Infinite Paths: The Raging Phoenix

Joanis's brow furrowed as he navigated the streets of the town. He couldn't shake the feeling that Rain was orchestrating a complex scheme. The recent attack on his stronghold had raised countless questions. How had Rain infiltrated so smoothly? What motivated him to strike precisely at this moment? And why did Branden's arrival seem perfectly timed to coincide with the ensuing chaos?

Amid these mysteries, Joanis couldn't help but acknowledge Rain's audacity. Rain had proven himself a formidable adversary, capable of crafty maneuvers and he didn't mind taking risks.

Joanis knew he needed to act swiftly and decisively to deal with this troublesome enemy. He had to confront Rain and neutralize the persistent threat. While he held a firm grip on power, every move felt like a step in the dark. He knew what Rain could do, or at least he thought that he knew… It was surprising that a fourteen-year-old boy could do that much.

As he continued his journey through the city, Joanis resolved to stop underestimating Rain's intentions and power and protect his project from this unknown factor. When he reached the camp outside the city, he had an idea.

"Send word for Karla of the king's blade and Phel's squad, they are to be at my tent in one hour," Joanis said after he smiled

Upon hearing Joanis's summons, Karla felt a deep sense of unease settle within her. Such calls from him were never associated with positive news. She was no combatant, and her current role in enemy territory had already pushed her to her limits.

Exhausted and drained, Karla couldn't deny that she was already grappling with the demands of her mission. Joanis's message only added to her burden, and she couldn't shake the feeling that it signaled trouble on the horizon. It cast a dark cloud over her already challenging task.

"Are you fine? We can go with you," Cor said.

"It is fine, that will probably only cause more problems," Karla said. "Anyway, did you guys learn anything?"

"Only the higher ups interrogated the prisoners, so we can't say for sure what happened, but it truly looks like someone alerted the people here, our scouts also disappeared without leaving a trace," Cor explained. "A third party is trying to slow us down, and the only ones who would benefit from that would be…"

"Yeah, I know… I don't think that they would actually help the enemies, but in this situation…" Karla said and then she saw some of the guards of Joanis approaching. "I guess it is time to go."

Karla left the area while being escorted by the guards. They give her the creeps since they act like people without will, so she wants to get over whatever she has to do.

In the end, after arriving at the tent where Joanis would have the meetings with his very silent soldiers, she felt like sighing when she saw one of the special teams that had been leading the fights so far. Until now, most of the army only walked, and those few guys killed hundreds of the magic people. As usual, Karla couldn't see anything aside from their eyes which looked devoid of any emotion.

She felt shivers and had a hard time controlling her body.

"Thank you for coming, Miss Karla," Joanis said. "You seem tired; I suppose this atmosphere of war isn't doing you any good."

"Thank you for your concern, sir," Karla forced a smile. "It means a lot."

"Thanks to the recent events, we believe that some people are trying to get in our way and they will probably keep doing that," Joanis added. "You should know that one of the former members of the king's blade is cooperating with the sea folk, don't you? It seems that this person captured Brabden, Lorene, and Orcis. He also captured the princess a few days ago. Do you know who that person is?"

"I don't know many people that are that resourceful, but only one person from the organization went missing lately in the capital; the others are his friends who disappeared in the port town," Karla said, trying to keep her composure since she didn't know that Rain decided to stop pulling his punches.

"He is truly a remarkable individual, it is a pity that he is a kid too full of himself," Joanis said. "Perhaps people called him a hero a bit too soon? Anyway, we can no longer ignore his actions. He kidnapped all the kids of an orphanage, kidnapped the princess, kidnapped Branden, Lorene and Orcis.

He hid invaders from the sea, causing a lot of damage to my properties, he stole goods from my warehouses, and finally, he claimed the western side of the country for himself. It is about time for him to pay for the crimes of all those treacherous acts, and there is only one position for those who disobey our king. Death. All those on his side will suffer the same fate."

Karla gulped… she knew that Rain had three little sisters, and the idea of those three being executed made her heart grow cold.

Truth be told, she didn't think that Rain was sane in doing all of this, even if he was strong, he couldn't face an entire kingdom by himself… occasionally, she recalled that Jori and the others said that he was a doting brother and that he would do everything for them… perhaps he was doing all of that to keep them protected… Still, if they unleashed the beast inside him to do that, it was hard to imagine what could happen.

"You will return to our country with Phel squad here and you can bring a team with you of the king's blade as well," Joanis said. "First, you will head to the port town and take control over the soldiers there who want to free their lord. After that, you will head to all the major cities in the kingdom and raise an army to kill the traitors.

The one who brings me his head will receive ten diamond coins. You are not to return until you succeed on that task."

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