I should've been more careful with my words.
I thought I knew there was trouble the moment Rodin brought that kid into my office. Truth be told, I'd have rather it been the bandits at the time.
At first sight, I assumed he was like the many who came before him, a new Initiate with too much ego. Or worse, the leader of a group of foreign nobles or royals who took to the land for adventure and ambitions to conquer all they set their eyes upon.
I learned that the latter was true the moment he spoke. The slow, deliberate method of talking he had reeked of Deapou. And his arrogance was unbounded. Half-elf or not, to claim he could solve so many problems in such little time with such a small stature was laughable.
Arrogant. But surely well-mannered.
And, it wasn't as if that arrogance was misplaced.
As Rodin stated, I couldn't feel a lick of mana coming from him, save a few fields of weak mana surrounding him. A surefire sign that he was powerful. If him being of elven blood wasn't enough proof of his claims.
What was more terrifying was the keen intellect he displayed. His retorts to my inquiries required no conjecture or deliberation. They were instead relayed with the efficiency that came from years of practice. If not decades. And worse, his painfully blunt points were accurate.
It was as he said. Hill Base was as far from the Territories as one could get without crossing the mountain. It was a backwoods town that hadn't even established a trade route. But had mined out a not insignificant treasury for itself since its inception. We weren't even three hundred strong, but we had a community that ran deep in the hearts of the citizenry. The only enemies we had were those who sought to steal gold, burn buildings, and defile women.
Bandits. Raiders. Savages.
Not ones to use spies.
So, as I'm sure he planned from the start, I found myself with nothing to lose. And everything to gain.
At worst, I assumed he'd kill many, if not most of the bandits before he died by their hands. Then, his party would avenge him and the guards would clean up behind them.
Certainly an unlikely outcome.
At best, I assumed Hill Base would be freed of the scourge that had plagued it since its inception and would gain two additional sources of income in the process. Temporary as those sources may be.
Truth be told, I was more than willing to agree to his terms once I came to understand them. But learning of his platinum quality served to be all the assurance I needed. And learning that the workers to be residing in our village were platinum quality as well was the icing on the cake.
But, there was still something that was bothering me.
'Amun.' I tapped at my chin. 'Why does that name sound familiar?'
I racked both my mind and the files I still had until a quick rapport came from the door. Turning my unbridled curiosity into frustrated apprehension.
'What now?' I groaned on my way to the door and found Liam, looking over his subtly heaving shoulders.
Upon making eye contact, he regained his proud composure and stiffened his back into a sharp salute to say. "They're back, Sir."
To which I shook my head. "They're back?"
"Rodin and the dark elf, Sir." He panted. "They've just returned."
"It's-" I paused to glance at the quest sheet. Surely, it'd been updated and the countdown was stagnant. "It's hardly been forty minutes!" I snapped back to Liam in disbelief.
"Yes, Sir." He simply nodded. Continued catching his breath.
"Tell Rodin to see me at once and lead Amun and his party to the front door."
With another salute, Liam turned to vault over the handrails and roll to a landing. Then disappeared out the main doors. Giving me a few more minutes to scour my library until Rodin shuffled his way inside with a knock.
"How'd it go?" I asked without turning.
To which, he remained silent.
"Rodin?"
"Rodin!" I sneered for the second time. Then turned to see a spaced-out Dukeen standing before my desk.
No.
He wasn't spaced out. The wide-eyes. The clammy, pale skin. Shortened breath. I've seen it in the citizenry- in myself, after every raid.
Rodin was traumatized.
Dukeen Rodin. A veteran of the Epethian Royal Guard, having seen and done the worst things imaginable to another human. Rodin. The esteemed Guard Captain of Hill Base, who's put his life on the line for everyone living here more times than I could remember. That man was traumatized.
Something I never thought I'd witness in all my days.
Honestly, to see him in such a way was an object of curiosity. It was commonly believed amongst the townsfolk and even the guards that Captain Rodin couldn't be phased by anything. I was somewhat included in that demographic, which made the difficulty I faced in finding the truth all the more frustrating.
With a cold sneer and a contemptuous groan spewn from the gut, I thrusted my chalice at Rodin's face. Splashing the pungent amber liquid right into his eyes.
"Ugh!" He backpedaled through my office, rubbing his eyes with his hands. "Sir, why?"
"I won't ask you again, Rodin!" I snapped. "Tell me what happened."
