Chapter 235 - Black Capital ( Part 2 )

It took the lives of countless people to reach the Black Capital.

Or so Rudy assumed when she saw the huge white structures that were planted along the road. These things grew from the ground like bones of fallen giants, curving up towards the red sky. Some of the arches looked too big to belong to the people—their curved surface made Rudy think of the corpses of creatures capable of swallowing buildings whole. Other arches were tall and narrow, creating a gateway into some lost world.

Black chains connected the arches, the links as wide as man’s arm. Red lanterns were hung from them and danced softly in the wind that blew across the road. The fire in the lanterns did not produce any smoke—it was burning like the red sky, throwing red shadows on the endless row of people making their way to the center of the Demon Empire.

Merchants drove heavy carts carrying their merchandise. Mercenaries sat on top of armored monsters—creatures of scales and claws that growled at everyone that dared approach them. Imperial soldiers marched in well-disciplined rows, their black armor gleaming in red sky like reflections of shadows.

Among the people who passed Rudy and her friends, there were three disguised strangers.

Jennie adjusted the hood of her dark cloak, pulling it down to cover most of her face. She did not pay attention to the roughness of the fabric—now, as always, her attention was focused on the road and the silhouette of the Black Capital looming in the distance.

"How far?"

Snow glanced at the horizon. His tails swayed behind him, and his crimson eyes reflected a certain weariness.

"We have been walking for three hours. If you keep asking me about it, I will reconsider my decision regarding our partnership."

"That’s not an answer."

"It is the answer you deserve."

Rudy smiled slightly.

"You two really remind me of an old married couple."

Jennie stopped walking.

Snow stopped next to her.

Both of them turned to Rudy.

"...What?"

Rudy quickly looked away, finding herself interested in the bone-white arches above them.

"Nothing."

"Interesting," Jennie said tonelessly. "Very interesting."

"Forget I mentioned anything."

"I will think about it."

"Jennie."

"Let me think about it..."

Rudy groaned and started walking again. The sound of her boots clicking on the dark stone of the road and the billow of her cloak in the crimson wind did not distract her.

Snow observed the girl leaving before turning to Jennie.

"Your skills irritate people quite impressively."

"Thank you."

"It wasn’t a compliment."

"I accept it anyway."

For a moment, Snow’s words made Jennie almost forget where they were.

Almost...

Then the road made a turn around the ridge, and the world beyond it became visible.

Rudy stopped.

Snow’s ears twitched.

Jennie raised her head slowly.

And for the first time since they arrived on the Demon Continent, they remained silent.

The Black Capital opened before them.

It was enormous.

That was the only word Jennie could use, but even it sounded weak compared to what she saw.

An enormous city-fortress spread across the horizon—the walls of this place seemed to grow from the black earth as if the remnants of some old god’s tomb. Several layers of defenses surrounded the capital—each one higher and more formidable than others.

The outer walls of the Black Capital were built from the black stone and fortified with black metal shining under the crimson sky. Numerous watchtowers appeared at regular intervals—pointed tops of these towers resembled the horns of huge beasts. Magical barriers stretched between them in the form of the translucent crimson domes flickering whenever black ashes flew over the city in the wind.

Inside the outer walls there were more fortifications, another circle of walls, then yet another one. And between all those layers of fortifications there were districts separated from each other by elevated roads, bridges fortified with magic, and gates guarded by soldiers in black armor.

The capital was more than just a city.

It was the fortress able to withstand a war against the whole world.

And in the middle of this fortress there was a tower.

Jennie narrowed her eyes.

The tower was rising far above other buildings—its peak pierced the clouds like a spear piercing the heavens. The tower was black—not ordinary black of stone and metal, but blackness capable of swallowing the light around it. Scarlet veins were pulsing across its surface—spreading from the foundations up to the top in the shapes resembling arteries.

There were no windows. No balconies. No carvings. Nothing but black stone reaching high into the sky.

Around the tower there was an enormous round shape. Seven huge pillars encircled the tower, connected by the chains of crimson energy. These chains pulsated with the rhythm of heart—slow, constant and endless.

