Cohen of the Rebellion-Volume 3 side story

Dᴀʏs Wʜᴇɴ Cᴏʜᴇɴ ᴡᴀs Aᴡᴀʏ

Edited by Jiem

Characters in this chapter:

• Cohen Kheda: The main character.
• Wilder, Moya, Marfa, Jack: Cohen's friends and Dark Army commanders.
• Martin Luther: Cohen's grandpa-in-law and grandpa of the Rhona sisters.
• Flynn & Carey Rohna, Winslet(elf): Cohen's wives.
• Fischer Summers: Prince of the Swabia Empire, Cohen's friend.
• The Grand Elf: Winslet's mother, queen of the elf clan.
• Visual Kheda: Cohen's father. Duke of the Swabia Empire.
• Webster: Archmage, Cohen's magic trainer and Visual Kheda's friend.
• Luhrmann: Minister of the Swabia Empire.

Wilder and Moya had finally gotten rid of the manikin warrior, but they were unable to stop Cohen and the mage to be enclosed in the plant sphere.

Then, the peculiar sounds that were emitted from within the plant sphere had made the two much too anxious, yet they were unable to do anything.

"Shit, this green shield!" Wilder slashed on the vines with his giant sword but left only a tiny cut on it. Furthermore, that small cut healed instantly and was replaced by newly grown vines.

Witnessing such a sight, Moya bawled with a pair of red and swollen eyes while he urged the soldiers to speed up on the chopping. The big boss must be saved!

That was because everybody knew that despite that Cohen excelled in all aspects of skills, but less of magic. Moreover, his magic level was extraordinarily mediocre.

As a man who had grown up with so many warlocks and even archmages educating him, Cohen had only managed to learn Lvl 3 spells. He was an apprentice at best.

Even if there were ten copies of Cohen Kheda inside, they were but a measly joke for a warlock that powerful and villainous.

The soldiers could do nothing but keep on chopping. They believed in the possibility of a victory to arise from the match between man and vegetation.

Then Martin Luther, who had received the emergency alert arrived.

"What's going on!" Seeing those soldiers forcing through their advance, Martin asked angrily, "Why on earth haven't you gotten in?"

"This…" Moya said with a downcast voice, "It's the only thing we can think of!"

"Move!" Martin pushed aside the people at the front and examined the vines. He came up with an idea instantly, "Get some mages to freeze these and push down the whole thing!"

"Orders!" Martin commanded Maiza, "Deploy all units on a nearby recon for potential enemies. We cannot let such things happen again!"

Maiza obeyed and left.

As Martin Luther spoke, several mages were already taking the initiative to cast a gargantuan number of ice spells to freeze the vines including their roots simultaneously. Slowly, a huge amount of ice crystals appeared and merged together bit by bit. The crawling plants had finally stopped moving thanks to the icy spells.

Wilder and Moya selected a group of strong men and waited by the side for Grandpa Luther's order.

"Alright!" Martin waved his hand, "NOW!"

Wilder yelled and rushed to the ice wall with this team of soldiers. The crushing force of several brutal males could not be overlooked.

The icy wall of plants sagged by the impact. However, the sagging stopped gradually before it seized completely and bounced away the dozen of men who yelled hysterically.

Though Wilder was pushed back, he had to regroup his men and prepare for the next advancing.

Then, it was Moya's turn. Again, with a dozen men they pushed on the vines. However, they were bounced back yet again though the intensity of its deterioration increased.

After several waves of attacking and rebounding, the barrier resisted their advancing. Many of the soldiers' lips were shivering purple due to the ice spells, and some were even scraped by a neighbor's sharp armor. They persisted nevertheless without a single complaint.

Then and there, a horrifying scream came from inside the sphere, accompanied by a thick and brilliant beam of light that slashed down from the clouds in the sky.

An explosion had occurred inside! A vast amount of dust burst out from the explosion's wave and whipped the clothes of those outside the sphere. It was so loud that the sound traveled as far as even ten miles.

That was an advanced spell! Cohen was in danger!

