At the edge of Seraphis Kingdom, Ambassador Charles, a gaunt man with short brown hair, made his way down the interconnected streets and into a small, worn building. It has been long abandoned, with the windows and doors broken, covered head-to-toe in dust. He made his way down to a dimly lit basement, where a figure with neatly combed crimson hair, elven ears, and fiery crimson eyes was waiting for him—Kael.
Kael sat at a table, and with the flick of his wrist, the previously shattered lamps illuminated with crimson flames. Ambassador Charles gasped softly, looking around the now illuminated space before collecting himself with slight fluster.
"I-I'm confused..."
"On what?" Kael conjured a pipe from a burst of crimson flames, bringing it to his mouth and exhaling smoke.
Ambassador Charles looked down at a piece of paper in his hands, giving it to Kael to analyze. "This is a copy of the report I sent, and I have to say, why did I have to lie?"
The crimson-haired man took the report, reading it over with an analytical expression. He sighed softly, smirking.
Ambassador Charles shifted in his chair, refusing to make eye-contact. His hands curled and uncurled, gripping the edge of the wooden chair he now found himself in. After a few seconds of silence, Kael finally spoke again.
"Chaos is mandatory if we are to help Seraphis Kingdom."
"I-I don't know what you mean," Charles took the paper back, turning it over, "This report addresses their plentiful number of crops and harvests, when in reality, it's not going too well here."
Kael leaned back in his own chair, prompting his feet onto the table. He rolled his pipe in between his sleek fingers as he chuckled. "You're a man looking at everything through a pair or glasses, not opera glasses."
At this moment, Kael waved his hand, causing an illusory scene to appear on the table. It was reminiscent of an entire map of the kingdom in three-dimensional form—constantly rotating on an invisible platform. He ran his hand along the contours of the street, tracing through windows and streetlamps like a master puppeteer.
"Chaos is what gets people out of bed, it's what gets people moving—moving to make decisions and ratify the best laws, make the most bread, and do everything to get a kingdom back onto its high horse."
Kael leaned in closer to the ambassador, his voice barely above a whisper. "I want to strain the limits of what can be done, and what will be done within the political world. Mixed signals, tales of starvation and prosperity, ruin and economic tidal-waves. It's all controlled by those who want you to hear what they want you to hear."
"I-I'm ...still confused." Ambassador Charles remained still in his chair.
Kael let out a low chuckle as he blew into his pipe again. "Emperor Katsuki is a strong fool—great brawn, little brains. Half the time it's the sickly Emperor Izuku who ratifies laws for him. I can see why his empire is struggling. He needs people like us..."
Kael's hand wrapped around the cold, clammy hand of the ambassador, holding it tightly and giving it a firm squeeze.
"...people who are willing to challenge and encourage change."
"That sounds like lunacy," Charles retorted, his voice trembling slightly.
Hearing this statement, Kael laughed out loud. "Of course you assume it is, you're not the one with powers. I can see into the future, and if we succeed, I see a goldmine of economic and social prosperity with both kingdoms."
"I don't see why I should trust a charlatan."
"It's not about trust, it's about knowledge. You don't have to trust me, but those who don't trust those with experience with eventual fall and plunder under their own recklessness—a desire to be on their own and not follow a crowd, a crowd filled to the brim with the greatest minds, those who know what they're doing."
Kael paused for a moment, surveying the room for a few moments before speaking again. "I've sent an alley of mine back to his own empire to find us good friends that will help this kingdom prosper. They'll develop scientific knowledge beyond what even gods could fathom! We'll top our bread with gold spread and we'll use Lumin as paperweights."
"Doesn't that sound nice?..." Kael asked, his voice a low whisper.
His hands then reached into Charles pocket, taking out a fresh sheet of paper that had been folded neatly. After that, he conjured a feather pen and ink out of thin air, placing them onto the table.
"Pen this down. I want you to document how good Seraphis Kingdom is right now."
...
After everyone had finished praying to Mother Nature, Charlie and Calliope didn't waste any time digging into the feast. While the two children and Velomeia ate their food, Felonious looked down at his own wooden bowl as his stomach twisted. In the end, he was able to make it to his family, but his thoughts weren't on them.
He watches as the Katshin Empire began to struggle with their own food as Seraphis Kingdom's markets began to experience slight decline. Meanwhile, he and his family were eating a feast, laughing, and talking amongst each other like it was an ordinary day.
Felonious's tail twitched as he abruptly stood from the table as a surge of thoughts clouded his judgement. Without saying anything but a silent curse, he headed out the door. He retreated to his balcony, gazing up into the now dark sky that was peppered with stars. The crimson moon reflected through the trees, bathing the slightly tan wood of the trees with a blood-red hue.
At this moment, a voice sounded behind him. "You're early."
