Located at almost the end of Angaria was a place that had many stories surrounding it.
As it was in the sparsely populated western part of the continent, the number of people who lived here was limited, and even life would almost seem as if it had been slowed down, instead of inexorably marching forward like everywhere else on the continent.
A major part of the disconnected settlents which the King of Lanthanor had wanted to contact and ’experint’ with were located in this area, and if he hadn’t found that perfect village and that perfect little girl who was now actively preaching far and wide about the generosity of the Godking, he would have chosen one of the villages here.
This kind of a desultory life also resulted in sothing else: gossip always spread quickly, and the sa could be said about stories and rumors, of which there was no shortage due to a very peculiar place that was present almost near the shore.
These stories would always be told in hushed tones, in dark rooms filled with dancing shadows that lent an additional sense of malaise to the tales.
They spoke of a spot which, if crossed, would an that the one who had been foolish enough to not listen to the caution advised by all of the stories would never return. They spoke of stakes driven into the ground, impaling those whose curiosity had gotten the better of them. They spoke of flesh-eating savages who were always waiting for their next al to walk into their hands, and of their powerful king who was so invincible in his domain that no one else in the continent dared to co to challenge him where he was.
’But why don’t they co out and attack us, then?’
Such an innocent question would be quashed by a single statent, which was always repeated when logic reared its head among those who were listening to the tales.
’Those of the glade, keep to the glade.’
Sitting in a tavern while sipping the bitter, but invigorating local beverage in a village whose na he had already forgotten, Perfect looked up and gazed at the old lady who had just said this statent in a corner of the room.
Around her sat people of all ages, as for so reason, no matter how many tis it was narrated, the stories about his family were always captivating.
The weirdest thing...was that they were all true.
The Order was a place filled with generations of research by countless individuals, so of whom were bound to be crazy.
Hence, it was not too surprising that one of the Paths that could be earned...was that of cannibalism.
To be specific, it was cannibalism of human flesh, as the concept was that one would be ingesting the Energy of Angaria in this manner, which would give all kinds of benefits to both the Mageroot, and the body at once, allowing one to progress as both a Mage and Fighter at the sa ti.
It was the root of this Path which had resulted in the creation of the formation which kept the Chief of the Fortress alive, but where the latter only needed blood taken harmlessly, the forr required the death and dismbernt of the targets.
Of course, as was common with all Paths which endangered the lives of those in the Central Continent, this was a banned one that was only present to be studied for inspiration, in case soone was progressing on sothing similar which did not involve all the gore.
Only...for those who were privileged, lazy and possessed a certain vile streak, this was the perfect Path to get the most progress with the least effort.
The good thing was that only those who truly hated the people of the Central Continent for one reason or another chose this Path, as in general, eating flesh was not a very pleasant, or preferable thing to do.
Perfect still rembered when his father had found out about those perusing it secretly.
They had been abducting families who they thought would not be missed, but because they got too greedy, word reached the nearby Kingdom, which in turn alerted the Big Four, who in turn turned to the Order as they knew of the old, powerful family which lived in this region.
His father had simply told them to be discreet, and to wean off the Path slowly as it wasn’t really effective in the long run, unless one could establish a constant supply of Warrior level bodies.
That was just one of the many tis when Perfect had been just...shocked due to the way his family saw all life that was not of their own blood.
Hell, even if it was of their own blood, there were many instances where the good of the family was placed above the good of the individuals who were unlucky, or simply unwilling to watch as untold acts of cruelty were perford in front of them.
Of course, one of the individuals who had fallen due to just this reason...was his brother.
Rembering him, and knowing that his silhouette was sothing he would never see again, Perfect pursed his lips and took another long sip of the bitter beer.
He knew. Even though he hadn’t said so in front of the King, he knew.
After the two of them had witnessed the truth that their family was aligned with the Church, his brother must have acted to save his life. After all, the mbers of the family had been alerted to the fact that soone had overheard them, and fearing that Perfect’s entire life might be destroyed by being thrust into the dark inner ring too early if he was exposed, his brother must have taken the bla.
Even during the last ti he had seen him, his brother had put on a brave face, and hence, Perfect hadn’t really suspected anything.
He had been young and naive, and when asked for a hug, he had given it willingly.
He vaguely rembered feeling as if sothing had fallen on him from above during that hug, but he had dusted off his hair then, thinking that it was just sothing falling from the ceiling.
It was only now, when he looked back, that he realized...that it must have been a tear from the man who knew that it would be the last ti he would be seeing the most important person in his life.
Taking a deep breath, Perfect wished that that mont had lasted longer.
Theirs had probably been the last, pure bond that existed in this twisted travesty of a family, and sadly...it had been snipped too soon.
From then on, nothing had mattered. Nothing had ant anything to him, and he had entered a vicious cycle of feeling sad, drinking to forget to his pain, and then drowning his sorrows in a sea of woman who were all too willing to help him.
But then...it had all changed.
