Jerius and Mirayoung were punctual the next day, reaching the Administrator's Hall when the first rays of dawn struck the second courtyard where the ritualistic circle was laid. Tardiness peeved Fermand. They were not about to lose any credibility from being late for the ritual that Jerius had agreed to partake in to gain Fermand's trust.

Fermand was already up, dressed in a simple robe that facilitated motion. She stood within a smaller circle that she had set up before they came. Two Sen Guards were by her side, just outside of the circle of power.

"Get in," Fermand said, as she started a stance that would lead into the first ten steps of the Moving Meditation. "Do not fight it. Embrace it. It's a little uncomfortable, but it'll be short, I promise."

Jerius did as bade, and Fermand started chanting, while gracefully moving slowly in several forms of the Moving Meditation with her eyes closed. Her chants were not incantations used to convert arcane from within one's body to spells; her chants used magic to rouse and interact with the spirits.

Imbued with Fermand's magic, the spirits slumbering within the three stone statues came to life. Shadowy figures that flickered in the weak morning rays appeared and retreated in a display of a strange dance; a dance Jerius felt no mortal should lay their eyes on. It was both entrancing and frightening.

Mirayoung was not a tad worried that Jerius would fail the ritual. Her judgment of people was one of her strong traits, and Jerius came with the pure intent to stop Aderis. That in turn, gave him the intent to protect, hunt and defend, none of which translated to malice and harm to the Guild.

The Ritual of Intent was part revelatory magic designed to peer deep into his mind and ascertain the intent, and part defence used to ward off any antagonistic spells that might surface during the ritual.

It had been working its magic for a while, but to Jerius, the experience felt sudden as it seemed like it truly started only when foreign magic invaded his form. He felt a presence in every nook and cranny of his body, along his nerves, and in his bones, muscles and blood vessels. It was overwhelmingly unbearable. A little uncomfortable? Has she even gone through this herself?

The shadowy figures danced more vibrantly now, and in that vibrancy, there was chaos that was a sharp juxtaposition to the well-ordered courtyard they were in. Behind, Mirayoung watched with intent as concern grew in her.

All the while, Jerius kept himself from screaming. He was not going to embarrass himself by giving in to the discomfort that ran deep in his body and soul. He felt violated, but if this was necessary then so be it.

Then in a terrible voice, the spirits of the ritual called out in a thunderous voice. "Guilty! Guilty! Guilty!"

"Seize him!" Fermand roared.

What? Why? Jerius's survival instincts flared at once, but it was too late. The Sen Guards stood just outside the Circle of Intent, making well-rehearsed moves to strike him with the blunt end of their spears. One hit at where his shoulder met his back and the other against his right kidney.

While the impact was not hard, the magic stored in the spear stabbed Jerius straight to the core, like a dagger through paper. It was a special technique not meant to severely injure, but to render someone unconscious. His knees buckled as gradual white marred his vision. The faint echoes of voices grew to a jarring pitch before fading into silence.

Mirayoung recognised that as a modified tactic gleaned from the warrior-monks‒scarily well trained mage-hunters‒of the Temple of Elaria. She lifted a hand but the Sen Guards had already surrounded her. If the rumours of their skills were even half-true, she would not have time to finish her spell. Besides, she was up against Fermand, another accomplished archmagus.

"Mirayoung, has your sense of judgment deteriorated this much since you left the administrator's role? He's of ill intent," Fermand said, furious.

"You don't have to knock him out," Mirayoung said, sighing.

"If he could cast a harmless sixth-rank spell, he could do a dangerous one."

In her peripheral glance, she saw the Sen Guards chanting to erect a restrictive barrier. She said, "Do not kill him. Think through this carefully. Something is amiss. He's no fool to go through the Circle of Intent if he does indeed bear malice against the Guild."

"Whether the Guild or me," Fermand said. "I do not intend to let him be unshackled now that his impure intent has come to light. But I'm no murderer. He'll be out for a day or two, and imprisoned with his magic sealed."

"I must have your word that you will not kill him after the interrogation," Mirayoung stated again, firmer than the previous time. "You should know the administrator pays heed to diplomacy as well. And he's Lyvia's disciple, who herself served Nox. This translates to a diplomatic tie between Nox and the Guild, no matter if you like it or not. By these accords, he should have immunity from a death sentence, do you hear me?"

"Then every village, town, hamlet and city in which a local mage works shares that same intimacy with the Guild," Fermand laughed, but there was no humour in her voice.

Mirayoung folded her arms. "You know that's not true."

