Having not been there before, unlike Nilo and Leslie who managed to take a good look at the exteriors, Eeira was nervous, but she wanted to build up her confidence. The hour was nigh. It was shocking how many people were there, they weren't just the candidates, but commoners as well. There were a select few who looked to have been from the top brass. It was unbelievable how grand this matter was. Everyone stood out front, eagerly awaiting for the gate to open. But even then, only the candidates and the top brass may pass through, everyone else has to watch from the sidelines.

After checking all her gear, Eeira approached the booth, where the candidates were listed, with cautious speed, careful not to disturb anyone and cause a ruckus, she didn't want to stand out, even if for only a second. There were two men standing with papers, likely the list, in-hand. Fortunately, the selection wasn't over yet so spots were still open and Eeira had a chance to be chosen. However, she didn't know which man to approach, both of them looked equally menacing and the fact that they covered their eyes with shades only assured it. One of the men looked at her and called her out, which only startled her for a moment. He took off his glasses for a few minutes to properly evaluate Eeira's appearance, there were doubt and suspicion in his eyes. Just from that look, she knew it was over. They had picked women looking worse than her, and they considered the average. If Eeira looked "better" than them, then there was no way they'd let someone who was below average in.

'Pass!' The man said.

Shock, confusion, and joy filled Eeira's eyes, 'M-Me?!'

'No, my bed-ridden aunt,' the man chuckled, 'Of course it's you, dumbass! You got a name?'

'Ee—' She remembered what Nilo had taught her on their way. To speak with a low tone, to pretend to not have a care in the world for anything, to keep the vulgarity to a minimum (she's not someone who was raised in the streets), and most importantly, to maintain confidence. Eeira straightened herself. 'Lady Luxford!' She reached for her holster, 'And you better mind that tongue of yours!' Even though she had already said it, she felt like she had crossed the line or had stepped on a landmine, but she didn't let that feeling plague her face, she remained as calm and as cool as ever.

'Right… Sorry, madam!' The man gestured for her to join the line of candidates.

She was almost baffled for a moment, but once again, she didn't show it on her face, only letting a sly smile slip by as she left.

With one step done, another came forward. On the inside, Eeira was as nervous as ever. But on the outside, she was the mysterious Lady Luxford who always bared a stone-cold expression.

As she waited for the night to start and the gates to open, she was able to learn all kinds of things about Lejin from the commoners' rambles — she had little knowledge about him before after all. One commoner mentioned how Lejin was ruthless to his subordinates. He was quite feared and respected among his crew. One time he suspected one of his subordinates to be a traitor and merely killed them by alluding to the illusion that their food was poisoned, which was not true in the slightest. Nevertheless, they died, just from a mere illusion. Another commoner commented on how Lejin was an inspiring figure to them. Even after he had lost most of his crew, and his arm, he still rose from those ashes in a matter of days and didn't let that make him lose his position of power. Despite that, they wondered who was powerful enough to bring damage to Lejin like that.

The tales, or rumours, didn't end there. There was one specific rumour that caught Eeira's attention. It was about the fact that Lejin didn't work alone, that he had a sibling who helped him out, one who only worked from the shadows and was tenfold worse than Lejin himself. Some thought it was just a false rumour spread by beggars who wanted coin for their tales. Others wondered if Lejin's sibling was already a popular figure in the underworld under a different name and history.

None of these tales were able to shed more light on who Lejin was exactly. All Eeira knew was that he was feared among his men, nothing else.

All of a sudden, the gates to the manor opened, followed by a string of applause from everyone present at the time. However, Eeira was confused about what to do exactly, she was about to cheer on like everyone else as to blend in, but as soon as the gate opened, all the candidates in her line marched forward and into the manor. She followed behind them like an obedient student.

What followed was mesmerizing. Lejin's manor was nothing like the cursed mansion from before. There were no giant stairs at the entrance, but instead, a long hallway that led to the supposed lobby. Eeira marched along with everyone else. The walls were decorated with designs similar to those in the mansion, but it didn't surprise Eeira as much as it should have. The string of lights on the walls leading up to the lobby kept her busy, they gave a certain warm atmosphere to the manor.

