The Exalt [Cultivation Fantasy]

The next day was quite quiet. Unwilling to show more of himself, Demon stayed inside his room, devouring the few Lower Marshal Exalt cores Erden had collected earlier. As the Ein surged through his veins and into his core, his body trembled, a few of his joints cracking from the weight of the power. It was lacking, very lacking. Compared to the Ein provided by a hypothetical essence of metal in Auren's formation, it fell far behind. Finished absorbing the eaten core, he heard Erden's message and switched to the Duality clone.

He rose from the bed inside the shabby bedroom and spotted the note slid under the door, unsigned with no seal. Erden carried the note on his antlers and tossed it onto Demon's lap. He unraveled the folded page and scanned it, pondering its contents in silence. They wished for him to be the main opener to cause an uproar and divert the guards' attention while they carried on their heist.

The note ended with a provocation. 'Since you are brave enough to be fearless before us, then surely, you must have your means to escape and deter others.'

Burning the note out of existence, Demon wiped his hands of the ashes and tapped his finger on his knee. Restel could handle the heist, but he had to find a way to deter the security and others who might get involved. Everything was set up to favor them, but the issue remained of whether or not he could take advantage of the chaos. For several hours, he considered his options, his tapping finger ticking like the hands of a clock, counting down the diminishing time he had to think.

'Ignyres. You are the Ancient of Fire, correct?' Demon asked.

'Are you mocking me, brat? I may not be so majestic now, but wait until you see my true power!' Ignyres fumed.

'Then I have a perfect role for you.' Demon returned to his real body and barged into the startled Auren, who had been sleeping after a long night of studying. Without warning, he dragged him to the main room and showed him a map of Belnicce Port. The boy's eyes turned from dull drowsiness to an ecstatic sparkle of delight, his shoulders trembling from excitement as seen from his wide grin. Auren burst out the door to fulfill his orders, cheering down the hallway.

"What's all that commotion? A lady needs her rest." Helen wandered out of the room, her hair unkempt and wild. Demon wasted no time and explained the heist to her, including the existence of the Defiants. Her blue eyes widened, her mouth agape, and her cheeks twitched as if trying to find the proper expression to react to his words. She laughed for a few seconds, her hair shaking wildly from how hard she laughed. Tying her hair, she let out short chuckles before clearing her throat. "From Convecia to here, why do you always cause trouble? It's as if you're attracted to it."

"Are you with me?" Demon questioned her loyalty in this matter. After all, as a former Branch Head, she surely fell sway under the Primal Council. Helen shook her head and slapped his metal helmet, a motion he saw but didn't dodge. Scoffing, he replied to her slap, "Rude."

"You're the rude one. Hector and I gave up our positions to chase Aldric. Don't belittle our resolve because of our past. For all our years, we've followed our path." Helen said clearly, a resolute air as her face turned stern. "Though I feel sorry for Sophia, I must side with you. So, is my role to fight against the old elder?"

"Let the lords of Belnicee handle it. I expect they have a backup plan in case of emergencies. They're well organized." Demon turned to stare out the hallway. "Just accompany Auren while he finishes his task. We can't have him run into any trouble."

The next few days, Demon rested while Auren ran around the city under Helen's watchful gaze. He focused on honing his Ein. Several platinum spheres circled him in meditation, pulsing a magnetic force that tugged on the bed with a golden frame, levitating it above the floor. Snapping his fingers, Demon formed concentrated scarlet orbs wreathed in blue flames, and they also joined the orbit. He floated above the bed and slowly overlapped his spells, the platinum spheres screeching and turning red-hot as the blue-blazing scarlet orb roared.

Beads of sweat overflowed and drenched him under his armor, his mind straining to contain the rejection the two elements had for each other. It was not an easy task, probably impossible. The paintings held on the walls trembled and fell off as the table clattered, sounding like a stampede of clopping horses. The blue flames scorched the platinum spheres black and crumbled them into ashes that blemished the scarlet sheen of the orbs. Demon clicked his tongue at the failure and waved off the spell.

The bed landed with a loud thud, but he remained floating, staring at his hands. The fusion of fire and metal worked fine under normal circumstances, even with the Line, but it all fell apart when using primordial fire. It seemed he had a new reason to go to Metures, to secure primordial metal and complete the fusion of the elements. A knock interrupted his thoughts, and he put on his helmet. "What is it?"

"My Lord, today is the night of the auction. Restel has also arrived, at last." Auren answered from the closed door.

The time was finally here. Exiting the room, Demon was greeted by Restel, her black, wild, overgrown hair covering her entire head and face. She bowed and knocked her head multiple times on the floor, stammering out her apologies, "I-I am sorry for arriving so late. Sorry." Her neverending apologies earned her a hug from Helen, who seemed to have a soft spot for her and Eve. A pointed glare from her was enough to understand she wanted him to speak. A simple exhale from him caused Restel to flinch.

"Enough of your apologies. You came when we needed you. Has Auren told you of your role?" Demon asked.

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"Y-yes! H-how will I get close to them?" Restel bowed again. "Sorry!"

"Leave that to me. Now enter my shadow." Demon beckoned her with a wave of his hand. Restel nervously stepped forward, fidgeting her shoulders. She landed on his shadow and melted into globs of darkness that seeped into his shadow, lightly darkening the shade but otherwise indistinguishable and undetectable. Other darkness users could enter shadows, but none came close to her degree of perfection. Quite a waste for her to be unable to use anything else, or she would have been a powerful assassin.

