[The morning of the next day.]
Emma is a recently recruited member of the Demon Purging Order in her mid 60s, but due to her high Existence Rank, she looks very young for her age. Without her concealment artifact, she would look like a young woman in her early 20s.
[While not something universal, if a being were to raise their Existence Rank beyond their 'natural' rank, they would have an increased lifespan. This has led to elves not being the rulers of Yvon due to their already high lifespan, which if further increased by raising their Existence Rank, can lead to them becoming extremely depressed.
Members of Royal and Noble families are also advised to not raise their Existence Rank beyond a certain threshold in order to allow for a natural succession process. This is not always followed, which has led to some rulers to reign over their territories for centuries before they are killed, but this can also happen during emergency situations, where a strong ruler is needed.]
She had even started training in order to form her Energy Core, although it will take a long time before she successfully forms it. She has had a few lovers before during her younger years and a few hookups during the Rain Rebellion.
She had woken up early, deciding to actually sleep every day instead of at her usual rate in order to both be fully rested and alert, but also because she missed dreaming every night. Her body did not need to sleep as much as before and as she was about to become an Ascended, she will lose her need to sleep entirely.
As she was enjoying acting like a being of the Basic Rank, doing her daily prayers, eating a modest breakfast and bathing, that is when she saw him.
He was a fellow Priest working at the church. In his late 30s, well-built with only a little bit of belly fat and arms as thick as Vintu trunks. His golden hair would shine so brightly under the lights of the suns that she almost felt blinded, but what caught her attention the most were his eyes.
Those grayish-blue eyes that would sparkle with a curiosity only known to the most ardent of researchers. His eyes were half lidded, like the eyes of someone that is either tired, bored or bothered by the light, but they also made sure to make them less visible, like two brilliant gems hidden behind a piece of silk.
She had met him just today as he was usually in charge of organizing the scrolls and books of the Church and Teacher Fabian hadn't introduced her to all members of the church as she was supposed to only be a 'temporary Teacher' which was brought in only a week prior.
He was currently reading a copy of the Holy Book of Humanity while sitting at one of the pews, the light coming from the windows shining at him, giving him an almost holy appearance that made her want to corrupt him.
She was not an easy woman and she was also trained by the Demon Purging Order to not become attached to anyone, as they might be a possible Demonic Spirit in disguise, but her 'sixth sense' was not telling her anything.
It was completely silent, and that meant that he was of no danger to her.
Plus, she had already gotten a prime suspect when it comes to the possible Demonic Spirit within the village, and it was well known among the Demon Purging Order that the people most vulnerable to Demonic Spirit possession are children, dying people and those that possess weak willpower.
She will make sure that Lana Smith is truly a Demonic Spirit, capture it and bring it to the closest base of her Order in order to extract information out of it. Emma was sure that the Order wouldn't mind if she were to have a small hookup with a priest within a relatively unknown village, which was known only for its wood.
-'Speaking of wood...'
Emma eyed the Librarian's body and then glanced down at his crotch, making various educated guesses.
Just as she did that, she saw the Librarian close the Book and then look at her with a kind smile on his clean-shaven face.
'Shit shit shit shit shit. Act natural Emma, you are in your 60s so just because you want to have those muscular, large, thick arms around your-'
-"I am sure that you have read the Great Teacher's Book many times miss, so I doubt that the Book is the target of your ardent stare. I haven't seen you before, are you a new Teacher in training?"
-"No, but I do wish that I could return to my days of training, things were much simpler back then. I am Emily, a substitute Teacher in charge of the education of our youngest Students. I was called in due to the sudden leaving of one of your colleagues but due to the drought, the transfer process took a very long time."
The Librarian's expression turned to one of slight sadness as he heard Emma mention the colleague, Matthew, which left the church two years ago.
-"Ah yes... I do miss the young lad, he was very hardworking and very dedicated to his future role as a Teacher. It is a great shame that he left us, from what I can remember, he left due to all of the stress put on him."
Emma had now started to feel bad after she had mentioned a person that must have been someone that the Librarian cared about. She now started feeling second thoughts about seducing this lonely man just because he fits her preference in men.
-"I apologize for resurfacing such sorrowful memories, I did not mean to cause you distress."
The Librarian raised his hand and then put on a small smile, then proceeded to point at the space on the right of him on the pew.
-"'Let not your fellow Student's passing cause you to feel sadness and regret, but instead make it fill you with happiness and nostalgia. Your memories of them shall serve to immortalize them, so let these memories be those of a positive nature.'