He still rembered that mont when his heart had moved after what felt like forever. He still rembered that feeling of fearful hope, when he had been afraid that it might only be crushed again.
He rembered that face which he knew was fake, but those eyes...those eyes were sothing else.
When he had heard the announcent that declared the King a fugitive, it was those eyes that had told him that it could never be true. That man could do no wrong.
He had been right...and after awakening from the slumber induced by the late Overlord, he had rejoiced silently inside.
He had hoped that the ti for the King’s promise to be fulfilled would co soon, and now...it was finally here.
An hour later, the ssage that Perfect had been waiting for finally arrived.
"It’s done. Go, and keep a careful eye on everything. I’m depending on you."
No response was needed. Finishing the 8th cup of beer in front of him, he cast a spell that flushed the alcohol from his body and walked out before disappearing at the edge of the village.
A few minutes later, he was walking through an arch on which were written the words which best represented the cesspool he had been born in.
"Take, take, take, even if the world burns around you."
Shaking his head just like he did every ti he saw it, Perfect sped up and reached a dod building that looked empty, at first glance.
Instead of entering, he passed it and entered a villa nearby, before checking whether all of the formations he had placed were intact.
2 minutes later, he was standing within the walls of the do.
Using a special spell which made his body bend and compress as if it was made of jelly, he waited, until finally, he heard the sound of footsteps.
A few more minutes later, a familiar voice was heard.
"Elder, give us your report."
"I’ve checked the formations around the continent. There have definitely not been any changes. So...I think that our earlier supposition was right. The King simply had no choice. He knew that it would tip off the agents of the Church that there is a mole on his side, but if he didn’t do what he did, the war would have ended in a lot of bloodshed that would definitely have weakened the continent. I was watching the kid. He showed unwillingness, which ans that he was hoping that everyone would follow his plan, and rrily choose to co together after realizing that they were matched in power. How naive!"
Sounds of agreent could be heard, which were followed by the first voice, again.
"Very well. Now is the ti to make the decision. He may be a kid, but we have seen his craftiness. Sothing tells that he must have prepared for this eventuality, too."
"It’s impossible! He has no way to intercept the communications between the continent and the Mainland. They were placed at great expense by the Church to ensure that there would be no problem. Even the Order is helpless! Are you really saying that it’s possible for him to be more capable than the Order?"
The crazy statent elicited many scoffing sounds, but when that deep voice spoke up, all of them were silenced.
"We can never be too safe. This is the final step. Caution will dictate whether we co out as the rulers of the continent who will be revered by millions, or as traitors who will go down in history as the vilest family in modern Angaria. Let us vote. I say that we lay low. Even though there is no indication that the King can intercept communications and identify us, it is too risky. There are others who will send the ssage anyway."
Now, a second, even deeper voice spoke up, and as he heard it, Perfect could swear that it made the people in the room stop breathing.
"I vote to send the ssage. There is another risk you do not speak of- if we don’t send the ssage, we might be suspected of allying with the King. I would rather have that whippersnapper as an opponent, than the entire Church."
"I vote to-"
The voting took a minute. And hearing the result...Perfect could hardly hold in his joy.
"The majority have voted to send the ssage. Very well. I shall do so right now."
Perfect felt strange surges in elentary particles right after this statent was said by the man he knew to be his father.
His father had always been an extrely fearful man. Even now, he had co close to saving the family, but alas...greed was just too strong an opponent.
"ssage to the Church. King Daneel has-"
As his father described the vision and gave all the details which would definitely be enough for the Church to identify just who the mole was, Perfect held his breath, as even he didn’t know what would happen now.
Would the ssage fail? Would the entire Order co down on his family now? Would they all be locked up?
In a turn of events that chilled his heart, a ’click’ sound resounded in the do, and a mont later, he could hear his father let out a sigh of relief.
"I guess I was wrong. The ssage has been successfully received. We even tracked it to a point far outside the Endless Sea- there is no doubt now that the King had no ans to stop us. We will definitely be rewarded profusely!"
As everyone else in the room also started to rejoice, Perfect wished that he could contact the King right now so that he could find out just what the heck was going on.
While he started to curse the man’s apparent love for theatrics, Daneel, who was sitting comfortably in a place far, far away coughed, knowing exactly what Perfect must be thinking of him right now.
In front of him was a glowing crystal globe, and around him...was a large area which could house thousands of people.
Sitting in the middle of Elysium, Daneel grinned, and sent the reply.
"ssage received. The Bishop will contact you shortly. Standby, and keep the line open."
As he saw the globe pulse and notify him that the ssage had been successfully sent, he couldn’t help but sit back and grin.
Chuckling, he spoke to the sovereigns who were sitting with him.
"It’s lucky that the fact that Elysium can move was not ntioned even in the annals of the Order. Why risk tipping off the rats by adding thods of detection in the continent, when you can sit outside, in the Endless Sea, and simply intercept the ssage at a spot where they can’t detect anything? The first rat has arrived. Now, for the rest..."
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