Chapter 17 – A Man Against a Storm

Agatha

Agatha sat in the mayor’s office with her head in her hands, trying her best to suppress the oncoming headache. It hadn’t even been two days since the mayor was appointed, and he had put her in a very awkward position. She controlled her frustration as she looked up at the shrewd face of the city admin. The man was a master at maintaining a neutral expression, and had she not been a soul mage, she would have been oblivious to what went on in the man’s brain. But today she didn’t need soul sense to read into him. For he was concealing nothing.

“So, explain this to me again. Our new mayor just decided to leave the city yesterday with no explanation whatsoever. And took a 5-year-old kid with him on a whim. Do you realize how bad this looks from the public’s perspective? He basically kidnapped a kid, and no one knows where he went and why. And you are just telling me this like it is no big deal,” Agatha said in an exasperated voice.

“That is correct. Leaving aside the fact that the System has safeguards to protect kids, I have full faith in the mayor. He would have a very good reason in doing what he did,” the city admin replied simply. The thing that frustrated her the most was that the man sitting across from her wasn’t the least bit worried. As though this was nothing out of the ordinary.

“Ugh. Don’t you realize the rumors that could spread due to this? And how the hell do we explain to the kid’s guardian? I heard she had a grandmother somewhere in the mansion,” she pleaded to get some explanation out of the man. Or at least impress upon him how bad this could get.

“She has already been informed of the situation. I believe her exact words were ‘oh good’,” Henry said in the same formal tone.

“And that’s it? She is not worried?” Agatha asked with shock. She knew how talented the city admin was, but she had never seen him this calm in a situation that could spiral out of control. But before the man could reply, the office door swung open, and the one responsible for this fresh mess walked in casually. She was about to demand answers but froze when she saw who was next to him.

“Oh, hello lady Agatha. It’s so nice to see you again after so long,” Jenny said in a cheerful voice with a wave of her hand.

The girl looked completely different, and her demeanor was the opposite of the shy and timid person she had known. But it wasn’t the outward appearance that shocked her. It was the girl’s soul. She was an awakened, and a powerful one at that.

“I hope your mission was successful, my liege,” Henry said with bow, as Lord Ashryn walked by him and took his seat at his desk.

“Yes. I just set up the teleportation array from here to Reality’s Edge. I need you to go and secure it. Access is to be restricted to only those I approve of. Here is the list of names,” the masked man said nonchalantly as he handed over a piece of paper. “And oh, please send Annabelle to fetch Mrs. Morgan for me. Tell her I need to talk about her granddaughter, and that she is safe.”

Henry gave a formal bow and left without a word. Leaving Jenny, Agatha, and him in the room. Agatha was still reeling from the shock when Jenny addressed her.

“Is everything alright, Lady Agatha?” Jenny asked with genuine worry.

“Ah… um… yes. Yes, I am alright,” Agatha said while shaking her head to refocus. Lord Ashryn had pulled out some papers and was busy writing, so she turned to the short-haired red head who now sported an impressive armor set, complete with a sword and shield. She looked remarkably like the adventurers from the guild.

“Oh good. You looked lost there for a second,” she replied with a smile before proceeding to sit on one of the couches. “Aaah. Been so long since I sat on a genuine piece of furniture.”

“You are free to use one of the guest rooms on the upper floors. If you’d like a bath, go use my room. I will be busy for quite some time,” Lord Ashryn said without raising his head from whatever document he was writing.

“What? Really? See you in a couple of hours,” Jenny screamed with joy and ran out the room like a storm.

“Seeing that you are still in my office, you’ve got questions I assume?” Lord Ashryn asked her while continuing to do his work. But Agatha didn’t know where to start. She floundered to find the right words, but he didn’t press further.

“The kid. You said she is safe. Where is she?” she finally asked the most important question from her list.

“At Reality’s Edge, with Bane and the others,” Lord Ashryn replied simply as he folded and sealed a letter before grabbing another piece of paper.

“And her. She is level 35, and an awakened. How is that even possible?” she said while pointing towards the door. She noticed Lord Ashryn’s hand freeze momentarily when she used the word ‘awakened’. But he continued writing without looking her way.

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“She’s been farming XP in a high leveled area by herself for weeks now. It would be weird if she wasn’t that high leveled,” he responded calmly, completely glossing over the awakened part. “You can ask her the rest yourself. But do hang back for a bit. I need you for something.”

Agatha was about to ask what, when there was a sharp knock on the door. At Lord Ashryn’s command, the door opened to reveal a maid leading an older woman. The mayor stood and approached the two, before pointing at a couch for the lady to sit in. The confused woman looked around before nervously taking a seat.

“Let me start by apologizing for whisking away your granddaughter without your permission,” he started in a polite tone. “I assure you she is safe, and you can join her shortly. I just needed to ask you a few questions about her past.”

“Oh, it’s alright sir. I was not worried in the slightest. These old eyes might be too weak to see the world, but they can see the real person behind any mask with ease,” the old lady replied with a motherly smile. “I am assuming you want to know what that child has gone through before coming to this city?”

