Grimoires & Masters - Chapter 20. (Patreon)

The sky was lit brightly in the afternoon. The Lover’s Nest was a little empty now. Only half the number of tents remained here from the last night.


Aoun and Elena took their time to wrap things up and then sat down on a boulder as they listened to the crashing waterfall.


“Eeno!” The little monkey had been with Maya when they woke up and exited their tent.


No one knew where it had gone off to, but seeing it cheerfully playing in the water told them that it had a good time.


From across the stream, they saw Red enthusiastically wave at them. The rest of the members of Twelve Shades were all set and sitting together having a meeting. There was a transparent blue barrier around them that stopped the sound from escaping it, and even their expressions and lips were blurred as they conversed, leaving no chance for anyone to interpret what they were discussing.


“Let’s go.” Aoun planted a kiss on Elena’s head and then dried off his feet and hers before putting on their shoes. She loved being treated like a Princess by him, and he did not mind it in the least. She was a Princess.


They jumped together to the other side of the stream, and Maya chose to take the little bridge to cross over. She wasn’t too fond of the freezing-cold water.


“You are not joining them?” Aoun smiled at Red.


“Black briefed me in the morning, and so I don’t need to listen to the meeting. And guess what?” He seemed quite excited. “Rumi and Simca will be coming with us as well.”


“When did that happen?” Elena surprisedly looked at the couple that was also coming over.


“I don’t know.” Red shook his head. “Silver told me that they will be coming with us,” And shrugged.


“Well, it’s a good thing.” Aoun waved at the couple, and they happily rushed over.


“Blossom City?” Rumi asked with a smile.


“Yes.” Elena nodded.


“It is a beautiful place,” Simca informed them. “You guys would love it.”


“How do you know that we have never been there?” Aoun smiled knowingly.


“It isn’t so hard to guess.” Rumi chuckled. “You two fellows are too conspicuous. Had you been from Blossom City, we would have known you.”


“I see.” He did not chase after the topic or go into details.


“You want to see my ride?” Red happily asked them. He would show it to them even if they refused. And so he didn’t wait for them to answer.


A Silver Grimoire appeared before him and shined before a ray of light escaped it and transformed into a majestic Beast.


It was a giant Tiger, nearly two meters tall, and six meters in length. It had a grey coat with prominent black stripes, and a brilliant crown made of Antlers. And then there were its lustrous green eyes with slit black pupils.


“Storm Tiger…” Elena called out in surprise.


“You know of it?” Red was surprised.


“Mhm…” She happily nodded and reached forward to pet the majestic Tiger. “The Beast of Storm; Baal. King’s Blood, and extremely rare even in the Rare-Class Beasts.”


“You are well informed…” The burly man happily stroked the coat of his Beast. “I call her Baalu. She has been with me for four eyes, and when I Contracted her, she was just a cub.”


Seeing him lovingly hug his Beast made them all smile, and Elena kept tracing the coat of the Beast without any fear or hesitation.


“What do you guys think?” He smugly asked Aoun, Rumi, and Simca.


“Do we need to say it?” Aoun chuckled and shook his head.


“It is a blessing to have such a Mount, Red.” Rumi excitedly said and reached forward to pet it too. But the Tiger growled, and he had to stop. “What’s up with it?” He regretfully smiled, longing to touch that soft fluffy coat.


“She doesn’t let men touch her.” Red laughed at him. “Only I can lovingly hug her like this.” He buried his face in her coat and rubbed it there.


“Yeah, yeah… So you brought it out to make us jealous.” Aoun sighed.


“Of course!” He answered without any hesitation. “A Master must take pride in his Beasts. If you are jealous, strive to get yourself such a Beast.”


No one denied his words. It was his right to show-off if he had such a Majestic Beast.


“Want to see my ride then?” Simca wasn’t so polite anymore.


Her Bronze Grimoire flashed a Blue light, and they heard a beautiful bird cry out. From the light escaped an eagle, that flapped its Tri-colored wings of grey, black, and blue, before gliding over to sit on Simca’s shoulder.   


“Do you know what it is?” She planted a light kiss on its beak and asked Red.


“Siff!” Red cried out in shock.


Aoun looked at the Beast in surprise and shock. It was the same for Elena.


