Back in his apartment, Orion sat on the living room couch and leaned back, staring at the ceiling.
'Revenge...'
Orion wanted revenge, yet he felt no particular hate. He felt... empty, unsure. Orion was never the type to snap. Never angry at anything or anyone. He truly had a good temper... too good perhaps.
'People say that, after finally getting the revenge they sought, they felt regret or emptiness. Will I be like that? Or... will remain the same?'
After a brief moment of silence, he muttered.
"Revenge is not a purpose. It's a goal. A goal among others in one's checklist. I will not live for revenge."
Soon after, Elisa came back from the shower, wearing the same clothes, but they were cleaner.
"I suppose you've met the Nirvanas while I was away?"
Elisa nodded as she dried her hair with a towel. "Yes. I did. They are strong but... It's too dangerous. They'll be searching for me."
"I know. But we don't have anyone else for now. I don't know where Uncle Graves is, nor if we even have allies who believe your side of the story..."
"... Either way, we need to head back for the funeral. Alex, Nicolas, Julia."
In the next second, three figures emerged from the shadows, and each sank to one knee. As the leader, Nicolas answered almost immediately.
"Your Highness."
Orion stood up and walked up to them. Each step felt like an anvil fell onto their head. They looked extremely nervous for some reason.
"Calm down... Alex and Julia, assess the funds we have. Then prepare tickets to head to the Inner World. We'll attend the funeral."
Orion turned towards Nicolas.
"Call me Orion Blake from now on. I don't want people to hear you calming me, highness. And secondly, you and Elisa will train me. I have barely 3 months to prepare for the entrance exam. It should start in early November. And the semester starts in January, right?"
Orion turned to Elisa for confirmation. Seeing her nod, he turned back toward the trio.
"Questions?"
"No questions, Sir Orion."
Elisa smiled softly and said with a smile. "I'll try my best."
***
Inner World, Eastern Continent.
Solas Kingdom capital, Iridia.
White Palace.
Inside the palace, the walls were almost pure white with a hint of silver. The giant walls were adorned with intricate black and silver designs. It was a palace that one could describe as both ancient and modern.
Inside a room, deep underground, 5 people sat at a giant round table, each having an imposing aura.
Norman Kalix was silently drumming the table with his fingers as he asked in an irritating tone.
"Tch, where the hell is Graves? I heard he received crucial information."
Right at the heels of that, the giant heavy door behind Norman opened, and footsteps were heard.
However, in an instant, the whole room was filled with enormous pressure. So much so that even the newly crowned King could barely keep his head high.
"Sigh, patience, Mr King. Patience."
Graves walked leisurely around the table and sat opposite Norman, filling the table as the sixth participant.
The second Graves sat down, the pressure was immediately lifted. Norman took a second to take a deep breath before continuing: "Graves... why are you late? again?"
Graves Blade chuckled. "Oh, come on, I was just 5 minutes late. Besides, I bring good intel, you know? But before that, congratulations are a given right? Come on, I'm waiting! And not just for the info, but for my breakthrough as well!"
An awkward silence filled the room as Graves only laughed.
'Oh, I miss Orion...'
"Wow, what a welcome... I come back from training, my brother's dead, the council votes for the Kalix to take the White Palace, and my sister-in-law is missing... what a warm welcome..."
A cold atmosphere filled the entire room as Graves' expression flattened into a cold one. However, the coldness was immediately broken after he heard a feminine voice.
"Congratulations on advancing to a Warlord, Graves Blade."
"OH!"
Graves quickly fixed his black hair and let out the nicest smile in the world.
"Miss Elaine Frost, I hope you have been well during my absence. Pardon my rudeness, I was so blinded by your beauty that I forgot to greet you. Though I must say, with such radiant beauty and expression as cold as your attacks, even a god would be blinded."
Elaine's expression remained stoic as Norman interjected.
"Hmph, you are the complete opposite of his Majesty Toren. This is not just any meeting, Graves. Have some decency!"
Norman was angry, which was reasonable, but Graves couldn't care less.
"Heh? opposite? So much respect for my brother, but you guys don't even know him. Ah well... right, the info."
Graves took a deep breath before finally saying the information he had brought.
"Uhh... So basically, my sister-in-law had nothing to do with the assassination. Apparently, dark mages are the origin of it; the only reason artefacts were missing was that she took them for protection and to escape."
Norman frowned deeply. "How certain are you?"
"Certain."
Norman sighed before lifting his head to meet Graves' gaze. "I will remove the warrant from Elisa Constantine's head."
"WAIT!" Adam Pollux's chair slid back as he stood up. "How can we be sure he isn't lying? He could be blatantly lying to protect his sister-in-law."
Norman's eyes widened as he heard Graves mutter a single word.
"Protect?"
Graves' eyes darkened as he too stood up from his seat and met Adam's gaze.
"Are you insinuating... that I, Graves Blade, am protecting my brother's murderer?"
Graves' voice was cold as ice, but Adam didn't back down easily, for he was at the peak of the fifth realm, a sorcerer. And he wasn't scared of Graves' temper.
"No. What I meant was we don't have any proof. No proof regarding Elisa truly is not involved, and that you are protecting an innocent person. You could be wrong."
Graves stared at Adam's soul for a couple of seconds before a voice interfered. Graves recognised it well; it was Jacob Constantine's, Elisa's father.
"May I suggest a course of action? Since we do not have proof that she is innocent nor that she is guilty, I propose we lower her warrant level from level 4 to 3."
A warrant issued by a body from the Inner World has great implications. Additionally, it could be classified into 5 levels.
Level 1-> warrant for the search and arrest of the individual on sight. Danger level 0 to 1.
Level 2-> Warrant for intensive search, no warrant from the local country required before taking action. Danger level 2. Chosen agents may be required.
Level 3-> Warrant for Search and arrest of an individual or body. Special agents of the issuing body shall participate in the operations. Danger level 3. Chosen forces are mandatory.
Level 4-> Warrant for Search of an individual or group of individuals. Maximum amount of force allowed not specified. Body must be captured Dead or Alive. Danger level 4, minimum rank: 4 or above.
Level 5-> Warrant for the death of an individual or body. Danger level unknown. Minimum rank null.
Level 5 warrants were created for extreme cases and have still never been used before; however, there were instances where the use of it were discussed. A level 5 warrant would be the equivalent of a person or a body(organisation) undergoing a war against the issuing body. Level 5 warrants are referred to as an extermination order on the largest scale.
Norman pinched his chin and thought for a couple of seconds before finally agreeing.
"Any objections?"
Elaine Frost of House Frost nodded silently. And so did Jacob Constantine of House Constantine. Seconds later, Graves Blade of House Blade, Adam Pollux of House Pollux, Arian Starlight of House Starlight and finally Norman Kalix of House Kalix, and King of Solas, gave the final nod.
"Then it's decided, until we have further proof of Elisa Constantine's innocence, her Warrant level shall remain at a level 3 one."
With that, Norman hit the table with his index finger.
THUD—!
"Let's take a 20-minute break before the next session"
Graves gave Norman a sly grin. "Yes, yes, as you wish, Mr King."