-Volu Two-
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A young man who looked to be in his mid to late twenties, with Almond brown hair was dressed in simple black robes while kneeling on the smooth stone-plated floors of an open-walled hall of a small Pagoda. Even though his eyes were closed, heavy eyebags of insomnia and fatigue were clear underneath.
In front of him were all sorts of banners and morabilia as well as lighted candles and incense, all of which matched the young man's somber appearance.
Characters were written in bold calligraphy all over the banners and anyone with enough knowledge to read them would have been able to pick out the single-worded anings alternating between 'Father' and 'Leader' in alternating synonyms.
With his lips pursed and pressed tightly together, the young man's straight back was stiff, and the only notable movents he made were his fingers tapping silently against his thighs.
*Tap* *Tap* *Tap*
It didn't take long for the young man to no longer be alone.
Soone else entered the hall with gentle steps. He had amber-colored eyes and looked the slightest bit younger than the kneeler. If observed closely, their faces had similarities in relation and they shared their brown hair except the new arrival had a darker shade.
The new arrival stopped a few feet behind the kneeler and bowed slightly to present a more demure appearance than he had already shown with his expression,
"Brother, you're still here?" he asked.
"I am."
"It's been two weeks," said the new arrival, "This isn't healthy. There's only so long Spiritual Revitalisation can last."
"*Sigh* I feel his Presence here, Ernest," the Kneeling young man said, "Here I feel like I'm doing sothing. Like I have not failed him."
"Beorht, there is nothing-" Ernest started to say only to get shut up imdiately by an interruption from his kneeling brother,
"Don't!" Beorht said sharply, "Don't say there's nothing we could have done- Don't say there's nothing I could have done!"
Ernest opened his mouth to speak, his words ready to pour out in anger to snap his brother out of his mourning stupor but he stopped himself at the last minute. It would do no good to be aggressive.
He took a deep breath, and his voice ca out much more gently,
"Father is gone. Kneeling here and moping does no one any good. Especially not him.
Report from ho claims they lost THREE Captains in the war. Three, Beorht! All at the Fourth Order just like us-"
"You really want to compare Martial expertise we have gained as mbers of the Martial Temple to the crude tactics of those bums?" Beorht asked and even allowed himself a mocking chuckle,
"Laughable!" he added.
Ernest shook his head,
"Not the point I was trying to make. The Opponents had the numbers... Did- did you not read the report?"
"Is this why you're here?" Beorht asked, "To berate my grief?"
A few seconds of silence passed and then Ernest let out a sigh,
"No. We received a ssage from ho. We're still to stay away. It's not yet 'safe'."
"That's all?"
"Well, it also says Mother becos Reagent today," Ernest reported.
Slowly, Beorht opened his eyes to reveal an amber pair the exact shade as his brother's,
"Poor Mother. I can only imagine how she must be feeling. Father was her rock," he said slowly before shaking his head at the uprising of emotions from deep within, "It's good- It's very good she's Reagent.
Arrgghh, you don't know how much I want to make the Stygians pay!"
Ernest allowed himself a smile of solidarity,
"You and both."
"But we must wait..."
"We must..."
Beorht sighed,
"We will..."
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***
-Verdelen City-
-The Larnak Territory-
In the past two weeks since the war at the Larnak Estate that ended in the death of the Larnak Lord, the denizens of the Larnak Territory had experienced and enjoyed their most lengthy mont of peace.
Long gone were the days of intimidating patrol squads- Not only because they had faced a significant reduction in numbers, but also because in the aftermath of the war, they now held little to no authority.
And despite the air of sadness over the Larnak Estate, the streets and districts of the Larnak Territory were boisterous with joy and celebrations.
The Crew beca local heroes.
Every single mber of the Resistance who used to work in the Larnak Estate and passed on important information to the Crew (The maids, servants, and such) who still lived, was set free from the Estate brigs after the war.
