Chapter 16: Meeting of Tower Elders

  Inside a small but lavishly decorated chamber, a masked figure could be seen kneeling on one knee in front of a long desk. Seated behind the desk covered in various parchments was a young man with flowing red hair. He had delicate and handsome features, wearing an ornate silk robe. Without acknowledging the kneeling man, he reviewed a stack of documents. After around half an hour, he set down the parchment he was scanning and looked at the man with indifference.

  “Where is he? Why haven’t you brought him to me?”

  “Lord Gabriel, we have searched the area near the battlefield and have ascertained he did not head east, as was his original plan. The tracks we uncovered had him traveling toward the south, along the Great Mountainvein River. Unfortunately, the tracks eventually disappeared, and we could no longer pursue him. The trail did not lead in the direction of any potential destination; therefore, we cannot deduce his location or path.”

  “So, you're saying you lost him, and you don’t know anything.”

  “My lord, please forgive us! We have explored all avenues!”

  “Haaaa…” Gabriel sighed. With a frown, he said, “My sweet little Junior Sister asked me for this one little favor. I, as the Deputy Tower Master, entrusted this task to you, the Law Enforcement Hall Leader. What am I to say to Junior Sister Evelyn?” As Gabriel frowned, a stifling and oppressive pressure descended upon the masked man.

  “My lord, I will take any blame and punishment from Adept Evelyn!” The domineering force pressed down on the man, causing him to bow down and break out in a cold sweat.

  Gabriel suddenly smiled gently and said, “This was originally a task asked of me, so how will I look, having a Channel Weaving Disciple accept the responsibility? No, I will explain it to her personally. Instead, have more men track the boy. Follow the river and search all the towns and cities nearby. Although he is suspected to be an Auron, they still need to eat, do they not? If you still can’t find him, station men at any cultivator settlement nearby. He is bound to show up at a cultivator community eventually. When you find him, capture him and bring him to me.”

  The atmosphere immediately brightened as soon as Gabriel stopped frowning, releasing the man from his struggle.

  “Yes, my Lord! As you command!” The man almost screamed in his haste to depart.

  The man hurried out of the chamber, leaving Gabriel behind to muse over the situation.

  “If he can’t be located until the end, so be it. It was only a small favor out of pity for Evelyn’s new apprentice. It is of no major consequence, just a minor stain on my reputation, nothing more. I have more important agendas to oversee.”

  After saying this, Gabriel stood up and gracefully walked out of his personal office chamber. He walked down a curved corridor before climbing a flight of spiral stairs. After a few minutes of travel, he finally arrived at his destination. A pair of large wooden doors swung open in front of him. He walked inside with his hands behind his back, back and shoulders upright, and chin held high. He embodied the image of a refined and dignified gentleman.

  As Gabriel entered the hall, the low murmurs of whispered conversations ceased completely. Inside the hall were several figures seated around a long rectangular table. These figures all stood up to welcome the arrival of Gabriel. They were Elders of the Arcane Tower of Argent Flame, and they were all mid stage or late stage Circuit Completion Adepts.

  “Why such a somber atmosphere? Cheer up, Junior Brothers and Sisters. It’s not as if there are any major issues or problems,” said Gabriel with a tender smile.

  “Deputy Tower Master, the discussion at hand is anything but simple,” said a burly man with a bald head and a body full of muscles. If anyone saw him, they would think he was an Auron, not an Arcon. He was at the late stage of Circuit Completion.

  “Junior Brother Joseph, there is no need to be so strict. Although it is an important topic, it does not require us to be so serious,” replied Gabriel as he climbed a small dais at the end of the hall, upon which sat three ornate thrones of differing sizes. The seat of honor was located in the middle and was the grandest. The thrones to the left and right of the main throne were smaller and less lavish. Gabriel sat on the seat to the right of the main throne.

  “Senior Brother Gabriel, do we have any new information?” asked Lorenzo. As he was a mid stage Adept, he had already been seated at the table, awaiting the arrival of Gabriel with the other elders.

  “We have infiltrated the Tradehaven and planted several agents at different levels. One of these agents has managed to be promoted to an elder seat. He has confirmed that they have indeed discovered a new secret demi-plane, though the location is still unknown to us. This, along with their other openly revealed demi-plane, makes two,” replied Gabriel.

  “The city found another demi-plane? No wonder the nearby towers are all interested in taking a share.”

  “The four Towers only have shared access to one. How can we let the Assembly monopolize two by themselves?”

  The gathered Elders started discussing animatedly as soon as the truth was revealed. Gabriel remained seated in his seat with a slight smile on his face as he watched the excited Elders.

  “What of the Tower Master? Has he been informed?” asked Joseph.

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  “Tower Master Godric has sent word that he will remain in seclusion for this campaign, as he is at a crucial juncture of training a new combat technique.”

  “The Tower Master is unable to join? How will we be able to contest with the power of the three Wardens of the Assembly, then?”

  “The other three towers all have a Warden each, too. That will allow us to have equal footing.”

  Hearing that their strongest backer was unable to join, some of the Elders started to lose confidence and started bickering among themselves.

  “What of the Court? Have they given their approval?” Again, Joseph maintained his sensibility and asked another important question.

