Three days had passed.
I woke up with vigour this morning.
So my daily routine was, before breakfast, Both Vefal and I would have a spar. If I have to say, I improved a lot during my time on the Western Endless Reach as my sparring partner was Rino but yeah I still get my ass handed to me but she did say there was visible improvement.
After breakfast, I go on an inspection around the fortress.
In these few days, Vefal [Shadow] had already explored all the nooks and crooks of the fortress. Aside from making a personal map for each of us, her [Shadow] was also operating counter-espionage by literally blending in the shadow. We had identified several individuals in the fortress that are spying on us.
So we let it be.
It’s a hassle to purge them out and it’ll just let those who sent them know that we know we’re being spied.
Information is power but if we control what type of information they received, it’s technically our power.
Two days ago before Erganisu leave for his trip, I told him to about the missing report and the rumour. He didn’t back out from the trip but he thanked me for the head up.
At times like this I really missed Krolve and his special ability just so Erganisu can teleport back if he’s in danger and Shakil can get back here much faster.
Afterward, there was a short meeting with the representative regarding which of the issues would be prioritized and addressed.
I did some further reading on the issue of the missing report but since it was a relatively old case and the last missing person was about a month ago, there was nothing else for me to check and no other cases were linked.
The letter from Ubermensch had also arrived today.
Turns out, Ubermensch did take some action as he send search parties which he headed the operation, checking the places where the missing was last seen. It lasted for almost a month but they couldn’t find even one of them.
He had to give up as there was a very urgent matter that had needed to be addressed immediately. I think it was a tribal conflict? Come to think of it, when I asked him during our drinking session, he did say that amongst the unresolved issues, there was an important issue that he had truly regretted not being able to resolve. It must be the missing report.
When Sarralus inquired about my decision about the priority of solving issues, I simply asked him if there were any tribe representative that had been sent over here. There was a lodge specifically for visitors here when I inquired the guards last night, so there were bound to be someone outside staying for a night or two.
He answered there were about four so I told him to immediately make appointments with them as it’s better to solve the ones which the tribes themselves felt urgent enough to send a representative. He nodded and seemingly approved of it.
Uwah, that can’t be good, I guess I can offset the competence by acting like a bumbling fool in the appointments.
As of now, I was in front of the door to the room of Miss Ghiscra. I’d told Vefal about this during our stargazing session and she approved as she think I can bring out the best of Ghiscra. In the meantime, she would spend the morning supporting her [Shadow] in luring those spies away from our activities.
Although I felt like she was trying to not being the third wheel.
Does she really think I want to seduce Ghiscra?
Before I could knock the door, the door had opened and Miss Ghiscra, in her usual scientist-like attire came out with a stack of notes like she knew I was standing outside.
“I’m sorry that I was late, the meeting was a bit lengthy than I expected.”
For some reason, I felt like a boyfriend that had ran late in picking up his girlfriend. It’s probably just some repressed self-inducing guilt. Not knowing my concern, Ghiscra only had an understanding expression on her face upon hearing my reason.
“No, it’s alright. I was the one who had asked for help.”
“Well then, where shall we conduct our study?”
“Just follow me, I had found a place where I felt comfortable the most but if you have a better place, then I’m okay with that too.”
“No, no. We’ll go to your place for your own comfort.”
She nodded and began walking. I followed behind her.
Her perception of being a rude girl back then was completely dispelled with her amiable behaviour right now. I guess I am guilty of judging a book by its cover. Still, eye contact is still something that she can’t do. I think she has a mild Androphobia.
After some walking, we had arrived at the tower where just last night, I was stargazing with Vefal.
“This is the place.”
“I see. So you also enjoyed this open air type of place. Was that reason why you were found practicing the Origin Circle beside the road at that time?”
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Hearing that, she let out a squeak of embarrassment.
“Ahaha, well yes, being outdoor makes my mind refresh and it’s a habit of mine ever since I was in the Academy back on my world. At that time, I was so focused on succeeding that I forgot my manner and also my parents back then always told me to be wary of strangers but still…”
“Well, conventionally speaking, there was nothing wrong that you acted that way. I mean a suspicious looking guy suddenly trying to get friendly but I did leave after I greeted you and got no respond… Yeah, it’s your fault.”
“Ehehehe, my bad! I thought I was at the breakthrough, I forego everything. I even forgot dinner. Oh, thanks for the meal at that time, it was really, really delicious, who cooked it?”
“You’re looking at him right now!”
I never had bragged my cooking prowess but upon receiving a compliment of ‘really, really delicious’, humbleness can take a back seat.
“You can cook?!”
“Yeah, although when I tried to cook the ingredients in this world, most of the initial attempts were trials and errors. You know, we’re getting further away from our purpose, let’s start now.”