The bird sitting on Simca’s shoulder was the Sky Beast of Mirage; Siff. A Rare-Class Beast, just as rare as Baal. Though it wasn’t a King Beast, but a Spirit Beast. The luminous stars in its green eyes were announcing its status.


Spirit Beasts did not have a Natural Crown over their heads but possessed stary-eyes. These Beasts were capable of hiding their true form by transforming into a smaller size and by hiding their eyes and coats.


It was way harder to find Spirit-Beasts than the King Beasts because these creatures were manipulative, clever, and mostly kept themselves in forms of Mortal Beasts to avoid trouble.


“It is beautiful!” Elena came over and closely looked at the feathers of the Bird.


“Thank you…” Simca was a little embarrassed by Elena’s heartfelt compliment. “I call it Siffina.”


“You win…” Red answered honestly and lovingly hugged his Tiger again. “But my Baalu is the Best!”


As if she wanted to nod to his words, The Storm Beast growled, making their hearts tremble. And then it lovingly stroked its face against Red.


“The King Beasts and their Pride….” Aoun chuckled, and then he turned to look at the Tri-colored Eagle. “How big can it grow?”


Simca nodded to him and then called out to her Beast.


“Siffina…”


The Beast heard her and flew away, reaching for the Sky, and then under their eyes, it started growing bigger and bigger until its wing-span was over ten meters. And then when it came back down to the ground and stood there, it was a few inches taller than the majestic Tiger.


“Wow…” Aoun couldn’t help but look at it in awe.


“You are lucky to find it,” Red looked at Simca and smiled. “There are less than 10 of these in our Continent that are contracted.”


“When I found it, I didn’t know what it was. I was only seven years old.” She walked over to her Beast and combed its feathers with her fingers. “It just stuck with me… And after my awakening, I contracted it. Only then I realized what it was.”


“Now that makes me envious…” Red voiced his honest feeling, and everyone else, including Rumi, nodded to his words.


“Showing off already… huh...” The tall girl wearing a grey coat with the Emblem of Twelve Shades walked over.  She elbowed Red in the ribs, earning a painful grunt from him, and then looked at the beautiful bird nudging its beak against Simca. “Now that is a Treasure.” She nodded with an honest smile.


“Thank you!” Simca smiled back at her.


“Are you guys ready?” She asked them and then looked at the black horse that was standing behind Elena. She reached over to pet it, but Maya nickered and turned her head away. “Interesting… A King’s Pride,” She mused.


“Her name is Maya,” Elena informed her.


“She can keep up?” Blue asked with a smile.


“She’s pretty fast if you ask me.”


“Alright then…” She once more looked at all of them.


“We are ready.” All four of them replied in unison.


Blue nodded to them and then started explaining a few things to them,


“I am the Avantigator of the team. My job is to stay in the sky, scout, and navigate the team.” She then proceeded to teach them some basic signs. “Make sure you use your Aura when you make these signs. No matter how high up in the Sky I might be, my Beast will have an eye on the team at all times. It will catch any of these signs, and I will know what to do. Okay?”


It was not the first time for Aoun to be working in a Team, but it was the first time he was in a Team full of Masters. The Twelve Shades were an A-star Guild, and he was already learning a lot of things from them.


“Now, you two are Warriors,” She looked at Simca and Rumi, “And you two have recently awakened.” Blue smiled at Aoun and Elena. “But since you guys have managed to reach this place, it means that you are capable.”


Elena lightly smiled at her words, not giving anything away. And Rumi and Simca nodded to her.


“Black is the Captain and stays as the Vanguard. Silver is the Vice-Captain of our Team and stays as the Rearguard. Red is the Destroyer, Grey is the Shield, and Green is the Mage.” Blue explained to them what the role of every person on the Team was. “A Destroyer is responsible for fighting anyone that gets past the Vanguard, or go forward and assist the Vanguard if the situation is grave. Shield’s sole responsibility is to protect the Mage, and if it seems fit, the Shield can help protect others as well, but never at the expense of the Mage. A Mage assists the entire team and keeps its distance. Mage, Destroyer, and Shield together make up the Middleguard.”


All of them nodded to her words in understanding.


“Now, I would like to know which role suits you.” She seriously asked them.


“I will stay up with you as the Avantigator,” Simca replied without hesitation.


