Way of the Knights

---

"Well, Grand Elder Flame never really had the sharpest memory, so it does make sense…" Henry continued talking to himself softly. 

Because its only him and Raven within this room, the latter was able to hear everything he's whispering to himself, which also gave him some ideas but he's wasn't really in any position to inquire about such things. He could still remember some people telling him that now is not yet the time for him to know somethings. Raven knows how to mind his own business so he kept things to himself. Plus, he promised to keep their topic as a secret so he had to be careful.

Henry murmured some more things before seeming awakened from his stupor. He cleared his throat and said: "My bad, I was caught in my own thoughts. Anyway, let's move on to the more important things…"

"Being a Cleanser is good. I was actually considering about suggesting the idea to you guys and the other Units under me but you beat me to it. Have you informed your teammates yet?"

Raven shook his head, saying: "No, not yet. I haven't had the time to do so and I am also thinking of ways on how to tell them without revealing the fact that I am a Seed Bearer."

"That's good to know, else it would've been a bit complicated if you revealed to them that information already." Henry stated, "Let me just remind you again, you have to minimize the amount of people that knows you are a Seed Bearer. Only when you are alone would you be allowed to use the flames, understood?"

"Yes, Senior Brother." Raven affirmed, he knows that Henry was being serious about this matter, which also confirms his guess that his status must be linked to a deep matter for the sect. Something that he's not allowed to know just yet. 

"In time, you'll know why we're being careful. Don't worry, with your talent, it won't last long. Just be careful alright?"

Raven nodded again, greatly appreciating Henry's warning. 

"Anyways, being a Cleanser is actually a very profitable job." Henry stated with a smile, "In fact, due to you being a Seed Bearer, each patient you cure will earn you not only a handsome amount of Merit Points but also Unit Merit Points. I'll be counting your work as a Cleanser to your team contributions, so work hard and treat as many patients as you could."

Raven's eyes brightened as he heard him say this, unable to contain his curiosity anymore he asked: "How much Merit Points do I receive per patient? Senior Sister Monica hadn't informed me anything yet."

"500 - 5,000 Merit Points per patient." Henry answered, causing Raven to inhale sharply.

"That much?"

"It depends on the initial state of the patient actually." Henry stated, "Depending on the severity of their injury, the amount of Merit Point rewards you'll get will vary. As for Unit Merit Points, you'll be awarded with 5,000 for every ten lives you successfully saved."

"Holy…"

"Actually, that's with the council being stingy." Henry shook his head, "We're trying to increase it but we're met with obstacles. Don't worry, you'll be received updates if any changes happen. For now, just work hard and cure as many lives as you could. When time comes and you managed to become an Inner Disciple, that amount will increase. So work hard okay?"

"I will." Raven nodded with gleaming eyes. 

"Additionally, if your Cleansing Flame Seed blooms, make sure that you inform me, Monica or even Theo about it immediately. You must inform us as soon as you possibly could, do you understand?" Henry stated with a bit of urgency containing his tone. 

Raven understand the weight of this matter and nodded to him, etching the warning to his mind. 

"Great. That's all I have to say." Henry then stood up and smiled at him, "Thank you for your time, do work hard, Junior Brother. I'll be expecting great things from you."

As soon as he said that, Henry disappeared from the base, leaving Raven alone to ponder about his situation. 

Raven was silent for a bit before a long sigh came out of his lips. 

'There's too many variables to pay attention too.' He thought to himself, 'I haven't even stayed at the sect for that long and I already feel restrained. It's actually getting annoying.'

Raven didn't like the feeling of being observed closely, it makes him feel like a caged animal. Even though the Ancient Elysium Sect offers them a ton of opportunities to grow stronger, the shackles that comes with it are getting tighter as well, and he didn't like that even one bit. 

'Well, it's not like I can go against the sect alone.' Raven shook his head in disappointment, 'And even if I could, I won't. Their role is too damn important for the entirety of the Divine Realm. If it weren't for them, the Devil Emperor would've already been freed from its imprisonment and lay waste to everything. 

That's something that must be absolutely prevented from happening...

Therefore, no matter how rigid the rule gets, Raven was helpless to deal with it. 

'If it weren't for the fact that my intention coincides with sect's, I wouldn't even bother entering this place.' Raven inwardly said with a sigh, 'Whatever, I guess I'll just deal with the problems as they arise. It's not like I can do anything about it for the time being anyway.'

Shrugging, Raven stood up from his seat and exited the room. He glanced at the hallways, opening his ocular technique to see whether some people knew about his private conversation with Henry. After seeing that there's no one around, he sighed and went towards the training room. 

As soon as he entered, he cranked up the gravity level to 60, making him almost kneel on the ground due to the heaviness. Raven stumbled for a bit before managing to stand back up, although a little shaken. There were no changes to his facial expression at all. 

After turning up the level of gravity, Raven proceeded to expend a lot of hiss energy in order to exhaust himself, all of that in the hopes of getting himself severely exhausted that he'll fall asleep as soon as his body hits the mattress. 

***

- Three days later - 

"Alright, alright! Place your bets everyone! Place your bets!"

At some random corner within Tartarus, a relatively discreet building could be found. At first glance it would seem that it leads to a bar where everyone winds up and let go of their mental stress but in reality, there's more to it. 

Beyond this door is a massive underground facility with a large arena. The place gave off a shady vibe but this was in fact, officially recognized by the Elders of the sect. Yes, including the betting placements as well. 

This is the Battle Arena - a place where muscleheads gather and spend their extra energy while also hoping to earn Merit Points by winning random matches. The shady vibe of the place is intentional to set the mood, nothing more. 

Currently, Raven could be find sitting on the audience along with Jason who was wearing a large grin of his face. 

It has been three days since Raven and Henry's conversation happened, somethings had happened but nothing worth of notice. In the end, Raven got bored of staying within the base. He still hasn't received any summons from the Cleansers so he had nothing to do in the mean time. 

Jason approached him once again and invited him to watch the matches in the Battle Arena. He initially didn't feel like going but he was enticed when Jason said that he managed to earn an easy 10,000 Merit Points while there. 

Well, what can Raven say after that? Of course, he had to check it out. He's in dire need of Merit Points since he had a lot of things he needed to accomplish, so when Jason revealed this to him, it would make sense that he wanted a slice on the pie. 

"Alright, people hurry up! There's only five minutes until the betting ends and the match to start! Come on, place them bets already! Test your luck and your judgement!" The 'Hypeman' as Jason called him, announced in a loud voice, making the audience to go in a betting frenzy. 

Raven's not gonna lie, even he was tempted to bet but he prevented himself from doing so. He told himself that he's just here to test the waters first, there's matches after this so he didn't need to bet for now.

On the contrary, Jason…

"I bet five grand for the Red Corner." 

"Alright, five grand it is. Best wishes, handsome." The woman who was collecting bets and recording them gave Jason a flirtatious wink while giggling mischievously. Jason bit his lips and smacked her ass while also having a little feel.

"Oh!" The woman moaned in a seductive voice, playfully smacking his hand while saying, "Mn, you naughty man..."

"Oh, I can be very naughty, Pretty Lady." Jason winked, "Wanna have some fun later?"

"If you can afford me then sure."

"I'll pamper you…"

"Ugh.. Why did I come here?" Raven sighed as he felt a large headache with what's happening near him.