Within minutes, a ship descended, carrying two emissaries from the Magus Alliance who joined the gathering. One was the middle-aged Magus Nathan, a familiar face who had visited a few times before—the same magus who penalized Emery in his first year. The second was an unfamiliar magus officer named Soto.
With the routine introduction, Magus Nathan identified himself as an appointed official and silently took out his notes, creating a moment of awkward silence. Fortunately, Magus Soto proved to be a bit more sociable, offering a friendly remark,
"Thank you for inviting us to this interesting event."
While maintaining a hospitable demeanor, Emery couldn't help but express his concern and sought an explanation from Klea through telepathy. Her response came promptly,
