Mystical Journey

It was morning when he came down. He sat in the guild for a good three to four hours, when it is almost two, Angel finally came.

She was wearing a black mantle, covering herself tightly. She wore a veil over her face too, only revealing a pair of pale blue eyes.

She sat in front of Garen and tapped the table with her fingers, but there were no waiters to serve her, she could only sit around.

"You're not bad looking." Angel evaluated Garen. "Much better off than I am."

"Have you advanced?" Garen paid more attention as she looked at Angel, his eyes lighted up. "Looks like you don’t need my help anymore." He looked behind Angel, a group of three, Goth’s group slowly sat down, their gazed fixed upon Angel’s direction.

Angel waved her hands, much like saying her hellos.

"I guess I’m alright.", her hands were crossed and placed on the table.

"Now is the time where we need combat powers. When you were not around, Mr Caddy from the guild pulled me into the ranks of the branch president, the condition was to pardon my crimes, and also to give me a suitable complete evolutionary nurturing knowledge. Of course, this requires missions to be completed as a price.

"Then did you not convert along with them?" Garen calmly looked at Angel.

"Listen up, Garen. I, Angel, am not someone who forgets her roots!" Angel tightened her eyebrows, "If you had not give me a hand when I needed it most, I would never have the chance to be exposed to the War Guild. I would have probably died off at some god-only-knows what corner alone!

"I am just a form one totem user, you are a form two totem user, there’s is no future for you to follow me." Garen shook his head.

"Hey!" Angel perched forward suddenly, paying close attention to Garen, eye-to-eye. "In all my life, you were the first who truly treated me well. No matter what your reason could have been, whatever the motive, I, Angel am someone who may have killed countless people, but never one who forgets her benefactor. Whatever, let’s go, come with me, we will convert together."

At this moment, it was obvious that she was sincere when she wanted to bring Garen, perhaps the core totem evolved, the Shackles of War was one thing, but Angel had accumulated for far too much.

Garen could see, she hadn't just evolved the panther, she also had her talent fully utilized with sufficient resources and knowledge. Coupled with the previous totem nurturing experience, this explosion had propelled her like a rocket into sky.

Garen squinted at her, without immediate reply.

He was clear, even though Angel locked down her core totem with the Shackles of War, but it was thought that she had her totem confirmed for quite some years already. She should be able to change her core totem and not be limited by the Shackles of War.

"Follow me, I will protect you!" if you feel that your abilities aren’t strong enough and are unable to show off your manliness, that’s your own problem." Angel said, without much thought behind it.

"Thanks." Garen smiled lightly, "But i’m not the kind of man who lives under another’s protection.

"Why? Is it very embarrassing to be protected by a woman?" Angel sarcastically asked, "I’m telling you, Garen, I have triumphed over tens of hundreds of men under my feet! If i am not this victory-driven, I would not have survived to this point! I really do not understand why do you need to protect your ego? Does your dignity matter more than your life?

"It’s not about this." Garen exhaled. "I have reasons not to leave."

"Your pride is the reason!" Angel did not let go of any chance to tease, "Be the little man you are when you have no capabilities, being protected by women isn’t some shameful thing, at least you’re able to be protected by someone!"

"Alright, let’s not talk about this." Garen waved his hands "Look at me, do I look like someone who needs to be protected?"

"Whatever, you should hide more, don’t end up on the blackboard the next time i see you." Angel shook her head, stood up and walked to the trio behind him, said a few sentences softly.

The trio is two made and a female, all wearing black mantles. He could only roughly make up their genders based on their body sizes. Each of them had strong, bloodied scents emitting from their bodies. He was unsure of whether it was their blood or someone else’s.

After Angel talked to the three people, she turned around to greet Garen. The four of them then soon left the hall.

Garen sat on the table alone. The crystal derivator must never be exposed, and in turn so must the Silver Totems. There were no issues for him to control that many form 1 totems, but if that amount of form 2 totems appeared, then it will cause a racket, and attract unnecessary attention much like the Prodigy Aska. At this point where, he doesn't possess the strength to face off with Obscuro Society, Garen would like to avoid too much attention placed on him.

After sitting for a little while longer, he went to the counter to purchase a map of the Iron Tank City, and proceeded to leave the hall.

At the waterway outside.

Two male totem users were transporting creatures’ carcasses; the creatures have not died for too long, they were commanding two White Bears to move the creatures in piles inside a crater.

The two men had obvious fatigue on their faces, and were slightly shocked as they saw Garen walking out.

"Are you walking this way?" One of them asked.