Fermand shot back. "Remember how Nightvicto VI schemed and conspired against the Guild. Turned several sorcerers to his side...no doubt the Warlock's Hand was an abomination weaved out by those fools he recruited. Or remember how during the Kush'Tar Expedition, they attempted in their arrogance, threatened the Guild. How dare they? Of all nations to serve, Lyvia dared to serve Nox. The Guild would never recognise that diplomacy."

Before Mirayoung could say anything, Fermand cut in. "And you plead for him, Mirayoung. You plead for him.

"Yes, I am," Mirayoung said.

"How good of a friend are you to Lyvia? So much that you're blinded. If she's here, you'll see the disappointment in her eyes for the disciple who intends to harm her motherland, and her closest ally chooses to let him slide."

"More than that, I vouch for him. The Ritual of Intent is off. I can sense it. There was some tampering‒"

"You grow bolder every second, Mirayoung," Fermand said, with fire in her voice and fury across her face. "You dare accuse me of tampering with the Circle of Intent? You insult me!"

A few of the Sen Guards drew closer, and Mirayoung felt the back of her hair stand in response.

"I apologise for coming off that way," Mirayoung said quickly. "I mean to say there's very well an insider who is capable of tampering with the ritual. The same one Jerius is warning us about. The same one who may be behind the wraith that stalks the nights."

Fermand did not respond immediately but her knitted eyebrows relaxed a little. Catching that subtle bit, Mirayoung pushed on. "Please, Fermand, listen to reason. I need you to admit that possibility. As administrators, don't we work to account for all risks? Jail him if you must, but do not kill him till we come to the truth."

Fermand relented. "Very well. He'll be placed in the Rual Cell, yes. He'll be interrogated with the memory spells. And he'll be allowed to depart without harm, but will be barred from the Guild forevermore. The Contract of Exile will be forced upon him. Do you still plead for him?"

"That's good enough for me."

"Very well," Fermand said. "And one more condition. You'll help me."

"You need my help?" Mirayoung said.

"Yes..." Fermand said, gesturing to the Sen Guards to take Jerius away before turning her full attention to Mirayoung. "The number of deaths related to the wraith has grown to nine. It was one death a week. For the first time, we lost four in a single night."

Mirayoung's chest turned cold. For the Guild's population of no more than two thousands, that was a noticeable dent. She asked, "You're a lady of action. What are your next steps?"

"As per the help I need from you," Fermand said. "I'm putting together squads of mages I can trust. You, Holz and Ludger are the three archmagi I want to put in charge of these squads."

"I understand Ludger and Holz. But me?" Mirayoung said, slightly incredulous since they were never close and she was surprised the administrator counted her among those she trusted.

"While we did oppose each other in the past, I know I can trust you, ex-administrator," Fermand said. "Even that little sentimentality you showed earlier would not change my view. One of the squad leader's roles is for your taking."

"That was a long time back," Mirayoung simply said.

"An administrator's role is an eternal one. And this makes you one of the rare few I can trust."

Mirayoung sat with Fermand in her private strategy room, where she saw mystical orbs suspended in the midair across a long table. Their seats were adjacent to the table. They were flanked by a round one, atop which juices and some bread were placed. Before them was a map of the Guild with detailed overlays of the ground floor and basement. Pins were stabbed into the map, identifying the sites of the wraith's attacks.

Fermand pointed at one of the pins. "This happened yesterday and disturbs me the most."

"What of it?" Mirayoung asked.

"You know magi and spellweavers need to contribute to sentry, serving a night duty once every two months on average, with a squadron of Guild Guardians on a six-hour rotation," Fermand began.

Mirayoung nodded.

"Ottrich was with Gallyn, overseeing Point Four of the Northern Gate in the Outer Sanctum," Fermand continued. "When Ottrich finished his shift, he waited for Noki to take over before heading to the lavatory. You know the one behind the statues where young mage lovers would go to, to fool around?"

"Yes," Mirayoung said.

"Ottrich was killed quickly in the lavatory by the wraith," Fermand said. "Then Noki."

Mirayoung's face grew grave. "You're trying to say there was only a very tiny window where both Ottrich and Noki were alone, and the wraith took the chance to strike because it maximised the chance of its victory."

"An intelligent wraith," Fermand said. "Has it potentially evolved?"

An evolved wraith will certainly explain why it's driven not only by pure hate and malice, but with intelligence and purpose too. Mirayoung sat upright, her body ran cold while her mind stirred with suspicion. "Who're the other missing magicians? All of their names."

Fermand recited them, with each name intoned with more sombreness than the previous.

"Five were part of the Gatekeepers," Mirayoung said at once. "The remaining two...Edeli Wald and Linda Rutter‒have you contacted them? What actions have you taken?"

