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Ulvala, Outskirts of Yoshos Empire, Time: 9:20 AM
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James rubbed his eyes to check if he was dreaming, "Wow..." and the group fell silent, taking in the impressive sight.
Ezra broke the silence, seeking confirmation, "So, this is the HQ of Gray Phoenix? I suppose your director is up there."
"Yup, along with his three right-hand men." Koras stretched his back, "I've met them in person before, but I never paid them much attention," He replied, emphasizing that his relationship with the director and colleagues was strictly business.
Ace expressed concern but maintained his stoic expression, saying, "I hope you don't grow attached to any of them. This might get messy."
"Don't worry, I've learned that those guys are in the wrong. Maybe I could spare the other three, but not my director," Koras declared. He might forgive the three colleagues, but the director was a different story.
"I have to handle this man's torture and mental anguish every single day..." Koras's hand started to bleed from clutching it too tightly.
Mianne expressed concern, "You seem to have had a rocky path in your childhood..."
Veins appeared on Koras's forehead as he replied, "I lost my dearest friend because of him; I can still remember it to this very day." His memories were vivid, etched clearly in his mind.
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Ulvala, The Gray Phoenix Dungeon, 2 years ago.
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Shackled up, detained, and captured, Koras almost gasped for air from the torture they were putting him through. "Come on, tell us where he went," the executioner prepared his hot metal rod by hitting it with his hammer.
Koras angrily stared at the man wearing a potato sack hood, "KISS MY ASS, SACK OF SHIT." He wanted to crush his head into a bunch of berries or make an entire drink out of him.
"You are truly just a difficult brat..." the executioner sighed at how stubborn Koras was being. "So that you know, you asked for it." The masked man exclaimed. Koras didn't care.
The man got closer and stabbed the rod into Koras's old wound, it was sizzling like crazy.
"G-GRAAHHHH!!!" Koras screamed in pain as the rod burned his scar even more. The masked man remained silent, plunging the rod deeper into Koras's wound.
"That's enough," an unknown person spoke, ordering the masked man to stop.
"Of course, My liege." The masked man bowed and left the jail cell.
The man, with thick wavy mid-length hair, wearing a white suit with a black tie and a red coat draped over his shoulders with gold ornaments, addressed Koras, "I'll handle it from here." The masked man left as instructed.
"You're a persistent one, I will admit that," the man said, placing both hands on his hips. "But, I feel like that aggression and cold attitude wouldn't help in this situation," he continued, moving closer to Koras and sitting down beside him.
"So, I have an offer for you," the man said, attempting to look at Koras, who turned away in silence.
"Join me. With Gray Phoenix on your side, we will be unstoppable," the man declared. Koras clicked his tongue, not trusting these guys from the beginning, and now they were offering him a job?!
"Like hell, you think I'd forget about it?! I sacrificed for my friend! You think you can just tame me like a dog?!" Koras yelled. The man observed it like a temper tantrum from a child.
"Fine, we'll add another offer into the mix. We'll forget the entire thing about your friends, Vermilion," the man proposed, the cigarette was almost empty as the ashes fell to the floor.
Koras clenched his teeth in frustration, "You're lying! A bunch of shitstains like you would never keep your damn promises! I knew you Twilight people are snakes!" he retorted.
"See for yourself," the man said, pulling out documents and photographs of Vermilion. The man then set everything on fire, leaving no trace behind.
"I didn't lie about it, did I?" The man remarked. Koras didn't even know how to feel about this revelation. While they would stop chasing Vermilion, he wondered if this was truly what his old friend would have wanted.
"I guess that's a no," the man said as he moved away and approached the jail cell doors,
"WAIT!" Koras yelled out.
The man momentarily stopped and turned to him.
"I will join you!" Koras finally gave his answer.
"Good, go get yourself cleaned up and rest for the day. Training starts tomorrow," the man said, tossing the key to the jail cell door onto the ground.
"Tell me, who are you, sir?" Koras inquired, he could feel the disgust coming out of his mouth.
The man decided to answer his question. "I am Ludwig Orndorff," he said as he took his leave, leaving Koras in his jail.
Koras looked at his hand and started to tear up, "I shouldn't have..." Koras covered his face, tears streaming down.
"FUCK!" Koras shouted as he hit the wall, leaving a massive crack in it.
Koras hit his head against the wall, "What would he think of me..." Koras could only cry as he might have just lost his friend's entire trust.
After an hour or so, Ludwig was leaning back against the office wall before he turned around to see Koras standing there, an emotionless expression on his face.
"Look at you! Finally dressed up and accepting of who you are." Ludwig picked a hand on Koras's shoulder.
"Welcome to the family, Koras." Ludwig smiled as Koras glared at him with intense hatred.
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Ulvala, Gray Phoenix Tower, Time: 9:40 AM
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Koras wore a bitter expression, "God, I am so sorry for you..." Ace remarked. The pain he had to endure every single day was a very painful thing to hear.
"Yeah, that's just... gosh, I want to punch your director in the face." James lightly punched his palm with a serious expression, ready for action.
"Jeez, sorry that happened to you, big guy," Mianne said, rubbing Koras's back as he could only sniff.
"I can relate to your pain; it must be hard for you to endure this," Ezra stated, causing confusion among the group.
Since they were talking in front of the tower, the gate guards could only cluelessly watch from a distance.
"Man, what are they even talking about?" one guard whispered to another.
"No idea, but isn't that Sir Koras?" Before they could put two and two together, both of them were knocked unconscious with Ezra's karate chop to their necks.
"Take that, dipshit." Ezra dragged their bodies to the group.
"Ezra...did you just slip into the shadow-"
Ezra quickly hushed Mianne, "Well, I have a plan we could execute." Ezra lifted the two unconscious guards, a smirk on his face.
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Ulvala, Gray Phoenix Tower, Time: 9:50 AM
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"Oh! Welcome back, Koras, sir!" The receptionist greeted, not expecting Koras to return to HQ today.
"Thank you. I have matters to report to the director today," Koras said. The receptionist seemed curious about what he would be discussing with the directors.
"But first, I need to take a look at the dungeons," Koras said, leading his men downstairs.
The receptionist waved at him, and he returned the wave, "He seemed a bit nicer today..."
Koras entered the dungeon where a group of slaves were toiling away mining coal.
"Greetings, sir!"
"Oh! Koras, sir! Good morning!"
"Welcome back, Koras, sir!"
All the guards who were guarding the dungeon greeted him.
"You guys can go get a break; I will take over from here," Koras offered. He needs to get all of them out of his sight for a bit.
The guards were confused about how easily Koras could take over, but they didn't question it and gladly accepted the offer. "Wow, thanks a lot, sir!"
"Alright, you guys can take off your helmets now," Koras ordered his men.
"God, this thing is so uncomfortable," a familiar voice said as Mianne removed her helmet, revealing herself.
The team had disguised themselves as GP soldiers, and it surprisingly worked, with only four conveniently placed guards guarding the gate. It's time for them to discover the truth.
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