical actions to let Feshert change his view about me, then I found that we had about come to the entrance of the village. There were many people working in the field outside of the village, seeing we approached close to the village, somebody ran all the way back to the village to report the news.

  Not longer later, there were several people coming out from the village, they were led by a round body guy, he walked to us with the fawning smile on his face.

  "Ah! Welcome, welcome! Really praise... The Deity! There unexpectedly will two sorcerers come to our village in one time!" After he finished his words, he had one hand holding the chest, another hand raising high, and gave the salute to us. But I think, a dark sorcerer and a light sorcerer were walking together, this surely would make him have the headache for which god he supposed to praise.

  "The Deity of the Brightness will bless you, my devout man." In this kind of situation, it's generally taken care by Feshert, "we are all the probation light sorcerers, I hope that our liberty arrival will not bother you."

  The modest tone, the kind appellation, and the self-pride elegant manner, all these can be the signature for the sorcerer who has a bit relation with the Brightness Temple.

  "None at all, none at all!" The round flesh ball said, "having the chance to serve the envoys from the Brightness Deity will gratefully make me drop the tears of happiness... I'm the chief of this place, I'm not dare to tell my cheap name to you two lords. My compassion lords, please grant me a given name!(*1)"

  Disgusting!

  "There are never the light sorcerers come to your this place?" Feshert asked him.

  "You two lords, it's like this," the headman said, "we moved to here from somewhere else, the village is just built, there no any lords pass by here yet..."

  "It’s such like this..." Feshert thought for a while and said, "but we are just the probation sorcerers, according to the provisions of the Brightness Temple, we can’t grant you the given name."

  "It doesn't matter! You two lords will have very great achievements in the future..." The flesh ball said eagerly, "you will surely grant a lot of people the given names, today just you two lords do it a little bit ahead..."

  "Well, you devout man," it looked like that we could not go into the village without granting him a given name, Feshert said helplessly, "with the name of the sorcerer of the Temple, I grant you "Sunset Bath" the given name."

  "Ah... I even get this so elegant given name... Thank you!" Sunset Bath really dropped down his tears, he was moved trembling, "you two lords come in please! Come in please! I'll arrange the accommodation for you two lords! Please you two lords take a rest for a while, the dinner will be ready when it's dark..."

  I and Feshert washed all the dust away in the room, when we put on the clean clothes, it's already dark. The headman bowed his body to ask us to go down the stairs, people burnt a big pile of bonfires in the yard in the order of the headman, it seemed like that it's the site for dinner.

  I left the bullshit with Sunset Bath job to Feshert, the speaking few words but with the dark tendency sorcerer I walked to the short table directly and sat down, I had no attention at all that I took the master position. (*2)

  "What's the matter with that lord... It seem like that I didn't see him pray before he began to eat?" Heard the voice of Sunset Bath came from far, the eating chicken leg I can't help but with anger, what's the matter to deal with you whether I pray or not?

  "It's like this, my friend unfortunately got injured in a battle with the dark spirit," Feshert explained, "so he got infected with some of the evil spirit's breath more or less, but you don't have to worry about it, now he has been much better. After we finish this journey, the Temple will give us the official duty and title."

  "Oh! It's like that! I know! I know!" Sunset Bath asked everyone to sit down, then he said sorry and left.

  "What is he doing?" I asked Feshert who was sitting next to me.

  "He said that he needs to go arrange some programs for us." As a card-carrying light sorcerer, Feshert sat obediently and couldn't eat casually like me, hey hey, serve yourself right!

  After a short while, Sunset Bath came back with a full face of smile, he had not sat well yet, then he reached out his fleshy palms and clapped three times.

  "You two lords, we don't have any very good things here, I hope you two lords will be satisfied with my arrangement!"

  His palm sounds just stopped, se
veral young girls holding the wine pots came out from the corner of the yard, even though I couldn't see clearly their looks in the bonfire, but I was sure that they are humans.

  "You two lords!" Sunset Bath bowed his body a bit, "we only have this kind of red wine, you two lords make do with it, make do with it..."

