“This way, sir and ma’am.” The servant bowed once, before leading Claud and Lily into the Lostfon Palace. A faint chill invaded his bones as he stepped into the palace proper, but it wasn’t a chill that came from low temperatures.

“Seems like the mission-giver came a bit early,” Claud observed quietly. “Looks like this is quite the big deal after all, isn’t it? I think something serious might be up here and there.”

“That’s a bit obvious, okay?” Lily grabbed his hand and sighed. “It seems that your condition has become a bit serious.”

“Condition? What condition?”

“The need to explain everything to me, who’s your intellectual equal,” Lily replied. “Don’t go explaining everything, okay? It’s a bad habit. If you keep this one, you’re going to be explaining your master plan to our worst enemies one day, right when they’re at your mercy, and by some fluke, they escape from us.”

“That only happens in stories, alright? No one’s dumb enough to do something like this,” Claud replied. He thought about their first and only true adversary so far — the now-dead Third Bearer of Destiny — and immediately felt that the fellow had been a true threat. If he hadn’t taken a Skyward Eye, Claud knew that he wouldn’t have noticed the true culprit lying in wait just a few dozen metres away from him.

If he hadn’t headed out back then...

Claud once again felt the enormity of that day’s actions…his actions. When he killed the Third, he had triggered off a mass of reactions. Today’s meeting with the Dark Herald was something he alone had enabled, but Claud had no regrets about anything.

“Something wrong?” Claud asked, glancing at Lily. Her gaze had grown very intense, as if she had discovered something of incredible interest, and it was making his face warm.

“You look really suave when you’re thinking deeply!”

Before Claud could flirt back, the servant leading the way stumbled and tripped over his own feet, instantly ruining the moment. Holding back his displeasure, Claud let out a long sigh, which was more than enough to prompt the eavesdropping servant to get up with a set of complicated movements that involved whirling legs and loud exhalations he associated with training.

“He’s quite energetic.” Lily rubbed her nose. “Maybe we should train our combat skills a bit more. I’m feeling like a slob right now.”

“Hold on, shouldn’t we be complimenting his excellent performance?” Claud asked.

“Why should we waste time doing that? I believe that whenever we encounter a stimulus like this, we should make use of it to improve our life habits and arrest the problematic ones,” Lily replied. “It’s the best way to become a better person!”

Claud looked at her eager eyes and swallowed down his retort that he preferred the hours of slacking and hugging her. It was nice to see her this spirited, especially since her progress at drawing her third mana circuit had slowed down significantly.

“Alright, we’ll play around with swords when we have time,” said Claud. It was also a way to show off his own skills — which were roughly that of Lily’s — and more importantly, clothes clung on to skin when people got sweaty…

Claud slapped his own face lightly, dispelling that thought. There was a time and place for everything, even for lewd thoughts, but there was no scenario in which such thoughts were appropriate in a count’s palace, especially when they were about to meet a mythical being.

“Claud? Something wrong?” Lily asked, her eyes alight with concern. Something seemed to melt in his heart at that sight, and Claud rubbed her head. “I’m fine. Just thought of something that’s not appropriate.”

Lily cleared her throat. “Time and place, okay?”

He decided not to rebut that statement.

Their footsteps sounded down the empty palace as they followed the servant, who had the presence of mind to at least not disturb their bantering earlier, and Claud couldn’t help but feel a bit sad. Before the great Dark took over, this palace was probably bustling with life and activity, along with the city in general. Now, however, Lostfon Palace was a good microcosm of the city at large — pretty, glamorous…and deserted.

He shifted closer to Lily, who squeezed his hand in reply. An exchange of glances was enough to make him know that she too was feeling a bit sad at the current state of the lifeless palace, and vice-versa.

“It’s lonely, isn’t it?” Claud commented. “You can drop the formalities with me. In this city, there’s really no division. We’re all just humans in a conquered land.”

