The carriage wheels rumbled rhythmically against the dirt road.
One hour passed
Two hours passed.
Inside the carriage, the silence was heavier than gravity.
Markil sat squeezed between the wall and Elrond. On the other side, Kalman sat like a stone statue, staring at Markil's throat as if visualizing the best angle to slit it.
Markil tapped his foot.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Kalman's eye twitched.
Markil stopped. He whistled a tune.
"Stop," Kalman hissed.
"It's just a song," Markil defended. "It helps pass the time. It's called 'The Wheels on the Bus'."
"I don't care about the wheels," Kalman growled. "I care about silence."
Markil sighed. He looked at Arwen. She was cleaning her fingernails with a small throwing knife, but every few seconds, her silver eyes darted toward him.
Markil caught her looking.
"Take a picture," Markil grinned. "It lasts longer."
Arwen froze. She didn't blush; she just smirked, twirling the knife.
"I don't need a picture, human. I have Tenmogan eyes. I can memorize your pore structure from a mile away."
"Creepy," Markil laughed. "But flattering."
Amreth snorted, covering his mouth. Even Alith's stoic lip twitched slightly.
Elrond, who had been meditating with his eyes closed, finally spoke.
"Focus," Elrond said, his voice cutting through the banter. "We are entering the Grey Lands. It is a lawless zone between the Silver Spires and Solara."
Markil looked out the window. The lush elven forests were gone, replaced by dead trees and grey, rocky soil.
"Lawless, huh?" Markil muttered.
He secretly activated his new power.
Kareno.
His pupils flashed purple for a microsecond.
Info Flood.
Radius: 5km.
Threats: None.
Lifeforms: 39 A-Rank Knights (Friendly).
Wildlife: Three rabbits. One depressed wolf.
Markil blinked, deactivating the eyes.
Handy, he thought. Like a built-in GPS.
Nightfall: The Camp
The convoy stopped in a clearing surrounded by jagged rocks.
"Halt!" Elrond ordered. "We camp here for the night. Set up the perimeter!"
The A-Rank knights moved with military efficiency, setting up tents and magical wards.
Markil hopped out of the carriage, stretching his long limbs.
"Ah! My butt fell asleep three hours ago."
He looked around. The knights were working hard. He felt a bit useless standing there.
"Hey," Markil said to a passing knight carrying a bundle of firewood. "Need a hand?"
The knight looked terrified. This was the human who defeated Captain Elrond.
"N-No! Sir Markil! I can handle it!" The knight bowed and scurried away.
Markil sighed.
"I guess I'm scary now."
He walked over to where the Elites were gathering around a large fire pit. Amreth was struggling to light the damp wood with a flint.
"Stupid wood," Amreth muttered. "It rained here recently."
"Need a light?" Markil asked, walking up.
Kalman glared at him. "Don't interfere, human. Amreth is a Fire Mage, he can—"
"Lightning."
Markil snapped his fingers.
ZAP.
A tiny, controlled bolt of red lightning jumped from his fingertip.
WHOOSH.
The damp wood exploded into a roaring bonfire instantly. The heat was so intense it dried the ground within seconds.
Amreth fell back on his butt.
"Whoa!"
Kalman stood up, hand on his dagger.
"That... that was Red Lightning. That's..."
"Impossible right?" Markil shrugged, sitting down on a log. "Maybe. Or maybe I just ate a spicy pepper."
Elrond watched Markil closely.
He controls it so casually, Elrond thought. That lightning... it feels like destruction itself. Yet he used it to start a campfire.
"Sit," Elrond ordered his team.
The Elites sat around the fire. The atmosphere was awkward, but the warmth helped.
Alith pulled out some rations—dried elven bread and jerky. She handed a piece to Markil.
"Eat," she said simply.
"Thanks," Markil took it. He bit into the bread.
"Mmm. Tastes like cardboard. My favorite."
Arwen laughed. It was a nice sound, like bells.
"It's Lemnas bread," she explained. "One bite keeps you full for hours."
"Or constipated for days," Markil retorted.
Even Kalman couldn't help but roll his eyes.
"So," Markil said, looking at the fire. "Tell me about this King of Solara. What's his deal? Why is he such a scumbag?"
The mood shifted instantly. The firelight cast long shadows on Elrond's face.
"King Valerius," Elrond said, the name tasting like poison.
"He believes that humans are the chosen race. And that Elves... are nothing more than beautiful cattle."
Elrond poked the fire with a stick.
"He has a... collection. He calls it 'The Garden'. He captures Elves, drugs them to suppress their mana, and keeps them on display. When he gets bored... he hunts them in his private forest."
Markil stopped chewing.
His purple eyes reflected the flames, but for a second, the fire in his eyes looked colder than the night air.
"Hunts them?" Markil whispered.
"Like animals," Amreth added quietly, his playfulness gone. "We found bodies near the border last month. They were... headless. He keeps the heads as trophies."
Markil swallowed the bread. It suddenly tasted like ash.
He looked at his hands.
I promised I wouldn't kill innocent humans.
But this King...
Markil looked up. A dark, geometric crest spun slowly in his eyes.
"Is he strong?" Markil asked.
"He is an A-Rank warrior," Elrond said. "But he surrounds himself with mercenaries. And he has a hired guard. A man named Viper."
"Viper is an S-Rank Assassin from the Shadow Guild. Dangerous."
Markil stood up.
"Okay."
He dusted off his pants.
"Where are you going?" Kalman asked suspiciously.
"To sleep," Markil said, walking toward his tent. "I need my beauty rest."
He stopped at the entrance of the tent and looked back at the group.
"Because when we get to Solara," Markil said, his voice flat and emotionless.
"I'm going to turn his 'Garden' into a graveyard."
He zipped the tent shut.
Silence hung around the fire.
"Did you feel that?" Amreth whispered, rubbing his arms.
"Yeah," Alith nodded. "The air... it got heavy."
Arwen stared at the tent.
"He wasn't joking," she murmured.
Midnight
The camp was quiet. The fire had burned down to embers.
Markil lay in his tent, hands behind his head.
He wasn't sleeping.
He closed his eyes.
Three days to Solara.
King Valerius... you better start praying.
(Chapter 28 Finished)