Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 19

There I was, eight feet tall, sporting a set of nigh-invincible black and gold armor and swinging a huge sword as I rushed to Liliana’s rescue. I wasn’t sure if she could see me through all the spider webbing, but I hoped I cut a dashing figure.

Doomblade’s signature massive sword had also gotten a few upgrades. Like most of the armor, it had benefited from my new magical alloy experiments. Mana flowed through this armor like steady breaths, reinforcing every joint and piston to hold the titanic strength of a peak B-Grade warrior.

One swing cut a spider in two. Another thrust buried my weapon straight through another and into the ground beneath it. Two more rushed at me, and I caught them with a gauntleted hand at either side and brought them together in a chitin-cracking slam. The whole fight only took a couple of heartbeats.

“Are you alright, miss?” I asked from under my helmet.

“Mmmf!” Liliana replied.

Freeing her from the webbing took longer than killing the spiders. I wasn’t nearly as dexterous in my armor as I would like, and while in character, I didn’t want to cheat with telekinesis. Eventually, I got her arms free, and with that, she was able to unwind herself.

“Y-you saved me! Who are you? I’m sure I would have noticed if we had a Black Knight like you.” Liliana looked up at me with wide eyes.

I looked down at myself and realized the dark armor I wore resembled the Order of Sorcery’s Black Knights.

“Ah, you’re from the Order of Sorcery, I take it? I’m just a wandering knight, never mind me. I’m more worried about you. How long were you trapped there by those monsters?” I asked, quickly changing the subject.

“Not long, thanks to you.” She smiled up at me, a warm flush to her cheeks.

“Good. These woods aren’t safe. Perhaps I should escort you home. How does that sound?” I asked.

“Yes! Please. The truth is, I’m terribly lost. I think I’m right here, and the place I need to get to is somewhere over here.” Liliana pulled out the map I’d given her and pointed at two completely wrong locations.

I wasn’t sure where she was headed, but she thought she was on the other side of Crownhill, and the place she was going to lead to the Torchdragon’s volcano.

“I see. Worry not. I know a thing or two about navigating these dangerous lands. Follow me, and I’ll get you where you need to go!” I said, gently prying the map from her grip and stuffing it in my pocket. Allowing her to do any more navigation was going to make this trip take even longer.

“Thank you for your protection,” Liliana said. She tried to wrap her arms around my waist in a tight embrace, though Doomblade’s chestplate was as large as a tree trunk, and her arms weren’t nearly long enough for that.

She looked up at me with wide and very thankful eyes that bore a little bit of that distant gaze I’d seen the day before. I immediately felt a strange gnawing in my stomach. It was the odd combination of fear and annoyance. I was always gone when I realized I’d just signed myself up for far more work than planned.

***

When I charted the course in my mind, I realized the hike was going to take most of the day, even traveling at C-Grade speeds. I’d forgotten what a pain it was to walk instead of fly.

I would have contended myself with that if we had actually been traveling at C-Grade speeds. Unfortunately, my traveling companion wasn’t up for that. After running into me, she seemed to be thinking of this whole trip as a garden stroll with friends rather than the trek through the untamed wilderness it was.

“Tell me more about yourself, Doomblade. Where did you learn to fight?” Liliana said, chin resting in her hands as she lay on her stomach, kicking her feet behind her while she stared at me by the fire.

She insisted on camping every night, even though at C-Grade she should have had no problem skipping sleep for a day or two.

“An Amazonian warrior taught me everything I know about the sword. I had to learn fast to survive an important duel,” I explained as my mind went back to those early days training on Themyscira with Cyra in preparation for my duel with Myrina.

“A duel? You really are a knight! You know the Black Knights of the Order of Sorcery are mostly outlaws and bandits. They were former lowlifes interested in learning the basics of cultivation, and in return, they served as our ground troops in our war with the Sages of Camlaan. We didn’t have the army of hereditary warriors the Sages had at their disposal and had to counter them somehow.” Liliana shrugged, and I sensed a little remorse in her tone.

“Sounds dangerous. If you give a man with ill intent a sword, you should expect him to use it for evil. What was the Order of Sorcery's plan if you won? These Black Knights won't down their weapons quietly.” I eyed her while I tended the fire. The logs were wet and eager to go out, so I was cheating a bit. I hadn’t actually started this thing by rubbing sticks together, but it had looked that way to Liliana.

