“Hello, Xavier,” greeted Arthur, passing by the butler. He’d entered using the card the butler gave him last time. The guards at the entrance were quite surprised by the card, and had to summon Xavier to confirm its validity.
“Even after handing you a card, you still manage to call me here,” Xavier replied, rubbing his forehead in annoyance. “It’s the one day I received a vacation. I was peacefully clipping my nails in my room.”
Arthur simply chucked, heading to Gregorio’s room.
Since he’d promised to keep Jake’s secret, the crimson-eyed man wasn’t visiting on his own accord. This time, Gregorio had summoned him, and he described the contents of the meeting as ‘important information.’
After classes were over, Arthur quickly headed over to the Ainsworths’ estate, ending up in the current situation. Once Xavier and Arthur reached Gregorio’s room, the former knocked before barging in.
“Xavier,” Gregorio said, acknowledging the butler’s presence from behind a stack of documents. The man’s eyes had bags underneath them, and his eyes were bloodshot, as if he’d been working consecutively for several days.
Noticing Arthur’s presence, Gregorio used his office chair to roll over to the coffee table before sliding onto the couch.
“Sir Gr–”
“Not now, Xavier,” Gregorio responded, motioning for Arthur to sit. Suddenly, his hurried demeanor morphed into that of composure and solemnity. His appearance suddenly seemed dignified, perhaps due to his use of mana.
The walls suddenly thickened, blocking all external noises from entering, and internal noises from exiting.
“I think what Xavier meant to say is… there’s ink on your nose,” said Arthur, averting his eyes from the scene. Gregorio hurriedly wiped the ink from his nose before letting out an awkward cough to mask his embarrassment.
“Anyway, I’m sure you read the entire letter,” said Gregorio, returning to the topic at hand. “I meant it when I said we have received important information.”
“How so?” Arthur asked, leaning back in his chair before crossing his legs. He then rested his chin on his palm and his elbow on the armrest.
“The Campbell Family and the Ainsworth Family are having a bit of trouble,” announced Gregorio. “Apparently, the Campbell Family was basically stealing goods from the same mine the Ainsworths were. So, we both ratted on each other, resulting in the current situation.”
“How exactly is this important, Gregorio?”
“I’m getting to that part,” continued Gregorio, waving his hand in dismissal. “The Campbells and the Ainsworths recently got together to discuss a settlement… turns out it didn’t end well. Our envoy began trashing the conference room, and their envoy got pissed and nullified all negotiations.”
“That’s bad…”
“But it isn’t all that bad. The Campbell Family is allied with Arcadia Academy. A few days ago, Athanasia Arcadia, the principal of Arcadia Academy, visited the Ainsworths for a little chat… basically, she was threatening us.”
“How is that not bad?” Arthur asked, but his voice soon trailed off. That’s when realization struck him. “You’re going to use that to prevent the plan from becoming a one-sided attack… you’re masking it as a situation where both sides had enmity.”
“Correct,” said Gregorio, letting out a sigh before leaning back in his chair. “It’s quite far-fetched and we’d be overreacting if we turned such a situation into a hostile one. That’s why we cannot act just yet.”
“But… the first step has been taken.” .
“Stole the words out of my mouth,” said Gregorio, revealing a toothy grin. Eventually, the matter between the Campbell Family and the Ainsworths could escalate. That’s when they could involve allies.
“A few months? Because I’m planning on entering Heaven’s Spire.”
Suddenly, a dangerous gleam flashed across Gregorio’s eyes. “If you can accomplish what we’ve asked of you, I will… no, the entire Ainsworth Family will personally escort you to the gates of the tower.”
Arthur nodded in accordance. “Then, I’ll make sure you don’t chicken out on your promise.”
“I won’t,” replied Gregorio with a straight face. “But frankly, I don’t see how you’re going to fulfill what we ask. You are too weak.”
“Weak…”
“Have you been slacking on your training lately?” Gregorio inquired, tapping his armrest. “At this rate, you might be overtaken by Alisha. At that point, we won’t have any use for you… you know what’ll happen then, right?”
“All I have to do is show you my power, right?”
“No, you have to display them in personal training that Xavier will supervise,” announced Gregorio. “I cannot have you slacking. Since the first step has been taken, things will only escalate from here on out. If you’re incapable, you hold no worth.”
“Personal training…?”
“You will be held up against opponents of my choice,” said Gregorio. “This will continue until the day of the final exams, after which the banquet of Arcadia Academy will be held. That will be the day we will strike.”
“The banquet after the results of the final exams are revealed? To celebrate the end of the school year?”
“Yes,” said Gregorio. “That will be the last day of school for first years, and the day where nothing can go wrong.”
“Got it,” replied Arthur, getting up to leave.
“One more thing,” said Gregorio, waving his hand so as to motion for Arthur to listen. “We cannot meet here anymore. Since Arcadia Academy will now be scrutinizing the Ainsworth estate, a random student cannot enter immediately after school.”
“True.”
“Moreover, you had been visiting once or twice a month, perhaps a little more. But now, due to your personal training, you would be visiting every day. That’s extremely suspicious, which is why the training will be held in a different location. Xavier will give you a card that you can use to access that location. He will also provide you with details and schedule your meetings with me from now on.”
“All right,” replied Arthur before exiting Gregorio’s room. His schedule would get even busier as things escalated. But it was all worth it, considering it would hasten the process of entering Heaven’s Spire.
These were the last days of peace he would experience.
In a month and a half, perhaps two months, everything would get messy.