In the present time, inside a private tent set up in a camp of the Wezar Kingdom's army by the border, a figure could be seen sitting behind a desk, writing in a small notebook.

“It's been two months since I, Guntar, was forced to flee the capital. My trusted companion and partner, Trevak, broke me out of my imprisonment in the dungeons beneath the Adventurer Guild, and we headed east. His connection was supposed to lead us out of the Wezar Kingdom and through the Aphiton Kingdom. Because of the situation at the border of the two kingdoms, all routes east were blocked. We were forced to settle in a safehouse in the nearest town close to the border until we could find a safe passage towards our destination, the Slesian Kingdom further east. Our plans have been put on hold as tensions on the battlefront rise each day, with skirmishes occurring more frequently. We stayed and waited for an opportunity to leave.

About one month ago, we heard news of adventurers enlisting in the royal army. This was the opportunity we had been waiting for! No one would look for wanted men in the midst of battle, so we took the chance and bribed our way into the army. The man recruiting didn't care enough to check our backgrounds and recruited us the moment he saw our levels and received his payment. I'm beginning to think the payment was unnecessary. I even shaved after a decade! Trevak looked appalled, watching me with gawking eyes.”

Guntar and Trevak had been exploiting the frontlines for a month, gaining experience and leveling up while waiting for the right moment to slip out and continue their journey. Two months had passed since the prince issued a contract recruiting adventurers to "reclaim his stolen goods." The Aphitonians launched a coordinated attack and took over the fortress. Their next target was the nearest mines, just seven kilometers from the border. The army set up camp close to the mines, fighting to keep the Aphitonians from taking them over—a fight they were losing.

A day later, Trevak burst into the tent shouting, "Oh. My. God!" He grabbed Guntar and started dragging him by the hand.

"What—"

"You need to see this!" Trevak interrupted, not letting him finish the sentence and leading him out of the tent. What Guntar saw outside left him speechless. Prince Tristan had joined the battlefield, brandishing his greatsword and leaving flashes of light with every swing, cleaving the terrain and leaving corpses behind.

"They told us to stay away from the battlefield," Trevak warned.

"No shit!" Guntar responded with a snort.

Three hours later, something even more incredible happened. The Aphitonians responded in kind. An ascendant had joined the fight!

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A day before Prince Tristan, his troops, and the recruited adventurers marched outside the city's gates and headed southeast toward the border with the Aphiton Kingdom, the situation was dire. With the Aphitonians gaining more ground and taking over the fortress, the prince was forced to join the frontlines earlier than expected to reclaim the lost territory. He was advised not to leave the throne, but the prince wasn’t worried about an empty throne. Who would be foolish enough to try and take it when the king was bound to return?

The battle raged with increased intensity as the prince pushed the opposing forces further from the mines, but he was stopped at the fortress. The news of the prince joining the battlefield reached the enemy capital quickly, and the Aphitonians responded by sending one of their few ascendants to stop him. The prince wasn’t surprised they would send an ascendant; what surprised him was how fast their response was—almost as if they were waiting for him to join the frontlines.

Most people on the battlefield were low-level soldiers below silver rank and adventurers ranging from first-tier bronze to second-tier silver rank. After the prince clashed with the ascendant, the battlefield was divided into multiple fronts. The lower levels were pushed to the side toward the swampy area in the south, away from the main front where gold and silver rankers dominated the battle for the fortress.

After days of constant fighting, the prince was forced to retreat and was recuperating from the numerous wounds inflicted by the ascendant. The general was with him in the tent, and they discussed their next course of action.

"Kidllams, that bastard…he's clearly here to stop me from retaking the fortress!" the prince seethed in vexation.

"Yes, that seems to be the case…They must've known that having an ascendant involved would break the treaty," the general spoke with worry. "Tristan…"

"I know, Varis. That's what worries me as well. They intended to break the treaty, and they don't seem to be overly concerned about the consequences. What gives them such confidence? There is something else going on…something we overlooked!" The prince said the last part, looking at the general. General Varis nodded and said he would look further into the Aphitonians' actions in the past to see if they had overlooked anything.

The general left the tent, and the prince addressed the shadow within. "Shadow One?" A figure rose up from the prince's shadow. The prince flinched a bit every time he saw it rising. The shadows weren't human; they were created by Domino to follow and protect the prince. He didn't know what skill the ascendant used to create them, nor could he get rid of them. What he did know was that they were around gold rank and followed his commands within the realm of possibility—except for leaving him alone.

