The man approached them. He looked young, but Kenzo didn't want to think that way. The Baron was dangerous - Kenzo could feel it when the man was more than fifty ters away. To call him young would have reduced the man's level of danger in his mind. That would have been a big mistake. Looking at the man, his spear, the passive mist that left a path in his wake, and his fluid movents, it was evident that the Baron was very dangerous. So, despite the young age of their interlocutor, Kenzo was on the lookout for any sign of attack.
The rcenaries had gathered all available information about the Baron. Kenzo regretted the money wasted on hazardous divinations - he seed to have already developed a resistance to it. The best approaches had been more direct, and they had paid a fortune to an information salesman nad Tjay to find out the contents of their conversation. But it was worth it. According to their research, Baron Priam Azura was a human with a good head on his shoulders. Power didn't seem to have gone to his head - yet. More importantly, he was free. No faction appeared to have any connection with him.
The rcenaries had three hypotheses about this supposed freedom. First, Priam was really free. It was unlikely, given his results, titles, achievent, and the fact that he had just passed the twentieth wave of the Colosseum - which confird his place as an elite of humanity. They had no information on the Baron from before the Tutorial, but it seed unlikely that a human, no matter how well-trained and knowledgeable, could have outdone the rest of humanity so much. Despite being one of the best human rcenaries, Kenzo barely defeated the tenth wave.
Second, the Baron was linked to a powerful faction that forbade Priam from taking advantage of their notoriety. It was possible that a Tier 7 or 8 monster was interested in the Baron. Unlikely, but possible. Priam could be put to the test by his master. Without outside help, he had to prove himself worthy of that interest by performing at this Reunion.
Third, the Baron had joined a forbidden faction. That was a terrible possibility, but it should not be dismissed. If that was the case, he was probably hiding his mbership in such a cult to avoid being shot by an alliance.
So factions drew power from dark acts and rituals. Their moral compasses mattered little to the Concepts. They were very neutral entities and accepted all paths and ambitions. But so factions had been banned and banished by others after they had angered too many powerhouses.
However, the limits of acceptability were wide. Sacrificing entire planets was accepted. However, they belonged to a faction, and to target the wrong one was to insult a faction. Wars broke out, and the losers had to flee or die. Other actions were more dangerous. Depleting the aether density of a supercontinent by siphoning off its sources could greatly annoy that continent's kingdoms, guilds, and clans. Finally, certain acts were taboo. To reveal the secrets of a faction was complicated, but so tried. A few million years earlier, a Tier 9 had caught another spirit in the body of her newborn child. An entire galaxy disappeared within minutes, and this Tier 9 had since vowed to hunt down anyone stupid enough to try that kind of experint. To the rcenaries' knowledge, no one has done it since. Escaping from a determined Tier 9 was simply impossible. Since then, reincarnating mbers of one faction into the fetuses of future children of another faction was an example of a forbidden act.
"No one speaks but ." Kenzo straightened up as he heard Maya's announcent. The rcenary captain took her role seriously and was respected. Less than a week after the end of their Tutorial had passed, but the rcenary had already ford his opinion. His captain had a keen eye, and he could trust her judgnt. He was now focusing on his duty: to protect her. Even against this monster, I might win her a few monts.
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