KENSHI
Our original plan to go back to Fo's house to rest for the night was suspended when Greygor, the Sage of Geiya Village, revealed himself to us. Until now, I couldn't believe that he was alive.
We were trotting on an unfamiliar path with Greygor leading us. He offered their shelter for us to rest for the night. I was a bit worried for Fo but it turned out, she was fine with it. She said it would be efficient if we stayed within the city so that we would have more time to search for the artifact tomorrow.
After a few turns, we finally reached an ordinary house. One could say its owner belonged to the lower class because of how simple and unsophisticated its design was. A few cracks could be seen on its walls and portions of its concrete were chipped away from the main body.
Greygor knocked on the door in an unusual pattern. I was pretty sure it was a cryptic message, entailing his identity as one of theirs. A few seconds after, a metal noise echoed from the door before it let out a creaking noise as it swung open. Behind it was an old man of the same age as Greygor.
The old man instantly noticed our presence and looked at Greygor with suspicion. Greygor immediately introduced us and convinced him that we were not enemies. At first, the old man hesitated but eventually, he let us all in.
"No pets allowed," the old man declared, blocking Fo's entry.
"I promise they won't bother anyone. I can't leave them outside."
"Drogin," Greygor called the old man's name, which annoyed him. But it seemed like Greygor held more authority than him, so he conceded and allowed Fo and her pets to go inside. "Thank you."
"Yeah. Whatever," the old man, Drogin, responded with irritation.
The insides were nothing but ordinary. A table, a kitchen, and two rooms which I believed to be the bedrooms. Only a candlelight was illuminating the place and the aroma in the air implied freshly cooked food from the kitchen stove.
"Am I the first one to return?" Greygor asked his comrade, who went to the stove to check on the pot containing the cooking food.
"Do you see them here?" Drogin sarcastically answered.
Greygor just rolled his eyes before resting himself on one of the vacant chairs. He offered us some seats as well, which we gladly accepted. Just as my butt touched the furniture, a knock on the door ricocheted throughout the entire house with the same pattern Greygor did earlier.
Greygor volunteered to open the door and three more old figures stepped in—two men and a woman. This was when I realized that they were wearing the same robes.
"We have some visitors?" one of the newly arrived mentioned.
"More like intruders," Drogin interjected.
"Just cook over there, you idiot, and let us do the talking!" the woman spitefully commented.
"Looks like you won't be having dinner tonight," Drogin warned.
"As if I will die if I don't get to eat your food. It was not that delicious anyway," the woman replied.
"Every single day," another old man said.
"Our visitors are my acquaintances, except for these two ladies here and the wolves," Greygor started. "Kana and I came from the same village, while Kenshi happened to be traveling with Kana when I saved them once. Though I have to ask—why do I feel like there's one person missing in your group?"
Kana and I shared a sad look before telling Greygor what happened during his absence. We told him everything—from Miss Hanaka's death, the siege in Thorn Kingdom by the Dark Order, to Daku's current condition. Even Greygor's friends failed to hide their sympathy as they listened to our stories.
"Sorry to hear that, Kana," Greygor mumbled before approaching Kana and giving her a hug.
"I'm fine now, Sage Greygor. Mister Daku and Mister Kenshi took really good care of me. And Master Grosi and Shiro were also kind to me. It's like I found a new family."
"Grosi is still alive? Ha! I knew that devil is difficult to kill!" the woman suddenly said. She knew Master Grosi?
"By the way, I'd like you to meet my comrades," Greygor announced. "The one who opened the door earlier was Drogin. This is Soreas."
The man who entered the door first earlier and noticed our presence raised his hand to make himself known along with a smile.
"The one beside him is Poreito. He's the youngest." The man beside Soreas raised his hand as well, and with Greygor's information, I did find Poreito's complexion to be much firmer than the others.
"And the only woman in this group, Varsia."
"Wait!" Fo exclaimed, catching all of our attention. "Greygor, Drogin, Soreas, Poreito, Varsia... oh my! Are you The Sages of Haiag?"