  “The Court has also sent word. They have given their full approval, and have also informed us that one of their Elders will come personally to observe the proceedings.” Gabriel calmly responded once more.

  “The Court is sending an Elder? That will give us one more Warden on our side if they are willing to intervene.”

  “What of the timing? When will we begin?”

  “Currently, the other Towers are gathering their strength and making preparations. We must also train our lower realm apprentices in some battle formations and give them an opportunity to improve their combat strength to increase our overall might. We are also awaiting our forces to return from their obligatory post down south. The campaign will not begin for another decade at the least, two at the most. Come, let us discuss the exact details on how we will achieve this.”

  Damon exited from the apothecary with a fresh, new bandaged foot and several jars of ointments in his arms. Thankfully, the infection had not spread further, and a month or so of daily care would allow him to be fully healed. Although the physician had recommended he stay until his injury completely healed, he had declined, as he would not be able to cultivate and train in the middle of the town.

  Damon deposited the ointments in his storage pouch when he was certain nobody was watching. Afterward, he continued limping toward the direction of the general goods store.

  “Daddy! Why is that man so smelly? He smells just like it did when we visited Auntie’s house and took care of their pigs!” A small boy loudly and carefreely asked his father as they walked down the street hand in hand.

  “Be quiet, Ash. You need to behave and not talk behind other people’s backs! Otherwise, I will run away from you and your mother, and she’ll send you out on a journey to catch animals and insects by yourself when you turn 10 years old!” The father reprimanded his child.

  Although the interaction between father and son was humorous, Damon could not laugh as he was the smelly man the boy was talking about. He had traveled for a couple of weeks now without washing or changing his robes. He had definitely become quite filthy.

  No wonder the guards were staring at me, and the food stall owner pitied me and gave me free food. I look and smell no different from a beggar boy.

  Damon stopped walking in front of a clothing stall that sold elegant-looking robes. He decided he needed to buy several new robes and then visit a bathhouse prior to departing the town.

  A while later, a fresh and clean Damon entered a general goods store near the southeastern part of the town. He looked around and saw many dried and preserved foods, maps of the nearby area, camping supplies, and various other products. He grabbed many things and placed them on the counter, needing multiple trips to stack a large pile of food supplies, especially. The shopkeeper was looking at him in intrigue and confusion.

  “Boy, where are your parents? You’d better not be doing this to prank me!”

  Damon placed a small pouch of coins atop the counter and said, “This is no prank. Can you pack these up in some crates by category, please? Here is the payment.”

  After inspecting the pouch, the shopkeeper immediately smiled widely and ran about packing everything into some wooden boxes. As he did so, Damon was inspecting a large map of the Mugthorne Kingdom.

  “Shopkeeper, do you know of any small villages nearby? Preferably located near fresh water and secluded from the world. Best if located in a small valley.”

  The shopkeeper peeked his head out from the back of the store and replied, “Hmm… There is a small rural village if you travel around a week or two east of here. You’ll reach a small mountain called the Stonepillar Mountain. The village is located at the bottom, next to a lake.”

  Damon traced his finger along the map until he saw the location of the village. “I see… Thank you for the information.”

  “Pleasure’s all mine, young man. Now let me quickly finish packing all these things away.”

  The man hurriedly ran back and forth between the counter and the back of the shop as he packed away all the items. When he came back out with the last box in his hand, he yelped in surprise.

  “What happened to the other boxes? Did you have a carriage waiting outside or something?” he asked.

  “Oh. Yeah. A carriage. That’s what happened. Anyway, thank you for the guidance. I hope to see you again.” Damon quickly grabbed the last box out of the shopkeeper's hands and then left the store.

  The shopkeeper followed him out and saw him limping away in the distance, with no carriage in sight.

  “Hmmm… Weird…” He mused for a while before forgetting about it and going back inside to restock the half-empty shelves.

  When Damon reached a secluded area, he placed the final box in his hands in his storage pouch. Though he did not need to be worried about a mortal finding out about his powers, he was trying to maintain as low a profile as he could. He contemplated the path he would need to take to reach the village where he intended to seclude himself to cultivate, before walking toward the east gate of the town.

  As Damon drew closer to the gate, he suddenly felt an ominous feeling. His Mindsense had caught sight of a masked and hooded figure talking to one of the gate guards. He quickly hid behind a shop and continued to observe the situation. Just as he had hidden behind the store, the masked man looked in his direction. He continued to stare for a couple of minutes before returning to the conversation he was having with the guard. He was showing the guard a parchment with a drawing of a man’s face, asking him if he had seen him. The face on the drawing was Damon’s.

  Shit, what’s this? I felt a bad premonition upon spotting him, and it turns out my feelings were right. How does he have a portrait of me? He is a late stage Node Awakening Initiate. Is he a cultivator from the Tower? Did Feylis send word to them before his demise? I need to be extra careful now that I know that I am being pursued.

  Damon watched the guard shake his head to the masked man, upon which the man entered the city and walked down a different road as he talked to the stall owners on his path. Damon then hurriedly put his cloak back on, even if it was slightly grimy, and pulled the hood down low. He then walked out of the town as naturally as he could. At this moment, a guard suddenly called out behind him.

  “Hey, you!”

  9:15am AEST or 6:15pm EST.