He shuddered in place after hearing the question. But the whiskey in his eyes served to keep his attention focused on my demands. And he muttered through his hands. "I- it was him."
"What was?" I groaned. "Be specific."
"The sky." He muttered.
"Rodin." I sneered.
"The lightning storm." He gasped. "It was him."
"The one that coated the sky?" I incredulously asked. "You're telling me it came from him?"
"Yes, Sir."
"Unbelievable." I slumped into my seat upon hearing the words. Emitting a few maddened cackles through my nose.
For more than a few moments after, I was at a loss for words. My mind couldn't even create a single thought in those moments. It took Rodin to finally clear his eyes and another serving of whiskey to be poured for my shock to subside enough for me to repeat myself.
"He spawned magical dogs, Sir." Rodin somewhat calmly explained. "They stood in front of him to sniff some gloves left by the enemy. Then we warped to a cave. The dogs then dug into the shadows to… eat the guards alive. Then, w- we warped inside. And he used his lightning to seal off the entrance."
'Shadows?' I raised a brow.
"He fought in the dark?" I then asked.
"No." Rodin shook his head. "Cave had enchanted lights. But… it wasn't a fight. In his words, it was an experiment. His dogs held me back while he went on ahead. I heard a barrage of spells and cannon fire. There was a pause. Followed by the sound of weapons hitting the floor and people screaming."
"Screaming?" I leaned forward. "In what way?"
"As if they were pained. They were cursing him." Rodin grunted. "At that time, the dogs led me deeper into the cave to the main room. And…" He shuddered again. "The bandits were just… floating in the air. Clumped together in a huge ball. The leaders in the rear rooms were unaffected by his spell, but…" He shuddered again. "They were no match for him. He was too fast to see. He killed the leaders with a strange scythe before bringing the others down in groups to kill them with but a touch.
"You understand what this means, Sir?" Rodin grimly asked. He's from the Family of Devils. Of that, I'm certain. It felt like the place was cursed when all was done. And his magic was unlike anything I've ever seen before, Sir."
"Take some time off, Dukeen," I softly said. "Get yourself a stiff drink and some rest. And clean yourself up."
"I'm fine, Sir." He respectfully shook his head. "Trust."
"Then hurry and clean yourself up." I jerked my head to the en suite. "The Devil is waiting."
***
After a short wait for Rodin to get cleaned up and fetch his son, we stepped outside to find Amun and his seven companions gathered in a huddle a few ways away from town hall. Cheerfully ignoring the mob of citizens gathered in a half-ring to gawk at them.
The party consisted of three who were clearly fighters, one axe-wielding male and two sword-bearing females, along with two suited men and two others who were dressed in an odd one-piece suit and a weird type of dress.
'Strange clothes indeed.'
"Good day everyone." I offered a raised hand and a smile to the group. "My name is Johann Silas, humble Mayor of Hill Base."
I stayed silent as they introduced themselves in turn, then shifted my posture to Amun, approaching with a gesture to the one with the weird hair the oddly cheerful girl.
"Giorno here is the tailor I told you about and Letta is a watchmaker and gem crafter," Amun said. "Mind giving them a tour while we talk in private?"
"Right then." I turned to a random guard to delegate the responsibility. Prompting Amun's party to trod off into the distance with the citizenry cheering at their tails.
"Care to walk and talk?" Amun asked, then turned to face the mountain in the same breath. "Rodin and his junior can come too."
I nodded my agreement and followed after him, just as curious as the others. He, on the other hand, was as amiable as ever. Waltzing and tending to his vices as if he were strolling through a courtyard.
"You're a smoker?" I asked, attempting small talk. Though I was still a bit surprised seeing someone so young smoking.
Without looking my way, he pulled another cigar from seemingly nowhere and held it out behind him. "Want some?"
"I'm more of a drinker, myself," I said. And watched as Joe reached forward to claim it for himself.
"Alcohol has no effect on me." Amun casually shrugged.
"Damn." Rodin chuckled dryly. "I'm sorry for your loss."
"Eh." Amun shrugged again. "I never liked being drunk anyways."
Me, Dukeen, and Joe all glanced to each other with furrowed brows and squinting eyes. Seemingly asking ourselves the same question.
However, any attempts at turning that mental inquiry into spoken word were disrupted by Amun halting us at the base of the mountain. Where he turned to us with an amused grin and the release of a domain that encompassed the four of us. "Do as I do."
