Legacies of light

Three days later

“Where the hell is that girl,” I say as I melancholy stare up at the sky.

“Orb, come get something to eat”, Maple says.

While Atalanta has been gone, we had set up camp right were we hid when we first arrived. I didn’t know then, but it seems all the people from the Village packed a bunch of things without my knowledge. It seems they wanted us to be as prepared as possible. I have to thank them for the next time I see them.

As I walk past an asleep Willow, I give him a rub on his head. Because we lack the food to keep him fed, he has begun hibernating and has been asleep for the past three days. It makes me sad that we have nothing to give him, but if we start feeding him out of our food, the supplies will be finished in no time. Still I didn’t want him to suffer alone, so I only fed sparrow the minimum he needed to survive.

While I sit down and eat, my anxiety over the situation of everyone in Basileia continues to grow. What I eat is barely enough for me, and I am sure they’re not getting anything close to this amount of food. This is so frustrating. “ATALANTA, WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU!”

“You called,” she says with her face on my shoulder.

I scream and back away from her. “How did you sneak up on me.”

With a proud expression, she says, “That’s one of my special skills. I refer to it as stealth mode.”

Getting up and composing myself, I ask Atalanta a few questions. “So, first of all, what are you doing with all those new clothes and that cart.”

“These are just some things Simon got for me. We could use them to stock up on supplies.”

“Oh yes, about that can you please illustrate for me, HOW THE HELL YOU GOT IN!”

“Oh, simple; I know that mostly nobles come here, so with my womanly charms, I knew I could seduce one of them to take me with them. Lucky for me, the man I questioned was quite easy to charm.”

What kind of idiot lets a woman randomly in his carriage? For all he knew, she could be an assassin or a bandit, that goes beyond stupidity. “I see, so can you tell me what you learned while you were there.”

“Well, I could see many different places because Simon was a big showboat, which made things much more manageable. I got a good look at all the guard posts and have a pretty good layout of the upper floors of Basileia. I also talked to the guards; they were very talkative, many were well educated, and most spoke both the heroes and saviours songs. They were also quite pretty.

However, I did notice that despite all the talking they did, they never mentioned anything about the city other than the stunning crystals. Other things of note that I saw were that they also showed no emotions at any provocations they received and were very well-tempered. The only time they lost their cool was when someone slandered the current ruler who is called Morgan.

Though the most important information I could get was the location to the entrance of the mine, underneath the city.”

I have a face of complete shock as she continues talking. “Huh, is something wrong, Orb,” she says, looking at my dumbfounded expression.

Bowing down, I say, “I am sorry.”

Looking confused, she asks, “Why?”

“It is just that I thought you were going to fail without a doubt, but you did a fantastic job gathering all this information, so I am sorry for my lack of fate.”

“Don’t worry. People happen to think that about me a lot, but at least you apologised about it, so all is forgiven.”

“Thank you so much. With this, I should be able to sneak into the mine.”

“Orb, I would like you to wait on that for now.”

“Why should I do that.”

“The last thing I learned was that they will be holding a festival in a little over three months from now. To my knowledge, many high-profile people will be at that and thanks to that, I am sure they will have their hands filled dealing with them, so their security will be lax. I also think I will be able to get a map of the mine sometime over these next three months.

“How?” I asked, confused by her last point.

“Well, I planted some seeds while I was there. I gave lots of service to the noble and told him that if he wanted to see me, he should return in a month. I also managed to flirt with some guards who seemed to be high-ranked, so I believe if all goes well next time, I will be able to get a map.”

Looking down in shame, I say to her, “Sorry you had to do such things for me.”

“Oh, don’t be sad. I have no issue with this. He was extremely good, and all the guards there were super hot. That woman Morgan sure knows how to pick them.”

“Well, that’s a relief, but,” getting close to her ear I say, “Please stop with the dirty talk, Maple looks like she is about to pass out over there.”

“Oh right,” she says, putting her hands over her mouth.

So, sitting back down, I say, “It’s frustrating to wait, but I want to go with the plan with a high chance of success, so I guess where stuck here for three months. During this time, we must prepare as much as possible.”

I hear Maple mumble something beside me. “Everyone, please be safe.”

One month later

Φ As I walk into one of the guest rooms, I see a boy named Willow.

“Hello, mother,” he says as he runs towards me and hugs me.

