A woman, quite young, was crossing the sidewalk. Her face was pale, and she seemed hard to talk to, even though she was quite pretty. The headphones she wore only reinforced that reclusive impression. Glenn walked past her when he suddenly stopped. He recognized that girl. He knew her.
"...Lina?" he asked softly while looking back at her. The girl stopped dead in her tracks and turned her head while taking off her headphones in disbelief. The thundering car horn of an incoming truck did nothing to muffle her incredulous voice, which pronounced only one single word.
"...Glenn?"
"Glenn! Oh, you dumb oaf!" Someone suddenly shook Glenn awake, pulling him out of his dreams. He gasped and looked at his surroundings in incomprehension, before groaning.
"Fucking...shitty dreams...fuck, I really should spend all my nights meditating..."
"Glenn, listen, I thought a lot about what you told us yesterday, and—" A voice spoke to him while barely articulating, seemingly a little anxious. Glenn raised his hand in a calming manner while rubbing the exhaustion of his eyes. The sun was bright above the Observatory, and its light was blinding him slightly.
"You can't just wake me up like that..." Glenn muttered in annoyance, before shaking the tiredness off. Milena was pacing in front of him, hesitating and worried.
"Milena...Why are you always the one to wake me up?" He hissed with displeasure. Milena made a wry smile before pulling herself a stool to sit on.
"S...Sorry. But—this is important, so can you just, uhm, listen?" She pleaded with an anxious expression. Glenn looked at her and gestured dismissively.
"Sure, I'm listening."
Milena twiddled her thumbs, biting down on her lips, before drawing a deep breath.
"You already know I'm a child of the Court, right?"
Glenn nodded slowly, understanding of what was coming dawning upon him. Milena closed her eyes, struggling to finally make the final step, before blurting out, "I'm from the Dela Lune family. My full name is Milena Dela Lune, daughter of Duke Vanderian Dela Lune and Duchess Lily of Sorenas."
She looked at him resolutely, "I am part of one of the Nine Major Families of the Court."
Glenn raised an eyebrow, "...Which means...?"
Milena smiled wryly, "Which means that only the Royal Family is above us."
Glenn whistled with barely faked awe and leaned back on his sofa, closing his eyes.
"How unexpected. Wow, you're—ah, no, you were a big shot before."
Milena froze, unsure of how to act.
"Why aren't you a little more surprised? Did...did you guess it at some point, or...?"
Glenn gave a one-shoulder shrug, "Well, I knew you were part of an important family, that much was easy to see. But honestly, what does it change, that you're from one noble family or the other? You're still Milena, for all I care."
Milena looked at him emptily, before chuckling softly. "I see. Well, thank you for listening to me. It feels like I lost a weight off my chest."
Glenn scoffed, "I understand you all too well. I guess you're staying within the team for the war?"
The lady nodded while looking away from him, "I am. I'm not sure I'll be as useful as you or the others, even more so since you became a Fourth Circle, but I'll still do my best."
Glenn suddenly shot up on his seat, laughing with wide-eyed disbelief, "What, don't you realize how powerful you are? You can use mind control and illusions. We can bypass most fights if we use your abilities well. That's much better than just shooting some destructive rays of energy everywhere or cutting your enemies up."
Milena frowned, unsure, "...You think?"
Glenn shook his head, unwilling to waste his time on her if she couldn't even accept the tremendous potential of her magical talents. Either she came to the realization herself, or she didn't. Beyond that, it was her problem.
"I ditto that! Imagine if we capture a guy? You can just make him spill the beans with one spell!" Diamanes suddenly interjected in the conversation, the grinning mouth appearing in Glenn's left purple palm and startling the both of them. Milena jumped back with her hand on the hilt of her dagger, but she didn't go as far as to un-sheath it.
"...Your hand scared the hell out of me," Milena gasped with one hand on her chest. Glenn rolled his eyes and clenched his left hand, shutting the entity up.
"Yeah, he does that sometimes. Anyway, what about the others? I guess everyone found a room and all that?" He asked while standing up lazily. The sofa had been very comfortable, and the warmth of the sun bathing him in light only made him want to sleep more. Milena's gaze changed and she smiled excitedly.
"Oh, yes, Liara found something! A secret passage of some sort in the Northern aisle of the mansion!"
Glenn's head snapped toward her, "A secret passage!" He exclaimed excitedly. There were secret passages in this mansion? Milena nodded frantically. Without another second of hesitation, any traces of his previous sleep gone, Glenn jumped to his feet and grabbed Milena's hand to pull her away.
"Show me the way! I have to see that!"
Milena chuckled and happily obliged. In the relaxation room, past the dining hall, was a fireplace Glenn had failed to notice before. It melted in the room's decoration quite naturally, so it didn't jump to his eyes as a suspicious place. Only, now, that same fireplace was cracked open, revealing to be a hidden door. Glenn went past it with a wide, childish grin, finding some stairs leading to an inferior part of the mansion.
