June 24th, year 024 Angels Descent

It was early in the morning following the party, and Daisy finally began to stir. Gunter and Bea were on the current watch while the rest of the class rested, so they were the first to notice. Immediately waking up the others, they all waited patiently for Daisy’s response.

“THAT BITCH!!!” Daisy screeched as she tightly gripped the bedding in her hands.

“HOW DARE SHE KNOCK ME OUT?!!!” as she started to rage once again, the bedding began to tear under her grip.

“SHE PROMISED ME THE RIGHT TO END THE ONES RESPONSIBLE!!!”

“Daisy… please calm down,” Bea pleaded.

“No…” Daisy’s one-word reply sent a chill down the spines of everyone present. She had clearly transcended the stages oif rage from unrestrainable fury to cold predator.

“Daisy, why don’t we get some yummy breakfast?” Tasha asked as she rested a hand on Daisy’s shoulder, clearly more intent on restraining the girl than encouraging her to head off for food.

“Tasha’s right... Let's get some food in us,” Gunter added, resting a hand on her other shoulder. Daisy looked up at the pair. Immediately the hair on the back of their necks began to rise.

“Let go of me…” her calm tone spoke volumes higher than if she had yelled it.

“Bea, go get, sir,” Gunter said as he focused more energy on restraining Daisy, whose whole body radiated a visible aura of bloodlust.

Not waiting to be told twice, Bea rushed out of the room to get their teacher. Daisy was clearly becoming undone by what had happened to her family, and they needed someone to help bring her down. Rapidly knocking on their teacher's door, Bea waited before rapidly knocking again. A half-asleep voice from within told her to enter. Slamming the door open into something hard, Bea rushed up to Alex.

“Sir, we need your help!”

“With what?” he replied as he sleepily rubbed his eyes.

“Daisy is losing it.” With these words, Alex looked suddenly awake as he rose from his bed. Heading towards the door, he closed it slightly to help Gorm up.

“We’ll need him,” he explained as Gorm looked confused why a door had been used to wake him up. Returning to the room, they were met with a scene that would’ve terrified an inexperienced person. The mirrors and windows in the room were already cracking under the force of Daisy’s aura.

“Gorm, if you would be so kind,” Alex said limply, gesturing to Daisy. Gorm nodded, went around the bed and clamped two hands on Daisy’s arms. Immediately the aura that had been so overwhelming had dvannished.

“W-what happened?” Kline asked as he visibly shook.

“Gorm is a real master of aura. Remember when he focused it on one of you specifically? He can create a negative feed as well, so he is currently cancelling out Daisy,” Alex explained as he took a chair from the corner of the room and dragged it in front of Daisy. Sitting down in front of the girl, he looked her in the eyes.

“Want to tell me what is going on?”

“I’m getting ready to kill Septus,” came Daisy’s icy reply. “Then I will go out and find my father.”

“Find your father?” he parroted.

“Yes, Septus clearly kidnapped him!”

“Answer me this then… Why?”

“What?” Daisy asked right back, looking confused.

“Why would Septus kidnap your father?”

“To kill him, obviously!” Daisy answered as a spike of uncertainty entered her voice.

“He could’ve just killed him while he was in his bed.”

“Well, then, to use him as a hostage!”

“Ok, fine, but how do you know it is Septus? Stephano is still a valid suspect.”

“Because he warned me to look for my father!!”

“Is it possible this is just a coincidence?”

“Not possible!!!” Daisy’s adamant refusal caused Alex to exhale a long sigh.

“Daisy…I understand the hunger that the desire for revenge can cause… but leave this to the adults… Septus is not a threat you can handle… promise me you will not go after him.”

“But we are strong!” Daisy protested.

“Yes, you have grown considerably, but you are still at best amongst the middle of the powers that be for the Dark Continent. Now promise me you won’t go after Septus.”

Daisy looked into her teacher's eyes and saw nothing but earnest worry. He wasn’t tricking nor toying with her. He genuinely just wanted her to stop. Letting out a deep sigh herself, she finally nodded.