“I... I don’t know. You’d have to ask my father. I’ll introduce you to him! I think he’d like you,” Liliana beamed up at me with a wide smile.

I shook my head, fearing where this was going. “While I am happy to escort you home, I can’t join your order, Liliana. There’s a lot I need to do. This world is in chaos following the integration. Someone has to set it right.”

“A hero and a leader. How admirable...” Liliana traced a finger up and down my side. Eventually, she let out a loud, exaggerated yawn. “Anyway, it’s getting late, and I want to get a little sleep. Too bad we only have my tent. Normally, I like my privacy, but since you saved me, I think I’d feel safe enough with you. Take that armor off and let’s get some rest.”

There was a faint glimmer in her eyes that I’d seen many times on Bridget, Sakura, and especially Myrina. I had to avoid getting into that tent at all costs. Otherwise, I’d really be signing myself up for more work.

“I’ll keep watch. Get some rest,” I replied.

Liliana pouted and entered her tent. Once inside, she conjured a magical light within the tent while she got undressed, casting her outline on the tent wall as she yawned and stretched herself. Her back arched, and she let out an entirely unnecessary moan as she relaxed into a perfectly ordinary bedroll as though it was the finest silk sheets in the land.

“Mhmm... there’s room for two in here, Doomblade!” she called out to me after a long, low moan.

“I think I hear a monster that way. I’ll be back shortly...” I said.

I wandered out of camp, got out of my armor, and flew all the way home to Bridget and Sakura. This time, I was the one keeping them up late.

***

I returned to Liliana the following morning. The sun was already up, so I was running a bit late. She was dressed and just finishing up packing the tent. When I arrived, she looked up and stared at me with a pout clear on her face.

“Find while you were patrolling?” Liliana had her hands on her hips, her chest forward, and her eyebrows raised.

“Er... yes. They kept me very busy all night long.” I rubbed the top of my helmet sheepishly.

“Hmf. Fine. Let’s get going.” She turned away from me with a sudden jerk, shoved the tent into a bag of holding and started marching stiffly in the wrong direction.

I sighed and mentally went over a few chapters in Ted’s book. What was it 'Interpreting the Fairer Sex' said about the cold shoulder treatment?

After mentally reviewing the book, I classified this as a cold shoulder scenario thirty-seven B. Given Liliana’s personality profile and a bit of guesswork based on the relevant chart, I determined the best solution was to feign ignorance until she got tired of things being quiet.

While we’d started in the wrong direction, my long strides rapidly outpaced hers, and soon she was following me again. By taking one step rightward for every hundred steps forward, I soon took the two of us around in a big circle until we were going in the right direction, all without saying a word.

Over the next three hours, we made more progress than we had the entire day prior. We passed the outer edge of what I considered Crownhill territory and into lands ruled by the Sages of Camlaan, which slowed us down a little. This area was completely uncharted to me, since it came from another stage of the integration. But I’d flown over it once already and had a pretty good idea of where the villages and towns were so I could avoid them as we made our way toward the place Liliana had marked on the map.

As we got closer and closer to the designated point on the map, I had a troubling realization. Liliana was terrible at reading maps. The odds that she’d correctly marked her destination for me were pretty much nil. We might be wandering around for a while, especially if she wasn’t on speaking terms with me.

Thankfully, that situation resolved itself not long after.

“Is it the robes?” Liliana asked finally. She tugged at the chest of her revealing sorceress robes, hauling them upward into something that made it so her breasts weren’t in danger of spilling out. “I know it’s a bit too revealing. Before you found me, I was... uh... attending an important diplomatic meeting. These were the only clothes they had to spare.”

My eyebrow twitched at the obvious lie. Her captivity at my hands had only been a diplomatic meeting under the loosest interpretation of the word. I’d had Bridget pack a dozen outfits for her in various styles since Bridget was roughly the same size. The low-cut sorceress robes she’d been wearing before had been way more revealing than what she was wearing now.

“There’s nothing wrong with the way you’re dressed,” I replied.

“You agree then? Really? You know, my father always complained when I wore this kind of stuff as a girl. But I’m a grown woman now. I can wear whatever I want. He’s not the boss of me anymore.” Liliana seemed to suddenly get heated as her mind no doubt flashed back to arguments she’d had with her father.

“Sure,” I replied.

“I mean, really. Once, he said...” Liliana went from dead silent to complaining loudly to me without stop.

