Chapter 45: Chapter 121 – In Plain Sight

Waiting to be let inside by the guards standing on the sides of the massive metal gate, Asterios examined himself one more time to make sure he was presentable. They were going to meet another monarch, more or less. Of a smaller territory, but still an important leader.

He was currently standing in his unawakened form, with his black hair and deep blue eyes. As for his clothing, a brown set of adventuring gear closely resembling his old one but with some visible difference covered Ast’s body.

After returning home from the castle, Asterios had wondered about his new black and red clothes made of spiritual energy and how the others would have reacted to them. But, fortunately, while thinking about it, the familiar crimson flames had flickered faintly over his clothes and made them change colors.

Thanks to that, Asterios could still reap the benefits of his spiritual attire while retaining his old looks. He had decided to keep it for now and use the other one when necessary, for example when he would like to try and appear as a different person like in the past.

He had no issues attaching his pouches, belts, and bags to his spiritual clothing. What surprised him and the rest was the fact that when he dismissed it, all the additional elements disappeared with the attire. It confused them greatly and they concluded that there had to be some spatial element in work there.

Back in front of the towering entrance, Asterios expected the stationed guards to disarm them just like it had happened back at King Welrond’s place, but no one approached them with such intentions. The leader of the Damascu Clan had most likely been informed about their credibility and trusted the human king’s words.

In just a few minutes, the giant black gate started opening with a loud noise of countless mechanisms. A silver-skinned dwarf in a neat suit and tiny, round glasses mounted on the top of his nose invited them inside, loudly announcing their entrance.

The duo walked through a spacious chamber made of dark grey stone blocks similar to pretty much every other building in the town. Some tapestries and braziers decorated the room, and a giant black metal chandelier hung from the ceiling.

They reached the middle section where a sizable, round table was placed, with its height appropriate for the citizens of these lands, of course. A few figures, both male and female, surrounded it. They all wore noble-looking clothes but one man stood out from the crowd the most.

Asterios and Svertaniel immediately assumed that he was the patriarch and the others were his retainers or aides. The man had a long cape over his royal clothes in various shades of grey, which was decorated with shining silver etching of the Damascu Clan’s crest—two pickaxes crossed over a lump of metal.

Hearing them come closer, the patriarch stopped discussing something with the others and turned around. It was obvious that he was an older dwarf from his wrinkly face and long silvery beard split into two braids. A peculiar hairstyle covered small parts of the man’s head. In simple words, he had a mohawk in the form of a letter Y, with its arms in the front and the leg going to the back and down his neck. Also shining silver.

“Welcome, human, demon,” the man spoke with a gruff voice. “My name is Grotger Silvervein. We have been awaiting your arrival. I’ve been told by King Welrond that there’s a matter of life and death to discuss and one of you will act as a proxy with their abilities to let the two of us meet face to face.”

Asterios made a light bow. “It is as you say, Patriarch. My familiar can connect people together and recreate their existence in each other’s minds. More or less.”

The dwarf grunted while stroking his beard. “Mind Magic. I always hated that. Makes you uncomfortable and dizzy at least.”

“I can assure you that there are no uncomfortable side effects to my familiar’s ability.”

He nodded. “Very well. Welrond wouldn’t send somebody untrustworthy as his agent and crossing this much distance in a day is quite an expensive feat. What’s this about, then?”

Asterios smiled wryly, keeping the fact that he had moved here fast and free.

“I’m afraid I shouldn’t divulge any information about the conversation topic between you and the king, Patriarch. It was requested that you decide about sharing its contents with your trusted aides after hearing the situation out in full.”

“Hm. He never was this secretive. Unless you asked about his daughter.” A quiet wave of chuckles reverberated through the chamber and quickly died down. “I hope he is not making such a big deal out of this only for it to be an invitation for his precious lass’ wedding.”

Asterios shook his head with a smile, hearing a few giggles inside there too. “It’s much more important than that. Uh, I think, at least.”

Grotger tamed down another wave of laughs from his companions by raising his hand. “Alright, alright. Let’s get this over with. How does this work?”

