"Are you not here to apprehend us?" Wrik asked. No, ask was not the correct term, it's more like he was assessing it. He was more or less sure about this matter. Though whatever they do was none of their area of business, could be stated as illegal, it's still far from putting them behind the bars.
"Wrik Everknight, a student of Elania University for over two years. It took a lot of effort to find you. I won't be willing to apprehend you after all the efforts I put in." The blonde-haired lady shook her head in approval. She paused for a moment to clarify their confusion. "—Even if I have the authority."
"You're not an inquisitor!" The frown on Anton's brow softened. He took a seat beside Wrik. More relaxed than before. He added, recalling. "Madame."
On the other hand, Wrik frowned, hearing her. Judging from her tone, it looked like she had done her homework. "How did you find me?" He corrected himself. "Wait, wrong question. Why did you put so much effort into finding me?"
She smiled, picked up her glass of tea, and sipped a bit. She was not rushed in the slightest in her demeanour. Putting down the cup, she said to Anton, "Lovely tea, where do you get this stuff here?"
"I," Anton corrected his words. "We have our ways." And the way was nothing but a gift from an inquisitor for solving a few days of investigations.
She nodded lightly, taking another sip in. She returned to Wrik with the main issue. "Actually, this is part of my job."
"Finding people?"
"Finding the correct people," she corrected him. "Special people."
Wrik frowned again, this time not alone. A wry thought came into his mind.
"Oh, look at my manners. I haven't introduced myself yet," she said, noticing their uncomfortable expressions. "I'm Sophia Syfinn, from Knightshade."
"As you already know, Wrik Everknight. A repeater at the University of Elania." Finding nothing to add, Wrik shrugged.
"I'm Anton, by the way. Anton Blaciel," Anton added with a smug, "—and I'm not a repeater."
"And, where's this Knightshade of yours?" Wrik asked immediately, not giving Anton enough time to embrace himself more.
"It's in the Tower," Sophia answered. Wrik nodded as if already expected it.
"So, you are a Mahasayer," Anton confirmed his speculation. Only Mahasayer could climb the tower. They were a bit different from Inquisitor, all Inquisitors were Mahasayer but all Mahasayer were not Inquisitor. But that didn't mean being a Mahasayer was anything lower than an Inquisitor. It's where the purpose comes in.
"You could say that," Sophia continued. "Now let's talk about the main issue, shall we? Why am I here?" Seeing the approved expression from Wrik, she continued, "I have a proposal for you."
"So, what's we have to find or investigate?" Asked Wrik, losing some of his interest.
"You don't have to investigate anything for now," Sophia continued. "But I don't know about the future."
Wrik gave her a questioning look. His senses didn't lie to him. She was not here for some cheap fugitives. It should be something broader than that. But he asked out, giving the same amount of enthusiasm he showed her till now, sipping another bit of the tea. "So what's this proposal of yours?"
She smiled, taking out a five by three-inch parchment paper. It was quite thick, embroidered with a few mysterious runic patterns and a symbol of a tower in the middle of it. Both of their eyes widened, seeing that.
"Is this…" asked Anton, standing up from his seat. "Is this the ticket to the Trial?"
Wrik's mouth crooked hearing that, he unconsciously scratched his forehead.
"So, you guys know about the trial, huh," the smile on her lips widened. And Anton finally understood what he had done. They weren't supposed to know anything about the Trial, they were just cheap underlings who helped in the investigation of local felons or outlaws. Though only a few knew about it, Wrik and he made sure about that.
"So, this is fake?" Asked Anton, he felt more unfortunate over the ticket than his mistake. Well, who can blame him? It's the Tower of Maha they were talking about. A place where passion meets ambition. A place where dreams come real. A place where legend turns myth.
"Ahh, no. It's as real as the Tower of Maha is." She smirked. "You guys don't need to worry about me, reporting about your little business, as long as you guys don't spread out about it yourself."
Wrik gave a small nod in return, whilst Anton nodded his head heavily. The thing they were most afraid of was passed, now only excitement left.
"So, your offer is…"
"Yes, we wanted to recruit you into our Knightshade." Sophia completed her sentence.
"And it's only me?"
"That was our plan in the beginning," she looked towards Anton and continued. "But it seems he knows a trick or two as well."
Anton's eyes widened hearing that. While Wrik asked, trying his hardest to calm his heart and voice down. "I'm sorry, but can you tell me how this recruitment process is conducted?"
"I'm afraid it's more complicated than you think." she shook her head. "Not everyone can invite a person to the tower. It takes a lot of effort and fortune."
"That was not what I'm asking," Wrik asked again. "I'm asking, how do you choose a person for recruitment? What do you look for in a recruit?"
"Oh, that." The blonde lady took another sip in. "Well, it depends on the specialty. There's an awful lot about that as well. For our Knightshade the general aspects are warriors or mage, then to a few support classes such as healer, artisan or even a common employee."
Wrik nodded. He closed his eyes for a moment, pondering. When he opened it again, the blackness in them seemed to have deepened. As dark as the night. As distant and deep as a nostalgic dream. "Why me?" He asked, looking straight into her sapphire eyes. "What's... distinct about me?"
For some reason, Sophia found herself uncomfortable. It lasted merely a blink of an eye. She hesitated before telling the truth. "To tell you the truth, I don't know myself. I'm but a middleman, carrying out orders." Then she smiled, looking straight at the deepness of his eyes. "But now, I have a bit of speculation over her reasoning."
"Her?"
"Forget it." Sophia shook her head. "You'll know it later if you accept the offer."
She finished her cup of tea, waiting for his reply. On the other hand, Anton was still standing. Wrik continued to rub Kathrin, closing off his vision. When he opened it again, he gave off a high sigh.
"Madame Sophia, I need more time," Wrik said in a milder tone. "It all still a bit fast to me. I need more time, it's not a decision you make in one sitting."
"I figured as much," Sophia nodded. "But time is the only thing, we don't have much of. You got one day."
"Barely a day?"
"Yes, you can stretch that to till six in the evening," she then looked towards Anton. "You too. I'll arrange for another ticket for you if you want to climb the tower, that is. But you got to have an answer before tomorrow evening."
She left after conversing a little more. Talked a bit about the Tower and their Knightshade—nothing new they didn't know of. And she left an address to contact her, mentioning one more time to contact her as soon as possible.
******************
END OF CHAPTER: A BEGINNING.
NEXT CHAPTER: A DECISION AND A MEETING.
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