Lumière and the White Roses sat at the round table in the dining room to the left of the main prayer hall. They had gathered casually around it, cards scattered across the table as they discussed Lumière's initiation into the organisation. However, as they spoke, Lumière's gaze had focused on Nicole Auirore, the boy with curly raven-black hair that gave off the same aura as Adonis Trinder, a former member of the Phantom Syndicate. He wondered if in place of Adonis, who had been told not to speak of his past, he had found a new source of information so quickly. So, there was a sultry, knowing smile present on Lumière's expression.

They had been waiting for Meraline, the Blue Rose who acted as their leader, to gather supplies in preparation for their first training together- a mock patrol of the middle borough. This was as the mages in Heaven's Roses would carry out- same as Father Benedict. However, they wouldn't actively seek out danger, only mimicking the actions that the non-outlier groups of Heaven's Roses would carry out during patrols or commissions. They had the protection of Meraline to fall back on in the event of true danger falling upon them. Moreover, through conversation, Lumière had been able to gather that the man with golden hair and bright yellow eyes- Midas, was a user of the alchemist domain. He was a genius born into the service of the church, and so it was a given that he had been set up for success in that regard. In the future, he would surely become a key member of the priesthood of the Church of Thorns, or a high-ranking member of Heaven's Roses. Besides that, suspicion had been forming in Lumière's perception of the black-haired boy, Nicole Auirore. It was evident that he was unable to suppress the aura of shadow that followed him around like a churning storm.

"All-in." Lumière spoke suddenly, twirling a coin in between his fingers. Midas, Cornifer, Ramses, and Nicole looked over towards him with surprise. Not expecting such a call from Lumière, they immediately tossed their hands onto the table, giving up the bet. Lumière let out a sigh, falling back in his chair. However, there was a grin on his expression as he threw his cards casually onto the table. The members of the White Roses, who hadn't been too immersed in the game immediately widened their eyes. The five cards that Lumière had thrown down were the King, Queen, Jack, Ten, and Nine of Spades.

"A straight flush? Are you actually someone who is quite lucky, little dove?" Midas joked.

Lumière extended his palm and spoke in a matter of fact. "Of course not, I cheated."

The other members mouths became agape.

"So, this whole time you've been playing us for fools?" The corner of Cornifer's mouth twitched, threatening to cease his usually-calm expression.

"It's been a pleasure to cheat you out of your money. We should do this often." Lumière winked.

"Do you have no morals, Lumière Croft?" Nicole Auirore spoke out. "What is it you're trying to do here?"

Lumière immediately turned to look at the boy and smiled.

"Every hand, I slipped a card into my pocket. Of course, I just happened to get lucky and receive all of these cards throughout the course of the game, and so I was able to assemble such a hand in the end. However, if you had paid even the slightest bit of attention, you would have either noticed this, or the fact that there are not even any spade cards left in the deck."

Lumière then reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a handful of cards, spilling them out onto the table. Their faces were decorated with ornate designs of black spades. If the group could have grown more shocked, they surely would. However, there was no longer any sense of annoyance, discord, or anger amongst them. It was just pure amazement, to such a degree that they had completely forgotten how Lumière had cheated them out of their money.

"Now that you mention it, I don't remember ever receiving a spade card past a certain point. How did you manage this, exactly?" Ramses Haire mused. "It's quite a brilliant trick, my friend."

Lumière simply shrugged in response. "It's part of the magician's code to never reveal the secrets to a trick. Mentioning how I cheated was no trick, so I could explain that much. However, to ruin the mystery behind the illusion is simply going too far."

"Do petty tricks stack up to real magic, little dove?" Midas laughed. "How about I turn your eyes and ears into gold, and you can see how far your tricks carry you then?"

Still, Lumière pressed on, gesturing outwards with his hand.

"Then, you would make me quite a wealthy man. I would be grateful for your kindness in that regard."

Midas let out a defeated sigh, and Cornifer and Ramses began to laugh in unison. However, Nicole Auirore began to look at Lumière with suspicion. Lumière met his gaze in turn. However, it was then that the silence became action. Slowly, the shadows underneath the table began to creep up alongside the table. They slithered along the edge of the sillhouette until they reached Lumière's feet. A chill immediately spread up his body, causing him to shiver.

'Shadow control? Is he inadvertently trying to test me? Then, I was right. He's exactly like Adonis- giving off that cold, impenetrable aura of shadow. He's also a black mage. It's evident by his control of the shadow, like the black mages that fought within the House of Cards for a brief moment. Is it just a hallmark of black mages to fail to suppress their aura? No, it should just be the fact that they're fools who know not of their powers.' Lumière grinned slightly. 'Then, I'll make sure he tries nothing more in the future.'

