A guard stood in one of the two watch towers in the Governer mention, keeping watch over the area while occasionally looking at the mention, mumbling words of anger.
"I hate this job. At this time, I should be at home, having a fun time with my Luzie, or maybe double fun with her and Birke," He muttered under his breath, keeping his voice low enough to avoid being overheard.
"I don't have any real proof, but I am damn certain that the Governor has something against me to force me to take on the nighttime guard duty," He continued, his voice laced with frustration. Then, suddenly, his eyes widened as a realization struck him.
"I did remember telling Randy how, after the second Rank advancement, my sex drive had gone up, so I spent most of my free time having fun," He said, a look of shock flashing on his face.
"Is that fatso jealous of my sex life?" He muttered, the absurdity of the thought making him pause mid-sentence before his face twisted in disbelief, then shifted into a smug grin.
"That would explain my shity posting," He mused quietly, rubbing his chin. "He's punishing me with these night shifts just because I'm getting more action than he ever will." He said, only to realize that as good as it felt to be better than the Governor, he was still the one suffering.
"I bet your little soldier doesn't even get past all that bloated gut you have, you fu**ing pig," He said, his voice barely a whisper as he stared toward a specific balcony of the mention.
"Good for you because your Governor is going to change very soon," A voice different from his sounded from behind him, and before he could turn, darkness engulfed his every nerve.
'Did you kill him,' Nero roared as he saw the guard fall lifelessly to the floor, 'No, I just made him fall asleep,' Draven replied as he slid down the ladder.
Draven moved toward the mansion and began climbing the walls, his fingers finding holds in the cracks and crevices. In a mere moment, he reached the balcony, taking a brief pause to listen for any sound from the inside.
After being satisfied, he climbed over the railing, walked closer to the glass window, and looked inside the virtually dark room, where the silhouette of two sleeping figures hidden beneath silk sheets could be seen on the large bed.
He took hold of the rune pen strapped to the back of his waist and began to draw a small array on the glass window to shatter the glass since that was the only way of entrance, as the magically reinforced glass was locked from the inside.
"BOOOOMMM"
Draven completed the array and stepped back. A moment later, the runes shined to life, turning blinding for an instant, only to vanish into an explosion of shattered glass.
The Governor, who was sound asleep, and his wife, barely awake and frustrated by his loud snoring, both jolted up as they heard the explosion and the noise of dozens of glass shards raining on the floor of their room, a few even falling on them, making them feel the fear of the unknown.
"WHO DARES, WHOOO,"
"GUARDS"
"GGUARDSSSS"
The Governor began to roar at the top of his lungs as he swung the silk sheet toward the window and ran toward the door, not caring for his beautiful wife or his dignity as a Noble. While a Third Rank ascendant, he was still a spinless idiot spoon-fed to his power and position.
"Governor, Calm Down unless you wish to deal with the Mardatis Ore Mine issue on your own," Draven said aloud, making the governor freeze in his tracks, lose balance, and fall face first on the floor.
Draven did not move, the soft moonlight behind him casting long shadows across the room. He watched the governor fumble to regain his composure while his trembling wife took out a dagger from the drawer with shaky hands.
"My lady, could you please light the crystal lamp so we can better see each other?" Draven said smoothly, his voice calm as if they were meeting for a polite conversation rather than an intruder standing in their bedroom.
Marian didn't move, her knuckles turning white around the hilt of the dagger she held in her shaking hands.
"Marian, Light the crystal lamp," The governor barked, finally rising to his feet. His expression was a mix of panic and disbelief, like that of a thief caught in the act.
Marian reluctantly pressed the switch, and the light lamp by the bedside came to life, illuminating the room in an instant and revealing the half-naked governer, beads of sweat forming on his forehead, his wife who covered herself with her hands, and the masked figure who stood at their window, draped in all black like a grim reaper.
"My lady, You do not have to be afraid, I am not here to harm you or your husband, on the contrary, I am his benefactor," Drven said, as he looked the governor dead in the eyes.
The governor swallowed hard, trying to maintain a smile, but the panic behind his eyes betrayed him.
"Sir, I think there's been a misunderstanding here. I---I know nothing about any Mardatis Ore Mine," He said, his voice cracking as he forced a smile, clearly hoping to talk his way out of the situation.
Draven's cold and precise voice cut through the tense silence. His eyes never left the governor's, and though his tone remained calm, there was an unmistakable edge of confidence beneath his words, making sure that the governor would think ten times before making a move.
"You did a great job by only using slaves to harvest Ore, all of them being bound to a man that you never met, with your only contact to this entire operation being the dealer who arranged everything," Draven said, and the governor's forced smile faltered, his fingers twitching nervously at his sides.
"You get your share in cash, and you make sure to do nothing about the problem of Blue Eagle bandits group, who keep adventurers from getting too close to the mine,"
"Convenient, isn't it?" Draven said as the governor tried to interject with his panic barely concealed, but he didn't allow him the chance.
"It is a great plan, but you think too lightly of the Tenebralis Family to believe that they will not discover something of even such a small scale through their information network," Draven said, stopping when he heard the loud banging on the door.
"Governer, -- Governer,--Governer"
"We heard a loud noise. Are you fine?" A loud voice bellowed from the outside, and the face of the governor, which was already painted with panic, twisted into anger.
"YOU FU**ING FREELOADERS, Shut your hole, and leave me alone," The governor roared as he slammed his fist on the door, sending shards of wood flying everywhere.
The Governor's aura surged out, changing the air pressure in the room, making the air suffocating and hard to breathe. The wooden floor around him groaned and sank under the force, cracking at the edges.
Despite his cowardice, the raw power of a peak Third Rank Ascendant radiated from him, a reminder that if he desired, he could reduce the entire mansion to rubble within minutes.
"Great Sir, You said you are my benefactor, and here, help me with this little mistake this little lowlife had made," The governor stammered, sweat beading on his forehead.
He swallowed repeatedly, trying to ease his dry, tightening throat, his desperation barely masked by his trembling words.
"I am here to help you, and I will not only get you out of the mess but also make you rise to the rank of a Baron," Draven said and went silent, allowing the weight of words to settle.
The governor slowly opened his mouth only to stay silent. Although he wished to deny it, he wanted the insane claim to be true with every fiber of his being.
His reaction was to be expected since his position while Noble was at the very bottom of the hierarchy, and there were as many governors as there were cities and towns. Barely a third of them were even official members of any of the Royal families.
The governor had no Royal family backing him, so the idea of reaching the status of true nobility, of being backed by power and status, was music to his ears.
Draven observed the governor's expression shift, his fear gradually giving way to greedy hope, and that was exactly what he expected.
"You will give me ten thousand low-grade mana crystals and one million gold coins," Draven said, his voice slicing through the governor's thoughts.
"This is the price of your life and your future," Draven said and paused, watching the governor's eyes widen with shock and confusion. "If you can not arrange this sum of money, then you are on your own and can happily wait for your execution," Draven continued with chilling finality.