Urban Knight - Return of Legends

Deep within the maze was a room, its floor stained red and black with the blood of various beasts. At the center stood a pile of corpses, a sickening sight even to those that were used to hunting game.

Some of the bodies were completely still, while others twitched slightly, hinting at their hour of death. Atop the grim mound of remains sat a dark-haired guy, his face contorted into a frustrated expression, his hands drenched in dripping blood.

He was wearing a white jacket, which had multiple red stains, and a pair of jeans that had suffered the same fate. The only thing that had remained the same, so to say, was his red shirt, its color masking the blood better.

“This is not enough… I need more! I want more!” He complained with agitation as he inspected a blue screen, reading his stats with an impatient gaze. Just then, he spotted something moving in the corner of his eye.

“Ah! You’re awake again!” The man spoke with a cheery voice, addressing a small figure twitching in a corner of the room. “You wouldn’t believe it, but we got some surprising visitors!” He added, his smile widening.

“Huh?” A ragged whisper escaped the lips of a frail, young man, whose body looked thin and shriveled. His brown eyes seemed devoid of life, as if he were struggling to even remain conscious.

“The ‘eye’ I left at the entrance just spotted them!” He explained with a confident tone, completely different from how he was behaving mere moments ago.

“I didn’t recognize the rest of them, but Lyra’s here. Lyra, Levi!” The man known as Ian jumped with delight, his smile widening. At the mention of his sister’s name, Levi’s eyes regained their focus, brimming with life.

“No…!” Levi weakly protested, trying to clench his fists in vain. Ian looked at him and chuckled to himself, clearly amused.

“Yes, Levi, yes! Guess mixed-races really do stick together!” Ian rejoiced, his unhinged expression of mockery and delight making Levi recoil in both fear and disgust.

“D-do…n’t…” Levi stammered, his throat too parched to properly convey his words. His eyes reflected pain and frustration as he watched Ian lick his lips.

“I can’t believe she came all the way here, just to die at her brother’s side… that stupid cow.” Ian murmured to himself, his eyes shifting to the pile of corpses. “But… I need to keep leveling up… I’ll have to wait for her to come here on her own.” He laughed with a deranged excitement, the sound echoing through the room.

The laughter attracted a few roaming beasts: a pair of bulky jackals with stone-like fur, who entered the room as they glared and growled at Ian. The man smiled boldly as he faced them, promptly lunging in their direction while an elated expression took over his face.

At the same time, Levi’s eyes drifted toward one of the entrances, his thoughts filled with concern. He wished in his heart that his sister wouldn’t come, a feeling of impotence washing over him as he knew he could do nothing to stop her.

A single tear escaped from one of his swollen eyes, quickly evaporating as Ian’s unhinged laughter and the sounds of carnage echoed horribly through the room.

Back at the ‘entrance’ of the dungeon, the group stood around Ascalon, their entire attention on the emblem that rested on his hand. It was moving erratically, twitching, and even appearing to jump slightly—it was almost as if it were alive.

“It’s cursed!” Lilithra exclaimed, shielding herself with Selorien. The elf sighed with exasperation, and retorted. “Do you really think Ascalon, the holiest person to ever grace the earth, wouldn’t notice if he was carrying around a cursed object?!” He exclaimed with clear disbelief.

Despite his words, Lilithra grabbed his shoulders and shook him in a panic. “But still!” Lilithra reproached while crossing her arms, as Ascalon pondered for a moment, concentrating on the emblem. “I do not feel any ill intent coming from it.” He stated, and Lilithra calmed down. Lyra approached sheepishly, her cat ears twitching slightly.

“C-can I see it?” She asked in a soft, embarrassed tone. Ascalon smiled gently, to try and ease her tension, and presented the amulet to her. Lyra carefully picked it up, her eyes fixed intently on it. “I’ll appraise it.” She declared with resolution, while Selorien and Lilithra twitched in surprise.

“You heal and appraise?!” Lilithra asked, her voice filled with both excitement and admiration. At that very moment, Lilithra reinforced a thought that had crossed her mind back at Loreno’s place: she had gained an amazing ally—an amazing friend.

Lyra smiled as her cheeks reddened, and after a brief moment of concentration, a window appeared before her. Before reading it, she shared it to everyone else through the network.

Emblem of the Fallen Knights.

Though defeated and vanquished, their deeds were not forgotten.

Miscellaneous accessory.

An emblem from a renowned company of knights.

Effects:

None.

Additional information:

* Something resides within.