Love what you're reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

He leaned in closer towards Nicole and whispered. "Careful, little mage. You'll wake the shadows that no one wishes to see."

Nicole's eyes widened, and he slumped back in his seat, defeated and shaken. He had not expected for Lumière to realise his advances so quickly. This only furthered his suspicion of the magician. However, it also embedded an inalienable fear into his heart that made him scared to make eye contact with Lumière Croft. When he had touched upon Lumière's silhouette, his shadow seemed deeper and darker than all, as if the abyss was resting in his very form. The shadows gradually receded back into Nicole's silhouette, and he let out a heavy sigh. As the others looked over to the two with curiosity, the door to the dining hall suddenly swung open.

Meraline emerged from the prayer hall with a calm, expressionless face. She carried a large satchel around her shoulder, and a sword was tucked at her waist. Like her, the members of the White Roses carried some sort of bladed weapon along with them. However, Lumière knew he was likely the only one who simultaneously carried a firearm with him, tucked underneath his arm. Of course, it was an illegally-owned weapon, so he was hesitant to reveal it to them.

Soon, they found themselves wandering the streets of the middle borough, having made their way through the massive gate that led up from the lower borough. Meraline had given them all oil lamps, and they set them alight to combat the emerging darkness of the night. Rain poured down in droves, casting the landscape in a veil of haze. Lumière had been given a white cloak as an outlier member of Heaven's Roses, with an ornate emblem of a White Rose on the back. So, he pulled the hood over his head to combat the rain.

Cornifer incessantly flipped his ornate golden pocket watch open and closed. He fidgeted from side to side, as if he couldn't stand being still for a single moment. Nicole kept staring at Lumière with a hint of fear and worry, but kept glancing away as soon as he caught Lumière's attention.

"The suns starting to set. Take your lamps and relight them for the sake of caution. Make sure to keep them lit at all times. Within the darkness, there's no telling what can emerge. Just a short moment without illumination and the dangers that lurk within the shadows will see opportunity to strike." Meraline spoke calmly. "It's not a given that darkness equates to danger, but it's not entirely uncommon. It's best practice to stay within the light. Stick with the streetlamps when you can. When we venture into the backalleys, make sure to pay close attention to your lamps."

They then began to waltz through the streets of the middle borough. As in recent times, groups of Peacekeepers patrolled the streets, and people commuting back home from work travelled by public carriage. Few walked the streets on foot, and even then, they did so in groups. Gradually, they viewed their surroundings with a lense of wariness, searching for any inconsistencies or strange demeanors within the people that walked past them.

Suddenly, Lumière spotted the visage of a young girl alone in an alleyway not too far from the group. He eyed her with both suspicion and worry. However, before he could call out to her, he saw two gnarled, misshapen hands clutch her from the darkness behind her. She let out a small yelp, but the group beside him didn't seem to notice. Without informing them of the matter, Lumière bit at his lip and lurched towards the alleyway.

'Is it another one of those creatures- the Nameless? Wouldn't it have been best to tell Meraline of such a danger? However, my body moved on its own. It's far too late to think of such things.'

He ran through the backstreets of the middle borough, turning corners as he followed the emerging scent of blood that filled his nostrils using his blood tracking ability. His expression grimaced slightly, yet he kept trudging through the rainfall without slowing his pace. Eventually, he came to a small enclosure where streetlamps weren't present.

Suddenly, the lamplight in Lumière's hands burnt out, the orange glow wisping away, leaving him cloaked in shadow. Fear immediately grasped at Lumière's heart, and he could feel the shadows underneath him churn. However, before he could calm his own emotions, it was pertinent to relight his lamp. He scrambled for his pockets to find a matchbox, but his actions were cut short by voices.

"There's no need." Several voices rang out suddenly. A crowd spoke in unison, their voices dampened by the stone walls of the alley. Suddenly, the space around Lumière was lit up with orange lamplight. Then, the voices spoke out once more. "We brought our own."

There was a crowd of a dozen individuals that had gathered around Lumière. They all bore terrifying, unusual smiles on their faces, as if they were pleasantly surprised to see Lumière. The child and the man that had taken her were both present. They held the lamps in their hands not by the handle, but by the glass, and so it was obvious that the heat was singing their palms. Yet, despite the pain, they grasped it in a gentle embrace. Apart from the dozen individuals, sitting atop a stack of wooden boxes in the alleyway, a man dressed in ornate, regal attire had a casual smile on his face. He had bright-orange hair and emerald eyes, and was incessantly twirling a chess piece in between his fingers.

"It's nice to finally make your acquaintance, Lumière Croft."