“How have you been, Willow.”

“I have been great, and it is all thanks to your mother.”

“Oh my, how adorable you are,” I say while spinning him around. Over the last few days, I have made sure to get in close and rebuild this broken child. The punishment we give to prisoners can have various impacts on them. Some bite off their tongues and some become so fearful of us that they never disobey orders again, but the best outcome is when they break just enough for me to wiggle right into their hearts.

I take Willow’s hand and guide him across the hallway out of his room.

“Those giant crystals are beautiful.”

“Yes, they’re. Those crystals pillars are some of the oldest crystals and are monuments of the city, so we leave them up.”

“Whoa, you know a lot, mother.”

“I only know what I learned.”

“But still, you know much more than I ever could.”

Rubbing his head, I say, “That’s because I am older, but I am sure you will be this knowledgeable someday.”

“You think so.”

“If you obey mother, you will.”

“Then I will do that no matter what.”

“Good boy. It seems we have arrived at our destination.” We walk through the door and enter my office, where four people have been waiting for us. The head guard, my personal guard and two other guards are waiting.

Seeing the head guard, Willow hides behind me and holds me while shaking. I turn around and bend till I see him at eye level and say, “Tana won’t hurt you, since you are one of mothers family members, trust me.”

“Really,” he says with a whimper.

“I promise. Just look,” I say as Tana waves at Willow with a big smile.

As Willow waves back, I tell him, “Willow’s mother needs you to do something important for her.”

Gleaming with excitement, he says, “Whatever you ask of me, I will do.”

“What a good boy you are. The thing I need from you is to get your friends to work much harder.”

“Why?”

“It is just that if we don’t hit a certain quota soon, your mother could be in big trouble and have to go away forever. You don’t want that do you.”

“No, I don’t. I want you to stay with me forever, I will do whatever I need to.”

Hugging him, I say, “Thank you, Willow. Due to this, I will be able to protect both you and all our family.” Letting go of him, I say, “Mia here will take you where you need to go, and show you how you do your job.”

Mia walks over to Willow and says, “Are you ready to work for the glory of the mother.”

“Yes, I am”, he says excitedly.

“Well, I hope you both do your best.”

“Yes, we will, mother,” they say in unison as they leave.

I go to sit down on my chair behind my desk. I say to the three people still in the room. “With this, we should be able to reach our quota. To think God would give us such a strong tool right when we needed it.”

“Yes, it is quite fortunate to think that someone like him would be able to get us out of our dire situation,” my personal guard Porto says.

A few months ago, we got a request from the holy nation that they would be going to war with an insignificant group and requested a sizable supply of crystals which was no issue.

But two disasters hit us. First was that one of our transport routes was raided, and second, the war dragged on, so they have constantly been requesting more and more. Because Gevurah is an important customer to keep happy, we must always prioritise them, which has made our clients increasingly dissatisfied.

I have made many enemies in my life, and if any of them see I am in a fragile state, they will try to take me down by sabotaging my relationship with my clients. The protection I get from giving specific clients crystals has kept Basileia safe from invasions. If I lose that, it’s all over.

“Sora, how are the preparations for the party going.”

Flustered by my words, he says, “Oh yes, it is coming along nicely.”

“It better be. Remember, Sora; we are using this to make a statement against our enemies that everything is well. If we make a single mistake, we might end up like the Animus family.”

“Yes, mam, I will double-check everything.”

“Oh, that remains me. How is Cyrus doing, Tana.”

“He is fine as usual. Following my instructions, he has been working extra hard. About half the crystals mined last month came from him”

“He is always working hard like usual. Just like you three, he has always shown extreme loyalty to me without the need for any training, so make sure to give him some reward, alright”.

“Yes, mam.”

“Ok then, that will be all return to your work,” and with those words, Tana and Sora leave.

“So, Mother, what are you going to do now.”

“I will ensure all our hostages are getting on all right.”

Φ “Hey Tana, wait, I want to say something.”

“Kept up or shut up, I have work to do.”

“I was just wondering, don’t you think Boss will be angry if she finds out that you haven’t been giving Cyrus any rewards, you haven’t even let him sleep in who knows how long.”

Tana stops in her tracks, turns around, and says to me, “Boss said to reward his loyalty, and since he has shown no such thing, I will be giving him no such rewards.”