We all leaned forward to watch him plant his foot against the wall. Then repeated the same motion his hand, kick his other foot off the wall, and… stand upright on a vertical surface.
Following his actions was the most uncanny feeling. When my limbs touched the wall it was as if I started… falling towards it. I kicked my leg off from what was the ground and felt like I was mimicking a horse to amuse the kids. And after raising myself to my full height, the rocky mountain that towered into the blue sky above Hill Base had been transformed into an uneven stone plain that stretched to a blue and white horizon.
While it took only a few moments to get my footing, it was an experience that I would never become familiar with. But as always, Amun was amiably walking and smoking, guiding us farther down the plain. Higher up the mountain.
"I questioned the bandits," he said after a few moments. "I imagine you'll be pleased to hear that they were working alone."
"As all bandits do." Joe spat. "They live by their primal desires and are loyal only to themselves."
"In a way." Amun continued as if Joe had never spoken. "They were a twisted version of the residents of Hill Base. Those struggling to survive outside the Territories. Only, they turned to crime and degeneracy instead of honest work.
"Regardless." He paused to finally turn and look down on Hill Base. "You and everyone here can take solace in the fact that they are all dead."
"It seems I have underestimated you, Amun." I turned to him with a formal bow. Invoking a strong sense of vertigo as the plains below tilted in my peripherals. "Tell me." I smiled after stabilizing myself. "Are you the one who polluted the night sky with lightning a couple of weeks ago?"
"I am." He nonchalantly replied. Then outstretched his arm to conjure a phantom version of the same metallic sheet the quest was written on.
[Name: Amun.]
[Race: Half-Drow/Human]
[Grade: Platinum (379)]
[Rank: Initiate Sorcerer]
[Well: 18th class Arcana]
[Pores: .96]
[Int: 50]
[S: 29]
[Cons: 50]
[Ag: 50]
[Dex: 50]
[CA: 50]
[EP: 50]
[MP: 50]
"I've never seen anyone with so many immeasurable marks." I gasped in disbelief. "Nor have I seen an elf."
"Half." He coldly spat. Then gestured to the rest of his party far below. "As I said before, the others are platinum Initiates as well. And you'll find that they have just as many… immeasurable marks as I do."
"A Sorcerer with an eighteenth-class Arcane Well. And your pores." Rodin dryly chuckled. "You're stronger than the empress, you know?"
"That doesn't mean I'm going to revolt against her." Amun scoffed. "My ambitions reach far beyond Epethia."
"So you've said." I sighed. "I assume your ambitions start with the Academy?"
Surprisingly, he shook his head without delay. "My ambition starts here, in Hill Base. As you may have guessed, Letta and Giorno aren't accompanying us to the academy. They'll be staying here, as we agreed. And while they're here, they'll uplift this place into a proper city."
"And… after that?" I hesitantly asked.
"What happens after that is up to your people." He shrugged. "But first, I want to ask you all something. Or rather, a few things."
"What is it?"
"First." He squatted, opening a pool of darkness below his feet that spat out a few hefty sacks before disappearing. "This is all the coin I looted from the bandits. Seeing as how it was most likely looted from you, It's yours."
"Nonsense." I shook my head. "You have a claim to everything you encounter during the quest. It's unspoken law."
"I have no use for it, and I don't want to go back and forth. So just take it." Amun coldly spat.
So be it." I signaled to Joe with a deep sigh.
"Second question," he continued in his amiable tone. "Do you want the citizens to confirm the death of the bandits? I can show them their bodies." He cheerfully added.
'What is wrong with you?' I shook my head in horror. "No. Absolutely not. The children should never see such a thing?"
"What about the adults?"
"NO!" I stomped. Then regretted it a moment after.
"Okay." Amun turned away with a shrug and took a long drag of his cigar. Then pointed to the top of the town sitting before us and blew out a cloud of smoke to ask. "What do you see?"
"What do I see?" I slowly shook my head.
"Yeah." He nodded. Pointed again to the town. "All of you. Look and tell me what you see."
"Uhm… Hill Base," Rodin slowly said.
"That's it? Just Hill Base?" He snorted. Took another drag of his cigar. "I see a close community with a backbone. Made of a group of people who've turned away from the rule of tyrants to forge their own place in the world. I see a struggling town that has the potential for greatness."
"I- I suppose that's true," I said. Turning to look at Hill Base from this new perspective for the first time.