"MOYA!" Wilder was almost screaming, "GO TOGETHERRRRRRRR!"

Wilder thrust forward while leading his team. The ice wall struggled to defend.

"GOOOOOO!" Moya and his men pushed against the bodies of the men in front of them. All of them pushed hard. The latter of men climbed up by stepping on the heads of the people below. All of them were pushing against the wall with all their strength.

Finally, the weight of many men plus the weight of the ice itself, as well as the inability to regenerate new plants due to ice spells, the vine barrier had failed to resist and collapsed.

Wilder was squashed at the bottom by a dozen soldiers when he heard Moya yell his boss' name as well as the sound of a sob merging with his yelling.

Wilder emerged from the crowd without caring about his face ripped with injuries, only to find Moya kneeling beside a giant pit and his face paled.

"Boss!" The dumbfounded Moya murmured beside Wilder, "Which one… is the boss?"

Wilder looked at the two bodies. Both were burned black and mangled together.

"Calm… you CALM DOWN!" Wilder yelled, "Everything's ok! He'll be fine!"

Moya gazed at him, nodded and slid down the edge of the pit.

The two bodies were almost identical. Both of them has skin burnt dark. Moya reached out his hands for a touch. Who knew the moment his finger met one of the bodies, that body crumbled into a pile of ash.

"I… I… I…" Moya stumbled and looked back up at the guys above the pit.

"Watch carefully!" Martin Luther came over, "Cohen wears a defensive Gaia's Shell. It's supposed to be there! Take a closer look!"

"Ye… yes!" Moya observed the bodies that remained and discovered a darkish set of clothes.

"This is our boss!" Moya dared not to touch the body again, "I saw the Gaia's Shell!"

Martin Luther and Wilder went down the pit to this burnt black Cohen's body.

"Boss…" Moya asked, "Could he be…"

"Nonsense!" Wilder glared at him, "He's OK!"

Martin poked Cohen's body and found the difference to it compared with the one which had collapsed earlier. The place touched was unveiled from the skin layer, and the reddish muscle could be seen clearly. He then put two fingers on Cohen's neck artery to feel the blood pumps.

He felt no ups and downs.

"Weird…"

"Get me a physician!" Martin Luther shouted, "Get down here!"

Several army mages came over and were terrified by Cohen's current appearance.

"What spells do you have to stop his body from degeneration?" Martin fetched an elf warlock, "We need to get Cohen back to Dark City in the shortest time possible, during which you are to keep his current condition from getting any worse."

"We… steady, we can always refrigerate his body…" The warlock said, "This is the most that we can do for now!"

"Do it!"

The sorcerers gathered in a circle to discuss for a short while before starting. First, they put Cohen's body flat on the ground and cleansed his body of the surface dirt and cloth debris. Then, by using a spell, Cohen's body floated in the air. Several pairs of hands glowed white lights and formed a mist around the floating Cohen until it finally wrapped his whole body.

"Sir, it's done! His Highness is completely refrigerated." An elf said to Martin Luther, "Sir, please remember: fifteen tiers of frost spells can't last forever. Sir, you need to move immediately!"

"Get him to Dark City!" Martin Luther ordered, "MOYA, get on your horse and go back to Darkmoon. Tell Viceroy Visual about the situation here. Ask for his assistance to manage the city for the time being. WILDER, set off to Divine City immediately. You must find His Majesty Climos, and ask for his help! By the way, reach out for Webster the archmage before this. Get him down here immediately!"

"ROGER!"

"ROGER!"

Cohen's body was placed on a stretcher remodeled using a tent. Several officers took hold of the makeshift stretcher as if they were carrying a giant package and passed it onto a dozen wingmen. Then, they slowly flew away.

Looking at the figures flying far away, Martin Luther felt ever so perturbed.

He knew that any human being with such a severe wound, even the Protoss Lord would not be of any help. No matter how he tried, the result was almost inevitable.

However, another voice in him had been saying, "Cohen is weird, he will get better!"