Lord Ashryn said nothing, just nodding in acknowledgment. Agatha was curious at this turn of events. She had assumed this was somehow a politically motivated stunt the mayor must have pulled. When she got initial reports of a little girl riding the man’s shoulders through the city streets, she assumed he was trying to garner some public support by his actions. Trying to show his kinder side to the public. She was relieved thinking that the man had some political tact after all. But when subsequent reports mentioned him leaving the city with the kid, and not returning the entire night, she panicked. She assumed his PR stunt had gone awry, and something bad happened to the pair outside the city.

She had rushed over to try to protect his public image, and smooth things over. But the calm indifference from the city admin and lackluster response by the kid’s guardian threw her off. Even Eskad’s party laughed when she asked them to go find them. Claiming it was impossible to chase after shadows, and that there wasn’t anything in the vicinity that could harm them. Their faith in the mysterious man baffled her.

“There is not much to tell really. My daughter and I came to this planet to start a new life after struggling to make ends meet. My son-in-law died last year, and my daughter was forced into selling their blacksmithing business by the nobles who ruled the land. Maybe that is why the headstrong kid is fascinated by blacksmithing. Unfortunately, we also lost my daughter during the treant attack,” the frail woman said with a sad smile. But Agatha picked up faint undercurrents of fear from the lady, and she even refused to make eye contact with anyone in the room.

“I am sorry for your loss. If you don’t my asking, how did the girl’s father die?” Lord Ashryn asked, probably picking on the same thing she did.

“It was natural causes,” she replied but the dread in her soul peaked. Agatha was about to interrupt the conversation when Lord Ashryn beat her to it.

“Thank you for sharing this information. Please go back to your room. You will be joining your granddaughter some time today,” he said with a subtle nod. The woman thanked him and started to leave but hesitated by the door.

“Is she truly safe? Can no one find her where she is now?” she finally asked with clenched fists. When Lord Ashryn nodded, she continued with a deep bow, “Then please fulfill my request, Lord Ashryn. I have nothing to offer in return, but please let her stay where she is. I can die in peace knowing that she is safe.”

“You have my word Mrs. Morgan. No harm will befall her as long as I live. All I ask in return is that you pack up and join your granddaughter. You will both be safe there,” Lord Ashryn said with a bow, thoroughly confusing Agatha. She had no clue what was going on, but the woman seemed content and grateful as she walked away with a teary smile. He then turned to the maid, who also had a look of curiosity. “Make sure she travels through the portal safely.”

Agatha saw everyone go, leaving her alone with Lord Ashryn. Her mind was abuzz with countless questions based on the entire interaction. She was about to ask, but Lord Ashryn spoke first.

“The kid’s soul is being tracked. I don’t know by whom, and I don’t know why. I had no choice but to drag her away and hide her the best I could. I don’t know if it will be enough, but I had to do something,” he said to her absolute shock. But his next words ramped up her horror to a whole new level. “Her soul is shackled worse than anything I imagined was possible. But the kid is resilient and has subconsciously set up defenses to protect herself. But it has fractured her mind into two. The cheerful little girl we saw is being protected by her other half. The one who has decided to shoulder all the pain, locked away in perpetual darkness.”

Agatha covered her mouth in absolute horror, not able to imagine what that must be like. She couldn’t have imagined this even in her wildest dreams. She was lost for words when Lord Ashryn spoke again.

“That is where I need you. My soul powers are not good for nurturing or healing. But I know yours are,” he turned to her with resolute eyes. “So, I am requesting your help. But I need you to fully understand what you are getting involved with. The powers behind this are unknown, and getting involved with me will drag you through more trouble than you can comprehend. My list of enemies is growing by the day now, and none of them are anything to scoff at. The Solarian Dominion and Glendwyr are just two that some people are aware of. My biggest hurdle is Overseer Velcodirust. And we can add in this unknown threat to the list too.”

That made Agatha drop in her seat, her knees too weak to support her weight. Her mind blanked out, not registering the world around her. Even discounting all the names he mentioned, that last one was associated with pure terror across the entire multiverse. But he had said all of this like he was listing something so trivial. Even now, he was as calm and composed as ever.

“How… how are you so calm about it?” she asked weakly. He merely shrugged his shoulders in response.

“I know it is a lot to process. So, take your time. I will understand if you don’t want to get involved. I will find another way,” he said while heading over to his desk and continuing going over the documents he was working on, unofficially dismissing her to leave.

Agatha walked towards the exit in a trance, only turning back as she stood with her hand on the door. She looked back at the unassuming man who looked busy doing some normal paperwork. Even now, his soul didn’t reveal any fear, doubt, or regret. It was still the same calm and composed individual everyone noticed. It was then that she finally realized why those who knew him trusted him without question. Why he managed to trigger so many people to awaken, and why so many more were drawn to him.

He was but a single man against a storm. Yet he stood like an unyielding wall.