Even from several kilometers away, Jennie sensed something emanating from the structure.

Something ancient.

Something hungry.

Her five Divine Swords reacted inside their spatial seal.

Excalibur first. Then Leviathan. Tempest. Eclipse. Gram.

They reacted very subtly—no one else would notice how the blades responded, but now, as always, Jennie felt how presences of five swords changed.

Her face hardened.

"So that’s where they prepare the ritual."

Rudy looked at her. "The tower?"

Jennie nodded. "Yes, I can feel it."

How she could feel it, Jennie did not know. Energy surrounding the tower was not the same as demonic aura surrounding the whole continent—it possessed a strange, unnatural rhythm, repeating the pulse traveling through the ground and into her body.

With every new pulse, the swords reacted. And every reaction was answered from the tower.

It was not a coincidence.

The Black Capital was the center of the ritual.

And the tower was its heart.

Rudy looked at the structure.

Her face changed. Her skin paled, and she raised one hand up to her chest.

"Jennie..."

Jennie instantly faced her. "What’s wrong?"

Rudy didn’t say anything.

Some kind of light started to emanate from under her cloak. Gold-white. It penetrated the fabric, illuminating the outlines of her fingers. It glowed, glowing again, becoming brighter after every pulse.

Jennie gasped. "Your mark..."

Rudy pressed her palm against her chest. The Legendary Divine Mark reacted. Not to Jennie’s swords. Not to Snow.

To the tower.

Some kind of energy wave started spreading from the Black Capital—invisible for ordinary eyes but obvious for everyone who felt magic. Rudy stumbled, and Jennie managed to hold her.

"Rudy!"

"I’m okay."

"You obviously aren’t okay."

"I just said I’m fine."

Her voice trembled. Light under her cloak strengthened, and for a short moment, the air around them twisted. Small sparkles of golden energy rose from Rudy’s body and vanished into the red atmosphere.

Snow immediately stepped close to her. His crimson eyes looked at the tower.

"This is bad."

Jennie looked at him. "How bad?"

"Her mark reacts to something inside that structure."

"We noticed."

"No." Snow’s tone of voice became serious. "I mean it reacts as if something inside the tower tries to communicate with it."

Rudy started breathing unequally. She looked at the Black Capital, her eyes wide with a mixture of fear and confusion.

"I can feel it."

Jennie squeezed her shoulder tighter. "What can you feel?"

"Some kind of pull. It’s weak, but..." Rudy swallowed. "It feels as if something tries to get inside my chest."

Jennie’s face froze.

This ritual wasn’t just a scheme for getting the Legendary Divine Marks. It was already affecting them. Maybe this tower was designed to find their bearers. Or maybe it was able to use their power from afar. Or maybe this ritual had already reached a higher level than anyone expected.

Whatever was the reason, the mark of Rudy reacted to it.

And this meant that they had even less time than Jennie expected.

She looked at the distant tower. The crimson veins glowed again, and her five swords responded to it.

For one short moment, the sound of metal echoed in her mind.

Five blades. One soul.

And somewhere beyond the walls, something waited for the rest of the marks.

Jennie clenched her hands.

"Lilia is in there."

Rudy looked at her. "Jennie..."

"We know where she is. We know where the ritual takes place. We don’t need to waste another day."

Snow flattened his ears. "Absolutely not."

Jennie turned to him. "What?"

"You heard me."

"We can go through the outer districts. Find the Imperial Palace, find Lilia, and leave before someone notices us."

Snow looked at her, then slowly closed his eyes.

"Sometimes I wonder whether your previous life was conquering kingdoms or repeatedly running headfirst into walls."

Jennie crossed her arms. "Both, probably."

"That wasn’t an invitation to confirm my concerns."

Rudy, regardless of discomfort, gave a weak laugh.

Snow didn’t smile.

"Listen to me," he said. His tone of voice became low and serious, carrying centuries-old experience. "The Black Capital isn’t just another village like Varkesh. This is the heart of the Demon Empire. Every street is monitored. Every big district has defensive formations. The Imperial Guard guards the gates, the military districts, and every road leading to that tower."

