“None of it’s real, you know.”

  Elijah, who’d been gazing out across the heavily curated fields surrounding Benediction, glanced at the speaker. Despite the generally warm atmosphere, Benedict had donned a long, black coat that brushed his ankles. In addition, he wore black slacks, a white, button-down shirt, and a blood red tie. Completing the outfit were a pair of shiny black boots that came up to mid-calf.

  In short, with his pale skin, refined features, and long, black hair, he looked like someone cosplaying the sort of vampire that might appear in an Anne Rice novel. Or an edgy anime character.

  His outfit and demeanor stood in stark contrast to Hu Shui’s, like they were two sides of the same coin. The Astral Duelist’s shorter, more compact body, clad as it was in pure white, only heightened that perception.

  Trudging along only a few feet away was the most powerful oni-demon Elijah had yet sensed. At nearly ten feet tall, it towered over everyone, its eyes constantly scanning the environment for threats. A stone sword hung from one hip, while it carried a spear in one hand and a round shield in another.

  “What was that?” Elijah asked.

  “It’s an illusion. The fields. The order. All of it,” Benedict elaborated. “If it wasn’t for my demons, they would have already killed and eaten one another.”

  “I thought they only ate those who’d died from other causes,” Hu Shui remarked.

  Benedict shook his head. “That’s how it is now,” he admitted. “When I first arrived, that was not the case.”

  Then, he described his first contact with the people who now called Benediction home. They’d descended into complete savagery, and to the point where Benedict’s first interaction saw a group of hunters ripping into a still writhing enemy and devouring his flesh.

  “I thought I’d stumbled upon a zombie situation,” he admitted. “You know, like in the movies. I was going to kill them all until one of them spoke to me. I still don’t know what they saw when they looked at me, but they worshipped me almost from the very beginning.”

  “And you steered into it,” Elijah guessed. He’d heard part of that story before, but the last explanation hadn’t included the sheer savagery Benedict had found.

  “I had to,” Benedict answered. “Getting them to follow the rules wasn’t easy, but when they discovered the benefits…”

  “How does that work?” asked Hu Shui. He’d rightly noticed that most of the people in Benediction were much better off – physically, at least – than those in other cities. They were healthy and strong, largely due to ritual sacrifice.

  “The Seat of Benediction channels the power of the sacrifices into an ongoing spell that empowers those within my domain,” Benedict answered. “I designed most of the ethereal framework myself, though my Seal of Authority also helped connect the dots.”

  “You chose to empower your people rather than yourself,” Hu Shui responded.

  Elijah knew that Seals of Authority – like the one he’d taken from Roman and given to Ramik – could grant their wielders incredible boons. Some were focused on information, while others were dedicated to defense. Ramik chose a path that would empower Ironshore’s Tradesmen, making it easier for them to level while improving their results. That choice was one of the reasons that Ironshore had become such a crafting hub.

  It seemed that Benedict had picked a different route – one that helped his people more directly. A surprising choice, given the man’s disdain for people in general. Elijah didn’t purport to know everything about Benedict, but he was very much aware of his new companion’s psychological issues.

  He wasn’t a broken man, but he certainly wasn’t stable, either. If Elijah wasn’t certain he could overcome Benedict if necessary, he’d have never brought him along.

  Benedict nodded. “I don’t need more personal power.”

  Hu Shui shook his head. “Everyone needs more power,” he argued. “Perhaps not now, but one day, we will need all the power we can gather.”

  Benedict shrugged. “By then, my people will be ready.”

  Elijah had no interest in hearing an argument, so he cut Hu Shui off, asking Benedict, “You call this all an illusion. How does that work with you leaving?”

  “The demons will keep them in line.”

  “What about that guy next to the repository of blood? What was his name? Telamu?” Elijah asked. “He seemed a little too enthusiastic.”

  Benedict let out a sigh. “So ridiculous. Telamu. His real name is Alan, you know. Alan Walker,” he revealed. “I don’t know where he even got Telamu. I guess he just thought it fit the pseudo-Aztec atmosphere.”

  Hu Shui asked, “That wasn’t your doing?”

  Benedict shook his head. “God no. I cringe every time I see them wearing those ridiculous headdresses,” he admitted. “I would have preferred something a little more…I don’t know. Gothic, I suppose. Or Victorian. But I can only change so much without them turning against me. I thought restricting their cannibalism and forcing them to act civilized was more important than aesthetics.”

  “A valid priority,” Hu Shui allowed as they strode down the road. It was paved, though Elijah knew it would soon become much rougher. Eventually, the network of roads would end altogether, giving way to the rocky wilderness.