Umbra materialized himself on Ast’s shoulder. “You will feel a faint nudge in your mind. Just let it in and the rest will become obvious. Not that it would ever happen, but if you feel threatened about your potential secrets, you will be easily able to push my familiar out of your head as I will be limiting them, obviously. I assume you know how to shield your mind at least?”

“Humph. I might not be a mage but it will be your creepy bird that will feel threatened if it tries to dive deeper than it should. Get in.”

Asterios nodded, unsure if the patriarch was just boasting or actually held that much mental strength. After meeting King Welrond, he was even more sure that a person’s power couldn’t be judged that easily.

Umbra’s shadow extended from Ast’s feet and connected to the dwarf’s. Asterios had given Welrond a notice before entering so he sent Umbra to the king. It took a few moments to establish a stable connection with so much distance between them, but soon, another human appeared in the chamber. Judging by the raised eyebrows of the dwarf patriarch, everything worked as intended and he could see the king.

“Impressive,” Welrond said, looking at his hands. “It really feels like I’m here. The air is as stale and dusty as I remember. You really ought to open the windows sometimes, Grotger.”

The dwarf crossed the distance between them and slugged the human into his thigh, causing Welrond to step back with a wince.

“Humph. You are right. Feels as good as real. This boy is something else.”

Both men looked at each other while squinting their eyes and chuckled at the same time. Grotger then turned around when some whispers reached his ears and furrowed his brows.

“What?”

“They can’t hear or see this, Patriarch,” Asterios explained. “I also made sure that you don’t speak out loud so you don’t have to worry about anything getting out. To them, It looks like we are walking around in silence while moving our mouths.”

As Asterios talked, Welrond stepped closer to Grotger from behind and swiped the dwarf off his feet with one move, causing the burly man to fall onto his butt and curse at him. The other people in the room looked weirdly at their patriarch’s sudden action.

“You damned rascal! What was that for?!”

“I was just curious.” The king laughed. “Maybe we should renegotiate our last Damascus Ore trade like this. I wonder how long it will take for your advisors to assume you lost your mind.”

“You brat!” 

Grotger stood up and marched towards Welrond, poking the man’s chest with his finger. Well, considering their height, more like his stomach instead.

After a few seconds of staring at each other, both men exploded into a laugh and clasped their forearms together in a manly handshake.

“Just you wait. I will empty your coffers next time. Maybe that will finally teach you not to disrespect your elders, kid.” Grotger grinned.

“You are welcome to try, old man. I’m afraid your tiny seashore peninsula will run out of Damascus before that happens,” Welrond replied.

“So, did you come here just to make me lose face in front of my people or with something actually important for once?”

The human man sighed. “I would much rather it be the first one.” He then turned to Asterios. “You should include your friend since he will be part of your squad if I’m not mistaken.”

“As you wish, Your Majesty.”

A second later, Svertaniel blinked repeatedly when a figure of a man materialized in front of his eyes. He immediately recognized the ruler of humans and made a respectful bow.

“Greetings, Your Majesty.”

“At ease. Let’s proceed then. Time is crucial.” Welrond moved his gaze back to the patriarch. “I bring bad news, Grotger. We found traces of a cult in our lands and Asterios here stumbled on them in your territory too, a few days ago.”

“Humph. Cursed cultists. They are a pain to deal with. I don’t really have time to go after some chicken-sacrificing dimwits right now. As long as they—”

“They imprison people and test poisons on them.”

“Mothergonkers!”

Grotger slammed his fist into the table and its surface flew to the side after being ripped off the stone support by the force of the impact. The metal disc sped between Asterios and Welrond, crashing into the nearby wall and getting encased in it. A few of the patriarch’s people fell onto their butts from shock.

“Sorry. Continue. I assume it’s not just humans or you wouldn’t bother me with this.”

The king nodded. “That’s right. It was Asterios who found out about them, both there and here. In my kingdom, we only know about an abandoned facility. But, he found a live victim in your town and we managed to locate an active site.”

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“Regarding that, Patriarch,” Asterios interrupted. “Who issued the current lockdown and pursuit of the criminal?”

“Hm. One of the military officers responsible for the region’s security. Why?”

“I ran into that criminal hiding on our ship after we arrived here. It’s a young dwarf that managed to escape the facility. He was heavily poisoned and malnourished so I took care of him, taking a peek into his memories to confirm things. You understand what I’m getting at, right?”