It is a verse used when talking about a dead person, but I think it also fits for those that leave your life by spiriting away in the middle of the night."
He let out a small chuckle and then caressed the Book on his lap with a practiced gesture, with signs of ware being visible on the leather cover.
Emma sat down besides the Librarian and allowed herself to let out a small smile of her own. She liked seeing this man smile, bringing her a bit of happiness as well.
-"It isn't a very well known verse, that one. I am sure that you must have spent a lot of time reading the Great Teacher's Book. Do you have a favorite passage?"
He slowly opened the Book in his lap and then started flipping through the pages, searching for a specific one. His fingers pressed against page after page and flipped them over with ease and once he found the correct page, he slowly pointed at a passage from the Chapter of Connections.
-"'Connections are akin to chains.
They can be like the chains of a piece of chain-mail, showing that connections can protect us from danger.
They can be like the chains of a prisoner, showing that connections can bind and weigh us down.
They can be interconnected like chains, showing how they help keep us close and empower us.
Beware of gold plated chains for they are weak, showing how connections that look too good can be extremely weak.'"
Emma looked at the passage and listened carefully to the Librarian's deep but quiet voice. She thought about why such a passage could be his favorite but instead of guessing, she decided to simply ask.
-"Why is this one your favorite? While it is a good lesson, it is also a very simple one."
He slowly looked at her, his eyes now trained on her which caused her heart to skip a beat. He wasn't particularly handsome, especially for Emma as she had seen the other member's of her group and other high Rank beings, but he caught her eye.
It was like looking at a finely crafted mosaic, made out of several colored panes of glass, and then seeing an uncut gem, hidden under a small layer of dust. It is certainly not as beautiful as the mosaic, but it feels more natural, simple.
He reminded Emma of her time as a regular village girl, of being just Emma and not Inquisitor Emma or Miss Emma.
-"I like it because it is simple. Oftentimes, we tend to forget or overlook the simplest of things, leading to misunderstandings, mistakes or disasters.
It is also because I feel like this verse was misinterpreted."
-"Misinterpreted? How so?"
He let out a small chuckle and then pointed at the word used, 'Chains'.
-"While I do not doubt the capabilities of the Great Teacher, I do not think that Chains existed back during the writing of Their Book. I think that instead of 'chains', Connections are like ropes."
Emma looked at the Librarian and after thinking about the verse a bit, she started giggling.
-"I apologize for my rudeness, but if the correct word is 'ropes', then what about the following text? I do not think that 'ropemail' exists."
This time, the Librarian let out a laugh, revealing a bit of his teeth while moving his head back, causing the light of the suns to shine directly at him. Two halo's of light stood behind his head as he laughed, causing his golden hair to glisten and sparkle like fine threads of gold.
Emma once more felt her heart skip as she saw this scene, making sure to remember each and every detail of this short sight.
The Librarian then stopped laughing, only letting out a few small chuckles before finally calming down.
-"I must apologize for my shameful display lady Emily, I have conversed with my fellow Teacher's only a few times over the years and so your joke made me overreact. It is a great shame that our library does not have many books which contain comedic elements.
But when it comes to what you have said, I do agree that the text would not work if 'chain' were to be replaced with 'rope', that is why I think that the original verse was different."
Emma knew that her 'joke' was not even that good, but seeing him laugh so much at such a simple joke made her feel better. She also did not get to talk with others over these past few years as her fellow Order members were people of little words and people that knew of her identity as an Order member are often intimidated.
That is why she likes going undercover, to be 'Emily' instead of 'Emma'.
-"It is quite alright, I actually feel quite flattered. Moving on from my 'joke', could you tell me what you think is the true version of the passage?"
The blond haired man smiled once more but then quickly let out a small cough, trying to get himself to have a neutral expression. After managing to do so, he then said:
-"'Connections are akin to ropes.
They can be like a climbing rope, showing that connections can bring us up, saving or helping us.
They can be like a rotten rope, showing that connections can bring us down, dooming or inconveniencing us.
They can bind us together, keeping us close and safe while also making it so that if one goes down, many more can fall.
Beware of unknown ropes, for you do not know where they might lead you.'"
The Librarian let out a small chuckle and then let out a cheeky smile.
"The last one is a personal addition, a small 'joke' of my own."
Emma did not really find it funny but still put on a small smile.
-'Beware of unknown ropes? That sounds so silly, but I suppose it makes a bit of sense. If I were to find a random rope inside a cave leading into the dark, then I wouldn't want to go deeper inside and investigate.'
