the era of calamities-Chapter 102: The Condemned

The immense shadow cast by the Duchy of Araceae now draped over the city of Orion like a shroud suspended in the sky.

A single glance upward was enough to catch sight of thousands of red dots shimmering through the webs wrapped around the structure.

Greedy eyes, burning with murderous hunger, restrained only by the lack of an order from the duchess. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

In the duchy’s central hall, Exa had assembled her council. At her side stood her son, His Highness Helion, and her two marquises: Yorb and Broy.

"My lord, the city lies just beneath us. Your subordinates are growing restless. One word from you, and this human edifice will be wiped out."

"My lord, your authority is overwhelming. These pitiful humans flee at the mere announcement of your arrival. As you can see, they have deserted this place, leaving behind only a handful. It would not be surprising if this repeats across every city on this continent. A single word from you, and I shall condemn all those who dared to flee from their painful fate."

The two marquises were doing their utmost to display, with all the eloquence they could muster, their desire to prove to their lord and His Highness what they were truly worth.

And, in truth, they were already salivating at the idea of the authority they would gain by eliminating thousands of humans.

To soothe their egos, the fact that one of their counts had fallen so disgracefully to weak humans was in no way a sign that they had underestimated the human species.

Knowing full well what was running through their minds, and aware of the pride that needed to be corrected, the duchess did not allow them to act as they pleased.

"My son, what is your intention?" she asked.

True to himself, Helion did not hesitate, revealing the bare core of his thoughts without the slightest filter.

"It is time for my royal person to ascend to the rank of marquis. Let the humans down there serve as my nourishment."

The prince’s declaration stirred mixed feelings in the two marquises.

On one hand, they wished to kneel and praise the prince for his future elevation. On the other hand, they feared he would slaughter all the humans alone and leave not even crumbs for them.

"Your Highness, no summit would dare refuse to bow before you."

"Your Highness, these humans should be honored to serve as your stepping stones."

Thus they flattered him, before trying to secure a portion of the feast if not the whole menu.

"These insignificant humans failed to appreciate your greatness. They fled before you could reduce them to dust."

"And those who didn’t flee have grown arrogant enough to attempt to block your path. One of them, because of his amount of ether, even dares to present himself as a threat to you."

"Your Highness, allow me to put him in his place."

"Your Highness, I shall take the head of anyone who attempts to threaten you."

After that, the two marquises awaited the prince’s answer, hoping he would let them deal with the most dangerous and also the juiciest human.

However, before Helion could satisfy their wish, Exa crushed their hopes.

"That’s enough."

"My son, let it be done according to your will."

Then she added, her tone turning sharp:

"Marquis Yorb, Marquis Broy, here are your orders."

Both bowed their heads.

"Yorb: encircle the city. Let no human escape. But you will not lay a finger on them. They belong to my son.

Broy: divide your forces. Half will watch over the fugitives, the other will track the humans who eliminated Count Kai. You will follow them, but you will not engage."

"Yes, my lord," they answered in unison before carrying out her orders.

---

At the same moment, in front of the city of Orion.

The armors felt cumbersome, the weapons heavy, and sweat trickled down their foreheads despite the cool air.

Courage and determination melted like snow under the sun as thousands of eyes stared down at them from the colossal mass of webs above.

Thoughts swirled in their minds. Each was different, yet all shared the same certainty: they would not leave this battlefield alive.

They had doomed themselves by staying. This enemy wasn’t something they could face.

Anyone capable of summoning night, of dyeing the sky in darkness and painting the moon red, was not an opponent humans even awakened ones could dream of fighting.

It all seemed insane, like something pulled out of a dream.

And yet, none of them was dreaming.

"We... we need to fall back..." a knight stammered as he saw the first Calamity emerge from the duchy.

And for his misfortune, that Calamity was none other than Marquis Yorb, whose mere appearance could turn anyone arachnophobic.

Imagine a giant tarantula. And by giant, not human-sized building-sized.

Eight legs, each twenty meters long, a body covered in fur so dark it seemed to devour the light, a head as large as a car, and four pairs of crimson eyes fixated intensely on their prey.

And before a single knight could step back, Broy appeared next.

If Yorb embodied fear for all, Broy existed on a level of his own.

Imagine the feeling of lice crawling across your scalp, the irritation, the obsession of trying to get rid of them.

Visualize that sensation, then multiply it by infinity to get an idea of Marquis Broy... except replace harmless lice with microscopic mites, each capable of killing.

In his true form, Broy wasn’t a creature... but a living swarm composed of countless deadly mites, each carrying a fragment of his body.

When the two marquises finally revealed their true forms, it was to the great despair of the humans, who instinctively lost all will to fight.

All of them... except one.

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Author’s Note

Hi, Nebu 11 here.

Just a small clarification: titles and ranks (baron, count, marquis, duke, and king) are two separate things.

Helion is a prince, but his current rank is that of a count.

The title naturally comes with advantages, and this will be explored in future Chapters.

Thank you for your support, and enjoy the reading.