Forget the cave mansion. Forget the mayor's tower. This manor was nothing short of spectacular — at least in Eeira's view. But there was no time to gaze onto such things, she needed to focus on the mission at hand. One wrong step would cost her life that was already tied by the noose.

The lobby was shaped like a pentagon. Despite it being huge, Eeira was starting to feel claustrophobic, likely due to the many guards placed throughout the place and how even more crowded it became with her and the candidates. On the right near the middle was a large counter for the reception, surrounded by two large poles. And on the left, right next to Eeira, was a staircase leading to a bridge that extended to various pathways and floors in the manor. A red dragon figure, covered by the same string of light, hung from high up in the ceiling. Eeira was confused, she didn't know where to look exactly — the crystal tower was nothing compared to this. It baffled Eeira that Lejin had a place this grand, yet was treated less than the mayor. She looked around some more back on the ground floor she was currently in and noticed a large map, likely of Eldria, plastered to the wall at the very end of the lobby. It was covered by many red pins, yet there was a specific area that was clear of any marks, an area towards the east… the Outlands.

'Alright! I need all of you to listen!' A man came forward, 'All of you gals are gonna line up over there. The top brass is gonna come in, and you'll bow in respect, all of you, no exceptions. It's only gonna take a few minutes with the capo's and the top brass's meeting, then we'll start the audition. Now, before any of you say anything, this audition is different, there ain't no test of strength or will or any of that bullshit. Right now, we gonna divide you into groups of five, and we're gonna send in five after each audition. So everybody better be in their best shape. Oh and most importantly, behave yourselves. None of that shit you learned on the streets is gonna help you here.'

Thus, a dilemma faced Eeira. If Lejin didn't want his girls to act like criminals then why make an audition like that. Perhaps he was out to bring in the special cases, those who have had an experience better than anyone. The possibility of that being Eeira was close to none. What to do? She wondered. It was easy to act like herself. It was easy to act like a criminal. But to tread the line of both? That… that was beyond difficult. However, it was all plausible. Only those with experience, those who deserved to be Lejin's right-hand woman, would be able to walk both roads with ease.

The gates opened again, and this time, the top brass came through in a hurry, and the candidates bowed. All of them demanded an audience with Lejin, they needed for the audition to be over quickly — there were more important matters at night after all. But that didn't seem to be the problem.

'Just calm down, sir!' One of the goons tried to stop them from climbing the staircase.

'Those commoners won't stop their chatter,' one of the top brass spoke, 'You must know that our time is short. Besides, I believe I heard the violet flower would be present in our meeting. We demanded so the last time. Lejin cannot get away with it this time. If the flower is not there, then there is no meaning to this meeting or the audition. You know damn well everything is decided by the flower.'

Flower? Violet? None of it made sense to Eeira, and she wasn't the only. Most of the candidates were either confused or tried to suppress their laughter. The deeper one dove into Lejin's world, the less they understood about it.

'What's all this ruckus?' The man of the hour emerged from his room and stood at the bridge, looking down on everyone on the floor below him. Rather than the outlandish appearance who went for most of the time, he was in… elegant, and formal clothes this time. To further sell his appearance, he carried a cane in his hand, likely a secret weapon for desperate measures if one knew him.

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'Sire, it's the top brass. They're asking for your—'

'Right right right! They can come on up already,' Lejin gave an order and slammed the bottom of his cane on the ground, 'Oh… the noise… Can't I have some peace of mind for once? Those beggars are still not gone, huh. If that's the case, then so be it… Dave! Bring forth the dancers, let them out for the beggars to enjoy — of course, add a little music to their show, it wouldn't be a dance otherwise. They're the only reason this place has been swarmed all night. And everyone better be fast on their feet, the hour is coming.' He walked away, but then suddenly stopped in his tracks, 'Oh hello there ladies! Excuse me, I did not see any of you there. Do not fret, the audition will begin momentarily. I cannot just wait to meet all of you.'