The Librarian slowly sat up, leading to Emma sitting up as well. It was soon time for the various furniture inside the church to be moved in order to make space for the children doing their first part of mandatory education.
Emma saw the man in front of her offer her a handshake and after accepting it, making sure to really feel those slightly calloused hands and after they were done, she was about to ask for his name but he spoke first.
-"My name is Teacher Anton, it has been a pleasure conversing with you. Before I go, how about I help you with moving the furniture? Four hands are better than two after all."
-"I thank you for your help, Teacher Anton, and I am also very glad to have met you today. I hope to converse with you once more in the future."
The two Teacher's then started slowly moving the pews, various tables and other small pieces of furniture and then bring out a large carpet, several story books, toys and the needed pieces of low quality commoner paper and worn out pencils.
The two continued talking with one another, greeting the various priests and priestesses that would come and go through that section of the church while also sharing a few things about one another. Time flew by quickly, but this also led to them taking longer than usual to complete the work.
That is why, even though an extra person was helping out, by the time they were, the children had already arrived. The large doors of GreenWood church slowly opened, revealing the faces of various young children. The ones that caught Emma's attention were the Smith triplets, specifically Lana Smith.
She was standing slightly behind her older brothers, Neiro and Vamas Smith. Just as they were all about to rush in, some of them stopped and looked at Teacher Anton with curios eyes, wondering about this mysterious priest that they had never seen before.
Anton had a slightly distorted face, showing what could be at best be described as discomfort. Emma quickly saw that, and after thinking about it for a moment, she had learned something new about Anton.
'He doesn't feel comfortable around children? That's odd but understandable, not all Teachers are 'teachers' after all.'
Anton gave Emma an apologetic look and she simply nodded, showing that she understood. He gave a small nod and then quickly went into a different section of the church, most likely towards the library, with the young children staring at him with various expressions.
Some were curious, some disinterested.
The Smith triplets did not particularly care, especially Neiro, but the being floating besides him that was shaped like a rectangular, pale-blue box was feeling something else.
Mild disgust, pity and amazement. A truly unique cocktail of emotions.
And so, yet another day of 'school' had started for the Smith triplets, during which Emma continued to subtly observe Lana in order to find any signs of Demonic Spirit possession.
[Meanwhile, back at the True Royal Palace of Aurora, inside the meeting room.]
Emperor Antonius and Empress Zora were once again sitting within the meeting room alongside Grand General Leonidas, Grand Archmage Eleanor, Grand Advisor Borthus and the four Cardinal Sovereigns' projections.
They all looked incredibly exhausted and stressed, with some small eye-bags being visible on the Emperor and Empress while Borthus looked as if he was trying to hold back a splitting migraine.
The reason for their current state is related to the Monsters that were discovered a short while ago during the inspection of the route that Empress Zora was supposed to take in order to travel to the Rain Kingdom.
More specifically, it is because these monsters have completely disappeared, with the only one remaining being the mysterious Spirit that was under a contract with the Conjurer, Frollo. Conjurer Frollo was now also acknowledged by the crown to have discovered a brand new kind of Spirit and even being able to enter into a contract with one.
He has been given paid leave and had been given the minor noble titles of 'Baronet', giving him the family name of 'Despas'.
The meeting was currently being held because several Auroran spies which managed to infiltrate some parts of the other Empires of Yvon had reported back that numerous unknown creatures were discovered within the territories of Midoro, Tecton and Amphoro which had then disappeared shortly after they were discovered.
Emperor Antonius looked at the members of the meeting and then said in a tired tone.
-"We will be revealing the existence of Monsters to all of our territories. Each official settlement, no matter how small, is to be notified immediately and any mercenaries that are able to find out anything about them is to report it in exchange for one steel coin per piece of credible information."
Advisor Borthus immediately interjected and raised his hand.
-"Your Majesty, our funds are already starting to run low due to our involvement with the South, are you sure that it is wise to use our funds in such a way? Plus, we do not even have a proper way to know what reports are genuine and which ones are fakes, these Monsters are too broad when it comes to appearance, abilities and even mentality."
Empress Zora looked at the Southern Grand Duke, Mirza Al-Amin, with a careful gaze and studied his reaction to the current state of the South, but after not seeing any noticeable change in expression, she interjected.
-"The South has learned their lesson, plus the drought was planned to happen during a time where we wouldn't get any difficulties. The appearance of these Monsters takes priority, so I agree with the Emperor but also agree that we should have a certain criteria to what makes a being a 'Monster'.
