Chapter 2: Shadows of Conspiracy

Beyond the borders of Helvetia and the Beast Glades lie many kingdoms, some small, some large. Among them are Wivernia, Draconia, and Serpentonia. These nations share borders with each other and the Beast Glades, with Helvetia to the north, separated by the dense Mana Zone. Serpentonia covets the rich mana beasts and minerals that Helvetia has in abundance. Though Serpentonia and Helvetia share a rich history, their relationship has always been in the midst of tension. It is said that the nations of Draconia and Wivernia were once small, independent breakaway provinces of Serpentonia. These two states maintain a cordial relationship despite their complicated past.

A cold wind blew through the hallway as a man draped in all-black noble court attire walked briskly. It was nighttime, and the man was tired and irritated. His presence had been urgently requested by the Intelligence Bureau Chief. Meeting his escort, who greeted him formally, he scoffed at the gesture, indicating his foul mood, and stepped into the carriage heading straight to the bureau headquarters.

The Bureau Chief sat at his desk, reading reports, when the man barged in without announcing his presence. Looking up, the Chief greeted the man warily, noting his tardiness. The man dismissed this and demanded why he had been summoned in the dead of night.

"We need to update you on our current field operations," the Chief began. "We have successfully retrieved some research material from the Crafters."

"Then why summon me now? Couldn't this have waited until morning?" the man retorted.

The Chief apologized, explaining, "We suffered heavy casualties during the operation. We couldn't transport all the stolen goods back. We need more men to reinforce the operation, especially since Michael is rumoured to be developing another deadly weapon. Our reports indicate this weapon decimated our entire elite unit of operatives. Survivors have split into two groups: one has infiltrated the enemy ranks, and the other guards the stolen goods."

The man, now identified as Prime Minister Foust, went silent, stroking his chin in deep thought. "We brought you here for your input. Should we retreat and cut our losses or continue the infiltration operation?"

Foust thought deeply before responding. "Did the report mention the nature of the stolen goods?"

"I'm afraid not, sir. It's challenging to send detailed reports through covert messenger birds," the Chief replied.

"Then we must consult His Majesty. For now, send a small unit to reinforce the network and retrieve the artefact in smaller, manageable parts. We must be extra cautious. No one can find out about this until then."

"Yes, as you command, sir," the Chief responded.

Meanwhile, Arc woke up in one of the tents set for him, meeting Captain Strossburg and Lieutenant Clarissa as he emerged from his deep slumber. He immediately grasped the situation and asked for a status report.

Captain Strossburg spoke first, followed by Lieutenant Clarissa, each giving a detailed account of their findings and the events following the battle. "So this piece of scrap metal is what was stolen?" Arc asked.

"It's hard to say. Exactly what was stolen or lost? We don't have a complete inventory of the items except for daily essentials and supplies. We'll get a full picture once we reach the estate and Master Michael checks the belongings himself," Captain Strossburg replied. "Although I suspect that not many items were stolen, this piece in particular was definitely targeted by the bunch."

"Are we calling them bandits?" Arc scoffed.

Lieutenant Clarissa interjected, "We cannot make assumptions at the moment. It's more likely that they were bandits who attacked given the time of year."

Arc went into deep thought and decided to use the term "bandits" for the attackers until more clues were unearthed. As the conversation was about to end, Strossburg added, "There's another urgent matter, Master Arc. The outpost was heavily understaffed when we arrived. The men told me their reserves were pulled back to the base camp for no apparent reason."

Arc was startled by this statement but decided to speak no further. There could have been a monster attack along the trade routes, requiring additional forces. Their conversation was interrupted when a soldier barged in, reporting a monster attack. A pack of dire wolves had decided to say hello to the camp.

Captain Strossburg and Lieutenant Clarissa headed out, asking Arc to stay put. After a few moments of silence, Arc decided to move out. As he got up, a stray arrow flew past him, hitting the tent wall. Arc took guard and peeked out, seeing the dire wolves attacking the camp. The men were frantically trying to defend.

The fight was gruesome. Suddenly, someone attacked Arc with a blunt, rusted dagger. It was a Nimble goblin. Arc wasn't a slouch, though. He defended the attack with his left wrist, clad in a small but durable black gauntlet-like artefact. "Nice try," Arc said, and the two began to fight head-on. The fight dragged on as the tent was empty, with no weapons in sight. Arc used quick movements to evade the goblin's blade, eventually countering by grabbing the goblin's throat and throwing him against the tent wall. The goblin quickly got back on his feet.

Before the goblin could attack again, Arc caught him by the throat with his left hand, holding the rusty dagger in his right, aiming at the goblin's throat. Before Arc could end the goblin's life, a red dire wolf attacked from his left flank. The wolf's powerful bite cracked the gauntlet on Arc's wrist. The goblin took advantage of the commotion and fled, but the wolf stayed to fight.

The wolf attacked Arc again, using wind magic this time. Arc quickly dodged the wind blades made from air and mana. "Great, magic—the one thing I cannot use," Arc remarked. Suddenly, excruciating pain spread all over his body. Arc realized the pain wasn't from his prior injuries; it was more widespread. "Could the painkillers have worn off? No, this is different. Could this be...?" Arc thought while dodging the wolf's spell attacks.

Arc's attention went to the relic he was wearing. It was cracked. "If this keeps up, I'll get torn to shreds. I can't outrun this creature at my current pace. Why not try using magic? The seal seems broken, and the pain is only increasing. I don't have a lot of mana in me, but I can use the environment—lamps, fire, wind..." Arc quickly scanned the environment and thought of a simple enough counterspell to cast. He drew mana into his dagger, commanding it to ignite the air around the blade. Blue flames emerged, covering the entire blade.

Arc warded off each of the wolf's wind spells with his blue flames, countering the creature's fierce and frantic attacks. He moved closer and closer to the wolf, eventually reaching close enough to cut the wolf in half. Pouring all his remaining mana into the blade, Arc cleaved the wolf and the tent in half. The blue flames began spreading around the broken tent, but a sudden burst of rain extinguished the raging fire. Arc, battered and beaten, collapsed to the ground from extreme fatigue. "Great, what now?" he muttered before passing out.

Near the Crafter estate, in a secret lab south of Helvetia's borders, Sebeth Muller, one of Michael's trusted retainers, was on an investigation expedition. Some lumbermen and hunters had gone missing for days, and Muller was investigating the case personally. Monster attacks were common in these parts, but monster activity usually dropped significantly during this time of year, making Muller suspicious.

Muller found a suspicious scene where a tussle might have taken place. While he and his men scoured the scene for clues, one of his men called him from afar. When Muller arrived, he was shocked to see disfigured and mutated bodies, almost beyond recognition. One of them was still clinging to life, wheezing and coughing up blood. Muller rushed to him, desperately trying to stop the bleeding.

Before Muller could ask what had happened, the man's life slipped away, leaving his body cold. Muller stood up, a grim expression on his face. "We need to find out what caused this," he told his men. "And we need to do it quickly...."

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