Wale led Nine to a part of town that was solidly in the middle-class area of the city. Nine looked at Wale in satisfaction. Even though the messenger reminded him of his old 'instructor', he was still able to keep a level head, getting rid of unnecessary emotions. Since he hadn't met Nine yet to report, it was the best thing he could've done in absence of her orders.
Outside of the room, Nine could feel the presence of the messenger behind closed doors. She nodded at Wale, who nodded back.
Wale knocked on the door slightly louder than was polite, but who would reprimand them when they could already hear the snores from outside the room? Honestly, when the person in the next room heard the loud knock on neighbouring doors, the poor soul clasped his hands together and prayed, thanking the divine intervention. He hadn't been able to get a wink of sleep with the cow next door's snores!
Nine raised a brow when the snores seemed to get more obnoxious the longer, they stood outside the door. Rapidly losing her patience, Nine tilted her head at Wale, who was looking at her with a blank face and a spark in his eye.
Receiving her permission, Wale pulled out a set of lockpicking tools, unlocking the door without any fanfare. He completed the job quickly and efficiently, swinging the door open.
The sight that greeted them within almost made Nine frown, but she schooled her expressions into neutrality.
On the single bed that was within the room, the messenger had clearly stripped off most of her clothes, leaving them scattered on the floor all the way leading up to the bed. There, a woman with pale blonde hair lay on top of the blankets, exposing her body.
Wale scowled fiercely, his cheeks tinting with pink before smoothening back to reflect his Master's remarkable unaffectedness. Inwardly, Wale couldn't help but marvel that his Master was truly infallible. Even the surprise show of a woman's pale skin didn't make Nine bat a single eyelid.
Of course, Nine was still a woman, whether or not she was donning the disguise of a male, and she fully appreciated the cut of a man's figure, but now that she was married, she only had eyes for her Nox. It no longer mattered whichever gender was presented in front of her.
"Wake her up," Nine said coolly, leaving it to Wale. She was too lazy to move a singer. Seeing the sight of this woman's skin when she hadn't been expecting it left her in a bad mood.
Wale's eyes glinted, but he paused, seeing the state of undress the woman was in. Using magic, he shoved her under the blankets. Now that her state of undress was taken care of, Wale gleefully charged up Tier Six spell Electro Web.
Nine cut him a dry look. "I said wake her up, not send her into eternal slumber. We have use for her yet."
Wale discharged the spell into the air, causing the air of the room to contain more static than not. Deterred but not disheartened, he used Tier Two Spell, Charge Shock at half power and directed it at the messenger.
This time, Nine did nothing to stop him.
The spell landed as quickly as it had formed in Wale's hands, and Nine approved wholeheartedly. This subordinate of hers had perfected Charge Shock already, as compared to the Tier Six spell he tried to use earlier. His moves were practiced and smooth. Not even Daspell from the Mage Tower would be able to find fault in the Tier Two spell.
The woman flailed and shrieked the moment she sparks touched her skin, causing both Nine and Wale to look at her with disdainful expressions. The amount of magic Wale put into that skin was distinctly above the pain level that was bearable. Even a commoner who had no experience whatsoever in magic would have easily withstood that without making a sound.
Evidently, it was not so for this woman. The enraged woman climbed out of bed, pointing a shaking finger at Wale. She was so deep within her own world that she didn't even register Nine's presence.
"You!" the woman snarled, the anger consuming her. "What did I ever do to you! Why are you treating me like this?! Not to mention, you're entering my room without my permission in the middle of the night!" the messenger was so angry that she was trembling. When had she ever been treated with indignity like this?
Nine observed the middle-aged lady's facial features and laughed softly. Truly, this house was… she made no move to find her, but she came back to the Cosmos Empire all the same.