Martin Luther brought his thought back to reality and issued several orders. He disciplined the soldiers with his calm state of mind. Such harsh times required the army to remain in perfect order.

On the other hand, at Dark City, where all were waiting for the news of victory knew nothing about what had happened to Cohen.

When the people saw the wingman group carrying a huge package fly closer from afar, they thought the package was one of the spoils of war. Children ran under them and cheered with laughter.

Nobody had expected that their dear viceroy returned in this state.

The Viceroy's three wives were waiting for his return. Several early-arrived wingmen vaguely informed them that the governor would come back slightly wounded. Commander Luther needed the city to get prepared because Cohen felt ashamed of being hurt in his first warfare.

It was not that the soldiers were lying on purpose. The fact that the once great Viceroy Cohen became a roasted duck and his heart and breath seized was known to less than ten people.

The wingman soldiers landed steadily in front of the Viceroy's pavilion, along with a letter from Commander Luther to the viceroy's three wives.

"Madame!" A wingman officer who was in charge of Viceroy Kheda's body delivery said, "Commander Luther has instructed that the letter must be read before opening the package, or His Highness will suffer unnecessary harm in any other cases."

Flynn, who had been worrying the entire time, took the letter, opened it and after a peek at the contents written on the paper, her face paled.

Carey tried to lean in and sneak a peak. However, Flynn calmly put the letter in her pocket.

"Nothing much, he can't suffer from a cold! Get him in and drop the curtains."

Flynn maintained her emotions and said to everyone around them, "You all are in for a treat: the victory is ours!"

"Although we have won, we still need to keep the city secure." Flynn looked around at the happy crowd and disguised her sorrow beneath her cheerful appearance, "Besides that, go get His Highness Fischer here. We need to prepare for welcoming our troops back."

All heard what she said and were relieved to attend their affairs. Since the Lord Viceroy was still caring about work, then he must have not been severely wounded.

The ruler of Dark City was not one to stay occupied.

The soldiers carefully carried the governor's stretcher package onto the bed.

"Winslet!" Flynn waited until the last of soldiers exited before her legs gave way and fell on the ground, "Hurry, ask for your mother!"

"Why?" Winslet was about to see Cohen's condition but turned back and asked with confusion, "Flynn?"

"Hurry!" Flynn welled her eyes, "Cohen is dying!"

Her words were like a burst of thunder that shocked Winslet and Carey.

"Wait!" Flynn stopped Winslet who was rushing out, "Sister… we can't let anyone know!"

Winslet nodded and she took a deep breath to suppress her tears. Then, she walked out like it was any other ordinary day.

"Winslet! I heard Cohen was wounded a little…" It was Fischer, who was called upon by the elf from afar, "He was already back? And he took a flight?"

"Yeah, sure, some light wounds. Need to avoid winds. Cohen asked for you as soon as he came back! Go check him out. Sigh, he's already a viceroy and he still acts like a kid…" Winslet said so with a smile for fear of revealing to the others that walked around. However, deep inside her heart was already broken.

"Alright! I'll go check him out!" Fischer said and walked towards the tent smiling, "God knows what wicked ideas is going on in his brain!"

Winslet moved quickly back to the tent.

When the sheet that covered Cohen's body unfolded, they felt on the spot a trace of dizziness at the view in front of them. Particularly for the elf who had just sent out a letter to her mother, she fainted once she saw the black and red body encased in ice. With fear, Flynn helped Winslet onto a chair beside.

"Co… hen." Carey put out her hands. Tears stopped her from saying anything.

"Pull yourselves together!" As the only male within the crowd, Fischer managed with great difficulty to control his anxiety, hoping to inspire the ladies' confidence with his clean and decisive tone, "Cohen will be fine! He must be. Think about last time when he was in a much worse condition, and he survived. This time it will be a piece of cake."

