Chapter 4154: War Drum (Part 1)

The Master’s analysis was spot-on, and the way the audience started confirmed his suspicions.

"Your Majesties." Vastor knelt in front of the Royals’ raised dais.

"Stand tall, Archmage Vastor. There is no need for formalities among us." Meron said.

’He called me Archmage.’ The Master thought. ’Not Professor, Archduke, or Highmaster. So, this is official business, and it’s not about the academy or my domain.’

"We have called you here to congratulate you on your latest achievement." Sylpha said while writing the record of their conversation herself with water magic. "The Essagor region suffered the least number of casualties and damage during the Upyr attack.

"You prepared better than any of your peers, and your ingenuity in using the arrays of your capital, the same arrays every regional capital has, is proof of your foresight and the brilliance of your mind."

The White Griffon academy had suffered no damage and no casualties, but since Marth had been authorized to activate the White Knight, any other outcome would have been considered an utter failure.

Vastor, instead, had the same amount of time and resources as the rest of the nobles of the Kingdom at his disposal, and he had come on top of them all by a landslide.

"Your success led us to regret how the Crown has treated you in the past decades, Archmage Vastor." A King could never apologize, but this sounded as close as Vastor would ever get. "You are not only a great teacher and an invaluable asset.

"You are also an outstanding mage who’s fit to lead our troops in the hard times ahead of us."

’He called me an asset.’ The Master inwardly scoffed. ’Meron can’t mention any of my accomplishments as a Highmaster in an official record, but he just put down on paper that I did something valuable for the Crown.’

"The Kingdom stands on the precipice of a new war." Sylpha continued. "The number of our enemies has increased again, and their power can’t be underestimated.

"There is a new threat that points its blade at our throat, and we believe that you have the skills to defend the Kingdom as well as you defended Essagor."

Then, the Royals shared Lith’s initial report, the documents they had dug out of the archives, and Lith’s second report after his conversation with Baba Yaga with Vastor.

’A mage tower! A real, gods-damned mage tower!’ The Master’s heart beat like a war drum in surprise and excitement. ’It might solve all of my problems.’

Yet it didn’t last long. He immediately regained his cool and started making plan after plan.

"I accept the assignment." Vastor said once the Royals explained what they required of him. "I’ll do everything in my power to neutralize and capture this Black Throne. If that fails, I’ll set in place a contingency plan to destroy it without harming the Kingdom.

"As for the other two cursed objects, I’m not sure if I can shed light on their identity. I’ll sift through the Vastor library with the help of my assistants, but it might not be enough. I might need access to the Forbidden Archives, Your Majesty."

"Bring us a proper lead, and everything can be arranged." Meron nodded. "Remember, the Black Throne can strike anywhere. We need contingency plans that all the big cities of the Kingdom can implement with the army and the Association’s help.

"We can’t expect you or Magus Verhen to be always available."

"Don’t worry, Your Majesty." Vastor smiled. "I’ll put all my resources into this task. I promise you that I’ll do everything I can to ensure that none of those three cursed objects will ever see the light of day again."

***

Griffon Kingdom, Isken Region, city of Amrok, the following day.

Lith and the others walked through the Warp Gate in the local branch of the Mage Association, reaching Amrok in a single step.

Even though they wore civilian clothes that identified them as middle-class citizens, the mages of the Association recognized them at a glance. Lith and Ripha were Magi, but she was also a living legend.

She almost needed to drive the young mages away with a stick and had to deny countless applications to become her apprentice.

"How is this possible?" She snarled as they left the Association. "Those runts weren’t supposed to recognize me. I’ve changed my appearance exactly to avoid this kind of situation."

"You are unrecognizable, Mom, but only for someone who has no idea who you are." Solus replied. "Ever since you’ve returned, every mage has a poster with your face in their office. Your disguise is good, but you still look like you."

"I guess you are right." Menadion sighed, checking her own official portrait on her amulet. "Aging and tanning myself only make me look like I’ve been hiding in the Desert until now."

"Also, there was no way you could go unnoticed." Kamila shrugged. "Everybody knows you are one of Lith’s Demons and Solus’ ancestor. Only someone blind, deaf, and dumb could miss your resemblance to Solus while you stand beside her."

"Fair enough." Menadion replied. "Where is our destination?"

"Beats me. I’ve never been here." Lith said. "I know the name of the hotel and the address, but I wouldn’t recognize it even if it stood before me."

"Stagecoach?" Solus asked.

"That’s a great idea!" Kamila said, making Lith grimace at the idea of spending money and everyone laugh at his literal expense. "I love flying and Warping around, but I miss seeing a city’s bustling streets, and I’m tired of only staring at them from above.

"I’ve heard a lot of good things about Amrok, and taking the scenic route is a wonderful start for our vacation."

Lith had no problem finding and hiring a stagecoach.

"The scenic route? At this hour?" The coachman was a middle-aged man with clean clothes and a well-groomed beard. "It would be a waste of time. There’s nothing to see but traffic."

Until a year ago, the coachman would have loved to go along with Kamila’s naïve request and pocket the extra money that traffic jams were bound to earn him. Alas, Amrok was one of the test cities for Lith’s Tablets.

Scamming tourists had become a terrible business practice since any disgruntled client would take pictures of the culprits and share their awful experiences.

Some of the coachman’s colleagues had even been arrested for pushing things too far and forcing the tourist to visit specific souvenir shops.

"When’s the best time to take a stagecoach tour of the city?" Kamila asked.

"Unless you are a Royal Princess in disguise, never." The man shook his head. "Amrok is so big that a tour would take you hours and cost you so much that I could go in early retirement.

"I suggest taking tours of a single district at a time. We can discuss fares and hours later. Here’s my contact rune." On the other hand, Tablets were great for business relationships, especially after earning the trust of the clients.

"See? Even he uses a Tablet." Lith grumbled. "We could have found the Unicorn’s Pot on our own."

"The Unicorn’s Pot?" The coachman’s eyes lit like stars. "Is your destination nearby?"

"No, that’s our destination. Why?" Kamila asked.

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