It was Monsour, the Vulpur with pink fur and ears. Beside him were Perola and the unnamed one with tall features and black and white fur. They all gazed at him with analytical expressions, as if studying him.
"You're intruding." Felonuous didn't turn away from the balcony, looking down upon the trees and leaves.
The somewhat cold winds blew through his long hair and tufts of fur, causing him to shiver and turn around.
"Did you prefer a more secretive location?" Perola asked.
Felonious nodded his head, now gazing at the trio before him. "Outside my house is the least conventional option."
Monsour turned to the window behind him, peeking through the slightly opened curtains. He saw Felonuous's family eating their meal.
"Your family isn't aware of our presence; they don't even seem to know you left to begin with."
"I'd say they know when a father is worn out." Felonious rubbed the back of his neck.
"Anyways, meet our trainees."
At this moment, a few Vulpurs descended from the trees, landing on the large wooden balcony. One of them had crimson fur, deep black eyes, and long black hair.
"This is Brindo, head of his class with agricultural professionals."
Brindo smiled softly and bowed with the solemnity of a gentleman.
Another landed beside him, a Vulpur with yellow and blonde tufts of hair, ears, and a tail. She was clad in a ceremonial dress and had intricate flowers tucked within her hair. She looked up at Felonious, also smiling.
"This is Demi, class head with the loan professionals. Her final assignment was to connect more political ties with other kingdoms in only twelve hours."
Monsour took a step forward, running a hand through Demi's hair. "She's my daughter."
Felonious nodded as he kept track of the details. Two more Vulpurs landed onto the balcony, both possessing dark blue fur. One was male, the other was female. Felonuous could immediately guess they were twins.
"These are Fatima and Francis, twin children. Ironically, they're both head of their class in terms of alchemy and concoction, graduating atop the rest of their pupils with almost identical grades."
"We even alchemically connected our brain waves," The twins said in unison.
Felonuous took a step back, mildly shocked by the twins' speech. "What now?..."
"We're like the same person, but we can still act individually," Francis said, tucking his hands into the pocket of his dark blue robe.
"Thank heavens, the last thing I'd want is to terrify the emperor with your speech."
"What's wrong with our speech?" Fatima scowled, pouting.
Before any aggression could ensue, the unnamed Vulpur stepped forward, his voice a low rumble.
"Now that you have your allies, you can leave us. The rest of them are already situated near the shore."
"R-rest of them?" Felonuous arched an eyebrow.
The unnamed Vulpur male chuckled softly, running a hand along the contours of his tufts. "Didn't your friend propose the idea of giving Emperor Katsuki additional help? He's worn out after all."
"Right..." Felonious recalled Ceder's idea within Queen Calista's throne room.
The four Vulpurs walked forward, leaping off the balcony, landing on the backs of massive bugs that expanded their wings, taking them off into the distance. As he watched the four of them depart, Felonious sighed softly as he turned to the trio.
"I thank the queen for her efforts, but I'm ...also confused."
His tail twitched as his brows furrowed, creasing the skin nestled above his snout. "I wasn't told about any of this."
The air around them fell silent, only permeated by the distant sounds of the forest and ambience of chirping and clicking bugs. Felonious's claws dug into the wooden balcony as he growled with slight frustration.
"I knew we had a few nobles around here, and I knew most decisions were made by the queen, but why wouldn't she inform me of this secret ...class that's being used to teach and test the next generation?"
Perola stepped forward, her brown hair drifting in the wind as she responded. "Only a tight inner circle, bent around mostly political affairs, is supposed to know about this."
"Then why not me? I'm the reason this kingdom is able to maintain healthy relationships with the rest of the world!"
The brown-furred Vulpur leaned against the balcony as she continued speaking. "Sometimes things that shouldn't grace the wrong ears are kept private for the weirdest of reasons. Perhaps it's an error of logic, or it's on purpose."
"If what you're saying is true, why would I be of the 'wrong ears'?"
Perola fell silent for a few seconds before scoffing. "You've been away for so long we fear you'll never return one day. You could get captured and tortured for information. Why would we want such secrets leaving our mouths?"
"T-then why would Queen Calista tell both me and Ceder that?"
Her lips twitched up into a small smile as she kept speaking. "Ceder's been a teacher for almost a decade, never falling out of line or giving her any reason to get angry at him. You're our main leverage for political matters outside this forest."
She turned to face him, her smile remaining plastered on her face. "Do you want to know a secret?"
Felonious's face flushed as he turned around, leaping onto the edge of the balcony railing. "I'd rather not."
Before he could jump, he seemed to remember something. A frown immediately filled his face as moisture accumulated in the corners of his eyes, only for him to quickly suppress the instinct to weep.
"Tell my wife and children I'm leaving again, and that I'll be back soon."
"Alright," Perola watched as Felonious leapt down onto a massive flying beetle, observing its figure slowly get smaller and smaller as it disappeared into the horizon.