“It’s again raining!” A person from Silver Heart shouted as he looked at the falling rain. It started raining as soon as they entered Yatagarasu through its massive steel gates.
They were all excited to explore Yatagarasu, but the sky suddenly turned dark and rain started falling. It all happened instantly.
The horses, pulling the wagons, neighed and galloped down cobblestone streets. Players, holding umbrellas, walked in the rain without a care in the world. They had already grown numb to the sudden change in weather.
After a short while, the wagons came to a stop in front of a two-story dojo, surrounded by three meter tall stone fence. The dojo looked traditional with all rooms interconnected by sliding doors.
The dojo was slightly raised off the ground, with a wooden base. The building was constructed using natural materials such as cedar wood, paper and straw, yet it looked very sturdy.
There weren’t many solid walls awalls, as most of the walls were made of lattice framework filled with panels of paper that allowed plenty of natural light inside. The rest of the dojo was surrounded by a narrow wooden veranda.
It looked very cozy and inviting, yet there were also training spaces both outside and inside with many training dummies, weapon racks and a large mat for sparring. There were also selection of bo-staffs right beside the entrance.
As the wagon drivers jumped off the drivers seat to stretch their numbs limbs, the players from Silver Heart left the wagons and looked at the dojo in front of them. They knew that this was the location of the infamous Zahhak.
Yet, there weren’t a single name sign saying that name. Otherwise, whole playerbase from Yatagarasu might target them specifically. The location was given to Serenity by Zahhak’s leader, showing his trust in her.
Serenity stepped out of the wagon, wearing her combat-styled kunoichi outfit. It made her look fierce yet still feminine and deadly attractive. Her gaze lingered on the front gates, her heart beating hard against her chest.
It had been many years since she had talked with any of Zahhak members, let alone meet them. She was aware of many members quiting once they became older and realized that they weren’t exactly good guys.
It happened same with her. She was member of Zahhak for two years until she had to stop gaming altogether to continue her studies. She grew as person and remembered her time with Zahhak with embarassment.
Therefore, she never planned to join Zahhak in Martial Online and wanted to create her own dojo. She didn’t know whether they would also join this game, but she had a hunch after occasionally seeing internet mention Zahhak and the leader’s name.
She accepted the invitation for the quest to see her old friends one last time. She doubted she would see them again and deep in her heart, she hoped that they would have also grown up and became better people.
“Hmm, this gate is open.” One of the Silver Heart members said after seeing the gate narrowly open. She pushed it open and walked through it, followed by rest of Silver Heart shortly afterward.
Ambrose climbed out of the wagon, and quickly covered his head with the hood of his cloak. He looked around the streets in curiosity. The architecture was somewhat similar with Amaterasu, but people, the history and culture were vastly different.
Serenity walked through the open gate and looked around at every shack, at every training dummy, at every weapon and at every person in the yard. She felt strangely nostalgic, yet also unfamiliar. 𝑶𝓋𝐥xt.𝗇t
As the Silver Heart members looked around the yard, the front door slid open, revealing a smiling man. His famous green eyes, tall figure with athletic propositions and the infamous long black hair, tied as ponytail, made it very clear who the person was.
As the Silver Heart members felt their hearts race in nervousness, they watched as their leader, Serenity walked to the man with her beautiful silver hair fluttering against the wind while getting drenched by the rain.
“Serenity.” The man said with a smile and stepped down the veranda. He stopped in front of the beautiful Serenity and put his arms wide, inviting her for a hug.
“Cerberus.” Serenity whispered gently as she stepped forward to hug him. She could barely reach her shoulders, but it was still warm hug of two old friends.
“It’s nice to see you again.” Cerberus said and patted Serenity’s shoulders after separating from the hug. He looked at her with a smile on his pleasant-looking face. “You have grown.”
“Have you become taller?” Serenity smiled and lifted her hand to try to touch the top of his head. “At least I can now touch your head, before I couldn’t.”
“Haha, I kind of miss the short Alice.”
“Not my real name…” Serenity rolled her eyes.
“Ahah, my bad. I just can’t get used to calling you Serenity. Feels weird.” Cerberus said and looked over her at the rest of the people in the yard. He smiled and stood to the side to give way. “Please enter my humble abode. It ain’t much, but at least you won’t be standing in rain.”
“Uhuh, thanks…”
The Silver Heart members nodded at him with nervous expressions. They knew that this man was Cerberus, the notorious leader of Zahhak. His power was so great that all guilds of his territory couldn’t beat him and there were twenty inhumanly strong players under his command.
However, that was back in Ember Online. But, they all wondered, how strong he was in Martial Online.
Yet, he acted so casually with Serenity, their leader, which made them view him in a good light. They were, after all, allies in this exploration. Therefore, many already dropped their initial fear.
“Other members are already here, shall we go meet them before we have our meeting?” Cerberus asked from Serenity. After seeing her nod, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and laughed. “They have been excited to meet you after I informed them about our cooperation!”
Serenity awkwardly smiled as his arm wrapped around her shoulders. She wasn’t expecting him to act so intimately towards her because they hadn’t seen for a long time. She then remembered something and stopped moving.
“Hmm?” Cerberus looked down at her, wondering why she wasn’t entering the dojo with him.
Serenity looked over her shoulder at the sole figure on the yard. The black-haired man was dressed in black cloak with hood on. He was staring silently at the dark clouds gathered above Yatagarasu while rain fell down at his face.
“Je… Ambrose, make yourself at home. I will return shortly.”
“Yeah.” Ambrose replied shortly, looked away from the dark clouds, and walked behind the two figures as they entered the house. However, when he lifted his gaze slightly move, he saw sharp green eyes staring at him.
Cerberus looked silently at him and slightly lowered his gaze at his hip, where two sheathed swords were hanging. His eyes widened slightly in surprise before he turned away and entered the dojo with Serenity.
“Who is he, your friend?” Cerberus asked as he smiled at the Silver Heart members, who were awkwardly standing around at the front lounge while leading Serenity through the open sliding doors to hallway, which led to stairs that went to second floor.
“Yes, he is my friend.” Serenity said with a smile.
“Hmm…” Cerberus looked conflicted, but a certain desire rose in his heart, which he couldn’t quench. His hands started itching which spread around his body like uncontrollable disease.
Slowly, the corner of his lips curled into maniac-looking grin.
‘Alice had brought an excellent toy with her.’ Cerberus giggled almost like a child.