Confrontation

"Lyrus, how are you?" Marcus smiled and opened his arms as he approached the knight.

The leader of The Exiled teleported to Mu Astra around midnight. Roswell was one of those who saw the man's arrival though inadvertently. The mercenary immediately left upon realizing what he stumbled upon, not bothering to shake Marcus' hand. He had enough nonsense for that day and decided to let Lyrus sort things out in the morning.

Lyrus, on the other hand, tightened his knuckles as he walked closer to Marcus. He discovered that even sleep becomes difficult in a place where there's a large amount of mana, and thus barely had a good slumber. Then he gets waken up early in the morning by a mage and was informed that Marcus requests an audience with them. There's an old saying in Noir that goes: 'Piss on a dragon, and you'll be dragon's piss', and right now Marcus is clearly pissing on him.

"Stop." The knight felt Roswell's arm blocking his chest. The mercenary has put himself before Lyrus, making the leader of the Exiled suddenly stop. Roswell is a lot bigger and taller than Lyrus, not to mention stronger, holding the knight back with only one arm.

Lyrus felt the gazes of Elrich and his disciples, and Freid and the others. They were on an area of the temple were mages usually meditate and practice their magic. The knight saw from the corner of his eyes, Freid stepping out of the crowd and preparing to intervene.

"Let me go." Lyrus gritted his teeth. Either Roswell lets him punch Marcus or he punches the mercenary.

"You're in no position to think. Let me handle this." Roswell locked eyes with Lyrus. For the first time, the knight felt sincerity and even a tinge of anger in the mercenary's voice. Lyrus took a deep breath and stepped back.

"Now, now. We shouldn't let our emotions get—" But Marcus wasn't able to finish his sentence as Roswell's right fist landed squarely on the side of his face. The leader of the Exiled stumbled backwards a bit and felt blood rushing out of a swollen lip.

Lyrus was shocked. Roswell never appeared to him as someone who would get sentimental. Sure, the mercenary might look like he punches people on a whim, but this was no whim. The knight felt the seething anger from the man as he punched Marcus.

"For a leader you're quite stupid. More stupid than our leader. Sending a subordinate without telling us. You're an idiot!" Roswell spat on the grass as Marcus struggle to regain composure. He might not like Lyrus' self-righteousness but at least the man can come up with a plan when needed.

"What did you say?!" Marcus was about to cast a spell to teach the mercenary a lesson when Lyrus stepped infront of him, blade drawn.

"Go on. Do it, cast a curse. But let me tell you, the spell I know is more powerful and ancient than anything you might have." It was a bluff. Lyrus doesn't know how strong a spell can Etrunr handle but it was the least that he could do for Roswell.

"Please, let's not fight here. This is sacred ground." Elrich pleaded or rather threatened the two as suddenly Lyrus and the others felt a cold chill sweep around them and the heavy feeling of mana draping around their shoulders like a wet blanket.

Marcus scoffed and walked away. He wouldn't mind exhibiting his magical prowess if it would put Lyrus and the others in their place but Elrich was a totally different matter. The minister was not just manipulating mana earlier but gathering it. He shuddered to think how powerful Mu Astra's minister is as to be able to further compress the already dense mana present at the temple.

As for Lyrus' party, the group decided to continue searching Heronicus' library seeing that there was nothing of interest that can be found in the latter's room. Roswell, however, excused himself once more from the task, saying that he will look around the temple for any clue to the half-elf's whereabouts.

The search was once again fruitless. While they have managed to comb up to the third shelf in the library, they still found nothing that might help them. Further, Leane has now amassed a large pile of books she was keen on 'borrowing', as Freid calls it.

"Wait. I've got it! Why didn't I think of that before!" Leane suddenly exclaimed to the surprise of both Lyrus and Freid. The two gave the mage questioning looks, doubtful as to whether what she will say next will be related to Heronicus or another magical trivia she has lately been fond of spurting out of nowhere ever since they arrived.