Grotger raised his fist again but realized that there was no table to slam it into anymore and just shook it with an angry grunt.

“Thivner! That cock-sucking, two-faced, money-grubber! The request came straight from him and he pushed it harder than that whore of his! I bet my beard they are both in it!” His fierce gaze moved to Asterios. “Free my voice! I need to order his capture immediately!”

“I understand your anger, Grotger, but I think we shouldn’t act rashly. It’s not certain he is the only one. This could alert the cult.” Welrond attempted to calm him down.

The dwarf grunted and rubbed his temples. “Right... Corrupt piece of Hretten shit… Knowing you, there’s at least some sign of a plan already.”

“Yes. That’s why I’m here. We should deal with this carefully and proper cooperation is necessary for that. I’m willing to lend you my men since your forces aren’t exactly that big but we need to set a Long Range Teleportation Array on both sides if we want to act quickly. They could decide to move out after not finding their escapee for a certain period of time.”

“Oh, we do. I don’t care about the cost. If these kooky dimwits think they can experiment on MY people then they are very, very mistaken. I’ll have it completed in two days. No. A day. I’m going to hire every goddamn adventurer to make it faster.”

Welrond nodded, tapping his cheek as he stroked his chin. “Good. We will have to transport them just before the operation to minimize the chances of somebody catching on in time.”

Asterios made a step forward to bring their attention to him. “As discussed, my party will be the main striking force so that shouldn’t be an issue. We will quietly infiltrate the place and free whoever we can while looking for valuable information, especially about other locations. Prepare a field clinic for the victims. I will transport them there. One of my familiars will lay a strong barrier around the facility and activate it when things go south. It will buy us enough time to place the soldiers in their positions to catch anyone who would attempt to escape.”

“Humph. Doable,” Grotger grunted and turned to the king. “You sure about this?”

Welrond smiled. “Trust me. You won’t find anyone better for the job when it’s about sneaking in. I know from experience.”

“Alright. Do you know where they are?”

Svertaniel just finished walking back from the encased metal table and brought a slightly roughed-up map of the region that had been placed on it before it had been sent flying. He set it down on the stone slab that had served as a support for the absent furniture.

Asterios glanced at it and a short beacon of purple light shone from a specific point. He wanted to avoid pointing at it with his physical body in case the people in the room were involved too.

Grotger furrowed his brows. “Here? That’s literally a stone throw from the keep! The audacity of those morons!”

“In plain sight. Best place to hide,” Welrond commented. “They used a watchtower in my kingdom so a lumber mill doesn’t surprise me.”

“Idiots. At least this will be easier for us. I can just announce that some other monarch is visiting through the array we are setting up in the heart of the town. Its construction somewhere in the wilds would have been much harder to cover up. Soldiers won’t have that far either.”

“Will you be able to single out the traitors?” the king asked.

“Don’t you worry about that. I’m not so pathetic as to require help in getting rid of a few poisonous rats. I already have a plan in mind but it would be great if your friend found some clear dirt on them inside the compound. Otherwise, I will have to scare quite a few people. I’m sure they would understand after everything was revealed, though.”

Asterios bowed his head. “We will do our best. Perhaps we could set up a confinement chamber in or by the clinic where I could drop any important people we capture inside. They might need some help after running into us.”

“Hahaha! You seem confident in yourself! Good!”

“Rather than in myself, I’m confident in my companions. I would be nothing without them. It’s only thanks to their strength that I can even think about this whole operation.”

“And humble one at that.” Grotger chuckled again. “You should have brought them with you, assuming you are the leader. Connections run the world, son. But, I think you are doing just fine in that department.”

Two dark crimson gates rose from the ground on Ast’s sides and the girls stepped into the chamber. They both made a respectful bow before standing by Asterios.

The dwarf patriarch made a prolonged whistle. “That’s a party I would definitely love to be in. I can tell otherworldly beauty is not their only strength.”

Miria blushed a little while Selene chuckled and nodded her head for both of them.

“Alright. Let’s not pointlessly waste precious time. There’s a lot to do. I would give you some authority, kid, but that could bring unnecessary attention to you so you are on your own. Let me know if you need anything. We will meet in a day to confirm everything is ready.”

