End of a Familia?
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'In front of Lyd was a person clad in black cloth, someone of seemingly unknown gender, thin, and of tall stature.'
'Pure shock could be seen on his and everyone's face... Because... Of everyone they expected to see up here, 'he' was the last on their least.'
'It was none other than the Guild's shadow, Fels!'
'Taking the lead and trying to break this awkward situation, Gros was surprisingly the first to talk:'
"What are you doing here?"
'But Fels took a while to reply, equally as confused as everyone else.'
"How... Unexpected."
I was about to descend...
This is certainly against my predictions."
"I could ask you all the same."
"We? We came here to take care of their reinforcements." Lyd said with a serious expression as he clenched his fists
"Hum…"
'It took only a moment, but Fels figured out what had happened.'
'She looked at Silver and said:'
"I imagine this was your doing."
'Silver shrugged.'
"I feel a bit singled out... But indeed it was."
"Things happened and now I'm here, somehow."
'He displayed a look of helplessness, but inside, Silver was in deep thought.'
She doesn't look surprised to see me... But she's acting as if she was.
As expected, the Guild intended for me to participate in this fight, but they won't assume responsibility for it.
Did Ouranos want to test my position on this matter? What I would do when I'm confronted with people?
Fine by me, their missions allowed me to grow much closer with the Xenos and get my hands on a few interesting items.
"What about you?" He asked Fels
If the Guild is down here... It should be... To take care of the loose ends.
"Me? It's simple really."
"Do you all think I would've been able to remain still after giving you all the tools to wage a war?"
'Lyd was dumbfounded.'
"Huh? You are here... For us?"
'Fels nodded.'
"The plan was simple, while the Xenos would attract the attention of the main group, I would take care of their reinforcements."
"Why didn't you tell us about this?" Lyd asked as he interrupted Fels, conflicted
'Fels also looked conflicted as she replied:'
"My sincerest apologies, this was a plan better done fast, in fact, most of it was done on the fly, so even if I wanted to, there was no way of doing so." Fels said as an excuse
'But Silver knew that was a lie, as if this was made on the fly, this century-old wizard?.'
'So he pointed it out:'
"You… Wanted to use the Xenos as bait?"
'Fels immediately replied, as if waiting for him to say it:'
"No, I did not. I just so happened that the situation made itself, so I made use of their distraction to cut their tails while they were looking forward."
"..."
I knew it, they won't assume responsibility for such a crazy plan.
The Guild definitely doesn't want any of the Xenos to die, but they definitely underestimated the resources of the Ikelos Familia.
If I wasn't here, all of the captured Xenos would've likely either died or been sold off outside, the casualties would've been severe.
Not really an ideal scenario since it would've resulted in a fall in the relationship between the Xenos and the Guild.
'The Xenos felt slightly awkward, but they were simple creatures, they accepted this situation very quickly and were glad there was no need to fight.'
'With the exception of Lyd who seemed to be thinking about something.'
"Continuing from where I stopped…" Fels said
"Once I was done with this, I would then go and join the fight below, doing a pincer attack on the enemy." Fels said as she lifted her left arm, pointing it in the direction the Xenos came
"But seeing you all here… I imagine something happened?"
'They looked at each other for a while until Silver said:'
"Yes it did, some of the Xenos got captured, forcing us to go after them."
'Fels was stunned.'
"Is everyone okay? Please explain to me what happened in detail."
"Yes they are, we managed to control the situation and capture several members of the Ikelos Familia."
"After that was done, we came here to take care of their reinforcements, meeting you in the process."
All is good in the end, less fighting means fewer people for me to punch.
I'm not a bloodthirsty demon, I'm not seeking to kill people left and right.
And it would be best if the Xenos didn't grow used to such a thing either.
If they see all of the surface dwellers as enemies then their dream will truly die.
"I see, it was indeed a heavy miscalculation on my part."
'Fels stopped to think for a moment.'
"Deeming how cautious the Captain of their Familia was, I was thoroughly expecting him to either fight and retreat immediately, or to not even engage at all upon noticing that it was a trap."
I underestimated their desperation.
"But it ended up like this, and my oversight caused me to put you all in danger, I hope my apologies are enough." Fels said as she bowed
"I would like to hear the details if possible… Especially as we move, time's against us after all."
'Lyd looked at Silver and he nodded, it wasn't like he was the leader of this operation, it was up to Lyd to determine what they should do.'
'Everyone turned around to leave, and on their way, Lyd started to explain what had happened, not cutting a single detail from his story.'
…
/15 or so minutes late…/
'After hearing the story, Fels looked at Silver, thanking him:'
"I thank you adventurer Silver, your willingness to help has saved many lives today, both Xenos and Human lives."
