"... Man, why are we the first ones here? Shouldn't those two be here already?"
Arthur grumbled impatiently as he leaned against the trunk of a tree just outside the large gates of Alexandria.
"Give them some time, they're probably fucking."
Said Margaret, her robe rippling in the cold pre-dawn wind. Given the lingering darkness outside, the sun had yet to rise from the ocean's depths.
"Can you not utter such profanity against our Leader?"
Igor furrowed his brows at Margaret.
"Hey, it's a natural thing that people do, don't treat it as something disgusting just because you don't get any action anymore, old man."
Margaret sneered, earning Igor's glare.
"Pfft! As if you get any, you damn old hag, haha!"
Arthur took a jab, but...
"Who said I don't get any?"
"..."
...She retorted with a smirk, and for some reason, her words caused Arthur's expression to turn extremely bitter.
"Also, can you stop calling me an old hag? We're the same age you know?"
She sucked her teeth and pointed her staff at Arthur.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever."
He rolled his eyes and almost seemed to pout angrily as he averted his gaze from her.
[Tch... These damn children.]
Igor clicked his tongue inwardly and rested his arms on the hilt of his large weapon, his equally large shield strapped to his back.
"Has everyone gathered?"
Julius and his wife finally made their way through the city's gates, and following closely behind them were six horses mounted by bags filled with more than enough supplies.
"Yes, we're all here, Leader."
"But would it not have been better to rent a carriage? Those are quite a lot of bags."
Said Igor, stepping forward to peer inside of said bags.
"No, it's better this way."
"It usually takes about a month to reach the Peninsula of the Drowned Gods, but Julius and I found a shortcut that could get us there within two weeks."
"But the path is a bit difficult to traverse on, especially with a carriage."
Helena quickly explained, reaching into her bumbag and offering Igor a map so he could see it for himself.
"...Alright then, let's go. I hope you've all said your goodbyes."
"...","..."
"Lead... To who? You know damn well that none of us have any family."
Margaret narrowed her eyes.
"Ah, that's right. I'm sorry."
"..."
"... Let's go then."
As the others mounted their horses, Julius glanced back at the city gates, his gaze filled with longing and worry.
But then he too mounted his horse, and prepared to —
"Oi, oi. Partner, you're not leaving without me, are you?"
A familiar voice, Hank's, rang out like a soothing bell in their ears.
"Yo, Hank!"
Arthur failed to conceal his excitement and waved at the man standing atop the high walls that encircled the city.
"Hup!"
Thud!
He jumped off and landed on his feet, a plummet that would have either paralyzed or killed a regular person had they attempted it, in fact, most people would usually scale these walls to commit suicide.
"... Partner, I'm glad you're here, but —"
"... Why do you look so damn beat up?"
Margaret snatched that question right out of Julius's mouth.
"Oh this? Meh, they're just a few scratches I got from fighting some thugs, don't worry about it."
"I got a bit too drunk yesterday, haha..."
"Oh! I see you've brought a horse for me? Haha, that makes me glad, I thought you were mad at me for just walking off yesterday."
Hank chuckled awkwardly and mounted the sixth horse.
"Sigh... You went to go see the Duke, didn't you?"
Julius's question froze Hank in place, and from that, he knew that he was right.
"Argh... You've always been able to see right through me."
"Yeah, you're right... And I got roughed up a bit for my trouble, who knew Royal Knights were that strong?"
Hank quietly sucked his teeth and hoped he wouldn't have to suffer through one of Julius's long lectures, especially with the long road ahead of them.
"It was dangerous what you did, but..."
"... It makes me happy..."
Julius smiled and tightened the reins on his steed, and with that, Soaring Boar, the strongest Adventurer party in the city of Alexandria, rode to their peril.
/
"Aaargh!! We're finally here!"
"Do you think there are bathrooms in there?! I'm tired of shitting in the woods!"
Arthur raised his arms above his head victoriously.
"Wow, we saw it from a distance on our way here, but it's incredibly large now that we're so close to it."
Margaret's eyes sparkled at the humongous Tower that stood before them, her usually well-pressed robe now riddled with wrinkles.
"Indeed it is large, the largest I have ever seen."
"I think its diameter is about the size of a large island? And this height..."
The short-statured man raised his gaze to investigate its height and saw that it easily pierced through the fleeting clouds above.
Not only he was dwarfed by it, but everyone present... They were like ticks standing before an elephants foot.
There was a reason why these were called the Major Towers, their sheer size and height made them stand apart from the others.
They only shared one similarity with the other Towers: the pitch-black, indestructible, otherworldly material with which they were made.
Humans have attempted to investigate this material for years, but they could not even determine whether it was a metal or not, let alone even obtain a small fragment of it.
"... Are you all ready?"
Julius stepped forward, his entire frame armed to the teeth with weapons and armour.
"... How could we possibly be?"
A cold sweat drenched each of their spines as they fixed their eyes on the entrance of the Tower — A pair of jagged, pitch-black gates that were, to them, no different than the jaws of death.
"We're either going to die like dogs, or leave this place as fucking legends!"
Margaret became extremely excited, perhaps an attempt to mask the intense fear that clawed at her chest?
And so...
An eerie silence engulfed them, only the roaring seas and the whistling winds could be heard.
The gates of the Tower seemed to pulse momentarily with a creepy and dark energy, as though it was begging them to enter.
"Soaring Boars..."
Shiing!
"... Chaaaarge!!"
Julius pointed his blade at the gates and they all charged directly toward their most certain demise.
//
"..."
A creature that sat on an impossibly beautiful, and violently radiant throne that seemed to be crafted from the searing flames of a dying star, suddenly opened its eyes.
[!!],[!!]
Sensing their Ruler's gaze, the two horned-figures that were standing guard below the throne's platform immediately bowed to one knee.
"How long has it been since we last had visitors... A hundred years?"
"Are they mighty enough to reach me? I grow weary of this boredom."
Whispered the creature who was inexplicably shrouded in darkness, which was strange because the throne room was brightly illuminated by countless Mana crystals that had enough potency to power an entire nation.
Their radiance touched everything else, yet, they faltered against this creature.
But what was even stranger was the fact that this creature did not exude any darkness himself to combat the vibrant lights, rather...
...It was as if the light itself feared to touch his form.