"A tracking spell. We could use a tracking spell to find Heronicus!" Leane beamed brightly as she scrambled to the pile of books behind her.

"You know one?" Lyrus asked.

"Yes. But they're all weak. We need a powerful one since I'm sure both Heronicus and the tower would be cloaked by an assortment of enchantments. Now go!"

Lyrus and Freid looked at each other. Go? Go where? The mage returned with a pile of books on her arms, sat at Heronicus' desk, and started reading.

"Ughhh…Leane?" Freid tapped the sorceress on the shoulder.

"What?! I said go! The two of you leave, I need to concentrate. Go practice your blade stuff or whatever!" Replied an irritated Leane as she pushed both Lyrus and Freid out of the library and shut the door behind her. The two scratched their heads for a moment, bid each other see you later and left, still pondering on what just happened.

Roswell felt his stomach rumble. It was already noon, he had just finished searching the whole temple and found nothing. Maybe he should ask Leane for help? But whatever tracking spell the mage knows would surely be weak. He needed a particularly powerful and precise one. One that would track a person long lost, one which can pinpoint where someone gone for a few years already might be found. However, as he made his back to the dining hall, he came face to face with Lyrus.

"Hey." The knight greeted him.

"What?" Roswell is hungry and the last thing he needed right now is another discussion.

"Tha-thanks for earlier."

"No need to thank me. I simply hate bad leaders especially those willing to sacrifice their subordinates for glory. But I also believe that the mission comes first." Roswell made his way to the dining hall, not bothering to look back at the knight. He had already made his point, there's no need for any sentiment of sort.

Marah opened her eyes and felt her body ache and sting in so many places. Within a few seconds of waking up she was already writhing in agony. She can hear the faint sounds of the shuffling of feet and the pounding of mortar and pestle. "Here, drink this." The bitterness of the concoction made her gag a bit, but its effect was instantaneous. The ache and stinging sensation soon became dull and manageable.

She struggled to sit up as nausea now took over. Where was she? Last thing she remembered was the mage named Leane trying to feed her before her sight turned to black. After a few minutes of using her arms as support she managed to prop herself upright on her bed. As her eyes tried to focus, she made out the silhouette of three figures standing and looking on her. As if suddenly struck by lightning, Marah instinctively raised her arms and started chanting. As she did so, however, the pain got stronger again, making her clutch her torso and arms. The runes on her are slowly activating again, that's what's causing the unimaginable pain as she recalled how painful her engravement was.

"Will she be okay?" Asked one of the voices, this one belonging to a man. The tone and deepness of the voice sounded familiar to her but the discomfort she's feeling is preventing her from recalling.

"Yes sir. But she would need to refrain from using spells for awhile. Is there any way to stop—"

"No. There's no way. The runes on our bodies will be with us until we die." The familiar voice cut off the other.

Marah lost consciousness while sitting, to the shock of the people inside the room. Marcus can only look on helplessly as the two mages rush to the woman's aid. The numbing sensation of the bruise on his left cheek reminded him of the mercenary's words. Idiotic leader. He bit his already swollen lip as he tried to contain his anger. Idiotic? What's idiotic in wanting to regain their place in Threanas? Auria will still get cured. Sure, he sent Marah, one of their finest mages, to intercept the Sky Marigold but he only did it since he doubted if Lyrus and the others will be able to obtain the flower.

It would take another hour or so before Marah wakes up again. This time though there was no pain but only a dull ache on her body. She felt her vigor renewed but at the same time felt the runes on her body doing their job once more, draining her of mana and strength. She tried to sit upright and found that she could already do so. She breathed a sigh of relief only to find Marcus standing before her.

"Si-sir…I'm sorry. I failed." Marah bowed her head down. She was one of The Exiled's finest. In fact, had it not been for the usurpation by the Midnight Council, she would have been one of those tasked to assassinate Deanor. She has always prided herself for being a proficient mage. Bearing a larger number of runes on her body than others and able to use them immediately and even simultaneously. To think she would be easily bound by another sorcerer, and a half-elf at that was humiliating.