Does anyone have any suggestions?"
Leonidas raised his hand, his slightly scarred but youthful face not matching his grey hair.
-"If we are to call them 'Monsters' when we introduce them to the general public, then we could make a bizarre or terrifying appearance to be one of the criteria. The Blur and Shadow mentioned in the interrogations are good examples."
Eleanor, with her scarlet red hair and freckled face interjected.
-"Those criteria are too vague, we should not use something as subjective as 'terrifying' or 'bizarre', plus this would make Monsters like the Fish, Spirit and Critic not count as 'Monsters'. I suggest we use something more objective, like never before seen creatures.
This will limit the reports to only high status mercenaries, knights and other various well-educated third parties but we will also be getting more credible reports. The Mercenaries can gain more money by simply reporting their encounter with a strange creature, which they would most likely do anyway, while the knights can get more prestige."
Borthus raised his hand once more while the Cardinal Sovereigns simply watched on since they most likely would not be able to suggest anything worthwhile that wouldn't be seen as favoritism towards their territories.
-"I think we are forgetting something very important. What will happen when one of these 'Monsters' gets killed by someone from our Empire? The issuing of a reward for information on such beings would most probably also lead to many people trying to kill or harm them in order to send the corpses to us.
Ignoring the fact that we don't even know if some of them can even be killed or harmed at all without resorting to drastic measures, something way worse may befall us if they succeed in slaying one.
The divination from the last interview had revealed that something, or someone, will 'retaliate' if these monsters were to be killed. Is it truly wise to antagonize a being of unknown power?"
Leonidas slammed his fist down on the table, making sure that it wouldn't get damaged but still cause a loud noise.
-"I think we are well past us fearing a retaliation! We have lost a good deal of powerful soldiers and mages to these beings, so isn't it only fair that we get some payback!?"
-"What if they weren't actually aggressive?"
Eleanor raised her hand and interrupted the two men before they could go into a long argument. Leonidas and Borthus immediately understood and their expressions immediately hardened, with Lenidas speaking first and then Borthus.
-"Are you telling me that they weren't even trying to harm us? The several dozens of corpses in the ground would beg to differ."
-"I would like to know your thought process, what led you to come to such a conclusion?"
Some of the Cardinal Sovereigns and the Emperor and Empress immediately realized what Eleanor was implying around the same time as her, but the Grand Archmage still chose to respond, albeit in a bit of a subdued tone, as if embarrassed.
-"Due to my lit- my children. We had overlooked something crucial when we discussed the Spirit at our last meeting. It is at most 2 years old."
Borthus' eyes slowly widened in realization while Leonidas was still confused, but as he subtly glanced around and seeing that everybody else realized her meaning, he copied what Borthus did and then nodded as if he understood perfectly.
-"Cough Um, could you elaborate more on your thought process? I think it would be best if we made sure that we all are thinking of the same thing."
Leonidas started getting side eyed by various members of the meeting but he decided to ignore them, and Eleanor simply sighed and continued.
-"I swear, I told you before that you should make a child or two at your age... Cough Moving on, what I mean is that, since we can safely assume that the Spirit is very connected with the Monsters, possibly even being one of them, then we can safely assume that the other Monsters are also around the same age.
Combining that with their more...playful nature, as can be seen with Shadow, Spirit and possibly Blur. Then it is very probable that the Monsters are children or young juveniles."
Leonidas had realized what Eleanor meant now but that didn't mean he was feeling better, instead his facial expression was now similar to that of the other members of the meeting.
-"So all that has been happening...That was simply some children playing around?"
Eleanor nodded and Borthus also added in one more thing.
-"It also means that we have gotten played with by a Spirit that is most likely still a child mentally, albeit a very intelligent and manipulative one. That means that we now have a higher chance of manipulating it ourselves."
Both Antonius and Zora looked at each other and then at Borthus. All of the members of the meeting have gotten their ego's bruised due to being played around with by a Spirit toddler, but that didn't mean they were going to start treating it as some easily manipulative kid. The Emperor spoke first and then the Empress.
-"That isn't a wise decision Borthus."
-"Indeed. Just because it is a child, it doesn't also mean that it can be distracted by a rattle or bribed with sweets. But it also means that we should add in this piece of data to the information given to the settlements.
We will also not announce or later reward anyone that brings in information or the body parts of these 'Monsters'. If the retaliation is to fall upon someone, then it won't be upon us.
