The next morning they moved their wagons closer to the platform. The previous location provided no cover in case of a sandstorm and those seemed to be more frequent closer to the desert. Since he expected more shipments of supplies, it was only logical to wait for them as close to the platform as possible. Besides, Arthur wanted to learn if the platform was a solitary construction, or part of a larger complex. Catherine was training her earth and water magic while Ben and Silfa patrolled the perimeter. Well, Ben was patrolling while Silfa placed herself on the top of the platform and watched the area from above. She also began to train with her new bow, which gave her some trouble. While it was technically easier to draw the arrow, even though it was nearly twice as powerful as her old bow, the initial draw was considerably harder to manage. In fact, the draw process worked opposite to a normal bow; it was usually harder to draw them to their full strength, while a compound bow allowed it to be held at a full draw far more easily.

  The silent Val'narii had been trailing behind him for the better part of the morning as he walked around the platform trying to figure out if it was worth digging into the sand below. They had plenty of time, since he had no idea when the remaining crates were due to arrive, and he planned to spend at least a week near the platform before returning to the city. However, the hard-to-read expression of the Dark Elf intrigued him more than the ruins, which, admittedly, he had no idea where to even start investigating. Generally, he didn't mind her brooding or having a bad day, but at least she could have it elsewhere.

  "Sir Ives..." She finally started with a hushed voice once they entered under the platform.

  "Yes?" He asked as he looked questioningly at the sand littering the base between four massive legs supporting the platform. Would he really have to dig out all that sand?

  "I never explained my class to anyone because if the Temple learned about it, I would be as good as dead." She said with a muffled tone and nervously looked around. "That's why I'm officially a duelist..."

  The Inquisitor looked at her for a moment, then sighed as he covered them in a privacy field. "You can talk freely now. No one is going to hear you even if you scream."

  She looked at him for a split second before she sat cross-legged on the sand. The air left her lungs with a pitiful whine but he waited patiently.

  "I'm a Mystic Knight." She finally revealed with anxiety in her trembling voice, but Arthur’s confusion grew even more.

  He rubbed his eyes and groaned as he looked up.

  "Why does nothing make sense in this country?" He complained. "What's the big deal about being a Mystic Knight that makes you a target for those lunatics from the local sect? As far as I know, the Mystic Knight is the advanced version of Arcane Fencer. A little bit more tanky and slightly more powerful than a regular fencer, but still a far cry less powerful when compared to the destructive capabilities of a Spell Sword or Doom Blade."

  It was her turn to look at him in shock.

  "But a Mystic Knight is capable of using healing magic! That is reserved only for the clergy..."

  "The same goes for a Paladin or a shit ton of other classes, to be honest. Most of the casters can learn basic healing spells if they want to." He pointed out.

  She lowered her head and gritted her teeth. "A Mystic Knight is a very rare class, and all of them are supposed to be in the service of the Temple, or at the very least, the nobles. But I'm a Dark Elf, and a woman!"

  "So what's the problem?" He shrugged, but then grinned. "Now you are serving a noble. So those people can fuck off."

  She looked at him for a moment, then suddenly burst out laughing. But it was a bitter laugh devoid of any humour.

  "You are indeed a noble, but..." She hesitated and turned serious. "I was going to say that you would make many enemies at the Temple once they learned you took me as your retainer or even a party member, but after you killed so many of their Templars, you have already pissed off everyone I had in mind..."

  "See?" He opened his arms in a wide shrug. "Always look at the bright side of life."

  She slowly shook her head but finally smiled.

  "So, that was what all the fuss was about?" He asked as he looked at her from above, making her tense. "You are not some princess, secret noble, or otherwise important person that all Dark Elves will think that I kidnapped?"

  "No!" She snorted, thinking he was joking. But as she raised her head, she noticed that he was actually dead serious. "Of course not, Sir! I'm as mundane as they get. Why do you even ask about something so ridiculous?"

  "You would be surprised how often something like that happens..." He sighed. "So no one is going to hunt me down with misplaced intent. That's good."

  "Well... My people might be looking for me since I ignored the evacuation order, but it's nothing I can't deal with." She admitted, cringing slightly, then brightened. "Perhaps I could even negotiate with the Baron and the Cardinal for my people, so I have a good excuse if they want to bring me to the shelter."

  "Very well... I would appreciate it if you could deal with that before I have to kill someone." He sighed. "The situation your people are in is bad enough without me killing your best warriors in self-defence."

  She looked at him, her amethyst eyes suddenly full of uncertainty. "Sir... If you manage to contact Arcadia, is there any way of saving the Dark Elves?"

  "I believe so." He nodded with a solemn expression. "But I can't promise you anything more substantial before I contact the high command."

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  "I understand..." She nodded.

  He waited a few more moments before he dissolved the privacy barrier and looked around.

  "Since you don't have to mope anymore, could you tell me anything about those ruins?" He looked around. "In exchange, I'll find you some nice gear for a Mystic Knight."

  "As far as we can tell, this is a lonely platform with a ramp." She smiled brightly, her Elven ears twitching in excitement at the mention of Arcadian gear. Val'narii looked around with a scrutinising gaze and pointed at the wall of sand on one end. "Even the ramp is partially buried under the sand now. This is one of the simplest structures we found to date, so I don't believe there's much to learn from it."

