The Old Scholar

Set about  3000-ish years before the main series

In the Kingdom of Jhacob on the far southwestern corner of the continent of Kalani, Leilani, known as just The Dean of Imperia or formerly known by a scant few as the Grand Scholar Of Partoba who was just as legendary as the First Scholars of the other continent. Dressed in her white outfit and headdress that obscured her face, she was sitting inside the residence of Baron Weitzlinger, a former student of hers who had invited her for some tea as he had some information regarding a growing concern of several Imperia students across the world dying to the same entity she had yet to figure out who yet since she was swamped with other works. Baron Weitzlinger was a handsome man who had slicked-back auburn hair, with a lot of well-kept facial hair in the form of a mustache, beard, and sideburns, he had piercing blue eyes that were focused on Leilani as she was busy sipping some delightful tea from her porcelain cup. Weitzlinger was also dressed in his family's armor which was silver with some green accents and a green cape, with a bastard sword holstered by his side even as he sat down on the table. 

"Hmmm, so what is this information you wish to tell me young one?" Leilani asked as she poured herself more of the brown tea from the teapot into her cup, watching as Weitzlinger opened up a packet of white powder titled 'SUGAR' into her cup before she began to stir it 

"aH, of course. That information, before I answer that question Professor, how are you feeling today?" Weitzlinger asked as he stood from his seat and moved towards an open arch overlooking a beautiful garden he planted himself 

"I am fine, nothing too strenuous for a woman such as myself can't handle" Leilani replied as she took a sip from her cup, the tea going down her throat in one gulp 

"I see...I am sorry to say that this will be the last time you feel this way Professor" The Baron said as he didn't turn around, his fists trembling at his sides 

"What do you mean?" Leilani asked as she placed the cup down 

"You see Professor, that 'SUGAR' packet, was in reality, Nicorenin Poison, one of the quickest and deadliest in the world if you aren't familiar. It is strong enough to kill demonkin. It destroys you sense of touch first, then your sense of smell, then your eyes go dark before you lose all hearing and then finally, you die as you fail to notice yourself coughing up your own blood"  Weitzlinger continued as he took a deep breath

"I am sorry Professor, but there is a new world order that you are no longer apart....of" Weitzlinger's words trailed off as he turned around and saw a still alive Leilani sitting in her chair, holding up her cup and a sense of disappointment in her aura 

"How-" 

"Sit down Weitzlinger. Now" Leilani ordered with a cold tone as she gestured her cup towards his seat 

"How-" 

"If you do not listen now, I will paint your marble white walls red with your blood" Leilani cut him off as she smacked the cup onto the table, not breaking it but breaking the plate her hand smashed into

Weitzlinger flinched at the sound of the broken plate and quickly moved to his end of the table, fear, panic and immense regret filling him rapidly as he thought of a way out of this mess. 

"Who hired you?" Leilani asked as she leaned into her chair 

"What do you mean?" Weitzlinger asked with a gulp 

"You heard me, who hired you to kill me? And by extension, the other eight students from my academy?" The Grand Scholar of Partoba asked with more menacing and serious tone than before 

"I...uhhh..." The Baron began to stammer and stutter as he was trying to think of a proper lie 

"If you give me bullshit, I will rip it from your mind instead, and I assure you, that is not a painless action" Leilani added with a low growl 

"It was Duke Valensten. He hired me Professor, to kill you and eight others from Imperia as part of his entry task" Weitzlinger answered, seeing that even the poison in his mouth had failed to kill him as the poison vanished from his false tooth 

"Entry task for what?" Leilani asked as she got up and began walking to him 

"For the Shadow Guild, the largest criminal organization in the world" The Baron answered as his fear grew larger and larger as Leilani neared him 

"Ahhh...those bastards...I see" Leilani nodded as she stopped right before him, placing her hand on him and feeling him shaking at her touch 

"What will you do to me Professor?" The Baron asked with a shaky voice 

"Hmmm....that is up to you, because I am going to pay Valensten and the Shadow Guild a visit. If you do not wish to end up like them, enjoy the cup of tea on the table, otherwise, you are free to try and run, but you won't get very far I assure you" Leilani answered him as she squeezed his shoulder, making him wince in pain as he could feel her fingers about to punch through his skin 

"I will take the tea" Weitzlinger replied, causing Leilani to pull her hand out and then summon the same tea that was to kill her before the Baron 

Weitzlinger gulped as he looked at the hot tea, his body shaking as he looked up to Leilani who was looking down at him through her mask, her hidden eyes burning with anger and rage that could burn him alive if he looked at them without the veil obscuring it. 

