Wilsden, Archwood(South-West)

“Enough lying, Feylord! You are forbidden from coming here again!”

Julie, accompanied by the old butler, glared at her elder brother.

Feylord Lernon looked a bit distressed as he pointed at the room.

“I saw something! I swear! When I blinked, it was gone!”

The blond-haired young man almost looked delirious. He had been quiet for the last couple of weeks, but he had abruptly decided to visit the basement room in which the statues are kept.

Julie was informed by the servants so she rushed there only to see him pace around the room while muttering to himself.

“I said I’m not lying! I saw something!”

“Alright, I’ll entertain you. What is this ‘something’?”

“I… I don’t know! It was there for a second or even less! I’m not crazy!”

Julie stared at her brother for a couple of breaths before sighing.

The old butler stepped forward and gestured for Feylord to leave.

“You have to listen to me, Julie! Whatever is there is dangerous! I can feel it!”

Even as he was politely dragged away, Feylord kept warning her.

When he and the butler left, the girl approached the room and inspected it. The anomaly was ever present, but it was hard to notice or even sense.

The only way you could notice it was by standing at a specific spot and feeling somesort of disorientation. It was similar to a slight sensory deprivation. Disturbing and unsettling.

No matter how many old records of her family Julie had read, she couldn’t find a clue. When she was visited by Marjory Na Xivia, she contemplated telling her but eventually changed her mind.

In fact, Julie didn’t think that Feylord was lying. However, she needed to stop him from snooping around lest he were to trigger somesort of a negative reaction.

Julie was already under enough pressure by managing the town and her small territory, especially after the Holy Church’s visit.

As she was about to close the door, Julie suddenly felt dizzy. Her entire body shook, all noise disappeared, and her vision turned black.

It felt as if her senses ceased to function for a split second. Panicking, she turned around and looked at the room only to be rendered dumbstruck.

“How many times do I have to tell you? Your mother is dead!”

The former Baron looked angry as he approached Julie.

“N-no!”

Shocked, she backed away and fell to the ground, her arms raised out of instinct. However, she wasn’t attacked and the Baron vanished.

Inside that dusty and small room, the space itself seemed to have turned blurry.

Julie was entranced by the mystical sight, she felt the world turn upside down and a cacophony of voices and noises ring in her mind.

The feeling got stronger and stronger, so she hastily distanced herself from the room, which made her senses return to their normal functionality.

As she was recovering from what just happened, the girl didn’t notice a flickering vermillion flames that hovered in the air, within the dimly-lit underground corridor.

Upstairs, Feylord, who returned to his room, fell to the ground while clutching his chest.

“Argh… stop… stop it!”

‘You must seek the Nameless Knight. Find him and bring him here.’

The disembodied voice echoed in his head like deafening metal drums. The Fire Phoenix’s fire burst from his chest and covered his hole, but it didn’t do any damage to its surroundings.

“L-leave me alo…ne”

Eventually, Feylord fell unconscious.

“He’s not back yet… what should we do… what should we do!”

Christopher was nervously pacing around in front of the village’s entrance. He was with Aerin and Evelyn.

“He said to wait for him here. He’s a Parasite… so trust him a bit.”

“I trust him wholeheartedly! But… if he’s fight that monster then he might…”

“What?”

“Nothing.” Christopher shook his head and grumbled under his breath.

Aerin, who appeared relaxed and staring at the starry night sky, suddenly frowned.

His expression changed drastically as he turned around and faced the South.

“Aerin… your nose…”

Christopher pointed at his nose, which was bleeding from the nostrils.

“I have to go.”

Even Evelyn was startled by this as she had never seen the nonchalant Minstrel this serious.

“What do you mean ‘you have to go’?”

“Don’t worry, this doesn’t have anything to do with Sir Arthur.” As he responded, Aerin took out a wooden flute and a small leather pouch. He sprinkled what seemed to be colorful dust on his body.

“Miss Evelyn, when the time comes, please do not resist it. There is no such thing as an inescapable place, so believe and trust in those whom you hold dear.”

“...”

The maid’s eyes turned cold. It was clear that she knew what he was talking about, but she didn’t respond.

“I would have liked to travel with you a bit longer, but duty calls. I wish you two and Sir Arthur a happy life and exciting adventures. May we meet again.”

The Minstrel of the Ages didn’t wait for a reaction as he brought the flute close to his lips and started playing, though no sound came out.

Barely five seconds later, his body disappeared into thin air.

South of the Desert of Peace and Commerce, near the Silver Mines.

Aerin appeared near an abandoned stone tower and looked around.

“I can’t sense it.”

He closed his eyes and stood there for a long while. There was nothing but a deafening silence as the sun started to rise.

When the Minstrel opened his eyes again, he immediately took out a knife and cut his palm.

He spilled the blood on the ground and drew a bunch of symbols. If Evelyn were to see them, she’d recognize them.

It didn’t take long for an ominous portal to appear. The lanky and horrifying Undead Jester stepped outside.

Unlike Evelyn, Aerin didn’t actually need the materials. The summoning he did was different, and his relationship with the Undead Jester was special.

