Ascension of the Nephilim

The Champions watched as Mezal stood with the strange but ingenious and cool invention of shaded glasses. The man who stood next to him was one of Mezal\'s warriors who he always kept to the side. No one knew why this man shouted.

Many wanted to laugh at Mezal. But his arguments were flawless, and he was a suicidal Champion-level foe. So many kept quiet.

The mage with the vacuum cleaner couldn\'t help but chuckle at Mezal\'s words.

"A well Orc-restated event indeed... To think that this would be the plot of the orcs!"

"That\'s because it\'s not just the orcs. The orc that attacked us had vampires alongside them. But these vampires were just subordinates. This man beside me is Jules Steele. He is one of our many retainers and is the one who reported to me all that he heard. He is the very servant that was captured by the orcs. And I will let you hear things from his own lips."

The Champions turned to the servant, who suddenly shouted for no apparent reason. 

Many looked at him with a strange and curious look.

Mezal watched from the sidelines as Jules became the center of attention.

"I see... Kyros wanted him to shout the yeah to make everyone turn to him? Or is there more to the mystery of Kyros\'s instructions in making him scream?" Mezal began to think. His grandson was a genius! Why did he make this servant scream? There had to be a reason! Kyros couldn\'t have wanted this man to shout just for cheap laughs, right?

"Jules Steele. Tell us what you saw." Ordeus asked.

"I thank you, Champions, for giving ear to this humble warrior, Jules." The servant bowed.

"As for the exact reason as to how I escaped... I... honestly don\'t know what happened. But it was something that the more powerful warriors of our squad did. I saw... Baroness Diana Steele fight. We managed to break free and escape. But they chased us, and we all went separate paths as Diana shouted that some of us have to escape and warn Mezal everything that we heard."

"Diana Steele is the very same, Diana Redblade, who is now married to Branze Steele. I\'m sure many of your Barons and Viscounts have heard of her and may have plans to woo her. I even heard rumors that some Earls wanted her. " Ordeus chuckled as he said the last sentence.

Surprisingly, some in the room actually frowned as they heard this.

"Did she die?! How dare you fail to protect her?" A tall gallant knight standing next to a Champion roared.

"Viscount, know your place! I will not have those who do not have the right to speak here to disrespect my servant! Especially one that has information to save the human kingdom!" Mezal shouted.

The viscount could only grit his teeth and keep silent. But this viscount then had a familiar memory of saying something similar to a Baron who was pleading with the king to honor the contest rules and marry Baron Diana to Branze.

Mezal felt immense satisfaction when he said that to the viscount who demanded from the king of another kingdom that Diana was his.

"My daughter-in-law is not someone so weak that she needs the assistance from a lowly Viscount of your standing! Unless you can challenge someone at level 40, keep quiet, stand by your lord and continue to dream!" Mezal shouted back to the viscount the same insults he shouted to the Aron.

The viscount was red in anger. But he could only glare at Mezal and not say anything or move since the Champion next to him had already warned him.

"Is Lady Diana alive?" Ordeus asked.

"She timed her escape when the vampires left. At an opportune time, she broke free from her binds and secretly freed most of us. I don\'t know exactly how. But most of us were freed. The knights who were captured joined her in combat, but the rest of us fled and scattered at Lord Diana\'s orders."

"That\'s when I found him. I led my surviving team to search for any trails of that army as we planned to save my daughter-in-law. When I found Jules, I was believed that it would be futile to follow since the army would have either sped up since they lost the prisoners. So I came here immediately to warn you all and help me find my daughter-in-law. She is a strong knight. She must have found a way to survive. In fact, I hoped that she sped here. Some of the servants were ordered by Diana to flee to the human kingdoms. This was one of her ways of warning the rest."

"Warning the rest?"

"We believe that the orcs are marching for war. At least, that\'s what Diana discerned." 

"WHAT?!"

"Did the orcs make such claims?!" Ordeus asked Mezal and the servant Jules.

"They did not. But..." Mezal began.

"The Lady Diana ordered it. She must have realized something. She said that there was no time to explain but asked everyone to warn the human kingdoms. Going to this fort was dangerous since the orcs would guard that pass. So she told us to run to a kingdom. I would have done so, but Lord Mezal found me."

"I discerned from there that the orcs have something dangerous planned. Coming here and seeing the state of this fort allowed me to deduce the events on the perspective that the orcs were planning something great."

