Simulation 3ND 15 The Corsican General Part 1

I never thought that walking through miles on this old road could be so tiring. I was getting hungry and desperate. And, also I was having these flashbacks. The image of terror, holding James as he held on his life. The sound of a monster, holding him as it tries to consume him. I cried many times, thinking that I could have saved him. Could have done better. I felt so hollow watching his dog Shadow with me. He looked at me with sadness, asking me what happened to his former master.

To make matters worse, my inventory beamed at my face, notifying me that something was added to my inventory. While I checked to see what was it, I immediately clicked my tongue with utter frustration. I fell on my knees and cried again. The soul of James and the ???'s soul. A definitive description of his soul said:

James was a former Archer cla.s.s player who fought together with his friend Joan to defeat an enemy. He wasn't capable to stay determined to win the Crown of Infinity.

I refuse to accept this description. He was more than a friend. He was a human being. A human who wanted to survive, just like me. I tapped his soul for a full visual of it and it appeared on my hand like a will o wisp. It was beautiful, shining like a fire. It was warm and cozy. Staring at the bright soul, I smiled knowing that he's resting. Shadow wagged his tail and sniffed as it whimpered with sorrow. I will take care of his soul until the end.

I examined his former master's soul and the description was a mess. It was filled with numbers and letters with no description. His soul was somehow misty and dark. But I felt something alive inside, a sign that in that misty darkness, someone was aware.

I wiped the tears on my face and moved forward. I needed to move forward, think ahead of my actions. Through the road, I located a few NPCs doing ch.o.r.es in a village and asked for directions They told me that in order to cross to the Golden Castle, I must pa.s.s the city of Bordeaux, through the Frankish Kingdom. The same place that my Master Jeanne wanted to go. They warned me that the road was long to Bordeaux and they offered me a lift to the city, because they were going anyway to buy some goods.

To be honest, I kept myself popping my menu and looking to my inventory in search of James' soul. I keep staring at it, watching in agony as I held his life on my hand. A fitting thing of how foolish I was not knowing a d.a.m.n thing about healing. A failure of a Templar cla.s.s player. I looked at my Status and saw my description panel.

Player name: Joan Collins

Age: 17

Cla.s.s: Templar

Level: 12

Abilities:

Protection

Shining Light- Enchantment Sword

t.i.tan Wall- Defense Boost

The road to the Golden Castle will be hard. I need to help myself and improve my abilities. Train and level up. That way I can survive too. And take care of Shadow too. He seems so gentle with me. I quietly put away James' soul on my inventory as I promised myself to find Alister and survive. It's the only thing I got now.

I looked outside the carriage and saw the vibrant city of Bordeaux. The smell of wine added a flavor of romance and cla.s.s. Smiling NPCs enjoyed themselves working together. The smell of pumpkin pie wafted the streets of Bordeaux, making me and Shadow hungry even more. So the first thing I did after paying the villagers who gave me a lift is to find someplace to eat.

It was odd for me to go out and eat alone, especially in a strange world like Casthynia. Thinking about eating something good, I began to think about James. His well crafted cuisine gave me so much bliss that I felt that I was back in the real world. I feel him talking about his skills of the culinary arts in front of me, haunting me of his desire to go back to the real world. A sense of paranoia struck me as I felt someone or something watching me from behind. Secretly I scanned the area for anything suspicious, but there was nothing. I guess it wasn't James after all. Even Shadow didn't seem too concerned.

I noticed something strange before I entered into one of the restaurants. First, there was a paper on a billboard with an enormous 'Warning', speaking about the sudden murders in the city. The citizens has started to call this serial killer 'The Night Demon'. Apparently, these murders always occurs during the night, and the victims were random. An order was set to the citizens to return to their homes when the clock times 18:00. And the second thing was that blue armored knights were scouting the area, checking on the NPCs with suspicions. Just as one of them started to search on a woman, I quickly got inside.

The mood on the Inn restaurant was dull and dark. Many strange men started to look on my way, eyeing me with suspicion. A man with a groomed mustache stopped me on my tracks as he pushed his hand on my armor. Shadow growled a little.

"Miss, no weapons allowed. If you wish to eat inside, hand over your weapons." He looked down at Shadow who was wagging his tail. "And no dogs allowed."

I looked around, and saw many warriors and adventurers drinking their ale without something to protect themselves. If I refuse to give my weapons, he will have a reason to suspect that I have evil intentions. So I clicked my tongue and handed my templar sword and shield to him. But, I insisted to him that Shadow is my guiding partner for my adventures. Although it was a stupid excuse, he somehow nodded and let me in with Shadow.

I ordered a plate of herbed basted potatoes and roasted chicken. To be honest, the food looked mild. If James was here, I bet he will have add another kind of flavor and goodness to the food. As I sliced the juicy chicken, I immediately gorged it, savoring the meat. Shadow whimpered besides me, begging for a piece of meat, so I instantly cut a part of the chicken and he s.n.a.t.c.hed it away from my hand. Although the chicken was a little dry, it satisfied me to eat the whole of them. I looked at my status and scanned the timer. I have to hurry and leave this city before any trouble comes after me. But before I left the table, somebody else sat down in front of the table with a white coat.

