Chapter 812 A Letter
812 A Letter
Three cloaked figures stood inside a clearing in Whispers Woods outside of Wailing City. None of them said a word, and all hid their faces with shawls. Then, after standing in the slow wind for a while, two more figures joined them.
“Haro Goldner,” Rain called the name, and one of the three figures stepped forward. “You said that when I bring out our leader, you’ll bring out the key to our rebellion. So why should we trust a former knight?”
“Because you saw me fight alongside Arthur Silvera,” said the woman as she pulled down her cloak and revealed her long brunette hair. “I came here carrying his message and the key to our plans. The real question is, why should we trust you?”
As he confirmed the knight’s identity, Lyle felt his heart sink. The last time this knight appeared was during the broadcast, where she helped his sister escape from the palace. If one of these three were his sister, Lyle would have failed to protect her.
To make the knight trust her, Rain revealed her face. Haro took a while to recognize her but managed to remember her in the end. Lyle beside her grabbed her arm with a frown because revealing one of the rebellion’s faces was a great risk.
“She indeed fought against the knights,” said Rain with a smile before turning back toward Haro. “Show us the message. But, since he is our leader, we cannot reveal his face.”
“There is no need. Arthur said that your identity was enough confirmation. Lady Ai, please?” turned Haro toward another cloaked person.
The woman stepped forward and pulled down her hood and shawl. Her golden hair and unblemished face made the whispers around them cease. She was so beautiful that even Lyle’s heart was moved, and Rain was gulping down in lust.
“My name is Ai, with no surname. Lord Arthur sent me to find the rebellion’s leaders and spread rumors about my existence, hoping to shake the people’s belief in the Light Emperor.”
“First of all, are you free after this?” asked Rain as she stepped forward, but Lyle managed to stomp her foot in time. “Ahem, I mean, where is Arthur?”
“Lord Arthur wanted to prepare for the upcoming fight against Ilios, so he wanted to train and find good allies for his cause. He commanded that we tell the people about the Elemental Saint and help the people of the cities we visited.”
“And what does he plan to do with that?”
“It is to prepare for the upcoming fight and what comes after it,” said Ai as she reached into her pocket. Lyle held his sword’s handle, but Ai merely smiled at him. Her sweet smile dazed him until she took out a piece of parchment. “These are his words.”
Lyle was silent before he stepped forward and took the parchment, which had been sealed with a rune. He frowned a bit before infusing it with his mana, and the runic seal unlocked. Then, he read the following words:
‘Dear Gale of Wind, if this letter fell into your hands, it means my companions have fulfilled their mission. I now wonder what made us forget to set an emergency plan in case we get separated and wish to communicate?’
Lyle chuckled as he read the letter. It was indeed Arthur, the man who can sound so carefree even after being labeled the Stealer of Elements by the empire.
‘Ai will one day become my right hand in this world, and her talents are extraordinary. However, I hope you will make up for her lack of understanding with your experience. After all, she is not from this world.’
As he read the previous line, Lyle shook his head at Ai. Her beauty was indeed out of this world, but this might not be what Arthur meant by his words. This foreigner-looking woman was from Alka.
“This letter says that you are not from this world,” said Lyle, and the woman nodded in confirmation. “Are there people on the other side?”
“Millions of them. Many of them are like me, loyal to Arthur,” said Ai. “However, it would be difficult to make that transition into this world for them to serve him again.”
“It happened to you, so…” said Rain.
“I am an exception, and my journey has been long. I was too weak to defend his ideals against the calamities, so I sought to serve him myself.”
Lyle was silent before he nodded and resumed reading the letter. The next part shook his heart, and he glanced at Ai again, multiple times, to make sure he wasn’t dreaming.
In the end, he gave the letter to Rain, who read it before burning it. Then, as the parchment burst into flames, the five stood in the cold clearing.
“You are the Elemental Saint we have heard about but dismissed as an imposter. After all, no one can wield five elements. Yet, in this letter, Arthur says that he granted you this power,” Rain said with doubt.
Ai nodded and raised her hand, making a fireball appear on top of it. Then, she raised her other hand and created water, earth, and wind in sequence. Great gales of wind raged through the woods, making their robes flutter.
After the wind calmed down, Ai smiled at them. Rain gave Lyle a glance, whose face was grim. After all, it was the first time someone like this had appeared in their empire.
“You said five elements, but these are only four,” said Rain after regaining her composure. “You showed us the four basic elements, so the last one should be light, right?”
“Arthur had a different opinion about that,” said Ai as her face stiffened. “My lord said we cannot replace one Light Emperor with another. Thus, the fifth element is a different one. Revealing it now might draw attention from Helios.”
The two could not argue against that logic and didn’t even doubt the woman to have a fifth element. After all, Arthur had given her four already, so a fifth was easy for him.
“I have one question: why did he choose an outsider to be the saint?” asked Rain while squinting her eyes. “The people would respond better to someone they know, like our leader here.”
“I have no idea who your leader is, but if you had the power to grant powers, would you trust anyone with it?” said Haro this time, and Rain raised a brow. “Arthur might trust you, but he wants someone whose loyalties go beyond the current mission.”
“And you are not the one to speak of loyalties, Former Knight Goldner,” said Rain with an offended face. “Where does it lie now?”
“It has always lied to the people of Ilios and their wellbeing,” said Haro with a frown. “If you are wary of outsiders, then you don’t seem very Iliosian.”
“This is not the time to bicker among ourselves,” said the third cloaked woman. Lyle frowned as he found the voice familiar and turned toward her with a frown. “We have instructions to find a person until Arthur returns.”
The woman stepped forward and took down her cloak and shawl. Lyle’s eyes widened as he saw her face, as ferocious as it was during their childhood. Layla stared at Rain and then at him.
“I know a person who escaped the Light Prison before and can find him again as long as I’m allowed back into the capital and have enough men to comb the underground world.”
Lyle lowered his head while he wondered what Arthur was doing by sending Layla toward them. Although he already saw her in the broadcast, he hoped she escaped with Arthur and never returned.
Seeing Haro and Ai gave him ideas about the identity of the last person, but he trusted Arthur would honor his wishes of keeping his foster sister outside these battles.
Since Rain told him about Haro Goldner, Lyle used an artifact to change his face and hide his face. It was the one he always used when he tried to recruit powerful people for his cause. Thus, Layla didn’t recognize him.
“You three are one hell of a trio,” said Rain with a smile. “A saint, a former knight, and a gangster. This will make one hell of a story for future generations.”
“That is if we live past tomorrow,” said Ai with a smile. Rain eyed her for a few seconds before taking a few steps toward her, grabbing her hand, and kissing it.
“Since we are allies now, Lady Ai, how about I take you on a picnic? I promise it will change your life,” said Rain with a seductive gaze. Before Ai could respond, a sword was on Rain’s neck.
“Let her go,” said Layla with a frown. Rain laughed and released the saint before licking her fingers. Layla seemed furious but did not attempt to escalate the situation.
“We have all the time we want to finish that,” said Rain as she turned back toward Lyle. “What do you say, leader? Are we going to follow that plan?”