“I promise.”

“Good, now you guys don’t do anything stupid,” he said, turning to the rest of the class.

“Can I be let go now?” Alex looked at her momentarily before nodding to Gorm, who released her. Much to the relief of the rest of the class, there wasn’t any aura coming off of her.

“Now, guys, rest up and relax… me and Gorm are going to get some breakfast. Feel free to join if you feel up for it.” With his goodbye given, Alex and Gorm wordlessly left the room and headed for the dining hall of Lust’s palace.

“What do we do now?” Tasha asked, breaking the long silence that had descended upon the room.

“Simply, we go out and kill Septus,” came Daisy’s immediate reply.

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“But you promised-”

“I won’t let him get away… I will take vengeance with my own two hands, and if he really is as strong as sir says he is, then we can use this,” Daisy replied, holding up her ring finger.

“The call for help?” Maxwell asked to which she nodded.

“Yes, my plan is simple, we go out and pick a fight, and if we can’t last against him, call for sir to help. He will then end that bastard like he did those slavers.”

The class all looked incredibly uncomfortable with this plan; they too were frustrated with what had been going on. They could understand Daisy’s desire for revenge, but it felt like using their teacher in that way was too underhanded.

“You sure sir will show up?” Bea asked.

“He will; he has always made a point to keep us safe against every threat. This time it will be no different.”

“Daisy… it’s not that I disagree with you. It’s just this plan is…” Kline began as he made a few gestures with his hands, trying to convey his meaning.

“Listen, guys, I’m going to do this with or without you… if I die doing it, then it will be on you for failing to help me.”

“Daisy…” Maxwell pulled Daisy to the corner of the room.

“Daisy, do not, and I mean do not ever say that again. I will not let you be that way. I know it is your anger and grief making you say these things, but if you say something like that again, I will make sure this never happens,” Maxwell’s eyes were filled with anger, an anger he hadn’t even shown to his own father when he disowned him. Daisy was wholly taken aback by the anger and, after a moment, let out a sigh.

“Sorry guys… that was wrong of me… I don’t want to force you to help me… I just,” Daisy began before her lower lip began to tremble. “I will get my revenge!”

“Ok, fine… I will help you,” Kline said, looking nervous. “But we need to prepare beforehand. We will go to the Oracle and get information on him. If what she says is beyond our skill, we will do as sir says.”

The rest of the class nodded along to Kline’s suggestion; it was only Daisy who looked annoyed by it. Reluctantly though, she nodded in agreement, and the class gathered their things, with all the money they had to go see the oracle.

It wasn’t a long walk from Lust’s palace for them to reach the tailor shop where the Oracle resided. Within moments of stepping in, they were guided upstairs and told they were expected.

“So we meet again for the first time,” the Oracle said with a chuckle as she spun her chair around, revealing a small dog lying on her lap.

“You have the information I want,” Daisy demanded, stepping forwards.

“Bit pushy today, aren’t we,” the Oracle replied with a smirk. “Very well, no appreciation for the show… ask your question.”

“Tell me about Septus’s weakness.”

“Hmm…” the Oracle tapped her chin in thought as she considered the request. The class had prepared a fair portion of money, expecting Septus to have protection against his information.

“One small bronze.”

“And the other two prices?”

“That question I will answer for free. There are no other prices. I am interested in what you are going to do. One Bronze is for the highest information package.”

“Why would you help her?” Maxwell asked.

“One small bronze, one large bronze, one small silver,” was her smirking reply. Maxwell reached into his pocket and handed the Oracle a small silver, to which she nodded.

“I want to see what real justice is. It will be interesting to see it enacted when you challenge him. I have no motive but to see what I cannot foresee.”

“Ok, here is the money for Daisy’s request,” Gunter said, handing a small bronze to the Oracle.