They first arrived in a cellar, filled with old bottles of vintage wine. Glenn almost bawled his eyes out when he found that room, but Milena pushed him forward while saying that it wasn't even the best part. Further, past the cellar, was a massive training room with countless mechanical automatons resting against the walls. The floor, of a black stone, was covered in scars of past spars, while a practical magical light lit the whole room from the ceiling. Liara and Sahro were sparing without using Aura or Mana, only using their technique and skills.
Sahro huffed as he sliced diagonally, aiming for Liara's throat, only for her to gracefully dodge it and snake her way past the sword to try and stab her own in his stomach. Sahro turned on himself and parried the blade, only narrowly dodging the spear that tried to pierce his forehead.
"Using two weapons is cheating, Liara!" He exclaimed between two gasps for air, only for the Black Heiress' grin to grow even wider. Glenn and Milena watched them continue to spar until the two finally stopped, exhausted.
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"..Phew...enjoying the spectacle, Glenn, Milena?" Sahro asked as he stabbed his sword on the floor and used a rag to wipe the sweat off his face.
Glenn shrugged, "It's no fun if you're not going all out. I'm sure it would have been a lot harder if you could have used your thunder."
Sahro nodded, in complete agreement. Milena scoffed and shook her head, "Liara would have still kicked your ass then. She also uses magic and Aura after all."
Glenn and Sahro exchanged a glance, before laughing. Liara was watching with a soft smile, not uttering a word.
"...Strangely, I'm not so sure Sahro would win," Nelg commented. Diamanes simply chuckled, unbothered to add his comment. Sahro suddenly stopped and went to reach for a stack of paper lying on a bench nearby.
"Glenn, a boy delivered this when you were sleeping earlier. It's for you."
Glenn picked the papers up with a frown, confused. What possibly could it—they were journals, journals of the day. He was about to glance at the main title when a slip of paper fell from the journal. He caught it as it fell and gave it a read.
"...16 Rolling St., Rustgate." He read aloud, before flipping the paper and finding another writing, "Calling in the favor, Pierrot."
Glenn scoffed, "Huh. That was the kid who scammed us back then. Rustgate is the name of District III, right?" He glanced at Sahro for confirmation, but the latter only shrugged with uncertainty. Milena stole the paper from him and nodded.
"Yes, you're right. I wonder what that kid would want from you. Credits?" She asked, but Glenn couldn't say. He glanced back at the journals, more out of curiosity than anything, and suddenly reached for them in shock.
"...Unusual collapse of a colossal square area in the Still Peak vicinity. The famous Blumar Quarries have completely disappeared, replaced by a bottomless abyss from which Blumar golems keep on coming out. We advise against venturing into this area for the time being until the authorities have finished conducting a proper investigation." He read out loud as a feeling of dread crept up his back. Liara and Milena looked at him confusedly, unable to understand why this specific news was disturbing him so much. Sahro, who was drinking from a water bottle spat out all the water in his mouth, coughing heavily.
Glenn slowly raised his eyes from the paper and looked at Sahro with noticeable fear in his eyes, "Say, Sahro...that place, isn't that where the laboratory encased in a massive cube of Blumar was?"
Sahro looked back at him before hiding his mouth, shocked, "...Do you think the whole cube disappeared?" He asked in disbelief. Glenn looked back at the journal and nodded slowly. How did that happen? And why only now?
'The Indigo Bureau. Didn't you give them Doyle Malory's vague location?' Diamanes asked in Glenn's mind, unsure. Glenn's face drained of all blood and he hurriedly crumbled the journal up, burning it with a quick use of Sun Touch. The ashes of the paper fluttered away as Glenn kicked into the pile, making sure no trace of it was left.
"This is not our problem anymore. Let's leave it to the idiots who went there, alright?" Glenn said to Sahro, who nodded frantically in agreement. Liara and Milena exchanged a confused gaze, before shrugging it off. If the boys didn't want to speak of what happened there, then so be it.
"Nothing happened in the Blumar Quarry," Sahro said very seriously as he held his hand out. Glenn shook the hand with a similarly serious look.
"Nothing happened at all."
"I want to say whoopsie-daisy, but that's a little too big for that, no?" Nelg chuckled nervously at the size of the damage.
Glenn dismissed the thoughts and calmed his racing heart. He turned to Liara and Milena, who were waiting nearby.
"I say we leave tomorrow," he decided, "...We have only three months to create as much chaos as we possibly can. Each day counts."
Milena raised a suspicious eyebrow as she questioned, "...Are you sure this has no connection to that big square hole that was created out of nowhere?"
Glenn looked at her with the most oblivious expression he could come up with, "What the hell are you talking about, Milena?" The latter sighed and rolled her eyes to the sky while crossing her arms.
"I'm good with leaving tomorrow. That'll give me some time to nap at least before we head off to our probably certain death," She jeered sarcastically. Liara chuckled lightly beside her, and the two women left the training room. Glenn glanced at Sahro who was busy sheathing his blade back, and grinned.