"Told you we are famous," Poreito commented after elbowing Soreas.
"You're right, young lady. And you are?" Soreas asked.
"Oh! I'm Forshia, The Tamer! And these are Suya and Sayu!"
"The Tamer? I heard about you! Your pets saved a lot of injured during the civil war. Thank you for doing such a brave and kind act, young lady," Soreas thanked.
Fo bashfully laughed while scratching the back of her head. "It was Suya and Sayu's idea. Hehe~"
"And you, beautiful?" Soreas pointed to Shino, who was taken aback by the sudden shift of attention to her.
"I... uhh... I—I'm Shino! Kenshi once saved our party from the Dark Order so here I am, returning the favor."
"Are you done introducing yourselves? Because the food won't go into your mouth by itself," Drogin interfered, implying that the food was ready.
The Sages decided to have some dinner, and since we were here, we were offered as well. We humbly accepted the kindness and filled our stomachs with Drogin's cooking.
"Tell me, Kenshi, what brings you here to Suttoh?" Greygor asked before devouring a spoonful of food.
Before I answered his question, I told them first of our original purpose of travel. Then, I told them about what happened at Aste City, which shocked them. I believed it was their first time hearing it.
"So we have decided to go since one of the artifacts is hidden here. I'm hoping that if we delay the revival of the God of Darkness, it will buy us some time to bring Daku back to his old self. After all, we need him against Dolum," I ended.
"So they finally succeeded in achieving human corruption?" Varsia asked with her brows furrowed in both anger and worry.
"Yes. With the help of Akihiko's expertise in emotions, it somehow amplifies the rate of corruption."
"The artifacts that you mentioned, how many have you collected?" Soreas asked.
"Three are left hidden and secured back at Thorn Kingdom. The remaining two are hidden here and at the Wset Region."
"And the one Greygor was guarding is in the hands of the Dark Order," Poreito added.
"Speaking of you, Greygor, how did you escape? Thelah mentioned you were captured," I asked.
"I didn't escape, at least not on my own. These four rescued me. Though, we still failed to get back the artifact because of Hirako. With his healing and rupture magic, he's unstoppable," Greygor narrated.
The conversation went on and this time the topic focused on them. We found out that The Sages of Haiag were once comprised of six members and the three of us—Kana, Shino, and I—were shocked to discover that the sixth member was Grosi.
Also, we learned about why the group was formed. According to Greygor, they had long suspected that the Dark Order was planning to revive Dolum, the God of Darkness. So to antagonize the evil cult, they formed a group as well, and the name "Haiag" came from the late Goddess of Light who sacrificed herself for the downfall of Dolum.
If Greygor was a skilled mage, the others had their own expertise as well. Soreas mastered the art of the blades and could wield more than one blade-type handheld weapon such as spears, axes, and swords.
Poreito was a master in projectile weapons which included bows, thrown daggers, and starblades.
Drogin was an impenetrable tank. His massive shield and unique ability to conjure barriers made him the best vanguard in their team.
And lastly, Varsia learned the destructive force of the bare body. Among them, she was the only one who wielded no weapon. Her fists and legs were trained and hardened to deliver the strongest blows known to mankind. She originally awakened as a swordsman but she gave up the weapon and trained herself in martial arts instead.
As for Grosi, a former member, he was the potion master of the group. He didn't fight on the frontline; instead, he would stay at their hideout to concoct new potions for the others to use in battles.
Originally, each member was assigned to look after a city to stop the evil plans of the Dark Order. Soreas was assigned to Aste, Varsia was assigned to Wset, Grosi was assigned to Thorn, and Poreito was assigned to Suttoh. Greygor placed himself at the borders of Thorn and Aste City where Geiya Village was located, while Drogin resided at the borders of Wset and Suttoh.
But during the civil war here at Suttoh City, Poreito asked for the others' assistance, hence they had to leave their designated locations, except for Grosi. That was why Soreas was not in Aste City during the incident. That explained the disappointment on his face earlier when I told him what happened there.