"Al… right!" Carey retracted Cohen's blanket gently, "Auntie Elf is arriving tomorrow, and Cohen will wake up once she gets here…"

"One more thing! Grandpa has stressed this in his letter…" Flynn looked around in the room, "Cohen's condition must not let out of this room! I don't care about who's the enemy since they were to kill Cohen, they must have been prepared. We need to seal all information in and out and give them the false image that Cohen is all right. So they'd know that their assassination had failed. They will be forced to pause their actions and cease to pursue us again at such a critical moment!"

Fischer nodded and said, "Not only that, we have to create the celebration theme on the site! Flynn, you need to announce with me about our victory and to set things up. Carey and Winslet, please stay here with him in case he wakes up. During these days before he regains consciousness, we have to be strong and keep any enemies away!"

"Wait…" Winslet came back to her consciousness; she asked with her face full of tear traces, "You need to make it clear that all orders are Cohen's ideas. Make them as unpredictable as Cohen. It's his nature, or people will know."

Everybody agreed.

Later that day, Prince Fischer Summers, the current person who held the highest position above all in Dark City summoned a meeting in Viceroy's pavilion for the detailed arrangements to welcome the victorious Dark City troops.

Together with him was the eldest within Viceroy Cohen Kheda's three wives. Thus, all middle and senior officers were called in.

Before the meeting, people discovered that Mrs. Flynn wore ceremonial robes and light makeup. This was a thing no one had ever seen before!

Perhaps because of their victory, Mrs. Flynn's already roused eyes twinkled like stars, her face rosy, which made her graceful and elegant look even warmer and welcoming than usual.

Mrs. Flynn stood aside the tent door to talk with the city officials while she shared her joys of victory with all who were present. Her positive sentiment had affected everybody in the meeting.

As for the Royal Highness Fischer, the one to host today's meeting was bitterly sitting on the viceroy's spot holding a few pieces of weeds from god-knows-where. If one was close enough, Fischer was murmuring something.

"Cohen, you bastard! Wait and see!" Fischer whined lowly, "You are the one to lie in bed and send me to speak here… I! I will get back at you!"

Everybody was so used to the prince's such behaviors. Usually after a certain someone's friend was bullied by him and the latter felt like it was not fair while for the fact that he cannot win the fight, nor was he able to ask for anybody's help, then his look would probably end up like Fischer's.

"Did you see that?" The city authorities chuckled and whispered, "His Highness was teased by our viceroy again…"

"Indeed, think about it. Governor Cohen went out for war for days… sure he's gonna be hard on whoever he ran into! Watch out, you, the thing you got scolded last time was not forgotten."

"But why didn't Governor Cohen host this meeting himself?"

"Dumbass! Didn't you see that the other two Madams are not here? Absence makes the heart grow fonder, don't you know that?"

"I'm single, how would I know that?"

"Doesn't matter if you don't know, as long as the governor knows…"

"Alright, we are here!" Fischer nipped off the last piece of grass and clapped, "Now, let me start this meeting for jerk fa… our governor! Let's start with the following subjects…"

Everyone heard Fischer's accidental 'jerk face.' They tittered while they wrote down their assignments. Though they laughed, if anybody dared not finish his part of the job, their governor might skin them for good. As for Fischer's comment on 'jerk face,' his screams would surely spread all over the city tonight. It was Dark City's unique local product, and it was not something one could hear elsewhere.

"Your Highness!" One of the City Hall men expressed his concerns, "About hanging stripes on the wall… you know, the city rampart is still under construction."

"There's no use telling me this." Fischer cupped his chin and said expressionlessly, "Your dear, respected, always right and all itchy Viceroy said 'If any fellows say no with any excuses, tell him to see me! I'll be glad to talk with him', I think, you might expect to see the governor. Perhaps I can arrange an appointment for you."

Fischer's eyes twinkled, which means… danger! For many, a man had once fallen for this. He who was stupid enough to speak with the angry governor would be doomed. It was a thing that went on for ages.

"Never mind! Never mind!" He seemed like a man who had such bad experiences and hastily waved his hands said, "I will… come up something!"

"Is that so?" Fischer looked a bit sorrowful probably because he let go a scapegoat, "Do we have another question?"

"No further questions!"

