In the underground expanse that was the hiding place for Vekas and Sierra, both of them were sitting beside the fire alongside Augustus, who was grilling some steaks for them to eat.
"Are you sure their base is located there, Sierra?" Vekas asked, his gaze sharpened.
"Positive. When they were escorting the unconscious Augustus and other rebels to their main base, I kept my tracks silent and followed them as we agreed. Hence, the area I showed you using [Mind Web] is their base." Her voice was calm and even, her eyes focused on the general's.
"Haha, this place you showed us seems to be in the Harrow District. If I remember well, it's the least developed district in Dimrath. Of course, they placed their main base of operations in such a place." Augustus smiled as he recounted the location Sierra had shared with him.
Since a new meeting among the rebels was coming up, the three had formulated a plan for Sierra to tail them to their base. Considering that Augustus and other lower-ranking rebels were knocked unconscious and escorted there, the chef couldn't tell the location himself till he was inside the building.
Keeping this in mind, Sierra followed the escorts as they traversed through different districts, finally arriving in the Harrow District. She was able to discover a tall, magnificent building with intricate details, which was made entirely out of Magouls.
Magouls weren't cheap in the slightest, costing two gold coins per gom. Not even the royal family was capable of creating an entire building, especially one as huge and vast as this one, entirely out of Magouls from both the inside and outside.
Sierra was able to analyse the building using [Sage Insight]. Hence, she knew everything about it from both the inside and outside. She then left before anyone could even suspect that they were being followed.
Of course, she couldn't enter the building, considering that several guards were standing in front of the entrance. The security was extremely tight, as expected of a base of the rebels.
"Although... I am really wondering why they didn't choose an inconspicuous building as their headquarters," Vekas mused, his brows furrowed as he revisited the image of the building that Sierra just shared.
"Well, considering that it's the Harrow District, this building is pretty inconspicuous by itself. Not to mention the fact that there are far more extravagant buildings around than this that are owned by nobles." Augustus shrugged.
He placed some burritos on a make-shift plate and handed them to Vekas, who took them without looking at the chef.
"The problem here is that the entirety of the building is made of magouls. Both the interior and exterior. I doubt this is only for defence. Is it to stand out? Is it to flaunt their authority?"
The general frowned. Augustus also grew silent as he pondered over his words.
It was indeed strange that they chose a building completely made out of magouls as their base. Magouls may be durable and good for defence, as well as increase the ambient Vyr, but Magouls are luxury items that heavily stand out.
If they really wanted to remain hidden, why choose to make their base out of this? Was it a sort of statement? Was it solely to increase the ambient Vyr for them to use and manipulate? It seemed strange.
"In any case, we now know where their base is, so no problems there." Sierra sighed.
Vekas glanced at her, his eyes narrowed, before sighing as well. "You're right. Now we just need to form a plan of attack. When Sir Revan arrives, we'll let him know and then decide what to do from there."
"Speaking of which, where even is he?" Sierra asked.
Vekas sighed. "Sir Revan likes to explore the city rather than staying in one place, so knowing his exact whereabouts is difficult at the moment."
At this, the woman clicked her tongue, her alluring face showing an unsightly expression. "That man really does whatever he wishes."
"Heh, we can't really control that kid, now can we?" Augustus chuckled bitterly, handing one plate of burritos to Sierra.
Taking the plate, Sierra held one burrito and took a bite. She once again reminisced about the time Revan had defeated her before offering her a burrito.
The two burritos tasted the same. She was still curious about Revan's techniques. Techniques and Authorities are keys one could use to manipulate the base, fundamental, and conceptual laws of the world.
Of course, the type of laws that could be manipulated depended on how strong the technique was, and how strong a technique was depended on the one wielding it.
For example, if a spiritual being had [Appraisal], and if this being's strength and intelligence were vast, then not even Sierra's [Sage Insight] could surpass it.
What also needs to be considered is that [Sage Insight] was an evolved version of [Appraisal], so surpassing it wasn't easy, even if one were to be stronger than Sierra. The difference in evolution levels was enormous.
In fact, even normal spiritual beings that have [Appraisal] can't analyse more than users of [Sage Insight]. That is why beings whose [Appraisal] could do such a thing were clearly among the strongest, having an inferior version make more of an impact than the advanced version.
This proved that the stronger the lifeform, the greater its control over the laws of the world. She wondered whether Revan was the same.
A being so strong that even his [Appraisal] was enough to see through more than her [Sage Insight] ever could. Either that, or he possessed a technique that was an advanced version of [Sage Insight], which was very unlikely.
Sierra had gotten [Sage Insight] with much difficulty after a thousand years of trial and error. Even so, her naturally gifted talent and genius intellect were the main contributors to evolving [Appraisal] to such a level.
Levelling up a technique was as hard as journeying from Varkana to the edge of the universe. Yes, it was nearly impossible. In fact, one might just call it impossible at this point. Not even spiritual beings, whose lifespans far surpass hers, can level up their techniques so easily.