"You…!" I instantly recognized her. Jeanne placed her finger on her lips.

"Madam Joan…it's good to see you again after abandoning me." She said with a blank face.

"I could explain…"

She pointed her finger upward. "There's a private room I rented here. Number 207. I'll be waiting for you." And she stormed the table into the stairs.

How did she find me? I thought she abandoned me toward her destination. I wonder what she has to say. She probably going to insult me. Well, here I am, smiling myself knowing that she found me again.

The 207 door was in front of me. I started to get nervous, my hands sweating like crazy. As I turned the handle, I opened the door slowly until I saw her in her white coat, watching the window carefully. As soon as Shadow and I entered the room, she commanded me to close the door. After the task is complete, she turned her body to me and removed her hood, revealing her gentle maiden face. Her stormy eyes showed concern.

"Care to explain why you left my side, madam?" She crossed her arms and waited.

I sighed. "I lied. I said that I'll join you to claim the crown. But, all I wanted is to look for my friend. I know that you are the leader of the party. That you should teach me the ways of the world. But I didn't care for that. Don't you realize that I'm like a prisoner? I want to find answers but I can't do it without Alister. That's why I left. I'm sorry."

She turned her head toward the window. "You have courage. You plunge yourself into the unknown. Even I doubted you. Rushing into the darkness was a bold move to search for your friend. You could have died." Then unexpectedly, she went and hugged me. "Je suis juste content que tu sois en sécurité(I'm just glad you are safe)" She said with a soothing voice. And I hugged her too, while holding the tears. Shadow started to lick our faces playfully. For the first time, I felt safe.

"I have decided to follow you. You can trust me to help you on your fight. After the war is over, I will find Alister. I know he will be alright. So…" I nodded and forced a smile. It's true that I went to this city to travel to the Golden Castle. But…I believe it will be a waste of time. What if there is a trap waiting there? What if Alister isn't there anymore? The only logical way is to stay together with the party and defeat our opponents. It's the only way to survive. So Alister, please…. Wait for me.

She looked at me with warm eyes as she placed her hand on my shoulder. "I'm happy that you are, Joan. And I forgive you for leaving my side."

After we felt comfortable talking, we sat down on the bed and she started to talk. Shadow yawned and fell asleep on the carpet. He looks so cute sleeping.

"The bell has tolled. A Master has died by the hands of a Player. Now there's ten of us. We have to be careful from now on."

I remained quiet for a moment, while I popped out the menu and touched James' soul and ???'s soul. The glinting soul of James brightened the room with aura of calmness, while his former Master exhibited dullness. Jeanne widen her eyes in astonishment.

"Did you…? Did you defeat them?" She asked mesmerized.

But I shook my head, grasping James's soul more closer. "No. He sacrificed himself to save me…and I failed to save him."

I explained in detail of what happened. About meeting James, about the corrupted Master, about his friends dying, and about how he helped me escape the forest. Jeanne closed her eyes and murmured a few lines of prayer. And then she placed her hand on mine.

"I'm sorry of what happened. It is not your fault that this man went and saved you from his corrupted Master. He was a brave man, and G.o.d will embrace him with love. It is also my fault that I haven't taught you the values of healing." She snapped her fingers and a book appeared on her hand. "This will teach you the Miracle called 'Heal'. Since you have gained experience, and furthermore your brave ordeal, I will grant you this Miracle to you."

After opening the book, I instantly learned 'Heal'. It was as if something out of nowhere pops out the learning bulb in my head and records the knowledge. After reading it in seconds, the book vanished into thin air, completing it's task.

After resolving our issues, Jeanne walked again into the window, staring at it with a watchful eye. She and I exchanged looks and followed her to her side. The city was getting dark.

"Madam Joan, have you seen the chevaliers outside in the city?" She asked.

"Chevaliers? You mean the knights? Yes."

She nodded. "Ever since I arrived into this city, there's a foul stench of evil lurking around. After I investigated throughout the streets, I learned that there's a serial killer on the loose, oui? Some called it the 'Night Demon'. It sounds to me that this 'démon' is the danger we must face."

Perhaps she's right. It might be a Master who has started killing people randomly. But, that doesn't make sense anyway. Why would a Master be interested in NPCs? Could it be he or she is corrupted, just like in the Shivering Forest? Or is it something else?

"Allow me to explain myself of my current mission. Remember that I told you that we needed to travel to the Frankish Kingdom? The truth is, there's a possible ally who wants to work together with me. The real reason is it's because here in the Frankish Kingdom, there's a dreadful ent.i.ty lurking in the shadows. He fears that it could destroy the whole of Casthynia. And even defeat the rest of the Masters. The Night Demon must be the one I seek."

Shadow yawned again. "How can you be so sure it's the same ent.i.ty that you are looking for?"

