After reaching Helios, Drake could only resort to make a report to Grand-Knight Sillius. As a Sentinel General, only the head of the sentinel himself could ask a report from Drake. It didn't take long for Drake to be summoned in the Sentinel Headquarters.
"How?", Sillius asked in a suspicious voice, "How did 10 sentinels survive the expedition when all 20 rank 1 acolytes as well as a few disciples of Magus Jackal met their end in the ancient laboratory?"
Drake could only half-hesitantly reply: "I…performed a physical-enhancement experiment on my subordinates, which turned out to be successful, though quite wasteful in terms of funds. General Liu Bu has experienced it first-handed"
"I am fully aware", Sillius replied. As the Grand-knight and the leader of the sentinels, he was basically aware of everything that happened in Helios, "But the enhancement is not that good. Don't beat around the bush. You just lost 4 promising youths, good lads who would have reached General Liu Bu's level in time if it weren't for your tendency to take risks."
Drake bit his lips. He never planned on letting them die either. However, even if it was an ancient laboratory, there shouldn't have been any defence mechanism left, much less hundreds of undead beings, including a rank 3 lich which possessed a power rivalling the strongest rank 3 acolytes! Even Magus Towers would only remain dangerous for a few hundred years. The traps and defence mechanisms would then grow deficient after the erosion of time. Magic rarely stayed put.
"I mean, I am a half-grand knight and a grade 5 talent. If I didn't have a few abilities of my own…", Drake said, unwilling to divulge his rank 2 status yet.
The only certitude Drake had was that Marianne had already planned his downfall. Fortunately, he didn't have to use any magical spell during the expedition, or at least, any spell that stood out. Hence, Marianne still ignored that he was a rank 2 acolyte, though she knew he was a strong half-grand knight.
This meant that his opponent would most likely be rank 2 assassin, perhaps several rank 2 assassins considering her meticulousness.
"…", Sillius stayed silent, not knowing how to deal with this situation.
Drake said: "This is the first time a sentinel has joined an expedition and played a major role. I already told you that without me, the expedition would have been for naught"
"…"
"I am not asking for a monetary reward. Judging by the lack of enchanted weapons and the overall weakness of sentinels, I can easily guess that you simply don't have the funds to support promising talents"
Sillius was about to retort, but found no words to do so. If he could spend magic crystals at will, his five generals would have long since broken through Grand-knight realm. Perhaps there would be even more. Who knew? They only received about a dozen magic crystals per month, which was far from being enough to purchase the truly potent grade 2 or above body strengthening elixirs that were effective on half-grand knights.
"I want you to give me a special and confidential mission, far away from Helios, which would last for several years. I might have offended a few people, and I wish to grow stronger before returning to Helios for good", Drake asked
"Why? There is no safer place than Helios!", Sillius said, "Furthermore, as a general, you shouldn't have any troubles when it comes to authority"
Drake didn't agree: "Wrong, every few years, a few acolytes drop dead and no one has been able to identify the causes of deaths, much less the culprits themselves. Sentinels might be quite strong, but they are clueless when it comes to acolytes' cunningness"
"Are you here to mock us? You are a sentinel now. Insulting us is akin to insulting yourself!", Sillius said in anger.
"I am not mocking you. I am simply stating the truth. You know Roxanne, right? Rey's vendor. She has developed a shockingly potent grade 2 elixirs. It's only a matter of time before she sells it. It will not only be cheap, she will be able to manufacture it in bulk with the right materials. Sell her magical beast corpses, and use the magic crystals to purchase this purple-coloured potion", Drake said while showing a vial he got from Roxanne's.
Sillius looked at it, and nodded. He had seen many elixirs in his life to reach his level, and this elixir definitely seemed like a treasure. Sighing, he said: "Alright…You want a confidential, long-lasting mission, right?"
"Yes."
"I will write you a letter of recommendation to the Evergreen's mayor. A horde of orcs has been spotted. The city must not fall.", Sillius said firmly, "They have been refusing help from the Church of Light. You might wonder why Evergreen is under Helios' jurisdiction despite being located in the West, right? Well, Evergreen has always been treasured by Magi, because it has been excavating a rare ore called Astral Stones. It can be used to travel to otherworldly planes in the multiverse and harvest their lands. I can't tell you more, since I already overstepped my contract by telling you about it."
"Evergreen is one of the 16 Free Cities of Barnolia, capable of rivalling the weakest nations in terms of military and economy? How come they are struggling against orcs? I heard the walls were taller than giants, a result of two hundred years of work. The Maester who tutored me in my childhood sure loved to brag about Evergreen's power."