Mallory Beverley had been the Emperor's favourite concubine for the past ten years. Living in his harem, she had enjoyed the favour of the Emperor and lorded over all the other women within the harem, including the Empress. Though she received news that her former house needed her help, she ignored it. What if the Emperor thought that she was harbouring disloyal thoughts? She didn't want to die for some people she didn't even have contact with anymore.
Pale blonde hair that was the Beverley family's distinct characteristic, and dark green eyes. Delicate and sweet, Mallory Beverley looked like a distinguished noble lady that had been spoiled her entire life. Though she was already almost in her forties, she retained the good looks of a fresh and charming lady.
She had been living a lavish and glamorous lifestyle within the Emperor's harem, indulging in food, drink and music. She had the Emperor wrapped around her dainty little pinky finger, and she knew it. She exploited the Emperor's affections and ruled the harem.
So, when the hoards of undead started invading the city walls and tearing people apart limb from limb, she was understandably terrified out of her mind. As the Emperor's favourite concubine and a noble lady, when had she ever seen a Magic Beast out in the wild, let alone a monster? To witness the sight of undead crowding around the palace gates sent a chill up her spine.
Mallory ran for the Emperor, where he shielded her to the best of his ability. Though she had been safe in his arms, the love she felt for him was outweighed by the terror that devoured her consciousness whenever she heard those screams.
Though Mallory had never seen or been in a battle, she was, quite remarkably, in her opinion, a Fourth Tier mage. As one of the few handfuls of Fourth Tier mages in the Ashtria Empire, people revered her wherever she walked.
Which was why, when the Emperor had sent her to be a 'messenger' to the Cosmos Empire in hopes of attaining help, as she had once hailed from there, she did not dissuade him and sent him loving looks as she promised to bring back help.
From the boy's impeccable dress, he had clearly been brought here by someone who was superior, allowing him to maintain his clean looks to be presented to her darling Emperor. Unfortunately for her, little did she know that this little boy had come here on his lonesome.
When he informed her of this fact, she had scoffed, coming to the conclusion that he used some sort of obscure spell that would prevent the undead from recognising his scent, and thus avoid him.
When she tried to show him how it was done, and show him he did, not only did he not appreciate the fact that she had gotten hurt for him, he had dumped her in this rundown low-class establishment!
Honestly, Mallory had been too tired to care, quickly stripping and throwing herself on the bed, drifting off to sleep. Had she had any more energy; she would have hit him six ways to Sunday herself. Who did he think he was?
Realizing that there was another person in the room when she heard the soft, alluring laugh, she looked at the extra person in anger, ready to give him a piece of her mind, when she laid eyes on the most charming, valiant, manly and overall divine-looking being that she had ever seen. Not even the Emperor could compare to this man's stunning looks.
As she was lost in her delusions, she felt a faint breeze on her chest, causing her to look down absently, only to shriek.
Hurriedly, she pulled the blanket from the bed, wrapping herself in the cloth. She pointed at the both of them in anger, her finger shaking. "How dare you! How *dare* you! Do you even know who I am? Now that you've besmirched my honour, how will I face the Emperor again!?"
Mallory froze at the coldest glare she had ever received. She shivered under the confines of the blanket, feeling like the room had dropped in temperature.
She saw how the unknown man scanned her from head to bottom, leaving her feeling flush, only for the flush to darken in anger as he scoffed.
Wale smiled pleasantly at the utterly idiotic woman, stepping forward into her space.
Mallory backed away, feeling fear creep up on her. What did they want to do to her? Now that the world was wrapped up in chaos and death, did the laws still apply? Were they going to take her by force? She knew that her appearance was still as lovely as the day she had first married into the Emperor's harem. The stares that he gave her never diminished, which was a point of pride for her.
Wale's smile abruptly slipped into a sneer at her actions. Before she could react, he was within reach from her. With a swing, he landed a resounding slap on her face, causing a red hand print to bloom on pale, previously untarnished skin.
Mallory stumbled to the floor at the sudden pain that assaulted her. She reached up in disbelief to hold her aching cheek.
"How *dare* you?!"