  "It doesn't matter, we are leaving tomorrow." Feshert answered him.

  "How can it be like that? You two lords can just stay for a couple more days..." Sunset Bath rubbed his palms uneasily and said, "serve the wine, serve the wine!"

  The several girls walked to come over, I just found out not until then, their costumes were not the same.

  The girl sat next to Feshert dressed in all white, up from the neck down to the insteps, the white cotton clothes wrapped around every part of the body. The girl sat beside Sunset Bath had the almost same costume, but just the clothes on her body was not that tight. And the girl by my side was a comely face girl, she... Just had a black tunic on her sending out pure fresh grass smell body. The black tunic is very thin, it's so thin that the two purple points on her that not too plentiful chest were faintly visible.

  "You two lords, please oh, please..." Sunset Bath held the wine glass, and said his extremely disgusting toast to us.

  I and Feshert got busy with the embarrassment, who would think of this looking like a stupid pig guy will please us to this level?

  "Still not pour the wine for these two lords?" Sunset Bath smiled and said, "you two lords, these girls I just bought not long ago, you two lords travel very tired... This this... Hey hey... All of them are still virgins!"

  I had my body stiff to look at the girl set the glass well for me with her trembling hands, she poured the red wine into the glass from the wine pot which she had been holding in front of her chest. Once the glass was full, she immediately held the wine pot back in front of her chest, blocked the place where a young girl should not be seen by a stranger. She leaned her head aside slightly, and two drops of tears had already been on the dust.

  "You two lords! Cheers, cheers... You lords?"

  "Oh! Wait a minute..." I took out the been in my mouth chicken leg and put it on the table, I said, "this bonfire is quite big, I have to take my cape off."

  I put my black cloak over her somewhat emaciated body, I thought a bit, then I put the sleeping in my arms Abu into her arms as well, I hoped the lovely looking Abu could make her feel better.

  "Come come come!" I held up the glass, "cheers!"

  "Ah! It's lord's first time to open his mouth!" Sunset Bath said to me, "you lords are satisfied with all of these?"

  I really wanted to beat this head of fat pig to death.

  Sunset Bath clapped his hands again, and several dancing girls began to dance the don't know what the name dance around the bonfire, Feshert also began to ask him some of the things about the Wanpu city at this time. And me, on the one hand I really disliked Sunset Bath, on the other hand, it's not very suitable for a rowdy young man to turn the head to talk with a girl dressed in almost empty nest to me, so I had to drink the wine one mouth by one mouth.

  "Pa" my hand had too much oil, the glass fell on the table, the red wine splashed everywhere.

  "What's the matter, you lord!" The complaisant Sunset Bath said, "she didn't serve you well? I will give her a lesson right away!"

  "No!" I said, "the wine glass is a little too small, I didn't hold it steady!"

  "Oh! I see!" Sunset Bath nodded his head, "I know! You lord wait for a moment... You, go to bring one of those our feature glass to here quickly, very quickly! And also, bring the glass for you lord the silver edge that kind..."

  For this kind of practicing sucking up to the extreme level guy, I really have nothing to say.

  Half way through the party, a servant of Sunset Bath walked up to us with his hands holding a silver tray which is covered with a red cloth. Sunset Bath waved his hand, the servant knelt down to walked to us along the way, and then he put the silver tray on the table.

  "If this is a wine glass..." Feshert pointed at the thing under the red cloth and said, "is it a little bit too big?"

  I pulled up the red cloth above it, as expected indeed, it's a big wine glass under it. At this moment, the girl by my side made a low scream sound.

  "What are you doing? The scream will scare our lords!" Sunset Bath scolded at her, "still not pour the wine for your lord?"

  "Yes..." The girl answered with sobs, her pouring wine hands just shook worse than earlier, her been stopped tears were involuntarily flowing into lines.

  I looked at the new wine glass up and down, in the light of the bonfire, I could not tell what its real color is. The shape, the glass rabbet is very big, the bottom is very shallow, it looks like a cut in half watermelon, it's very big, it's so big that I could not hold it with one hand. Fortunately the silver lace on the glass was just right to let my four fingers to grab through it, so with this way, I could hold the wine glass up.

