And hereby comes the prologue. After this the story will really start and I am aiming for light novel lenght *crossing fingers*. Anyway regarding Elmer's being thrown out of Esperanza's house, I am not completely sure whether it has already happened in 1707, but I couldn't find it just skimming through Crack Flag, so if that fact is wrong, I do apologise.
So yeah... Here goes. Enjoy and please CnC.
Prologue – Despite the stirring of events the youngsters continue their lives
A bit outside Naples lies the beautiful town of Lotto Valentino. Although at the time it could be referred to as a city albeit small in size. From a distance it could definitely seem like a beautiful and cosy town, but one would not have to live in it, observe it from the inside for long to realise that the façade the city tried to uphold was only such
– a veil concealing a deep and dangerous tale, any time due to becoming reality. Anything could happen in this city, but yet everyone kept living as if completely oblivious to this.
But Lotto Valentino was indeed a city to be admired. At first one would think that this city would have to be dominated by science and knowledge rather than religion, as in comparison to the rundown church in the outskirts of the town, the impressive libraries rose on what felt like every street corner. Not only were the buildings amazing in their numbers, but also from every single one of them, if you came at the right time, you would see humans of every age, boys and girls, ladies and gentlemen alike streaming in and out of the constructions.
Every library served the purpose of a school. But not just any sort of school. Each and every one of the people studying at these schools were learning alchemy.
This city, the calm streets of Lotto Valentino with all it's merchants and workmen, in fact was a city full of alchemists. To the people of the church it was an unscientific art, an ungodly sham only existing to throw good and honest people off the right track.
And to the people of the Third Library it was their way of life and everything they hoped for and believed in. It gave them a place to belong.
"So it really was impossible making it explode that way… A shame isn't it Huey?"
"Eh, you were actually serious in using it? D-don't do that, stuff like that is bad!"
"More important Miss Branvillier, aren't you hot in this warmth? You should take off some of all that clothes!"
"…"
From one of those special rooms within the Third Library used as a classroom came the usual chatter and requests.
"Stop it everyone, if you continue I might think you have ulterior motives you know~."
The wink, the posture, everything Renee Branvillier did was done unintentionally and without knowing what disaster it brought upon the young men she was teaching. Even the thing some could pick up as a taunt in her tone. She simply did not seem to be aware of it.
"Ah!" Sudden realisation struck her. "I've gone off track again, and now the lesson is over!"
The cheeks underneath the glasses were pouting as much as they were capable of. No one wanted to point out the fact that –
"– the lesson ended twenty minutes ago, Miss Branvillier."
Well no one but Elmer at least. As the klutz of a teacher the young boys and girls had exploded in what sounded like a mix of complaints and apologies while stumbling out the door, miraculously managing to trip over thin air three times in the progress, the room slowly thinned out and got more silent. In the end only three people remained.
One was the young man who had been completely oblivious to his classmates' desperate attempts at hiding the actual time from the teacher. He was not someone outstanding in the mere manner of appearance but however… he had the greatest smile one could possibly imagine plastered onto his face.
One was another young man. His face was stoic and his eyes were jumping over the lines in the book he was reading at an incredible pace. His dark hair and golden eyes made him look mysterious in a certain way. It was in strong contrast to the plainness of the other guy.
The last was a girl, close enough to be called a woman. She was casually chatting to the one reading and her cheeks were a bright hue of pink. It was clear that she favoured the dark haired guy as more than just a good friend.
All three seemed to be around 17 or 18 years of age.
"We can also start using my place from now on," said the smiling youngster. "The earl threw me out because I'm not a woman."
Even though the words would be blaming the earl in question coming from any other person, from this particular man, they were simply stating the facts.
The girl sighed at this statement. "Sorry Elmer, my brother is never changing."
The stoic guy closed his book and rose. "Let's just go to the usual place for now. It will be too troublesome having to move stuff."
"Haha, you like having us around that much Huey?"
"…"
The man referred to as Huey shot a glare at his friend as if saying 'that wasn't even funny', before walking towards the exit. Elmer, the other of the two young men, followed him while laughing heartily.
"W-wait Huey, you know he's joking," said the woman before running off after them.
"I know Monica. I'd rather just not waste my breath responding to such stupid remarks."
The three of them, Monica, Huey and Elmer, were friends. No matter how many spiteful remarks passed between them – most being courtesy of Huey – there was no denying the tight bond they had.
But what bound these three individuals together was not just an unusual friendship between three very different people.
Two years ago Elmer C. Albatross had joined the alchemy lessons in the Third Library. And not long after that everything changed. It was most likely due to him that things were the way they were today.
Because Elmer had exposed a huge secret. Not just with one, but with both of them. A secret they had managed to keep for so long, exposed in merely a couple of days by a random boy who just like that invaded their everyday.
The tree of them were not only bound together by their friendship, but also by an incredible secret.
As they walked through the streets of Lotto Valentino they chatted lively – or rather Monica and Elmer were talking while Huey just responded whenever they engaged him.
But the moment they entered the basement the silence fell. Only Elmer's occasional snarky remark could be heard.
"Before any of you ask… No I don't know anything about the children disappearing. This time I don't have anything to do with it."
The statement came from the young woman, whose face now meant business.
"Don't worry Monimoni, we weren't suspecting you. Right Huey?" Huey merely nodded.
"… But if this continues it might be troublesome," he finally spoke. "Unnecessary involvement will appear and we would have to lay low."
"Or even worse: they might link the case together with us." Monica was chewing on her thumb nail, lost in thoughts. "Of course not us directly, but if the counterfeiting can easily be associated with taking hostages as insurance. People already suspects the Mask Maker's involvement."
"I guess it doesn't make it better that the Mask Maker is already known for killing children huh?" said Elmer with a laugh although the situation clearly not called for one. But the other two already knew that there was no helping this man's nature. He was sitting on a crate playing with a white, ornamented mask.
"We already have quite the rumour indeed," agreed Huey, accompanied by Monica's silent nodding.
These three young people barely stepping the stones of adulthood were associated with the serial killer who had been roaming Lotto Valentino two years prior. Not only that, but they were also behind the counterfeit money running the streets of the city.
Or more exactly were they not just associated. The three youngsters – Huey Laforet, Elmer C. Albatross and Monica Campanella – made up the organisation known as the Mask Makers.
Monica had been the mastermind behind the original figure. Through the name she had exposed a large drug incident using innocent children as their mediums. Through a series of suicides Monica had finally managed to make the truth come to light.
Huey was secretly running a counterfeit business, deeply infecting the whole of the city from the shadows. At first he and the Mask Maker had absolutely no known ties – they themselves did not even know that they were in fact classmates at the same school for alchemists.
But then Elmer had shown up. Before long, he had realised the cause of events and masterly exposed the two of them for what they were, but he did not intend to use this knowledge to turn them in. Not at all. Through Elmer's involvement the two factions had in fact been brought together and were now working as one, and the friendship between these three individuals had begun.
It was an incredible story, but true none the less.
Elmer let out a loud sigh, a thing that was unusually rare for him.
"You know what?" he began unsteadily. "I think I might have an idea who is behind this."
The other two stared at him with disbelief.
"I know a certain… group… who I wouldn't put something like this past."