Symbols

Kade led them through the camp, and Atrox asked him more questions as they left behind the Steelclaw camp and walked into a more general area.

He asked if there's a higher rank than Squire among the people they recruited, but Kade shook his head. He said there are higher ranks among the Nyxori but not directly recruited in the Borderland.

That made Atrox pause. What exactly was this Nyxori planning? Why wouldn't they want to get more powerful and experienced teams with them?

Kade led him past many ruins protected by the different Flag teams before they reached a building of dull brown stones, three stories high.

"Those are teams who are there to either commission potions or buy things," Kade gestured to the people either going in or coming out in the different colors of the Flags. "You can do that—ask for what resources are needed to make which potion, get them, and they'll make it for you for either extra resources to them or another form of payment."

Atrox nodded. So this is where the Flagbearers get most of their resources refined, those related to potions or pills. They entered the busy front hall, but Kade led him deeper into the building. They climbed the stairs after he talked with the guards, and soon he was knocking on a door.

Before the door opened, Kade whispered, "We are meeting the middle management. I think they are the leaders sent here from their main head. But anyway, call them captains!"

The door opened, and they entered the bright room. In the middle were couches with a big table, and directly facing the door were two chairs with a study table in front of it.

Two men sat in the chairs, and their gaze fixed on them immediately.

Atrox's gaze ran over the two alchemists, and the first impression he got was, 'They are stronger than the Knight rank!'

Their eyes searched Atrox, and he resisted the urge to look away. He shifted, feeling like starsalt ready for usage in an experiment.

One of them spoke. He looked to be in his thirties, but with the slow aging of Knights, who could tell? He had scholarly glasses on his face. "Kade? What are you doing here? I thought you'd be taking care of something in your gang."

The other man sneered. He had dark hair that covered half his face and replied coldly, "Have you killed more than you needed to? It better not be that!"

The air in the room changed, and Kade flinched.

Atrox looked at the two captains. One of them looked reasonable, at least normal, but the other, with hair covering half his face, was like a block of ice.

Kade stepped forward and spoke to the man with dark hair covering half his face. "Captain Arvas, you don't have to worry about that. I killed no one, and the person who killed my gang member earlier is this—Atrox."

Cold eyes turned to him, and Atrox met them with one of his own. Arvas snorted. "So you brought him here for what? So we can kill him? You've grown wings, Kade. Talk to him, Kren!"

The other captain, Kren, pushed his glasses up his nose and sighed. "What is it you want, Kade? We're having enough trouble as it is. Your Flagbearers are demanding more potions while providing little resources. They claim the monsters have begun to push them hard.

"But even here, we're facing the same situation. Everywhere is tight, so it's better you don't waste our time."

He spoke softly, but Atrox heard the threat in it like a sword wrapped in silk. Instead of waiting for Kade to speak for him, Atrox said, "I am here to join you. I'm a Squire rank."

Two pairs of eyes refocused on him with sharp intensity, and Atrox shifted. It was like they were looking through him and into his bones. But their focus was on his lower abdomen—his core—that saw through layers of flesh.

Immediately, their expressions changed... subtly, but Atrox saw the shock on their faces, and he stiffened. What did they see? His core? Did they just measure his potential? That made his skin crawl for reasons he didn't know. He didn't like it at all.

"Is that so? A Squire," Arvas sneered, but his mind wasn't in it. His voice had lost the malice in it.

Atrox took a breath. "Yes. A Squire. Kade told me that you are recruiting for a period of time for a price."

Kren nodded, sitting up, his face showing interest. "You are right. Tell me what your price is. Most of the people we recruited want enchanted tools... artifacts or constructs. What do you want?"

Atrox had given it a lot of thought on his way over. What he lacked right now was money—in any form—and information. But first, he must put his life first. "What's the level of danger of the operation?"

"Dangerous but not life-threatening. I and Arvas are Errant Knight alchemists in the Mystic Order, so we'll be able to protect you. So, what's your price?"

Atrox shook his head. "Tell me about the operation."

Kren shrugged. "Very well. The mine was formerly a ruin before it was raided. But what most people don't know is that it's an overlapping ruin. There's a ruin behind the mine, and that's why it's still considered dangerous to go deeper into it.

"During the raid then, eleven years ago, after clearing the mine, the Knights went deeper and saw another ruin, but they weren't able to really explore it because there was a door that couldn't be opened. A door marked with some forbidden symbols. Since some of our Nyxori members went with them, we were able to gather some clues.

"We've analyzed the clues and then come up with a theory..."

Atrox interrupted, "Symbols? What symbols did you find?"

Kren smiled. "A circle, like a mark of Order but filled with a darkness that seems to devour the night. The forbidden mark."