But as those words leave his mouth, I hear a noble on a balcony shout, “I need one of you servants up here right now. To think you haven’t given a man like me his personal attendant, how shameful.”

Turning and giving his best smile Tana says, “Sorry sir, we will be there immediately,” while clenching his fist so tight it starts to bleed.

“Sora, stop being a useless pest and go help that man.”

“Wait, that man is the one with the beautiful scarlet-haired woman.”

“I don’t think I have to say this to you, but if you try anything with her, I will kill you.”

“You got it wrong last month; when they were here, I swear that woman was hitting on me.”

“Keep your fantasies to yourself; you brain-dead idiot. Now go help him and get back to your work,” I say as I walk away.

Irritated, I say, “I will, but explain that Cyrus issue to me later,” while running off.

Φ To think I have to explain something so obvious to him, unlike with Porto and me or the people who were broken down like Willow and Mia. Cyrus has no loyalty to the boss. All the loyalty everyone thinks he shows, is nothing more than a front. That man will do whatever he is told with no resistance. He is no more than a slave in mind and body—dragon, my ass.

Φ “Honey, I have called for them. To think I would have to do this. They don’t know who I am.”

“It is truly a shame that a man as great as you would have to do such things.”

“Yes, it is. You truly understand, darling. This place has gone downhill since that woman took over.”

“Huh, what do you mean? Would you please enlighten me”?

“Well, since you asked so nicely, I will. Before, Basileia was run by queen Morgan’s husband Nodar. When he was in charge, this country was a much more open place that took much better care of its visitors, and when it came to mining the crystals, he refused to use slaves. Unlike the current queen, he was a sincere and charitable man.”

“I see, she really is a horrible witch.”

A sudden knock on the door interrupts my and my darling’s conversation. “They must finally be here. Come in.”

“Excuse me, sir; I am sorry for the delay. What do you need.”

“Sorry for the delay. There should be no delay for me. Don’t you guys have any level of respect.”

“I am sorry, sir. Now, what do you need.”

“I don’t like that tone. Whom do you think you’re talking to, you insignificant worm.”

“Honey, a person like you shouldn’t lower yourself by talking to this man.”

“Your right. I shouldn’t. Now getting to business, my partner here wants to be taken to relieve herself.”

“Honey, no need to be so graphic.”

“When you reach my age, you tend to stop caring about such things.”

“I lack your wisdom; I should follow your example.”

“It is no issue as long as you know it. Now be off.” And with that, my partner and the guard left.

Φ I was five seconds away from losing my cool in front of that old man, but at least I could now walk with this scarlet-haired beauty. However, her personality seems less than adequate to be with such a man like him.

“HE SUCKS!”

“Huh.”

“That old ass fart sucks so bad, I had to come up with an excuse to get away from him.”

“Should you be saying that.”

“I don’t see the issue, and come on; I am sure everyone close to him must be thinking the same.”

“I guess you’re right. I have no idea how anyone could be around him.”

“I know, right.”

“That man is old ugly, and stinky. I am surprised you could spend a moment in that room with him.”

So, as I continue to insult the old man, the beautiful woman beside me continues to agree and laugh beside me until she says, “He is the exact opposite of you.”

“Thanks,” I said bashfully.

“You know, I asked him to bring me back because I couldn’t forget your face the last time we met.”

“Hmm, really?”

Pushing her soft body again, she says, “You know, being with such an awful human, has made me wish I could spend some time with someone wonderful for a change.”

My god Sora this is happening. You can’t clam up right now. You need to sweep her off her feet. So, I hold her close, lift her chin, and say, “My room is close by.”

“Let’s go,” she says as we head off.

When I open the door of my room and walk in, I feel entirely revitalised, spring has come for me at last, though it is a pity I can’t brag to Tana about this. So, I turn around slowly and say, “Are you ready, baby.” But as I turn to see her face, I immediately see darkness.

Φ Now I can look around his room in peace. As I searched around, I finally came upon what I was looking for maps of the mines. Yes, with this, everything should go much smoother. I am like a ninja; no, I would be a kunoichi. I am amazing. Now to make it look like something happened, I decide to lay the unconscious man on the bed, take off all his clothes and leave my panties for him. With this, he should think he feel asleep. Next time we meet, I will hint that something happened, and with that, I have pulled off a perfect infiltration.