  Idly, he wondered how Benedict’s outfit would hold up to the upcoming trek. He certainly didn’t look ready for a stroll through anything wilder than a park, but sometimes, looks could deceive. From what he felt through Soul of the Wild, the man’s clothes were all of decent grade, which meant that they were far tougher than they looked.

  Still, Elijah didn’t envy the man’s feet, being confined inside those uncomfortable-looking shoes. Better to go barefoot than subject oneself to that kind of torture.

  For the next few hours, they passed through fields tended by Benedict’s people. Benediction was a city whose residents numbered in six figures, and it took quite a lot of food to maintain such a population. Even so, the breadth of the farming operation far exceeded the city’s needs. Either they were stockpiling for upcoming hardship or they expected to turn their attentions to export.

  And if it was the latter, they would find quite a lot of buyers. The atmosphere around the city wasn’t nearly so dense as Ironshore’s, but it definitely benefited from the nearby Primal Realm. So long as they could overcome their cannibalistic tendencies, they were set up for immense success.

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  Was that Benedict’s plan? Or just an unintended off-shoot?

  Elijah didn’t bother asking the question, largely because he didn’t expect a truthful answer. From everything he’d seen, Benedict didn’t live entirely in the same reality as everyone else. His psychological issues prevented him from seeing the world as it was. Instead, he saw it through a distorted lens that often painted any disagreement as bullying.

  One day, Elijah hoped to help him get past that, but it was no easy or quick task.

  The real question was why he cared. Was it pity that drove him? Maybe. Or it might just be that he genuinely believed he could help.

  Either way, their association had barely even begun, so it was neither the time nor the place to walk that road. Instead, as they left the fields behind, Elijah focused on his surroundings. No issues presented themselves as day turned to night, then morning dawned once again.

  They’d kept going through the night, with only a few short breaks here and there. To Elijah’s surprise, no one complained about the pace. Not even Benedict with his uncomfortable-looking shoes.

  Finally, at about mid-morning, the tree line marking the forest came into view. Over the past few hours, the ethereal density had risen, and Elijah knew from past experiences that the atmosphere would continuously thicken until they reached the Primal Realm. But before that, they needed to find Sadie and destroy the Ethereal Anchors.

  There were twenty of the latter, each one surrounded by asharii – djinn who could deftly manipulate ethera. Elijah didn’t fear for himself. He’d proven he could handle them during his last foray into the forest. Even if they’d grown more powerful – a reasonable assumption, given the passage of time – he was secure enough in his own strength to know he had outpaced them.

  No. He feared for his companions. Specifically, Sadie, who was not in her right mind. Going into any battle distracted was a mistake, and one that could have grave consequences. Elijah needed to be there to protect Sadie from herself.

  With that in mind, he didn’t hesitate to lead the other two into the forest. And it quickly became apparent that his previous experience, which was mostly peaceful, wasn’t going to repeat itself. Almost immediately, they were attacked by creatures wielding unique abilities. The most common were beasts that used variations of spatial magic to teleport all around. Thankfully, both Elijah and Hu Shui were capable of sensing their movements, so they weren’t as dangerous as they otherwise would have been.

  However, there were also animals that utilized time magic, not unlike the owl he’d witnessed during his first trip into the forest. Thankfully, none of those creatures were interested in the trio. If they had been, they would have caused all manner of problems.

  Every other creature he saw within the forest displayed the ability to deftly manipulate ethera. Even if the expression of power was elemental – like the moose who could cause localized earthquakes simply by stomping on the ground – the throughline between the forest’s natives was that they could all control ethera with extreme dexterity.

  Elijah also got the chance to see the oni-demon in action, and against that very moose. It challenged the creature head-on, ramming the massive beast with a shield slam that cracked its rocky antlers. The demonic entity finished it off with a spear thrust that sliced through its ribcage to destroy its heart.

  It died in moments.

  “What are you doing?” asked Benedict as Elijah approached the carcass.

  “I don’t intend to waste all this meat,” he said. Then, he got down to the business of processing the creature. He didn’t have room to take everything, so he focused on the best pieces. Organ meat was the richest, both in vitamins and ethera, so he took those first. Then, he crammed a pair of haunches into his Arcane Loop.

  Meanwhile, Hu Shui and Benedict watched – proof that neither had spent much time in survival situations.

  “Trust me – you’ll be happy for a little extra meat,” he said.

  Once he’d finished, they continued into the heart of the forest. Along the way, Elijah’s annoyance – and worry – mounted. Sadie was supposed to meet them at the edge of the forest. So, she’d either chosen to venture into the woods of her own accord, or something had happened to force her hand.

  After another day, Elijah grew fed up with searching on foot. They were getting close to the area hosting the Ethereal Anchors, which meant that he needed to find Sadie sooner rather than later. So, after explaining his intentions to his companions, he transformed into the Shape of the Sky and threw himself above the canopy.

