Realm of Myths and Legends

Crack! BOOOOOM!     

The sound of a loud explosion rang out as an intense wave of heat flooded into the area and caused the earth to tremble violently.     

Woosh! Woosh!     

Jol'Kil and Zel'Kan positioned themselves in front of Izroth to defend against the powerful shockwave generated by that attack just now.     

A few seconds later, the shockwave dispersed, and the flames dissipated.     

As for Earl Tasarin—he was no longer anywhere to be seen as he had been instantly incinerated by the giant hand of flames!     

"What powerful flames...!" Zel'Kan commented as a tinge of surprise found its way into her voice.     

"Young master, are you alright?" Jol'Kil asked without adverting his gaze from the direction that the giant hand of flames originated.     

"I'm fine. Also, you two can relax. They aren't our enemies." Izroth said as he removed his hand from the hilt of his sword.     

He then commented, "I didn't know that you were the type to steal another's prey."     

"Prey? You have quite the humor. How can a small fry like that possibly be worth your time?" A familiar voice sounded.     

'I didn't expect to run into him here of all places.'     

Zeeeeut!     

Without warning, a young man appeared a few meters in front of Izroth in a cluster of flames.     

"Besides, it can't really be considered as stealing your prey—since that guy ran away from one of the people under my command, after all." The young man said as the flames around him dispersed.     

NPC Name: War Brigade 5th Unit Commander of the 21st Legion Lances Pride, The Hand of Flames(???)     

NPC Level: ???     

Lances is one of the individuals who participated in the second team's selection at the Sky Palace, along with Izroth and many others. He was also someone who managed to place seventh over more than one thousand skilled youths of the Mortal Realm.     

'It looks like he hasn't been slacking off.'     

When Izroth examined Lances with his Energy Vision Sense, he found that the aura around him had become extremely refined. Without a doubt, Izroth was certain that right after the second team's selection ended, Lances must have been hard at work training for the upcoming Lustrum Imperial Bout.     

"That aside, it looks like great minds think alike." Lances said with a grin.     

"It seems that way," Izroth replied in a carefree manner.     

"How many troops did you bring with you?" Lances inquired as he sized up Jol'Kil and Zel'Kan, who now stood silently behind Izroth on each side.     

"Including myself, 44—you?"     

"About the same—45."     

As Lances gave his response, a great commotion took place in the group of skounae in the direction Lances originally came from.     

"Ahhhh!" One of the skounae cried out as they were ruthlessly cut down.     

"Defend! There are more enemies behind us!" One of the Baron skounae in the area ordered.     

Swoosh!     

The next moment, the same Baron skounae who gave out the order to defend had their head sent flying with a curved sword that resembled a scimitar.     

Then, in the blink of an eye, a large gap opened up in the skounae's formation as a surge of allied troops poured through. These troops were led by a middle-aged gentleman in combat robes. He had slightly curly black hair that went down to his lower neck and a pair of pitch-black eyes that seemed to lack any hint of emotion.     

In his hand was a curved sword, and with every swing, an enemy skounae was slain without fail as he lead the charge towards the entrance of the Night Lord's Crypt.     

At the same time, the skounae from the opposite side were closing in on Izroth and Lances' position.     

"One moment." Lances said as he stepped forward.     

Clap!     

Lances clapped his hands together as a towering wall of blazing flames rose up from the earth, blocking off the path of the incoming skounae on the opposite side.     

Almost right as the wall of flames appeared, the last few troops that belonged to Lances' 5th Unit managed to create some distance between themselves and the pursuing skounae they punched through.     

As the skounae attempted to close the distance, the wall of flames that Lances summoned immediately spread to form a half-circle shape and obstruct their path. This effectively blocked off the entire entrance to the Night Lord's Crypt.     

"As long as there's not at least a Marquis among them, that should hold them back for a bit. Since we've run into each other like this, it'd be a shame to just part ways. What do you say we work together?" Lances stated as he turned to face Izroth before moving his gaze to the members of the 5th Unit.     

"I see no harm in that," Izroth replied casually.     

'Besides, if it's the 5th Unit of the 21st Legion, then...'     

The 5th Unit finally reached the entrance to the Night Lord's Crypt.     

"Good work, Captain Noir—all of you. Now, let's-" Lances said; however, just as he was in the middle of speaking, two individuals rushed out towards the front.     

"See?! I told you it was him! There's no way I wouldn't recognize our brother!" One of the individuals said in a tone filled with excitement.     

"I thought you were seeing things, but he really is here..! Guess your eyes weren't playing tricks on you." The other person stated as he rubbed the back of his head.     

When Izroth saw these two rush out to the front, a carefree smile appeared on his face.     

"I see the two are still full of energy, Halls, Guan Yu," Izroth said.     

"You've really been up to a lot without us, brother." Halls stated with a playful grin.     

"That's right! If you were going to clear a crusade, you should have called us. We would have come running right away." Guan Yu commented.     

"It was something I got unexpectedly invited to. Next time, I'll bring you two along to someplace fun. I'm sure the two of you will enjoy it there." Izroth responded casually.     

"Hah, since you said it, don't forget your promise." Halls stated with an eager grin.     

"Heh, since when has our brother ever forgotten a promise he's made?" Guan Yu commented.     

Izroth had not seen Halls and Guan Yu since he made that shocking announcement back at the Mystical Realm Palace. However, the three of them often kept in touch through messages. This is why Izroth knew that if Lances were here, Halls and Guan Yu would not be too far behind. After all, the two of them were a part of his 5th Unit.     

Lances cleared his throat and reminded, "My Inferno Walls will soon draw attention this way. Those higher-ranked skounae have probably already realized that something is wrong here and are rushing over. We should get moving while we still have time."     

"I agree. It looks like we'll have to catch up along the way." Izroth stated calmly.     

Halls and Guan Yu had nodded as they reigned in their excitement.     

"Izroth, perhaps it's best if you go first and alert the members of your group to our presence. After all, we can't afford to risk any misunderstandings this deep into enemy territory." Lances suggested.     

He then continued, "I will have Captain Noir lead the 5th Unit from the vanguard right behind you. I will cover our rear and meet up with you all once I ensure that the skounae can't here reach us easily."     

"That's fine with me. Then, I'll see you at the bottom." Izroth stated as he started his descent on the staircase that led into the Night Lord's Crypt.     

The moment he stepped onto the first staircase, Izroth felt a cold and dark aura brush past his body.     

'Oh? Even from this far away, I can still feel his presence.'     

Izroth did not halt his steps and continued to make his way down, along with Jol'Kil and Zel'Kan following close behind.     

As Izroth entered the staircase, not too far away from him were Halls, Guan Yu,  and the one called Noir.     

Of course, Izroth viewed Noir's information through the system. However, he was surprised to find out that Noir, who held the rank of Captain, was actually a player. Not only that, but even though this was Izroth's first time meeting Noir in person, he instantly recognized his name.     

'Noir... So, he's the one who's currently ranked 12th on the event leaderboards.'     

Izroth used the Appraisal skill on Noir without halting his steps.     

Name: Noir     

Level: ??? -> 53 [Appraised]     

~Appraisal~     

Physical Condition: Strong     

Affinity: ???     

-This person has unlocked the hidden stat «Reinforce».     

~Appraisal~     

'Oh? This is the first time I've seen another player with a hidden stat.'