Everyone nodded and Ast's party walked out of the chamber, with Umbra still upholding the connection for Welrond to discuss some details with Grotger that he didn’t have to stay and listen to.

Waiting for the king to finish, they spent a moment getting something to eat. Miria had prepared some sandwiches while they had been in the meeting and shared them with everyone. They looked a little bit different than usual and it was quickly revealed that Selene lent a hand in their creation. Everyone enjoyed the mixed cuisine of the two beastfolk girls.

When the connection was cut, Asterios immediately moved to the facility’s location to set up the barrier with Selene. Svertaniel split from them to visit Moreso and check on a few other things. Thanks to Umbra’s abilities, they arrived in its vicinity unseen.

While the shadowy raven circled over the innocent-looking lumber mill, Selene explained to Asterios how the array she was going to set up worked. Its main purpose was to cut off any possible means of communication from the inside. For the secondary task, it had to trap everyone without letting them escape.

Since it was a large-scale barrier, she required a lot of materials and preparation. Asterios brought out from his collection whatever she needed and Selene jumped back to the temple to borrow a few necessary pieces too. Lerisse was more than happy to help her friend in need.

This particular array was an octagram formation, requiring the set up of eight points on the ground around the designated area. Normally, eight people were necessary to start it up and uphold, but Selene was confident in operating it alone at her current level. 

She had kept growing more and more during the time they were spending together with Asterios. Reaching the sixth stage was starting to look less like just a dream and more like an actual possibility. That was still so unbelievable.

But, if they considered his assumed draconic heritage, it wasn’t exactly that shocking. There still were some doubts coming from that old legend from their world about Kaguya, but no one denied the possibility of the human she had fallen in love with not being just a human. That could potentially explain how the battle-crazy Kaguya got together with that person. Perhaps he had as much potential as Asterios if not more.

Nevertheless, they could think about that later and focused on the task at hand instead. With their roles switched this time as Selene explained in detail the necessary steps and Asterios helped her construct the complex sigils and patterns, the duo worked tirelessly and meticulously on the barrier points. Miria watched them in awe from the sides not to disrupt them. 

It took the duo around half a day to fully complete all eight spots and they were drenched in sweat from exhaustion. The whole formation had been scrupulously masked and hidden to wait for its big moment. Hopefully, it wouldn’t be needed. Selene couldn’t really test it without alerting anyone but Asterios assured her that she had definitely done everything perfectly.

Back in town, they took a dip in a public bathhouse, choosing a secluded room to enjoy each other's company in private. 

Perhaps from all the mana expenditure, Selene seemed a little more frisky than usual and Asterios didn’t have the strength nor heart to deny her and the quick bath turned into a slow and gentle moment of passion. Miria wasn’t left alone on the side for long and was pulled into it soon enough, happy to receive her master’s love.

Asterios tipped the bath lady handsomely as they left, expecting her to be at least a little angry after she found out they bathed in each other more than in the pool. He had put an Alcove of Serenity around them but it wasn’t possible to get rid of all the signs and evidence even with simple magic. It would be better not to show up there again.

Walking through the town, they could see many dwarves working on what most likely would be the transportation array the monarchs had mentioned. They watched its construction for a moment, observing all that organized chaos on the ground and wooden stagings.

After a calm night, Asterios met with the patriarch and everything seemed to be going according to the plan. There were no signs of any weird movements from either the lumber mill or the town and keep. He wasn’t sure what means Grotger had to catch the corrupt traitors but decided not to pry into it.

With everyone ready as much as possible, and Welrond’s army waiting on the other side of the array for their signal, Asterios paid a visit to the field clinic and prison the patriarch had prepared overnight so that Umbra could quickly move into them when necessary.

They met with Svertaniel near the facility and moved out. They had studied its complete structure to a single detail from Risvi's memories, as much as it was possible, and found a masked entrance with ease. The same the boy had used to escape. It was a tunnel hidden under a stump of an old tree. 

Umbra seeped through the invisible gap and incapacitated two guards in complete silence. Selene and Miria lifted the heavy piece of wood and everyone jumped down.

 

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