Chapter 1029: Diabolical Scions
Within thirty minutes of Thalen’s order, the compound of Tharion Citadel was swarming with activity.
People outside wondered what was happening. Alertness peaked because not just Tharion, but even the Public Citadel of Drywall was assembling as many Drifters as possible.
A lockdown order had been passed, and people were being kept off the streets as much as possible. An evacuation to the inner sanctum of the city was underway.
Where the Chancellor resided. The place led to an underground shelter that could house twenty thousand people.
In fact, this shelter wasn’t really a shelter but the first city that was called Drywall, before another one was created on the surface. The underground city now served many purposes, but today it was being used to keep the citizens safe.
However, South Drywall had a population of over fifty thousand citizens, although twenty percent of that population—let’s say—were drifters and would be participating in whatever was about to happen.
But that wasn’t Tharion’s problem to figure out. It was the government’s. After all, they were the very cause of this. And now, they were going to be staying in the Inner Sanctum while the Drifters of private Citadel fought to protect their mistake.
Tharion had gotten most of the information from Ilitis and the development of things.
Ilitis had also mentioned that Northern had instructed that he come here. So the gentleman had to ride Aerisyles all the way to South Drywall to inform Tharion about all that was happening.
Of course, this plan was something Northern privately informed him about when he thought he was going to be traveling to Verulania.
Northern had expressed it as a contingency in case things went haywire. Who knew that it would have been a brilliant decision to help at least Thalen Citadel and most especially Tharion and his hidden agenda prepare for what was coming.
Thalen stood at the balcony of the Citadel building, watching down as people gathered.
Ilitis was behind him, silent. He had been silent since all of this was going on.
But there was something nagging his mind. He took a step forward and spoke calmly.
"Mind if I ask, Lord Tharion, where are the Void Lord’s parents?"
Thalen looked back.
"The Void Lord?"
He was confused for a moment.
"Are you referring to Sage Rian?"
Ilitis nodded.
"Where are his parents?"
Thalen turned to the front.
"Shortly after Rian left, they also left, according to what they told me. They were going to be heading to Sinchian. First, Shin expressed plans of going to the Kaeron Canyon."
Ilitis looked down with a subtly dark gaze.
"He wants to go back there..."
Thalen shrugged his shoulders.
"He is a scion of the Kageyama clan after all."
Ilitis exhaled and his gaze returned to the usual gentleness.
"The Kageyama hold is the one place where I can’t hear from. Their mystery art passed down through heritage is a very difficult one to crack. I worry greatly for the Void Lord’s parents."
"I worry for them too. But Shin is strong and Lady Eisha is stronger. Both of them might just be Masters, but I believe they stayed Masters because they knew of what detriment they could be to the world if they continued to grow... still, at Masters, a Sage cannot take them out. And I’m sure together, they can escape a Paragon, even if it’s the Kageyama Patriarch."
Ilitis adjusted his monocle.
"I hear his offspring are diabolical though."
Thalen was silent for a while, his face grim as a hateful memory surfaced in his mind.
Ilitis did not see it but later noted it in his strong and almost hostile voice.
"I once had a brush with the third son. He is a madman. And I don’t think any being of such should be allowed to freely roam the world. That guy deserves to be locked up in an asylum never to be seen again till he passes away."
Ilitis was silent. He adjusted his monocle once more.
"Indeed. They are diabolical."
Alystren entered the balcony and stood beside Thalen, making the Headmaster turn his head.
"What did you find?"
Alystren sighed.
"He was right. I have never seen anything like this. Men and monsters are marching together."
Thalen’s brows furrowed.
"What?"
Alystren shook his head.
"I tell you, man, I felt my stomach sink when I saw it. The very thing we are supposed to be warring against is allied with our own kind to destroy us. Ul must be laughing at us right now. I can’t even imagine how disappointed the stars would be if they were alive."
Thalen looked away from Alystren and stared into the distance beyond the wall. The movement could be noted subtly in the forest. And for an elf like him, he could hear a subtle vibration through the ground.
So he knew they were still far, but he also knew they were coming. By night, most likely, they’d reach the wall.
Breaking through the wall would take another few hours. But Thalen did not plan to give them that advantage.
The wall was the city’s gem of defense. He was going to take advantage of it and crush the damn attack.
The problem was... he didn’t know what to expect. Thalen believed that if he was thinking like this, then any other person was thinking like this.
So there was a high chance that there was some strategy in place that would foil his.
He exhaled steadily, cold smoke coming out of his mouth.
"Let’s talk to Erikson."
Alystren nodded.
"I agree with that."
Ilitis turned his head slightly to look at the two of them. Now, he was curious who this Erikson guy was.
Alystren stepped back and walked away from the balcony. A moment later, a young scrawny boy with freckles, hugging a big book and frequently adjusting his big round glasses came to the balcony.
Ilitis shifted to one side to give both the boy and Alystren more space. He stuck to the side of the wall like a passive observer.