The council chamber in Yino was a perfect reflection of its philosophy: dark, practical, and serious.
The black stone walls absorbed the light from the purple crystals, creating shadows that seemed to move of their own volition. The darkness writhed and twisted at the edges of vision, as if alive.
Six figures sat around a circular table carved from black crystal, magical obsidian. The material had been specifically chosen for its ability to absorb and contain abyssal energy, making it nearly impossible for any beast to spy on the meetings.
The King occupied the main seat, his face partially hidden by shadows while he studied the maps scattered across the table. His presence seemed to make the very air heavier, more oppressive.
“Let me understand the situation,” he rose slowly. The shadows seemed to stretch with him, as if they were an extension of his body.
He began walking around the table, his steps resonating on the stone with deliberate weight.
“Two weeks,” the King of Yino observed the leader of the Venmont family. “Two weeks without a single report from this Harold kid… Can none of your plans work?”
Lord Venmont maintained his firm posture despite the pressure. “My lord, the training we provided was the most rigorous possible. If he hasn’t reported, it must be because he’s following the maximum security protocol.”
“Protocol?” the crown prince, seated at the King’s right, arched an eyebrow. “Or did you simply lose control of your agent?”
A girl seated in the last chair leaned forward, as if wanting to better see Lord Venmont’s reaction, but the King raised a hand. She immediately straightened, returning to her position as a silent observer.
“Harold was personally modified by our family,” Venmont continued. “His abyssal beast is perfectly studied by us and adapted to the mission. It’s possible he’s underground, transporting the key, unable to send messages without compromising his position.”
The King turned to Lord Bloodwyn, ignoring Venmont’s explanation. “What about your part?”
“We’ve completed the study on the beast cultivation you requested,” Bloodwyn responded. The girl visibly straightened, her eyes gleaming with interest.
“And you think with just that I’ll forget your failure with the shadow stalkers?” the King interrupted. “The mana devourers that were supposed to help us accelerate the release of our last seed?”
Bloodwyn tensed. “My lord, the mercenaries never returned, they had a very good reputation but must have…”
“I don’t want to hear your excuses again… It’s ridiculous that in trying to accelerate our seed we managed to accelerate Yano’s seed instead,” the King cut him off. “We extracted its mana from our control vein by taking so much for our abyssals, but from here we can’t replicate the process with our own seed… The only plausible way was using a swarm of mana devourers! Right?”
“The theory makes sense,” Bloodwyn tried to explain. “But without mana devourers in our territory to study… If we had been able to…”
“You failed, that’s all… both of you did. And instead of taking advantage of knowing about Yano’s last seed’s release before them, you only give us useless reports… Excuses,” the prince spat the word.
The King finally turned to Lord Ravenspire. “And the scorpions I asked for?”
The girl moved uncomfortably in her seat, as if wanting to say something, but again the King silenced her with a gesture.
“Hagen managed to map much of the subsoil,” Ravenspire responded carefully. “Although he didn’t manage to obtain any cores, his contribution was…”
“These maps,” the King laughed humorlessly signaling. “We have maps, but Yano now knows we can infiltrate from the depths and control the abyssals to a certain extent. All that important information they got thanks to your famous mercenary. Do you know how many years this sets back our plans?”
“My lord,” Ravenspire leaned forward, “if you allow me to explain. Perhaps Hagen didn’t carry out the operation in the best way, but he himself lent his body risking everything for the kingdom and his loyalty to you… he helped us discover something else. Something that could change everything.”
The King’s interest visibly stirred. “What?”
“A safe way to obtain a third beast.”
The silence that followed was absolute. Even the abyssal crystals seemed to contain their crackling.
“Impossible,” the prince broke the silence. “So soon?”
“Hagen confirmed it himself already,” Ravenspire continued. “There is a method. But it was only possible because he already has a gold rank beast. Still, we can…”
“And he wasn’t consumed, there are no other side effects?” the King interrupted. “If what you say is true…”
“There are no problems for the moment,” Ravenspire assured. “The process seems safe in powerful tamers like him. We just have to observe him a bit more and obtain the necessary knowledge to…”
The girl suddenly rose from her seat, her eyes shining intensely. The King looked at her for a moment before nodding.
“Is it true?” her childish voice contrasted strangely with the chamber’s atmosphere. “We can have three beasts already?”
“Sit down, Selthia,” the King ordered softly. The girl obeyed immediately, though her eyes still shone with contained excitement.
“Explain the new details,” the King addressed Ravenspire. “All of them.”
♢♢♢♢
The King raised a hand once he had understood most of the explanation. “Lastly…” He turned to Venmont. “Have the Goldcrests reported anything?”
Venmont visibly tensed. “The situation with our… allies has become complicated.”
“Complicated?” the prince leaned forward.
“Since Bloodwyn’s mercenaries failed in their attempt to ‘kidnap’ the Klein boy,” Venmont carefully chose his words, “the Goldcrests have expressed their… discontent with our methods.”
“Discontent?” the King repeated softly, though his tone contained a veiled threat.
“They complain about our lack of professionalism,” Venmont continued. “The plan was to use Klein’s kidnapping as a negotiation chip in Yano, accelerate the open conflict between the cities. But the failure…”
“Has only made Yano more cautious,” the King completed.
“It was difficult enough convincing them to help with Harold’s infiltration,” Venmont added. “And that only worked because Kassian himself took the job instead of his father.”
“The young Goldcrest,” the King murmured. “Always more… adventurous than the old one.”
“Their communications have become more sporadic, which doesn’t help with Harold’s situation either,” Venmont concluded. “It seems they fear our… unorthodox methods might expose them.”
The King remained silent for a moment.
“I will handle that,” he finally declared. “The Goldcrests need to understand they’re already too involved to have doubts now.”
“My lord,” Venmont bowed respectfully. “How do you plan to…”
“They have a point about professionalism,” the King interrupted again. “Perhaps it’s time to show them how Yino works when it decides to be… truly professional.”
The smile that accompanied those words made even Selthia shrink slightly in her seat.
“Now,” the King turned his attention to Ravenspire. “Bring Hagen. I want to know exactly what he is now.”
The three lords rose and bowed before withdrawing, leaving the King with his son and the girl.
“Can I go see when they bring Hagen?” Selthia asked immediately.
“No,” the King responded.