The streets of the Ring City were bustling even more than usual. It wasn’t surprising to Asterios and the others. They had caused quite a chaos right in its epicenter. He was sure many people had not only felt the tremors from Selene’s first technique but also saw the giant sandstorm, and the tall, golden, protective barriers.

Just a few seconds of walking through the crowd confirmed that. The recent event was a hot topic amongst the residents, adventurers, and tourists. Some believed in the currently most popular story of an outburst of magic while a few people insisted that someone had caused it while exploring the pyramids, unaware of how close to the truth they were.

Asterios noticed how tense Miria had become since the moment they had reached the streets and put his hand on her head, scratching behind her soft ears. She tried to look as inconspicuous as she could after hearing a few demons mention the latter version of the events, which had the opposite effect to what she intended.

~Just forget about it,~ he advised the worried panthergirl and chuckled softly. ~Unless someone saw us do the thing, no one would be looking for us. You are just making yourself look weird. Not that it catches the eye too much since a lot of people behave weirdly in the crowd but you can just relax a bit more.~

She giggled adorably with an embarrassed blush and nodded. To take his advice to her heart, she stepped closer to Asterios and leaned onto his side. He welcomed her sweet little show of affection with a smile as they continued walking down the road together.

~I’m afraid we are being followed,~ Umbra’s voice resounded in their minds. ~A group of individuals is hiding in the shadows around us, trying to jump into ours. Pathetic. They barely possess any understanding of true darkness.~

Miria almost stopped dead in her tracks but Asterios pulled her with him to not alert the group of stalkers. Selene and Bryn held themselves perfectly calm, not giving any signs of knowing.

~Looks like I just jinxed us.~ He sighed internally. ~Let the others know too, without spooking them.~

Umbra did as instructed and everyone exchanged glances while seemingly looking around. Asterios pointed at a random store on the side and gestured at it with his head.

“Let’s grab something to drink before we leave, shall we? I’m kind of parched and a Centracer ride is quite droughty.”

“Sure. I know of a better place than that, though. Follow me. Everyone has to experience the Spring of Desire at least once in their life,” Svertaniel replied.

“That sounds like an aphrodisiac, honestly,” Selene commented.

Both demon men chuckled together at the same time.

“I assure you it’s not. Our people do like giving flashy names to things,” Radir added.

“I’ve noticed,” Silvia joined in, remembering the story behind the name of the port town they had arrived at earlier.

With Svertaniel leading them, the party continued on their path for around three more minutes. They entered a less busy area with many more industrial buildings instead of the ones besieged by travelers.

Just as he had said, though, he brought them in front of a small tavern. It was built of sandstone with a dark pink color, standing out a little bit amongst the cream and brown shops and structures present around.

“Let’s get through the side entrance. The regulars tend to rope newcomers into their drinking groups, and you all don’t exactly look like people from around here,” Svertaniel said and they moved to the alley on the side.

After entering a tiny square behind the tavern, they stopped, spread around, and turned towards the path leading back. Asterios put a hand in his pocket and summoned a wooden block with the Alcove of Serenity sigil carved in it from his storage ring, activating the barrier around them.

“Come out. We would like to hear the reason why you are tailing us,” he said to seemingly no one.

As expected, only silence answered him. Selene kept herself ready while Miria reached to her core, preparing herself to draw on her bloodline at any moment. Asterios could feel the fiery mana gathering in Silvia’s staff even though it was still on her back. Bryn just observed everyone attentively, gripping her weapon stronger.

~Umbra?~ Asterios called to his familiar.

~They are still here. A group of six. They are not trying to surround us, perhaps not believing it’s about them.~

~Can you bring them out?~

An ominous chuckle answered his question and slight goosebumps traveled through Ast’s body, causing his hair to stand up.

A moment later, they heard a muffled shout, and a person was thrown out of a shadow next to a wall. Then, a next one followed, appearing from behind a short staircase, and then another, and another, and another, until all six people following them jumped out of various shadows while letting out a surprised scream or shout.