“Sure.” Blue nodded to her, and let the others take their time to think things through.


“I think I will take the role of a Shield.” Rumi took his time and nodded to her.


“I will stay as the Destroyer!” Elena decided on her position.


Aoun smiled when he heard Elena’s words. He knew that they could take the Rearguard, Vanguard, and the Middleguard as Destroyers. His first choice was the Vanguard, but now it had changed.


“I will take the Rearguard.” He nodded to Blue.


“Interesting…” Blue was surprised at his call, but smiled and nodded to all of them.


“Let’s go then. Bring out your rides. And they better be fast.” Red excitedly asked Rumi and Aoun.


“Don’t worry, if you can’t keep up, you can share the ride with your fellow Guard.” Blue shook her head at Red’s words and assured them.


Aoun nodded to them and called out his Grimoire. And after that, he asked Ray to come out.


Seeing a similar horse to Maya, everyone was surprised, and smiles crept on their faces.


“He is called Ray,” Aoun introduced them to it as he combed its mane with his fingers. “And he is fast.”


Ray excitedly neighed to his words and rubbed its head on his face. But it only glanced at everyone there and did not bother greeting them. It walked over to its sister and snuggled with her.


Rumi called out his Bronze Grimoire and then his Mount. It was a red Horse with a black tail and a pair of black horns on its head that curved toward the sky. It was the King’s Crown, and it was Red-King Beast.


“Is that an Akhel?” Aoun curiously asked.


“Yes,” Rumi was surprised that Aoun could recognize the horse. “It is the Beast of Shades; Akhel. They change color with each evolution.”


“And they are fast and enduring.” Aoun smiled and added. “It is one of the most precious King Horses.”


“Thanks!” Rumi smiled at his words. “He is called Rulo.”


“Somehow, everyone here has got pretty Beasts.” Blue shook her head and smiled.


“You haven’t shown us yours yet…” Aoun reminded her.  


“If you can recognize it, I will give you 10,000 Kyrls.” She confidently looked at all four of them and then brought out her Silver Grimoire.


A black ray of shimmering light escaped in the sky, and then a cheerful cry of a bird spread in the area. It was an echoing voice, soft to the listeners, and held pride in it that roused awe in everyone’s heart.


The Bird was entirely black except for the twin red Spiral Tails that flowed on each side of its long black tail. It had a smart body and a decent wingspan of nearly six meters. The most distinctive feature was its crested black-crown and its blue eyes that were shining brilliantly, holding a suppression in them that made the Beasts on the ground uncomfortable.


"What do you think?" Blue smugly smiled.


“I give up…” Rumi shook his head but kept his eyes on the beautiful bird. “I don’t know what Beast this is.”


Simca shook her head as well and calmed Siffina that was uncomfortable in the presence of the Black Swallow that was flying in the air.


“Where’s my 10,000 Kyrls?” Aoun teasingly said, trying to calm down his palpitating heart as he fervently looked at the bird.


“You know want it is?” Red called out in shock.


Aoun recognized the Bird, and its identity was quite special.


“The Swallow of the Lamentig-Sky; Hina.” Elena had her eyes shining in excitement as she looked at the bird and told its identity.


Rumi and Simca curiously looked at the bird again. They were hearing the name for the first time, but the fervent eyes of the siblings announced how special it was.


Red and Blue remained in shock for a while. They could not believe that Aoun and Elena recognized the Beast. It was so rare and special that only a numbered people in the Northern Continent would recognize it. Even most Royals would not be able to recognize it.


“How do you know what Beast this is?” Red couldn’t help but ask. He was not someone who pried the matters, but this was too much for him to bear.


“Our Master told us about it. It is one of the fastest Bird Beasts in the World, and its abilities are nightmarish.” Aoun briefly answered. “10,000 Kyrls…” He smiled at Blue and reminded her.


“You have me curious, Mr. Erebus.” She smiled at him. “But here’s your winnings.” She tossed a Platinum coin to him.”


“Thanks!” Aoun gladly caught it and stored it away.


“Is everything set?” Silver called them out, and everyone nodded to her.


Silver, Black, Grey, and Green all had the same horses. The colors on their coats varied in shades of a metallic sheen of cream to brown, but they had the same crescent antlers on their heads. Each of the horses was a Yellow-King.


