"We’ve been lazing around since we came to the Veilwood," Xan reminded them.
Vale was on the first floor of Team 34 and was eating a chopped apple. He raised his brows and yawned. "It’s just not time to make a move."
Slya tapped the table in impatience. "He’s right, though. Let’s go out there and do something... kill some monsters or what."
Tiber was also there, sitting at the same table. His eyes were slightly narrowed and unfocused, as if he was thinking a little too deeply about something.
Vale glanced at the man and sighed. Tiber had reported the details of his mission two nights before, and he understood why he must be feeling some kind of way.
’I have to get his mind off it. Besides, we have to make some money until we raid the outlaws anyway’
"Alright, we’ll find a ruin to clear. Xan, you look for one where we can make lots of money," Vale said. "We need money to buy some enchanted tools."
Xan nodded and practically ran from the room, mumbling to himself that there were things that should have been done before it was too late. Slya took one look at Vale and Tiber, then stood up. "No way I’m staying with you grumpy lot. I’m following Xan to keep an eye on him."
Vale waved her off, and the room fell silent. At first, it was the normal type of silence, then it started to feel off when neither of them spoke.
He ate more of his apple in silence but then sighed and looked at the man. Tiber was also looking at him, eyes sharp, as if waiting for him to say something.
’What am I supposed to say in this situation anyway? Is he feeling guilt for killing? Let’s see... something Father told me when I killed my first person. But he’d killed before, right...?’
Vale cleared his throat. "You’ll still kill, and kill again, for as long as you’re with me. Does that worry you?"
"No," he grunted. "I’ve killed before. This one was totally different. They were so defenseless, and I took them with such ease, while they were dreaming. It was... different from killing someone that’s trying to kill me as well."
Vale sighed softly. ’Does this type of talk come with having subordinates? Have they forgotten I haven’t lived as long as they have?’
’But I guess since I’m the leader, I have to look after them. They serve me, after all’
"It won’t get better. No matter the method, my path will always be one filled with blood and guts—innocent or not. And those who are bound to me, like you, Tiber, will have to tread this bloody road with me.
"But that’s only the nature of this world—we sacrifice a lot for things that are greater than us. And I have dared to reach for the greatest thing in the Eternal Skies."
"Even our humanity?" Tiber asked. But his eyes were clear, his face no longer weighty.
"Once we become Knights, we stop being human. But what will life be if we forgo our humanity? Listen, Tiber, I will be the Emperor, not the Demon King. Do you think I don’t want to enjoy the greatness I’m reaching for?"
Tiber smiled. "You sound so certain. I envy that."
Vale shook his head. "It’s something I must do. I owe myself that."
He didn’t say any more, but in his mind, he reminded himself, ’Don’t forget, Vale. What you want is never to be messed with ever again. Be at the top, be the sky!’
☆☆☆
The ruin they wanted to clear belonged to Team 34. It was one they’d claimed but never cleared, and Xan deemed it a good one for them.
The ruin was smack in the middle of tall trees in the Veilwood. The flag of Scuffed Bones flew in front, and it was the first thing Vale set on fire. It manifested as a dead tree with brown, cracked bark, a twisted trunk, and a gaping hole at the front.
Xan took one look at it and put his hand on the sword that was almost dragging on the forest floor. "I will stay here and stand guard for you."
Vale looked down at him, then pointed in a random direction in the forest. "Find somewhere to hide. You can hide your presence, right?"
Xan looked at the forest, a mass of dark green crowded together. Anything could be hiding there. "Right."
Vale faced the others. "We don’t know what the ruin will be since it hasn’t been explored before. I only asked Xan to find a ruin that will make us a lot of money.
"So we have to be careful. Follow my instructions and keep your eyes open. Immediately voice out if you see anything amiss. Let’s go."
Then, without waiting, he went through the hole. It wasn’t just normal darkness, it was thicker and made his skin tingle as if he’d just touched the aftermath of lightning.
Sharp, piercing light made him close his eyes as he reached the other sidez the ruin. It was set in a forest, but there were no trees. No, it wasn’t that there were no trees.
The trees here were strange, shaped like tall mushrooms of spotted deep green, dull and bright red, with narrow stalks. They had branches too, coiling thick branches that looked like wet black rubber, dropping to the floor.
"Well," Slya said, holding a forged sword. "This is really strange."
Vale shrugged. He used his shoe to kick the ground, revealing black soil. "At least it’s still soil, so it’s still similar to our world. That’s one of the things in the guild book, right?"
Xan brought them a guidebook, Ruin Clearing for Beginners.
"I don’t know," Tiber grumbled. "I think we should judge it by the larger environment... like the trees and stuff."
This was the first time any of them would be entering a ruin for the purpose of clearing it. The other ruins they entered were already cleared and converted into other things.
Vale took a deep breath, taking in the smell of vegetation and damp air. "Slya, make a way."