The group of demons covered in all black, with their faces hidden by cloth masks and deep hoods, looked around in confusion. Only their eyes and a bit of their colorful skin were visible, revealing that they all were demons. And women, judging by their figures.

Bryn hit the ground with the butt of her staff-spear and a golden radiance surrounded the square, forming a shining wall.

“So, can we finally talk?” Asterios asked.

They brought forth daggers and grouped up. The person who seemed to be their leader stepped a bit forward.

“Release the barrier first or we will assume you have ill intentions towards the Ring City and brand you as a public enemy.” As expected, a woman’s voice answered him. “We are the members of Shadowguard. By pointing your weapons at us, you point it at the Governor.”

Radir sighed while rubbing his temples. “But of course.”

Asterios raised a brow at him and the demon man nodded. Receiving a mental message, Bryn recalled her spell, and the light dissipated. The group of dark-clothed guards didn’t relax their postures, though.

Selene crossed her arms under her chest. “What’s your purpose in following us?”

“We are not obliged to answer any of your questions. Instead, you better spill out how you managed to pull my team out of the shadows, and even noticed our presence,” the leader demanded.

“As overbearing as ever, I see.” Radir sighed again. “Just bring us to the Governor. We don’t have time to waste on your antics. I honestly hoped someone would have already toned down your inflated egos.”

A brief silence fell onto everyone again. Ast’s party thought the other side would reply to Radir’s remark but no one broke the line and spoke over their leader, who also remained relatively calm.

After a few seconds, she sheathed her weapons and all the others did the same.

“Follow the owl.”

Even though the person tried to hide it, Asterios couldn’t help but notice one of the members of the Shadowguard using Summoning Magic. A black owl flew seemingly from the caster’s shadow but he knew she had just hidden the portal with some concealing magic. He wondered why they went to such an extent to keep their appearances.

Then, the group just stood still while the owl circled above everyone’s head, hooting now and then. Ast’s party began looking between each other while the awkwardness of the situation just kept growing until Umbra’s deep chuckle resounded in their heads again. A moment later, all women in light black leather armor disappeared in a puff of black smoke, diving into the ground.

“Did you really have to embarrass them like that?” Asterios asked with a wry smile.

“They deserved it,” Radir shrugged and answered before Umbra could. “Maybe this will tone their pride down by a level. They are honestly insufferable. They aren’t even the best in the continent.”

“Do we follow the owl, then?” Miria glanced at the bird perched on top of the nearby building.

A big shadowy raven formed on Ast’s shoulder.

“Don’t,” Asterios said, immediately turning his face to look at Umbra. “She’s done nothing to us. Please, don’t scare random beasts who are just listening to their Summoner’s requests.”

“She?” Miria tilted her head curiously. “How could you tell, Master?”

“The beak. Females of her kind have it slightly curved inwards while the males have it pointing straight down,” he explained with a smile. “Alright. I guess we have to meet this Governor, whoever they are.”

“It’s a position like a mayor, more or less,” Svertaniel joined in. “Naming sense, remember?”

Ast’s companions chuckled together and everyone started heading out of the back alley. Radir took the lead and walked towards their destination with confidence, ignoring some of the hints the owl left for them.

They soon entered a neatly arranged district with a sandstone fortress in the middle, located in the innermost ring surrounding the Tri-Valor Valley. It was almost as high as the walls separating the archeological site from the city.

Even amongst many guards present in the plaza and surrounding areas, Radir still walked forward unbothered. They must have been informed about their arrival by the weird group of black-clothed women.

Just a few minutes after entering through a massive wooden gate, they stopped in front of a brass door to someone’s office. Radir glanced back at the others and nodded with a smile.

Then, one of the cloaked women appeared from the shadow cast by a brazier and lightly knocked on the metal surface.

“We’ve brought the suspects.”