  Should say, although the wine glass looks a little bit weird, but the handcraft is not bad! Especially the silver ornaments on the wine glass, they are made as an olive branch entwined the whole glass, the leaves are flashing in the bonfire lights.

  "It's surely not bad, it's a beautiful wine glass." Feshert said by the side, "very unique."

  "Lord you want one too?" Hearing Feshert's praise, Sunset Bath had his eyes lighted up, "it's no troubles at all! It can be done in a short while..."

  "No!" The girl at my side spoke suddenly, her lips had become bloodless, "please, don't!"

  "You want to revolt! How dare you want to cut in lord's business?" Sunset Bath scolded, "you shut up!"

  I gave him a stare at his eyes severely, that scared him to swallow back the dirty words which he was going to yell out.

  "I think, this wine glass is not appropriate for me to use." I held the hand of the girl at my side, her hand was ice-cold, there must be something odd.

  "Tell me," I looked at her and said, "what's wrong with this wine glass?"

  "The wine glass..." She cried to say, "is..."

  "Is what?"

  "It is..." Maybe my warm hand gave her the courage, "it is made of the human skull..."

  "You said... What?" the smile was frozen on Feshert's face.

  "Human, it's made of the live human!" She finally cried out the sound.

  Silence, there was only silence in the yard, there was only the bonfire burning "pi li pa la".

  I and Feshert all looked at this wine glass, we both were not talking.

  "Hey hey..." After a good while, the voice of Sunset Bath broke the silence, "you two lords, you haven't seen the wine glass like this before? We made a lot of these every year! This kind of glass is especially made for the mages of the Temple!"

  "You said..." Feshert restored his smile, "you make a lot of these every year?"

  "Yes, you lord, the glass which I made is very famous, many magic beginners even buy this for their magic implements..."

  "Well," Feshert turned his head back and said to me, "he said that he makes a lot of these every year... And said that a lot of people buy these..."

  "What's your name?" I didn't answered Feshert, I gave a hug to the girl beside me, "don't be afraid, I'm a very good bad guy."

  "I..." The girl looked at me, "I don't have a name."

  "It doesn't matter that you don't have a name," I said, "you have the fragrance of the flowers and grass on your body, I will just call you Lily."

  "Yes..."

  "Then... Lily," I picked up the glass on the table, I put it in her hands, "can you please hold it for me first?"

  I stood up and nodded my head at Feshert, Feshert was repeating the third time "he said he makes a lot of these every year, and said that a lot of people buy these..."

  In the quiet night sky, a long loud whistle was blown, which was blown by me, even though I always think that I can blow whistle very well, but I still don't want to blow it very often.

  "Boss!" Almost at the same time when the
whistle was blown, Marf showed his head over the wall of the yard, "what's the matter."

  "Blockade the village, not a man be allowed to escape." I said, "I have something to do with Feshert."

  Feshert didn't wait for Marf to answer, He kicked the table down in front of him with his foot, he had already had a long sword in his hand, and he walked to Sunset Bath with no facial expression on.

  "You lord!" While Sunset Bath was stepping back, he said loudly, "you lord! Do I have anything offended you? What do you lord have the sword for? Sword? You... You! You are not the sorcerers from the Temple! Somebody come! Somebody... Kill them!"

  Several thugs kind guys ran cross their master and came rush at us, they had the extremely vicious expressions on their faces. But... Very pity, they don't have the fierce ability to match up with their expressions, they were stabbed to the ground by Feshert with his sword one by one smoothly and cleanly.

  "Go go go!" The hiding at the corner Sunset Bath shouted out loudly, "kill them all! Rush at them!"

  I didn't know where these people were just now, but, they were coming everywhere from the yard, from the cellar, from inside the house, a lot of people came rush out.

  I had a leap to jump over, I blocked in front of Feshert, I was even lazy to say a word, brandished my sword to kill.

