Villain: The Play of Destiny

Chapter 562

The nights in the Frozen Wasteland were nothing short of a trial of wills and strength.

A cold wind screamed as it blew ferociously through the land and the forest, rocking the trees and making them tremble in fear, their bare branches rattling like brittle bones in the icy gusts.

As for the Aurors, there was a strange Law within this wind which, if they were not careful, threatened to sap the Aura and Mana from their bodies. This was simply not a place where people could come unprepared, and especially not a place where the weak could survive.

It was truly a marvel how the two Ancient Clans had made this land their home and lived here for thousands of years without ever considering moving away. Perhaps the environment here was also the reason why these Ashaya had a bluish tint to their nearly pale skin.

"Elemental Spirit?" Minami curiously voiced her guess, trying to make sense of this strange phenomenon where the Wind was trying to steal people's Aura and Mana, and Keith had come to the same conclusion.

"Possibly, yes." He said and then his eyes changed to their Amethyst Shade beneath his half-mask, allowing him to see things more clearly than ever.

Minami was doing the same, and both of them turned to look towards the centre of the Frozen Wasteland at the same time.

Whatever the source of this strange weather phenomenon was, it was somewhere deep inside the Frozen Wasteland.

However, they also discovered a lot of other things, and the more they looked at their surroundings, the more their brows furrowed.

"This land is cursed." Minami lightly whispered after they masked their eyes again, and even though she did not show it, she was very apprehensive of this place now.

This place stank of blood, curses, and evil, and was infested with baleful Auras that were being masked by very powerful charms and curses.

Even if she did not know exactly what had happened here, she was certain that this land had witnessed battles far beyond the scope of mere Mortals.

The two of them walked towards the Settlements, unbothered by the wind, which made their cloaks rustle, and when they neared the place, they discovered a new building on the northern side of the crater.

It was a grand Pyramid Pavilion, constructed within hours, yet it was still a majestic sight. Its polished wooden surfaces were gleaming faintly beneath the pale moonlight.

Keith looked around and found that the members of the two Clans, who were both antagonistic towards each other, were working together at the Pavilion to serve the guests.

"The letter, please." The guards at the stairs that led up to the top of the wooden Pyramid, where the Pavilion was situated, bowed to them and asked.

Minami showed them the letter, and after verifying it, they bowed again and let them climb the stairs.

Exactly 999 steps later, they arrived inside the Pavilion, where a large round table was placed with dozens of chairs around it, each with a respectable gap between them.

Most of the guests had already arrived, and they were being served food and drinks by the two Ancient Clans, with every guest having their own attendant.

Some guests were standing in groups beside the tall pillars, gazing into the distance and chatting with each other.

Their arrival did attract the attention of several people, especially because they were wearing their half-masks at such an event. While some frowned, a few smiled and even stood up.

"Lord Argus." A tall man with white hair that had a yellowish tint to it brightly smiled at the pair.

He looked younger than the last time they had met in the City of Azensday.

"Lord Ziar." Keith smiled back as he shook his hand. "Congratulations on becoming a Martial King."

"Thank you." Ziar Ciria, the Owner of the Cirian Gallery in the City of Sin, laughed and then politely bowed to Minami in greeting. "It's a pleasant surprise."

"I was not expecting the Owner of the Cirian Gallery to come here, but I suppose the Key is lucrative enough."

"Indeed. And the Emperor wanted me to lead the party with my brothers and cousins." The man said and then signalled to his companions to come over.

Seeing a Prince from the Cirian Royal Family coming over to greet them, and seeing Ziar talk to him with such familiarity, attracted even more attention to them.

The people from the Crystal City who wanted to come over, greet him, and invite him to sit with their groups remained in their places, realising that they should not disturb him.

Keith and Minami learned that Rebecca and Avriel were in contact with Ziar, and that they had some ongoing business deals.

Ziar's youngest cousin, and the daughter of the Cirian Emperor, had become good friends with his wives in Aventine, and neither of them was surprised when they learned that Jean was the new White Enforcer of the Academy.

Rebecca must have refused the offer since she had her own plans, and Avriel must have accepted it since they needed someone with that power.

The news was not public yet, but the Cirian Royal Family had a lot of people at the Academy, so they learned about it before everyone else.

"Kindly keep it a secret," Keith asked the man, and Ziar apologised and promised not to speak about it to anyone.

Their conversation was masked, so no one at the Pavilion could really hear their words, but it was clear that the Cirian Royal Family respected him a great deal.

There was a sudden commotion in the Pavilion when an unexpected guest suddenly arrived at the scene.

"The Sword Doctor!" someone exclaimed, and Keith, who had already been informed by the System about the arrival of the Martial Overlord, glanced in the direction of the man.

Amos Zayne, the famous, or infamous, Sword Doctor, happened to be looking in his direction as well, and the moment their eyes met, the man, who was in his Second Desolation, started walking towards him.