“Get their asses in,” a domineering voice answered from inside, also belonging to a woman.

The member of the Shadowguard disappeared to the ground and Radir opened the door, letting everyone enter after him. They walked into a spacious chamber with plenty of cabinets and showcases, filled to the brim with old documents, maps, and notebooks. Only two windows brought some sunlight into the office from the opposite wall behind the owner of the voice.

After Svertaniel closed the door, entering as the last person, the Governor stood up, walked around her desk, and strolled towards them.

She was a demon with sapphire skin and hair of the same color but darker shade, reaching around her chin. Unlike Radir and most demons they had met, her eyes had no glow to them and were completely black. Four onyx horns decorated her head, two per side, with no tail in sight.

The Governor was a woman of exceptional beauty, but also a fierce and proud warrior. Her posture and way of holding herself showed it clearly, alongside her pure-white uniform, so much contrasting with the pure-black ones of her subordinates. Two demonic shortswords hung down crossed behind her waist.

“Radir. Obviously.” She scoffed at the demon man.

“Glad to see that you are healthy too, Rowena,” he answered with a smile.

The woman’s figure disappeared in a thick shadow and materialized right in front of him, with one of her shortswords poking his chest.

“Quit it or I’m going to finish what I started and bring that scar to the very bottom,” she sneered at him.

Radir just smiled charmingly and spread his arms to the sides. They stared at each other for a brief moment until Rowena scowled and looked away. She withdrew her weapon with a displeased expression.

“Thank you for not maiming our guide,” Asterios added. “I can see why you might have wanted to, though.”

He soon found himself as the next target of her intense glare and Rowena was gone again. Already seeing her trick once, Asterios kept staring forward, expecting to see the blue-skinned woman appear in front of him.

But, instead, she showed up a little further than he had thought, in the position he had anticipated, though. Her sword pointed forward while the woman was frozen in place, just her head was moving around.

“What did you do?” she inquired with a fierce gaze after being unable to understand why she couldn’t control her limbs.

A wide and tall pillar of deep and ominous shadow rose from the ground behind Asterios. After reaching double his height, two purple, smoking spots appeared on its surface. Rowena raised her face to look at it and her eyes widened to the brim.

~A mere fledgling dares to challenge me in my domain?~ Umbra’s ancient voice boomed in everyone’s heads, making Rowena shiver. ~You are thousands of years too early, mortal.~

“Let's not go too far. We didn’t come here to cause trouble but see what was wanted from us,” Asterios said.

Umbra stared the woman down for a moment longer and collapsed back into Ast’s shadow. The room's atmosphere grew less tense in an instant and Rowena reclaimed control of her body.

She fixed her posture and slowly sheathed her blade. “What… was that?”

“You’ll be better off not knowing,” Asterios replied. “Just don’t try to spy on us from the shadows. I can’t guarantee anyone’s safety if he decides to take preventative actions against them.”

She shivered once more and a chuckle reached everyone’s ears. Rowena shot her gaze at Radir again, the source of the stifled laugh.

“I can see how Grea can enjoy your company as much as to give you our memento. I’m starting to have regrets that I wasn't born a woman. Unfortunately, I don’t swing that way.”

Taking a deep breath, the Governor turned back to Asterios. “Ignoring the clown back there, what business do you have with me?” she asked, looking over all of Ast’s female companions.

“That should be my question, no? You sent your team after us.”

“My Shadow? Right. You are the suspects.” She nodded to herself.

“Your shadow?” Asterios raised a brow at her.

Radir arrived at his side. “She calls the most elite group of her guards her Shadow while she’s the Beacon of the city and all demons. Get it?” He gestured at the woman with his eyes.

“Still as disrespectful and rude as always,” she huffed. “I have no idea what I saw in you in the past.”

“You do. You just don’t want to admit it.” Radir smiled.

Asterios could see how the name of Rowena’s elite team had come to be. Her clothes were surely very bright. He and the others could understand better why they were so contrasting. She cast her Shadow onto the others, just like the Beacon she was.

