"So you failed to obtain the boy? I can't say I'm surprised though. Most of us already expected you to disappoint"
"For someone who lost to the same opponent, you're quite talkative Clinton!" Carlos barked at his taunter. He has finally come clean to the elders about everything. He knew he would be seen as a coward for running away from a battle, but he reported his situation honestly.
"What do we do Manuel? It's obvious Jeffery has grown strong. And every attempt to get to his son so far has failed" Simon questioned. Out of the elders, Simon was arguably the smartest. His intellect and quick witted nature brought him the respect and fame he had now. Even the likes of Manuel respected his opinion in every situation.
"Perhaps it's time I put an end to Jeffery myself. It's clear now that only I stand a chance at defeating him" Manuel answered. Clinton wasn't far from him in strength. And out of the rest, Manuel considered Clinton to be the only who could match him in power. If Clinton lost to Jeffery, then the others didn't stand much of chance. He didn't want to send off any of his comrades to be killed.
"Nonsense! I won't allow it!" Edward Grant rebuffed! He was normally the quiet type. His sudden outburst had definitely gained him some attention. Everyone was aware of his obsession with Manuel. It was rumoured that he had trained so hard to become an elder just so he could be close to Manuel.
"Unfortunately, I must agree with Edward" Simon revealed.
"Whatever do you people mean? Jeffery should be put down as soon as possible! We cannot allow him to get any stronger!" Clinton argued.
"Are you suggesting that we send out our only hope of survival. You might not have noticed, but Jeffery has the ability to neutralise our source of mana" Simon reminded. "While at the valley, we are forced to battle with the mana which is produced by our body. Against those conditions Manuel stands no chance!" Nobody wanted to say it, so he'll speak for them all.
It was probably the reason why Edward had suddenly reacted the way he did. Manuel knew this too, but he felt it was his obligation to do so. Besides, they were other blood sorcerers they needed to be weary of. Jeffrey was definitely a monster, but he wasn't the only notable blood sorcerer capable of bringing an infernal judgement to his knees.
"So what do you suggest we do? Fight him all at once?!"
"We might stand a chance at victory with that strategy. However we cannot risk to lose any more members. We shouldn't forget that the nature sorcerers are equally a threat" Simon reminded. "What do we do Manuel?" He repeated.
"The nature sorcerers, they're equally in enmity with the blood sorcerers. It might not be the best suggestion, but what if we teamed up with them?"
Every eye turned towards Carlos, his suggestion was beyond scandalous in their terms. Should this man really be seated here with them? It was the question every elder was asking themselves at the moment.
Clinton rose to get rid of the man seated opposite him, but Manuel had intervened and cancelled out the flames were meant to destroy Carlos.
"Behave Allen! Violence between members is prohibited. Or must I remind you of the rules?"
Clinton buckled to Manuel's words and returned to his seat. He wasn't the only one who wanted to reprimand Carlos for his words, but he had gone a bit too far. It was obvious now that Carlos wasn't aware of what it meant to be an infernal judgement. One of the pride of the infernal judgement was that they never sought help from the weak. For him to speak against their pride was unforgivable!
"Do not ever make such suggestions in the presence of the elders again!" It was Carlos's turn to get scolded. His words had also gotten Manuel aggravated. "We might not have a lot of options, but seeking for help from an enemy is unforgivable!" He paused and allowed the words to sink in. He didn't want any of the others to think as weak as Carlos.
"For now we'll steer away from Jeffery's radar, until we're able to find a way to properly put an end to him."
"If it's help you want then I'll offer it" A voice spoke from the shadows.
"You know it's disrespectful to eavesdrop on the conversations of the elders. But since you're a potential candidate for eldership, let's hear your opinion, Richard Hardwood."
*
*
"He lost huh, interesting" Jeffrey commented after hearing Rose's reports. Perhaps he had overestimated Daniel a little bit. After the feats he showed the other day, Jeffery had expected him to be on par with the Hardwood boy. However Rose's reports spoke otherwise. Maybe he was holding back against his friend, or he had pulled those feats subconsciously? Jeffery was curious.
"And Alexander?" He inquired.
"He seems to be fine now. Raphael has healed him of his injuries. And is currently preparing them for any future challenges" Rose provided.
After hearing everything rose had to say about the little boy from earlier, Jeffery had been cleared of his doubts. He never expected a being as powerful as Raphael to be around. He was already aware of his encounter with Rose in the past. And after hearing about his truth, the boy has been haunting his dreams.
Jeffrey was cognizant with the fact that he couldn't possibly defeat an archangel. He couldn't even fantasize about it. But according to Rose's theory, it seemed the boy wasn't allowed to interfere with human affairs at the moment. Perhaps that was the reason why he had been given a child's form. A form that would limit his abilities to help mankind. It was only a theory, one that was yet to be confirmed.
The hypothesis seemed likely to be true. But even in his child form, he had still bested a Jeffrey that was going all out. True, he was weaker then compared to now. But he still couldn't bring himself to make any moves while such a being was still around.
"I see. You're dismissed for now." Jeffery said with a wave of his hand. He turned towards the Grimoire that laid beside him, before letting out a sigh. Even with all the knowledge in this book, he still doubted he would still be able to take Raphael down. He needed to get stronger, he needed another source of power!