The group collectively gasped at the revelation. Although it seemed like a normal emblem, for the most part, the last line was greatly unsettling. Ascalon realized that, amidst all that had happened, he had almost forgotten about his other goal in Starugnia: learning more about the emblem’s origins.

The unnatural liveliness of the artifact made it even more clear that the city, or even the dungeon itself, had some sort of connection to it. And it was Lyra who had brought it to light. “Thank you, Lady Lyra.” Ascalon addressed her, bowing deeply.

Lyra blushed and beamed with happiness, as she gave the emblem back to his owner. “No problem!” She replied, gaining confidence after being thanked. Meanwhile, Lilithra fidgeted in place, her whole body brimming with excitement.

“Something resides within?! That sounds so cool!” The horned girl smiled with glee, her eyes sparkling at the emblem’s mystery. “It sounds ominous.” Selorien added abruptly, his face showing a smug grin—though it did feel creepy to him.

“Stop ruining it! And stop making it scary!” Lilithra reproached, pouting and punching him on the shoulder repeatedly as he giggled. Escarlata, who had been watching silently, was also pretty interested in the whole affair. It was quite the novel event for her, and her curiosity was almost palpable.

“Appraise my amulet later, please!” Lilithra suddenly requested the cat girl, remembering her own pendant—the one she had won in the colosseum. She knew the description the announcer had given her, but wanted to have it appraised anyway. Lyra beamed and nodded with enthusiasm, clearly happy to be of help.

With that set for later, Lilithra decided to focus on Ascalon and the rest of the journey.

Ascalon, deep in thought, wondered about what the description of his amulet could mean. Just what could be ‘residing’ within? A blessing? A curse? A… being? He sighed as he pondered in silence, his thoughts taking him nowhere as his friends merrily conversed in the background. There was nothing he could do at the moment, other than thinking about what-ifs, anyway.

Ascalon took a last look at the emblem, memories flooding in and out of his mind, before slipping it back into his pocket. Just then, a fleeting, strange feeling overcame him.

⌠ “B~ ca~eful.” ⌡

It felt like a gentle wind, or a slight caress, and it made him feel reassured. As if spurred on by the feeling, he gathered his bearings and stepped forward. “Shall we press on, then?” He asked his friends, who focused their attention on him before exchanging glances.

If Ascalon felt like the matter was settled, at least for the time being, they felt they had nothing to worry about. A moment later, they all nodded in response, and promptly joined him. Escarlata, as emotionless as ever, followed after them with an elegant stride.

Afterward, Ascalon’s group advanced through the torch-lit corridors, the labyrinthine design making their journey both unpleasant and difficult. The distant shrieks of unknown creatures kept them on edge from time to time, though they hadn’t encountered a single beast as of yet.

Still, they had armed themselves just in case, with the exception of Lyra, Ascalon and Escarlata. Lyra didn’t seem to use weapons, while Escarlata kept hers concealed at all times. Ascalon didn’t need to arm himself, but that was not his sole reason for not carrying one.

Although spears would work wonders in narrow corridors like these ones, Ascalon would pose a threat to his friends if he were to wield Exemplaris. He knew he would have trouble holding back with his trusty armament on hand, and didn’t want to risk a cave-in or a similar disaster.

Ascalon led the group with confident steps, as per usual, while Lilithra peeked from behind, her battle banner clinking occasionally as it grazed the ground. “Sorry!” She kept repeating every time, with Lyra giggling after her.

Selorien was yawning with both daggers on hand, his laid-back attitude unchanged even deep into a mysterious dungeon. Escarlata kept a close eye on him now that they were in a more dangerous place, since protecting the ‘young master’ was her top priority. It was no time to get distracted by unnecessary thoughts.

As they walked, Ascalon and Escarlata noticed a couple of approaching figures. The next to realize was Selorien, whose sight gave him an advantage over the remaining two girls. The presences seemed to notice the group as well, and started rushing toward them.

Finally, Lilithra and Lyra were able to witness the incoming threat: a pair of big, dog-looking creatures, their muscular bodies contrasting with their smaller, jackal-like heads.

Their fur was brown and seemed rough, as if it were made of dead grass rather than hair, and their big fangs glistened under the torch-lit corridor. One of the creatures barked, and ran straight at them.

Escarlata leaned forward, her figure tensing slightly as she prepared to dart toward the incoming beast. However, Ascalon placed a hand before her, gesturing her to stop. Surprised by the knight’s actions, she peered at him with curiosity, and followed his gaze.

