City of Desire [Kingdom Building]

Proofread by Thomas F

“She is staying.” Sighed Carla.

I could see the deep worry for her friend. Ina had decided to stay in the Panar.

It is a skeleton city, with only around fifteen thousand people. I had pulled all the forces except for some soldiers and police, who had volunteered to stay in the city.

Most of the people have evacuated to Greltheaven. Some stayed, while many left the domain altogether.

“It’s her decision, we have to respect that,” I replied. I didn’t like it, but I accepted it.

She wants to stay with her people.

According to our intelligence, the undead are going to attack Greltheaven first. They will come here directly before moving to the other cities.

Carla nodded and looked at herself in the mirror. We are ready and will soon enter the hall.

Everybody is present, and I can see them. It is night, they will enjoy everything, as tomorrow, they will fight, and many will lose their lives.

The plan is good, but it does not give us more than a 50% chance. Those odds are outstanding. Much better compared to before. 

A minute later, both of us got up and walked out of the room.

“A million has already gathered,” informed Zela. The undead are gathering at the boundary of the dominion, and so far, a million have gathered.

These are only from Almin, Gailhorn, and Norke.

The undead are serious this time and pulling large forces from the cities they are occupying.

In the past few months, a lot of undead have come, and they have placed them in these cities, which they are now bringing out.

Though the most considerable force is coming from Ashton Harbor, just hearing about the numbers when they all gather together makes me shudder.

“Has the Marquess left?” I asked. “No, he will within an hour,” replied Zela.

Marquess Gats had handed the Dustorn Fortress to Marquess Grimvale. He will leave soon; by tomorrow morning, he will be out of the region.

The moment he leaves, the undead will attack.

“Keep me updated,” I ordered her, and took a deep breath and controlled my expression, before walking through the curtain of mist into the grand hall.

Nearly every officer, from the highest to the lowest ranks, is here, along with higher-ups of the city.

I spared no expenses for this party; these people deserve this the most. They are willing to lay down their lives for the city, while many have abandoned it.

“Lord Silver,” They all got up and greeted me as I appeared. I stopped at my seat and looked at them all.

“Please sit down, I don’t want you all tired tomorrow for the enemies you will be fighting,” I said, bringing the laughter from the whole hall, while Carla looked at me from the side, eye.

Yesterday, too, I started with the joke as well.

I don’t usually do that, but we are in a very stressful state. I want to try something less than my best, even if it’s a lame attempt.

“First, let me start by thanking you all from the bottom of my heart for staying with the city when you could have easily left.”

“Many of you had great offers, but you have stayed. The city and I will never forget it,” I thanked them and took a pause.

“Tomorrow, the enemies will come and arrive in such numbers that the region hadn’t seen in a century,”

I could see that they understood that. Many nodded; we hid many things, but we also revealed a lot of information. If we didn’t, our enemies would have.

“It will be colossal numbers, but let me assure you. We fight with the victory in mind and have a plan that will give us a chance to achieve it.”

“It is just a chance, but with you all, I am utterly confident that we will together turn it into a reality.

“We will show our enemies the might the sons and daughters of Greltheaven possess, so that, in future, they will think a hundred times before attacking us so brazenly!” I said it, my heart shaking with each word that came out of my mouth.

There was a silence for a moment before the officers began to thump their fists on the table, while others applauded.

“But that is for tomorrow; there is no need to think about that today.”

“The only thing you all need to be thinking about is whether you will be able to eat all the food we have prepared and the wine we have in our cellars,” I said, bringing another laugh, before taking the glass of wine in my hand.

“To Greltheaven!” I toasted. “To Greltheaven!” they replied, and we drank to that.

I finished and turned to Stone. A few seconds later, he got up and gave a small speech before we started the party.

The tables disappeared, and people began to mingle while drinking and eating.

I talked with them, from the Generals to the lowest officers. At least I could do for the men willing to lay down their lives for the dominion.

“How is everything going outside?” I asked Hendriks as he appeared beside me.

He and Miss Poots are responsible for the party outside.

“Very good; the only trouble there are the drunk soldiers,” he replied, and I smiled. Yes, they are drinking, but before they leave, they will drink a tasteless drought that will make them sober by the morning.

The party will last till ten. It’s why I started it at six. They need enough sleep to fight well tomorrow.

“The throne, the dominion, and your own strength. I wish your father had been here to see it; he would be truly proud of what you have achieved,” said the old man, his voice turning emotional.

“Me too,” I replied, wiping away my misty eyes.

The old man didn’t say anything further. Just patted my shoulder. He is the only person here who truly knew my father, and I appreciate him saying those words.

He walked away, and I turned to Carla.

“Handle things for a few minutes,” I said, and she looked at me in question. I only smiled and walked out of the party.

Soon, entered my office, before closing the door. No one is here, not even Jon.

I sat down and stayed like that for nearly a minute before finally, the simple wooden box appeared in front of me. The same wooden box was given to me by my grandfather.

He had said, Open it when I have become sufficiently powerful.

The throne made me powerful and elevated my level, granting me dominion over the two cities. However, it’s not the reason I brought out the box.

