The gathering

In another part of the Holy Empire of Ainzel, a cathedral stood wrapped in darkness. The walls were lined with the various gods and goddesses of this world. In the center, alter stood a statue of a beautiful goddess with angel wings cast out of marble. It was the patron goddess of the Holy Empire, Lilma, the goddess of light.

A man in a priestly ride kneeled in prayer to the goddess. The silver light of the moon and soft candlelight from the altar was the only thing that illuminated the dark cathedral. The heavy wooden door creaked open, causing the Priest to look up at the new worshipper. A slender man with messy brown hair enters the cathedral. In the darkness, he looked normal, but as he stepped into the light, his clothes were frayed and stained with blood.

The Priest scoffed at the man, more annoyed than afraid of the man. "How dare you enter a house of worship dressed like that? Dragging blood in here. Have you no shame? I should have you slain where you stand, Bishop."

Bishop gave a lazy simile. "Still so serious. I thought you would mellow with age, but it only seems you have insisted on shoving that stick farther up your ass. Haven't you, Cardinal?" Bishop was carefree, and it annoyed the Priest that he was so calm about showing up to a church with blood on his clothes.

"Honestly, do you have no care? If not for yourself, then for this holy site. If someone saw you..." Bishop's laughter cut off Cardinal. Cardinal frowned as he could not find what he found so funny. "What is it, you madman? Have you finally lost your mind?"

"Do you not see? I have been seen. That's why my clothes got dirty. I had to make sure that they would tell anyone. Besides, we both know what goes on in the basement." Bishop tapped his foot on the ground, drawing Cardinal's attention to the ground. "Calling this place holy. That is a funny joke."

Cardinal's face was fuming mad. He marched up to Bishop, intent on hitting him, but was interrupted by a siren voice. "Are you boys behaving?" The voice came from a tall woman with blonde hair. And she wore a floor-length dress with dainty gloves and carried a parcel in one hand.

"Rook, how wonderful of you to grace us with your presence." Bishop made an exaggerated bow at the woman. "I haven't seen you since the party."

"And I didn't think I would see you at all. I could have sworn that you would have been beaten with an inch of your life after your latest failure. King seems to be more lenient these days." Rook's words were harsh and cut Bishop deep. What made them worse was they were true. Bishop had failed to assassinate the duke's son at the party, and his saving grace was that the King was in a good mood at the time.

"Yes... Well..." Bishop stumbled over his words, looking for a comeback, but changed the subject. "Who all is supposed to join us tonight?"

Rook rolled her pretty green eyes at Bishop. "You are a clueless one, aren't you? King, Knight, and Castle are not coming, and Dragoon and Empress are all we are waiting for."

"You all are waiting for me. Don't I feel popular?" A large man dressed in armor joined the group inside the cathedral. He was rough-looking but not an unhandsome man in his late twenties. "Your poor saps probably would be useless without me anyway. Ahhh, Rook, it's lovely to see your visage. When are you going to wise up and be my woman?"

"When a volcano becomes a ski resort, you pompous pig." Rook huffed and glared at the man. "Honestly, Dragoon, if you weren't a member, I probably would have killed you by now."

"Oh, baby, don't be like that. Women like you are too weak to protect themselves, so a strong man like me needs to protect their delicate bodies. It is just how the world works." Dragoon laughed off Rook's insult. "Just accept it and be my woman."

Rook gritted her teeth. This man never failed to make her skin crawl. If only she could eliminate him, her life would be much easier. As she was about to speak, the heavy wooden door flew open to present a woman of ethereal beauty. Her skin was white as flawless snow, and her black hair was long and soft like a ribbon cut from the night sky. To anyone, this woman would have been a goddess taken physical form.

As she walked up to the group, the air itself seemed to freeze in place like a world holding its breath before a beauty. All the group members bowed before this person as she approached with supreme and worldly grace. No one dared to utter another as if her words were gossip when she spoke. "I believe with my arrival, that will be the last person to join us. So let us discuss the reports. First, Bishop, the Richt household."

"Yes, Empress, upon investigating, it would seem that the elder son does have mana sickness. We have intercepted correspondence between a known medical expert and the Duke on how to heal him. If we wait, the elder should die a few years before he can take over. We are focusing our efforts on influencing the second son." Bishop explained.

Empress nodded. "Good. We mustn't let the Richt dukedom out of our grasp. They are the northmost territory and have direct access to the mythril mines in the northern islands. As for the second son, how do you intend to influence him?"

"Gambling, booze, women. The bane of nobles. Once he has developed some bad habits, we will be there to 'help' him. He already has an arrogant personality, and it won't be hard to push him into a vice or two. He will control the dukedom, and we will control him. We will be able to squeeze the dukedom dry as we please." Bishop laughed at the thought of controlling the dukedom.

"And what of the Duke himself? Will he not get suspicious?" Empress did not have any sign that she was the slightest bit amused by Bishop.

Dragoon was the one to reply to the question. "Our agents in the capital convinced the King to launch a campaign in the Brenzain Mountains with Duke Richt in charge. I will also be there personally and delay the campaign as long as possible until the duke can meet with an accident." Dragoon smiled at how clever his plan was, but again, Empress did not express any impressed expression.

"Cardinal, what about you? Do you have anything to report?" Empress turns her attention to the Priest.

"The practitioners are most generous and willingly line our coffers with gold and jewels. As for the experiments, I need more time to see any results. It is not easy getting proper subjects without drawing attention." Cardinal looked around nervously. He knew his report would not be great, but he was progressing.

"I recommend urgency." It was all the Empress said to Cardinal, causing a brief relief as a weight was lifted from his shoulders. "Rook?"

"Our friends in the nobility are playing their parts wonderfully. We have new merchandise every day. The nobles are quick to chain their subjects if it means less debt. It won't be long before we turn the entire country into our little playground." Rook smiled, hoping that she could react out of Empress, but she continued with her emotionless expression. Rook gulped before continuing, "Though, there are rumors that the King is considering calling a summoner. It is just conjecture right now, but some people think he will go through with the hero's ritual."

"Everything is running smoothly. As for the Hero's ritual, please notify us of any changes. It could cause trouble for us. King will be happy to hear that everything is handled." With that, the Empress turned and disappeared in a flash of silver light. Everyone felt like they could breathe again.

"Every time I speak to that woman, I feel like my heart might explode." Rook sighed. "It has been fun, boys, but I must return to the capital." Rook curtsied to the men before hurrying out of the cathedral. They left the dark cathedral one by one till only Cardinal remained, allowing him to return to his prayer.