Tower of Malice

In the brightly lit back room of the tailor shop, Phoebe made sure to get every information she could regarding the city and its current lockdown state. The lengthy conversation gave light to some of the more unknown problems that an outsider would fail to see immediately within the city.

Much like Arcadia, Londria was going through many changes due the past war. The prime minister Jakob Arc passed many laws that suited the empire in keeping knowledge close to themselves while actively exploiting those who dared to come learn from them. Most of said laws also included the obvious exclusion of demons from the capital city and its borders, actively hunting and killing those who were deemed from a demon bloodline.

One of the most recent rules enforced the closure of trade under the excuse of 'keeping the tainted blood off the promised land', leading the capital to face a shortage of goods and since nobody knew just how long it would last, most common folk were worried about ever growing scarcity of food. While the empire can sustain itself through various ways, the limited trade was raising the prices of existing products left prior to the closure.

"While we don't have any problems for now, it won't be long until we find ourselves stranded without any more food." Jean scratched the side of his head while doodling on a notebook. "And before that I must acquire the money from this commission. If anything, it'll help me get through these difficult times."

"I see." After compiling all information inside her mind, she then looked at the military garb displayed on the central mannequin. "Well then, I'll change into these clothes and I'll tell you when to come back."

"Ah yes, excuse me Miss Stephanie."

He bowed down and pulled the makeshift curtain made of a thick white sheet. Phoebe stared blankly at the attire, thinking back about what she had learned about that tower.

'Rumors began a while back, even before the trade routes were cut off, that it houses a laboratory of some kind that uses living subjects as a means to conduct experiments. Then again… after what I saw yesterday, it is quite plausible.' She clenched her fists. 'Leona doesn't know what she's getting into… if the kingdom supports these acts, we are better off leaving this place once that air vessel is finished.'

Her thoughts were interrupted by an excited and obviously anxious elf behind the sheet cloth.

"Miss Stephanie, is everything alright? The deafening silence made me doubt my artisan's skills. Is there anything you don't like about it?"

"Ah, no, I'm so sorry, I was just lost in thought. I'll start changing now so give me a few more minutes."

"As you wish."

She unceremoniously removed all her clothing saving for the cloth mask and even before a minute passed, she was already in the military garb. It even seemed like magic to her as the coat had a perfect fit on her body, just tight enough like her ninja uniform but also loose enough to not hinder her movements. Glancing over her shoulder, she noticed a tall mirror near the room's doorway as she stood looking at her reflection. The unusual attire kind of grew on her.

'It's not bad by any means, but this would attract too much unwanted attention.' After taking a good look in the mirror, she sighed. 'This is certainly more comfortable than what I was wearing but the mission comes first.'

She moved part of the cloth sheet and was met by Jean doodling restlessly on the counter.

"I'm done."

Upon hearing her voice he just threw everything to the side and stood up, spinning around faster than she expected, causing her to instinctively reach for the dagger on her hip which was left inside the ninja armor she was no longer wearing.

"Goddess gracious, let me see!" He dashed in the room and as if he was holding his breath the entire time, he opened his arms widely. "Miss Stephanie you are perfect! This goes beyond my wildest expectations for a model!"

She was truly beautiful even in an overcoat meant for war. Her slim figure was further improved by the tight fit of the black buttoned corset on her waist, both shoulders were padded with gold-like ornaments. The extensive use of pressure buttons gave the attire a much modern look to what usually would be a simple piece of protective gear.

Even with all that frivolous pursuit of beauty and fashion, every piece of equipment she was wearing felt like it could actually protect her life from a deadly blow of a blade since the materials were made to safeguard the user's life. It could be said it was the pinnacle of art and purpose.

"T-thank you."

"But… hmmm… can't you remove this cloth around your face?"

He motioned on his own to show her what he wanted her to do.

"Do I have to?"

"No, of course not. But in exchange, I can introduce you to this friend of mine that can maybe help you get more information regarding the kingdom's prime minister. She is a former captain after all."

It seemed too good to be true and even if it was, there was no guarantee that this friend of his would keep it a secret. Worst come to worst Phoebe could always kill without leaving a trace, but she was trying her best to not have to rely on that and instead use her wits to further her goals.

"Very well then."

