The Demonic Sect (3)

"Well, it's pretty simple. We need to show evidence of a significant threat to the nation's stability. After that, I can convince my father, the emperor, to allow the use of the Sage's stone to cull the demonic sect."

"Hmm… That's a solid plan, but how can you convince them to use it for me when I'm legally a criminal? I don't believe that the emperor will trust your words that much to bestow that precious object to the person you choose instead of, let's say, the chief general of the Souvell army?"

Seraphina smiled and said,

"I know that already. The best way to convince my father is for you to prove yourself worthy. In our current situation, the best way to do so would be to face off against a major threat and emerge victorious. There would still be a lot more hoops you'll have to go through, but that much should be easy for you."

"That's a feasible plan, but once again the question arises, how do we do it?"

"Don't worry about that. I have done quite a bit of research ever since coming here. The demonic sect can't just conquer a well-flourished empire in just a single day, they must have some secret hideouts we can bust into.

Once the members of this highly dangerous terrorist organization are captured, I can grab the attention of the emperor and the ministers and then lead a purge."

Xavier had to admit that despite getting bad vibes from this woman, she had a solid plan with her. It would be incredibly effective to establish his providence if he exposed some secret bases conspiring to topple an empire.

"Do you know of the locations of such hideouts?"

Seraphina confidently smiled as she responded,

"Of course, in fact, there is one in this town itself."

"What?!"

Xavier immediately stood up in shock. It had been long enough of him staying here to know about the ins and outs of the town, yet, such a major group had been hidden from his eyes.

"How do you know? I have lived here for three weeks, yet I didn't see anything suspicious."

"I have my ways. Just trust me, they are here, and according to my predictions, they should contact you themselves very soon. From the way you've behaved till now, you are an ideal candidate for their organization."

"Oh, is that so? Well, I guess I would suit something like a demonic sect. So I just have to wait until they approach me?"

"Exactly, doing anything from our side would lead to suspicions. It's also better that you go along with them and pretend to accept their offer to infiltrate their ranks."

"Aha, you want me to be a spy. That's neat, sure, I can do that."

Xavier said with a hint of amusement. He had to say, the plan she had cooked up was pretty fun. He hadn't done such things in his previous life.

Seraphina, meanwhile, breathed a sigh of relief. There was a chance that Xavier might reject that plan, and after that, they would have to stand on opposite sides as enemies. The worst-case scenario that could occur in this trial is to face off against this monster, the heavenly demon is nothing in front of him.

"Well then, I'll retire for the night. It was a fruitful conversation, Archon Xavier. I hope to continue maintaining this relationship."

Seraphina extended her hand, and Xavier shook it, closing their discussion.

"Likewise. This is something that benefits both of us, after all."

Xavier got up and showed Seraphina his room that he offered her to stay in and he laid down on the couch. Seraphina, grateful for the hospitality, thanked Xavier and took up his offer.

But, even though the discussions had been successful and no hostile intentions were detected, both Xavier and Seraphina did not sleep that night. Trust cannot be built on a single day, and while they knew that worries of backstabbing were pointless given their situation, their hearts couldn't allow them to be so defenseless.

They both had seen the ugly side of the world all too much.

***********

At dawn, two people who never slept got up at the same time. They greeted each other in the living room, and Luke, who was used to his brother's early schedule, also woke up.

"Miss, would you like some breakfast?" Luke asked after seeing both Xavier and Seraphina in the living room. They both looked pretty tired as if they hadn't slept all night, and Luke, thinking about the most probable scenario, let his imagination run wild. He wanted to give a good, hearty breakfast to what he was certain was his future sister-in-law.

"Thanks for the offer, but I have to hurry back. There are people waiting for me."

"Ah, but…"

"Let her go, Luke. If she doesn't go, then this whole province would be in serious trouble." 

Xavier interjected and stopped Luke, knowing very well that it was already risky that a princess was missing for so long. It would be extremely counter-productive if he got charged with kidnapping the empire's most treasured flower in his already long list of crimes.

When Seraphina nodded in agreement, Luke wondered just what kind of noble girl he had seduced. He had already guessed with her mannerisms, her unique appearance, and plain but high-quality clothes that Seraphina was of high birth, but little did he know that she was of the highest birth possible in this country.

Soon, Xavier bid her goodbye for now, but they definitely had to plan to meet more.

"How can I contact you for further discussion?" Xavier asked as he leaned on the doorway, watching Seraphina leave.

"I have kept a special stone in your bedroom. Whenever you wish to talk to me, just insert some energy into it. I'll be notified and be able to talk to you long-distance."

"Oh wow, that's neat, so you recreated one of your mage inventions in this world, huh? This concept was called… Tell-phone, yes?"

"Close, but it's called Telephone. I had to go to extreme lengths to make this in my past life, but surprisingly the resources for this creation were easier to find in this world."

"Well, whatever. You mages and your weird naming sense. Anyway, I'll contact you with this Tell… Telephone when needed. Until then, Goodbye."

"Good luck on that demonic sect, goodbye."

Like that, Seraphina walked away, feeling a huge sense of accomplishment. She couldn't wait, the trial had gotten much more interesting than ever before.