Soon after Maugris's death, those of the expedition began to regain their senses. Well, what was left of them. A great many lives had perished this day: sixty of the Franks and twenty of the players. Of the two hundred and fifty who set off in the beginning, only one hundred and seventy remained.

Lucius and his companions had done their best to safely suppress the bewitched victims; however, there was only so much they could do. Some had succumbed to their wounds while others were simply caught in the crossfire of battle. It was difficult enough to focus on one's own safety, but even though everyone here was no stranger to loss, the aftermath left a bitter reminder nonetheless.

A reminder of how fleeting their lives truly were. Their journey so far was successful; they had overcome beasts, demonic ambushes, and even momentary insanity all without a single casualty. The expedition members innocently believed that they would all return home safe and unharmed. But this world was an unpredictable one. A friend or comrade made the day before could vanish the next.

They were forced to carry on, unknowing of who would never be seen again.

Meanwhile, amidst all the gloom, Lucius opened his status screen and put the ten points he obtained from the mission into his Nova stat. Eighty-one now: The gentleman would soon reach the next milestone in his supposedly starry ascension! What will happen when he has one hundred points? Who knows. But he was certain it would be quite the surprise.

His next agenda was to open his new apparel box. Last time, Lucius had the great luck of obtaining his snazzy top hat from the random draw. This one though was likely to be just as useful.

(NEW!) Obtained [1] Gentleman's Monocle

Description: A high quality silver monocle with a thin chain, fit for only the most distinguished of gentlemen. This style was once popular among the Frankish citizenry during the age of the sixth emperor, Constantine the Handsome, but has since fallen out of favor due to newer trends. Still, one's fashion is integral in first impressions; and you will certainly make a bold one.

Effect: A Most Discerning Eye.

Upon looking at another being through the monocle's lens, their favorite preferences for tea, or what is most likely to please them if they do not have one, will be revealed to you. You may turn off this skill while wearing the monocle, if you so wish.

Ohoh, An elegant piece of eyewear! Lucius was most thankful for the gift and quickly donned it on his left eye. The gentleman had been relying mainly on his intuition in moments where a tea party was necessary; but with this skill, he needed not guess any longer! Truly, he could think of nothing better.

Once he finished organizing his rewards, Lucius's companions returned to him and admired his new dandy appearance.

"Didn't waste any time I see," Marco said with a chuckle. "How do ya keep gettin' all this dapper stuff, anyway? All I ever get are some pants or a new tie."

Lucius smiled and gave the old mobster a theatric flourish. "What can I say? Perhaps the system enjoys my company."

Harper sighed and showed off a sock crumpled in her palm. "It must hate my guts, then. It's not even in a color I like!"

"You wanna trade? I've got, like, tons of stuff." Mili flaunted a bright pink bracelet on her wrist that would have ordinarily been quite flashy, if not for all the other jewelry the spunky musician wore. She had so many rings and pendants and adornments that the chaotic look somehow wrapped all the way around into being coherent. It fit her style.

Harper refused and gestured to her own attire. "Nah, ain't got the chance to show it off anyway under all this firefighting gear."

Lucius's fellows spoke amongst each other in a lighthearted tone, but he could see they were merely trying to stay positive. It was great luck that their party was still whole despite all the adversity. The others could not say the same.

Out in the distance, Mister Crowley knelt next to a mangled corpse and silently lowered his head. The victim was, sadly, the good Mister Pierre. Lucius remembered that the former chef was among the few who resisted the demon's influence; but judging by the state of his body, he had been blown apart by a large bomb.

"... I want to say it's not my fault, but then I'd be lying to myself. You don't deserve that, Anthony. You didn't deserve this at all."

The man cursed at himself and set to work in digging a hole. There was no changing the past. All he could do now was bury his friend and give him proper respects, so that the poor soul might pass on at least in a dignified manner.

A couple of the other players acted similarly, while the Franks recited their prayers and sent off their departed to flutter away as petals in the wind.

Once the ceremonies had finished, Sir Renaud hobbled over to Lucius and met him with a grave look.

"Thank you for finishing what I could not, Sir Lucius," the Peer said. He looked around at the devastation wrought about and then closed his eyes. His lips trembled and he clenched his hands until the nails drew blood; but rather than despise Maugris for causing this tragedy, Renaud appeared more ashamed of himself than any other.

