Chapter 53: The Aftermath

Chapter 53: 25. Aftermath

The big brute lay sprawled on the ground, covered in wounds, breathing heavily and looking at Dakus with a tilted head.

The Triceratops had long since lost its breath, its soul having already returned to Lustria, while the Ankylosaurus lay in a pool of blood, its breathing shallow and labored.

Annasara descended instantly from the dark pegasus via teleportation.

"Quite a spectacle," she said, walking over as she spoke. She reached out to stroke the Ankylosaurus's head, channeling a strand of dark magic into its body. Then, she released another burst of dark magic into the air.

Annasara looked toward Adaeus. This Druzhii and an Elven deity avatar were acquainted; the construction of Adaeus's temple and its daily supplies were provided by the House of Calamity of Hell.

The fire-elemental sorceress bowed respectfully to Annasara.

Adaeus nodded to Annasara and said, "This child of yours certainly commands a lot of respect." Having said that, he shouted to Dakus, "Come visit the mountain when you have the chance; you have something to do for me! I shall take my leave."

With that, he flew off riding his Magma Dragon.

Annasara shook her head, walked toward Dakus, and asked, "Are you alright?"

Dakus sat on the ground with disheveled hair. He struggled to stand up and shook his head slowly, saying, "I'm fine, thank you, Matriarch." As he spoke, a headache throbbed in his skull, and a faint scent of anesthetic musk lingered in the air.

Slaanesh's corruption?

Annasara teased, "This child of yours truly has quite the influence; so many gods have come to visit."

Dakus shook his head helplessly and said, "I owe many gods a favor, do I not, Matriarch?"

Annasara nodded and gave a strange laugh. "As long as you are fine. Once you have settled things, come find me at the Tower of Destruction; I wish to have a chat with you. I'll be going now."

With that, she summoned her dark pegasus and led her sorcerous retinue back the way they came.

More than half of the Druzhii in the settlement were lying down; Flanes and Alisha lay unconscious on the ground. Bayne stood dazed, leaning on his Druzhic halberd with one hand, while Rain stood blankly in the plaza, seemingly unable to process everything that had occurred. Wot and Kalion were covered in wounds, sprawled on the ground.

Two of the four Centurions had fallen in battle. The plate armor on Edmond's chest was dented inward, bleeding profusely. With the assistance of soldiers, he removed the armor, threw it to the ground, gave Dakus a bitter smile, and began directing the soldiers to settle the casualties.

A surge of apology and rage welled up in Dakus's heart. He wanted to curse and roar, but he no longer had the strength.

Dakus knew that this "Keeper of Secrets" was coming for him. Although the Keeper had not uttered any lewd words, he felt the entity's gaze upon him.

Fortunately, Tzeentch, the God of Wisdom and Knowledge, and Nurgle, the God of Life and Health, had not intervened to turn this into a four-way chaos. *That year I was sixteen, standing there like a mere pawn.*

Dakus continued to sit on the ground. A crow landed on his shoulder, tilting its head to look at him.

"Thank you, my dear old grandmother."

An old, kind grandmother's voice echoed in Dakus's mind: "You are much more polite than you used to be, child."

Dakus managed a strained, bitter smile but did not respond.

"Rest easy, Edrezer. The Lord of Blades and Loic the Deceiver have reinforced the blessing on your soul; He won't be able to peer into your soul for a while."

With that, the crow flew away.

"Edrezer blessed me and Flanes, and even manifested. Loic also blessed me; perhaps the Drum of Echoes was strengthened as well? Hecate blessed Alisha; otherwise, with Alisha's current level, she wouldn't have been able to cast the Polymorph spell. She even called upon the Matriarch. The avatar of the Fire God Adaeus came directly. Khaine? He was already sacrificed before the battle. To have stirred four Elven gods... I've certainly incurred a massive debt of favors this time."