And yet, Sierra was able to. She was still a semi-spiritual lifeform, and a Silent Harmoner at that. She was a variant of semi-spiritual humans that was specialised in assassination and espionage more than analysis and deduction.
Still, she was able to evolve her [Appraisal] to [Sage Insight]. It has already placed her among the top five percent of the world. Seeing this, she began to speculate that Revan was a spiritual being of such a level.
Revan's abilities far surpass Sierra's. This much has already been shown. Plus, it is also clear that he has the strength to wipe out entire armies. But until now, she didn't know a single technique that he possessed.
None of the three sitting here knew. That was a real issue, and a terrifying one.
At this point, I won't be surprised if he has an Attribute. If Revan were a spiritual being, then this would most likely be true. Of course, she couldn't start speculating, since even among spiritual beings, Attributes were rare.
As she used [Accelerated Thoughts], she finished the burrito within minutes, heaving a light sigh before turning to the chef. He was looking at her with a firm gaze, as if sensing that she was thinking deeply.
Vekas suddenly sighed as he finished his own food, making the other two turn to him. He glanced at them, his black pearl-like eyes meeting their amethyst-violet and ocean-blue ones.
"I should go out and search for him. After telling him about the plan, we should have him inform the king about the location so that we can start a plan of action." The general stood up, but as he turned around, he suddenly jumped back and nearly fell on the campfire.
"Eh?!?!?!" As a sound escaped his lips, the other two were also moved, their eyes darting to where Vekas looked, a dazed expression covering their faces.
"What? I don't look that scary." Revan spoke with furrowed brows and an offended expression.
"... it's more of how you suddenly appeared, kid." Augustus heaved a heavy sigh before standing up, regaining his composure.
"You guys are overreacting. It's not like it's the first time I came here by teleporting." The man pouted in response, his ruby-red eyes darting away, gazing at the ground.
[Spatial Travel]... no, must be at least [Spatial Manipulation].
As she thought this, Sierra also regained her own composure, straightening her posture and gazing at Revan. "We have found the location of their main base."
Revan turned his eyes to her, a small, smug smile forming on his lips. It seemed to irritate Sierra, reminding her of the battle they had back then.
"Good. I'll need that, because the king has decided to mobilise his army to deal with the rebels." His words immediately alerted the three of them, each of them growing stiff.
Vekas stood up, his eyes widened. "His majesty is now actively dealing with them?"
"Yup. At first, it was just passive suppression, but now that the Aldreach Laboratory has been taken over and the laboratories in the Velsabor District have been destroyed, his patience wore off. He's now going to actively destroy their entire foundation."
He took a burrito from the burning hot cooking pot, not even flinching as he took a bite. "Vekas, the king is asking to meet you. He'll need your cooperation to deal with them."
Vekas's eyes narrowed. He couldn't just go to the royal palace to meet up with Charlie. They had to keep the facade that he was missing or dead to throw off the rebels. That was the entire reason he was hiding in the first place.
"Meeting his majesty? Can you tell me where he wants me to meet him?" The general asked, his stance now firm, his brows slightly furrowed, and his eyes fixed on Revan.
"Yeah. Somewhere called... Spirit Connection Tower? I think that was the name." Revan scratched his head as he took a bite of the burrito he was holding.
"Also, why does this burrito taste a bit differ—"
"Spirit Connection Tower?!" The other three immediately jolted at Vekas's tone.
His eyes were widened, his pupils shrank to the size of a pin. His mouth hung open as he took a slight step back, startled by Revan's words.
After a long silence, Augustus cleared his throat lightly. "Hey, Vekas. You good?"
Vekas immediately shook his head lightly and regained his composure, turning to the chef. "My apologies. I was merely surprised after hearing the location. It's top secret, and even I barely know about it."
"Oh? Care to enlighten us?" Sierra asked, her eyes gleaming with interest.
Vekas sighed lightly before turning to her. "The Spirit Connection Tower is located in the deepest parts of Dimrath. Not even official ministers have access to this place. Only the royal family can truly enter here. I only know this place's location because I have served Aethelgard for 500 years."
"Oh? Is it that rare?"
"Indeed, Augustus. If King Charlie wants to meet me here, it means that what he has to talk about is extremely important. I will also reveal the location of the rebels' base to him there."
"Good idea. Meanwhile, Sierra and I can head to the Harrow District and keep tabs on the rebels' base."
"The rebels' base is in the Harrow District? Hmm, I was planning on exploring that district soon. To think I was about to step on the exact area where their main headquarters lies." Revan mused, a small smile on his face.
"But other than that, I want to see this Spirit Connection Tower. From the sound of it, it can connect to the Spirit Realm, correct?"
Vekas narrowed his eyes in response, his gaze falling to the ground. "Hmm, most likely. I am not too sure of the tower's properties since I have never gone inside it yet. Not only was it prohibited by law, but the security is also tight. I might have to somehow convince the guards that the king has summoned me. This might make me need to expose myself."
Sierra and Augustus lowered their heads in response, pondering over his words.
Revan chuckled, his eyes fixated on Vekas's. "Hehe, whatever happens, one thing is certain. It's time for battle!"