There, running ahead from the group was Lilithra, who charged with her banner pointed toward the creature. With a powerful stomp, she launched herself forward, closing the distance faster than the jackal could react to.

Amidst its momentary confusion, the beast couldn’t react, and Lilithra’s spear pierced right through its torso. The dog yelped in pain as the girl quickly adjusted her position to spin in place, using the momentum to slam the creature against a nearby wall.

Selorien and Lyra watched in awe as Lilithra deftly handled the threat, with Ascalon feeling a sense of pride well up inside. It seemed like she wanted to prove herself after what had happened back at Loreno’s place, and she was showing that her growth had been purposeful.

Escarlata realized that she wasn’t needed for the moment, and returned to her usual, elegant posture. The ‘demon’ girl had some spunk in her after all, the maid thought. The creature was felled at Lilithra’s hands, who removed the spear from its body and sighed with a relieved smile on her face.

Lilithra herself was determined to overcome her weakness, though she was still unsure of what that even meant at this point. She had decided to take it a step at a time, starting with clearing this dungeon flawlessly! As her body was filled with renewed strength, the remaining beast lunged at her, baring its pointy fangs.

But before it could even get close to its target, Selorien appeared at its side, emerging from stealth and delivering a precise blow to its head. His dagger pierced the creature in a clean, swift movement, and its body promptly dropped to the floor, lifeless.

“Don’t hog all of the experience for yourself!” Selorien exclaimed in a teasing tone, a playful grin spreading across his face as he wiped the blood off his dagger, in a motion that resembled Escarlata’s. Lilithra simply stuck out her tongue toward the elf in a mischievous fashion.

In the distance, Lyra started clapping softly. “Wow!” She exclaimed with a shy smile, her tail flickering with excitement. She hadn’t even noticed Selorien moving, and between his attack and Lilithra’s feat, the cat girl couldn’t help but be thoroughly impressed.

She recalled their fights in the colosseum, and felt once more that they were truly reliable companions. The thought filled Lyra with hope and courage, especially as they grew closer to where her brother supposedly awaited.

Ascalon, on the other hand, thought that Selorien and Lilithra’s friendly squabbles were good for their growth, as both had a tendency to compete in teasing each other. He wondered if they could apply that same motivation to fighting and training!

After recomposing themselves, the group returned to their ‘formation’, with Ascalon leading and Escarlata covering the rear, and resumed their dungeon delving. The place grew more intricate, the maze-like paths getting on their nerves as they found dead-ends at every turn.

There were also hidden traps and other mechanisms, though they were useless against the maid’s keen eyes and her vast experience—even when she spotted them from behind the whole group. Thanks to her, the rest remained mostly unscathed, though Lilithra did have a close call when she nearly fell into a hole filled with spikes.

The surprising thing was that some of the presences that Ascalon felt seemed to avoid them, as if aware of them and unwilling to engage. Perhaps it was thanks to Lilithra’s amulet, Ascalon thought, as he recalled the effect that it supposedly had—the one about inflicting fear on lesser beasts.

The presences weren’t as notable as the ‘dogs’ that had attacked them, so the theory made a lot of sense in his mind. Still, there was no need to bring it up just yet—especially when a greater threat loomed ahead.

“Prepare yourselves.” Ascalon declared as he advanced with courage, his friends tensing up at his words but following after him with cautious steps. Escarlata felt more on edge, her eyes narrowing as she readied herself.

Moments later, the group emerged from the corridor into a more spacious chamber. Their footsteps echoed against the stone bricks that made up the floor, as they observed the many doors that lead in and out of the room.

“It is coming.” Ascalon stated as his eye fixed on a specific entrance. His friends and the maid followed his gaze, just in time to see a monstrous beast step into the room.

It was a towering, grotesque creature, with a four-legged body clad in stone-like scales. It had two heads in place of one, its form a menacing blend between two different animals.

One head was that of a lion, its mane thick and voluminous. A set of huge, pointy teeth protruded from its fierce jaw, and its body seemed to resemble this animal the most.

The other head looked like that of a snake, its color making it seem as if its scales were made of sand. A pair of glistening fangs emerged from its mouth, dripping what appeared to be a most vicious venom onto the ground, adding to its dangerous appearance.

The beast’s four, separate eyes pierced the group, and the lion head let out a booming roar, causing the entire room to tremble under its might. Aside from Ascalon and Escarlata, the rest of the group recoiled in shock, but readied themselves.

This was going to be quite the challenge.