"Send word to the spymaster to message Guild Leader Asim of Forsaken Garde and ask him to keep an eye out for any surprise attacks on the royal palace."

Forsaken Garde was the third major guild in the kingdom, and their guild leader Asim was one of King Wezar’s most trusted and loyal friends. For all the prince knew, the Aphitonians could really be planning to take over the throne in the king's absence, no matter how absurd that sounded.

The Aphitonians weren't worried about the consequences of their actions or the involvement of the ascendant because they had major backing. Unbeknownst to most, Peon Tusk, at the helm of Yelsa Co., had been pushing for an open war with the Wezar Kingdom. The reason? Control over the mana stone market! Peon Tusk loved power, but more than power, he craved control.

The Wezar Kingdom's greatest export was mana stones, and by targeting their transport routes, Tusk was crippling their business. His next aim was to either take over or destroy the kingdom's mines, thereby reducing the overall value of the mana stones they were exporting.

Yelsa Co. was a major power on the continent, and while Tusk wouldn't directly operate against the major kingdoms, he controlled and influenced minor kingdoms behind the scenes. The orc was patient and liked to play it safe. He would send bronze and silver rankers to run small operations within the kingdom, avoiding the attention a gold ranker would attract. These operatives would make connections with local organizations, gather intelligence, and sow disorder.

Peon Tusk had been supporting the king of the Aphiton Kingdom economically and financially. The king was enticed as Tusk had given him an ascendant, Kidllams, to join his ranks, boosting the strength of his army and giving him a false sense of power. Tusk even sent the Defiant Hounds to create chaos within the Wezar Kingdom. What the Aphiton king didn't know was that the Hounds operated in both kingdoms—Peon Tusk was playing both sides.

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Why would Tusk go to such lengths when Yelsa was already one of the most powerful organizations on the continent? Only the orc himself knew the true reason.

And speaking of the orc…

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In the office on the top floor of his tower, Tusk sat behind his desk, going over documents in his hands. A woman with pale skin, long ears, and visible runes on her face patiently waited by his side.

Knock knock

Tusk grunted, not taking his eyes off the document in front of him. After a few seconds, the large door of the office opened, and a meek-looking gnome waddled forward. The gnome was about to speak when the orc extended his hand, holding his index finger up, gesturing for the gnome to wait.

The gnome closed his mouth and nervously looked around the office, as if searching for something. The witch isn't here? he thought, then turned his focus back to the orc behind the desk with a twinkle in his eyes. His orcishness is busy! Every day, so busy!

My name is Nesmop Bafflewadle, and I am the leading researcher in the Lost Technologies department of Yelsa Co. I wasn't always the leading researcher. No...

While waiting, the gnome reminisced about the time he first came to know Mr. Tusk.

As a young and promising researcher specializing in the lost technologies of our ancestors, I had already made a name for myself after graduating from the prestigious academy. I began my career as a lecturer at a Magic Institute situated in the grand Empire of Prusha. It was no surprise that my work drew the attention of many influential figures, including one of the most powerful individuals on the continent—Peon Tusk.

During one of my lectures on the possibilities and applications of mass teleportation, Mr. Tusk approached me with incomplete schematics of a mass teleportation portal and offered to fund my research. I was elated! Every fiber of my being wanted to snatch the schematics from his hands and dive into the project immediately. But I couldn't accept his offer right away. I had to play it cool.

Mr. Tusk invited me to dinner to discuss our future relationship, and I must admit, I may have agreed to his proposal too soon—I accepted his offer before we even sat down. Mr. Tusk looked very pleased, which he signified with a grunt. I've come to learn he does that often! We talked and shared our goals and visions of using lost technology to shape the world for a better future.

We traveled to the Brales Kingdom, where the headquarters of Yelsa Co. was situated. I was shown a towering building that would be my future home for the next twenty-seven years.

The next few years felt like a dream. Mr. Tusk was constantly handing me new projects to work on, and I knew I hadn't made a mistake in coming here! The projects varied from teleportation research to tubular pipes powered by mana stones with the purpose of discharging mana. There were many projects and artifacts from the past that I hadn't been introduced to yet, but I looked forward to exploring them all!

The year I was introduced to one of the said artifacts, everything changed. Mr. Tusk led me into a research hall I had never been to before and introduced me to a tall, several-ton heavy black pillar. Runes were inscribed all over and around the pillar in a strange, crossing pattern. Without even glancing my way, Mr. Tusk told me that I was to decipher the runes and find out why the obelisk wasn't activating.