They pointed out a traitor by the na of 'Minks' as the one to reveal their secret dealings with the Crew and an all-out witch-hunt began for the simpering scum. They found he still lived in Verdelen City, just in a different Territory and he was promptly lynched by the mob. The Gold he had been paid with was shared among the families of Resistance mbers who had died during Herbert's search for the truth.
As for the Larnaks, their situation had not been quite as at ease as they would have desired. Not at all, in fact.
A few days after the war and with them at their weakest, their neighboring Territories staked claim to the land as was their right as victors.
The Stygians claid they had more stake to the land as they had actually suffered for the cause and in hopes of coming to an amicable decision, the heads of the Stygian and Renan families t on a neutral ground; The Larnak Territory they both wanted.
As though to insult the very mory of the leadership they sought to end completely, they t in the very hall Herbert Larnak used to hold his conferences. The very hall, where Averill Stygian had slamd him right through the wall- The hole still existed with no one yet bothering to plug it. Quite an accurate depiction of their crumbling Hegonomy.
The Larnak relatives had to sit in silence and watch as two Territorial leaders t on their own grounds, in their own ho to discuss seizing their land. It was so clearly an insult but without power or authority to stand among or against the two, they dared not voice out their grievances.
All representatives who had co with Averill Stygian for the eting were in awe from the mont Frida stepped down from her Carriage to the mont she sat at the table. Not only did her illustrious reputation command respect, but she also exuded grace to complent her jaw-dropping sexiness.
"Let's get right down to it," Frida said calmly with one beautiful silky leg over the other, her revealed cleavage daring anyone to stare. No one dared,
"You wouldn't have won without us."
Averill Stygian refused to be intimidated and he let out a chuckle in hopes that it helped him appear more confident and the master of his 'domain',
"If you were actually present during the war, you would have known that's not true."
Two of the Knights who stood behind Frida's chair frowned. They had been among the four Captains Frida sent out to aid Evian's cause and they disliked how much their involvent was getting downplayed by the Stygian Lord.
Frida smiled lightly,
"I believe my reports were accurate," She said, "And I do rember quite well that you couldn't attack until you heard we would be getting involved."
Averill's lips twitched while finding it difficult to argue with the logic,
"That's not- You're miss-" the Stygian Lord struggled to get his words out so when he did, it ca out loud and a bit pompous, "I KILLED HERBERT!"
Frida chuckled with a hand delicately over her mouth,
"So?" she asked with a shrug, "Haha, what does that have to do with anything."
Lord Stygian shook his head, much calr now after his outburst,
"He used to head the Territory... As the one who caused him to breathe his last, I am entitled to the Territory."
Frida shook her head,
"That's not how it works. You should know that," she said, "The Territory goes to who has the ability to seize it."
"We have their wealth," Lord Stygian blurted out.
"You an Evian has their wealth," Frida corrected.
"Sa thing," Averill said.
"No, no it's not," Frida told him with a smile, "Besides, that wealth ans nothing. My Family's coffers are greater than that. We have the resources required to hold the Territory. We also have the Might."
Averill frowned at the violent suggestive words hidden behind a smile that caused the hearts of the n behind him to quake with desire they could only long for and never seize. No joke, the Stygian Lord could hear gulps behind him.
He ignored that and leaned forward,
"Are you threatening ?"
Frida sighed,
"You're a sensible man, Averill. You know this is not a threat," she said, "But if you do see it as one, fine. Let just ask you this? Do you think you can survive a war against the Renans?"
"I-" Averill started but Frida was not yet done,
"Besides myself, there are currently Four other Sixth Order Knights in the Renan Family. Others are no lower than the seventh step of the Fifth Order.
We have a handful of Captains at the Fifth Order with others solidly at the Fourth and I dare say we have more Elite Third Order Knights than the Stygian and Larnak forces combined.
So I ask again, do you think you can survive a war against the Renans?"
Averill glared at her and then sighed with a good sense of survival,
"How about a compromise then? We split the Territory right down the middle."
Frida leaned back confidently in her chair and shook her head,
"No," she said, "We -I- want it all."
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