Bang!
A middle-aged man from the Birdmen race slammed a cup at the wall, shattering it, "A prince! A prince of ours has been kidnapped. And what the fuck have the lot of you done? You have yet to find a trace of him!"
"Useless!" He shouted in anger, causing the room itself to grow old, turning mouldy as if it hadn't been tended to for decades.
The subordinates shivered in response, saying, "But my Lord, Lord Bilfuren was accompanying Prince Boznan as his guard. There was no way something could happen to the Prince, so we didn't pay much attention to..."
"Are you giving me an excuse?" The middle-aged Birdmen snorted in anger as the room had now become dilapidated, dull, despite the lights being as bright as the start. But their luminescence just seemed to be getting absorbed by the decay around it.
"Fuckers! Just get on with it! If you fail to find the prince before dawn, forget about your lives and that of your miserable family." He screamed in anger, "Remember that if you fail, we'll have to wage a war against the Xetuka Kingdom that would lead to the loss of tens of thousands of lives."
"And all the blame would befall onto the incompetence of you Royal Guards!"
"Y-Yes, we understand, my Lord! Please quell your anger. The best of our men from the capital are already on this task. We'll find Prince Boznan before dawn." One of the Birdmen kneeling on the ground saluted in response as the massive wings on his back fluttered.
Some of his feathers fell to the ground due to his nervousness; he picked them up in a hurry and pocketed them.
"Now, leave. Don't delay any longer." The middle-aged Birdmen waved his hand, watching the Royal Guards leave as he sighed, snapping his finger as a gentle energy reverberated around him, vaporising the decay as the room regained its original vibrant atmosphere.
He was Bruhat Burnak, Duke of the Burnak Kingdom, one of the most influential people that had retired from politics just to focus on growing his strength and delving into the secrets of mana and the world.
After all, he was no longer a Pseudo-Saint but had surpassed all that, becoming a Saint. Becoming a Saint from a Pseudo-Saint was by far the most difficult step, the reason those active in the fields were only Pseudo-Saints at most.
The process alone required decades of meditation, planning, preparations, and accumulation. And even then, becoming a Saint wasn't guaranteed.
The moment one became a Saint, they were no longer a mere flesh and blood entity, but a representative of their profession itself. Not only did they attain longevity after becoming a Saint, but they were also no longer damaged by their profession itself.
The profession itself would guard them against all harm, a reason they were addressed as Divine Beings from this point onwards.
Legends stated that a newborn that was touched by a Saint would be blessed tremendously. The child would be a genius that would achieve greater heights in the future.
In truth, this was because a mere touch from a Saint would mean the profession itself would have an amicable attitude towards the child, causing the child to become more attuned to the profession itself.
But, abusing this authority would mean the profession itself would come to frown on them. If that happened enough times, the Saint might even fall back to being a Pseudo-Saint. Therefore, Saints never took action unless absolutely necessary, disappearing from world politics.
Unfortunately for Bruhat Burnak, his seclusion had to be stalled for an indefinite duration because the core strength of his Kingdom, the Saints had vanished mysteriously.
Their Guardian Saint, stationed in the capital for the past three centuries, protecting it from harm died all of a sudden. And following that, the remaining two Saints too vanished mysteriously, causing him to be the sole remaining Saint that was protecting his Kingdom.
And worst of all, he wasn't able to figure out the reason, despite his best efforts.
What was puzzling here was the fact that considering their strength, a Birdmen Saint could never be ambushed. And even if it happened, a Birdmen would be able to recover almost immediately.
A Birdmen only had two main professions and no sub-professions at all. But, just these two main professions were enough to make them a reigning power.
Doctor!
Witch!
The former profession allowed them to cure a variety of injuries, diseases, ailments, etc. allowing them to have by far the greatest understanding of the physique of various races. And, this was where their second profession came into effect.
Being a Doctor complemented the Witch profession where they prepared curses and status effects, targeting the various vital organs of their targets through a variety of manners. And due to their knowledge as a Doctor, their curses were terrifyingly accurate.
And, they typically carried substitution dolls, a famed sorcery used by the Witches that substituted the damage received onto the doll itself, allowing them to escape a crisis.
And the most shocking fact of all was that all four Saints of the Burnak Kingdom wielded both professions. This meant that as long as they were prepared, they were virtually unkillable. And since they remained within their kingdom, their stronghold, it was even more impossible for them to have vanished mysteriously.
So, things just didn't add up.
'Moreover, Bilfuren had been accompanying Prince Boznan. How the fuck did the Prince mysteriously disappear following that?' Bruhat just wasn't able to make sense of things.
Even though he had been in seclusion, he wasn't entirely unaware of what had been happening in his Kingdom. Therefore, he couldn't make sense, for Bilfuren was a blessed child.
Meaning, when he was just born, Bruhat had held him in his hands, blessing him with the talent to become a peerless expert in the future.
Taking in a deep breath, Bruhat calmed down, 'Just who the fuck dares to mess with my Kingdom?'
Right at this time, his brows furrowed upon sensing a mystical mana fluctuation, eyes lighting up as his figure vanished. And in his place was a broken straw doll, causing the place to become silent.