"Okay." He nodded after a few moments. "Now, imagine yourself standing here in five years. What do you see then?"
"A safe haven with a bustling economy," I answered with equal parts certainty and confusion.
"What about ten years from now?" He asked in the next breath. "What about fifty, or a hundred years from now? What do you see then?"
"I'll probably be ashes by then." Joe quipped with a nervous chuckle.
"But your children won't." Amun immediately countered. "Assuming you have any, of course. But, what about him." He paused to point to the tiny silhouette of a child trailing behind the crowd. "That kid or any other child in your village has the potential to grow and learn and have children- grandchildren of their own someday. How do you, as the leaders of today, want those unborn souls to be raised in Hill Base? What should they learn about the world, their people, and history? What values would be passed on to them? More so, what problems could they be facing? Are they overpopulated? Are they starving? Are they running out of resources to keep this industry running? If so, what can be done in our time to ensure that the probability of those things occurring in the future remains low? These are the things that should be considered and planned for in excess when creating a civilization from scratch."
"And you intend to help us with that?" I nervously asked.
"For four years." He carelessly shrugged. "After that, your people have a choice."
"And there it is," I muttered in near defeat. "The devil makes his declaration."
"Eh." He shrugged. "You're not wrong."
"It seems your ears aren't for show after all." I hurriedly bowed. 'That was nearly silent.'
"But you seem to misunderstand me." He continued as if he didn't hear me. "I don't seek to subjugate or rule anyone, only to uplift those who ask or accept my assistance.
"If Hill Base rejects my offer, I'll return in four years to collect Letta and Giorno. And we'll leave you be. If you accept, Hill Base will be placed under my protection from this moment forward. You and your people will have access to all of my knowledge. Everyone will be educated and trained to defend themselves. And we'll spend no more than a week fortifying Hill Base into a true city.
"Upon graduating the academy." He smirked. "I will return to Maru as a guild master and Hill Base will become guild headquarters- a capital city in its own right and the greatest metropolis Maru has ever seen.
"The only condition is that every man, woman, and child be aware of the deal and that every citizen who's of age take a vote." He sternly added. Whether you decide now, or in four years, is up to the collective. For now." He gestured ahead. "I'm sure we have things to do, so… let's say we talk again at sundown?"
A deal with the devil indeed.
"Sure." I meekly nodded.
As far as I knew, the level of foresight shown by Amun was only seen in royalty and necromancers. Those who've been blessed with knowledge and magic that's been passed down for dozens, if not hundreds of generations. And the Devils who used tainted mana from the Underworld to meddle with death and prolong their life.
Thinking aloud, I muttered. "Amun." Causing the half-elf to expectantly turn over his shoulder. 'May as well speak my mind now.' I sighed. "The name rang a few bells when you first told me. It took me to scan through my files to remember where I first heard it. Amun of Odissi, heir to the house of Cole. That is you, I presume?"
"It is." He calmly nodded.
"So, when you say Hill Base will be under your protection, you mean to say protected by necromancy?"
"Correct." He nodded again. "Specifically, Hill Base will be protected by two poltergeists, four wraiths, and a dread wraith. They'll be the first line of defense. And I've given them strict orders that'll keep them out of sight and out of mind from the citizens and any visitors coming to or from the city.
"You won't even know they're there." He charmingly smiled. "Should intruders get past them, your guards would have had enough time to prepare a counterattack. And, as I've said, I intend to train every able body while we're here."
"Train us in what?" Joe asked.
Amun stopped to turn and thrust his hand about in front of him, manipulating the mana into a column of white fire that crawled up the mountain. Blasting the town with scorching heat in the second that passed before it puttered out.
"How to properly manipulate the elements." He turned back to us, grinning wide.
Following Amun's display, the rest of the walk down the mountain was filled with awed silence. While Joe and Dukeen's minds were certainly racing about the power-ups they were promised, mine had gone into overdrive. Answering and testing and planning out responses to the questions Amun proposed.
That ended with the mob migrating towards us, around ten meters above the ground. At which time I felt as if I need to voice a question of my own.
"Before we enter the city," I said. Halting Amun in place. "I want to ask you. What do you see when you look at Hill Base in five years?
His mouth curled into a soft smile before he continued walking. "The core of the moon." He dreamily replied over his shoulder.
"Ah." I slowly nodded. "And a moon is…?"