“As I am sure you know, Septus is a man who hungers for reputation. He is a skilled warrior stuck in an era of relative peace. He has the honour of guarding a city never assaulted. He is stuck dealing with rabble and corruption from within. Septus’s greatest weakness is his reputation. You call it into question, and he will be compelled to move.”

“So we insult him and…”

“One small bronze across the board,” Daisy sighed and handed her the coin.

“Yes, he will likely rise to it as a personal challenge.” The class took their newfound knowledge and began to leave, only to hear the Oracle say one more thing.

“Now, have a good day. I look forward to when you learn the truth,” the Oracle said as she waved goodbye.

“What do you mean by that?” Daisy asked.

“One hundred mithril pieces across the board. This one is too much fun for me to reveal it.”

Begrudgingly the class now left the tailor shop and made their way towards Hades Seat’s guard HQ. They now had a plan on how to draw out Septus and bring him into a fight. They would do it in the HQ square where there would be witnesses so it wouldn’t be their word against his.

“Now is the last chance to turn back, Daisy,” Maxwell warned as they reached the open gate to the HQ’s courtyard. Daisy, though, just squared up her shoulders and hardened her features.

With it determined, they would proceed each of the class made their preparations. Bea summoned up her demonic familiar so she could create copies at any moment. Gunter summoned a now fully grown Niklas, who flew above. Kline had readied an instant to summon Manny. While Maxwell and Tasha prepared for close combat.

“I will not let him slip away. I won’t let him cover his tracks by killing everyone connected.” Stepping into the HQ courtyard, proper Daisy cupped her hands around her mouth.

“WHERE IS SEPTUS, THE THEOCRACY COLLABORATOR?!!!” Tasha followed suit.

“I HEARD SEPTUS HAS STINKY FEET!!” It was Bea’s turn to get in on the insulting game.

“I HEARD THE HEAD OF THE GUARD WETS THE BED!!!” At this one, the doors to the building opened, and Septus stepped out with the High Priest Bernard close behind him.

“What in the gods' names is going on here?” Septus asked, looking baffled by the class.

“Everyone look, he has the High Priest, a suspect in a double murder walking free!! He works for the Theocracy!!!”

“Listen here, young lady Haemont, it is not what you-”

“He lets corruption fester because he clearly takes payments himself!!! I bet he is waiting for the next crusade to arrive to open the gates for them!”

“Listen, can we discuss this in private!” Septus shouted back as his right eye began to twitch.

“We are getting to him,” Daisy said in a hushed voice tinged with glee.

“Sebastian, can you send a runner to Lust’s palace to retrieve these children’s guardian? I will need to have words with them.”

“Oh, hiding behind our teacher?!!! How pathetic you would run from a bunch of kids,” Bea’s words seemed to actually touch a nerve for once.

“I am not hiding… it is beneath me to deal with-”

“Excuses, I see… I bet you don’t even brush your teeth!!” Tasha’s insult seemed to mentally knock him off balance.

“Why don’t you tell these people and me here where my father is?!” Daisy shouted as she gestured to the growing crowd.

“Your… what happened to your father?!”

“Lies?!!! At this point?!! I know you had him kidnapped to cover up all your crimes!!”

“He was kidnapped? Lister young Lady Haemont, I was not permitted into the secure wing of Lust’s esta-”

“Why is that? Were you too incompetent at your job to have a Sinful Lord not trust you?!!”

“ENOUGH!!!” Septus roared as he stepped forwards and shuffled off his cloak. Looking mightily pissed, he walked right up till he was in front of Daisy.

“Will you discuss this like adults?” the question came through gritted teeth. Daisy could see they had him on the edge of a tipping point. Her response was to hold her hand right up to his face.

“Gladius!!” she chanted the spell and channelled the mana to transform her slime-familiar into a sword. It shot out, and Septus dodged backwards, avoiding the blade by a hairsbreadth.

“What are you doing?!!” Septus shouted in shock as he retreated out of Daisy’s reach.

“Enacting justice!” was her reply as the whole class readied to fight.