Chapter 401 - Dark Valley

The ground shook as millions of soldiers moved with their steed towards the direction of the Dark Valley. The citizens all lined up the streets to watch them march out of the border from the palace. It was an amazing sight to behold. But what mesmerized the people were the vermillion birds bearing the Emperor of Kres and the King of Ritz' right-hand man, and the huge blood-red harpy that carried their king's brother, Stribog that hovered above the legions of men. They all watched and cheered as they passed, and didn't leave their spots until they all disappeared in the cloud of dust at the distance.

Just as when they thought that the spectacle was over, another majestic roar was heard as a huge shadow hovered over them. When they looked up, they saw a resplendent sight of a blue dragon carrying two people. Their eyes widened as they realized who one of them was. 

"Princess Alinea!" The crowd began to cheer out loud and some even went as far as shed tears. They had already heard the good news that their king was able to find Princess Alinea's soul and revive her. "Ah and that must be Lord Kresnik!" one of them shouted excitedly as they waved. 

They were aware of the three Returners to Ancestry that were in Ged. They also knew that the soldiers and their Princess with the deities were on their way to the final Immortal War. With smiles on their faces, they watched as the dragon soared higher and higher as it flew farther and farther away. 

"They love you," Ryuu whispered in his wife's ear as they stared at the beaming crowd until they grew smaller and smaller and completely disappeared from their sight. 

"I guess they do," Alinea answered with a smile as Mavara sped up to catch up with Gin and the rest. 

The palace of Ritz was actually situated near the border of the Dark Valley, and so it would only take them five days to reach Czrnobog's lair. In reality, the Returners to Ancestry and demigods had no trouble reaching their destination in less than a day. But the soldiers were mostly normal Gedians and they used normal steeds— horses, griffins, chanleyas, horses, and some were on foot. 

Ivan, Fredek, and Alinea were veterans on the battlefield. Ryuu also had retained his memories as Vladimir who was the hero of the Immortal War fifty years ago, while Gin was used to handling matters of the Fuuma— not to mention that he's the commander of the celestial planes army, and so handling legions of soldiers were an easy task for all of them. Nonetheless, the commander overall would be Gin as he would be the one who would remain on the surface with the soldiers, and Ryuu would just join him after he had successfully escorted Alinea and the others to the second seal. 

They had actually crossed the border on the third day, but needed to travel two more days within the Dark Valley to reach the Black God's Cavern, a bigger version of the Devil's Cavern where Czernobog and his minions were sealed within. As soon as they set foot on the Dark Valley, the oppressive air ȧssailed them. The soldiers had encountered low-level dark elementals that were highly aggressive. But due to the presence of the deities and demigods who didn't hide their celestial powers, they only lurked and watched them. 

The soldiers only had to take out those who were aggressive enough to really attack them. They had no plans on wiping all the dark elementals as it would disrupt the balance. However, they would wipe out the high level ones that were exceedingly dangerous to the mortals. 

On the fifth day, around midafternoon, the army arrived at a huge open space several meters away from the Black Cavern. 

"We're setting camp here!"Fredek announced and the soldiers moved in sync. 

Tents were set up, fired were started, and by evening, meals were served. They would all spend the remaining hours until a few hours of the morning resting. At the break of dawn tomorrow, Perun would remove the first seal and the final Immortal War would begin. 

Ivan and Fredek went to brief the special team of a hundred and fifty men they would take to the lair. Gin, Ryuu, and Alinea sat near the fire eating. 

"Hmmm… it's been a while since I experienced something like this. It's very nostalgic," Gin said. 

He was talking about old school camping of course. Even in Hakone when they were guarding the portal, they had a cabin and modern equipment with them. He'd never experienced this type of rough, old way of camping out since the last time he accompanied Perun in the first Immortal War. 

"Hmmn…"Ryuu quietly agreed. 

Flashes of the Immortal War half a century ago with his soldiers appeared in his mind, and his heart ached. Since coming to Ged, memories of Vladimir was predominant in his head. The guilt from that lifetime when he forgot about Alinea that he had pushed at the back of his mind resurfaced. He hadn't noticed that he had stopped eating midway. 

"Are you alright?"

Ryuu looked up to see his wife scrutinizing his face. Caught unawares, guilt flashed in his eyes and she carefully placed the bowl of soup on the group before cradling his face with her hands. 

"Hmmmn," he answered noncommittally but Alinea already knew what was on his mind. 

"Homura Ryuu," she said, making Ryuu look at her now with clear eyes. 

Having taken her husband's full attention, Alinea grinned. "That's the name of the man I married in this lifetime."

A quizzical look crossed Ryuu's face, waiting for her to explain. 

"Stop being a stubborn idiot Kresnik. My niece meant she doesn't care about Vladimir. Just don't think about him anymore," Gin interrupted in a frustrated tone. 

Even if Ryuu's EQ had improved considerably since regaining his memories, there were times when he's still very slow. Alinea had already said that she'd forgiven him; there was no need to cling onto a sin that had been pardoned like nursing a wound that he didn't want to close.

"S-Sorry…"Ryuu apologized, and Ali shifted on her knees so she could place a kiss on his cheek. 

Gin made an exaggerated gasping sound as he covered his mouth. "Hey, you two— no PDA!"

Ryuu who was finally feeling alright turned to him with a smug look. "You should have brought your wife," he said, making Gin glare at him. 

"Stupid Kresnik!"