------------Hervalle Empire, Council Chamber--------
A slight breeze filled the council room as Bastian appeared and faced the Empire’s kneeling council members who had long ago become his lackeys. “I’ll be leaving on a new assignment. While I’m gone you’re to expand the Empire. No need to prioritize subtly anymore. The Church will soon have its hands too full with their own problems to deal with your aggression.” Not wasting time with a mental transmission Bastian vanished from the room leaving the shivering councilmembers behind. Only now they were shaking from their excitement. It was time for them to reveal what they worked themselves bloody building for the last eight years to the world!
Not far away Bastian materialized in front of three people. Together the four of them made an odd team. Bastian, sporting an older, but fierce look accompanied by a sharp grey beard. Davim, a man whose eyes seemed to be permanently fixed wide open behind his spectacles while his body constantly twitched like that of a frightened rabbit. Rosellia, a blonde ex-evoker whose eyes remained vacant while her body seemed to move similar to a lifeless doll. Then the odd hollow figure, who always wore a hooded cloak that concealed their face. Finally, the ever-cheerful Fluma taking the appearance of a playful six-year-old girl with blue hair and eager eyes. This odd crew bolted away into the night, with Davim and Rosellia being carried like luggage, as they began their pilgrimage to the Church of Radiance’s Holy Land.
---------------Hervalle Empire, Twilight Company Store-------------------
Prim looked confusingly at the two men sitting across the table from her inside a Twilight Company store. One was a spindly man with a pale face and dangerous aura while the other seemed to be in his early twenties with a hopeful look dancing playfully in his eyes.
“You asked to see the manager of this Twilight Company Store?” Prim asked asserting her undercover profile.
The kind-eyed man responded with a warm tone. “Yes, you seem to be them. To be honest you’re far younger than we were expecting but it doesn’t change the reason we came.”
“Oh?” Prim responded not one bit annoyed about them bringing up her age, she was very much used to it by this point, “And what might that reason be?”
The spindly man dropped a book thicker than a man's skull onto the table. Its black binding was covered in ominous marks emanating a wicked aura. The spindly man then spoke, his gravely voice echoing throughout the meeting room. “We wish to support your endeavors against Tyrant.”
Prim broke out in a cold sweat. Someone had discovered the Twilight Company's ties to the mysterious force fighting Tyrant! Hoping their outward friendly intentions were true, but not willing to risk everything on their word Prim triggered an alarm to put the nearby Chosen on alert.
Outwardly, Prim put on a polite smile and asked, “Tyrant? I don’t believe Twilight is competing with such a company at the moment.”
The young man responded with his warm tone. “No worries! We will be here to assist if you ever need it.” He gestured to the book the spindly man had dropped on the table, “For now please accept this as a gift as well as a symbol of our good intentions.” The young man and the pale man stood up to leave only pausing in the doorway as the young man spoke some parting words. “Oh and Twilight won’t have to worry about any taxes to the empire anymore either. Think of it simply as another gift.” Flashing a bright smile the young man left with the dangerous man in tow.
Alone, Prim sat for a moment thinking over the events. She couldn’t help but feel she had become far more confused than when the meeting had begun. “Allies who want to help us against Tyrant? Powerful enough to gather intel on our close-knit organization without us discovering and even being able to get the Empire to waive our taxes? To discover all of us but come as partners instead of enemies or recruiters, what could they be after? No! We must check on Teacher!” Her thoughts quickly went to her Teacher’s safety Prim threw herself outside rushing to check on the well-being of the one she cared for most.
---------------------------------
Outside the Twilight Company Outlet, the Spindly man and the Young man watched as the girl they had been talking to disappeared over the rooftops in a blur.
“At least at the 5th level, likely the 6th in how fast she vanished from my senses.” The spindly man spoke.
“Oh Hand, what do you think our departed Masters got us into this time.” The young man asked his dour compatriot.
“His message was simple. Go to this store, meet the manager, and offer them our assistance to defeat Tyrant.” The Hand responded.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
“An organization we both founded through sweat and dedication before having it seized in one bloody night by our dear Lord. After it survived all that how ironic we’ve now been tasked to help these children tear it down.” The young man’s warm tone seemed tinged with pity.
The Hand let out an out-of-character snort, “It’s not like we’re willing to go against our Lord’s word Blitz.”
Blitz responded concisely. “Of course not. That man, however brutal, gave us far more power than men like us should ever hold. If I repaid that with treachery then I’d be no better than the Charlatan all my enemies curse me as.” He spoke self-righteously, a self-mocking smile ever present.