“Aerin?”

Seeing the dried blood on Aerin’s nose, the Undead Jester was perplexed.

“I’m going to need your help. Are you busy?”

“Not particularly. I don’t offer my help to anyone, however. I’d like your soul in retu-”

The Undead Jester stopped the joke he liked to repeat as the Minstrel took out a small light item from his pocket. He quickly realized what all of this was about.

“When was it?”

The Undead Jester’s countenance changed. It extended its disproportionately long and thin arms forward as if trying to grab something.

“You won’t be able to locate it. It’s been 1 hour and 21 minutes. I only felt it briefly… couldn’t have been more than 5 seconds.”

“So…”

The Undead Jester lowered its arms and let out somesort of a low cry of resignation.

“That zealot’s drivel was true?”

“I always told you that it is. It was unquestionably The Signal. If… if I can find its source, then maybe I can do something.”

“But why? Why does it matter to you? You can just leave. I’ll take you wherever you want.”

“...”

When it heard no response and saw Aerin’s face, which had a mix of resolution and desperation, the Undead Jester cackled,

“So be it! Let’s start the search.”

Blackcrest

Inside of Halric’s Alchemical Laboratory.

“Wait just a second. Let me process everything.”

The Painter, who was still held captive along with his female companion, was nervously biting his nails while tapping on the ground.

After a minute in silence, he looked at the black-haired boy staring at him and spoke,

“You’re telling me that a Demon is going to attack Blackcrest. And if that wasn’t enough, Three Seats and their armies are also coming. Three of the Ten Seats, I repeat. And what was it… oh yeah! You wanted help?”

Emil cleared his throat, “Are you a fucking idiot? Don’t answer, that was rhetorical. Now, I can understand your desperation and the smart choice of trying to recruit a capable mage as myself, nevertheless, I’m still not going to throw myself at three armies and a Demon. No way. Just kill me right now. Yeah… do that.”

The slim woman who had accompanied him, who was actually a thief, nodded her head in agreement. She was called ‘Melia’ and was a native of the Empire, precisely Donkrig City.

She wasn’t as notorious as Emil, but she had stolen a valuable possession of a noble and learnt of their secrets, which led to her arrest and subsequent imprisonment.

“Isn’t this the chance for you to spread your name far and wide? The great Artist that vanquished three of the Ten Seats with his genius.”

“You will not win me over with praise, although I do like the sound of that.” Emil crossed his arms and let out a half-hearted chuckle.

“Keep in mind that you will not be participating alone. The city will be protected by my magic and a high-grade Protection Charm. The Duke will also be present. In fact, you don’t even need to join the frontlines. If all goes well, not only will you be rewarded with an astronomical quantity of Gold by the Duke, but I’ll also give you artifacts and elixirs.”

Unlike the adamant Emil, Melia did look interested when she heard the word ‘Gold’. She was weaker than Emil, but she was proficient at stealth and close-quarter combat. However, in a big battle, she wouldn’t be able to contribute much against a legion of knights and mages.

“Not happening. Even if you had a Dragon with you, you’ll still all die. A freaking Demon of Hell is coming! I’m not that crazy, okay?! Sorry!”

“...”

Halric lowered his head and didn’t speak for some time.

“You were framed, weren’t you?”

When he heard the boy’s sudden question, the Painter frowned but didn’t respond.

“I did a bit of digging and I learnt of what happened. You were framed, isn’t that why you wanted to meet Vanessa Crimson? She manages a vast intelligence network, so she’s the best person to go to when someone needs information that is hard to procure.”

When he saw Emil Red still not offering a response, Halric paused and walked to a nearby table. He took out a cloth-covered object from his storage and put it on the table before motioning for Emil to look.

Underneath the cloth was a head-sized black orb, which soon lit up and revealed an old villa.

The building was not in a good state, the garden was desolate and lacked any vegetation, and the walls were filled with scratches and halls.

“The Red Aristocratic Family has fallen out of grace. You want to clear your name and theirs, do you not? I can swear an oath to help you achieve that as long as you help.”

Halric looked at the expressionless artist and clicked his tongue,

“Your narcissistic and eccentric tendencies notwithstanding, I can’t argue with the results of your works. You are indeed a very talented mage and someone that could help us in the upcoming battle.”

“Leave it be, Halric.”

The Duke of Blackcrest, Terden Sidus, entered the laboratory. He looked as tired as before, his eyes sunken and a soulless expression plastered on his face.

“There’s no sugarcoating it. They turned against me and have no problems with starting a small-scale war to make the plague propaganda real.”

The Duke stopped in front of Emil Red, giving him a look of stubbornness.

“Although I’ve become no different than a cornered dog, I will not beg the likes of you. There is an old underground tunnel that leads out of the city. Leave.”

“Terden-” Halric wanted to stop him but the Duke raised his hand.

“I appreciate this, Sir Terden.” The Painter bowed and walked out of the laboratory.

“He wouldn’t have helped us even if he wanted to. If the Seats know about his involvement, they’ll target his family.” Explained Terden while letting out a heavy sigh.

“I’ll help.”-Melia