The reason I brought it out is that tomorrow, I might die, and I don’t want to die, still not knowing who killed my father.

They had killed him in front of me, and I want to know who did it.

So, I touched the box with shaking hands. Feeling the witchcraft. It is strong, but not as strong as my legacy. It is not resisting.

The witchcraft is only to stop the prying eyes and nothing else.

I unlatched the simple mechanism and opened the box slowly.

Inside are the three things. Two letters, one with my name written in familiar handwriting and the second one with the seal of my grandfather.

In the middle of two letters is a thing. It is a bar, the size of a knife whetstone.

It is divided into two colours, separated by a thin crimson line. One, which appears to be made of ivory, is blacker than night, while the other half is a moon-white or silvery-grey material that resembles a smooth stone.

Grandfather had said, This is my true inheritance and implied that it was the reason my father had died.

I looked at it only for a moment before taking the white envelope with my name scrawled over it in my father’s handwriting.

I tore open the envelope with sharpness and took out the letter.

Dear Remus.

You are reading this, which means I should be dead, but I am hopeful, I am not, there is too much life to live for me to die early.

I read, breaking into a smile. My father was not perfect; he was a complex man with many good and bad qualities.

Since I am dead, that means you got the thing—your true inheritance.

Your mother had found out the place and was going to enter it, but she disappeared before that. Yes, disappeared; she is not dead.

A letter came a few years after she disappeared, telling me she is alive. She didn’t tell me where she is, and believe me, I tried to trace it back, but wasn’t able to find it.

She had asked me not to tell you about it. She has said it would be better for you if you had thought that she was dead.

It was painful for me to lie to you, my son, and for it, I apologize to you, my son.

I felt anger spark in my heart, at him and my mother. The years had been painful for old Remus and me, since he was part of me.

In our letters, she had told me that she had sent the letter to my father, informing him she was alive. It had made me so angry that I didn’t talk to her for a month.

I wish my father had been alive. So, I could punch him hard.

I controlled my emotions and turned to my father’s letter.

Now that is clear, let’s move back to my death. I think it’s likely because of the thing you are seeing now, which I had given to father for safekeeping.

I don’t know what it is, but it has cost me a lot to bring it out of that place; barely a quarter of the people I had sent to that place had returned.

I don’t know what it is; I cannot make sense of it. I read through every book we had, but found no mention of it.

I am saying, it might be the reason for my death, because the people I sent to get this were suddenly murdered, and I started to feel like I was being watched.

Before I got approached by the strange woman, who had asked for it. Follow current novels on NoveI(F)ire.net

She had offered a lot of money, but I declined it. So, she left, but not without a threat.

If you are reading this, it means she has acted on it, and I am dead.

My son, I don’t want you to take revenge for me. The only thing I wish for you is to live your life. I could see the great ambition in your eyes.

Fulfil it.

It would be the greatest honour you could give to my memory than some revenge.

Tears couldn’t help but stream down my face. It was not a perfect letter or even an emotion, just like my father.

It’s what made it so painful.

My father loves life; he lived it, but in letters, he seemed to casually accept that fate, if it came at him, and it did.

For a while, I didn’t move at all before carefully putting the envelope back and turning to the second envelope. It’s from my grandfather.

Reading my father’s letter. I want to know even more about who killed my father.

So, I took the other envelope, tore it open, and then took out the letter, unfolding it.

There is only a single line in the letter. It stilled my heart, and I closed my eyes for a couple of seconds before opening them.

A moment later, fire appeared and burned it to ashes.

I shouldn’t even think about the revenge.

The enemy is far more powerful. In levels and power, even with the throne, I am nothing in front of him, but one day I will become something, and I will take my revenge.

So, I turned to the thing that caused my father’s death, and I could sense nothing from it.

A few seconds later, I brought out the aura, but nothing.

I was about to put it away and take it out later after I dealt with the undead when I decided to try one more thing.

I brought out the power of my legacy and looked at it through it.

Gasp!

The next second, a gasp came out of my mouth, while my whole body shook.

I immediately turned off the power and started taking a deep breath.

When I calmed down, I found myself covered in sweat. It’s not the fear; fear is part of it, but it’s something more. Something I can’t explain.

‘Bell, come to my office,’ I called her.

…

Blava Moor

“Finally,” I said as Anid put a metal box in front of me, before opening it.

Revealing the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.

It’s a dagger with a burned black blade, with frosty blue crystalline veins running through it, before forming a cross guard around it, with frosty mist swirling around it.

Its hilt is a wooden green color, which adjusts itself to the master’s hand, and a blue crystalline pommel, which releases the icy mist covering the area with a cross guard to the hilt.

“Verven’s Kiss; the master thinks it will be a perfect artifact for you.”

I didn’t reply. Instead, took the blade in my hand. Feeling so cold that I wanted to throw it away, but I tightened my grip, which began to adjust to my hand a few seconds later.

I felt its power and desire to kill everything.

“Tomorrow,” I said as I gently caressed the blade with my other hand.

I finally have the artifact.

With this blade in my hand, nobody will be my match. Tomorrow, I will use this blade to quench the thirst of vengeance burning in my heart.

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