Edrezer had been mentioned before; those Asrai Eternal Wardens would perform rituals before battle, using crossed dagger pendants and finger-bone totems to mark the death arena, hoping for Edrezer's arrival to aid them in combat.

Among the Elven gods, Loic was not only the Deceiver, the God of Music, and the Shadow Dancer, but also the God of Laughter. His laughter could invigorate spirits, and he often intervened to prevent Slaanesh, the God of Love and Art, from taking the souls of the dead to the Chaos Wastes or the Eternal Hell. Because of this, Loic had always been a target for the hunters of the Four Gods, yet through extraordinary cunning and inexhaustible strength, he had escaped their pursuit time and again.

Of course, like other Elven gods, this mischievous deity had a dark side; he was the god of darkness, evil schemes, vengeance, and dark deeds. The Elves worshipped him because they used secrecy and darkness to enact their revenge. Whether mortal or god, good or evil, everyone was deceived by Loic's tricks. Although he fought for the souls of the Elves, it was hard to say whether Loic was a celestial god or even a neutral one.

It was not surprising that he could be swayed by Morathi and come through the drumbeat.

The spectacle caused by Adaeus seemed large, but it wasn't actually that significant. Any Druzhii living in Krakalond knew that Adaeus's avatar resided in the Black Ridge Mountains. The volcano erupted almost every year, and a Magma Dragon lived inside the crater. The Druzhii often witnessed the dragon, which typically preyed on Chimeras, wild Manticore, and wild Hydras in the mountains.

Whenever the volcano erupted, Druzhii of all classes would joke that Adaeus had forged another failed weapon, making it a source of joy and an annual joke for the Druzhii.

The only thing to worry about was Annasara mobilizing her coven of witches—that was a truly massive event! Every Druzhii in Krakalond knew that Annasara usually stayed within the Tower of Destruction; she only appeared when Nagalond convened the Council of a Hundred or when war was declared against Ulthuan.

This information would likely reach Nagalond through spy networks and divination magic. The Witch King Malekith might already know of this, and given his mercurial temperament, it was uncertain what the repercussions would be.

The Ankylosaurus struggled to its feet and painfully nudged the Triceratops. The Triceratops did not respond. Sensing something, the Ankylosaurus lifted its head and let out a long, mournful cry toward the sky.

Seeing this, Dakus closed his eyes in pain. In Naggaroth, weakness was despised.

The Ankylosaurus walked over to Dakus and nudged him with its head.

"Does it hurt?" Dakus asked, stroking its head with heartache. He could clearly empathize with the Ankylosaurus's emotions.

The Ankylosaurus shook its head, rubbed against Dakus's hand, and walked back to the cellar alone.

Rain had already brought his brother and sister back to their house. After settling them, he walked to Dakus's side.

"Rain, do you regret it?"

Rain shook his head and sat down wearily.

Rain gave a bitter smile and said, "There is nothing to regret, My Lord. It is the honor of the Takaia family to serve you."

Dakus nodded, stood up, and walked over to the big brute. Several still-mobile beastmasters were applying potions and powders to it.

Seeing Dakus approach, the brute tried to stand, but no matter how it struggled, it could not rise.

When they had set out, the brute had four subordinates; now, they were all gone.

Dakus comforted the brute, stroking its head. Its tail gave a small wag, and Dakus could sense it was trying to please him.

"My Lord, we need to flip it over. It has wounds on its other side as well."

Several soldiers pushed a cart over, working together to hoist the beast onto it and send it back to the cellar.

Rows of corpses were placed at the edge of the plaza waiting for cremation. Currently, burial was not popular among the Druzhii; they had switched to cremation. Old Man Nag's periodic resurrections caused the coffin lids of the mortal realm to rattle—who could endure that?

Once everything was settled and the patrols on the settlement walls were properly arranged...

Dakus picked up the Drum of Echoes, preparing to go back to his room for a good sleep.

The light of dawn broke in the distance; a new day had arrived.