Soul of Searing Steel

Noon. Dark Forest Fortress. Sunny sky with no clouds.

Although the streets were still filled with a cold breeze, the snowstorm had stopped. Everyone was no longer hindered by the snowstorm now.

The soldiers guarding on the wall were packing the supplies up while the residents were cleaning the streets because the sky was clear. A few mages wearing long robes and a few alchemists were riding on their horses running across the streets. They were observing the situation of the streets to see if there were any damages they did not know of. Then they recorded all of the losses and damages on the streets one after another. After all that, they started using their spells to repair as many things as they could.

Across the city, everyone who was still alive had their own role to play. Looking calm, they were not worried about their current condition. After all, these people had experienced countless large-scale battles. They were indirectly trained to get used to the current situation countless times.

It was now the sixth day of the Dark Tide surrounding the city.

Right outside the city, the dark purplish mist was expanding across the forest. None of the spells were able to reveal the situation in the forest. Other than some random howling of the beasts and monsters, no one knew what was really happening in the forest. A few Silver-tier warriors had formed a small party with the purpose to recover as many resources as they could. They were currently heading towards the forts that had fallen in order to do so.

Meanwhile, inside the city, right in the middle of the Dark Forest Fortress, there was a gothic clock tower with a pointy tip that looked very ancient. Dried leaves were scattered all over the place. The windows were not covered by the leaves because someone had been cleaning the windows rather frequently.

Theoretically speaking, there would only be people getting in and out of the clock tower such as this one when giving the correct time. On regular days, no one was stationed there. However, there were a few mages wearing long robes getting in and out of the tower. They were frowning while they were walking about. Their faces were filled with guilt and worry while they were leaving the tower.

In the second floor of the tower, a Silver-tier warrior who had an injury on his right arm was standing in front of a room. He was looking at the grayish-white wall with a solemn expression without saying a word the entire time.

Creak.

The door of the room opened. Another mage walked out of the room with a frown on his face. He raised his head and saw the knight that was guarding the door. After that, he could not help but smile bitterly. "Sorry for all the trouble… Elson."

The surprised gray-haired middle-aged knight turned his head towards the mage and asked, "What happened? Did it fail again?"

"Unfortunately, the chaotic magic has already shielded the entire mountainside. The moment when the communication waves were sent out, they would be instantly corrupted. The efficiency of the magic circle here is too low. There's no way we can find any breakthrough beyond what we could achieve."

After explaining the situation, he shook his head and left the clock tower, frustrated over his incompetence. He left the knight behind all alone, standing still.

The sun was moving slowly across the sky. Sunlight which did not seem to have heat was entering the tower through the windows on the side, shining upon the knight's body. That was most probably because the weather was too cold. The knight could feel a chill up his chest instead of heat.

The windows on the tower were initially designed for the archers to fire arrows out. As Dark Forest Fortress had not been breached yet, the tower was not utilized at the moment. However, judging from the current situation, it might be possible that these windows on the tower that were designed and built over two hundred years ago would be used for the first time.

"Sigh…"

The gray-hair knight took a quick glance across the surroundings of the inner tower that no longer looked dim due to the sunlight that came in through the windows. Elson held onto his broken right arm and put on a grim smile. "Even if I'm going to die, I want to die on the frontline… Guarding the magic communication circle… Haha!"

Even though he was unwilling, he knew better than anyone that right in the room behind him, there was a magic communication circle that could connect the northern lands. Although it could not be compared to the one in the Catheral of St. Laurent which could connect the entire Empire, or even the large-scale magic circle in the outer regions, it would still be important for the knight to guard it.

However, because of the appearance of the unexplained dark purple mist, the chaotic magic had enveloped Mount Great Ajax entirely. Hence, the magic communication circle could not work at its full capacity, causing it not being able to send out messages.

The mages that came and went were there trying to solve the problem. Unfortunately, none of them had any solution that could work. It seemed that such a matter could not be solved with only skills.