Of course it was a dangerous gamble, having other people know her face could potentially lead to undesired results, but if that was all it took for her to have more connections in that unknown land, she was willing to take the risks.

Without wasting time, she pulled the edge of the cloth on her face that slowly came off her head.

"Oh… my goddess…"

Her short pitch black hair contrasted with her fair skin and deep blue stare against the lamp highlights. Everything about her made Jean think she was the perfect model for his creations. Her long and thin ears told everything about her bloodline. It could be said that she was a black swan amidst her elven countrymen, a half high elf of unparalleled beauty. Though her lineage mattered little for the tailor as all he wanted was a worthy model he could work with and at long last he found the one.

"Thank you very much for showing the entirety of your beauty." He smiled as he handed her a piece of paper with a few names jotted down along the name of the places they would most likely be. "Here, I wrote this earlier when I was waiting for you to change. This is a list of the people that can help you."

Glancing for only a split second she noticed two familiar names in that list, one of them being Athena Kaiser and the other was Lawrence of Astera, which prompted Phoebe to think about the man's surname.

'Lawrence of Astera? I didn't know he was from that place.'

City of Astera, a small coastal port to the far east of the Arcadian continent, its walls often house merchants and merchandise shipped from the Eastern Alliance. But even more than that, she just couldn't quite understand the man in front of her.

"Well then, I should get back to finishing the other uniforms. Ah, Miss Stephanie can keep this piece, it is a modified version of the original after all."

He was about to head back to the store, but Phoebe couldn't help but ask.

"Wait, why are you going out of your way to help me?"

"I just think you might be able to change this place for the better, whatever is that you work with, I'm sure someone like Miss Stephanie can make the difference."

"I see…"

"If you excuse me, I must draw. You just opened a new path for the clothing in this store and for that I am eternally grateful." He bowed and grabbed the sketchbook from the nearby counter and began to scribble. "Tell Olivia I said hi in case you go to her. I still own her a great deal after what happened with my shop."

She looked at him and nodded. He exited the changing room leaving her alone to change back. Within a few seconds, she had her weapons concealed again with her ninja uniform beneath the fur coat. The military uniform was packed into a washed brown satchel sitting nearby as she slung it around her shoulder.

"Thank you for your help again, sir Jean. May we meet again someday."

"I hope the same Miss Stephanie."

With that, she exited the store and started heading back to the inn, but not before taking a quick glance at the tower's entrance to her right.

'Nothing out of the ordinary.' Her eyes then traced up to the slits in the wall. 'Huh?'

It was just a glimpse but she swore she saw the dark silhouette of a human inside.

As to not look suspicious, she turned around and decided to leave as discreetly as she could. In the corner of her eye she noticed a group of Londrian soldiers with one carrying a wheelbarrow covered with a thick dark blanket. It appeared to be quite hefty as the one carrying seemed to be having trouble doing so.

'...There is something about that place. But let's follow the plan and head there when I have more information.'

Inside the tower, the humid and cold atmosphere sent chills down the soldier carrying the wheelbarrow. It was a dark place as the only light present was a small candle in the very corner of the beginning of the staircase.

"Why are we doing this again?"

The recruit carrying the cargo asked the other three soldiers accompanying him, however only the sergeant leading them replied.

"Orders from the captain, don't question it."

"I know but still… abducting someone in the middle of the day for no apparent reason seems a bit too extreme, even if it is for public safety."

"Public safety needs to be taken seriously." Another male voice came from the corner of the staircase. "Or do you have any objections regarding how I run things?"

The elf captain carried an oil lantern in his left hand in order to light up the way while holding on a clipboard on the other. Upon seeing his senior, the recruit simply shrinked into his uniform as he replied with an apologetic voice.

"N-no captain Oliver."

"Good. In this case, bring him upstairs. After that you may rest in the barracks."

The four of them answered in unison.

"Yes sir."

They settled the wheelbarrow down and all four of them were needed to carry whoever was enveloped in the large dark blanket up the stone staircase. Oliver was taking another look at the clipboard which had all the information he compiled from the newcomers.

"What was his name again? Krieg? Maybe I can use him as bait… considering how that princess was willing to go so far to save him. Then again… this is Jakob." He sighed. "No matter, I will win in the end either way this goes."

He began climbing the stairs once again disappearing in the depths of the tower.