"It's fine. It was my fault. I should have just let you join Lyrus' party to begin with. Can you stand?" Marcus offered his hand to Marah. The woman can't help but be flustered a bit. She never got to know their leader, Marcus, very well since it would always be her superior who she would talk to. But she has heard how Marcus would care for the wellbeing of the others, how he would put himself in danger just for their group.

"Where are we going?" Marah asked.

"We're going to meet with Lyrus and the others. I was a fool. It's time to correct my actions." Marcus answered as he helped the sorceress up and left the room.

It was already infront of the dining table when Marcus and Lyrus met again. The knight has spent the afternoon training Etrunr and even joined the mages in meditation in the hopes that it would help him be more proficient in magic. While it appeared not to have an effect on his use of Etrunr, by the time he finished his meditation, his body has felt significantly lighter, like it was now use to the dense mana surrounding Mu Astra. However, his musings were interrupted when Marcus stood up, and to everyone's surprise, offered Lyrus a handshake.

"I'm sorry. We clearly got off the wrong foot." Marcus reached out his hand. Lyrus, still unsure of what to do, simply nodded and continued eating.

"I have a proposal. I would like—" but Lyrus cut him off with a raised hand then stood up. The few seconds of silence between the two afforded the knight the time to find the words he's searching for.

"Let Marah join our party. No hidden instructions or whatsoever, and we'll tell not just the Council but we'll spread the word throughout Threanas that is The Exiled who found the Sky Marigold." It was Lyrus who offered a handshake this time which Marcus took.

Marah, on the other hand, has her head bowed the whole time, not even bothering to touch her food. Ever since she left her room, she felt the stares of every mage she met. It was as if she was a rare artifact. Come to think of it though, she is indeed someone to marvel at. Not only is she one of the few practitioners of engravement but she even survived being drained of almost all of her mana.

"Eat up. You need energy. After all, you're one of us now." Marah turned her head to see a smiling Leane. Tears welled up on her eyes, prompting Leane to hug her. Finally looking around, what she mistook to be curious stares turned out to be looks of relief and happiness as the mages around her, including the Minister, Elrich beamed at the sight before them. She then remembered what her deceased father would always tell her, 'Magic binds all mages not just in spells but also in heart'.

Cheers erupted around the group as Marcus and Lyrus concluded their deal. Ruiri, who has stayed in his room for the most part of the day, even showed up despite still not feeling well when word got to him of the agreement and the planned celebration. Roswell, on the other hand, can't help but smirk when the knight threw him a glance. With a new member in their party and the tension between Marcus and Lyrus finally gone, ale and good food flowed well into the night.

It was around midnight though that tragedy struck. Everyone joined in the celebration even the mages tasked with patrolling the temple grounds. By the time that the masked man and the specters arrived, all of the inhabitants of Mu Astra has been sleeping or otherwise dozing off.

The masked man immediately felt the dense mana around the temple when him and the specters teleported. While they could have teleported inside Mu Astra itself, it would still be wise if they appear a few yards before it. An ancient temple would definitely have a lot of enchantments and he wouldn't want to risk the life of a few of his men just to find out what are those.

He marveled at the amount of mana surrounding and inside the temple. Being an elf, he is very sensitive to mana and easily can sense it but the mana around a Mu is different. It is so dense that he can practically feel it with his fingertips. However, now is not the time to be amazed, they have work to do.

The mysterious elf held out his right hand infront of him and closed his eyes. The mana in Mu Astra would certainly make spells more powerful but it also would allow a skilled sorcerer to easily break all the enchantments. The man smiled as he finally made contact with as much mana as he needed. Within a matter of seconds, the ground of the temple shook as the numerous obelisks and statues in it shattered. This immediately alerted Elrich and his disciples but the warning came too late. The masked man has broken every protective enchantment in the temple, Mu Astra has fallen.