Chapter 86 - Pursuit - Part 1

A day had passed since Aron and his faction left Galos Academy. Although moving fast, they were still within the Galos region, however, the members weren't worried because not only did they have Aron who seemed capable of fighting an inquisitor but also Lady Rose who revealed she was a Grand Mage.

Not much was explained as to why she was there, only that she was an ally. Jin made it an unspoken rule to not question Aron, so he had nothing to add on the matter, Evanora and Jagu were too simple minded to even care while Claudia was the only one who seemed curious as to what was going on.

First, he stops an inquisitor and then he allies with a Grand Mage who treats him as an equal? Being one to always think situations through, she couldn't help but ponder this despite getting no closer to an answer.

Having been unable to reach a decision the previous day, today they'd be deciding how exactly to go about searching for the ruin.

Currently, it was still morning and Aron was seated casually in his quarters. It was neatly decorated and even had a large window through which he could see the outside of the ship while resting comfortably.

The room itself was even larger than the room he had in his manor. The interior design, however, was quite similar as it looked, being rustic and olden in design.

He held a journal in hand that had numerous pages ripped out and was currently writing on a new page.

[A day has passed since we left Galos Academy and Rose joined us. I'm still cautious of her and I feel she's the same towards me but, so far, we tolerate each other and stay out of each other's way unless communication is necessary.]

[After a brief discussion, both she and I had agreed to head towards the city of Findel in the north. It was a relatively unknown city that would soon gain fame once the news of a possible ruin spread.]

[However, our reason for going there is because almost all the new beast sightings had been reported from there, this made it the best place to begin investigations and...]

Before Aron could continue writing his thoughts, a knock resounded on the door bringing him to pause what he was doing. He let out a sigh and ripped out the page before assimilating the knowledge into his legacy ring.

Afterwards, he crumpled the paper and tossed it into the nearby fireplace as he made his way towards the door. There, he found Claudia waiting for him anxiously with some folders in her hands.

"Yes?" Aron didn't show much reaction to seeing her, instead, it looked more like she had disturbed him for which she immediately bowed apologetically for.

It hadn't been long since she knew Aron, but she could no longer see him as commoner. Despite being from a high-class family she felt the need to bow and apologize for disturbing him. Aron had unknowingly built this image of himself; all faction members both respected and feared him.

"I came to inform you we're now on a direct course for the city of Findel and also to give you the faction member index; it states everything you may need to know about the members..." Claudia explained while trailing off slightly. If it were before she was confident around Aron, but the inquisitor incident left a solid impression on her.

"Good work, this saves me the trouble of getting to know everyone on a personal level. If it's updated regularly it may come in handy. What?" After Aron expressed his thoughts, he found that Claudia was staring at him a little blankly.

"Nothing, you just seem... different today," she muttered in a low tone since she heard Aron speak in a very relaxed manner which differed from the cold emotionless aura he usually held.

"So I've been told. Anyway, have everyone remain on high alert, a day has now passed so we're criminals. Normally, the academy wouldn't bother sending a large force to retrieve students who simply left without permission, but our circumstances are unique. We may need to battle very soon," Aron explained but his eyes looked more excited than wary which made Claudia feel a little tense.

"I'll do just that..." She bowed once more and prepared to leave to carry out his instructions, but she was stopped since Aron's hand appeared on her shoulder, he then leaned in from behind and whispered into her ear.

"Drop the formalities, bowing doesn't suit you." His words were short, but the meaning was clear to Claudia. It was basically Aron's way of telling her to relax and be as she was before.

Aron didn't need subordinates, he needed allies. Individuals who delivered valuable assistance in one way or another. Individuals who could think and act on their own rather than pawns who needed to be guided every step of the way, so he could also focus on his own progress.

'Her confidence slipped once she realized just how vast our levels were, but she'll recover, I think. Hmm, I wonder who will be sent after us,' Aron thought as he watched Claudia's figure go down the hall from his room.

Meanwhile back at the Galos Academy airship docks, a group of individuals could be seen gathered.

At the front stood Lady Belle who faced them all with a beautiful smile on her face and a provocative outfit that drew all attention to her from men and women alike.

"Thank you all for accepting my invitation for sponsorship. As you've already been told, a new ruin may be opening, and I wanted our academy to be the first to discover it. I sent invitations to you all because I believe you have the potential of achieving this and so much more along the way."

"Whatever your reason for joining, I'm thankful to have you all here. Now, as you know, you'll be split into two groups with one airship each to maximize effectiveness, Inquisitor Passil will also act as the supervisor for both groups since I myself won't be coming due to my many duties here, sadly," Lady Belle explained as an excited look began to appear on her face.

"The first group will be led by Brutas Vonstein. The people assigned to this group are Esmeralda, Emilia, Henry, Sebastian…" Lady Belle continued to call out names, but it soon became apparent that this group was largely composed of nobles.

"The second group will be led by Juliet Lamarck. The people assigned to this group are Scarlett, Sharla, Mirai, Lucas, Anastasia…" Once again, she continued to call out names, but Brutas and the others of the first group frowned slightly at this.

Aside from Juliet and Anastasia, the rest were commoners and of mixed race. Most nobles despised elves, so this made it even more confusing as to why they had been present.

'Just how did she manage to convince those two…' Brutas didn't hide the displeasure he felt as he looked at Juliet and Anastasia, both who had rejected Lady Belle's offer at the start. Just what was the reason for the sudden change of heart? Little did he know their reason for wanting to go on the expedition was the same.

Aron.

[A/N: Gonna start leaving authors notes at the end of most chapters to display my thoughts and to better interact with you, my readers.. I'm thinking of adding the recommended music to listen to when reading this book on discord to add immersion, lemme know your thoughts. Also, so far, who's your favorite side character and why? Lemme know in the comments!]