The sound of water hitting the ground intensify as the rain become heavier. A single figure could be seen walking down the path toward the Loki's familia mansion. That person is wearing a cloak that conceal most of his body and his face. He was mumbling something as he walks toward the Loki's familia mansion.
"…..acid…mercury…no….cyanide….." As the rain grow stronger, the figure's mumble was silenced by the sound of water hitting the ground. The figure continues to walk toward the mansion.
When he was a couple steps away from the gate, two guards appear out of their booth, cross their spear and blocked his path. The two guards pushed the figure away and one said in a stern voice.
"Move away buddy. We aren't dumb enough to let someone like you enter." The guard point the tip of the spear at the figure. "Turn around and walk away."
"Wait…" The other guard put her hand on the guard shoulder. "Why are you here? And what familia are you from?"
The figure seems to not consider the guard spear as a threat as his body didn't tense up or make any move indicating he want to go away. The figure reaches somewhere inside his cloak and bring out a letter. He handed the letter to the guard.
The guard shields the letter from the rain as she read the letter. The guard immediately recognize the handwriting and the sign at the bottom of the letter.
"This….is from Captain Finn." The guard handed the letter to the other guard so that she could inspect it as well.
"….who are you?" The other guard who was pointing her spear at the figure tried to move the cloak away from the figure head, but her hand was quickly catch by the figure before it can touch the cloak.
"…don't." The figure throws the hand away and walked past the guards.
Both guards quickly recover from the shock and follow behind the figure. They were walking a couple inches away from the figure while keeping their eyes.
The figure could clearly see both guards following him but decide that it wasn't worth the effort to shoo them away. He walked through the garden and into the mansion. The Loki's familia mansion was full with activity.
Didn't they just finish exploration? The figure wonders as he walks through the crowd.
A figure that wore a wet cloak couldn't be more out of place and catch so much attention even in a crowded place like the Loki's Familia mansion. With the wet cloak and the two guards walking behind him, there's almost no way that he could walk unnoticeable even in mansion full of busy people. Everybody clearly have a big question mark above their head but looking that the two people who was supposed to be their guards following the figure only reassure them that whoever this person is, he is someone important.
The figure climbs all the stairs up to the top floor where Finn was currently in. While he walked, he passed a couple of noticeable face, like a gloomy sword princess, a knockout Vanargand, a worried thousand elf, the cheerful amazoness sisters and a tired looking Nine hell.
The figure walked up to Finn's office. As he was about to knock on the door, the two guards immediately hold his hand, preventing him from knocking the door.
One of the guards said. "Wait here. I will inform the Captain."
The guard knock on the door and walk in after Finn give her the permission and after a few minute, that same guard come out and tell the figure to come in.
"Here he is, captain." The guard present the figure to her captain.
"Thank you, you can leave him to me now." Finn said in a calming voice. Finn was sitting behind an office desk and sitting in front of him is the dwarf that is famous by the alias of Elgarm.
Both of the guards said their goodbye to their captain before leaving the room.
"Didn't know ya will have guest this late?" Gareth said while eyeing the cloaked figure. "Mind if I stay?"
Finn didn't answer his friend request, instead he eyed the figure and wait for his answer.
"Fine." The figure said. The figure opens the cloak that was closing his face and revealed his face. He was Zhul. "As long as my identity doesn't go around the public, I am okay with that."
Gareth rubs his beard as he judges Zhul. "May I know why are ye here?"
"Your captain understands my reason." Zhul said as he ransacks something inside his cloak. He brings out a bottle fill with green liquid. "I know that this is not what you saw but I couldn't go further just with a magic stone for a source of information."
Finn takes the bottle from Zhul and inspect him for himself. The liquid is thick, it moves slowly when Finn tilts the bottle. Finn then give the bottle to Gareth. "Could you see how close is this compare to the poison from the new species?"
"…" Gareth take the bottle and open the cap. He splashes a little bit of the liquid to his bare skin. Thin white smoke emerged from the little bit of liquid before it got absorbed and leave a light burn mark. "By the look and feel of it, pretty close."
"That was fast. Too fast actually." Finn said.
"Experience is very useful. After doing this kind of things for years, I'll be some kind of a joke if can't do this much in a short amount of times." Zhul brings out a stack of paper and place it on Finn's desk. That paper was filled a tons of information that was handwritten by Zhul. "Here is the raw data."
Finn picks up the paper and scan through it a little. "This much information… I knew I could put my trust in you." He put the paper back down and open the desk cabinet. He pulled out a small chest and give it to Zhul. "Thank you as always."