  "Ah--" Feshert played out the move which I just taught him not long ago, along with his shouting, the golden fighting spirit began to appear by his side, and gathered little by little to his body. In the night, his whole body was wrapped in the golden color, and he is like statue cast with gold.

  "Shock!" Feshert had a loud scream, the wrapped on his body fighting spirit exploded fiercely, and evenly became the golden sparks flying radiately around, the people around him even didn't have time to make a screech, their bodies were pierced lots of holes by the countless fighting spirit sparks, and then their bodies were even dispersed by the shock of the later large group fighting spirit...

  I knew his temper was very irascible today when Feshert were still shouting "ah", so I held up Lily in the first time, as for the other several girls... First I couldn't hold so many people in my arms, second I was not very familiar with them, so I kicked them all out of the door one by one with my foot.

  Sunset Bath was bellowing, and climbed to the backyard with his hands and feet, Feshert followed behind him slowly, he killed the hired thugs who were running out to rescue their master one by one. His white sorcerer robe had been splashed full with blood, his whole body was all wrapped in the golden fighting spirit, even the sword in his hand was also covered with a faint golden color.

  Feshert was not eager to kill Sunset Bath in a hurry, it must be that he wanted to remove out the source of the trouble. Of course I would cooperate with him, but my hand was carrying a living people, so I had to walked behind Feshert, and killed the sneak attack guys one by one behind him, the sneak attack guys behind me of course would be taken care by somebody else.

  There is only a large room in the backyard, there was no light inside there. Sunset Bath had nowhere to escape, he crawled into the room shiveringly, I blocked the door before Feshert, I released a light magic to the room inside first, and then strode my feet in.

  Once we strode inside of the room, the held in my arms Lily was shaking her whole body badly, as if this is a hell.

  Across a wooden platform, Sunset Bath stuck his back to the wall tightly, and he started to wail and whine.

  "Don't kill me... I don't want to die..." he was mumbling, "I didn't offend you guys... Pleases don't kill me..."

  No one cared for him, I, Feshert, Jack and Marf, and all the coming members of the close guards, all our eyes were looking at that wooden platform... I, and these members of the close guards by my side, were all been to the battlefield, the brushed past death people of course would not unfamiliar with corpse. But face toward to look at this wooden platform, someone fell his weapon to the ground, and someone rushed out to vomit.

  On that wooden platform, lying a naked female corpse, her hands and feet were fixed by the iron hoops. She should be still very young, there are all kinds of dirt and scars left stuck on her smooth skin, her ten finger nails were all cracked, all full of solidification of the blood, and all had stuck into the wood board. Her upper body was tied a little higher, her head was embedded into two pieces of iron bars, her mouth was stuffed a roll of rags, her skull was gone...

  "Drag this pig out..." I put the in my arms Lily down, and I said to the close guards behind me, "put him to death with the cruelest way which you can think of!"

  "Feshert!" I patted on Feshert's shoulder.

  "Ah! What?"

  "Do you want to go out to stay for a while?" I asked him with concerns.

  "No need to, it's better that I stay with you together..." He shook his head, "she died because of us?"

  I nodded my head, and asked somebody to bring some water here for me, and then asked some people to follow Lily to release the rest of the people, and to bring a clothes over.

  With Feshert's help, I removed the silver ornaments off the "wine glass" and laid it back on this female's head, Feshert recovered it with magic. When Lily brought back the clothes, we had already washed clean her body.

  Put on the clothes for her, put her hands cross on the chest, she looked very serene.

  "The flowing water prove, you are pure and flawless...

  The blowing wind prove, you are pure and flawless...

  The earth and mountains prove, you are pure and flawless...

  The sun, moon and stars prove, you are pure and flawless..."

  We gave her the farewell, when the wood stacked under her body burnt up the first cluster of flame, the standing by me Lily had "wow" cried out...

  (Note 1: The given name is conferred on the ordinary people by the formal mage of the Temple, the people with the given name normally will have the higher status than the average people, it can let them more conveniently to squeeze the civilians.)

  (Note 2: The master's seat is facing the door, the guest's seats are on the two sides.)