He stopped and looked at Jennie.

"And the Demon Generals are here."

Jennie’s face changed.

She remembered Azrael standing in the ruins of Ashen Isle. How he didn’t even tried to resist her attacks and yet somehow avoided them. How he talked about her five swords as if he studied some incomplete tools.

We have prepared everything for you.

"All of them?" Jennie asked.

"I can’t say whether every general is in the capital right now," Snow replied. "But this is the place of the Emperor’s residence. This is where the ritual is held. If the generals gather anywhere, it will be here."

The wind swept over the ridge. In the far distance, the huge gates of the capital opened to let some other caravan in. Rows of soldiers were standing on both sides of the gates, checking travelers and their possessions. Over the walls, magical formations slowly rotated in the air.

Jennie watched them for several seconds.

Then she said. "That doesn’t change anything."

Snow’s face became aggressive. "Jennie."

"I’m not leaving without Lilia."

"Nobody suggested you should."

"Then we agree."

"No, we don’t agree. I suggest that you stop turning a rescue mission into a funeral."

Jennie fell silent.

Snow stepped closer. There was no sarcasm in his voice for once.

"You have five Divine Swords. Rudy carries one of the remaining marks. I’m able to fight the Demon Generals, but not all of them at once, and not even while defending both of you from the whole army."

His crimson eyes were fixed at her.

"If we enter that city without a plan, we will be surrounded even before reaching the inner walls."

Jennie looked away.

She hated that he was right.

She hated it because every second they spent standing on this ridge was another second when Lilia was trapped in the enemy’s stronghold. She hated it because she had promised to come for her. And because she had already been too late once.

Her fingers found the small fox-shaped charm hidden under her cloak. Roxy had given it to her before she left Seraiya.

You promised you’d come back.

Jennie closed her eyes for a brief moment.

When she opened them, the urgency remained. But her determination remained as well.

"Then we need a plan."

Snow sighed. "Finally."

Jennie glared at him. "Don’t make me change my mind."

"I wouldn’t dare of doing that."

"You are daring right now."

"Quite vividly."

Rudy shook her head. "Focus before you two start fighting again?"

"She started it," replied Jennie and Snow together.

Rudy looked at them both. "...Unbelievable."

For the first time since their discovery of the Black Capital, a faint smile appeared on Jennie’s face.

And disappeared instantly.

They still needed to free the queen and to find a way into the empire.

They left the ridge behind and sought shelter within the ruins of an abandoned watchtower located a few hundred meters away from the main road.

The building had once protected the entryway to the Black Capital by virtue of its defensive structures and weapon racks that could still be seen inside. Now it stood empty, its roof partially crumbled and its walls cracked under the influence of the crimson wind for centuries.

The perfect place to set up camp.

Jennie opened her rough map on a damaged stone table. She had purchased it in Varkesh, paid much more money than this map deserved. Still, it contained the information about the districts of the capital, the location of the main gates and several roads that led to the central tower.

The central point of the map was the tower. Seven concentric circles around it.

Jennie stared at the map. "Seven rings of defense."

Snow nodded. "Most likely. The inner districts probably have some more barriers not shown on this map."

Rudy bent over the map. "There’s a military district here and a market district. The road to the Imperial Palace."

"Which means there will be a lot of guards," Jennie added.

She traced her fingers over the road. "We will be able to access the outer districts more easily. We’ll be able to gather some information, learn the patrol routes and find someone who knows the inner city."

"Assuming we can find someone who is trustworthy," Rudy replied.

"We don’t need trustworthy, we need useful."

Snow lowered his head and bent over the map. "And what will happen when the empire will discover that three strangers are asking questions about the Imperial Palace?"

"We will leave," replied Jennie.

"And when the empire finds out that three strangers have five Divine Swords and one Legendary Divine Mark?" asked Snow.

Jennie looked at him. "...We will leave even faster."

Snow sighed. "I’m surrounded by geniuses."

Rudy pointed at the map. "There is another solution."

Jennie turned toward her. "What?"

