In Burin's Smithy…
Burin was smelting a sword at the furnace; it appeared to be unique and not an ordinary sword.
He tilted his head and looked back: "You brat, why do you want a sword with such amazing specifications? This is truly exhausting, tsk."
And in the back… Lucian was leaning against the wall!
Lucian looked and thought for a bit: Damn, how will I tell him that I saw that young man's sword and wanted one like it? Curses.
Lucian spoke: "I must have a unique sword, old man. I've started fighting many battles."
Burin sighed slightly: "Fine, fine, I'll believe you. Oh right, how is Kallion doing these days?"
Lucian went silent for a moment, wondering to himself: To what degree are they close for him to speak of him as if he were a child?
Lucian: "I don't know. He's become strange lately; he disappears from the kingdom for days."
Burin looked for a bit; he was thinking about something but did not disclose it: "Don't trouble yourself, you fool."
Lucian: "What do you think of that young man?"
Burin: "I don't know what you are talking about?" Lucian answered: "You know exactly what I mean; it's Jin."
Burin went silent for a moment: "And why do you ask about him?"
Lucian: "I don't know. I don't see him as an evil person; I wanted to understand the reason behind what is happening."
Burin laughed a little: "There you go, acting like him now. Asking and asking until you go mad."
Burin looked at the furnace for a bit, then continued: "Boy, it is better not to ask too much. Try to make your decisions based on your deductions only. That fool did not listen to the advice, and because of this, he is now in a whirlpool of questions."
Lucian: "And why do you care about our interest to that degree in the first place?"
Burin sighed: "Why? It is obvious. You are a good young man, and Kallion cares about you deeply. Therefore, you deserve it."
The youth asked: "So, what about him?"
Silence prevailed for a long time. A type of sadness was reflected on Burin's face; at that moment, scenes of Jin's father when he was his age came to his mind.
Burin replied quietly: "Because he needs that."
"…Return tomorrow when your sword is finished. And regarding the matter of the Temple, do not think about revealing the truth soon. If that were possible, Kallion would have done it already."
The knight said nothing else; he gave his greetings and left.
Outside, Marco was waiting for him, holding one of the Tower's tablets.
Marco: "Have you ever watched Formula 1 racing on Earth before?"
Lucian looked at him for a bit while thinking: How can they be not alike at all like this? This fool doesn't care about anything in life, and the other...
Marco interrupted him: "What are you thinking about, hey?" Leonhardt sighed slightly: "Nothing. Haven't you seen Volt in the Academy lately?"
Marco: "No, he said he was trying to invent a new technique and disappeared a while ago. By the way, why don't they allow crossing the Tower except with that card? What is it?"
Lucian: "Forget it, it's a long story."
After a while, the two youths went out to the Imperial Capital; they arrived at a train station.
While they were waiting, Lucian asked: "Marco… what would you do if you had another brother?"
Marco sighed: "Man, what are you talking about? I stopped counting after twenty. What is special about this?"
Leonhardt went silent for a bit before continuing: "No… I mean, what if he were different?" Marco replied: "What do you mean?"
The Knight: "I mean… he wasn't like the rest. He doesn't seek control over the family or those matters, and he also looked exactly like you."
Marco did not answer for a bit; distraction was visible on him in those moments.
Marco: "I don't know. If I truly had a brother like that… then I would accompany him always. That is enough."
In a spot between the borders of the Heavenly Demon Sect and the Evil Faction.
In one of the underground headquarters of the Demon Organization.
Bishop Neil walked between the giant corridors of the headquarters until he arrived before a statue of one of the 72 Kings.
There was a group of masked people; their clothes were different from the followers' clothes—they appeared to hold high positions in the organization. One of them spoke: "Are you not worried that someone might suspect the reason for your absence, Neil?"
Neil: "No. Kallion has been missing for a few weeks, and most investigators are searching for that young man."
Silence prevailed for a bit among those present until another spoke: "Our investigations managed to find his location. He is one of the Elders of the Heavenly Demon Sect. Regarding those we must be cautious of in the sect after Cheonma, they are: the Great Guardian, Rao Ming Yu, Jong Seo Rin, and that young Elder."
"All of you, be cautious of this person specifically. His shadow magic can interfere in the affairs of the Demon World easily, unlike any other magic."
Neil: "I want to make the Temple capture him here in the Eastern Continent."
One of them spoke: "What are you saying? Are you convinced that none of them already know he is here? No one from either continent will interfere in the affairs of the other currently. Leave this alone."
"The requirements to summon one of the Kings in the ranks above twenty are difficult, and the Nine Dukes are currently restricted by the constraints of causality. What shall we do?"
In front of them stood a person who hadn't uttered a word since the beginning of their conversation; he spoke now.
"Do you see this statue?" Everyone replied: "Yes."
That person continued: "We will summon its owner. He might be among the lowest-ranked among the Kings, but he will be enough to draw attention here so that the leaders can move in Astrion."
Someone asked: "What about the Western Continent?"
That person replied after a bit of silence: "No use. Perhaps it is the suitable place for a strong summoning, but… we won't be able to hide there easily. The bosses have stopped communicating with us for the time being. Therefore, when you communicate with the leaders in Astrion, inform them of the following: entice the Black Mages to join our ranks, focus on sowing discord between the Temple of Darkness and the Temple of Light so they do not focus on us. That is enough for now."
Later in the United Nations Archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, specifically in the International Guard Headquarters.
In the meeting room of the Guard leaders, Leonardo Greifwald sat with eight others whose faces disappeared into the darkness of the room.
Leonardo: "So, what is the reason for the sudden meeting?"
The Supreme Commander of the International Guard replied to him: "This is a request from the heads of state. There are many matters I don't understand what they want to achieve from them."
Leo: "Like what?"
The Supreme Commander: "They want to climb the Tower faster. Since the massive rewards for clearing the forty-third floor, they want us to clear the forty-fourth before the end of the year."
He went silent for a bit before completing: "The World Bank itself provided support worth fifty billion dollars for this matter."
Silence prevailed in the room for a bit until Leonardo broke this silence.
"Do you agree to this? …The World Bank, heads of state, even international organizations—they want us to climb the Tower at any cost. They don't care about losses; they don't care about what will happen after advancing in the floors. Are profits that important? Do you not feel that this is dangerous? Why did the other planet prevent the climb?"
The Commander replied: "Perhaps it will be better for humanity to know the truth behind the Tower and…"
Leonardo stood up and struck his hand on the table with force.
"The truth? Are you joking? Mr. President, do you want to tell me you don't know why the governments liquidated the Regressors without exception?"
Everyone looked at him in astonishment; they seemed truly surprised by these words, but the Supreme Commander gave a truly heavy look.
The Commander: "Let's postpone the discussion about this matter, Leonardo."
Leo sat while anger burned him, and the Commander messaged him telepathically: It is better that you stop this rebellion.
The Commander continued: "Anyway, now there is some information provided to us by the Earth Embassy. There is a great power that appeared on the other planet, and they will come to meet the leadership here soon."
The leader of the Arab World Guard interrupted them: "Mr. President… why don't the governments give us an order to investigate the Demon Summoning Organization?"
The President looked with a strange gaze: "Because there are no movements from them now. But… what do you mean by asking in that manner?"
The Arab leader did not reply; his eye appeared from the darkness of the room—he was looking at Leonardo, and Leonardo was looking at him.
And the discussions continued in the room.
End of Chapter