We will include a warning talking about how the recommended way of dealing with these Monsters is to simply run or hide away from them, along with what we know about the Monsters we have discovered already, excluding the Spirit."
Grand Advisor Borthus reluctantly agreed and then bowed deeply.
-"Very well Your Majesties, I shall do as you command. The information will take some time to prepare and then distribute, but I can assure you that the entire central region will be notified within 2 weeks. And I trust that the other regions can also be do it within this time frame?"
As he said that, he glanced towards the Cardinal Sovereigns, especially the South and North Grand Dukes, who raised their hands and also added.
-"Unfortunately, it will take much more time for us. For the South it will take around 3 to 4 weeks if we are to use only our ground messengers."
-"It is the same for the North as well."
Antonius and Zora waved their hands, showing that they did not mind while also announcing the end of the meeting.
[Around a week later, within the Royal Capital of the Aurora Empire, Aurorus. Inside the Singing Coras]
The Sunset Trio have returned from their previous mission some time ago and within these two years they have been busy. They have slowly started garnering fame within the capital as a small but elite team of mercenaries that can complete hard missions that would normally take a band of fifteen mercenaries to complete by themselves.
The Mind Carver, Alexander.
The Bouchier, Bianca.
The Three-eyed, Vladimir
They have gained many scars, both mental and physical, over the years. They have decided to become the highest rank of mercenaries so that they wouldn't have to be brushed aside.
When they wanted to investigate the disappearance of Mirelle, they had to give up just because a high rank noble was involved.
And so, they started going after more dangerous and eye-catching quests. Taking care of rogue conjurers, track down the locations of hidden cults and many more.
Right now, they were staring at a piece of low quality noble paper, something that is used for official statements made by mobility.
The following words, after ignoring the ass kissing towards the royal family, were written on it:
[Three months ago, the Royal Army had discovered a brand new type of being within the territory of our illustratious Empire.
They have disappeared, but before being officially discovered, there have been reports of their sightings as far back as two years ago.
These beings have been dubbed 'Monsters', and this announcement is here to tell you about how dangerous they are, and that you should run or hide away if you are to ever detect one.
Do not talk with them, do not attack them, and most importantly:
Never try to kill them.
Stick in groups when outside your settlement and beware of beings that look or sound like the following:
-Shadow:A being that will appear like the shadow of a creature or person that it knows. It will imitate various beings but if you tell it to imitate the shadow of a being it does not know, it will go away.
-Blur:This is a being that will appear as a blur to unobservant people but will cause those that see it to go into a catatonic state.
-Fish:A being that takes the appearance of a fish, found within bodies of water. If you see one, blink or close your eyes immediately and then run away from that body of water.
-Critic:A being that will talk inside your mind and critic each and every possible thing about you until you go insane. Do not be alone and if you ever start hearing them, report to one of the Royal Administrative buildings in order to get treated.]
The Sunset Trio looked at one another, exchanging worried glances before Bianca spoke up.
-"We aren't getting involved with this. If we ever see one of these or something similar, we run."
Vladimir and Alexander both nodded but then the tall dwarf brought something up.
-"We still have to deal with those illegal slave traders. Detective Taylor had managed to find them, and they are only a few days on horseback away."
Vladimir put his hands towards the scar on his temple and frowned.
-"I don't think that it is a wise decision to leave the capital, but we still have to make a living.
We are going to have to change our tactics a bit, since these 'Monsters' usually attack only people that are alone.
Sorry about this Bianca."
Bianca simply chuckled and then patted Vladimir on the back, almost causing him to fall down on the ground.
-"Don't you worry your pale little ass about it, I'll be fine."
She had a slightly forced smile but Vladimir and Alexander decided not to comment and instead try to laugh it off.
The atmosphere had gotten awkward and so they decided to go out and eat something to warm themselves up, with Bianca accidentally bumping into some Dwarven woman on the way.
Before she could apologize, the Dwarven girl immediately ran towards her room and then slammed the door closed, leaving the Sunset Trio to look at each other with confusion.
-"""Did we do something to her?"""
Bianca saw an opportunity and took it.
-"Ah! Jinx! You two owe me a drink each!"
Bianca then ran to the innkeeper/bartender, Jordan, to order a very expensive drink that was still within their budget.
Vladimir glanced back at the door leading to the Dwarven girl's room while Alexander stroked his beard, making a few small fragments of various minerals to fall down and make an audible sound.
-"Alexander! You better not have dirtied my floors with rocks again you little shit!"
-"They're not rocks! They're minerals!"