“You have four Crescent Horses?” Simca was surprised.


“Eight” Silver smiled at her. “Four are with the other members of the Guild.”


“Wow…” Rumi called out, mesmerized by the majestic horses.


The Crescent Horses or Chira were found only in the Northern Continent of the World of Aurora. But their numbers were extremely scarce as each female could only bear one child. To get one of these Beasts meant splashing a great fortune. These beasts were faster than Akhel, not as enduring, but then they had their perks.


“Your Akhel is more precious, Mr. Rumi.” Silver appreciatively looked at the horse behind him.


“Rarer… yes.” Rumi smiled and shook his head.


“Let’s go!” Silver called out again.


“See you guys later!” Blue waved her hand and then jumped high in the air. No one saw the Black Swallow approach, and the next moment, Blue was on its back, heading high up in the sky.


“I will get going then. Be safe!” Simca smiled at them and climbed on the back of her Siff.


The Beast turned around and dashed before spreading its wings and flying toward the sky. The elegance left everyone in awe, but then under their amazed looks, it changed its color to black, and the stars in its eyes disappeared. It now looked like a Desolate-Green Beast. No one could tell that it was a Spirit Beast.


Everyone got on their Mount and took their positions in the formation. And once they heard the cry of the Swallow again, they moved.


“Which route are we taking?” Aoun kept his eyes on the developing Life-Map on his Grimoire and asked Silver who was riding by his side.


“We are heading to the Seven Strongholds.” Silver smiled at him. “They are the Inns and resting places of Guilds that explore the Wild North from the Kingdom of Dreams. Each Stronghold is owned by an S-Ranked Guild."


“Has there been trouble?” He smiled and asked.


“Why do you say that?” Silver curiously looked at him.


“Your meeting,” He looked her in the eyes. “It took quite some time.”


“Just from that?” She giggled and shook her head. “Yes, the place is quite hectic nowadays. The last news of things related to our current Quest came from there. The rest of the Guild is out there to complete the Quest, and we received their message a few hours ago.”


“Now you are heading there to regroup?”


“Yes,” She nodded. “And to watch a Guild War between two A-Ranked Guilds over a Treasure.” She then looked at him. “There were troubles. A group of 10 Mercenaries of a B-ranked Guild has disappeared. The rest of the Guild has been creating troubles over that for the other Guilds there. They are searching for the killers. Additionally, a dispute took place between a Royal House and another A-ranked Guild. The Guild lost several of its members, and the Royals had to leave The Wild North for now.”


“Anything that concerns us?” He frowned as remembered the ten Masters that died under his and Elena's hands.


“Not in particular.” She shook her head. “But once Chaos erupts in The Wild North, lots of blood is spilled.”


Aoun now understood why Black had asked them to come with their group. Things were not safe in this part of the world for Novices and Warriors.


“A War between Guilds…” He mused in curiosity. “How many Generals are usually there in an A-ranked Guild?”


“You need to have four Generals, and six Knights in your Guild to promote to Rank-A. To promote in Rank-S, you need to have six Generals and eight Knights or Eight Generals at least.”


“So there are more than four Generals and six Knights on each side.”


Silver nodded to him.


“That’s a cute Beast.” She lovingly looked at the little Beast.


“Thank you.” Aoun glanced at the sleeping Chino on his shoulder and smiled. “Her name is Chino.”

“Let’s see how fast your horse is…” Silver flashed a bright smile as soon as they escaped the forest and stepped on a land covered in snow.


The team geared up its pace, and it was quite fast.


Ray and Maya neighed as they accelerated, keeping up with the Stronger Beasts, earning appreciatively glances from the team.


“How far are the Seven Strongholds?” He frowned at the speed they were advancing at.


“At this speed, eight hours.” Silver looked at the White Horse and smiled. “Can he keep up?”


“Eight hours should be fine.”


The speed was fast but less than the top speed of Ray and Maya. Eight hours was not a problem. They could even hold on for twelve hours.


From time to time, the beautiful cry of the bird in the Sky was heard, navigating them on their route. And everyone kept their guards up.


The sounds of the galloping Horses and a growling Tiger echoed in the valleys they passed through. And there was this over-bearing Aura about their group, that Beasts escaped their path, and no people in the mountains dared to stop them.