Before the curtains open ( Part 1)

" Please, enter." 

Isadora pushed open the familiar wooden door. A gentlemanly horned figure stood inside waiting for her. His ash-blonde hair was tied back in a ponytail today, giving him a more feminine look. 

Isadora pushed such distracting thoughts aside. " It is done." She said, as if handing in a report. She drew a golden pyramid from her robe and placed it onto the table, pushing it towards the commissioner. 

" It's the Administrator. You will find the recordings of our conversation within that Eye." She nodded towards the pyramid. 

The commissioner was emotionless as he reached out and grasped the Eye, pulling it across the table towards himself. " Quite a neat piece of work, isn't it? Although it is quite loud so it people only get to lie once." He eyed Isadora critically. " To have recorded the whole interrogation…" 

" Human magic?" 

Isadora nodded. " What are you going to do with this knowledge in mind?" Her words solicited a small twitch of lips out of the demon. He pocketed the Eye and began to pace his side of the table. 

" Our contract remains in place. However, this marks the end of our first phase of operation." He paused. 

" But am I right to say that you've only been to the administrator? You've neither met the Treasurer nor the Overseer. Was our contract not for you to interrogate them all?" 

" There was no need." Isadora replied. " The treasurer could not have done anything. Even if he did, he is not worth going after." 

" How are you so sure?" 

" I"ve checked. As the treasurer, he only has control of how to allocate the budget. This gives him the power to divert funds, but the motion will never pass unless it goes through Administrator or the Overseer."

" I don't have to explain the rest, do I?" She replied impatiently. 

Isadora got another lurch in her stomach as the demon smiled. His eyes which gave her nausea, remained unchanged from their last meeting. 

When Isadora didn't respond, the commissioner shrugged with a helpless grin.

" You're right about almost everything there, and before this, I had the same thoughts as well."

" However…" there was a element in his voice that hinted something important.

At the flick of his wrist, one of the many neat drawers which lined the office burst open. From the prettily carved woodwork, a closed file extracted itself and flew into the commissioner's hand. He placed the file on the table surface and slid it over to Isadora. 

" …take a look at this." He nodded with his head. 

Turning the page open cautiously, Isadora sped through the contents in a few minutes of silence. 

Thump

She slammed the cover shut and looked up at the commissioner with stern eyes. 

" This changes things. Did you withhold information from me?" She growled. 

" Are you asking if I knew that this would happen? I didn't." The demon denied. His temperament also changing to take on a more serious tone. The two stared each other down, sparks beginning to fly.

Isadora's innate distrust for this man had grown. But she also knew that there was nothing she could do about that. Her only option here was to take everything this man said with a grain of salt.

He was a seasoned liar, skilled with his words and used to concocting deception on the spot. She wouldn't be surprised his magic itself allowed him to lie without detection. Isadora almost felt as if she was dealing with herself. It was an uncomfortable thought and she banished it swiftly. 

Eventually, Isadora relaxed her shoulders and let out a prolonged sigh. " You didn't tell me that one of the Seven Sages had gone missing." 

" I didn't think that you needed to know. Could you have done anything with that information?" He asked with a critical tone.

" ….." 

With a huff, the demon forced an impressively natural smile as he crossed over the table. He extended a hand. "In any case, this marks the end of the first part of our operation. He have that to celebrate." When Isadora didn't take his bid for peace, he smiled dryly again and went on saying: 

" But as our mission is far from over, I will still require your assistance in living up the latter part of your contract. There are no problems, I presume?" He queried. 

"....." Isadora gave the demon a curt nod. And it seemed to satisfy him. 

" Very good." 

" Now." 

The Comissioner turned back, and with a wave of his hand, summoned a long scroll from another of his cabinets. He laid it out on the table. He stuck the slightly rebellious ends of the paper to the table using paperweights. It was an enlarged and more detailed version of Isadora's map with visible annotations and markings.

Outside the city walls and inside the desert, there were three black stars. Inside the city, there was one red star and several scattered dots. 

The commissioner pointed to each of the points in order and began to explain.

" Each of these black stars is a bandit camp which we have found. This red star…"

" it is the Citadel of order. It contains the largest concentration of Leylines in the region." The demon commissioner looked up to see Isadora's reaction. She was looking at the map in deep concentration. 

" I will explain the Leylines briefly." He said.

" As I am sure you know, Leylines are an underground network of high-density mana ' Roots' that are spread diversely over all of Aüserst. Even the sea has these Leylines which creep under the seabed." 