"I need to go back to take some things." Garen answered simply.

"Better not go, there are more creatures sighted outside now."

"Why do you care so much about other people?" The other person interrupted.

Garen did not pay further attention, he climbed along the ladder up to the exit, slowly popping open the cover and exited the waterway.

The sky outside was gray with a hint of a drizzle.

Garen just came out, and rushed into the shadows of the castle walls with extraordinary speed, hiding his aura to avoid the creatures.

Above him was a swarm of Unihorn Lizards flying over slowly, they were packed densely to each other and there might have been be hundreds of them. Among the swarm, there was one red-skinned giant lizard, its size is evidently larger than the rest.

The swarm towered over Garen’s position, failing to recognize the human that was hiding there.

Still in the shadows, Garen took out his map.

Iron Tank city was a giant white round circle; on the circumference was a label: City castle wall.

Within and beyond the castle walls were large amounts of buildings and housing, densely packed like a giant white mushroom. In the centre was a small circle, with the label: Inner City Area.

In the middle of the Inner City Area was a white dot. The label on the dot says: Spiral Tower.

Coincidentally, on the lower right corner of the map’s castle wall line, and the place he stayed sat just beyond it. . The district was placed on the rightmost border of the cluster of buildings beyond the cluster wall, on the right side beyond the cluster was a large wasteland, abandoned and uninhabited.

Garen carefully walked along the direction heading back. Each time, he advanced by getting in and out of the cover of shade. Sometimes, he would bump into some death babies, but they were no match for his speed.

As he approached the position of his district, it should already have been been a deep territory with lairs of monsters. Garen ran into the staircase in the tilted tower, and suddenly heard the some soft sound of voices from within the tower.

He stopped his footsteps, looking into the dark black void of the staircase, a soft voice came out from the right room of the second floor.

"I can’t believe there would be survivors that would still be alive." He wasn’t interested in helping these people, and he couldn’t help them anyway, people who cannot hide their aura were only going to bring him trouble, luring many creatures.

He sped out of the corridor, ahead of him was the hunting ground for Resonance Hawk, should be slightly safer, without the creatures roaming freely, a bigger crowd of creatures will also be easily spotted and avoided.

Walking along the main path, on both sides was dense forest, deathly quiet. Intermittently, there were cries from a baby coming from afar, which sent chills to the heart.

As he walked to the neighbouring houses of his villa, Garen let out a sudden "eh", his gaze fixed upon this house’s bush at the front porch..

Garen looked to his left and right, a black stag beetle was rustling by from his back, patrolling the entire district. Parasites’ patrol radius have engulfed the entire parameter of the district.

Garen observed the skies around him carefully, there were no traces of large groups of creatures, only then did he approached the bush. He softly peered open the bush, and in front of him was a young girl, covered with wounds and blood stains.

"That girl who followed me home the other day?" Garen’s brows frowned. He recognized this person, she is one of the girls who had followed him and Angel on his road rushing back, on the same carriage, as he was guarding them into the city. He recalled that she had introduced herself before, her name was Lala.

He tapped that girl’s face, no response. He extended his arm nearer to her nostrils; there were some vague breathes.

On the girl was a black, pleated short skirt and a white satin shirt, under the skirt was a long black pantyhose that was full of holes, revealing wounds that had traces of blood. The skin of the black long boots that she was wearing were bruised and damaged, completely losing its exclusivity and elegance of the original little buffalo skin boots.

Pa Pa.

Garen slapped her with force

"Are you alive?" hs asked softly.

"Ugh…"

Lala weakly opened her eyes, with a very exhausted look. It seems as though she could not clearly see anything, both her irises didn't seem to be focused. She saw a blurry silhouette moving, the voice seemed so far away that he couldn’t hear clearly at all.

"He… Help.." she struggled to say the two words, then she tilted her head over, fainting once again.

Garen stood straight. He frowned. To be honest, he did not want to save anyone and add more burden to him, but coincidentally, he met someone he had met before, and by the looks of it, it seems like she ran out from the suburbs, going through hurdles to get here. If it weren't for Resonance Hawk’s patrol parameters, and the fact that this place was clear of free roaming creatures, plus that the larger crowds would not consider such a small meal, this girl would definitely not be alive.

"Screw it, count yourself lucky! I am lacking a janitor, in any case." Garen squatted and lifted her up, with one arm under her armpit, marching in big steps towards his villa.

This girl is just a normal person, and does not posses any threat to him; which is a key reason as to why he would save him.

Furthermore, if he were to stay alone for about a few months time, being completely alone was also not a feasible idea.