Chapter 6: Wraith Or Thresher? Your Choice

Noah walked between the heavily armored knights, his hands stuffed in his pockets, and his face blank. The leader of the knights, whom Noah had learned was called Sir Enzo, led the group, his heavy boots echoing through the stone halls. As they approached the throne room, Noah frowned at how loud their armor was. It seemed they were the medieval version of the police. The police turn on the siren to announce their presence but these dudes had clanking armor instead. They finally got to the throne room, but this time, the nobles were gone, leaving the grand chamber empty except for King Cillian, who was seated upon his throne, his fingers drumming impatiently against the armrest. Noah exhaled. The last time he was in this room, he had turned down the king’s offer. Now that he was back, it somehow felt like he had even fewer choices than before. Sir Enzo stepped forward, bowing deeply. "Your Majesty, we found an Abyss Wraith in the hero’s quarters, but the circumstances of its summoning were... troubling." Immediately, King Cillian’s expression darkened. "Arlo." The way he said the name was more exhausted than angry, as if this wasn’t the first time he had to deal with this particular problem. "Yes, Your Majesty." Sir Enzo confirmed. "He orchestrated the entire event, apparently as a method of forcing Lord Hero’s Origin Memory to awaken." Cillian exhaled through his nose, rubbing his temples. "Summon him. Now." A messenger was sent, and as they waited, the king’s eyes landed on Noah. "I must apologize for Arlo’s behavior, though I suspect this won’t mean much to you." Noah raised a brow. "That depends. Are you also going to tell me he’s just ’eccentric’ and doesn’t know any better?" Cillian gave a short chuckle, though there was little humor in it. "Arlo is... special. Exceptionally powerful. But he was also forced to grow up far too quickly." "His parents died when he was very young, and he had to take over his title as a lord before he was ready. He has always done as he pleases because few have the strength to stop him." Noah frowned. "So, what? That means I just have to accept getting jumped by shadow monsters in my own bedroom?" Before Cillian could answer, the throne room doors swung open. A familiar whistling tune echoed through the chamber before Arlo strolled in, hands in his pockets, a lazy grin plastered on his face. "Ah, the gang’s all here." He said cheerfully. "And look at you, hero! Still no Origin Memory, huh? That’s kind of impressive, actually." Noah’s eye twitched. "Yeah, really proud of that." Cillian’s knuckles tightened against the armrest. "Lord Arlo, do you even understand the gravity of what you’ve done?" Arlo tilted his head, as if he was thinking it over. "Mmm... I’d say I did everyone a favor." Sir Enzo stiffened. "A favor? You unleashed an Abyss Wraith inside the royal palace!" Arlo rolled his shoulders. "To be fair, it was contained to his room." Cillian let out a slow breath, clearly restraining himself. When he was done, he finally spoke. "And why, exactly, did you think this was an acceptable course of action?" Arlo crossed his arms, looking entirely unbothered. "Simple. The hero needs to unlock his Origin Memory. The sooner, the better. And let’s be real, sending a couple of Wraiths after him is way kinder than what the real enemies are going to throw his way." Noah pinched the bridge of his nose. "Wait. A couple? How many of those things did you summon?" Arlo grinned. "More than one." Cillian’s expression turned cold. "Arlo. Remove them. Now." Arlo sighed dramatically. "I can’t." Cillian narrowed his eyes. "Why not?" Arlo scratched the back of his head with a sheepish grin. "I might have summoned them on the condition that they won’t leave until the hero unlocked his Origin Memory." Cillian facepalmed, while Noah looked between the two of them with a flat expression. "Let me guess. I have to unlock my Origin Memory and they’ll leave." "Unfortunately." Cillian groaned. "Fortunately for everybody, I have a plan." Arlo said brightly. "Let’s just have the hero take the thresher." Cillian looked up, a thoughtful frown on his face. "I hate to say this, but that’s not a bad idea." "No." Noah stepped forward, a hand raised and his voice cold. "You both don’t get to decide for me. I know nobody here cares what happens to me. All you want is your hero." "Why would you say that, hero?" Cillian asked, his voice drowning out Arlo’s "You’re right." "There." Noah snapped his fingers, pointing it at the king. He could see the knights twitch at the corner of his vision, ready for anything that could harm the king. "You all keep calling me hero." He continued. "Not a single one of you has even asked for my name." "I did." Arlo raised his hand happily. "You’re Lord Noah. Noah Webb." Noah’s head snapped to Arlo so fast, he almost got whiplash. "H— How...?!" "My apologies Lord Noah, but we still have an unresolved issue." Cillian spoke, drawing the attention of the room back to him. Noah’s gut told him he wasn’t going to like what was coming next. Cillian straightened in his seat. "You need to unlock your Origin Memory. Whether you like it or not, you are the most hunted man in the palace right now and this is the only way to keep you safe." Noah crossed his arms. "And I assume you’ve already decided how I’m supposed to do that." Cillian’s lips curled into something resembling a smirk. He wasn’t even trying that hard to hide it. "You have two options. You may face the remaining Abyss Wraiths that Arlo so generously prepared for you." Noah stared, his expression hard. "Or?" "Or," Cillian continued, "you take the Thresher." Noah knew he was stuck between a rock and a hard place, and by the way Sir Enzo and the other knights had stiffened, he could tell that the thresher wasn’t anything good. So he asked the question. "What’s the Thresher?" Arlo whistled loudly. "Oh-ho. That’s a fun choice." Cillian folded his hands in front of him. "The Thresher is a controlled hunting ground filled with abyssal beasts." "Newly created chimeras are usually thrown into it to awaken their Origin Memories by fighting abyssal beasts in a harsh and unforgiving environment. It’s a dangerous process, but it is also guaranteed to work." Noah squinted at him. "So either I get hunted down by Wraiths here or go somewhere else to be hunted by the same Wraiths." Arlo chuckled. "Kind of. Except that the beasts in the thresher are usually weaker than Wraiths." Noah rolled his shoulders, exhaling slowly. He had no problem with going to the thresher. He needed power of his own. The problem was that they were putting him in a situation that forced him to go. They were trying to control him. "And if I refuse?" Cillian’s expression didn’t waver. "Then we will continue to be vulnerable to the attacks of the Abyss Wraiths. That is not an option." Noah scoffed. "So it’s not a choice at all." "It is." Cillian leaned back on his throne. "You simply don’t have a favorable one." Noah glanced toward Arlo, who was watching the exchange with an amused grin. He could tell that the king had set this up intentionally, whether intentionally or otherwise. He’d used Arlo to create the hero that they summoned. Either way, Cillian got what he wanted. The hero’s Origin Memory would awaken, and the kingdom would have their weapon. He clicked his tongue. "Fine. I’ll take the Thresher." Arlo whistled. "Now that I gotta see." The knights stirred, and Cillian gave a small nod. "Good. Then prepare yourself, Lord Noah. The Thresher begins at dawn."