"Let's stop here!" Fischer stood up as if he came up with something, "Meeting adjourned!"

After Fischer said that, he dashed beside Mrs. Flynn and held himself with ease. A genuine smile was presented on his face before words came out of his mouth.

"Hey, Flynn, we are friends, are we not?" The city officials who passed by all heard Fischer's apology to Cohen's wife No.1, "Can you forget a certain something-something I said earlier about someone and don't mention it to the one?"

"Well, I've had trouble sleeping these days, you know, out of the concerns for someone…" Mrs. Flynn said, "Which thing do you mean?"

"Impressive! She's worthy of the viceroy's wife. Seems like His Highness is going to get extorted…" Other passersby slowed down and thought.

"That 'jerk' thing… I was careless. You know… he is a bit jumpy these days."

"Oh, in that case, my birthday is near! How would I have time to think about anything else?"

"Ah… ah! Leave it to me, Flynn! I'll take care of that!" Fischer said with a strong sense of righteousness, "How could the charming governor's wife not wear a Divine City Royal Tailor's dress on her birthday? The only way to set off your great and gorgeous proposition! No way, as Cohen's friend and yours, I'm ordering a set for you immediately!"

"Well…" Flynn said with a smile, "Okay, I'll forget your words for the time being!"

"Appreciated!" Someone said with agony.

"Sure enough…" All city official compared secretly between their salaries and the price of a royal dress and made up their mind to never reject their governor.

Because that would mean going broke…. Or worse than that, the governor would kick their ass.

By the time the welcoming details had been settled, it was time for dinner. Fischer and Flynn returned to the governor's pavilion and saw Winslet was waiting for them, along with three elves they have not met. Judging from their attire, the three elves were of high standing.

"Fischer, Flynn, you came back!" Winslet took Flynn's both hands, "My mother is here!"

"That fast?" Fischer asked astonishingly.

"Mother traveled with a few elders. They have used an incredibly wasteful magic." Winslet walked and explained, "My mom is checking up on Cohen!"

"Let's get in, I'll be right with you." Fischer said, "I'll set up the peripheral defense."

By the time Fischer was ready with all the things and entered the tent, the Grand Elf was resting after examining Cohen's condition.

It was the first time Fischer met the Grand Elf as a prince. He walked nearer and bowed deeply to her as his position as a junior, "Your Elf Majesty, how is… Cohen doing?"

"This is tough. I didn't even know how to explain this to you all…" The Grand Elf glanced at Cohen who was lying on the bed with worry while clearing up her thoughts. The ones beside were already shivering when they heard the Elf Queen's words.

"If, let's say Cohen is now dead. From the moment he was wounded till now, it has been a day and night. In such an extended period, if he was actually dead, then his body condition will experience a series of changes, let alone if he was hit by lightning spells. Ordinary people who died this way usually leave not even a trace of dust."

"Yes…" Fischer managed to push out a few words, "Then?"

"You take a look." The Elf Queen walked beside Cohen's body and tore off a dead layer of skin, "It has been this long and Cohen's physical condition is no different than a healthy adult! Except for the outer skin, Cohen has zero internal and external injuries!"

As she spoke, the Grand Elf took a silver scalpel and pierced Cohen's skin to let the blood out.

"Look." She showed the people the blood, "Although Cohen has no heartbeat, neither is he breathing or the blood flowing, his blood is still red and fresh without any signs of clotting!"

"That is to say," Winslet gazed at her mother expectantly, "Cohen is…"

"Poor kid, it means Cohen is not dead." Before everyone reacted, the Elf Queen continued, "But if Cohen keeps on being like this without a heartbeat and breath, he will eventually die."

"What should we do!" Winslet fell into her mother's arms, her shoulders trembling, "Mom…"

"I will try healing him with my spells." The Grand Elf combed her daughter's hair, "If it doesn't work, there are other things to try. Besides, Governor Visual will figure out other ways to treat him. Anyway, let's work together to get him back!"

