The Stonehearted Knight
Chapter 268: The shifting sand (2)

Chapter 268: The shifting sand (2)

Hex saw it.

A tendril drilled out of the sand. It chased after the man. Part of the tendril remained hidden in the sand.

"Stay here. That’s only one of its snares. There should be two more. At least."

Hex halted. He spread his senses out. Far behind the man he sensed some energy. It seemed to be a Disaster. Or a Calamity. The pulse alternated between strong and weak. It was hard to tell.

In the meantime, he kept an eye on the snare. It almost reached the man.

"Freeze it."

Sterling knew more about the creature than him. Hex knew when to listen and when to act on his own. He lifted his hand. The Ice element circle emitted blue-white light. It had filled with the elements in his inner space. Hex was a hair width away from becoming a Refined Knight.

The Ice shot out. To make sure he hit his target, Hex activated his Second Blessing.

The Ice flowed in bursts and reached the snare in a blink. It had reached the man and had just wrapped itself around the ankle. Before it could retract Ice wrapped around it and froze a part. It was the part wrapped around the ankle.

It might have been the cold or because he lost hope but the man screamed louder. And with more despair.

"Moron! Hit the snare. And run!"

Hex glanced at Sterling. He noticed Hex’s glance and smiled.

"The man can’t think. He will follow orders if you curse him."

Sure enough, the man flailed his hand. He didn’t even watch where his sword struck. He just cried and hit. He missed a few times but his messy action landed once. That sufficed. The frozen part shattered. Once the man freed himself, he scrambled and ran. Not in the right direction though.

"This way! Use your eyes. And fucking ears!"

This time Hex was the one who shouted. He even added a bit of energy to his voice. It thundered in the open land. The man jumped and scrambled back. This time toward them.

"You learn fast."

Sterling cheered with a bright smile. One of the ladies beside him sneered.

"It’s you who teaches well. My lord." She didn’t turn toward Hex but he sensed the hostility she radiated. She wasn’t alone. Her sister hated his guts too. But why? He didn’t know. Luckily, he didn’t care.

Two more snares shot out of the ground but just swayed in the air. Hex watched them with narrowed eyes. He hadn’t sensed them. But he realized something. He didn’t sense any of the three snares. Whatever he sensed, it lay a bit further. He couldn’t see it though.

’The main body holds the energy. The snares are long and hidden. They don’t contain even a shred of energy.’

After his encounter with Oracles and high-level people, he didn’t dare to depend on his enhanced senses.

It didn’t mean it became less important. He just needed to be wary of relying on it. But it helped. Like now.

"More are coming."

Hex pointed at the sand shifting. It started with two. But soon, more than ten spots moving under the sand appeared. Not all seemed to be at the same level. Half were just Demons and Fiends.

He didn’t wait for Sterling. The offense would increase their defense. He believed that. The light glowed on the back of his hand. The second blessing activated too.

The Ice element blotted the sky. And then shot out. It consolidated into spikes. Their rugged and uneven shapes made them appear even more menacing.

Just as the man reached them, the spikes shot out. He aimed them all toward the spot he sensed the energy coming from.

The Ice sizzled as it bore into the sand. It froze the spot. Not all hit the target. The two at the Disaster stage used their tendrils to deflect the spike.

The energy of the weaker ones disappeared as soon as the spikes struck. The Disasters weakened but didn’t disappear. They did start to fade though.

’They are burrowing themselves deeper.’ He didn’t pursue them. It felt weak and then they were gone.

"Thank you, Lord."

As soon as Hex glanced at the man, he fell on his knees and thanked him. Being addressed as Lord did stump him a little. He heard Sterling snigger and the twins sneer.

"Stand. There is no need to thank me. We will require your assistance."

Hex paid no attention to the others and went straight to the point.

"You only need to order, Lord."

The man did stand but kept his head lowered. The way the man was dressed drew Hex’s attention. It looked light yet resistant to the sand in the air.

His robe was a long shirt and baggy pants. The baggy pants were wrapped with ropes above the knees and at the lower half. Hex supposed it was to keep things from getting in. He wore shoes woven from what Hex suspected to be hairs coming from the manes of these special horses.

He also wore a long vest without buttons. The vest only held two strings in the middle. They kept the vest from fluttering.

And the man bound a piece of cloth over his head and neck. Again, Hex thought, to prevent sand from getting in.

"Do you know which Dunelord is overseeing this territory at the moment? And where his Sandcastle is?"

Sterling stepped forward and asked. For some reason, he stood a bit behind Hex. Hex only noticed it when he sensed Dolares staring daggers at him.

They were weird.

"Yes. Lord Sheera controls this region. His two-spire Sandcastle is a half-day ride from here." He paused and then pointed to the direction he came from. "In that direction."

"Of course it is."

"What else should we expect with him around?"

Dollaires and Rublena whispered. The man before them didn’t hear. But Hex did. And they knew it. When he turned toward them, both gave him sweet but fake smiles.

It finally dawned on him. They considered him to be cursed. They disliked him being close to their beloved young master. Hex was almost sure his suspicion was on point.

Sterling acted oblivious to any of what happened between the twins and Hex. He took half a step forward. Hex noticed the man flinch. He was missing something. But what? He would ask Sterling later on.

"Lord, should we start to assemble or group and ask this man to show us the way ahead?"

There it was. Somehow he was a lord. Hex suspected the title wasn’t without meaning. But he couldn’t ask before the man. He nodded.

Sterling signaled the twins while Hex and he remained in the same place. It was more than an hour after dawn when the group appeared.

Hex noticed at a glance that everyone wore a wide-sleeved robe with hoods. The hoods were lowered. He sensed Gronke and the captain – those were at the Refined stage – to the back of the two rows.

At the same time as the last horses were led to them, a muffled explosion occurred. He sensed the sand vibrate a little and saw flames rise to the sky.

"Here, Lord." One of the twins – with their hood lowered it was hard to tell who was who – came to him with a horse. The horse was sky blue with white spots on its hind legs. It was the largest one.

’So, I am to act as the leader, huh?’ Hex started to understand Sterling’s act. He played along.

"Took you long enough," he said without looking at her. To his pleasure, he sensed her go stiff for a second.

"My apologies, Lord," she said after a pause.

"Hmph." Hex snorted and sat on the back of his horse. The horse neighed but Hex tightened the reign. It stopped resisting at once.

"Give him one. And let’s be on our way. We wasted quite some time."

The man bowed and hurried on the back of one of the weaker horses. With a bow to Hex, he started to gallop. The rest followed behind him.

Hex eyed the land filled with sand. His new adventure had started.

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