"Who are these... people who have started to target my mother?" Nero asked, his voice completely casual. Yet when Gabriel heard the voice, a chill traveled down his spine. He knew... Gabriel knew well that ever since the episode with his brother’s disappearance, Nero had become especially sensitive towards things involving his family, even if he had the awareness to not let it show.
Others may judge Nero based on his actions and achievements, but only Gabriel knew that in truth, these were all distractions to hide his true intentions. The day he was capable of seeking revenge, he would do so in the most terrible fashion. He loved his family fiercely, and he hated his enemies with the exact same ferocity. He was just very good at hiding the actual extent of that gate.
Gabriel, as someone who had planned for the future far beyond just reaching KMA with Nero, knew full well the extent to which he was ready to go.
Gabriel sighed, and shook his head.
"How can I give you a list, Nero? It’s basically anyone and everyone who benefited from the very corruption that the MIA is dead set on eliminating. While officially that does not include the Great families, each one of the Great families has at least a few members who rely on their... position to gain some benefits.
"The rest of the family usually looks the other way since they get a share of the benefits. Well, now that those benefits are being affected, everyone who is affected is feeling discontent. Targeting your mother is certainly simpler than targeting the government, but I’m sure the MIA has already taken precautions for that."
Nero controlled his breathing, not letting his discontentment show.
"So you have been instructed to keep a distance from me because your family’s corrupt practices have been put to a halt? Do I have that right?" Nero asked, going back to the original topic.
Gabriel, on the other hand, did not hide his frustration as he groaned.
"There’s no need to play these games, you know I’m on your side," Gabriel said, shaking his head. "It’s not the corruption that has affected me, although that certainly is a contributing factor. It’s the fact that your mother has become a big target, and no one can predict how the situation will be resolved.
"The fact that you and I are known to be such good friends makes me look like I’m leaking information to you about my family. Ever since Lumina, I have been receiving priority treatment from the family, and being linked to you can negatively impact the position that I am being nurtured for."
Gabriel’s exhausted and frustrated expression faded, and at this point it was slowly replaced by a serious one, as if he was done playing around.
"Nero, in my family, I have no real backing, and any position they prepare for me will be one of a puppet, placed to support the sons and daughters of Ascendants and Mystics. Such a role is not acceptable to me. I can no longer be satisfied with consolation prizes, nor do I want to be handed anything. I want to take control of the Gabriel family - I want to be a leader rather than just another follower."
There was a flicker of ambition in Gabriel’s eyes, a flicker that had never really been there before. It seemed that a lot had happened to him during the time they were apart. Then again, something like that was to be expected. The competent, the strong, the wise would never be satisfied with mediocrity, so long as they do not fear hard work.
"I’m happy you feel that way," said Nero. "So what do you propose we do moving forward?"
Nero had his own ideas, naturally, but it was best to let Gabriel speak his mind first.
"Well, obviously we cannot meet so openly or frequently anymore. In fact, unless there’s an emergency on either side, it’s best we no longer meet. Even passing coded messages, no matter how discreet, leave a chance for being discovered.
"However, we can discuss our goals beforehand, and help each other meet them without any actual contact. For example, I have been doing research on the Ebon Hexkeys, as well as the ruins and Vaults. I’ve compiled all I’ve found and left it inside the library, and you can take a look when you have time.
"I’ve also been keeping up with the latest news. There’s definitely something major going on in Kolar, and I’m not just talking about the ruins. The way MIA and the other government offices have been behaving, the unusual circumstances of the Military courts, the abnormal actions of the Whisper Guard. They all hint that something major is about to happen, and the ruins may just be a small part of it. In fact, I think the other countries are preparing for something too."
Compared to Gabriel, it seemed that for onceNero was more aware about what was going on.
"There’s a shortage of resources to produce more Sages," Nero said without explaining his sources for this information. "The countries are getting ready to exit the fog and expand beyond the fog borders in hopes of discovering more resources. Kolar and Nova are certainly allied in this endeavor, and I suspect one or two more of the others are as well."
Gabriel paused, taken aback by this news, yet before he could ask questions, Nero continued to speak.
"In the academy, I am aiming to gain acceptance into the Valkan Legion, but it seems that certain people have made an attempt to stop that from happening. The academy, as always, has disregarded external influences. Still, I want to know who the people behind that were. Also, I need to spread the word around the academy that I’m receiving special training - I won’t have the time to build a network and spread the news myself, so I’ll need others to do it for me."
Gabriel was not too surprised to hear that Nero was aiming for the Valkan legion - it was practically public knowledge now. Especially after Nero defeated Vilhelm, everyone had gained a deeper interest in him and had spent some time investigating him.
"That’s easy," said Gabriel, already thinking of how to achieve that. "Well, spreading the news is easy at least. Finding out who tried to prevent you from joining the legion might take some effort.
"While you’re in your special training, I hope you’ll still get some free time to issue a few Crucible challenges. There are a few people from the various Great families that I need suppressed. Affecting their momentum will allow me to harvest a few benefits within the academy. Don’t worry, no one will suspect you’re helping me by targeting them since none of them are from my family."
Nero nodded. Fighting some people was not a problem at all, and was in fact a very serious part of his training.
"What else do you need?" Nero asked. "If our meetings have to be reduced, then we need to cover everything for the next year at the very least."
Gabriel already had a list of things ready that he needed Nero’s help with, and in fact, also had a number of ideas of how he could help Nero. He’d put a lot of thought into this already. After all, both of them had grand ambitions, so helping each other would be the fastest and best way to achieve them while minimising risks.
"By the way, even if you’ve defeated Vilhelm in a fight, you should not take him lightly," said Gabriel. "If anything, you should take him even more seriously for when he recovers from this unexpected loss. All the Great families are focusing on him a lot for some reason. I suspect that there’s something about him that makes people confident about his chances to reach the Sage rank, because there’s no other reason I could imagine why everyone wants to be his friend."
Nero smirked, and said nothing. He had no intention of underestimating Vilhelm, because he was still his main competitor. Fighting was just one field - he now needed to best Vilhelm in all other fields to maintain an advantage when it came to being selected in the legion.
As for the matter of becoming a Sage... that was too far away a possibility for Nero to consider for now. The chances of dying long before coming anywhere close to that were too high, and he would not allow distractions to weaken his resolve.
Besides, after his baptism with Vitracil, his progression into the Mystic rank at the very least was already confirmed. Everything after that would have to wait for later.
"By the way, Vilhelm isn’t the only one that the families has an eye on. Apparently, there’s a candidate this year as well that has everyone really excited. Have you heard about Luna? Apparently, her innate ability has caused quite a stir, and a lot of families are competing internally to take her in as a daughter-in-law."
Nero raised his eyebrow. Now that was unexpected.