  At first, Elijah’s search proved fruitless, which only exacerbated his worry. If Sadie was out there, she was assuredly fighting. If not the asharii, then the wildlife.

  But then, he sensed a ripple of energy, and a flap of his wings sent him in that direction. It only took a minute or so for him to reach the origin point. He tucked his wings and dove through the branches, only to see Sadie hacking her way through a lone asharii.

  The creature looked little different than the last time Elijah had beheld the things. Four arms. Blue skin. A third eye directly in the center of their foreheads. Otherwise, they lacked definition, save for the silver bangles around their wrists.

  By contrast, Sadie had donned her white-and-gold armor, which shone with the ethereal light emanating from her sword. Pieces of rapidly-disintegrating asharii were scattered all around her, and it was clear that the last remaining enemy would soon share their fate.

  Elijah landed just as the creature manifested a series of crystalline shards that shot forward. Most clanked off of Sadie’s armor, but a few managed to worm their way inside. Sadie nearly stumbled, but she maintained her footing long enough to complete her strike, which bisected the djinn.

  Finally, she fell to one knee.

  Elijah caught her before she collapsed. She mumbled something that sounded like an apology before her eyes drooped closed.

  He didn’t hesitate to deploy his Mantle of Authority. The branches of his soul spread out, encompassing the entire clearing. The asharii bodies – what was left of them, at least – turned into motes of ethera after only a second’s exposure, but Elijah wasn’t concerned with them. Instead, he focused on the shards of crystal embedded in Sadie’s body.

  They stubbornly clung to her soul, draining it of ethera. Elijah had felt that effect, and he knew that, untreated, they would likely kill her. He had no intention of allowing that to happen, and he forced as much power into his Mantle of Authority as he could manage.

  Finally, those crystal shards broke down, and the drain ceased.

  Then, Sadie’s eyes fluttered open.

  “I think you were saying something that sounded like an apology?” he said.

  “I…I’m sorry.”

  Then, she sagged in exhaustion.

  “I don’t know how to do this,” she admitted.

  “Do what?”

  “Be weak.”

  “You’re not –”

  “I can’t control myself, Elijah. I see it…I see it all around, and it infuriates me. It drives me to stupidity. I don’t want to do it. But…but I have to. I can’t stop it. I can only redirect it,” she explained.

  “You know I can’t let you come with us now,” he said after a few moments.

  “I…I know. I know that. I…I want to argue…”

  “There’s no shame in recognizing your limitations,” Elijah pointed out. “You can focus on something else. But if you try to come with us, you’re going to end up killing him.”

  It was an obvious point. Sadie had barely constrained her hatred of Benedict during the Trial of Primacy, and now that she was much stronger, so too would her disdain have grown more potent. Her reaction to that first hunting party was evidence enough. Since then, she’d plunged ahead into the forest, probably because she needed to channel her need for violence into something that didn’t end in outright war with Benediction.

  Somewhere deep down, Elijah had expected it. That was why he’d taken the long way around. It was why he’d spent so much extra time with Sadie over the past week or so. It was just an extended goodbye before they once again parted ways.

  He helped her to her feet.

  “What will you tell the others?” she asked.

  “That you were called away to deal with a crisis.”

  “You don’t have to lie.”

  “I’m not. There’s a whole world in crisis, Sadie. You just need to pick one that doesn’t run counter to your nature,” he explained. “Or you can go back to the Temple of Virtue and work on the next stage of mind cultivation. I’m not here to tell you what to do.”

  “But you are.”

  “I’m just trying to protect you.”

  She hung her head. For a proud woman like Sadie, it was a difficult thing to admit that she couldn’t control herself.

  “This is just another obstacle, Sadie. You’ll overcome it just like you’ve smashed everything else that stood in your way.”

  “You sound so sure.”

  “Because I have faith in you.”

  “Faith. If I can’t keep myself from flying into a murderous rage, I don’t deserve your faith,” she stated.

  “My faith isn’t that you’re perfect. It’s that you’ll keep striving to be better. To overcome problems. None of us are finished products.”

  She sighed, and though she didn’t respond, her disappointment in herself was all over her face.

  “Come on. I’ll take you home,” he said, grabbing her hand. He gave it a squeeze. “You’ll get through this, Sadie. I know you will.”

  If you'd like to read more of Path of Dragons, we're almost two full books ahead (book 14 just started) on Patreon. That's 180+ extra chapters, so a ton of extra content for those of you who can't wait to see what Elijah will get up to. Anyway - check it out .

  For anyone interested in discussing the story, you can join my Discord .

  Thanks for all your support, comments, ratings, and reviews!