  Arthur scratched the back of his head as he contemplated whether they should move their carriages under the platform or not. It would definitely offer better cover than the nearby rocks. On the other hand, Arthur wasn't sure if that was safe while the structure was operating. Considering that there were no traces of activity that he could identify, it wasn't exactly looking like a safe place. If it were, there would be traces of animals and monsters who sought respite from the burning sun in the shadow offered by the platform. But the nearby sand was nearly immaculate, so he refrained from moving the camp further. Monsters and animals had instincts to avoid dangerous places. The next, slightly different problem, was his belief that Val'narii was just repeating something she heard, but had not exactly confirmed for herself. If he was teleported by one ancient relay, it was quite a reasonable assumption that he was transported across to another relay.

  That was why the more he pondered, the more he was certain that he should dig out the bases of the pillars to confirm they were really standing on the ground. For mysterious reasons, the ancients built their complexes underground, so the Saftians could have easily missed something so important if the sand buried the complex. He started to regret that he had left the Templars he had captured in the city. They would have made an excellent excavation team.

  "Let's take a break for now." He said, turning back towards the camp. "We will eat something and think about what to do next. I will look through the items I obtained from home to determine if there is anything useful for you."

  He left the artificial cavern under the platform and walked towards Catherine. The Nekomi was sitting on a soft blanket with a face twisted in focus and closed eyes. The shade provided by the carriage allowed her to sit quite comfortably in the open, but the sweat covering her face proved the air was still hot. On the other hand, it was quite impossible to train inside the cart. He sat on a nearby chair and decided to wait for her to finish. Arthur needed to think about everything that had happened so far and how his behaviour had been risky. Simply put, the last few months had been so hectic that he had become careless. It was hard to believe that so long a time had already passed.

  Wait...

  "There were no Days of Darkness in Saftia..." He whispered.

  "I think we might have missed them during the sandstorm while we were in the Gnoll's den," Cate said softly back, her eyes still closed in concentration.

  "Hmmm..." He rubbed at his neck, blinking as he started calculating. "That would mean the darkness isn't occurring at the same time across Nilmerthis. Still, its timing is not telling me much about where I am..."

  Cate was quiet for a while longer before taking a deep breath and opening her eyes. She looked at him with curiosity.

  "How long are you going to ignore the fact that the Temple is aware of your presence?"

  "Honestly, even if their deity were to manifest in front of me, I would pretend it didn’t concern me. Even if said deity was very vocal and called me out specifically..." Arthur shrugged. "I know that I put a stick in an ant's nest, but honestly, I don't think I could do anything differently."

  "I’m really trying to understand you, but I can't just fathom why you are so calm about it." She shook her head in disbelief. "The Gods are not particularly known for being merciful..."

  "Maybe the local ones. I know plenty of merciful Gods." He pointed out.

  "Oh, you know? Really?" She asked with sarcasm.

  "Of course." He nodded. "Most of the Gods of Arcadia are quite merciful."

  "Ahhh..." She shook her head with a smirk. "For a moment, you sounded as if you had met a God yourself."

  She took out a flask full of cold water and took a long sip.

  "Of course. I’ve met all of them except for the Silent Guardian. However, if all other Gods are correct, if he manifests on Nilmerthis, it means we are pretty much fucked." Arthur said in a carefree tone, making her spray the water in a wide surprised arc.

  "You what?!" She gasped, staring at him with disbelief.

  "What?" He looked at her in surprise.

  "You have met Gods?! In person?!" She raised her voice so much that Silfa looked down at them from her perch above, but she shouldn't have been able to hear them.

  "Yeah. No big deal. I even had a drinking contest with Zeus, Zephyr, and Tuul'kara. Well, Me, Blackbeard, Rhys, Ian, and Ragnar..." Arthur laughed at his memories, cringing with an amused smile. "A word of advice: never drink with the Pirate and the God of the Ocean..."

  "You had a drinking game with Zeus and Zephyr?!" Her jaw dropped.

  "Yeah. They are among the Deities I serve." He nodded, causing her eyes to go wide as saucers.

  "Unbelievable..." She whispered. "Who else do you serve?"

  "My first and foremost Deity is Eriar, as is most everyone in Arcadia. I'm in the service of my Lady and Empress, Eternal Empress of Flames, Hestia va'Theon. I also wield the sword of Verka." He said with reverence and respect.

  "Your Empress is a Goddess?" Cate asked weakly. "Then your Emperor..."

  "Indeed, one of my Empresses is Goddess Hestia. However, my Emperor is not a God, though he had killed a God..." Arthur said as if that was something normal. "The Pantheon I serve consists of Eriar, Hestia, Verka, Zeus, Hera, Zephyr, Kaal'nai, Tuul'kara, Ertu, Akh'ila, and Arletta. However, recently Harmonia, Phobos, and Deimos began talks with the Saintess and Lady Hestia about joining."

  Cate was openly staring at him with a gaze full of shock and disbelief.

  "Some of the Gods you mentioned were once worshipped across the continent. They had temples in every major city of Anath. But after the great darkness, they disappeared, and we thought they were killed during the War in the Heavens." She said with hesitation.

  "War in the Heavens?"

  "That's what we call the great cataclysm at the end of the Age of Heroes about three thousand years ago." She explained and shook her head. "For days, seemingly without end, the sky over the western horizon was set ablaze and the legends say the Gods were fighting some calamity."

  His heart skipped a beat upon hearing that, and he looked at her with his mouth open.

  Thank you all for reading.

  I wish you all a great day and as always I wait for your comments.

  A big thanks to and who edited the chapter!