The Rise of the Black Plain

Hearing Viola's voice, Minos suddenly turned on his back and saw the figure of that young woman with green hair running towards the bed where Mirya was lying.

This young woman had a worried expression on her face, her eyes slightly reddened, while beads of sweat could be seen running down her forehead.

Normally cultivators wouldn't sweat just by walking. But by using their spiritual strengths to increase their characteristics, such as speed, people like Viola would tire after a while. Then the sweat would come out of their pores, just like it happen with ordinary humans.

As such, this young woman had come running to this hospital as soon as a soldier had warned her that Mirya was here.

Dillian hadn't wasted any time, and shortly after starting the treatment of Mirya and Celeste earlier, he had sent people to notify Viola and Neal. After all, they were what these two people had as family or mates in this town.

Anyway, after getting Dillian's message and running here, Viola was somewhat exhausted physically and mentally. Physical due to bodily exertion and mental due to the concern she had for her mother's condition.

"Mom…" She said in a low voice as tears started to flow from the corners of her eyes.

Seeing how bad Mirya's situation looked, Viola couldn't help but cry. After all, she could see that her mother's body was extensively burned, and such burns were not superficial.

In fact, some parts of her mother's body looked like charcoal, and in others, one could see that all of her skin had been burned, even reaching parts of her muscles!

And even with the doctors continually using their healing techniques, Mirya's body didn't seem to improve at all from Viola's point of view.

"Mother…" As she tried to call Mirya, Viola suddenly felt a heat enveloping her waist as Minos hugged her.

"Okay, Viola, the worst is over, and your mother is not at risk." He said in her ear at the same time as he passed one of his hands in the middle of this young woman's back.

"But…" She tried to say something but hesitated.

"Visually, it looks worse than it is." He commented, trying to comfort her from this situation.

Mirya's condition was horrible, but they already had a way to treat her, and it was only a matter of time before Viola's mother recovered. With that, Minos didn't think it was necessary to worry this young woman in his arms, saying things that would only hurt her determination.

"Mirya is like this now, but in a few months, she will fully recover. She will be even stronger than she is now, and even if your mother gets some marks after the treatment is finished, once she reaches level 60, all of that will be resolved. She will be even more beautiful than she was before." He said, remembering this point for Viola to calm down.

This young woman already knew about Silver-grade techniques and the possibility of training in a special place. She didn't know about the Spatial Kingdom yet. Still, with the new selection for Elite Squad soldiers approaching, she couldn't help but find out about these details from the posters scattered around headquarters.

Precisely for this reason, she was aware that for these local soldiers, especially those from the Elite Squad, reaching level 60 would not be as challenging as it would be in this region.

Knowing this, after hearing this comment from Minos, Viola soon felt a little better, becoming more confident about her mother's recovery.

She could see that Mirya's situation was horrible. Still, even though she didn't understand what treatment Dillian would give her mother, Viola knew that stage advances could solve such physical problems.

As she had felt that Mirya's cultivation, though weakened, was intact, this young woman soon understood that all this would be resolved sooner or later.

...

Finally, as Viola comforted herself in Minos' arms, Neal arrived there, almost as worried as Mirya's daughter.

But he hadn't received a warm hug when he arrived there… Instead, Minos had just explained to Neal what had happened, as well as the details of Celeste's treatment.

Finally, when those two were already fully aware of the situations of Mirya and Celeste, as well as more relaxed, one of them asked. "Minos, how did this happen? I thought you were just going to sign Soul Contracts. How did something of this gravity happen?"

Hearing Viola's question, Neal nodded in agreement and paid attention to Minos' figure. He then listened. "Well, to sum up, a person who was previously chasing Celeste got in our way. Then, after he lost the fight, he sacrificed himself."

"I don't think I need to say what happened after..."

"So, it was that person!" Neal exclaimed in anger as he clenched his fists in determination. 'So, that bastard was already this close to us!'

'One day, I will take revenge on those miserable assassins since that individual is already dead!' He swore to himself as he stared at the floor with a dark appearance on his face.

At the same time, Viola was also determined to get justice for what happened to her mother. She might be weak now, but as a member of the Black Plain Army, this young woman was sure she would have enough power in the future!

'I'm going to join Elite Squad, and then it won't be long until I reach level 59!' She thought determinedly, with a resolute look in her eyes.

The selection for new Elite Squad soldiers would take place in a few days, and this young woman had the minimum to compete for vacancies.

She had a level above level 43 and was a soldier with no crime in her record. These were the minimum criteria required for this new selection. And as one of the strongest among the ordinary soldiers, this young woman had high expectations concerning winning one of the 30 vacancies offered in this selection!

...

After talking to Neal and Viola for a while longer, Minos left them in that room and went to sort out his own business.

What he could do for Mirya and Celeste, he had already done, and only time could help them from now on. Plus, considering the number of problems this young man had to deal with in this town, he couldn't spend any more time in that place, regretting what had happened.

So, it wasn't long before he found Ruth and talked about White. This great eagle would be crucial for Eduard's quick journey to the Kingdom of the Waves.

And as expected, Ruth hadn't refused, as that wasn't much of a problem for her either.

She did not intend to go anywhere in the coming months, and it would be tough for anyone to suspect that this action of hers would be related to an attempt by an empire power to try to influence this region. After all, beasts from the 5th stage, while uncommon, were no strangers to this region.

Even more considering that Eduard was already a Spiritual King, someone who could certainly have resources or relationships with people capable of obtaining this type of mount. In this case, it wouldn't be expected for anyone to ask questions and be suspicious just because Ruth lends her eagle.

With that, she hadn't bothered to accept Minos' request, even though it could be considered improper intervention.

As such, it wasn't long before Eduard left that city, heading north, where he hoped to find that poison master. Minos had already explained to him everything he needed to know about that woman and how he should behave on this mission.

Eduard also already had all the necessary crystals to attract Regina to the Dry City and was prepared to fight if necessary...

Finally, Elena had also left the Dry City before nightfall in this region, heading towards the Peninsula of the Waves, from where she intended to return to Stone Island!