"It's nothing…"
It was what I was asked to do anyway…
'Silver opened his mouth and asked:'
"But let me ask you a question… What do you plan on doing with these people?"
"The captured members of the Ikelos Familia?" Fels asked
'Silver nodded, it wasn't like he was talking about someone else…'
"First, I'll find out all of their hideouts, the Ikelos Familia used to be a medium-sized Familia until around 7 years ago, when their expedition group disappeared in the Deep floors."
"Even the remaining members of the Familia on the surface disappeared."
"Since then, we rarely heard about them, the few times we did so was when they popped out from time to time in the black market, that was the only indication that the Familia was still in operation or within Orario at all."
"It took many years to figure out a sketch of what had happened to them, and now we know that they control a big portion of the black market, and a lot of evidence pointing to them being fully into Ilegal business, becoming a fully-fledged Illegal Familia."
"They have expanded their business to all areas from item making to blacksmithing, alchemy to Magic."
"They should have multiple Level 4's and dozens of Level 3's, while the number of Level 2's and 1's is indeed very hard to estimate since they are scattered all throughout Orario, but those people are likely 'clean' merely people that have nowhere else to go or where coerced into working for them."
"The people that matter are at the top, not the menial workers."
'Fels pointed at the captured people on the ground, saying:'
"With these people, I plan to find out where they all hide and properly apprehend them together with any illegal items and substances."
"Those that have committed a crime will be punished accordingly with the level of their infractions, while those that haven't or that fall under a specific set of conditions, like being slaved into labor will be apprehended, investigated, and then judged properly."
"But considering the nature of their Familia, it's most likely that all of them have committed murder or some minor crime…"
'Silver interjected:'
"Yet not all, that is why the Guild is being so cautious, right?"
"..."
'Fels remained silent.'
"Whatever their conditions may be, confirmed murder is punishable with life incarceration within Orario unless it's under the pretense of a Familia conflict, in that case, the Guild won't intervene." Fels said in a low tone
"The Guild only intervenes in these cases when it's either against the civilian population or when the subject is an Illegal Familia, albeit most of the time, the judgment befalls the Familia that captured them in the first place."
"..."
The Guild always strives to maintain neutrality while also trying to keep the dozens of Familias in control.
That in itself is very very hard, especially when you consider that a psycho Level 4 is a menace to society.
There are tens of thousands of Level 1 to 3 Mercenaries, Assassins, Bounty Hunters, and such professions out there in the shadows.
Murders happen all too frequently within this city... And the Guild isn't the police, they are barely the government, doing this is already impressive.
For example, unless there is clear proof, murder in the Dungeon is often brushed aside.
If two Familias go on a bloodbath outside of Orario... Who cares?
If they do it inside... Then it's another story... The property, the people, and simply the fact they are creating chaos.
It must be a pain having to walk on this tightrope.
'Fels then stopped and asked:'
"If this was a normal situation, as a representative of the Guild, I would be asking for your cooperation in this matter."
"And once our investigation was done, it would be up to you to determine their punishment, something that would then be published officially for all of Orario to see."
"Of course, the specifics can always be discussed, it's normally a rather complicated process that involves a lot of paperwork."
"I see." Silver replied with a nod
"I don't." Gros replied as he shook his head
'Most of the Xenos… Apart from Lyd and a few others were like Gros, not understanding what Fels said, or at least, not understanding the implications behind it.'
"If it was a public situation… I would've probably investigated them as well, before holding a public trial."
"A public trial?" Fels asked
"Yes, I imagine there were many affected by their actions and schemes, so I think it's just fair that they have the chance of participating in their punishment…"
"Nothing too serious like a public execution, such violent forms of punishment rarely ever accomplished their goals."
Unless the main goal was to cause fear... Public execution only works when the populace has a collective desire to see someone dead.
Or if the governing party wants to push the attention onto something else, it's usually for these reasons.
"A valid way of thinking, although I'm legally required to stay neutral in regards to this matter." Fels joked slightly
"I imagine so." Silver replied with a chuckle
But now that this matter has ended, the situation I wanted to prevent the most will likely happen.
The Guild will without a doubt find out about Knossos if it hasn't already…
Once they do… I wonder what the end result will be?
…
'Silver and everyone went back to the cavern on the 19th floor, and seeing everyone reunited, the Xenos roared happily…'
'But it was also their goodbyes… A farewell to those that fell in the hands of these people.'
'Fels looked at the unconscious Captain of the Ikelos Familia'
"To think you would even capture him…"
Not only him but so many as well.
When they described what happened, I was already shocked that they managed to come out with only minor and medium injuries, but this…
Something I've been wanting to do for a long while, but failed each time...
It once again goes beyond my expectations.