Hearing those words come out of Lejin's mouth only creeped out Eeira rather than excite her like most of the candidates there. These people were really sickening. Eeira prayed for this matter to be done as soon as possible, she started thinking of a way to sneak past the guards and search for the elastinum if she wasn't chosen as one of the first five. Although it was likely that Lejin had the elastinum in his possession, he might have already known about its true worth and was planning to sell it. Maybe that was why the top brass was there, Eeira thought.

Lejin and the top brass disappeared to the upper floors. The guards started rounding up each other at the center of the lobby. One of them pushed a large device to the center. Eeira hadn't the slightest idea what it was. Not a moment later, large figures of dancers, about the size of the hanging dragon statue, faded in, surprising the candidates, but not Eeira. She knew what they were… Holograms, just holograms, nothing special. The gates opened once again, the music started, and the holograms danced their way out to the audience that awaited. Rather than toning down the noise outside, the dancers only enticed the commoners even more. It was as if it was a show in an empire city.

— How big exactly was this audition? Eeira wondered.

It really felt as if Lejin planned three events together and turned them into one, just to save time and be quicker on certain things. All of that aside, those holographic dancers were truly marvelous, probably even more to the commoners since they didn't know the technology behind them. What they didn't know was that those dancers were real, they weren't fake or artificial, they were legitimately performing at the other side of the manor, away from the audience and their noise. It was quite an odd decision for Lejin to go with holograms when the real dancers already existed.

There was something wrong, Eeira was sure of that.

With no time for "chit-chats," the guards proceeded with the plan and divided the candidates into squads of five as mentioned before. This type of coordination reminded Eeira of her days in the academy when she was still a little girl. Unfortunately for her, she was placed in the third squad planned for the audition. It was still better than being last. A few extra minutes wouldn't hurt. In fact, it was quite convenient for her as it gave her more time to think of a thorough plan, as she lacked Nilo's and Leslie's guidance.

'Now that we're done with this shit…,' One of the guards spoke, 'Follow me if you will. We can't keep the place crowded like that, so I'm gonna need the first three squads first, the rest of ya will have to wait a bit.'

Luck was on Eeira's side. Her moving to another location meant she would have more visual information on the overall place. The guards gestured for the three squads to move, while they moved the rest aside to stop them from possibly acting up. Eeira and the others climbed the stairs, as a few guards guided them along the way. Even though the first floor didn't seem that high from the ground, it was a very different matter once you were on it. Being on the bridge gave off the feeling of acrophobia to those who didn't even have it.

There was something wrong, Eeira thought once again.

However, the guards didn't take them to some secluded place or locked them up in a dungeon as one would expect. Instead, they escorted them to a large room for guests where they would wait for their respective turns. Everything in Lejin's manor was quite fancy.

The room still held that same warm atmosphere the whole manor had. But, different from the string of lights placed everywhere else, the light source here came from the great chandelier in the center. There were a few sofas here and there, arranged accordingly in the middle. Of course, the manor wouldn't be a manor if it didn't have at least one fireplace. Over that fireplace, placed on the wall, was a framed picture of none other than the man of the hour himself, Lejin — the man was really proud of his accomplishments.

Eeira stood by the door, while the rest of the women spread throughout the room, preparing themselves for the meeting. If you didn't know any better, you would think they were preparing for a talent show, then a position in a criminal organization that would likely get them killed. What was so special about Lejin? Eeira wondered. No matter how you looked at it, it was bizarre how many women signed up for this one audition.

'Um… excuse me!' A girl patted Eeira's shoulder.

She turned around to find the most bizarre — if you count all the vulgar women around as normal — girl in the room. The girl was of a petite figure and looked completely average. Even Eeira, who didn't exactly look the worst there, had a better appearance than her.

'I knew it!' The girl spoke with joy, 'You're Eeira!'

Hearing her name like that startled Eeira, she immediately placed her hand on the girl's mouth to stop her from saying anything else. Even if no one there knew about Eeira, she still didn't want anyone finding out her name, just for precautions. Yet, that girl somehow knew who Eeira was.

'Who are you? How do you know my name?' Eeira asked in a low-tone voice.

The girl backed away, worried Eeira might do something to her, 'I-I just know you from t-the tavern…!'

