Chapter 191 (1/2)
Chapter 191: The Story of an Upright Tiger (Part 3)
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The Magician who was clad in an ice bearskin cloak walked out from the forest under the watchful eyes of the Wind Tiger. The hood of the cloak covered most of the Magician’s head, concealing his face. As he walked, hints of garnet Magician’s robe beneath the outer cloak were revealed, and in his hand, the Magician was holding an exquisitely well-made wand.
At first, the Wind Tiger saw the figure but still couldn’t recognize the mysterious Magician’s identity. But, the heavily wounded Warrior beside him was much quicker in this regard.
“That’s the Starcatcher wand!” he shouted. “And you’re wearing the Flame Controller Magician’s robe! You’re Link!”
This Warrior had been a core member of the Syndicate, so he was familiar with the weapons and gear of the strongest figures in the continent. Furthermore, Link had been the one who had completely wiped out the Girvent Forest branch of the Syndicate and single-handedly killed the demon Tarviss, so naturally, the Syndicate took special notice of any news and information about him.
It was no wonder then, that the moment Link appeared the Warrior could easily pin down Link’s identity with just a few details exposed.
Link had planned to remain anonymous in front of these people, but the moment he heard the Warrior’s words he went silent for a while and decided to pull down the hood of his outer cloak. The moment he did that the fire elements that revolved around the Flame Controller were suddenly revealed in all its glory. These elements flowed all around Link’s body and then gathered at the top of his head, forming a visible crown of flame.
The snowy white bearskin cloak, the bright red fiery aura, the glorious crown of flame and the intense fluctuations of Mana energy around Link’s body all combined to carve a striking figure whose power and talents were most obvious to even the least experienced of observers.
Just as it was on earth, an intimidating external appearance was very useful in the world of Firuman as well. With a presence that Link radiated then, the last remnants of defiance in the Warrior’s eyes were now gone and were replaced instead with a look of fear and awe.
There stood right in front of his own eyes, the very person who had crushed the Level-8 demon Tarviss with a magical fiery hand. Even though the Warrior was himself an elite member of the Syndicate and was respected and feared by thousands of people, he still couldn’t muster up the courage to hurl insults at such a mighty figure.
“You shouldn’t be here!” was all he could manage. “Why are you here? Shouldn’t you be in the Ferde Wilderness?”
The intelligence network of the Syndicate had done a very good job apparently, even though they still weren’t good enough to outplay someone like Link.
Even the Wind Tiger was stunned! It had seen the Magician who had defeated the demon Tarviss that night, yet this man still exceeded all its expectation. Never in its dreams had it ever imagined that anyone could drive Andre into a corner and force him to flee in just a few attacks!
That was truly impressive!
Link approached the Warrior until he was about 20 feet away from him. He then bent down his head and looked down at the Warrior.
The armor on his body had mostly been scorched by the Flaming Hand earlier. There were burn wounds all over his body, although some traces of Battle Aura still remained. Albeit, it was now far too weak to pose any threats to Link.
He then examined the armor closely and discovered that it was pure black with an engraved insignia on the chest. It was an inscription of a dagger with six drops of blood trickling from it—the insignia of the Syndicate. The six drops of blood signified this Warrior’s level and position in the organization.
“The Syndicate, huh?” Link remarked.
The Warrior made no reply.
“The Shadow Shield?” added Link.
Previously in the game, Morpheus had by this point ignited the Sacred Fire. Because of the powerful MI3, the Norton Kingdom in the North was still largely unaffected by the rise of the Syndicate. But here in the South, the whole region had by now fallen into the tight grips of this evil organization.
This was due to the emphasis on trade and commerce by the six southern kingdoms, which meant that their military power was weak. Moreover, these were only six small kingdoms who couldn’t amass enough power and resources on their own to fight against such an expansive organization like the Syndicate. Thus, the southern kingdoms became the fertile grounds for which the Syndicate grew in power and influence—so much so that they were said to be ubiquitous here.
Meanwhile, the Shadow Shield was an elite branch of the Syndicate which comprised of shield-wielding Warriors.
“How do you know anything about the Shadow Shield?” asked the Warrior with terror in his eyes. This wasn’t something that a Magician from the North should know about!
“Oh, I wasn’t sure earlier,” said Link smilingly, “but now you’ve confirmed it.”
The Warrior was left speechless. This kind of interrogative technique was one of the first things he’d learned as the core member of the Syndicate. How embarrassing was it to inadvertently leak the secrets of the organization by falling into such a benign trap!
Now that the matter was confirmed, Link noticed a notification lighting up on the interface. He looked over at it and realized that it was the message of a completed mission. He’d now earned 100 Omni Points and the Soul Stamp. Link showed no discernible reaction to this news and turned back towards the Warrior.
“I don’t feel like fighting anymore today,” he told the Warrior. “But I’m not letting you go either. You know what to do, don’t you?”
The Warrior breathed a long sigh of relief at Link’s remarks. He knew that there would be no chance of him defeating this Magician and no chance of escaping alive. If he continued to fight him, it would only bring more suffering and pain to himself. The only choice left for him was to commit suicide.
The warrior then took off his armor and promptly stabbed a dagger straight into his own heart. With one decisive move, the dagger pierced through his skin and flesh and struck his heart. The Warrior then slumped to the ground, dead by his own hands.
The Wind Tiger watched the scene with shining eyes, his heart filled with awe and respect for the Magician.
He uttered a few words and the Warrior obediently killed himself without a protest, thought the tiger. What a fearsome man!
Once he’d made sure that the Warrior was dead, Link then turned his attention to the Wind Tiger.
“Do you have a name?” asked Link.
“Yes,” replied the tiger proudly. “My name is Dorias.”
“I see,” replied Link tersely. He circled around the weak and heavily wounded Dorias and discovered that it was not in mortal danger.
“I’d really like to know,” said Link again, “what you were thinking hanging around a forest that was so near to a big city. Don’t you know how bottomless the greed of humans can be and what danger that would bring you?”
“Oh, but Master,” lamented the tiger after a long sigh, “you don’t know the pain of a broken heart!”
As it spoke, the tiger dragged itself to the banks of the creek and slumped down haplessly. Not a trace of ferocity could be found in its eyes, only the wistfulness of memories.
“Enlighten me,” said Link, his interest now piqued.
Dorias’ eyes concentrated as he tried to recall the events that occurred all those years ago. He lay there silently for a while before finally spilling out his story.
“Did you know that this whole region was a lush forest 200 years ago?” began the tiger. “Back then, I was the king of this forest. Us Wind Tigers were few in numbers and were spread far apart. Every full moon night of the spring we would all gather together and feast on small animals, engage in conversation and play games together, forming tight bonds among our kind and finally choosing a mate for the year.”
As the tiger reached this point in his story, its head slumped sorrowfully and hung limply over its shoulder.
“At the time, I had a mating partner who’d been with me for more than a decade,” said Dorias. “Her name was Ora, and she was my queen. She had thick and soft fur that was pure green in color and a slender figure. I’m always intoxicated by her gentle eyes, and even after all these years, I can still distinctly recall that surge of pleasure I feel when I’m mating with her. I’m the strongest of my own kind, and I could always sustain it for a full minute. A full minute! Can you believe that? I know all my brothers could only sustain it for half a second! Yet now everything is gone…my queen, my children, my home—everything has been buried by time and belongs to the unreachable past now.”
Then, the Wind Tiger turned around to face Link with a face distorted by grief and pain.
“Human Magician,” he addressed Link, “you will never understand the depths of my despair. I have nowhere to go now. Why don’t you bring me back to Azura Tower? Although it can get quite boring in there, at least no one would bother me.”