Gryfor maintained his silence after Elder Parsmir's question. The very person he very much wanted to keep away from the eyes of the Alberdan Empire was now the subject of the conversation. Front the tone of Parsmir, it seemed to be quite clear the royal family of Alberdos wanted Mona Aurum immediately.

"He is still in my custody." Gryfor responded into the Creation, his thoughts rising. I need to be clear. With Parsmir calling, I must not give away my intentions at all. Gryfor understood that if the royal family knew of his ideas, he would at most be executed in excruciating pain. If Parsmir caught him, however, he would not be allowed to live.

"Please tell me General Gryfor. Why is that so?" Parsmir wasn't able to find a change in Gryfor's speech. His own voice seemed slightly calming, as if to bring the truth from Gryfor's mind.

He's activated a Vocal Art. Gryfor's face grew grim. He knew full well such an Art could be used with the specific Creation in his hand to deal with interrogating shady subordinates. He couldn't bring it up, however, as this elder outranked him in the army.

The Alberdan Army had strict protocol. Beyond the mandatory enlistment and the chain of command, it had several unspoken rules as well. Among them was one that dealt with subordinates that gave rise to suspicion.

If the higher-ranked officer felt that his subordinate was out of line, committing treason, or any acts that could give rise to suspicion, one was allowed to probe them with special Arts to determine their innocence.

And right now, the Elder Parsmir was testing Gryfor's trustworthiness.

"It is because he was in altercation with another prisoner. The prisoner later died from his injuries. Mona Aurum is now in recuperation, his injuries are severe. Hence I cannot send him with the next convoy. At best, I can send him the one after." Gryfor spoke briefly, hiding the point where Taizen's rampage occurred because of Gryfor's forbidden pill.

Parsmir listened to Gryfor's speech using the Aquatic Truths Vocal Art. It soothed a subordinate's heart, but also had the ability to make that same fellow speak the truth. Parsmir thought that the effect had activated, as he could not sense anything wrong with Gryfor's tone, language, or pitch. All was in order, and followed the regulations set for inter-ranked officer conversations.

"Sigh. Alright. I understand. That Mona fellow is a hot item in the royal court. Many of those branch families would love to have him under their thumb." Parsmir went on after deactivating the Aquatic Truths Art.

"The reason I called wasn't for the royal family. Don't worry. They haven't called me in several weeks. Rather, it is to warn you, Gryfor. I heard from my connections that the young noble of the Faulkner family had visited the Darkthorn Dungeons." Parsmir's voice became casual, but carried a sense of heaviness.

"I also heard that the same young master of the Faulkner family took a liking to an old blacksmith named Jaspen, Jaspen, er...Jaspen Arkway. That's right."

"Under your watch, the two of them had been placed in the Thorn Dungeons together. The noble from the Faulkner family is a prime candidate of the three secondary branches, Gryfor. You know that the Royal Family will hold us accountable, especially you. And if you remember your backer, you know that doesn't end well." Parsmir warned Gryfor to make the proper choice to avoid being targeted by the royal family. Gryfor was a rising talent among his generation of war officers. Few would want such figures to die from a careless mistake.

"You know Gryfor I am still saddened by Molov's death. He wasn't meant to die so early, to die before you became a dragon. I still remember when he asked me to mentor you, and to watch over you as a father when he left this world. I hope I was able." Parsmir's voice showed a tinge of grief and sorrow. Truly he and Molov were very close.

At the mention of his backer Molov, Gryfor's free hand clenched into a tight fist. His anger had peaked as he remembered of the circumstances.

Before the Leafwind Kingdom was to be attacked, it was of course debated among the War Council. Parsmir himself was an elder of a lower level, and couldn't join in such discussions.

Two sides eventually formed in the Council's grand chambers: one for capturing the Leafwind Kingdom for its resources and benefiting the wealthy with the riches, the other for extending autonomy with a relatively minor offering.

The warmongers clearly saw a chance to profit, but first they had to get rid of their biggest contender among the Council: the grand elder Molov of the War Council.

He fiercely resisted against making war, citing the benefits the Alberdan people had already gained through the treaty Alberdos made with Leafwind and Madrag, benefits which included a ceasefire to their most recent war. Peace seemed to be arriving, and Molov wanted no part in the war schemes.

The seven elders that wanted war at first tried to compromise with Molov, speaking of how they would only set up a puppet government at most. He refused them entirely, his face in disgust at how low the seven old men were.

Bribes and promises of honor only soured Molov's mood. Finally, the seven elders decided they had to end the life of the geezer.

They couldn't simply re-enact a Julius Caesar on Molov; such a scheme would only bring their own end. No matter how hard they would try to hide the evidence, it would become common knowledge only they ever had a grudge with Molov. A quick use of a Mental Art would show the truth, and their deaths would be guaranteed.

Instead, they framed him with a crime so heavy the Royal Family could not refuse to punish Molov: the murder of the late Empress, Ksitra. However, only those seven elders knew that it was they who killed the empress and the war council's grand elder, as her body had disappeared at the crime seen, a bloody pool left behind.

After a thorough investigation, the Emperor received news of his beloved wife being found in Molov's estate, her face glowing with horror as she died. Without proof of his innocence, Molov was executed without a second thought.

With the grand elder gone, the support for Leafwind's autonomous rule was reduced to nothing, and Gryfor was ordered to lead the war front the day he learned of Molov's death. Parsmir's words back then reaffirmed his beliefs that Molov was targeted by those seven bloodthirsty fiends. But with his rank, how could he ever regain justice?