I couldn't help but ask about its purpose, though I wish I hadn't. Mr. Tusk repeated his answer with an indifferent expression on his face. The obelisk was a remnant of when the Demon race invaded our world thousands of years ago. Its purpose was to disperse corrupted mana and terraform the surroundings. In that moment, I knew that Tusk wasn't the orc I thought he was. Chaos dispensers were destroyed long ago for good reason, and whatever purpose Tusk wanted it functional for couldn't be good.

Over the years, his demeanor changed—or maybe he just wasn't hiding behind a facade anymore. I had come to learn more about the orc I once thought so highly of. The projects kept piling up, and I was forced to do research on different kinds of weapons. I wasn't a happy gnome anymore. There was no satisfaction in my work, nor the drive to unfold the mysteries of the past. Tusk noticed, and I was called into his office. That was it. I was done for…

His office was dimly lit, the only source of light illuminating his visage as he stood by the window. When he turned to me as I approached, for the first time, I noticed he wasn't alone. Two aqua blue eyes flashed beside him, and a silhouette of a woman appeared, clinging to him. She smiled, and I froze for a second, mesmerized.

"Come, take a seat," Tusk said, ushering me to sit in the chair across from him.

The sound of his voice snapped me out of it, and I obeyed, taking the seat across from him. He handed me a document, and I saw that it was a contract. Tusk noticed my puzzled expression and explained it was time to renew my contract. I read through the document while he waited patiently, leaning against the chair with his eyes closed. I looked up and around, but couldn't find the woman anywhere.

As time passed, the contract began to reveal its true nature. At first glance, it seemed perfect, offering everything one could ask for in employment. But between the lines? My keen eyes and sharp wits told me it was anything but perfect. Tusk knew everything about me in detail, including my family, and how they would be taken care of. It became clear that the contract was designed to assert control over me, leaving me with no choice but to accept and proceed with the research.

With a heavy heart, I watched as people came and went from that building, unaware of who they were truly working for. Over the years, I witnessed Tusk's projects and ambitions grow, achieving remarkable feats. Before I knew it, I found myself sharing his ambition and even developing a grudging respect for him.

In recent years, his orchisnesses pursuit of power became more direct. While he had always appeared calculated and cautious, something had changed. It must’ve been the influence of The Siren, that witch! She possessed a mesmerizing beauty, the most captivating sight my gnomish eyes had ever beheld. However, I refused to succumb to her allure as Tusk had!

Unbeknownst to the little gnome, her enchanting gaze had already ensnared me with just one look, years ago...

"-mop?"

grunts

"Nesmop!"

?

"Stop daydreaming and hand over the report!" Tusk's sharp command snapped Nesmop’s out of his reverie. He had been absent-minded far too often lately.

"Ah! Yes, your orchishness!" The gnome enthusiastically handed the report to the orc. Tusk grunted again and started leafing through the report before closing it and asking his leading researcher directly.

"How's the project going? Any progress made?"

"Which one? There's no new progress on mass teleportation, I'm afraid. We need a complete schematic. But we did make progress with the chaos dispenser! Theoretically…" Nesmop weakly said the last part.

"Theoretically?" sigh Tusk deflated a bit. Progress had been halted for years now. "Can you tell me if we've made any progress whatsoever?"

"Yes!" The gnome exclaimed and continued. "We modified the point-and-shoot so we can now use mana crystals instead of mana stones! Output isn't as great but we-"

"Point-and-shoot?" Tusk interrupted and questioned. Nesmop nodded and explained they didn't have an official name for the weapon yet, so they tagged it with the temporary name. The two discussed the possibility of mass production when The Siren appeared, clinging behind Tusk as she always did, and looking over his shoulder at the spooked gnome.

Nesmop's heart rate sped up, and he excused himself before running out of the office.

"Mmmnn I could just eat him up," The Siren whispered in Tusk's ear.

"Hands off my researcher! What's the news?"

"Just a little bite? A nimble?" She pleaded.

Tusk grunted in annoyance.

"Your involvement in the two kingdoms will have to be cut short," she stated, having been ignored.

"He's on his way back?"

"My little birdies tell me he is on his way as we speak."

"Can't you stall him?"

"I can, but not for long. He is not alone. Domino is with him."

Tusk grunted in acknowledgement.

"Convey my message to codename Alpha: the Hounds are to return to the Den after the festival and await further orders!"

"Yesss siiir," a creepy voice said from somewhere in the room.

"I luv it when you're serious…"

grunts "I'm always serious!"