"It\'s true." The Mage with the vacuum cleaner had been closing her eyes.

"My eagle had flown to the nearby regions of Foreshire Kingdom. Through my eagle eyes, I can see an army is moving out."

"So it begins..." Drake Vestitude frowned.

Mezal was trying his best to stop himself from smiling. He knew that the orc troop they attacked, which carried valuable ores, would have reported the events to the kingdom. Since the orcs witnessed Mezal, Kyros, and Diana create powerful attacks and the mysterious skilled archer that killed a troll with poison, they would assume that four levels 40 or high level 30 warriors attacked them. This was equal to a declaration of war.

"Why would the orcs do this?" One of the champions was confused. 

Although orcs and humans had always been at odds with each other, there was no reason for them to go on a full war against the human alliance.

"The reason is far more terrifying than you think it is." Mezal sighed.

"The great plan that is happening is an attack from the Nether World itself! That\'s why vampires are involved!"

At the mention of the Nether World, the Champions began to have a weird expression. Some even laughed.

"The Nether World? Such stupid accusations." Peridot laughed.

"Orcs of the Foreshire Kingdom! They are in alliance with a distant empire called the Dark Shine Kingdom! Think. The vampire attacks that happened have caused my sons to fall in great peril. Did I not tie my lord to a promise to journey with me to the top of the mountain and find my son? We may be fighting Vampire Masters up there!" Mezal urged.

"The Dark Shine Kingdom! I know of that kingdom!" One of the older Champions expressed.

"Knowledge of that kingdom is scarce. After all, no normal human being would travel the Dark Seas. I\'ve learned of it from the mouths of vampires I slew. They were vampires from other faraway kingdoms. But this Dark Shine Kingdom suddenly began to attack all the kingdoms. The vampires I killed were teleported here through great magic. They were the survivors of a kingdom that this Dark Shine Devoured. I heard of those tales but never believed it would reach the shores of the " The Champion explained.

The room turned serious. Most of them did not know of the kingdoms on other regions. The Lowlands themselves were so huge that they would die before knowing of such a faraway kingdom. How did this Mezal know of that name that even Champions didn\'t know?

"Wait!" Peridot suddenly realized something.

"How is it that your servant knows the language of orcs? He doesn\'t seem like the scholarly type!" Peridot challenged.

"First of all, the orc was talking to a vampire from the Dark Shine Kingdom. And therefore, they were talking in english! And secondly..." Mezal turned to Jules and gave the signal.

Jules began to speak in orc tongue.

"Who is this uncouth hamster challenging me of my wisdom?" Jules answered.

Mezal and Jules were smiling.

Jules had said it with great confidence. However, the pair didn\'t know the translation of the phrase he said. Kyros told the two that Jules would be saying, \'I am rather skilled in Orc tongue, my lord.\'

"PFFT!" A Champion that was gulping water spat out and began to laugh at the man.

Several other Champions who knew how to speak orc began to laugh as well.

Peridot was so red. One could put the words MAGA on his face.

Mezal felt something off with those words, but he dared not put it down since he already placed a smiling face.

"What did Kyros make Jules say?"

"Bravo! Such courage!" A Champion who had a poor relationship with Peridot praised Jules.

"That was amazing!" Another Champion laughed.

"I see we have a future Earl in the making!" Another added.

"My lords, it is not just that. The Dark Shine kingdom would not have the power to trample kingdom after kingdom in the Dark Sea if they were not supported by another. It was a collaborative work! We have discovered that the Foreshire Kingdom is in league with the Dark Shine Kingdom serving a master of ancient origin! Jules, tell them what you heard!" Mezal ordered.

"The orc spoke of a strange name. I thought he was just mispronouncing the word Elder Lich. But my lord Mezal said that it was not a mispronunciation but a real name. This orc was boasting to that vampire in english and wanted that vampire to pass on his deeds to the Eldrich."

"Eldrich?!" Several champions exclaimed. That was a race long forgotten.

"That is correct. You blame Lorem Ipsum, Jericho, and the Mage Alliance for betraying us? Can you not see, that such a plan to help these orcs and vampires steal from your fort is only possible if there were traitors and Necromancer worshipers among every kingdom?" Mezal warned.

All the Champions began to frown.

"Lies!" But one Champion shouted back. It was Peridot.