Zoho explained without hesitation while his body and surroundings were still burning. His eyes darted to the Auroras for a bit and Vaelros observed this.

  “I understand your concern Zoho the great Divine Archmage of Fires. This was surely due to the attacks outside and the massive holes appearing in our Auroras.” General Vaelros answered, but expected further explanation since they could no longer see the outside.

  The Auroras had long activated the thin luminescent shield again which would disable outsiders from seeing and directly attacking what was inside Livingrings.

  But, the people inside were not able to see the enemies, too.

  The general's mind raced. He could not simply obey this command without understanding the full scope of the threat, but he had a duty to protect his king and his family, his sons, and to the whole people in this kingdom.

  The wizards of this authority wielded an authority that transcended even the throne, the authority of King Thalorin.

  Their command was absolute during calamitous events, and not even the king himself nor him as a general, possessed the right to refuse them.

  “General, I don’t have to repeat myself. The forces outside were too great and had used the powers of the demon world itself to bring this kingdom down.

  We had to act with haste as we may no longer be able to hold out, we are running out of time.

  Uther may look like a young boy to you, but his teleportation magic is unmatched.

  We need his powers, if we are to have any chance of survival.” Zoho explained further and his voice was now louder, sterner, and direct.

  General Vaelros’ heart pounded and sweat flowed from his face as he processed the dire warning.

  This had never happened before in all histories written in the Kingdom of Livingrings for many centuries.

  This was just so sudden, what they only knew before was they were dealing with small groups of intruders.

  General Vaelros clenched his fists, the leather of his gloves creaked under the strain.

  He felt the heat of Zoho's powers against his skin. It was a physical reminder of the immense power they were facing right now.

  Zoho was a very powerful Divine Archmage who could manipulate the different kinds and colors of fires, except the Blackfire.

  When the other wizards returned to the ‘source’ during long battles with enemies, it was often recorded he would always stay behind covering for the others.

  This was how strong he was since his body could turn into various fires.

  It was said in the legends of Livingrings that Zoho could battle a legion for days, or maybe the leaders of said legion. It was not known how much of those stories were true.

  This was because even the so-called left-over enemies who entered the second layers of the Auroras, were able to overwhelm the Divine Army.

  Without the guardians and the hard living conditions in the labyrinthine and maze-like dimensions in the second layers, which the Divine Army was used to, the soldiers would have been decimated, especially during rare cases.

  There was once a time like this when the wizards did not intervene because many were not home, or were preoccupied with their work.

  Valthazar was still alive then, and was able to bring the strongest warriors with him inside the second layers.

  That was a story told long ago accompanied with tears and celebration.

  But it seemed, the power of their wizards and the Auroras could no longer protect them now. This meant they had to face the enemies themselves and not run away.

  But, a Divine Archmage’s command must be obeyed. They had seen the rise and fall of thrones and empires; they surely knew better.

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  Zoho was a wizard and a fighter who had seen many battlefields and survived. But now, this Zoho was in front of General Vaelros telling him to hurry, take his children with him and the kings’ family and flee the kingdom.

  ‘These wizards were undefeated by vast numbers of enemies for hundreds of years. Why now? What could cause this to happen?’ Vaelros thought to himself as he listened to Zoho.

  The air around them seemed to hum with urgency, as the sky of Livingrings was darkening with all the smoke which rose all over the burnt villages accompanied with other magical residues.

  “Very well. We shall trust in the wisdom and power of the Divine Archmages. Our kingdom's survival depends on it.” General Vaelros nodded with a deep, steadying breath.

  “General Vaelros, we’ll do what we can for the best of this kingdom and its citizens. I thank you for your faith in us.” Zoho sincerely thanked the general before gesturing to Uther to ready the teleportation. General Vaelros turned to his soldiers. He could both see fear and resolve in their eyes.

  “Prepare yourselves! We move with the guidance of our Divine Archmages. Let us defend our kingdom with every ounce of strength we possess if necessary.” Vaelros commanded and the soldiers positioned themselves into formation.

  They got to be ready when Uther teleported them. There could be enemies in the location ready to attack.

  As the soldiers of the Silver Legion rallied, the sense of urgency transformed into a focused determination.

  General Vaelros, though hesitant, was guided by duty and the wisdom of the Divine Archmages, since they had not failed them all these years.

  He knew this and readied himself for the battle that lay ahead. The general had assumptions on what the wizards meant, but not all.

  As General Vaelros got into position and his muscles tightened, Uther prepared himself to cast the spell.

  “Everyone, get ready! Astral Leap - Gate of the Moon God!”

  Uther activated one of his gates.

  A bluish light encircled them all and their reality shook with the uncountable speed of light.

  Their eyes could only see fast moving dots of bright things.

  Magic and space twisted reality itself and their bodies started to disappear in midair.

  They were actually transported by Uther above the Den of Irons.

  It was the castle of General Vaelros Dreadstelth, mostly chosen as a place to train future soldiers of the Divine Army.

  ***

  For outsiders, wizards were lower than their kings, and were frequently sold in the black markets as children, or served as slaves for nobilities.

  It was common in the kingdoms outside of Livingrings for kings to hold higher magic than their wizards, mostly taken from the darker sources of power.

  ‘Wizards’ were the term used for those who could wield magic or be born with it in the outer kingdoms.

  On the other hand, the wizards here in Livingrings were so powerful.

  They were able to guard this kingdom for centuries, from all conquerors who would use any means to force others into full submission.

  For these, General Vaelros and the citizens of Livingrings respect them deeply, and consider their wizards here as gifts from the gods for protecting them all this time.

  And, were given many mementos when seen wandering around checking the health of the kingdoms’ forests, rivers, and air quality

  All would bow and kneel to the high-ranking wizards, especially the Divine Archmages who were rarely seen.

  For all the legends passed down in human history, these types of wizards just kept protecting this kingdom ever since it was made.

  No one knew why.

  The memory altering of the Auroras worked for those who go inside, but not to those who remained at the exterior.

  Zoho was well-known to many commanders and knights beyond Livingrings, because of the destructive nature of his powers.

  He had burnt many ships, legions, and squadrons, even those with many firing beasts.

  No one knew his name, but the tales of battles he won were too many to count and continued to fill the pages of Magus Chronicles for many centuries.

  He did these without staining his hands with the blood of the people of Livingrings despite his power. This was true to all the other wizards here.

  Many of the attackers who took the available dreams and memories of those who visited here, had long wondered why the wizards were not the owners of this kingdom, but instead the Sealbearers’ and the people.

  The enemies long figured out that all who got out from the Auroras had their memories altered into dreams or illusions.

  Many years ago, written scrolls and books were secretly passed down from generations of wizards and the leaders of the Nexxus.

  These contained details which many of the crowd did not know about Livingrings.

  It made the Nexxus publish whatever they wanted to the public.

  Though the Kingdom of Livingrings participated in trade negotiations when times were peaceful, these were often conducted outside the kingdom.

  *Astra Leap: Gate of the Moon God - power of Uther

  *Den of Irons - castle of General Vaelros Dreadstelth in the city of Callona

  *Magus Chronicles - records of powerful spell casters being kept by the Nexxus alliance