An hour later, they left and arrived at the auction, met by a scattered mass of masked individuals, some wearing full masks while others simply hid behind eye masks with unique and flavorful designs. Many gazes turned to him, an oddity amongst the rest of the party, the visible eyes narrowing in apprehension. He wore his usual armor and helmet, adhering to the rules of the masquerade auction by covering his face. Auren and Helen dressed well in formal attire and wore masks.

Helen swiped a glass of wine from a nearby attendant carrying several glasses and made her way to a group, mingling with the chatters of high society and gossip. Standing like a statue, he positioned himself diagonally behind her, the usual spot of a bodyguard, which eased the prying gazes that probably believed him to be her guard. Auren somehow became the center of attention, introduced as Helen's relative. His flustered demeanor and speech only flamed the teasings of the wily, old aunts who took quite a liking to him, even trying to set him up on dates with their young relatives.

'Here he comes.' Shifting his stance, Demon saw a small group passing by. One of them was his Duality body, currently controlled by Erden, who grumbled internally several times. But beside his clone were Tiron and Avila, who dressed up in a fine blue suit and a black dress for the occasion. Avila's hair was tied back but had been changed to blonde while a pair of red eyes shone from the eye mask. As for Tiron, he had simple brown hair and eyes, though Demon knew for sure it was a disguise. Tapping his foot on his shadow, Demon got Restel's attention. 'Go into the shadow of the white-robed man and then transfer to the woman's shadow.'

'Y-yes!' Restel answered. Timing it right, Demon turned, pointing his shadow before their path. In the Duality clone, Erden stepped on the shadow, not a single inch off in his strides, and Restel transferred herself to him. Quickly, the darker shade faded from the Duality's shadow and propped up in Avila's. Knowing his task was done, Demon swapped bodies with Erden, taking control of the Duality clone.

"That man…." Demon spoke from the Duality's lips. He paused slightly to build tension. He glanced at his real body, now controlled by Erden. "He's strong."

"You've noticed?" Avila whispered. "The elder also mentioned the same. But he won't be a factor if we follow the plan." She separated from them, as did Tiron, who left with a stern warning. Leaning on the wall, he watched them go about their roles.

Avila pretended to be slightly drunk and approached a key member of the auction house, blushing and speaking sultry words that piqued the man's interest, his lust-filled, drunk, reddened eyes wandering around her graceful figure. Her act was very good, and her tolerance was incredibly high. She drank several glasses of high-quality wine meant for Marshal Exalts and still didn't get drunk, quite different from Avril, and endured the more-than-familiar hands of the man. As she led him away, she darted her gaze to him and went upstairs to the private quarters.

"A good woman. Worry about her." A gentle, aged voice came from the side. Wearing a strange wooden mask, the elder chuckled and relaxed on the bench, hunching while tapping his walking stick on the crystal floor. "So…how will you betray us?"

"Not surprised you knew. Anyone with years of experience would know." Demon was unsurprised to hear it. He had expected it but had to praise the elder for being so brazen to ask in the center of the auction. "Are you not afraid I'd report you?"

"No. You want profit. Also, you don't lie. The girl's sister." The elder sighed. "Cared for her. Raised her. But never found sister. Thank you."

"Because of that? What do you want?" Demon asked.

"Contest. Will you win? Will I win?" The elder's face was hidden under the mask, but Demon could tell a smirk rested on that aged face.

"Not afraid of being caught?" Demon wondered what other plans the elder had.

"Not a chance. The only variable is you." The elder pointed his stick at him. "Why not join us?"

"Your rebellion?" Demon rubbed his chin. "Don't drag me into your schemes. If you wish to die against the Primal Council, go ahead."

"Shame. Favor you." The elder hopped off the bench, giving him one final glance behind the wooden mask that depicted a man puckering his lips. "Hope I win."

The elder's figure disappeared behind the crowd. Demon looked at the grandfather clock, its pendulum swinging from left to right in a hypnotic motion, several children staring blankly at it. An hour went by. There was another hour before the start. The party and auction would begin here in this open atrium when the moon reached the highest point in the night sky. While looking up, he was distracted by several figures nearing him, their stoic gazes fixating on him. He glanced around, but nope, these people were here for him.

'That old man…' Realizing the elder had sold him out instead, Demon scoffed, intent on winning the contest. The one at the head of the security group was a Lower Marshal Exalt, so he charged in, a magnetic force from the platinum protrusion from his feet, repelling him forward at great speed. Screams and shouts resounded as he upended the floor with a single punch, caving in the ground and flinging rubble all over.

"Intruder!" The guards assembled, and more rushed over. Many parents carried their children out of the way while other attendees watched gleefully from the side, clearly excited at the show.

His original plan had been wrecked. He intended to complete it while remaining hidden, but the old man's plot got him first. Still, it wasn't a loss. Placing his hand on the ground, Demon activated the formation Auren had spent days creating. Faint pillars of light beamed to the night sky from all across the port, and a great fire converged from above. The massive fire crashed onto the barrier surrounding the auction, embers spewing from the pulsating defense.

The fires scattered apart, no longer holding any Ein, and rained down, passing through the barrier that deemed them harmless. A spell required intent, Ein, and a foundation for it to work. These flames held no master, no Ein, and no purpose…until now. The falling embers and fires diverted from their freefall and collected in the center of the open atrium to the shocked gasps of the guests and guards. Given purpose, the flame formed a giant of fire, a vague outline of a massive monster.

'HAHAHA! I am the Ancient of Fire!' Ignyres entered the masterless fire, eyes gleaming in flames, and willed it to raise its fiery hand before slapping it down on several Exalts. 'It's been a while since I've had a body!'

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