– PoV: Quinlan –
I smirked victoriously behind the cover of my mask while thinking about the pair I just had a nice talk with. I wasn’t always one to begin mocking people verbally, but considering that we have some shared history from beforehand and that they just tried to forcefully recruit me into their losing army made it a bit more personal.
I glanced at Ambition who was flanked by her archers. They were watching the tall guy in rich robes, waiting for him to begin his speech about how we shall proceed. However, for now, he seemed to be occupied by examining the winners of the alliance clash, the giant group.
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“How are you ladies feeling?” I asked. At first, I didn’t know if they were all females due to their attire covering all of their physical features, but now I was pretty confident in my statement after observing them for a bit.
“Good. You have our thanks, Devil and his Heralds. You’ve certainly saved us. We found it hard to trust you at first, and for that, you have our sincere apologies.” She was referencing the time when the archers aimed at me and told me to stop approaching the then-hurt Ambition.
“Don’t mention it. You also saved us for certain. If the next round allows, how about we team up again? We desperately need a competent tanker like you.”
The heavy-armored woman gave no response, evidently being deep in thought. Instead of answering she glanced at Seraphiel, asking for silent confirmation if her oath still stood. My sly healer nodded without hesitation. Of course it would stand- Seraphiel doesn’t believe she will be punished at all even if we break her promise to Ambition.
“We accept.” That was all she said, and I nodded at her words happily.
“Gather around, youngsters.” The tall man finally spoke.
The hundred victors and their subordinates did as told as they encircled the man. We decided to remain on the outskirts just to be safe. Who knows, maybe they are such lunatics that they would start round two right off the bat with the same rules, though I severely doubted that. Anyhow, it didn’t hurt to remain at a distance, so we did exactly that.
“My code name is Heretic, a Veil Walker. I’ve been tasked with seeing the closure of the first round by the respected Circle Members. You passed the first challenge of the Phenom Trials, and for that, you have earned our sincere congratulations. Before the second round starts, you will have a day to rest, since in other locations the first round didn’t even start. If you need healing or gear repairs, we are at your service.” frёewebηovel.cѳm
He paused for a brief moment, and that gave me enough time to notice one detail. He was responsible for the closure of the first rounds, but they were scattered all across the duchy of Greenvale, which was an entire large nation-sized land in itself. This guy is capable of traversing through such distances every few hours? Well, he is a Veil Walker, so he must be at least level 40 if not higher, so I’m not overly flabbergasted. Furthermore, they might’ve set it all up so that he didn’t need to rush from one end to the other but the next destination was close to the previous.
“With that out of the way, let me reveal what the second round will be about. You will be grouped up with a few other Phenom teams- who will be selected at random- and you will also receive a handler of the Shadow Vanguard rank who will serve as your examiner. You will have to complete a genuine mission given by the Consortium, be that espionage, monster culling, invading other orgs’ territories, driving out bandits, you name it. The possibilities are near endless. That’s it from me for the time being. Return to the temporary homes you’ve been allocated if you don’t need healing or repairs. Once again, good job on getting this far. If you wish to retire from the competition, now is the time to do so. However, let me give a warning that the Trials can’t be challenged a second time.”
This was it. We’ve passed the initial round, and gotten amazing results while doing so. So many XP packs were slain and consumed, becoming a part of ourselves in the process, and thanks to Black Fang’s ‘donation’ we even got goodies. I don’t know their exact value, but I’m hoping for a couple dozen gold coins. I’ll have to ask Jasmine. Now that I remember, I still have Luke’s -the count’s son who I slayed in the labyrinth- golden armor and gem decorated longsword. Those would go for a pretty penny too, but I’m a bit worried about selling them. If the buyer talks, I’ll be in giant trouble. There is a big bounty on any information leading to the killer, after all.
Just as we joined the many tired candidates as they walked towards the exit of the cavern, Heretic spoke up once again. I didn’t like what I was hearing at all.
“Devil, Ambition, Selene, Cedric, and their Heralds. Remain.”
Oh no. I’m smelling a conspiracy from a mile away. With a grim expression, I did as told by returning to his side. So did the others.
“Lady Black Fang liked each of you enough to bend traditions a bit in order to give you a special mission.”
“Isn’t that against the rules?” I asked though hope had already left my soul.
“No. The others will be doing missions given by the heads too, just drawn from a lottery instead of specifically selected for them.”
Figures.
“Anyhow. You are to rest today and meet up at a specific coordinate where the rest of the team will be at. They are candidates who passed the first round at other locations. Also, your examiner will be Black Fang’s personal pupil who is of the Veil Walker rank.”
Great. Amazing even.
“Can you tell us what the mission is about?” Ambition asked this time around, evidently not overly bothered by the revelations.
“Yes. Lady Black Fang’s drug empire has been under attack on the west part of the duchy by Silverwind’s biggest syndicate, the Phantom League. They are a similarly giant-sized organization like our Vesper Consortium and have been aggressively invading our territories and wreaking havoc, especially targeting our drug operations. You are to show them that the Consortium is not to be trifled with by returning the favor. You will spearhead an invasion into their territory and cause as much damage as you possibly can. That’s all.”
