The three figures materialized in the center of the destroyed Desgarron courtyard, their arrival marked by a subtle distortion in space rather than any flashy display of power.
Class S Guards—Special Investigators, to be precise.
Each one wore the distinctive black and silver uniform that marked them as operating at the highest echelons of law enforcent in the Land of Nether. These weren’t the Category A, B, or C Guards who maintained order in cities and responded to conventional threats.
These were the elite, deployed only when matters concerned the Noble Houses themselves or posed threats to the Realm’s stability.
The leader of the trio was a woman nad Selene, her sharp features and calculating eyes taking in every detail of the devastation.
To her left stood Marcus—not the Desgarron guard captain, but a completely different man, broader and more heavily built, his hands resting casually on weapons that radiated suppressed power.
On her right was Thane, the youngest of the three but no less dangerous, his perception-based abilities already active and scanning the ruins.
"Category S threat level destruction," Selene stated clinically, her voice devoid of emotion. "Possibly multiple perpetrators coordinating sophisticated assault."
Marcus grunted agreent. "One of the twenty-four Noble Houses, completely eliminated in a single night. The political ramifications alone..."
"Are above our pay grade," Thane finished. "We’re here to find who did it, not to worry about succession disputes and power vacuums."
Selene moved forward, her enhanced senses probing the remnants of Ether signatures that lingered despite days of dissipation. Thane followed, his specialized perception Artifacts allowing him to reconstruct echoes of past events through residual energy patterns.
Marcus took up a defensive position, ensuring no interruptions during their investigation.
"Multiple Art types," Thane reported within monts, his eyes glowing as he processed information. "Spirit Art, extensive use. Chaos Art, present throughout. Curse Art, utilized for bindings and contracts. Soul Art traces, likely from combat. And..."
He paused, his expression darkening.
"Order Art. Significant amounts, used as a weapon against the household."
Selene’s eyes narrowed. "Order Art. In the Land of Nether."
The implications were imdiate and damning. Order Art was the mystical foundation of the Aether Realm, just as Chaos Art was foundational to the Nether Realm.
The two energies were fundantally incompatible—using Order Art in Nether territory was like introducing poison into a living body.
"Infection pattern," Thane continued, moving through the ruins and following the traces. "Deliberately introduced through the atmospheric systems. Designed to weaken Nether-aligned practitioners without killing them outright. Sophisticated application, suggesting expert knowledge of both Order and Chaos interactions."
Marcus spat. "Aethers. Has to be."
"Circumstantial," Selene cautioned, though her tone suggested she agreed. "But the presence of Order Art does indicate Aether involvent or backing. The question is: who were the actual executors?"
They moved deeper into the destroyed manor, carefully cataloging every trace. The investigation techniques available to Class S Guards were far beyond normal forensic thods. They could read the story of what happened through Ether resonance, through the imprints left by violence and death, through the mystical signatures that couldn’t be completely erased.
What they found painted a picture of ticulous planning and brutal execution.
"The security systems were systematically disabled," Thane reported from what remained of the control center. "Not destroyed—disabled. Soone had intimate knowledge of the Desgarron defenses. Inside help, almost certainly."
Selene examined the areas where the family had died. "The blood spatters and residues show that the killing patterns are efficient. Professional. But also personal—there’s rage here, beneath the calculation. Whoever did this had motivation beyond simple political assassination."
"Revolutionaries?" Marcus suggested. "We’ve been tracking increased Cursed One agitation. Several cells operating with suspected Aether backing."
"Possible," Selene acknowledged. She moved to where the treasury had been breached. "The treasure rooms were completely emptied. Not just looted—systematically stripped of everything valuable. That takes ti, planning, and resources to transport."
Thane joined her, his perception abilities focused on the vault’s remains. "Null Art was used here. Extensively. Soone knew how to disrupt the mystical tracking that Noble Houses build into their treasures."