A bitter laugh escaped his lips, and he threw away his cane in anger. "I grew too complacent. This voyage, our success… I let it fill me with thoughts of grandeur. The fragment was in our possession. The members of our Order were hale and triumphant. With glory so close in our reach, I foolishly allowed my guard to lower — and let my pride blind me to Maugris's odd demeanor."

Lucius walked up to the man and patted his shoulder. "You did all you could, my friend. The blame lies not with you."

But Renaud merely shook his head. "No, that is not true. I knew something was amiss. Maugris behaved not like the man I remembered. His complexion was darker; his voice was twinged in uncertainty. It was clear that a certain matter weighed heavily on his mind, yet I turned away and ignored it solely because of my own inferiority. If I had pushed my contempt aside and talked to him, would he have still fallen to such dark influences? I know not. But still, I should have tried."

One of the worst things a man could obsess over was the possibility of what could have been. Renaud and Maugris shared an ill-fated relationship: estranged, enemies of different factions, and yet nonetheless they once called each other friends. No matter the time that passed nor the distance that widened between them, that fact would never change.

"Will you let this stop you, then?" Lucius asked him.

Renaud hesitated a moment, before defiantly replying, "Of course not. It is my responsibility as leader to see this mission through, just as it is mine to ensure the rest of you rabble survive to the very end. I will not lie down and die here so meekly."

Lucius chuckled and retrieved the man's cane, before lending him his shoulder to balance upon. "Very well, then what do you say we do next?"

Renaud grimaced and pointed up to the sky. There, hanging high above, was the dark sign Maugris had engraved. The foreboding thing had yet to recede despite its master's death. That meant only one thing: the demonic tide was still soon to come.

"Do you hear it?" the Peer asked, and indeed Lucius did. The stomping. The rumbling. Everyone among the expedition was thoroughly exhausted; at this rate, it was only a matter of time before they would be crushed under the approaching horde.

And yet, it wasn't just the demons Lucius heard. There were also the howls of many among them: beastly, wild. The denizens of the forest had not merely been standing idly by while the expedition subjugated the Brain.

A familiar scuttle rapidly hurried toward them. Lucius needed only to turn his head before he came face to (many) faces with the primeval lord of these lands. The hundred-headed wolf centipede snarled and coiled its long body around their surroundings — a seemingly threatening gesture, but the gentleman felt no hostility from it. Far be it. This was, in its own way, a sign of goodwill.

"I do not sense… the fiend anymore," the Beast Lord wretched out through its countless throats. "The prey has… hunted the hunter. Well done. But it is not… not over… its spawn threatens our kind… the forest will soon be overrun. My kindred cannot stop them. I cannot… stop them all."

Well, that certainly didn't sound good. "How large are the demonic forces, exactly?" Lucius asked.

"I do not… know. Thousands upon… thousands… too many to hold back. No escape. They… surround everything… will corrupt everything."

Lucius's companions looked amongst each other and attempted to come up with a plan.

"Guess it's a good thing we didn't use that jewel thingy, huh?" Mili said. "Only problem is finding out how to get out of here when the fire spreads."

Renaud nodded, although grimly. "That may be so, but we must not use it recklessly. The Fires of Sinai will rage for seven days and seven long nights. Before, I would have had Maugris to pave a way through to safety, but without his spells… none among the priests have the strength to protect us from the flames."

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Before the Peer could speak any more, the Beast Lord reared one of its heads next to him and let out a puff of anger. "My kindred are… still out there. A beast should die as a beast. I will not… allow you to… burn them all."

"You don't have to worry about being alone, at least," Harper said with a dark laugh. "We're all gonna turn to ash together if we don't come up with something."

To that, Renaud shifted oddly in place. He seemed to have something he wished to reveal; but the presence of the players and Franks dissuaded him from doing so. When he felt that no eyes were upon him, he snuck to Lucius's side and whisked the gentleman away for a private moment.

"Is something the matter?"

Renaud took a long, deep breath, and then he gave Lucius the emblem he had always kept affixed on his chest — the one that signified his title as leader of the expedition. Renaud turned it around, only to reveal a small jewel embedded on its backside.

"You have the fragment with you, yes?" Renaud said. "Good. This emblem here… it contains a homeward spell. With it, you will be taken back to the capital and into Sir Ganelon's chambers."

Lucius raised his brow. "I see. I've always wondered why such a shrewd man would send one of his own on so uncertain a voyage, but it appears you've had a convenient escape this entire time."

The Peer bowed his head in shame. "I… it was forced upon me. I never intended to use it."

"You do not need to make excuses, my friend. I merely wish to know — why me, instead of yourself?"