The servant laughed once, a hollow laugh that echoed painfully down the deserted palace. “There’s nothing much I can think about, really. The count chose to let us leave, but I was the only one who stayed.”

“You stayed?” Lily asked. “Why?”

“Why…well, Count Lostfon promised to increase our wages, that’s why.” The servant took out a bag and jingled it once. “But the others had family. I didn’t.”

Claud fell silent. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be,” the servant replied. “Anyway, it’s been interesting, staying by the master’s side. I’m a close aide now, and I get to hear and interact with the rest of his family. Do you know Countess Lostfon makes a great potato stew? You two should try that when you have a chance.”

“Really now?” Lily licked her lips. “Don’t mind if I do, really!”

As Claud and Lily engaged in the business of asking about the count’s homemade fare, a part of him marvelled at the wonders of fate. Even in the midst of what undoubtedly was a disaster for humanity, there were always small doors of light everywhere. This man, who had lost everything, finally had the chance to experience what having a family was like.

Fate truly was unpredictable.

Before long, the three of them entered a rather posh chamber. Unlike the vast hallways and deserted rooms he’d seen so far, this chamber was well-lit and well-maintained; the place was dust-free and evidently cared for.

At the very middle was a small round table that could fit six people. Count Lostfon occupied one half of the table, while a shadowy being occupied the other half.

The Dark Herald.

The count rose to his feet as the servant waved Claud and Lily forward. “Thank you for taking the trouble to come here. Come on, follow me. I’ll make the introductions.”

Leading them to the Dark Herald, whose long flowing hair danced in the windless room, Count Lostfon said, “Dust, these are the two people I mentioned. Husband and wife of a knight family. They’re called…uh…right, you two never did mention your full names.”

“Just call us Mr. and Mrs Primus,” Lily replied gently. “There’s no need to use our actual names, since we’re still travelling incognito.”

The count looked at the two of them, a quizzical light in his eyes, before the Dark Herald cleared its throat. “The male’s mana reserves are higher than yours. I am told that one’s reserves of mana are proportionate to their rank in this nation’s noble hierarchy, so it seems that they are rather important people.”

Her voice was gentle, but it carried quite a few implications.

Lostfon twitched once as Claud looked at the Dark Herald, who had clearly picked up on the level of his Mana Circuit Superimposition. Given his Mana Control Proficiency, which was ranked at Expert, there was no way he could have leaked out any hint of his strength, which meant…

Claud fell silent for a moment, and then focused his attention on his mana circuits. Something twigged a moment later, and the Dark Herald looked at him directly. “Seems like you realised something.”

Lily nudged him a moment later, and Claud looked at the Dark Herald. “Can you still see it now?”

Up close, Claud could tell that the Dark Herald had the same features as a human being, just that her skin and facial features seemed a bit misty and foggy. The way she narrowed her eyes a few seconds later only reinforced his opinion that she wasn’t all that different from them, and Claud relaxed slightly.

In the end, the Shadowed Ones weren’t indecipherable beings that humans couldn’t communicate with.

That realisation made his heart twist up in guilt once more, but Claud had gone through that enough to not let it show on his face. Looking at the Dark Herald, Claud forced out a smile.

“Well done,” said the Dark Herald. “I am Dust, one of His heralds. My pleasure to meet you.”

She extended a hand to Claud, who shook it briefly, and then to Lily. After a bout of pleasantries, the two of them took up their seats, and the atmosphere relaxed.

“Once again,” said Count Lostfon, “thank you for coming. Our friend here needs some help, especially since she cannot act against the humans without breaking the pact. This pact is what guarantees our safety, so your aid here will be of paramount importance.”

“Let us listen to her story and her information first,” Lily replied. “Whether or not we act is another issue, however.”

“Of course,” said the Dark Herald. “For the likes of you and me” —she gestured at Claud— “we begin to understand the importance of karma, and the god who wields it. It is natural that you are cautious.”

Claud stilled his guilt once more, before directing his full attention to the Dark Herald.