Parsmir spoke once more into the Creation. "Remember Gryfor, you must ensure that Mona Aurum doesn't enter the hands of the Faulkner family. Such a thing would end all the progress you made so far." How many soldiers had fallen before rising to the peak because of a lapse in judgement? I must ensure the legacy of my brother lives on.

"I understand, Elder Parsmir. Mona Aurum will not join the Faulkner family under any costs. I will have to die before they are able to take him." Gryfor responded back, his anger largely subsided. The reason? Because he will already be dead.

"Good. I wish you luck with being promoted to Admiralty, Gryfor." Parsmir prepared to end the call.

"And I wish your health will last until the day I lead the Alberdan forces." Gryfor responded back, his Aura returning to his body.

He looked at the moon hanging in the sky, its sheer beauty radiating over all the onlookers. Gryfor's memory couldn't help but return to a thought, a moment from many nights ago.

Back in the Aurum manor, the young noble Mona Aurum was wearing a cape. No, a cloak. Where did it go? Gryfor remembered that Mona was wearing the Ancestral Cloak of Aurum at the time of their arrival. He couldn't say, but somewhere deep down he felt that that mysterious cloak could very well be his end.

*****

The night passed the same as before, albeit a few new changes.

Reithar had worked steadily with the Primal Fold technique. His constant usage had given him an increase in level to become a level 8 Aura Mortal. Also, he had finally managed to regenerate his entire hand.

As he swung his arm in various directions, joy flickered in his eyes. It's as if I never lost it.

Soon after realizing his arm was fully functioning, Reithar returned to Mona's body and infused him with the Aura generated from the Primal Fold technique. With three total infusions occurring at the same time, he hoped that Mona would be able to awaken the next time the sun rose into the sky.

His actions were not forgetten by Aeron and Mithal. They began to understand that although Reithar and Mona did not come from the same family, they were as close the Varlier brothers themselves.

Mithal followed the same line of thought as Reithar. With three sources of infusions, his recovery should be at least 50% faster than before. Mona was the leader of their small group, and was their hope of leaving the Darkthorn Prison and successfully surviving. Without Mona's connections, Mithal knew that the Alberdan Empire wouldn't be welcoming to their arrival.

His Aura disappearing over and over, Aeron began to reach his limit. Once his breathing became increasingly ragged, he moved to the other bed and slowly regained his mental strength. As soon as either Mithal and Reithar couldn't hold on, he planned to give another short burst of Aura. Every bit of Aura counts. Just like every crumb counts. Right.

Under the continual use of Aura, the vast majority of Mona's injuries had been fully healed. All of his organs were functioning without any trouble, and besides healing the various damaged tissues in Mona's body, Mona was perfectly fine.

It wouldn't be safe to do that either. Mithal sighed as he continued charging Aura into Mona. He considered the possibility of forcing Mona awake, but just as easily discarded the thought. The former noble's body had not yet been fully healed, and if there was a damage rebound from his forceful awakening, wouldn't all their hard work become meaningless?

Aeron looked outside towards the courtyard, watching as the same two guards on duty help Joseph carry the pot to the center of the area. Soon after, they created a small fire for the cauldron while Joseph carefully threw in the vegetable leftovers from the guards' quarters.

His mouth drooling at the fresh sight of vegetables, Aeron couldn't help his hunger feeling much greater. The size of the meals each prisoner received wasn't enough to prevent hunger for the average inmate, let alone Aeron.

This fellow was accustomed to eating several servings when he was still the younger master of the Varlier family. What was once excess weight near his gut became his ribs visible beneath the skin. Will I die here not from fighting another prisoner, but from starvation? I'd rather get hit by Taizen's strike then struggle through this!

As the scent of the leftover vegetable stew entered the air, a timely breeze carried the smell right into Mona's cell. Aeron's eyes began to shed small tears at every sniff. He couldn't wait till it was time to eat.

Before Aeron could take another whiff of the courtyard cooking, the sounds of heavy footsteps came towards their cell. From the right came the sound of a small squadron in synchronization as it walked in a monotonous pattern.

Leading this group of guards was a person Aeron learned to fear. Upon seeing Ardor come their way, he quickly told Reithar and his brother Mithal.

"They're coming to do a search." Aeron's voice was barely audible as he spoke softly to each of them. If Ardor overheard his warning of the guards' approaching, it would only fuel greater suspicion.

Reithar and Mithal stopped charging Aura into Mona's body, dissipating any wisps of Aura left from channeling the Primal Fold Technique. They bought understood if Ardor saw even a slight trace of it in the air, it would give rise to grave dangers in the future.

Ardor stood in front of Mona's cell, his left hand hidden inside the secret compartment, the vial in his grasp. In his other hand was the key to the cell. It's time the Aurum child no longer lives. He smiled towards the guards around him as he explained the order of the Warden.

"The Warden has ordered us to complete a thorough search of this cell. Remember to look thoroughly. Afterwards, I will once again search the cell. You have until high noon to check this room for any forbidden items or stolen goods. Begin." Ardor twisted the key to the cell, the six guards behind him activating the Security sigil.

Reithar and the Varlier brothers' expressions grew ugly to behold. The guards had made their appearance, and was now ordering all of them out of the cell, leaving Mona alone.