" Like all other civilisations, we demons have drawn on the power and vast wealth of mana in these Leylines for centuries, using it to power our cities and provide mana even for their construction. This is exactly why Agravoss was built atop such a key point. Do you know how long it took for this city to be erected?" 

Isadora looked up at the sudden question. She threw a random guess that she already knew was wrong. " Three days." 

As expected, the demon smiled at her reply. " Half a day. This fort was created in half a day. And it has stood for over a three hundred years since." 

" This." He stressed, almost boasting a little. " is the power of Leylines."

" However, we demons have gone beyond that. We have found a completely unique way to utilise these Leylines."

" Do you know what that is?"

Isadora looked up again from her inspection of the map. From her perspective, these were all things which she had already known for ages. However, there was value to be gained from letting the demon talk. His perception of her in being a threat or an asset would affect how he deployed her and the brat. If possible, she wanted a simple job.

Perfunctorily, she answered. 

" You've used your unique magic, Kontraak to negotiate the Leylines, right?" 

" Oh!" The demon appeared genuinely surprised, " You really do know a lot." The commissioner exclaimed with a smile. " I hope this also reminds you why we cannot afford such a dangerous rebellion at this crucial time? "

" To have the entirety of the scorched plains( The region they're currently in) fall from the crown's control is unacceptable, not when we are at historic levels of tension with the humans." The commissioner spoke in a light-hearted tone even regarding such serious matters. It made one doubt how much he meant his words. At the same time, Isadora finished analysing the map and she looked up with furrowed brows at the smiling, and handsome young demon before her.

Isadora had initially wanted to utilise this situation to expose her little toy to some terrors of the real world. However, it appeared as if this situation had blown much further out of proportion than she had thought, making it an even better opportunity. However, it was also a more dangerous opportunity. 

' If we engage in battle, the brat won't be able to do anything at his current level. I need to be more careful with him.' She made a mental note to supervise the brat more carefully.

She couldn't afford to lose him! He would be her entertainment for the next millennium! 

" So? What's your plan?" Isadora asked. 

Smiling at her question. The demon pointed to the map, starting at the black stars first. 

" We strike before they do. Once everything is ready in preparation, we will strike at their legions with ours. Once the camps are decimated, we will only have to arrest the administrator, preventing him from connecting with the Leylines."

" Along with me and our special forces, you and your companion will storm the citadel alongside us. We will arrest this fool who dares stand against the crown and bring him to justice." He proclaimed confidently. Isadora nodded, as would be normal. 

Inwardly, however, she was frowning . ' Sages are appointed by the demon king." She remembered.

" Only those who he deem fit are usually strong enough to negotiate a Kontraak with the Leylines. It's a not a matter of appointment, but more of a matter of strength. This Administrator can't have lived for more than a hundred years. He's too young." 

' ….This guy…is testing me. But why?" 

Ages of dealing with all sorts of people came back to Isadora. The demon's mannerisms. The shifty and cunning gleam in his eyes that was almost imperceptible when masked by his confident poise and smile.

' 'He is hiding something.' Isadora realised. 

"....." 

" It is a good plan. Let's go with that." Isadora finally said. Nodding, the commissioner flashed another bright smile.

" I am glad that you agree." He waved his hand. A clinking of wine glasses and bottles followed. " To our continued partnership and success?" 

" Unfortunately, I don't drink in the day." Isadora said turning him down. The demon's face fell.

" I see. Then that can't be helped." 

After exchanging several more words, Isadora left. As the door closed behind her, the commissioner's smile fell from his face. 

Thinking for several moments, he took out a pen and began writing a message. He then summoned a subordinate and gave him the letter, instructing him to deliver it. " Tie it to the fastest raven we have and send it to His Grace." He instructed. 

The lackey nodded and bolted off, closing the door behind him. 

Sinking into his chair, the young commissioner collected his thoughts. 

' I don't need to worry too much. She wasn't as dangerous as I thought.' He sighed. This mysterious woman and her partner which he had not met were the only uncertain factors in their plan. With this checked out, their plan were now watertight. 

' There wasn't particularly a need to deceive her, but this way, we can perform the procedure without worry. While she is preoccupied with that low-born bastard, I can take the opportunity. We might end this without bloodshed."

' His grace should have already met the human's partner. If their meeting with the Overseer goes well, then we might be able to rat him out ahead of time.' 

' To think that he, of all people would betray us. I must find out why.'