He paused, frowning. "But it’s incomplete. There are... inconsistencies. So items show traces of Null Art cleansing, but most don’t. It’s as if soone only bothered to cleanse a small portion of what was stolen."
"Why would they do that?" Marcus asked.
"Because they destroyed the rest," Selene realized, her eyes widening slightly. "The Coliseum explosion, the secondary devastation throughout the district—that could be them destroying the evidence. We did find similar traces there as here. The treasures themselves."
The Duke had more influence than the Desgarron Household, so it was only right that they investigated the Coliseum first.
Seeing as there were too many similarities with the distortion of evidence and trace elents left, it was easy to conclude that the items stolen from the Desgarron Manor were used to destroy the Coliseum.
The timing of the two attacks were also too close to each other.
Coincidence? Highly unlikely!
Thane’s expression showed reluctant admiration. "Brilliant, in a horrifying way. They stole everything, then destroyed a great percentage of it to prevent tracking. The remaining ten or so percentage was small enough to properly cleanse with Null Art."
"Five percent," Selene corrected, examining the traces more carefully. "They only kept five percent, most likely. The dedication required to destroy that much wealth just to cover your tracks..."
"Suggests soone who prioritizes survival over profit," Marcus finished. "Soone careful. Professional."
They spent hours combing through the ruins, reconstructing what they could. The picture that erged was deeply troubling.
A coordinated assault, likely by a revolutionary organization. Aether backing or involvent, proven by the Order Art usage. Inside help from longti household staff.
Systematic theft followed by strategic destruction of evidence. And most concerning—the attackers had vanished completely, leaving no trail beyond what had been deliberately left behind.
"The Aether Realm must want to weaken us," Marcus said as they prepared their preliminary report. "We’re in a cold war with them, have been for eons. Eliminating one of our twenty-four Noble Houses would be a significant blow to our power structure."
"But why now?" Thane wondered aloud. "Why this particular House? Why this specific timing?"
Selene didn’t have an answer. "The Devils would need to make that determination. Our job is to provide them with data."
"Should we report directly?" Marcus asked. "This seems significant enough—"
"No," Selene cut him off. "Not yet. Our superiors are dealing with broader strategic concerns right now. The Angel incursions at the border, the political maneuvering in the capital, the resource allocation for the war effort. They don’t need us bringing them incomplete information about a single House’s destruction, regardless of how unusual the circumstances."
She looked at her colleagues seriously.
"We continue investigating. We find more concrete evidence. And we don’t escalate to the Devils unless we uncover sothing that threatens the realm as a whole, not just one Noble Family."
Thane nodded reluctantly while Marcus grunted agreent.
"There’s at least one survivor from the attack," Selene continued. "Soone escaped with a portion of the treasures. That person is our lead. We focus on tracking them, on identifying who had the knowledge and capability to pull this off."
"The treasures," Thane said. "Even cleansed with Null Art, they’ll need to liquidate them eventually. High-grade Artifacts and ancient texts don’t just disappear. They’ll likely surface in the black market."
"Then that’s where we start," Selene decided. "Marcus, coordinate with our informants in the Dark Comrce Districts. I want alerts on any Desgarron-affiliated items appearing for sale. Thane, continue analyzing the Ether signatures here. There might be sothing we missed, so trace unique enough to identify our culprit."
"And you?" Marcus asked.
Selene’s expression was grim. "I’m going to have a conversation with Lady Amara Desgarron. She’s the sole surviving heir, which makes her either a potential victim who escaped by luck, or possibly involved sohow. Either way, she might have information we need."
The three Class S Guards dispersed to their assigned tasks, unaware that their quarry was already hundreds of miles away, establishing a completely new identity in a city they had no reason to surveil.
However, Rey was also unaware that most of his plan had been uncovered already.
The interesting part was that these people were already closing in on him, and their target appeared to be the sa as his.
—The Dark Comrce District!
[A/N: This begins Arc 2: Dark Comrce District]
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