'Fels turned to face Silver, thinking deeply.'
He always seems to find himself in the middle of some trouble.
Twice is a coincidence, and Thrice is a pattern.
… It seems that as long as a matter is tied with this young man, it'll end up breaking all of my predictions.
I'll keep this as a mental note for myself.
'While she was lost in deep thought, Silver pulled several boxes with telekineses.'
"Take a look at this."
'He put them all next to Fels and opened them, and their contents shocked Fels once more.'
"I was expecting to see some Curse tools, but you undervalued how many there were when you told me your story Lyd." She said as she grabbed the item inside the box
Lyd coughed, saying awkwardly:'
"Haa... Sorry, I also don't know how many there are inside there."
"At least 5… No, 8." Fels said as she counted the number of curse tools
And this is just this box, there are at least 5 of them.
They prepared thoroughly for this…
The cost would be massive… But so would be the resulting selling price if they had indeed captured them and escaped.
Was the end rewards truly so grand?
But who outside of Orario would be able to amass such a fortune to pay for this operation in the first place?
The Ikelos Familia would only move if they had a guarantee of being paid.
And besides, what did they need so much money for in the first place?
The bar will have to be raised massively, the money they were making from this surpasses the expectations…
Not to ask where they got such a collection of items from…
Also, how would they move them?
This has bothered me greatly recently, after finding out that the Xenos had been captured, and finding their traces on the surface, when and how were they moved?
Even if the Dungeon guards had been bought, even if the Ganesha Familia had in some unforeseen circumstance betrayed us, it would still be impossible to move so many without causing some sort of ripple.
Sigh, what a mess.
"This is not the end." Silver said as he pulled Dix's spear via telekineses
'He grabbed it, saying as he gave the spear to Fels:'
"This was his spear, just by looking at it, I can tell it isn't an ordinary Curse item."
"Let me take a look."
'Despite how she looked, Fels was an expert of Curses, not a Hexer, but she, like Riveria, has received the Title of Sage, her knowledge of Magic and its intricacies is no way beneath the 100-year-old Elven Sage.'
'Her cloak and gloves were special items that could protect her from Curses, even this strong curse would be completely ineffective against her.'
"Indeed… It exudes a strong feeling. It was definitely made by a very skilled Hexer."
"The curse within this… It would be difficult, even for me to purify injuries caused by it."
Not impossible though, the problem is... Can the Hexer produce more potent Curses than this one?
"This will require extensive research, and in the meantime, I'll have someone prepare a counter antidote against these curses."
'Silver nodded, but his expression sharpened as he said in a still tone:'
"So uh… I won't be able to keep the spear?"
"Huh?..."
'Fels was stunned, she gazed at the serene gaze of the adventure in front of her...'
"I… I guess so. It is integral for the formulation of an antidote after all…" Fels replied awkwardly
/Depressed.../
'Silver's head dropped down slightly as he said with a sigh:'
"I understand…"
"D-Don't fret! Your actions won't come unrewarded." Fels replied quickly
'Silver smiled.'
"In any case… I imagine everything is over, or is there anything else for me to do?" He asked as he looked around
/Flap flap.../
'The sound of wings flapping faintly echoed nearby.'
'It was Ray, saying as she approached from Silver's side:'
"You can leave the rest to us, you've already done a lot already."
'Gros and Lyd nodded.'
"Will you be going somewhere?" Lyd asked
"Yes, of course, I was planning on going to the 24th floor to train." Silver replied plainly
Soon enough I'll start exploring the Lower floors, but I'm not done with the Middle floors yet.
"By training you mean?..." Lyd asked
'Silver nodded with a smug smile.'
"The same thing I did last time, but this time I'll restrain myself, I promise to not burn over 5% of the forest."
"..."
'Everyone looked at each other before Gros said:'
"In that case, I'll be waiting, next time, I won't be defeated so easily."
"Oh? It would be my pleasure to spar again." Silver said with a smile
'He gave them his farewells with a bit of small talk before making his way to the exit.'
'But midway through that, when he was alone, Fels appeared and said:'
"Adventurer Silver."
"Yes?" He asked as he turned around
"I don't think it was needed of me to remind you but… Be wary outside."
"We don't know what may happen, and the worst it could happen is…"
'She stopped midway, but her meaning was clear.'
'But Silver simply said:'
"I'm aware, my guard has been up for a long time already."
Especially when I have so many bothersome things happening at once…
I have not been given a rest ever since Apollo came for my ass... Literally and figurately.
Just thinking about that guy makes me sick, I hope he's being worked to death in heaven.
"In that case, good luck." Fels said as she turned around
"Thank you." He said with a small smile
'Onwards towards a small adventure, he left the cavern.'
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