Zhul opens the chest and reveal a small black metal cube. Apparently it was the strongest metal that a man could procure, Adamantite. "I assume that this is the highest quality that you could get." Zhul closed the chest and tuck it inside his cloak.
"Yes and I appreciate your efforts. This should make things easier for us."
"Our goal aligns and it was one of the things I could do to help with the exploration."
"Our goal aligns?" Gareth asks with a stern voice. "What happen when our goal doesn't align?"
"I'll erase you." Zhul answer without a single hesitation. He is saying that he will murder all the Loki's familia whilst he is inside their mansion. "I am not from your familia nor I have the obligations to serve you. I have my own motivation and goal. I will do anything if it means obtaining my goal."
"Hoooooooooo, we have someone interesting in here, eh?" A high, loud woman voice ring from the door. There standing, Loki and Riveria walking inside the room and closing the door behind them. "Who do we have here?" Loki ask in a pressuring voice. Her eyes open a little bit, showing her red pupils piercing through Zhul like a needle through a paper.
Responding the pressure emitted by Loki, Zhul pulled out three knife and hold it between his fingers. Riveria get in the way between Zhul and Loki, defending her from a possible threat. Gareth stand up and ready himself, incase things went wrong and he need to move fast. The atmosphere is heavy and it's look like things will go down even with a tiny little movement.
"Calm down, all of you." Finn said as he stands up. Finn's commanding voice manages to calm his familia members. "Zhul, please calm down. It won't be beneficial for both of us if my familia members is openly hostile towards you."
Zhul relax his body a little but still hold on to his knife. "Finn, you know I am a neutral force right? I am not supporting Loki's Familia nor I am supporting Freya's Familia. I wouldn't even hesitate to threaten my own god."
"Yer alias is True Neutral, amirite?" Loki ask even though she know the answer to her own question. "Hermes's child that work in a small group outside with little to no connection to Hermes's main Familia, It's you?"
"I have no obligation to answer that." Zhul answer in a calm voice, unintimidated by the three strongest adventurers and their goddess in the room with him. "I am here purely for business, I am not interested in making new acquaintance."
"Finn, can you pass me the paper?" Loki reaches out her hand and take the paper from Finn. She scans the bundle of paper before giving it to Riveria. "Riveria, could you see this and cross check it with your experience with the new species?"
Riveria take the paper and scan it very thoroughly. Her eyes widen as she continues digging deeper in the information. "….almost perfect. We don't know much of the new species so I can't tell how accurate this is, but reading the first page, it seems to be correct. There seem to be a bunch of new information that we need to validate and digest thoroughly before making a call if it is right or wrong."
"Loki, here." Gareth give Loki the bottle. "The liquid inside the bottle is almost the same as the acid from the new species."
"How do you know all of this?" Loki ask while checking the content of the bottle. "Are you-"
"I give him the magic stone from the new species." Finn interrupted his goddess question. "We need all the help we could get if we want to advance. There is so much a single Familia could do alone."
"Finn…." Riveria said in small voice almost like a hush.
"You right Finn." Loki said in her usual cheerful voice. The heavy atmosphere suddenly changes with a light one. "I just want to know how he get this information. Don't want a spy in my mansion and it's my job to guide you as goddess, have been doing good up till this point and don't want to start slacking off any time soon."
Zhul tuck in his knife back into his cloak. "You have nothing to worry about. I'll warn you if you start going off the road before doing the deeds. Like my alias, I will always be neutral."
"You said that you are neutral right?" Loki ask. "Have you done any kind of job for Freya?"
"Of course I have. Couldn't tell you the detail just like I couldn't tell the detail of my job right now to Freya." Zhul answer Loki's question.
"Can I ask ye to accompany my children on the day of expedition?"
"Loki…" Riveria couldn't believe her ears when she heard Loki say that.
"….what in it for me and for you?" Zhul close one of his eyes and start thinking inside his head. "…..you do realize that there is huge gap of strength between your familia and my small group right? Joining this expedition is more than a simple gamble for us."
"I know how all of you got to level 2 you know? Hermes ask me a favor." Loki smiled deviously. "I thought he was joking or rumors got to him, but looking at you right now is like a slap for my past self."
"What do you mean, Loki?" All of the Loki's Familia executive in the room have the same question.
"I see….but I need to decline the offer as there are a couple of pressing matter that needed to be taken care of." Zhul said. He then brings his right hand to his ear. "In a sign of good will, I'll give you some advices. Bring a familia that could repair your equipment in the dungeon and watch out for the new species, they aren't perfect."