The gray-haired knight was ambushed by a Silver-tier daemon which could fly a few days back while he was fending off the Dark Tide from the city. Even though he managed to kill the daemon swiftly with the aids provided by his comrades, his right arm was fatally wounded.

Under the circumstance that there were not enough priests in the fortress, the knight was significantly weakened after his arm was fatally wounded. In other words, his power level had dropped tremendously. Or else, a Silver-tier knight would not be stationed to guard a communication magic circle that was deemed to be useless at the moment. He would have been stationed at the frontline of the battlefield beyond the walls and be tasked to be very cautious about the next Dark Tide that could happen anytime. That would be his real duty.

"It's fortunate that there are no birds here. Six days... Even though the flying daemons were abundant, I believe they should all be dead by now."

Adding to his own thoughts, Elson muttered to himself, "Right, today is the sixth day. Even if the main city is slow, they should have detected something odd about this. However, the snow has piled up high. The reinforcement would need more than just a few days to arrive. By then, I'm afraid that the fortress would have been breached… However, if the Count could just rush here all by himself, things will become very different."

Gold-tier beings could fly freely in the sky regardless of whether they were mages, warriors, alchemists, or priests. This was a known fact, that they would be able to acquire the blessings of the earth and the air because of the energy that allowed them to resonate.

If the person was willing to fly straight to the main city, it would not take long before that person could arrive at the intended destination. However, that person would require a few days to recover his stamina and strength. That being said, it would become pointless even if that Gold-tier person could arrive very quickly.

"What's the point of thinking so much about it?" Noticing his thoughts were straying further and further, the gray-hair knight could not help but laugh at himself. He shook his head and looked at his right arm. Even though there were not many priests in the fortress, their ability to heal was decent. With the aid provided by the apothecaries and a few physicians, the knight could have regained his full strength in a few days with the recovering ability of a Silver-tier warrior.

"In the worst case scenario, I'd only be dead…" Trailing off, Elson felt a lump in his throat. He turned around and looked through the window. The houses built with stones and rocks had filled the center of the fortress which was the size of a small city. Countless towers and buildings were standing tall at the top of the walls. Mages, archers and other types of heavy weapons such as the goblin's cannon were placed there to provide the best support in term of firepower.

After all, this place was the Dark Forest Fortress, a gray-white city, a city that was furthest away from civilization. Countless people who embraced great ideologies and beliefs arrived at this cold land, living among beasts and snow to guard the human world's borders.

This place was also where the knight had lived for over nineteen years. His wife, his children, and his home were all there in that place.

The two people whom he loved the most had given up the peaceful life they could get by staying in the main city. They had chosen to stay with him, a warrior, in the frontline of the fortress which was the most dangerous place. Despite getting so much love from his family, the knight knew better than anyone that he could not ensure their safety.

That was really…

Buzz… buzz buzz…

Suddenly, some noises interrupted Elson while he was sighing.

He turned his head towards the room behind him. He could not help but be stunned for a moment. After that, he frowned, looking puzzled.

" Buzz… buzz buzz… Connected…"

"Are you serious… Could it be?!" Upon hearing the faint sound of people in the room, Elson did not say a word. He immediately opened the door and walked into the room.

It was a room not big nor small. There was a round table made of stone right in the middle of the room. Right on top of the stone table, there were silver-blue and golden runes all over it that seemed to be made of crystals. The crystal surfaces glinted from time to time.

Meanwhile, right in the center of the runes, was a surface that looked like a piece of mirror. It was formed from runes and looked like ripples of water spreading.

At the same time, the magic communication circle that kept silent for a long time began to glow. The flat surface began to vibrate as countless runes began to spin around. After that, a sound was heard from the magic communication circle.

"… I am… buzz… Count of Moldavia, Joshua… buzz … iffe."

Suddenly, the noises were instantly erased. An intimidating voice of a man was heard coming through the mirror. "Attempt twenty-seven to connect. Target, Dark Forest Fortress. Can you hear my voice?"