Outworld: Awakening

On a deserted island thousands of miles away from the flying ship. Masked men, a hundred strong, roamed the perimeter of a black castle. Their red mage's robes fluttered as strong winds blew across the island. Inspecting their robes, one would see a white dragon pattern on its sleeves, which seemed to come alive as the howling winds raged on.

A few meters away from the castle, a large white tent stood, unfazed by the harsh winds. Five masked guards who wielded various weapons stood at the entrance of the tent, while releasing a baleful aura.

Through the eye slits of their masks, one could see their bloodshot eyes as they scanned the perimeter of the tent. From the murderous aura they exuded, none of the other masked men dared to approach the tent.

Just then, however, the eyes of one guard softened as he noticed a figure approaching. A second later, the others also had their attention focused on the same person.

Amidst a sea of red, a stunning beauty dressed in all white elegantly emerged from the black castle. Unconsciously or not, the masked men opened a path while lowering their heads.

However, the beauty neither acknowledged nor dismiss their greetings. Although she wore a faint smile, her eyes slowly shifted in different directions while tapping the hilt of her sword.

A few seconds later, she stood before the entrance of the tent. The guards, who had previously exuded murderous auras, quietly bowed their heads without saying a word.

\"Is Master in?\" Adelaide said, sporting an even brighter smile.

\"M-Master has been expecting you, Miss. Adelaide... Please go...\" Before the guard could finish his statement, Adelaide had noiselessly entered the tent.

With each step she took, her smile grew brighter, peaking when she saw a partially closed curtain.

\"Adelaide?\"

Adelaide came to stop as she heard her name. Within seconds, she lowered her heard while saying, \"Yes, Master.\"

\"Oh? You're done with the subjugation already? I guess I underestimated you a little. So, what did you find?\" Vicar asked, his voice echoing his curiosity.

Meanwhile, Adelaide had a faint blush across her cheeks. Her heart beat increased by the second. Unlike before, she had an anxious expression on her face.

\"Hmmm? Adelaide? What's the matter?\" Vicar asked, his voice uncharacteristically laid back.

Like before, silence greeted his words. Adelaide remained in the same position, with faint drops of sweat covering her forehead.

'How could I fail such a simple task? How would Master look at me now? This is bad. This is really—huh?'

Mid-thought, Adelaide suddenly felt a touch on her right shoulder. Before she could react, Vicar's words followed, \"You know I hate being kept in suspense. What's the matter? Did you encounter some difficulty in their lair?\"

Unable to meet Vicar's gaze, Adelaide slowly shook her head while saying, \"Master, I successfully completed the mission with no difficulty.\"

\"Then, why do you look like someone expecting a scolding?\" Vicar replied.

\"Master, while cleansing the castle, I sensed someone undid my memory manipulation ability. It—\".

\"Oh? Hahaha... Wonderful! He finally did it. It took him long enough. Things are proceeding just like she said...\" Vicar muttered, ignoring Adelaide who had a dazed look on her face.

'He expected Adam would break the seal? After everything that happened in the canyon, why would he want Adam to remember all that? Unless it was all part of his plan... Who's she? Could he talking about the—'

Adelaide's train of thought was suddenly interrupted as she heard Vicar call her name.

\"Don't bother yourself with such a minor detail. Everything is progressing according to plan. Since you've completed your mission, you can go back now. Tell the Red Army to begin the extermination. You can leave now.\"

Just then, Adelaide turned her head backwards. However, Vicar had already disappeared. Without saying a word, she rose to her feet, before making her way towards the exit.

Although she was curious about Vicar's words, she knew better than to concern herself with matters above her level.

***

\"Sir? Please open the door,\" the conductor asked once again.

'Why the hell is the conductor here? Did he notice something?' Different thoughts flowed through Adam's mind as he mindlessly stared at the door. He had no idea he had unleashed a frightening aura earlier.

\"Sir? I'll be coming in now.\"

Before Adam could voice his disapproval, the door creaked open. Revealing a masked stubby man dressed in a luxurious red and white suit.

\"Sir, pardon the—\"

\"What is the meaning of this? How dare you barge in here without my consent? Who the hell are you? What if my wife and I had been nȧkėd? How dare you intrude on our privacy!\" Adam barked.

He naturally feigned ignorance to the conductors status. His appearance had returned to its altered state.

\"I'm sorry for the intrusion, sir. Please forgive me,\" the conductor said, bowing slightly. \"As compensation, we would upgrade your cabin to the best. We will also prepare our finest dishes and wines throughout the journey.\"

Adam's brows creased as he stared at the conductor with distinct mockery, \"Hmmm… Who are you to make all these promises? How do I—?\"

\"Sir, I'm the conductor of this vessel. I'll fulfill my promise.\" The conductor interjected. Through the eye slits of his amber mask, his crimson eyes slowly observed X who remained unconscious, Adam, and the room.