“You just don’t want to die.” The Hand shut his partner down unceremoniously.
“That too.” Blitz smiled at the man who knew just like he did of the horrors their Lord was capable of when unsatisfied.
“Well let’s be off then, we still have a war to win with Vernicus and their Lioness Queen after all.” Blitz concluded their conversation as they both made their way back to the royal palace to carry out the other orders their Lord had given them before he left.
------------Hervalle Empire, Hervalle Magic Academy------------
Avior looked at the young Prim who had just arrived inside his dorm room kneeling like always.
“Teacher some men came to me saying they wish to help us fight Tyrant, but I believe they could have malicious goals in mind.” Prim spoke clearly. “Please allow me to escort you to a place the Chosen can better protect you unt-”
Avior waved his hand, cutting Prim off as he could guess what had happened. “No need, I asked someone to help out with Tyrant. The people you met were likely the messengers they sent.”
Prim, taken aback, quickly regained her composure. “Understood. We will accept their offer then.”
“Yes, use whatever they give you but still be alert, their Master is someone who has proven to be unreliable in the past.” Avior warned not wanting his biggest failure of a servant to inadvertently bring down his own organization by attaching Bastian’s trainwreck of one to it.
Prim nodded firmly before leaving, thoughts racing through her head. She quickly went to Mouse who was the current guard for their Lord. Prim found the lanky mouse leaning against a chimney on a nearby rooftop with daggers at her waist. Prim wasted no time in catching Mouse up with what had happened with the two individuals as well as her conversation with their Teacher.
“It seems our Teacher has an old acquaintance who holds a high position in the Empire. Although he said they’d been unreliable in the past. Had they once betrayed him?” Prim asked brainstorming out loud.
Mouse spoke up, “I don’t think our Teacher would tell anyone who betrayed him about us. It’s probably just a friend who left our Teacher behind once he came into a powerful position. Or maybe it’s someone who has a position, not due to skill but pedigree and as a result is not as competent as we might expect. It seems like he’s warning us from depending on them too much as their quality could be lacking.”
“Lacking? But they were powerful enough to find me and know about Twilight’s involvement with Nox and Tyrant?” Prim spoke doubtfully.
Two new figures appeared on the rooftop. A teenager who was currently pushing his glasses back up his nose and a butch boy with a freckled face. Prim filled them in before bringing up her concerns again.
Owl answered Prim’s confusion. “Our Teacher likely told them about us and they didn’t find us themselves, it shows he doesn’t see them as a threat to us. Either way, we can use additional allies at this time. We’re currently stretched pretty thin to accomplish our Teacher’s material request after all. We just need to find out how to contact them again. Did they give you anything Prim?”
Prim jumped back as she realized something. “Of course the book, I left it behind when I came to check on Teacher.”
Badger volunteered to go and retrieve it as the other’s talked more about their mysterious allies.
Mouse already had a theory on their identity. “From your description it seems like the dangerous one was likely a member of the Shadow Guards created by the mysterious Hand. We don’t have much information as we usually steer clear of their activities trying to avoid unnecessary conflict that could distract us from freeing more of Tyrant's prisoners. As for the young man he seems like an official’s son. Maybe even the son of someone of the Kingdom’s Council, the group who actually holds power in the Empire.”
Owl added on, “Either way for our Teacher’s friend to have both on his side is a sign they have pretty widespread influence in the Empire.”
Prim concurred. “That makes sense. There truly aren’t many people in the Empire who can forgive taxes on a company as massive as Twilight. It must indeed be a member of the council then.”
Soon Badger returned with the book they had been given. A quick glance inside showed the four some information they already knew about Tyrant, like some of their base locations, along with far more that they didn’t.
The four, excited to find so much data on their secretive foe, quickly made plans to confirm the new data. The Owl, in particular, latched onto some specific intel which clarified a new process for refining mana circuits. This method although slower was far less inhuman and with some more work could likely be improved into an effective way to make more Chosen or even upgrade the circuits of their current members.
On the last page they found a way to contact the two again through a location and passphrase. All four believed their Teacher had once again come through and brought them a great ally in their time of need. As always putting forward every effort to aid in their battle to free the seemingly endless victims of Tyrant.
Before the four split up, Owl concluded all their thoughts with a simple line. “Tonight marks a new era for Nox. Let us show our Teacher our gratitude by making Nox like his own hands, shaping the world to match the magnificent vision he has for it.”
“We do it all for Teacher.” The other three resolutely answered as their voices echoed marking the beginning of another explosion of growth for the mysterious organization many would come to know as Nox.