"Before anything Professor, it was nothing personal, I am falling on hard times right now and I needed the vast amount of money they were offering me" Weitzlinger said through gasps of fear 

"It is never not personal Weitzlinger, you should have known that from the start. Targetting my academy, or any of my students is targeting me. Now drink up and die with honor, that is the last grace I can give you as my former student" The Old Scholar stated as she stood up and walked away from him 

As Leilani walked away, Baron Weitzlinger looked down at the brown cup of tea before him and then back up to Leilani who was leaving the room, he let out a sigh as he closed his eyes and then downed the cup in one go. Placing the cup down, he quickly felt his body go numb as he lost his sense of touch, and then he lost his sense of smell as he could no longer smell the cuisine on the table, he then freaked out when his eyesight suddenly turned black and he screamed as he could no longer hear anything outside. He thought he kept screaming but in reality, his body was convulsing as he coughed up darkened blood onto the table before going limp and then crashing onto the floor. 

.........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Deep inside the Shadow Guild's secret sanctuary known as the 'Chamber' located on the continent of Reim in the Falken Mountains. The Guild's main chamber meeting hall was home to a large table with 13 seats which was part of the Shadow Council, each seat had the head of the operations on one of the 13 continents of the world, these seats were filled by people of immense power and influence and were feared by many far and wide, until today. 

On one end of the table, the decapitated head of Duke Valensten, head of operations on the continent of Kalani, was placed on the table while his body was busy spurting out blood. The other heads of the table found themselves restrained and their heads too pushed onto the table with force applied by shadowy figures resembling each of the person being restrained. Their faces which were once filled with cold calculation and indifference, were now filled with fear and shock as they looked at a woman in all white standing behind the corpse of Valensten. Said woman had found their base, and blocked all the exits both hidden and known with monsters of flesh that were indescribable and had personally slaughtered the many soldiers, assassins and staff within the complex, painting the walls and floors red with blood and littering the place with their corpses. 

The woman before them mercilessly tore through everything that was sent at her, with a beautiful sword by her side that cut down and through even the toughest of obstacles. Said sword was also what decapitated Duke Valensten moments ago as he begged for his life by bargaining with everything he had to offer but to no avail. All of the heads of the Shadow Council watched in absolute horror as the woman in white nonchalantly cleaned her blade of blood with a white cloth pulled out of her item box, all the while whistling a tune they had never heard before. 

[A/N: It was "When Johhny Comes Marching Home" ] 

"Right. Hello everyone, lovely day we're having right?" The woman stated with a smile and a chuckle as she put her sword away 

"Vhat vo vou vant?" A muffled voice came from one of the restrained Shadow Council members. 

"What do I want? Hmmm...Ah! I came here because I wanted to tell you all something" The woman answered as she began walking towards the other members. 

"Scum, bastards, murderers, thieves, rapists and conmen. All of these wonderful people flock to the Shadow Guild in hopes of getting a piece of the pie that they hope to earn as part of this repugnant organization. However, that means it comes into conflict with me" The woman added as she stopped in between two restrained Shadow Council members 

"Vow so?" Another muffled voice asked out 

"How so? Well, a variety of things but that can be done over another time. But for now, I had heard that this Shadow Council, authorized the hits on several people. Now normally, I would turn a blind eye as I have learned after living so long that it is only natural bad things come with the good. But this time around, for the first time ever. These hits wer organized on 8 people who were part of Imperia Academy and their families, resulting in their deaths. Now, I would have again, let this slide due to my duty given to me by the Gods themselves. But targetting my students and their families is crossing the line" The woman growled as she slammed the table with her hands, making the Shadow Council members flinch 

The woman let out a long sigh as she looked at the group before her, while they could not see it due to her veil, the woman's eyes burned with an intense desire to wipe them all out now, but she knew she couldn't. Not unless she wanted the calculations of this world to go fuck all and doom everyone else. 

"Right. So here is a new rule for all of you to follow ok? Imperia's students both old and new, their familes, their current and former staff and their dean, are off limits understood? Same goes for all schools around the world" The woman stated as she looked at each of them dead in the eyes. 

"If anyone is caught, whether it be a small contract murder or even one of you or your successors. I will personally finish the job I started today and wipe the Shadow Guild off the face of the world. Am I understood?" The woman asked as the shadow copies of the Shadow Council pressed hard on the restrained, making them agree as they were in pain. 

"Alright good. Oh! And if anyone comes seeking for revenge or some shit like that. I will personally make your colleagues watch as I slowly and painfully kill you, understood" The woman asked as she turned to them while walking out the door, seeing the faces of the council members as they nodded in quick unison to her words 

"Great! Ciao!" 

And with that, the Shadow Guild, the largest organized crime syndicate in the world, formed something the Shadow Council called the Silent Vow to discourage and disallow attacks on schools, students, and their families and staff of these schools. With a main emphasis on avoiding Imperia at all costs, with any request made against that school being sent directly to the Dean of Imperia with all relevant information. As if they were to try and break the Silent Vow everyone saw the heads of the vow breaker explode. Regardless of who it was.