Meanwhile, Adam's expression sank as the conductor revealed his identity. His lips trembled as he struggled to speak, while beads of sweat covered his forehead.

\"Con-Con… I'm s-sorry… I-I didn't—\"

\"Hahaha… No problem, sir. It's my fault for barging in here,\" the conductor said as he slowly walked towards Adam. \"If you don't mind me asking, what rank are you?\" The conductor suddenly asked.

\"Rank? I'm not in the military, sir?\" Adam retorted, still unable to compose himself. Just then, the cheerful laughter of the conductor greeted his words.

\"That wasn't what I meant… You are an Awakened, right?\" The conductor asked, pausing just a few steps away from X's unconscious body.

\"Sir, me?\" Adam muttered with the index finger of his right hand pointed towards his chin.

However, only a slight chuckle greeted his words.

[Potential Source of Danger Detected]

Seconds after the system's message, the conductor unleashed a frightening turn of speed. A blue glow dyed his fists, coupled with the fact that he unleashed a murderous aura. Its target was Adam's face. However, Adam remained motionless, albeit sporting a more confused expression than before.

With bȧrė inches separating Adam's face from the conductor's fist, the conductor halted his attack. Just then, Adam screamed out like someone who had just seen a ghost.

'It seems he wasn't faking it. No Awakened could remain calm after detecting such genuine bloodlust. His reactions seem perfectly normal.' The conductor wordlessly retracted his fist while keenly staring at Adam.

From his point of view, nothing stood out of the ordinary from Adam's reaction. He believed that it wasn't possible for an Awakened to remain idle when faced with the possibility of death, especially when they had the ability to protect themselves.

\"What happened, sir? Why do you look so scared?\" The conductor asked, feigned ignorance to his actions.

\"Huh? How can you say that? A-A second ago, you were over there, but now you are here… something would be wrong with me if that didn't scare me,\" Adam retorted, still cowering on the floor.

\"I apologize for my behavior, sir. Once again, I'm sorry for overstepping my bounds. Have a wonderful journey, sir. My ȧssistants will lead you to your new cabin in the morning. I bid you farewell.\"

Taking one last glance at Adam and X, the conductor made his way out of the room, shutting the door behind him. Meanwhile, Adam remained in the same position, still visibly shaken.

\"What the hell was that all about?\" Adam muttered, still staring at the door.

Just then, an all too familiar voice echoed in his mind, \"Hehehe… Adam, it will take more than that to fool him. However, you did a good job. Hehehe… You could bȧrėly stop yourself from dodging his attack. Don't worry, one day, people like him won't be able to handle us.\"

\"You have a lot of questions to answer,\" Adam said mentally, \"What the hell happened to the Xyrath? And, what—\"

\"Hehehe… Why would I answer anything? Especially after you have starved me for so long. Hehehe… You'll find out soon, anyway. I don't want to spoil the fun. You remember how I saved you in those fights, right? I deserve some rewards!\"

Adam's countenance instantly turned sour. Although his forgotten memories had returned, he drew blank whenever he tried to remember what happened to Olkan.

'Are bits of my memories still locked? Damn it. That bastard Vicar has a lot to explain.' Adam suddenly raised his head. X who had been unconscious earlier slowly opened her eyes.

'It's best I tell her about the conductor's suspicions. We can't have another problem during this trip.'

***

In a dark room, in a hidden section of the flying ship, two individuals discussed among themselves.

\"Harald, did you find anything in your section?\"

\"Nothing, sir. Christopher and Korg also found nothing. Sir, do you think we should contact the temple?\" Harald said.

\"No. We must be sure before we make a report. Something like this isn't something we can play with.\"

\"Then, what do we do, Sir?\" Harald asked, his voice echoing the anxiety in his heart.

However, silence greeted his words, which only further increased his uneasiness.

\"Hmmm… although I'm uncertain, I suspect the came from the western section of the ship. I have identified four individuals I believe stand a chance of being the source. Here, this is their profiles. Over the next couple of weeks, we will determine who among them is the demonkin.\"

Just then, a small crystal partially illuminated the room, revealing the masked conductor, and an equally masked, but robust man. On the small table that divided the duo lay four files, depicting four passengers aboard the flying ship.

\"Sir, what do we do when we find them?\" Harald asked.

\"Is that even a question? If they serve an opposing Lord, we will crush them,\" the conductor said, his voice carrying an icy tone. \"Let's wait for the others to return. Then we can discuss further.\" He added.

As his hands drummed along the table's surface, his eyes shifted between the different files. One belonged to someone he had deemed too ordinary, yet he couldn't shake his suspicions.

'Ulric, huh? Let's see if you're the demonkin...'