“My bad, I always gets carried away so let’s stop and immediately starts now. By the way, you don’t mind sitting and discussing it on the floor? I forgot telling you about bringing tables and chairs up-”
As she was flustering, I rose up my right hand with my eyes closed while shaking my head from side to side.
“Sitting and discussing on the floor? I cannot agree more!”
She had a confused expression watching my grin but yeah, happily agreeing to conduct a research on the floor is weird but I am simple man with a simple needs and wants.
One hour had passed as we sat here, animatedly throwing theories and conjectures and how to apply them.
Eomancy energies have three major stages of Form: The coloured stage when it becomes a spell, The Quasi stage, when the colour can’t be seen with naked eyes due to the spell being ‘overstretched’ as in the spell loses the foundational links that ties the spell structure but the spell would still be effective for a few moment and, Natural Stage, the always present Wind of Eomancy.
Half of the known spells don’t proceed to the second stage and went straight to the third stage but both ‘recorded voice’ and ‘distance message’ started by making a short burst of coloured shockwave which was the first stage but if one were to enchant themselves with a certain Light White Eomancy or Light Orange Eomancy, they can see the second stage shockwave, traveling far into the distance.
Because of that, Light Grey has a pivotal role for the long distance on the communication device and she tried to implement both spells into the device. Thinking it wasn’t feasible; I told her that we should just focus one spell. As which spell we should implemented, I suggested we focused the advance spell ‘Recorded Voice’ as unlike ‘Distance Message’, it sends recorded verbal words instead of written words in the conjuring in the air of the receiver. It just better to hear then to write although we would try to implement ‘distance message’ in the future.
Of course, there’s also a Light Orange Eomancy spell that has the same function and don’t need any spell for anyone to receive it but the range is abysmally short so that was crossed out.
So aside from it being an advanced class, the other problem she had was that the spell would only work on those who had enchanted themselves with a basic Light Grey ‘Receiver’ spell which makes them attuned to the frequency for the spell.
That’s not actually a problem the way I see it.
Also the interaction between the spell is an open channel if used via casting, so anyone, including the enemies can listen in. Of course, you can try to add more words to the spell, thus limiting or ‘passworded’ the frequency but that technically would make the ‘recorded voice’ a forbidden level spell.
The only solution was to make an enchanted tool as Eomancy Enchantment can easily solve this problem with helps from Supporting Formation.
“Well then, I look forward to our future endeavour!”
“Me too. I wouldn’t mind extending this but unfortunately, I have boring administrative works shoved to me. You wouldn’t happen to like boring administrative works would you?”
“I’m sorry, I don’t!”
She smiled happily, content with having someone to discuss as she said that.
Wow, she’s not actually shy. I just misinterpreted her cautiousness as timidity.
I nodded and went down.
--
A week had passed and nothing much had happened but the usual dredge of bureaucracy.
Right now, I was drinking tea in the office for the summoned representative. Vefal who was my bodyguard came along but she was currently taking a nap at the only couch here as today was this world’s Sunday, which is our rest day but I had some few documents to check so I stopped by at the office. There was nothing else to do either way.
After checking the needed documents, I was currently thinking on what had happened in the last few days of ‘nothing much’.
First, my position as the summoned representative was like a nine to five job. Every day, my routine after researching with Ghiscra was meeting with Native Representative, Sarralus then lunch then meeting with my deputy representative, Ghrukka, then meeting with tribe representatives and then supper.
Some of the representative had absolutely no respect for the summoned so they would sometimes try to scuffle with me over some issues but with Vefal around, most of them were easily restrained by her and sometimes she use that knockout technique to the more unruly. I had secretly enjoyed watching their expression went aghast as they were pummelled on.
Second, I had received letters from Erganisu regarding his travel. He started to travel from the west side and going to the east. Location wise, this fortress was located at the southern most of the Symokiva.
From the letters, he described that his journey had some ups and downs. Some tribes received him with good will while others were reluctant to do so. Although most tribes were supportive in showing their tradition and costumes to Erganisu, a few of them had refused due to strict prohibition towards outsiders.
On the same letters, we had exchanged secret codes for the more confidential intelligences. Erganisu had noted that some of the tribes seem agitated by some rumours of the tenth summoned bringing misfortune and surprisingly ‘chaos’ upon Symokiva but there were rather low or almost no reports of any sort of troubles in the west side.
Still, it couldn’t be deny that there is a perpetrator that has the intention of bringing chaos around Symokiva.
Regarding Shakil, I told him that he is prohibited to send letters as he is technically on a covert infiltration mission to the northern six tribes. He only would give reports after he finished.
As I thought things over, from the window that I was staring out at the ward or is it courtyard? Anyway, just outside of the fortress, I spotted a periwinkle haired girl, cautiously walking about while turning her head all around like she was looking for something she had lost.
Feeling a little peckish, I smiled as I was thinking of helping such a poor soul.