“Nevertheless, I assume you want to know what happened in the valley, yes?” Radir asked.

“An unheard of earthquake took place in the middle of my city and an unimaginable sandstorm appeared right at the same spot in the span of a few seconds. Of course, I would want to know what the fuck happened, wouldn’t I?” she threw at him almost accusingly.

“How did you know it was us, Lady Governor?” Miria asked, trying to be polite.

She flinched a little when the woman’s fierce gaze landed on her but relaxed when no verbal abuse followed.

“I have my means, capable of noticing that you guys were the only ones unaffected by the weird power that brought everyone out of the valley right before the cataclysms took place. I guess I should at least thank you for minding the others.”

“I’m sorry it turned out like that,” Asterios apologized.

Radir raised his hand. “Don’t be. She cares not for a bunch of sand and stone getting turned into dust and pieces. She just wants to get her hands on what has just been discovered underneath those. Her people could use some exercise clearing the rubble up anyway.”

Rowena squinted her eyes at the man with obvious killing intent. At this point, she couldn’t fool anyone. Every single person present in the office knew that there had been something between the two in the past and that she still wasn’t completely over it, as much as she tried to show otherwise.

“I would gladly fill you in on what we learned about the Tri-Valor Valley but you have to trust me on this once again, Rowena,” he continued. “It’s big. We should get in touch with the Demon King first before deciding on anything. We are already lucky no one else solved the puzzle and entered the vault.”

The woman’s face contorted a little at the start but her expression softened the longer Radir spoke. She seemed surprised and slightly interested in the case after he had finished.

“You really got something big this time, did you?”

“Groundbreaking. No pun intended.”

Ast’s companions chuckled quietly.

Rowena went into deep thought, moving her gaze between Asterios and Radir. After considering something for a moment, she nodded with a sigh.

“Alright. You are a jerk but not an untrustworthy liar. I want to be in too since it involves my city and my people. Have you issued the audience form yet?”

“That would take too long. My friends right here are in a hurry. I can’t hold them down for days or weeks in order to wait for the meeting.”

She crossed her arms under her fair bust. “What do you intend to do, then?”

“I was going to ask you, of course.” Radir smiled.

Rowena sneered. “Knew it.”

“Won’t you do it for me? For the sake of our past friendship?”

She glared at him for a few seconds and sighed. “From what I know, he’s out and doesn’t come back for about a week more. That’s the earliest I can request an audience. Even as a Governor, I can’t just pressure the Demon King into meeting with me in an instant.”

“That’s understandable. Would it be okay for you?” Radir turned to Asterios.

“Yeah. I think so. We should have wrapped our business back at home up by that point. No rush, as I said.”

“Great. I’ll be sure to return that favor, Rowena.” The demon man winked at his past lover.

She groaned, rolling her eyes. “A fair warning. Keep that guy off your harem. He can’t be controlled and is very unpredictable.”

Selene chuckled softly, causing Radir to sweat a little as his smile turned a bit wry, which didn’t go unnoticed by the fierce lady in front of them. Rowena raised a brow at Asterios and he could tell that she was very interested in listening to that story.

But, no one brought it up, and they exchanged just a few more words. After bidding farewell to the Governor, they left Radir in her company and moved out of the fortress.

Svertaniel also split from the group and let them know he would wait for a message whenever they would like to group up for the meeting. The others chatted together briefly and Asterios helped Silvia return home too, accompanying her during the trip through the Void, which she very much appreciated even if it wasn’t the worst for her.

Left alone in just their little group of a Summoner and his summons, Ast’s party looked between each other.

“What are we going to do in the meantime, Master?” Miria inquired, getting much more snuggly with Asterios after they were within their small team.

He smiled at his adorable mate and ruffled her fluffy ears. “Take a little break. Then, we need to prepare. The time is short. Tina's big day has to be perfect.”