"I've Holz and a squad of my Sen Guards with them once the news broke on both Ottrich's and Noki's deaths," Fermand said.

"You haven't told them anything for their personal safety?" Mirayoung said, incredulous.

"The time is not yet ripe," Fermand simply said.

"Always acting so enigmatic," Mirayoung said, folding her arms.

"That Edeli is a blabbermouth. Can't keep secrets. Love to charm the ladies with exaggerated tales. Haven't you seen him at town square? How much he loves his part-time job training young wide-eyed mages, especially those of the fairer sex, because he can conduct himself with so much youthful bravado?" Fermand had to say. "And you want me to trust him with this horror of a stalking wraith? Half the city would know in a half a day."

Mirayoung shrugged her shoulders. "Might not be a bad thing, seeing as none of us is a defenceless child."

"Yes, but I'm not serving a city of vigilantes. We need to manage this with order, not mayhem."

Mirayoung raised both hands in an exaggerated fashion. "I capitulate. Let's go your way."

"I won't let the Guild fall," Fermand said.

"Did no one notice?" Mirayoung said. "Nine deaths..."

"I'm keeping the lid on. I cannot afford to involve more people than necessary. But yes, there were those who noticed," Fermand said. "Grief alone is painful enough to handle. I'm running out of reasons to keep fear and mass panic at bay. Explosion in the alchemical lab. A spell went amok."

"The attack on the Gatekeepers by the wraith corroborated the intent behind the Ritual of Keys. It helps to meet the requirement to engender a mass exodus of spirits. Do you see that?" Mirayoung said. "The wraith is likely a product of Aderis."

Fermand considered her words seriously. "I've to agree with you. They're very much interconnected."

"Yes, they are," Mirayoung said. "The wraith is a spiritually dense creature. The Gatekeepers, by the nature of their roles, are also spiritually dense. Those who are not Gatekeepers, and were killed by the wraith also share a common denominator."

Fermand finished for her. "They're all Tallis magicians."

"Tallis mages are naturally more spiritually dense compared to High mages," Mirayoung said. "These are weak correlations individually but if you put them together, it paints a terrifying picture."

Fermand thought for a longer time than usual. "A terrifying picture, indeed."

"What frightens me even more is Ludger's lack of responses to both of us, despite no indication that he left the Guild on an assignment. In other words, he's spiritually dense, has gone missing and as an archmagus, he has the liberty not to be tracked by the Cabal Network. So if anything bad happens to him, we won't know until we find his body."

Mirayoung felt a cauldron of fear bubbling inside her, a kind of feeling she had not had for a long time.

"Ludger Amman is an archmagus," Fermand said "An absentminded, careless man who sometimes delves too deep into his research and loses touch with his surroundings, yes. But he's an archmagus. He's fine, Mirayoung."

"I hope so," Mirayoung muttered. "He's weak to women. Maybe a young lady-mage seduced him and he hasn't left her house since."

Fermand saw through the veil Mirayoung wore, but said nothing.

Mirayoung said. "You need to clamp down. Initiate the Lockdown Protocol before more deaths come."

"Yes, I'm halfway through the request," Fermand said. "You know unless there's a mass calamity of over hundred deaths, I cannot unilaterally initiate the Lockdown Protocol. I need the Cabal's explicit permission."

Mirayoung paused for a second. "If you want my help, I'm going to be honest with you. I don't trust the Cabal. They've changed ever since they decided to merge together into one entity, a seemingly supreme entity consisting of five archmagi. In that fusion, they gain power but lose much of their humanity."

Fermand said, "I'll not speak the same of our leadership, They have thus far yet violated my principles."

I can list many that violated mine," Mirayoung said. "Even the incidents that led up to the Night Protest can be attributed to them."

"Mirayoung, listen."

"You won't change my mind," Mirayoung said.

Fermand said. "Is this because of Lyvia? She left the Guild, disillusioned with the leadership? Did her beliefs consume you too?"

Mirayoung drew a deep breath. "They are sound beliefs. After they become one entity, their philosophy and the direction they set for the Guild soon morphed into an obsession to pursue magic in all forms and possibilities, and seemingly at all cost."

Mirayoung was especially bitter as some were once different. Two of the five had taught her personally when she was in the academy, and she once held them in high regard. Those were bygones.

Fermand said, relenting. "Let's agree to disagree. We need unity more than ever."

"Please get the Lockdown Protocol out in time," Mirayoung said, almost pleading.

"Leave this to me. Your help is sorely needed in other places," Fermand said.

Mirayoung forced a smile. "Like it or not. We're helping young Jerius here. He and we now hunt the same man and his accomplices."