In front of everyone, Grayson looked Aella up and down before dropping onto his knees in worship.
“PLEASE TAKE ME AS YOUR DISCIPLE!”
‘And that’s the second one hooked. Now, if I can just drag Magnus to my side permanently, I’ll be unstoppable.’ Aella mused to herself with an inward chuckle, not realizing how incorrect she was.
For her to be unstoppable after Magnus joins her would imply that she is currently stoppable. The fact that she was able to waltz into a country, kill a bunch of people, and walk out like she owned the place did a pretty phenomenal job of proving that.
That aside, she looked at Grayson with a small smile, “A young man such as yourself bowing to a little girl is unbecoming. You heard me when I was talking to Aimi, yes? Aligning yourself with me will mean killing countless people, both directly and indirectly. Are you sure you’re okay with that?”
Grayson had a conflicted expression on his face. Unlike Aimi, he didn’t have a persistent personality. Self-admittedly, he was a coward. When his family was getting murdered, he hid himself away. Back then, he could use the excuse of being a child…
A normal child. Not one who had fox ears and a psychotic smile… But what about now? Sure, he alone couldn’t do anything to get revenge, but Aella had managed to sway a famous student from one of the top Dragon Rider Academies and an SS-rank powerhouse to her side. This was his chance, but could he manage it?
Could he kill someone when it came time?
His hesitation caused Aella to glance at those around her. Out of her group, Grayson was the only one who could be considered normal despite being such an oddity to the world—a Naturalis born without a Dragon.
Despite his oddity, he was the one who hesitated to accept her offer. Blair, while just as young as everyone else in her eyes, was smart and was indebted to Aella. That was why she went along with her antics.
Magnus, much like Aella, had years of experience in the field and had experience in navigating this sort of field, and Aimi wanted revenge… when it came to Cid and Seraphina, though… They were far too carefree about the situation.
One could chalk it up to them being too young to understand, but Aella knew that wasn’t the case. She could tell. For Seraphina, she rationalized it because she was a [Demon Lord Candidate], but what about Cid?
Cid was a child who had lost his only family just days ago, yet it seemed his heart was already healing. Further, all this talk about killing, and he was unfazed. Even if he was too young to understand it properly, he should still have had an opinion on it, yet he didn’t react at all.
Even with all her knowledge of the minds of sapient beings, the finer details of this group she’s created eluded her.
‘It seems I’m fostering a dangerous bunch. Will I be able to keep them all in check?’
Pushing the thought away as Blair walked up, Aella’s smile grew slightly as she awaited an answer.
“Wait, what did you even give him?” Blair questioned, asking the question everyone was thinking.
“Scribblings of a little girl,” Aella responded without thinking about it, setting Grayson off.
“Scribblings?” He shouted, “You call these scribbles?” He asked frantically, pulling out the piece of paper Aella had given him whenever they first met.
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On it was a musician’s instrument. At a glance, it appeared to be the blueprint for a flute, but the holes that would allow it to create specific sounds were missing and replaced with intricate carvings of some kind.
“These runes are undecipherable! I can tell that the two in the front are related to amplifying… Something! But any more than that, and it’s beyond me! I’m sure that even those legendary [Runesmiths] like Anastasia Rossi wouldn’t be able to decipher these!”
Hearing her mother’s name made Aella nearly choke on her own saliva.
Runesmiths were a specific kind of Magical Engineer, the most important type at that. Since the industrial age, machines have been able to take the roles of blacksmiths, but rune carving is an intricate process that requires precise control and intent from someone, even if they aren’t the ones utilizing the Mana.
“If you wish to know, those 2 in the front are amplifying runes, as you suspected. The 3 in the back are suppressant Runes to further the control, and those in the middle are storage runes that allow for certain types of magical energy to be held for an extended period. Naturally, they’re some of the simplest runes I know.
Grayson’s jaw dropped at Aella, mentioning that these were considered simple! And after what she did to the 3 of them, he didn’t doubt Aella’s validity either.
Although his reactions were a little over the top, Aella understood. These were considered entry-level runes, and even she took several weeks to wrap her head around them yet Grayson managed to decipher a part of them in just a few days.
‘If it’s him. Maybe he’ll have a use for this massive backlog.’ She mused inwardly.
She didn’t understand any of the intermediate, advanced, or peak-level runes, but she had them all memorized. If Grayson could pick up on these so quickly, he should be able to learn the more complex ones in due time. Perhaps he’d even be able to create a weapon on the level of [Sylpheed’s Whisper] in the next couple of centuries!
“I-i’ll… I’ll join your cause! Just teach me these runes, please!”
Clapping in acknowledgment, Aella gave Grayson a thumbs up before pulling an extensive booklet from her bag, “This is the introductory chapter. I’m still in the process of writing the others, so just come back to me whenever you’ve finished learning them.”
Grayson grabbed the book and, upon opening it, entered his own world. The reality around him could shatter into thousands of pieces, and he would not realize it.
“Is that everything on the agenda then? I still have work that I need to do, so we should return as soon as possible.” Blair let out a sigh, opting to look the other way.
“Nope! One more thing before we go! Stormy, watch the kids! I need to go grab the thing!” Aella cheered before darting off into the sky. In just a few moments, she vanished, leaving everyone else to look at each other awkwardly for a few moments before Blair broke the silence by sighing.
“You kids should go rest. You must still be in pain after she hit you head-on, right?” She said before turning her attention to Magnus, who leaned against a tree with his eyes closed.
“Now then, where were we? Ah, right, that girl’s plan to find an Abyss Nest with high Mana concentration. I have no idea what she’s planning, but I fear if I tell her what I found, she would rush in and get herself killed.”
Opening a single eye, Magnus nodded in agreement. “But why are you telling me this? I never agreed to join your little group. Won’t the lass get mad that you’re telling me her plans?”
Blair shook her head in denial.
“I, as the Whirlwind Maestra’s Advisor, have been given full reign over the control and flow of information. Plus, you’ve figured out her identity already, haven’t you, Mr. Armstrong? That’s why you let her ludicrous story go without any questions, right?”
Magnus looked at Blair with a serious expression, the tattoos that covered his body seeming to eye her like a hungry predator… Only for Magnus to let out a hearty laugh.
“As expected of the woman known as Supreme Businesswoman! Your insights go deep! How could I possibly not have figured it out? That lass is a spitting image of Anastasia in her youth! Not to mention the times I’ve shared with her father on the battlefield. So, what do you hope to achieve by telling me all of this?”
Blair pulled out her phone containing all of the information she had gathered for Aella’s endeavors. Sorting through the mountains of already formed data, Blair stopped at a specific file that she showed Magnus.
“Cleared just 11 years ago after the sacrifices of nearly 26 S-rank Dragon Riders. The place lingers instead of vanishing despite the boss being killed. No matter how I look at it, it fits all her criteria. The SS-ranked Abyss Nest. [Leviathan’s Gorge].