Mentally, I shifted around some of my notes. Ted’s book had been a little too effective at dealing with the cold shoulder treatment. I’d add a little warning in the margins for myself and any future readers. I also jotted down a note in my mental profile for Liliana's personality and added a quick checkmark to the 'Daddy Issues' box.

I let her go on for a while and eventually steered the conversation back toward her and what she did for her people. As I learned during my interrogation, Liliana’s family was fairly high-ranking in the Order of Sorcery. Everything she said the same as the answers she’d given me during her interrogation, though now it was a little more embellished.

I acted like everything I heard was new since it was new to Doomblade.

“You should join the Order of Sorcery,” Liliana suddenly suggested after I’d asked a number of clarifying questions on the subject.

“I’m afraid I have no wish to be a nameless grunt. I’ve got adventuring to do.” I waved to the trail around us.

“No, really. There’s a lot we could do for you. You’re obviously strong. Most of the people my father recruits aren’t half as powerful as you. I saw you take those big spiders down like they were nothing. That would be worth a lot to us. Between your skills and my connections, I’m sure I could get you a position as a captain straight away,” Liliana said eagerly.

“I would think my strength a mark against me. The other Sorcerers would no doubt think negatively as a warrior as strong as they are.”

Liliana elbowed me in the side, smiling once more. “Well, my father and the others are pretty strong. But even if you think you’re at the same level, that’s all the better. You see, my father was the one who conceived of the idea of recruiting bandits and exiles to fight for us. Before the integration, they were mostly just to keep the knights off our backs, but after the integration, they proved invaluable at driving off monsters and capturing several towns and cities. Now, they’re on the verge of transforming from lowlives to a genuine fighting force. They just need good leadership, and they need to cast away their old roots. They need a leader with a noble heart and a brave soul.”

“And you think I could somehow get the job?” I asked.

Liliana waggled her eyebrows. “You didn’t think I was any random girl wandering these woods, did you? I am Liliana Mourningstar, daughter of Sorcerer Mourningstar, Grand Marshal of the Order of Sorcery!”

“I see.”

Liliana’s shoulders slumped. “Those names mean nothing to you, don’t they? Well, suffice to say I’m practically something of a princess in certain parts.”

I looked at her, and she crossed her arms in front of her chest. She couldn’t see my face beneath my helmet but seemed to sense my skeptical expression.

“Don’t look at me like that. I’ve hit something of a rough patch recently, that’s all. Normally, I’d have a hundred minions or more to do my bidding. And it’s not like I can’t handle myself either. I’m a Sorceress, you know what that means?” Liliana flicked her fingers and conjured a simple dark firebolt, which shot into the distance. To me, it looked like a simple D-Grade spell.

“Very impressive,” I said dryly as I clapped.

“You don’t seem scared at all. I guess you’re not the kind of knight that hates magic?” Liliana asked.

I chuckled. “I’ve met plenty of magic users since the integration. Magic is the same as a sword. It isn’t evil, but what you do with it can be.”

Liliana was quiet a moment before responding. “I wish the people of Camlaan could be like you. Maybe then we never would have needed to fight for our lives against the Sages.”

I went silent for a minute to think over how to politely turn Liliana down while still leaving room for Kyle or Marcus to step into their intended role while I returned to Crownhill. We were still half a day’s walk from the part of the map Liliana had mapped, so I thought I had all that time to think over my response.

Which was why I was caught entirely off-guard when Liliana pointed excitedly into the distance.

“We’re here! I thought I’d never make it home. Look, that citadel has been our order’s headquarters throughout the integration. I’ll let them know we’re here.” Liliana pointed a finger to the sky and let loose a large burst of bright purple flames visible for miles in every direction. The response from the citadel across from us came a few seconds later.

I hastily turned to Liliana. “It's been nice traveling with you, Liliana Mourningstar.”

I took a step away, but not before Liliana grabbed my arm in hers and pulled me closer.

“Nice enough that we’ll do it again soon enough! Come on, I want to introduce you to some people. Come on!” She smiled brightly at me.

I looked down at her and my arm and realized it was too late to foist this role off on Marcus or Kyle. I’d screwed up somewhere, and now if I wanted someone to infiltrate the Order of Sorcery, it had to be me.

<Note>

Must... not... expand harem. Must resist...

In other news, I just got my power back. I'll make up the chapter we missed... eventually. I still don't have much of a backlog yet.