"There are about 20 000 soldiers, some of them being immaculate soldiers. It's only natural for them to be strong. Over 60 000 mercenaries also joined Evergreen to defend the walls, but this horde of orcs is a bit special. It is led by an Orc King leading them, a rank 3 creature. It can strengthen those he commands through war cries, thus making an orc warrior as strong as a knight, perhaps even stronger. Furthermore, scouts have reported their numbers to be ranging between 30 000 and 35 000."
"So…you want me to defend Evergreen City against a rank 3 Orc King leading an army of thirty thousand orcs? Evergreen is doomed, unless Helios dispatches hundreds of acolytes. Are there any acolyte in the city?"
"No, they have always refused the Magical Court's help in the past. Unless it is a magus, they would usually close the gates. I think they hold suspicions to magical beings because of their bad feud with the blood witches' sect in the past, who murdered innocents. The Magi know their plight but ignored them, wanting to take advantage of their despair to get a monopoly on their astral stones. I planned on completing it by myself, since I am much stronger than average grand knights. Killing the orc king would save the city, and I have the power to do so. But…if it is you and your subordinates, you might do better than that and defend the orc army leading the mercenaries and soldiers. You're already a half-grand knight, and this mission might play a huge role in your breakthrough."
Drake pondered for a while: Evergreen was known to have six Grand Knights. Completing this mission would take years, and because it is confidential, he would not be attacked unless there was a leak. The quicker he left, the better it would be. It was definitely a good opportunity. Sillius' last words made him expectant. Surely, there was a secret in Evergreen City about knights and grand knights.
Although there were over 30 000 orcs, Evergreen still held a numerical advantage. On a plain, it would have been an impossible mission to win with just 80 000 soldiers, but Evergreen possessed giant walls, as well as ballistae that could threaten rank 3 magical beasts. Unless they were broken, it was unlikely for the orc king to go in an all-out war. It would probably focus on sieging the city, preying on merchants, and taking advantage of its species' reproduction rate.
The longer the siege, the higher their numbers and the better their equipment.
"What are the rewards of the mission?", Drake asked.
"Evergreen has promised six pounds of astral stones to Helios, unique resources as well as a seat at the [Powerful Thirteen Elders] of Evergreen for the one who completes the task. If you earn this spot, getting your hands-on astral stones, which are highly valued by the Magi, should not be too difficult. But the reason why Magi haven't completed the task themselves is pretty evident: no one would want to waste years to complete this mission. Evergreen doesn't even want one orc to survive the ordeal. It might take a decade to complete it. Even Magi would find it hard to waste ten years of their lives just for materials. That's why they wait…They wait for them to fall into despair and improve the reward"
Drake nodded. Such was the mindset of magi: apathy to the point of cold-bloodedness in face of a population of million human beings threatened.
"I will take on this mission. Do you think I could get a merchant permit?", Drake asked
"Don't worry about it. Since you want a cover, I will provide one for you. From now on, you are called Marius Dayne, a famous merchant from the Silver Guild. You will lead eight caravans filled with weapons, seeds to survive the siege for your group to last for years", Sillius said, "Take this pouch: it contains 150 000 gold coins, enough to last you for a while in Evergreen. I have a family in Evergreen, save them for my sake"
Drake understood everything…Marius Dayne. It was Sillius' deceased son. He heard General Liu Bu mention it once. He was an illustrious merchant. A genius who couldn't hold a sword properly, but could make a king kneel through mere words. But he died from a disease. No one knew about his whereabouts, or his deceased status. No one but the sentinel generals and Sillius himself.
"Don't worry. I only bet when the odds are in my favour. The higher the stakes, the better the odds when I take the bet. And the stakes in this bet are high…unbelievably high"
Planes, multiverse, astral stones…Drake ignored the secrets lying behind these words. But since it interested the Magi themselves, he didn't need to think twice before nodding and accepting the mission. Furthermore, earning one of the 13 elder spots in Evergreen would most likely result in his father being protected by its authority.
"I will head out this evening. Please spread the words that I enter seclusion with my men. This way, my enemies will not know about my whereabouts", Drake asked
"Don't worry. They won't go after you. Not all magi are aware of this mission. I don't think you offended some magi, or else you wouldn't be standing here…", Sillius replied, "Present this letter to any of the six illustrious Grand-Knights. I have fought, cried and laughed alongside them. They are my brothers-in-arms, and they know my family. Protect Evergreen, if only for the Sentinels"
150 000 gold coins was an enormous sum. Even Dukes would not be able to come up with such an amount of gold coins. It could not be transferred in magic crystals, or else you would be swindled, but still, even if Drake went to a bank, he would earn several hundreds of magic crystals, perhaps even more!
Drake met with Roxanne, and told her he would enter 'seclusion', and used this excuse to get 40 Vitality Elixirs, enough for his consumption for the next three years. She obviously complained, but Drake didn't care about it at all. He then left the city, not as Drake Moonlight, but as Marius Dayne.