'What?!' She had no idea what the girl was talking about.

'You come to my father's tavern! Every Saturday, I'm the one who serves you the fruit juice you always order!' The girl shouted, mostly out of fear. However, it wasn't enough to grab the attention of everyone around. They did nothing but eye the two girls with contempt and moved on.

'Oh… you're Mr. Fischbach's daughter?!' Eeira wondered.

Just like the girl had said, Eeira frequented a certain tavern in town at the start of every weekend. She was no drinker, of course. But nothing beat the cranberry juice and pomegranate juice they made. Unlike the ones at the inn, they were completely free of alcohol — meaning no weird accidents like the previous night — which was why they were Eeira's favorite.

'I'm… My name's Amelia!'

'What are you doing here? You can't be honestly thinking about Lejin's audition? That's insane!'

'I was going to ask you the same thing,' Amelia looked at Eeira with confusion, 'You're not exactly a fighter either. But I do love the change in looks though, you look stunning.'

'Uh… Thank you?' She looked more or less like a vagrant, 'T-That's not what's not important now! Who says I'm not a fighter? I may not be a great one, yes, but I know my way around things. I am a neuroalchemist for goodness sake.'

'I don't think that's enough. You're very unlikely to be picked.'

That's my intention! Eeira thought to herself at the moment. I don't want to end up in the clutches of someone as wretched as him anyways. 'Oh, you're not any better either, honey. And I am really saying this out of concern for your safety.'

'Well, that's a good thing I am not after Lejin then.' Amelia got closer to Eeira and whispered, '(I know why you are here!)'

That petrified her for a moment. Someone else knowing about the plan wasn't a good sign, whether they were with Lejin or not. But the more pressing matter was how did that girl know.

'Don't worry, no one knows! I was supposed to be dropping the package of rum Crow ordered at his shop, but you and your friends were there at the time, and I couldn't help but overhear your conversation. (You're really going to steal from Lejin?!)' The excitement was painted all over the girl's face.

Eeira couldn't believe that she and the other were so careless discussing their plans in the open like that. But again, Crow's shop was away from the rest of the town, it would be easy to exclude the fact that someone else might be nearby.

'That still doesn't answer the question! Why are you here?'

'Well, what do you think? I'm here to help!'

Her jaw almost dropped, 'Huh?! Oh no no no, you can't be here. You have to go out now, this is very dangerous. Call out for the guards, tell them that you forfeit. I can't take responsibility for you when I'm barely taking care of myself.'

'You don't need to. I can—'

The panic mood almost set in. However, Eeira wouldn't give up so easily, she started to think of an alternative. The girl seemed nice, but she was as stubborn as her. 'Alright listen, you can help… but you have to get out of here. R-Remember my friends? Have you seen them?' The girl nodded, 'Great! Okay, they are right outside this mansion, probably on the sidelines, away from the crowds. Get to them and… help them. They'll probably recognize you. Just don't speak out loud of this matter.'

'But—'

'Amelia… Please listen! We can't afford to mess this up.'

Eeira was surprised about the way she spoke and how quickly she came up with an alternative plan. It almost reminded her of how Nilo was, perhaps his influence was starting to take its toll on her.

The girl looked disappointed, but she didn't refuse. Eeira tried knocking on the door, however, there was no response from the other side. In fact, the noise from the guards' chatter outside was completely gone, there was only silence.

*BUMP*

A large sound came from the center of the room. It was one of the women, fallen onto the ground. And just like that, they all fell one after the other. It didn't take a minute for Eeira to realize what's going on. Whoever had control of this room was spreading from the ventilation system. She quickly covered her own mouth and nose, but it was already too late. The gas was out the moment they stepped in, its effect was the one that took a while to kick in.

As her eyelids started getting heavy, she saw the girl beside her fall to the ground as well, leaving her as the only one still standing. No matter how hard she fought, there was no use. This gas was unlike any other.

[One]

Her body started shaking, she was losing control over it.

[Two]

Her mind was a mess. The line between reality and dream started to blur.

[Three]

It was pitch dark. Everything before her suddenly turned to darkness.

Eeira fell to the ground.