"Because those of Sir Roland's faction trust you; and even Uncle Ganelon cannot easily slight the one chosen by the Lord. They will heed your requests. Our only hope of escaping the forest is for you to bring back Ruggiero's steed, the Hippogriff. Even if you fail in securing their aid, at least the fragment will be in safe hands."

"I see, but it will likely take a day or two's travel before my return. Can the expedition truly last for such a period?"

Renaud turned away. "We will have to."

"What of the beasts? I doubt the Hippogriff holds enough capacity to board all the forest denizens."

The Peer gave him a confused look. "Why should I care about those savage creatures? If not for the demonic threat, we would have become their next target. Their hunger is only controlled by the Beast Lord; we cannot share shelter with those who could lunge upon us at any moment."

Lucius understood his reasoning, but how could one not feel a twinge of pity toward those poor things? The Beast Lord had rather peculiar morals, yes, but it had a certain beauty to it that separated itself from man. Such a rare delight — it would be a shame to let its kind perish here.

Was there truly no other option?

>[A Star from the Cosmic Forum makes a triumphant return!]<

>[Number 1 Rated Salesman 1997 toasts Lucius with a glass of battery acid and asks the gentleman how he's been doing. You don't need to answer. The Star already knows you're deep in (CENSORED), cungaroo]<

Now this was a pleasant surprise. The Salesman still had a day left before his ban was supposed to be lifted.

>[The Salesman says they got let out early for good behavior. But nevermind that. You want a solution to this piping hot timeshare out in the middle of goddamn nowhere, don't you?]<

That would certainly be nice to have. Was the Salesman offering to help Lucius out?

>[The Salesman says he ain't a charity case. If you want to make a deal, then you gotta cough up the proper dough. It just so happens that the Star has a lovely property for sale that could just be the answer you're looking for, and only for the low, low price of 40,000 Cosmic Coins! Wow, what a steal. You won't find value like this anywhere else in the Cosmos]<

Lucius chuckled to himself. Was it by coincidence that the price of this so-called solution was almost all of the coins he currently had on him? Surely not…

But what exactly was this property, anyway?

>[It's a castle]<

A castle?

>[That's right, buckaroo. It's a state-of-the-art castle the Star procured from another dimension not too long ago. What was the name again? Something about a rune. Anyways, it has everything you need to survive a demonic invasion: sturdy walls, a moat, flags, and of course, in-house facilities for all your relaxing needs. It even has a big beautiful fountain, free of charge! Sure, it constantly spews some kind of weird dark matter into the air, but why worry over specifics? Just know you're missing out on the deal of a lifetime if you don't buy, buy, BUY!]<

The last part sounded a bit concerning, but otherwise the Star's offer was a tempting one. A castle of such size would easily be capable of holding both the expedition members and all the Beast Lord's kindred. Before Lucius sealed the deal, however, he checked the Starlit Shop to see if there were any cheaper options available.

As luck would have it, he found a lovely castle property with the same features as the Salesman's offer, barring the ominous dark fountain, for only 10,000 coins.

>[Number 1 Rated Salesman 1997 coughs into their hand and implores you to reconsider. Those drab castles from the basic shop don't nearly have the same style as the Star's inventory. Besides, what about the fountain? It's the best part!]<

Lucius smiled and bid his starry fellow a stern farewell.

*(NEW!) You have purchased [1] standard castle. You may place it whenever you wish, but once dropped, the castle may not be returned.

That was just fine. He only needed it for the current moment.

>[The Salesman straightens their suit and turns around, dejected, before returning with a dazzling smile and a hearty laugh. You're a tough cookie, kiddo! But the Star doesn't mind. Navigating a business talk like that takes guts: a real big shot move! If you ever want to make another deal, the Star will be here anytime to scam—sorry—help you!]<

With a shiny new castle just waiting to be placed, Lucius turned back to Sir Renaud. "Good news, my friend! It appears there's no need for me to leave, after all."

Renaud tilted his head, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Observe."

Lucius clapped his hands together, touched the floor, and then watched on as their earthy surroundings were replaced by a towering fortress of triple-layered walls and blocks of red brick. Apparently this design was modeled after the castle built by Constantine (the one on Earth), famed for its impressive defensive capabilities, only upgraded with additional features to suit the modern day.

The expedition members, and the Beast Lord, were plopped right into the central courtyard. Not a speck of the forest could be seen behind the massive borders; and if the schematics Lucius saw were correct, there should be a gate toward the front where they might allow passage through for the other beasts. Yes, everything was proceeding just as planned!