"I found you, Boy." The man grinned, with a hint of madness reflecting in his eyes.

Keith curiously raised his brow at him, especially when Amos stopped right in front of him and glanced at his company.

He was quite amused that the man held no regard for etiquette and did not even put the Prince of the Cirian Empire in his eyes.

Amos did, however, stop when his eyes passed over Minami, and his brows furrowed slightly as he felt the bells of crisis ringing in his mind.

She seemed indifferent, but something told him that she was ready to kill him if he made any rash move. And as harmless as she looked, he was embarrassed to admit that he was feeling restless now.

When he finally looked at Keith again, he was even more intrigued when he sensed nothing from the young man, who was like an infinite void where his perception was simply useless.

He could not even look past their strength, which made him quite curious about the treasures on their bodies and the secrets they were hiding.

"Found me?" Keith pulled him out of his thoughts and asked.

"Let's go out. I want to test my sword against yours."

Someone at the table, for some reason, found his words very funny, and they burst into chuckles.

Keith too smiled at the words of the mad Swordsman, who looked very excited to finally meet him.

"I am afraid now is not the right time, Lord Amos."

"It's good that you know me." The man grinned. "You should also know that I don't take no for an answer."

"I am afraid, again, that you cannot make me do what you want, Sword Doctor. I am a little prideful." He lightly said, still wearing a smile. "But I will agree to your request if you can solve a riddle."

Amos, taken by surprise, raised his brow at him, not because he was willing to agree to his request, but because Keith seemed aware of his love for riddles.

"What?"

"A hornets' nest, and a drop of honey, a web of a spider, and flies stuck inside it. A bone-chilling cold, but there's a flame hidden right in the open. And it's not the moths who are drawn to it." Keith lightly said, but everyone in the Pavilion heard his words clearly.

"Life?" Amos frowned as he racked his brains, and frowned again when the Eldeilyon laughed.

"It's not as complicated as life, Lord Amos. Take your time. Oh, and it has nothing to do with philosophy." He gave the man a hint before he grabbed Minami's hand and excused himself.

Markos, who was about to interfere, relaxed when he saw that Amos did not stop Keith from leaving, and the Yellow Enforcer became a little curious when the two masked guests decided to sit next to the representatives of the Team from Arcadia.

He had received a call from a certain someone a day ago, and he was still confused about it.

Balon and Ilsa curiously looked at Keith and Minami, but it was another girl in their group whose curiosity led her to voice her question.

"Why are you wearing masks?" The white and raven-haired girl asked, and her voice contained only hints of genuine curiosity.

She was really confused about how Markos had not asked them to take off their masks. After all, wearing masks on such an occasion was considered rude.

"I don't want to harm people and their relationships." Keith playfully looked at the girl, who was around eighteen but looked like a fourteen-year-old.

"How would not wearing the masks harm people and their relationships?" she confusedly asked, and Minami smiled a little at her innocence.

"It's because if you see my face, you will never forget me. And you might helplessly fall in love with me." He kept up his playfulness, and his words made a lot of people roll their eyes.

"He's narcissistic." Some boy smirked but frowned when he noticed the girl by his side trying to scrutinise Keith's profile. "Why are you looking at him like that?" he asked the girl, who offhandedly answered him, making him frown some more.

"Just curious."

The girl who had raised the question to Keith noticed other girls around curiously looking at him, and she too decided to imagine his face from what she could see of it.

"You are lying. You wouldn't hide your face just because you are handsome."

"I told you, I don't want to harm people and their relationships." He said again, and this time, the keen ones mistook his words and started running their brains, trying to guess his identity.

Perhaps they thought that he was hiding his face because he was someone infamous, and a lot of people glanced at Markos, raising questions without voicing them.

"No one's that handsome!" The girl stubbornly shook her head, refusing to believe his words and remaining oblivious to what was happening around her.

"Are you sure?" He playfully asked and smiled when she confidently nodded her head. "Come here."

Balon raised his brow when his cousin stood up, and he was about to stop her but realised where they were and did not say anything.

With Markos there, the stranger would never harm his innocent cousin. Besides, he too was curious about what Keith wanted to do.

"Yes?" The girl, who was just over five feet tall, asked when she came to stand near him.

A few people tensed up when Keith waved his hand and created a veil of golden flames, covering him and the girl, and even though they could see through it, they could not see anything clearly.

All they saw was Keith putting his hand on his face and pulling up his mask, showing the girl what he looked like. He then simply put it back in its place and removed the veil.

"Val." Balon worriedly called out to his cousin when he found her frozen in her place with her mouth dropped open in shock or awe, and it was only after his repeated calls and a slight push from Minami that the girl broke out of her trance.

A blush that nearly turned her face scarlet warmed her skin, and she lowered her head before silently returning to her seat, not saying a word, her heart still racing from the fleeting glimpse she had caught.