Noel stepped forward, "Believe me, Darian is up to the challenge."Helena replied, "I know that the Golden Eagle is strong and brave. Surely, he would stand well against all challenges. But..." She paused as the words felt heavy in her mouth."You hold something against him, right?" Darian asked.She nodded her head and said, "The leader of the rebel group may claim to be against the Ice Clan, but he is also ruthless. He tests the loyalty of those who join him by forcing them to rob the people of Azariel and bring the money to him."Darian and Noel exchanged glances. Noel said, "He steals from the rich and gives to the poor?"She shook her head from side to side as she disagreed, "He even steals from the rich who try to help the poor. He has done it many times. Although, he claims they are worthy game."Darian sighed, "I get you. I am up to the task."She asked, "Will you attack kind nobles to prove your loyalty?"He replied, "I'll do my investigations. I'm not a thief. I'm going to f

The Rebel Master unsheathed the sword by his side, and so did all the other men around him. Around the field, everyone pulled out their swords. The flute sound continued even as it increased. The Rebel Master kept taking in deep breaths. His chest heaved, and Darian noticed. Whether it was darkness or fear, Darian could not tell.As the sound of the flute intensified, a red smoke seemed to grow in the air, creating a circle among all of them on the field. The smoke grew out like stems of a tree and grabbed one soldier. It raised him off the ground and squeezed him, draining him of all vitality and throwing him on the floor. The others were flustered. Everyone tried to move backward hurriedly. They might be next. The smoke kept moving."What is that stuff?" a soldier asked in panic.Another replied, "It is the Diamond Magic. It seems the Diamond Nobles of the North Border Lands are here."The next thing on the mind of everyone was escape.Suddenly, strange people began to jump from th

No one moved. Their feet seemed glued to the floor. It was clear that they were considering the morality of the action. The Rebel Master cleared his throat, "This way, the death of the soldiers will not be useless. We will use their blood for a greater good."Without any questions, two of the soldiers walked out to do as they were told.The Rebel Master was not satisfied, "Can't three more of you go along? This golden stuff sucks a lot of blood. We will need more dead bodies."Three more joined after the two who had previously left. The Rebel Master stood, folding his hand behind him. The hand he had cut with his teeth still dripped blood. It pooled on the floor, but the Rebel Master did not care. He was waiting for blood.Darian had spoken to the men, and they were getting along fine. The leaders that had remained called each group to order, and the next thing was to bury the slain among them. Each of the groups in the rebel army arranged themselves according to their ranks: the arch

Darian rose to bite his lower lip. Then he said, "Really, Noel? Are you really asking this?"Noel shook his head a bit as he voiced his opinion, "You have very limited choices, Darian. One of which does not include sitting down and feeling sorry that this happened.""You want me to prepare for my burial?" Darian asked as he raised both hands."No, maybe I will have to join you, because if they cannot get you, I might become the next target. Besides, you know why you joined the rebel army. Add two and two, and only three choices pop up. The first is that we run away again, which I doubt you would want. You so want to know what's in the late Eagle Lord’s resting house. The second option is for you to make peace with the Rebel Master. If you do that, you will be elevated in rank, but he will distrust you and find ways to make your life a living hell. But maybe in the process we can find a way to get you inside the Eagle Lord’s resting house. That is if a battle does not break out first i

Helena’s chest heaved desperately many times, but Noel’s words made sense. She pulled back the chair and tried to sit back down. But before she could, Darian stopped her with his words, "Get the hell out of my face." He did not raise his voice, but his tone was stiff. He put down his fork and continued eating. The letter the Rebel Master had given him rested on the table beside his plate.Helena felt a lump in her throat and looked at Noel. She was hoping Noel would plead for her. Noel scratched his head, "Darian, please just let her..."Darian raised a hand to stop Noel from speaking. He raised his head and looked Noel in the eye, "She should be responsible for her words. Don’t you dare plead for her."Helena shook her head, and with defiance flashing in her eyes, she said, "I am sorry. I hope that is enough?" Her hand grabbed the chair in another attempt, but Darian raised his voice again. "If I am your leader, then you should show respect. You do not come to me to forge an alliance