"Yeah, our top priority is to stabilize the situation in Dark City." Fischer gained the rosiness on his face, "The province is one built with lots of effort! Now that Cohen is temporarily gone, we have to uphold its current state. No one will see any flaws within this period. Or Cohen's effort and the victory he made will be gone as the public minds collapse."

"Yes, kids, I'm glad you see this." The Grand Elf nodded with admiration, "You must hold it together these days!"

"What about after this?" Carey asked, "What should we do?"

"After this?" The Elf Queen comforted Carey with her warm hands, "By then, what will come has come, what will happen will have happened…"

"How are we supposed to hold it for these days?" Flynn sighed, "There are too many situations that Cohen is needed."

"Cohen has left something for us, which is of great help." Fischer's mouth curved upward as if he came up with interesting stuff, though his look was not so appropriate in such condition, "That is Cohen's temper and disposition!"

At this grim time, when everyone heard this, they all smiled!

That night, the governor ordered a full removal of Dark Province battlestation. The construction sites around Dark City and clan settlements have restored regular projects and productions immediately. The victory news in the meantime was spread.

This order was passed on by wingman scouts to all construction sites and villages beyond the Dark Province perimeter.

The province was suddenly in uproars and filled with joy. Countless workers and alien people rushed about telling this exciting news. These people who had been struggling with hardships or gathered by the governor's dubious fame needed badly such an encouraging news for themselves.

We have not chosen a wrong boss! Although he did not have a perfect fame, he seemed like a tough guy. He defeated a group of bandits with minor troops. Cohen Kheda was after all from the Kheda family who could protect their people.

The next morning, a huge number of soldiers and craftsmen led by city officers of all sorts started working on the city decoration.

"To welcome our victorious army and heroes, to celebrate our first victory, for our glorious troops' return, we have to make this place look as good as possible!" The officers yelled with mouthfuls of spit as if the soldiers had already won countless wars.

They sat on the half-built wall or pile of stones in the quarry or trunks beside the roads and yelled, "We have to make them feel like home! Make them comfortable! Make them… hey, you, what are you looking! You, don't look around, I'm talking to you! What the shit are you hanging on the wall!"

"Buntings, sir!"

"Stupid! Are buntings white, you tell me?"

"But we are out of red clothes… sir!"

"No? Where are they all gone?"

"Didn't you just took away the leftovers, sir? You said they are the clothes of the new pants for every soldier."

"I did… stupid ass! Use red paint!"

"But we are short on paint, sir!"

"Where are the paints all gone?"

"Er… to decorate the new washroom for the army…"

"..."

"Sir, should we continue hanging?"

"Never mind, just get some red paint and draw a frame around…"

The site was a big mess. All city officers were racking their brains on the unfinished jobs. As a matter of fact, the governor's plan on celebration had gone a little too far.

They had no choice when faced against the governor's temper. If anyone was unable to finish his job, then may Protoss bless them. Ass-kicking was merely a joke now, God knows what state would they end up in inside the governor's tent.

But then again, what seemed simple had become harder today. On one side, they were too short on men whereas on the other side of the road, it was crowded because there were too many people. On this side, they needed construction material, on the other side, the material that just arrived were missing.

When did anyone see such a mess in the city on any other days? Was it because the people were overreacting about the good news?

Although the whole thing was progressing slowly, no one dared to complain to the governor. Because His Highness was throwing a tantrum since this morning till almost noon and not hinted to finish.

"Do you know? Our viceroy scolded his guards because they thought he was too wounded in battle." The city officers exchanged their latest news, "A guy from the City Hall was caught and went bald this morning."

"Gosh, now it's the fifth guy that was shaved!"

"You bet, I passed by his tent this morning and heard him cursing, loudly! Even his wives weren't able to stop him."

"Geez, please, just keep him inside." The officer thought, "If he saw our work progress, I'm afraid he'll pull out every single hair off my skin!"

When Martin Luther led the troops back to Dark City, they couldn't believe their eyes.

This was indeed a pampered Dark City.

