Chaos Carrier With A Broken Talent

Koros and Diatra went down the slope as they ran toward Ethan and Menir, who greeted them with approving nods.

"Hah! I can't believe we did it!" Koros exclaimed.

Diatra looked around. Numerous corpses covered the ground, six in total. She and Koros contributed the most to the battle against the Broken Carriers, but Ethan and Menir managed to take on Black Horn and Konrad. It was a great accomplishment.

"Fuck... That was hard." Ethan collapsed to the ground with a satisfied smirk.

His eyes followed the blue moon as it slowly drifted across the evening sky, which would soon turn into a dark, lonely night.

Menir showed the least joy. She carefully examined each of the corpses before nodding deeply in confirmation.

Not only did their survival depend on this mission, but also whether they would rebuild their Circles.

She was satisfied with the result.

"And? What do we do now?" Koros scratched his cheek.

Ethan glanced at him.

"Well, you helped us and kept your word, so we'll do the same. Everything that belonged to Black Horn, Konrad, and their people is now yours. You earned this part, there's nothing more to say."

"Yes." Menir nodded. "Also, I don't think we'll bother you anymore. It was an emergency."

Then, she looked at the dead bodies of Konrad and Black Horn, blood flooding the dark ground.

"It had to be either us or them."

Diatra turned around. "But aren't you afraid of revenge? Black Horn came here with only two people because he didn't think you could stand up to him. He still has a lot of influence in Orsire."

"That's not a problem. Once word gets out that Black Horn is dead, no one will try to avenge him. On the contrary, everyone will try to forget him as quickly as possible because there will be those who want to take his place."

Koros nodded.

"Yes, it will be nothing more than a fight for influence. If you don't interfere, there will be no threat to you and... you know." Koros waved his hand. "Don't be afraid to ask us for help if you need it. We did much better than I expected."

Ethan got up from the ground, his legs still shaking.

"Well, the Soul Stone turned out to be a mighty weapon."

Diatra narrowed her eyes. "Was this your first time using a Soul Stone?"

"Sure, I barely scraped together enough money for the Ascension Crystal, I don't know how much a Soul Stone costs, but I'm sure it's beyond my means. Without purifying that Remnant, none of this would have happened."

That was true. Unlike the Artifacts or Products, creating the Soul Stone was virtually impossible. Some Soul Stones could cost a fortune. Maybe it was a one-time weapon, but powerful enough to win the most important battle that could change everything.

Diatra said nothing, but she had a lot on her mind.

'Unbelievable, I doubt I could handle this task that well. It's not about talent, and certainly not about his rank. Energy responds to your will, and... how badly did he want to kill Black Horn for everything to go so flawlessly?'

"Do you have any questions for us?" Menir asked.

Koros smiled bitterly.

"I guess there's no point in inviting you to stay for dinner by the fire. Hah, although... Diatra and I have a lot of work to do. We need to clean everything up or we'll be in trouble."

Then, he shook his head.

"No, our agreement is complete. I wish you luck."

Ethan and Menir exchanged glances.

"Good, I hope we meet again."

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Ethan patted Koros on the shoulder.

"Great shots. If you were a True Carrier, you could take them all out by yourself."

"Hahaha! Man, it's all thanks to you guys. The best thing an archer can hope for is a good position. That's exactly what you gave us!"

True, raw power was important, but if the difference in power wasn't overwhelming, tactics, skill, planning, and even luck could greatly influence the outcome.

If Ethan, Menir, Koros, and Diatra had faced Black Horn and Konrad in an open field, 2 vs. 4, they would have lost 9 out of 10 battles. But, considering how everything happened, in fact, Black Horn and Konrad hardly had any chance.

With the rustling of leaves, Koros and Diatra watched Ethan and Menir's disappearing backs in the forest grove.

"You know, I hate to admit it, but that was our best hunt," Diatra muttered.

Koros waved his hand, heading toward Black Horn to search him.

"I agree, but we shouldn't get used to it. We got away this time, but I prefer hunting beasts to hunting people."

"Me too."

...

The first thing Ethan did when he got home was crash on the bed, unlike Menir, who methodically headed for the shower to wash off the dirt and dust.

She put on some clean clothes and peered at him.

"Are you ready?"

Ethan slowly turned around.

"I can feel it. The condition has been fulfilled."

"Well." Ethan grinned. "I killed Konrad, you finished off Black Horn. That's two First Rank Carriers, they're one stage above us, so everything went according to plan."

Menir nodded slightly as she closed her eyes.

Their minds plunged back into the dark space where there was nothing but their two Circles, ready to receive the last detail.

Ethan's Circle was on the left while Menir's hovered on the right. Between them was a black and red key—the Dual Key. It was no longer empty, energy wandering in streams filled the frame, wanting to break free.

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

The Circles shook.

[Triumvirate Path believes that the condition has been met.]

[Blind Voyager confirms with great joy that everything is as it should be.]

[The superior circle and the inferior circle are ready to exchange their last pieces and transform from the Broken Circles into the Full Circles.]

This meant nothing less than that Ethan and Menir would finally become the True Carriers.

"Ready?" Menir asked as she reached out her hand toward him.

Ethan grinned.

"Hah, I did everything literally in the last few minutes. You think I'm going to back out now?"

Clap.

Their palms touched as energy swirled in the space between them.

The Dual Key cracked, splitting into two keys facing in opposite directions.

With a bright flash, the keys crashed right into the center of their circles — forever changing their fate and opening up previously sealed possibilities.