"Uh, Lucius?" Mili asked, staring wide-eyed at their new lodgings. "What the fuck?"

"Language, my dear."

"Sorry. But, like, what just happened? How the heck did you do that?'

"I bought it, of course. Only 10,000 coins — what a deal!"

Marco stared at the gentleman as if he just spoke in another language. "10,000? Where did ya get that kind of money from?"

Lucius acted innocently and waved him off. "Nevermind that, what matters is that we now have full protection against those dastardly demons outside!"

The Franks had not spoken a word since they entered the castle. They merely stumbled about, dazed and confused, as they struggled to comprehend the reality before them; and even Sir Renaud had been stunned into silence. The Peer had to take a seat to collect himself.

"Strange, indeed…" he muttered to himself. "These otherworlders are… so bizarre…"

Lucius walked up to him and then shook the man like a ragdoll until he regained his senses. "Will this do, my friend?"

Renaud looked at him, glossy-eyed, for a moment, before pushing Lucius away and coughing into his fist. "I suppose it does. Yes, this will do just nicely. Not even the Fires of Sinai are capable of breaching these walls."

"Then all is good!"

Lucius turned his attention to the Beast Lord, who had retreated to the castle's corner out of fright. "What is this… hunter of another world? I do not… understand these… magics…."

"It is your and my kinds' precious arc, so to speak," he replied. "All will be safe within these walls. You merely need to command your kindred to gather here, and then we will eliminate those demons swarming the forest."

"You would… burn the forest as well."

"Yes, unfortunately. But it is a necessary sacrifice if we are to protect the living. One's home can be changed; but the dead… they will never return."

The Beast Lord pondered to itself for a moment. Lucius's proposal seemed to weigh heavily on its mind, but his words eventually got through, and so it was that the primordial wolf slithered up the castle's ramparts and then let out a howl beckoning its pack to return.

Soon, hundreds upon hundreds of various creatures began to storm the castle's gate. They came in all sizes, big and tall, toothy and fluffy. Such strange beings Lucius had the pleasure to witness, many of which would have ordinarily remained hidden if not for their Lord's command.

Fortunately the castle was indeed large enough to hold the adorable things. Lucius set to work and designated them to specific sections based on their species — wouldn't want to keep prey and predator housed together, after all. The hundred-headed wolf's influence only went so far. One's nature couldn't be suppressed forever; that's why the gentleman planned beforehand just in case.

The expedition members, of course, also had their own private section. Lucius and Sir Renaud joined efforts to direct them all toward their lodgings, where they might rest for the next week. Lucius explained where to find the kitchen and bathhouses while the players stockpiled the rooms with supplies bought from the shop. This was only a temporary set-up; they wouldn't stay here for long. But the work helped keep their mind off the inevitable swarm heading their way.

When every last one of the Beast Lord's ilk had been stowed away, and the players were safely protected in the castle, Lucius and Renaud made their way to the very top of the structure. The two of them waited patiently. They shared a cup of tea and peered out toward the distance as the rumbling below grew louder and louder.

Finally, the moment had come. Their sworn enemy came rushing in far as the eye could see: thousands, tens of thousands… nay, perhaps even more. There were too many to count, and all of them were soon to descend upon their bastion.

Lucius took out the Fires of Sinai and studied the jewel for a moment. The thing pulsed with a ghastly pale glow. He understood it instantly; only complete destruction awaited all caught in its flames.

"Are there any specific instructions I must know about?" Lucius asked Renaud.

"Not that I know of. You simply… raise it, and then invoke its power."

"Very well."

Lucius did as he said and held the jewel high above. He could hear something wriggling inside. It begged to be let free.

Who was the gentleman to deny such a polite request?

"Do as you wish."

The jewel glowed even brighter. It shook and trembled in Lucius's hand, bursting with energy, until it all came rushing out in a violent eruption of lava—rising, spurting beyond the very clouds. But what goes up must inevitably come down. A fiery rain of molten rock crashed all throughout the forest. Liquid fire oozed out of the chunks, flowing freely and plaguing the once-verdant green in an uncontrollable inferno straight out of the bowels of hell. The demons could not escape it; they laughed and cried out in glee, even as their bodies melted into sludge.

Only the castle was spared from the chaos. Lucius summoned a chair and sat down, dutifully watching all that his decision had wrought. The smoke blocked his view a little bit, but he didn't mind.

How could he leave now when he had just been given front row seats to such an entertaining spectacle?

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