Every road was filled with cheerful humans, orcs, wingmen, dwarfs and races that couldn't be named ranging from adults to kids. They yelled and shouted with flowers and threw them with hot eyes and shouted with flying spit.

The banners pulled all the way from the wall top were written in over dozens of languages because of the mixed races in the Dark Troops.

Although all expressed the same meaning, some were short, some were long. Then it looked like one's mouth were filled in with several caterpillars.

It was a good thing that few soldiers were literate in the army, the ones who were were not spare enough to read it. The soldiers were crowded by happy people.

The soldiers who had never been treated like this were marching forward in perfect formations before orders came down. They smiled simply and honestly and replied to the questions by their countrymen and eyed around for their families.

That moment, Martin Luther believed in a miracle that Cohen was back! This was his style. The ugly patterns on the wall, and the ribbons and flags made out of god-knows-what, they're all Cohen's mischievous style.

He sighed in relief and asked the chief officer, "Where is the viceroy?"

"Sir, the viceroy is in his tent!" The guy smiled bitterly, "He's been jumpy the whole morning. You can hear him scolding from far away. Please talk to him, or we'll be screwed."

"Is that so?" Martin Luther smiled and marched down to Cohen's pavilion after giving a few extra orders.

He was still young after all! Throwing a tantrum after a bit of setback.

That city officer was right: Martin Luther heard Cohen's cursing from very far away, which sounded very healthy and lively.

"Probably because Cohen thought he was too black to see anyone." Martin smiled, "Brat."

Seemed like Cohen was paying extra attention after his ambush incident. The guards were very tense outside.

"Commander Luther!" A custodian ran forward, "Sir, please stop here, I'll notify."

"Off you go!" Martin Luther, who had been on his horseback all his life, was sure to understand, "What's wrong with all the guards here?"

"You didn't know that." The guard spilled his bitterness, "This morning Commander Manta tried to force in without notification, he ended up being kicked and our squad leader balded."

Martin shook his head and thought Cohen went too far on this to even kick Manta's ass. Manta was one of his brothers.

"Grandpa Luther!" Cohen sounded surprised, "Come in, please!"

"Martin Luther walked in only to find a squeezy soldier talking in the governor's voice harshly with hands pinched on the throat. As for his two granddaughters were gazing at him looking sorrowful.

Martin Luther's body shivered and instantly steadied himself.

"Cohen." He roared, "Good to see you!"

On the seventh day after the dark troops returning, its residents were surprised to find that Viceroy of Darkmoon, also known as the father of the Dark City governor: His Excellency Visual Kheda came back looked as if they have endured the hardship of a long journey.

Two days laters, a dozen horses came from the Divine City. The men on the horseback looked worried and hurried. A few army mages had recognized that one of them was archmage Webster!

Three days later, a caravan came from Divine City again with a few people. Some were mages, some were messengers with a few packages. They had never ceased to come.

"What is going on? There came so many important big shots?" The Dark City residents guessed, "Is the governor planning on new constructions? Or are we having another war?"

"Don't worry! The governor will protect us!"

"Sure, you have a point!"

Cohen, who was lying half-dead in bed, even gained reputation these days.

As in another place at the same time, let's say the Minister's Mansion, the talk was not so easy-going at all.

"I am so sorry! Your Highness, we have failed you this time. That ruffian was still alive." A man bent over and said, "Our scouts said, that man was alive and kicking. He scolded his guards every day!"

"You idiot." The Minister who sat by the table sighed and said without any expressions, "I told you to get the right people! The right people! What kind of men did you find me to do the job!"

"It was my fault!" The man was scared and knelt, "I found the wrong man. Please punish me. Please give me another chance to kill him!"

"Never mind." The minister shook and said, "I have more important things to attend… get off." The Minister gazed at the ceiling without a single movement for a lengthy period of time.

"Why can't you be my son-in-law." He murmured, "You asked for it."

Finally, when Cohen was away from Dark City, the people around him were successfully deceived.

Deceived of the enemies, the allied and everybody… until the day Cohen woke up. Most of the people did not even know that Cohen was away for a period of time.