"Isn't that a good thing?" Gareth ask.
"I am sorry, I phrase that wrong. What I mean is that they aren't perfect yet. Their magic stone isn't complete like normal monsters." Zhul point at the bundle of paper in Riveria's hand and told her to open the last page. In there, two drawing of magic stones exist, one from a normal monster and the other from the new species. "I don't know if you broke them or that is how you found them, but the magic stone isn't complete. It's as if that their reason for existing is as food or….."
"Or?" Riveria couldn't hold herself. She is certainly sure that the magic stone in the paper is the same as the magic stone they collected in the deep floor.
"I want to say that they have some sort of 'next form' like caterpillar, but I've never seen a transforming monster before." Zhul place down his hand, he then walks to the window behind Finn. "If you want more information. Bring me a live specimen or something that I could observe." Zhul opens the window and immediately, strong wind and rain start rushing in. "Until then, goodbye." Zhul jumps out the window.
"Wait! This is the top floor." Riveria runs to the window and look down. She didn't see a boy falling to his death, instead she sees a boy gliding away using his cloak as a glider.
"Kids these day are crazy." Gareth rubs his beard and shakes his head.
"Well, I guess we are crazy when we are young." Finn said as an answer to his friend statement.
"I don't remember any of us jumping out the top floor like that." Gareth said and laugh. "Unless, I am the only one and you guys did it on secret."
"Loki, who is he? Why are you fussing about him leveling up?" Riveria ask after she close the window. "And Finn, Loki's said that he works with a small group, do you know his group or you only know him?"
"Well, it dates back when we are fighting Evilus. A strange rumor spread, the content is that Hermes got trick by a new member of his Familia, giving him full autonomy to govern himself and his group while standing under Hermes's banner." Loki said casually. She reaches up one of the bookshelf and pull out a bottle of wine. "At first I thought that was a joke because I know Hermes isn't that stupid and he doesn't seem to be in any kind of bad mood, so I brush off the rumor like normal but it looks like I was wrong."
"God Hermes got trick? Even I wouldn't believe it." Gareth said.
"I knew right? But looking at the guy in person, I think some of the rumor were true." Loki glug the wine straight from the bottle. "I think he wasn't trick, but made an agreement. And do you want to know how he level up?"
"Does this have to do with the destruction of Evilus?" Finn ask.
"It have connection to that. You know that Evilus need supplies and they have connection with strong familias outside of Orario." Loki stop and look at his children. "Well, when we are discussing about what to do about them, Hermes said that he would take the job and the next thing you know, three Familias got erase from the face of this world."
Finn's eyes widen and he said under his breath. "The three light we saw that day, don't tell me…"
"Yes, Hermes was super happy that day. You should have seen his face, it was gross. He asked me a favor about giving his children an alias and keeping it a secret how they leveled up." Loki drank the rest of the wine and continue. "He said that his new members manage to completely eliminate those three Familias. I couldn't believe my eyes and ears. That ridiculous story and my eyes said that he wasn't lying, so I thought that my eyes went blind or broke."
"Eliminate three strong Familias went they were level one, who are them?" Gareth ask, he couldn't lie that it caught his interest.
"'True Neutral' Zhul, 'Undying Ember' Sutr, 'Unmovable' Briar, 'The Abyss' Tez, 'Unstoppable' Pern, 'Bullseye' Aol, 'The apprentice' Koth, 'Invisible' Lug, and 'Life Giver' Han." Finn's answer Gareth question. "Each and one of them is special. I had some training with Sutr and I have to say, I have hard time fighting someone in level 2."
"Hmmm, how come?"
"His alias is appropriate. Not backing up and the longer the fight, the harder it is to put 'the fire' down just like a wild fire and good luck trying to finish the fight in a few seconds. That guy is definitely not normal." Finn said while reminiscing about the fight. "I really need to put the effort to end the fight. The way he fights, he definitely has mastered the way to fight someone with a higher level than him and after listening to Loki's story, I know why."
"And the 'True Neutral' able to produce a strong acid and gather information just by a magic stone." Loki spins the bottle of acid in her hand. The tips of her lip curve upward, forming a wicked smile. "I don't know about you guys, but it seems we have a black horse in our hand. Maybe it's good idea to put an eye on them." Loki couldn't help herself, this and a new species, entertainment that she has been waiting for is finally here and she got the ticket for front row seat. "Things keep getting interesting."