"Err... Sorry, Amara," the man said while scratching his head. In the very next moment, a black cloak appeared, covering him.
"Come on, Marcus! You told Sarah you were going to teach the new guy some manners, what happened?" the green-eyed woman teased.
"Fuck off, Sophia. Who knew this kid was going to go for my clothes?" The man—Marcus—scoffed before sending a glare directed at Neraxis.
However, a sudden pressure bore down on all of them, interrupting their banter—it was Amara.
"Raise your hand if you were informed of the newbie beforehand," she said, her tone containing disbelief and a tinge of embarrassment.
All three people, with the exception of Neraxis, raised their hands, slightly tilting their heads.
"Now tell me, did I or did I not tell you all that I want this to be professional?" Amara's tone grew more astonished as she reflected on her members' actions.
"We didn't do anything," Sophia said as she pointed at both herself and Sarah, who was right next to her.
As for Marcus, he did not hide his liability. "He ripped my clothes off... how do you expect me to stay silent?"
"Why did you provoke him in the first place!?" Amara exclaimed, her eyes snapping to Neraxis. "And you—why did you tear his clothes off!?"
"Sorry?" he replied without much thought as she redirected her anger toward the others, leaving him sitting by the round table quietly.
This was a little... unexpected? Neraxis couldn't help but chuckle inwardly at the development.
They came off as such a serious group at a glance, but now they just seemed like an unorganized group of kids, with Amara scolding them like a mother.
It put his mind a bit at ease. He was still in an unknown situation, but at least the people were not inhumane.
After a few minutes of constant scolding and Marcus getting dressed, they all sat down around the round table.
Neraxis watched as Amara sat along with them. He couldn't help but ask, "What's with the throne?"
A white throne was not too far away—he half expected Amara to stride along and sit on it.
"Ah, that... I am not worthy to sit on it yet," she replied without going into too many details before coughing to get everyone's attention.
"Now then, I would like to introduce our newest recruit, who you all decided to mess with on his first day," Amara said, shooting a glare at the perpetrators.
"I apologize on their behalf, and welcome to the Obscura. I am sure we will get along nicely."
He nodded, waiting for her to continue on with her introduction; however, all that hung in the air was silence.
She simply stopped it there and began fiddling around with her hair.
"Uh... it's a pleasure to be here? Can you tell me about this organization I so willingly joined?" Neraxis asked with clear sarcasm.
Amara swiftly replied, "This organization has not been operating for a long time... only recently have I set everything up again. However, all you need to know for now is that there are only the five of us in total."
Five... in total? Neraxis's eyes widened.
"Hold on now... there are only five people in total? Are you serious?"
"I'm serious," she nodded back at him with a blank look.
He could feel the headache arising as he spoke. "Okay... so tell me this at the very least—what is this organization's goal?"
As his words fell, the previously slightly playful atmosphere disappeared, followed by Amara's serious voice.
"You are too weak to know that. What I can tell you, however, is that the missions you will be going on will revolve around reconnaissance and manipulation." Her voice contained a certain chill, which did not keep him guessing for long.
"That is only until you get strong enough to stop doing these menial tasks. But don't worry—I am going to be reasonable," she said as her voice began growing lower.
"After all, I wouldn't want to interrupt your studies."
So she looked me up...
Neraxis stared straight at her eyes with a frown. "So what, am I now your group's lackey? Is that the reason you forced me to join?"
"I call them menial tasks because I am strong, but do you think investigating rifts or replacing government agents is easy?"
His breath halted the moment he heard those words. "The what now?"
Amara continued, "There is a lot of filth in this world, and for everything to line up as it should, we need to correct it. Don't worry about the rest—I will contact you in due time."
"Hold o—" Neraxis began speaking but was once again interrupted.
"Oh, and before I forget, those who refer to you as the Veiled One are on your side—that's our moniker," she explained before standing up, summoning her sword, and slashing downwards.
"Bye, for now." With those parting words, Neraxis's vision shifted, turning dark once more.
However, in the very next instant, his eyes shot open, and in front of him was a familiar house, with the eerily familiar lock.
He was back, standing just a few meters away from the entrance.
I just got teleported... Neraxis sighed and reached for his pocket. To his surprise, there was a little crumpled-up note—one that had the symbol of a white half mask.
But before he could admire it further, the note quickly crumpled itself further before turning into dust, leaving him speechless.
...What a fucking joke. He felt conflicted but nonetheless headed back inside.
It seemed empty; no one was in the kitchen or any rooms in particular. Neraxis concluded that they were most likely at work, and his sister was probably with her friends again.
Unlike him, she was a social butterfly.
Since it was empty and he had just been through hell—however briefly—it was time to relax.
First... I should probably get Mother a gift... an "I'm sorry" gift, Neraxis thought before going up to his room and checking through all of his cupboards until finally, he found a wallet.
Inside was a stack of money as well as a credit card, which he picked up and headed outside, his destination—the mall.
Just as he was about to head out, Evangeline's voice rang out. [The mask—you still have it on.]
Oh, right. He immediately reached out to take it off. However, before he could do that, he saw Evangeline manifest as a sword and tap on the mask, making it disappear.
[I have a little storage space in that tattoo. If you find something important, store it there,] she stated in a soft tone before going back inside the sword tattoo.
Thank you... Neraxis expressed and headed out, arriving at a nearby mall in just a couple of minutes.
The gift he had in mind was some expensive cookies—some he even remembered trying himself in the past.
There were a lot more people huddling around the streets than when he started going towards the academy. It really was an eventful yet exhausting day.
Neraxis roamed through the many shops until finally, his eyes landed on a bakery.
Just as he began approaching it, he noticed something in the far-off distance—it was a shop like any other; however, it was incredibly small.
He wanted to investigate; therefore, he started walking towards it, stopping just before he entered.
Inside were a bunch of vials that had all sorts of colored liquids inside, as well as a massive sign up front.
Emma's Potions?