"I used my persuasion skills to one of the commanders of the Blue Chevaliers and he told me that the 'Night Demon's influence has spread through other cities. The same pattern: attacks at night and murders random people and also, some disappeared from the earth. It might be possible that the Night Demon kidnaps people too. Whatever it is, the murders has rocketed into the skies. And no other citizen has claimed to see the perpetrator. It was as if it was a phantom."

I crossed my arms. "Are you sure we can trust this 'ally' of yours?"

She placed her closed hand on her chin in a thoughtful evaluation. "He contacted me through letters at the Silent Sanctuary. He said that he knows me, though I doubt I don't recognize his name."

"What's his name?" I asked.

He locked eyes on me. "Napoleon. He's the king of this kingdom. I suggest we make contact with him so we can diplomatically have a conversation…"

Suddenly, there was a ruckus outside. The screams of people shouting for help came just outside the inn. Jeanne and I exchanged looks and together with Shadow, we sprinted outside to see the commotion.

As soon as we stepped into the streets of Bordeaux, a huge crowd gathered. Men and women and children's faces were drained with fear and despair. As soon as we managed to crawled a way into the scene, a mult.i.tude of knights were looking at the victim. The victim was stabbed with a sword on it's chest, tainted with blood.

"Stand back!" A man with the scar on his face said. His accent wasn't french. But he looked to be of a high ranking general.

He crouched into the ground and examined the victim. Oddly enough, he moved his index finger and touched the sword, showing a panel of data. Once he began to read, he said with a whispered tone. "The owner of this sword is a templar named Joan."

Through the shock of nerve, I placed my hand on my belt, but my sword wasn't there. It was then that I realized that I gave my sword and shield to the man with the mustache. Did he used it? Or somebody else took it from him? In truth, he wasn't there on the front desk when the commotion started.

Jeanne quickly noticed when the scarred man saw me. Did he see my name? Could it be he is a Player who can see names too? Trying to realize of the situation, Jeanne grabbed my hand to flee, but the blue knights acted quickly, showing a small cavalry unit blocking the exits. Shadow barked at the knights. We are trapped. The knights dragged their swords, menacing us if we move a muscle.

"Joan Collins. So you must be the infamous Night Demon lurking in the shadows. My liege will be very pleased to see you locked in a cage." The handsome scarred man said in a relaxed voice. His green eyes twitched my body from fear. His face was drained from emotion. I looked above his head and saw his name: Shen Nakamura.

I started to a.n.a.lyze the situation. There are two problems on our hands. One, the knights were threatening us and their swords are eager to take a slice on our heads. The other: Jeanne is a pacifist Master. She doesn't rely on sword, but more in words. Her high persuasion could be useful in this moment. But still, we don't have weapons on our hands. I guess I have to follow this up until the end.

"It wasn't me!" I started to say. "I was at the Inn. The man with the mustache asked me to give my weapons to him and I…"

"Perhaps you might take a closer look, Joan." He waved his hand and I walked a little closer to the victim's body. I instantly gasped when I saw the mustache. It has to be a mistake. Someone is trying to frame me. But who?

Suddenly Jeanne confronted him and sparked her banner on the floor. "In the name of G.o.d, my name is Jeanne d Arc. I request justice to this woman. I believe the Night Demon was the result of this confusion, and I can a.s.sure you she is no demon. She's my partner. And I will defend her with my life." The banner sparkled as her words came out. Her real power lies on the flag, the source of his persuasion power.

The man stared quietly at Jeanne, studying her of what to do next. He suddenly smirked. "I recall my liege saying your name. A woman with silver armor, waving the flag of France. He is expecting you for a while." He suddenly bowed to her. "I respect a knight such as yourself."

Jeanne continued defending me. "Indeed. That is why I'm here on Bordeaux. Here's the proof your liege's letters." She slipped her pocket and took out the papers and showed them to the scarred man. He calmly read them and after finishing reading it, he gave them back to Jeanne. He looked different than the other knights I have seen. He's more attentive and calm. But deep inside, I know he hides most of his thoughts away. A prideful knight with a stone heart.

"I can see you are indeed Jeanne d Arc. It is unfortunate that you are siding with a suspect of countless murders. But nevertheless, she will be locked in prison, while I personally escort you to Napoleon's chambers."

But Jeanne waved her flag. "You will not do no such thing, monsieur. I request an audience with Napoleon with my partner present. I want the Blue Chevaliers escort us safely to the Palace of Justice. I want to speak to him and resolve this ridiculous notion." I knew well that her power was working because I saw something changing in Shen's eyes. A change of heart.

He slowly nodded. "Very well. The Blue Chevaliers will escort you to the palace safely. And I will allow an audience with my liege. But if any attempts of escape comes to your minds, my men will have no choice but to do action. Do you accept these conditions?"

She looked at me and she nodded. "I accept. But I want to stay with her at all times."

He looked at me, his eyes more suspicious. But he nodded.

He snapped his fingers and the knights arrested me. The crowd started to shout and call me names. Jeanne on the other hand walked with me and whispered on my ear. "Do you trust me?" And I nodded at her. She later murmured a few words in silence, which I knew she has a plan on her own.