"What do you think about going to see what that kid wanted? I'm quite curious to see what was that favor he wanted to call in."
The Black Heir sighed and gave him a one-shoulder shrug, "...Better than sitting on my ass. Lead the way."
Glenn chuckled, "You know we need to take the transit, right?"
Sahro froze and suddenly turned around, unsheathing his sword, "Actually, I think I want to train more. I want to be as prepared as I can—"
"Coward," Glenn simply said. Sahro drew a very, very deep breath.
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"I hate you. From the bottom of my heart, I admit it, I hate you," Sahro spat as they left the transit station. Glenn's grin grew even wider at each of the Black Heir's curses.
"You'll thank me later for helping you defeat your fears. Come on, let's find Rolling Street."
The two strolled through this way poorer part of the Bourgeoisie, their clothes, and weapons drawing some inquisitive gazes from time to time. A few thieves considered attacking them at least three times, but three times simply showing Glenn's purple arm was enough to scare them away.
"I'm not sure if I'm that famous or if they're just terrified of catching some strange parasite," Glenn said to Sahro, who shrugged without replying. Diamanes sighed heavily.
"I'm not even going to bother getting angry. At some point, it just bounces right off. I reached Nirvana and your insults simply can't reach me anymore."
Glenn clenched his left hand and shoved it in his pocket, hoping no one heard the hand talk out loud. After following the directions a terrified thief gave them, Glenn and Sahro finally arrived at 16 Rolling St.
Glenn had been expecting a house, maybe an orphanage or the like, but instead, they found a massive derelict factory, old and abandoned. The glass windows were shattered and the walls were covered either in moss, rust, or old paint. Kids were playing around, fighting with long sticks, but besides that, nothing too noticeable. Glenn glanced at the paper he had in his hands and went for the factory's entry, closely followed by Sahro.
Two kids suddenly appeared in front of them, looking serious. They had ugly scars on their faces, which might have made them intimidating, had they not been so skinny that Glenn could probably have broken them in two by blowing on them.
"Whaddya wan'?" One of the two asked with his hand on his back, probably ready to pull out a knife or something. Glenn raised an eyebrow and held the Pierrot's message for him to take. The kid took it and gave it a quick read before glancing at Glenn't left arm in realization. His expression twisted into different emotions; awe, fear, anger, but it eventually settled for admiration.
"You...You're that famous guy in the lower Circle, am I 'aight?" He asked in confirmation. Glenn moistened his lips while nodding slightly. The other kid's eyes widened and he hurriedly made space for Glenn and Sahro to pass.
"Please, uh, enter, Mister. Pierrot is waiting for ya'."
Glenn obliged with curiosity, Sahro throwing the kids a deathly stare. They entered the old factory, finding it to be bustling with activity. Far from being abandoned, they were kids, teenagers mostly, running in all directions while transporting tools and materials. Some of the other kids were barking orders, while the others were busy working on some mysterious projects. A kid came and indicated them the way before running off.
"Well, I certainly didn't expect that..." Glenn whistled in awe, wondering what all of those kids were up to. It was a little too much to simply be some kind of entertainment. There were team leaders, specialized workers, logistics specialists...This was a well-oiled machine preparing for who-knows-what.
"I'm starting to get a little worried about that favor that kid wants from you..." Sahro muttered, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword. Glenn clenched his teeth. He could only agree.
Soon enough, they arrived in an old control room that had been repurposed into an office. A large table was covered in blueprints and schematics, and kids discussing some seemingly important matter around it. Glenn cleared his throat while Sahro leaned back against the wall behind him. The kids stopped talking and stared at him.
"...Pierrot called me here?" Glenn tried hesitantly. The kids' gazes suddenly all shifted to his left arm, and they gasped in realization.
"Oh, it's him!"
"He came to the Bourgeoisie, like he said!"
"Is it finally time?"
Glenn raised his hands to try and stop the cacophony, frowning at the noise.
"Alright, let's all calm down. I'll pretend not to care about whatever operations is there, and simply ask what that other kid wants from me."
The kids became silent and exchanged concerned looks.
"What we want is quite simple," A voice came from behind a door Glenn had failed to notice. The door opened, revealing a young man, quite athletic, and with a dark expression on his face. Glenn paused, confused. Why...why did it feel like he knew that guy?
"We want you to help us destroy Baron Howard, Mister. For what did he has done to us."
The man walked out of the shadows with a wicked grin while leaning on Pierrot, pulling a gasp out of Glenn.
"For what he did to me."
Sahro stood up straight, rubbing his eyes out of disbelief. Glenn approached the man and grabbed his shoulder, incredulous.
"...Liam?"
Liam, the kid he helped almost a year ago to escape the abuse of the Auberge's boss and his team, and who was dragged away by Baron Howard during the Harvest, grinned.
"In the flesh."