"We find some allies."

The words lingered in the air of the ruined watchtower.

Jennie turned to the map again. Allies. She had only been thinking about enemies since she arrived on the continent. Demons, soldiers, generals, Zuko. They have all been measured with regards to the potential dangers.

But the old merchant in Varkesh had made something clear. Not all demons followed the Emperor. Some were afraid of him. Some hated him. And some lost their families due to the preparations for the war.

Maybe some of them were ready to oppose the Emperor. If that was true, the Demon Continent was not as united as it seemed.

And any empire divided by its subjects was an empire with weakness.

"You’re right," replied Jennie.

Rudy blinked. "I’m right?"

"Don’t be so surprised."

"I didn’t expect you to agree with me so quickly."

"Enjoy the moment while it lasts."

Rudy smiled.

Jennie turned to the map again. "We need someone who knows the capital and understands the Imperial Guard and will be able to help us pass the inner districts undetected."

"Someone who hates the Emperor," Rudy added.

"Preferably."

Snow’s face remained cautious. "Be careful. Hatred won’t make someone our ally. A demon who hates Zuko is just as willing to betray us to him for the proper price."

"Then we’ll find someone who would have more to gain from our alliance," replied Jennie.

"And how will you decide whom to trust?"

Jennie folded the map. "We’ll ask."

Snow stared at her. "...And this is your plan?"

"For now."

"I miss the times when the biggest danger was finding something to eat."

"You complained about that, too."

"Because you ate everything!"

Rudy hid her mouth behind hands.

Their quarrel continued for a few seconds filling the watchtower with a familiar sense of absurdity.

But suddenly, a sound was heard from outside.

The faint scraping sound. Stone against stone.

All of them fell silent.

Jennie’s hand reached towards the place where the Excalibur sword resided in her seal. Snow’s ears lifted up. Rudy turned towards the entrance.

Someone was coming.

Jennie felt the presence of someone outside now. Faint but definite. This person had come to them without activating the minor detection spell she casted around the ruins.

That alone made her cautious.

Jennie raised herself and said, "Come out."

Silence.

And a voice answered from the darkened place outside.

"You’re not really good at concealing your presence, you know."

Jennie narrowed her eyes. "Funny. I was going to say the same thing."

A figure stepped into the ruins of the doorway.

This figure wore long, dark cloak covering its whole body. A hood concealed its face. Also, a black scarf covered its chin. The presence was somehow hard to interpret due to the several layers of magical masking spells.

Not an ordinary traveler. Not an ordinary demon.

The stranger looked at the map on the stone table and then turned to Jennie.

"I heard you are searching for information about the Black Capital."

Jennie’s posture became more tense. "Who are you?"

The stranger cocked its head to the side. "Someone who knows how difficult it is to enter this city."

"That doesn’t answer my question."

"No. But it answers yours."

Snow stepped to the front, lowering himself a little. "If you are planning to threaten us, I suggest you think it over."

The stranger glanced at the wolf. There was something in its posture which changed for a brief second. Recognition? Surprise? Impossible to understand.

Then it turned back to Jennie.

"I have no intentions of threatening you."

"Then why are you here?"

The stranger remained silent for several seconds. Outside, the crimson wind passed through the broken watchtower, bringing with it the sounds of the capital.

Finally, the stranger spoke. "I know who you are looking for."

Jennie’s heart stopped. Rudy’s eyes widened. Snow’s face hardened.

The stranger lifted one of its gloved hands and gently pushed back the edge of the hood, exposing two glowing eyes.

"I could help you get to the Imperial Palace."

Jennie looked at the stranger. "Why should we trust you?"

The stranger’s eyes slightly narrowed. "You should not."

Faint traces of a smile formed underneath the black scarf.

"But if you wish to rescue the Queen before the ritual starts, you have very little time to find someone who can."

The five swords of God shook inside of Jennie’s soul. At a far distance, the black tower shone with the red light.

For the first time since coming to the Black Capital, Jennie thought if the stranger in front of her was going to be an ally that they needed so badly...

Or another trap laid out by the Demon Empire.