The Dragon. Oldest of its kind, supposedly. It rarely shows up at meetings, rarely chooses to involve itself. It flies between stars, deep within the Forbidden Zone. As large as Jupiter itself, a monstrous creature whose Level is known to have breached at least five hundred. Maybe more.
Ares. Yes, that Ares—the one who runs the largest arms manufacturing company in the Galaxy, ruler of multiple manufacturing planets, the merchant of death. He’s just as bad as the Dragon, always in the Forbidden Zone. Though he turns up for meetings more often. When he’s not around, his daughter Nanaya sits in his place. Like him, she’s a Legendary, though she’s less direct warfare, a creature of deadly beauty and duels.
And finally, there’s the Emperor. If you’re unkind and feeling particularly secure, the Emperor of Nothing or Emperor of Ruins. For his empire is gone, his people scattered. He rules over nothing and no one, for the System has taken it all from him. And yet, he still lives. Wizened, ancient, he looks like an angel if your vision of an angel includes four wings, a pair of eyes on the end of his hands, and a blank, featureless face.
Nine individuals. Sometimes there are more, sometimes less. You get your seat by strength of arms, by influence, by acknowledgement. Any who desire a seat on the inner Council may do so. And if they chose wrongly, they die. Some last a few years, others a few centuries.
These are the people who would have started the problems with Earth. Except, something tells me it’s not all of them. The secret of my Class, of being an Administrator, isn’t something so easily bandied about. There have been hints, both in passing and in the library, that there is another circle, another group that rules. Made up of Legendarys and, I must assume, Administrators. I need to figure out those names, but since I have only the main Council to go from, I start there.
I kick off the Erethran and Movana representatives from consideration. They don’t matter. The Nang Mai might know about us Administrators, but he’s well-known to not dabble too greatly in politics. A neutral party looking out for Artisans. Maybe an ally in that sense, but probably not.
That leaves pretty much the named individuals. The Lady of Shadows and Lies is the obvious first choice. Hiding a secret means she’s part of it. The others are harder to tell. I’d guess Ares is out. He’s a known meathead and this seems above his paygrade. On the other hand, he’s a Legendary. It’s hard to get that far by being a complete idiot. And he has a daughter who is smarter than he is.
The Dragon might be part of whatever inner circle there is that knows the secret. And the Emperor. Both are old enough that if they were searching for secrets—or through blind luck—they might have stumbled onto this knowledge.
The rest though… the Weaver is a Questor. Or at least, partial to us. Or was. Or maybe just out for the highest bidder. I don’t know, it’s hard to say with his history. He is what I would consider a moderate ally on the Council, if I have one. I doubt he’s in the inner-inner circle though, or he wouldn’t be a Questor anymore.
Then again, like my Society’s Web Skill, his own Skills and Class might give him a head start on such secrets. When you’re looking at the threads of society or fate, some secrets reveal themselves to you inadvertently.
But those are all guesses. The problem with a secret organization is that it’s secret. And guessing might be a problem if I try to contact the wrong person.
As I dig into stories about each council member, trying to find a clue, a detail that might interact with what I know, what the library might contain, a loud beep startles us all. Hours have passed without us realizing it.
And we’re finally here. In Irvina once again.
We stand and walk toward the exit, ready to enter our enemies’ lair. And if we’re flies heading in to see the spider, I just hope we’re mutated flies. Or else this will end badly.
Chapter 9
Finding a place to lay low is easy enough. Hundreds of residences have been set up to handle the floating population of Adventurers, businessmen, and Artisans. So many Adventurers only come to Irvina for a short while to run a few specific dungeons before moving on.
Irvina itself has not changed much, being made of multiple ring districts. The first ring is where the Galactic Council holds its meetings, and the core of the city is within. Each ring from there grows in size and decreases in security.
This time around, we end up in the sixth ring. Far enough away that we’re out of sight, and a little on the lower end for Advanced Adventurers but not uncommon. It’s also only a short flight into the second or third ring if we want to meet with Katherine and the socialites.
Travel through the towering skyscrapers and myriad building designs of the city is as eclectic as the System. Some people fly on their own power. Others take the flying vehicles or creatures that ply the air, while transit options in terms of vacuum-filled bullet trains take the masses. For the most part, the plan is to take automated vehicles since Harry and I have had bad experiences with mass transportation.
The residence we rent is the Galactic equivalent of a four-bedroom condominium, the last bedroom adjusted to be a sparring ring. We pay a slight premium for such a residence, but again, nothing too surprising. Once we’re in, we sweep the place for bugs, plant our own, and boost the security of the residence with a variety of pre-purchased items. Everything from talismans on walls to increase their durability and shielding spells to prevent spying as well as a few discreet nano-formed energy turrets.
Once we’re settled, Harry makes his way out to meet with some of his contacts. For the reporter, many of his sources will only speak with him in person.
Which leaves Mikito and myself to get in contact with Katherine. And thankfully, Ali’s found a decent option tonight. Even if it’s not what I’d expect.
“A gallery opening?” I mutter, staring at the brochure and pair of tickets the Spirit has managed to score for us.
“Not just any gallery opening. It’s Moyo Jin’s gallery opening!” Ali snaps. When I shrug, he rolls his eyes. “Philistine. Moyo Jin hasn’t had a showing in three decades.”
I shrug again.
“There was an old work of his in my latest arena title defense. Meditating before it for a half hour gave me a bonus to my attributes and an additional passive defense Skill,” Mikito says. “One with Air.”
One with Air (Level 1) (B)
Legend has it that the first wind sylphs taught Evasoo, the martial warrior of air and void, this Skill directly before the advent of the System. When his planet was integrated, Evasoo gained his unique Class and this Skill, allowing him to float between the attacks of the monsters that dared to populate his planet. Reduces Mana Regeneration by 5 permanently.
Effect: Increases dodge skill by 20, increases environmental perception by 50, and allows one use of Peerless Dodge every ten minutes.
Peerless Dodge Effect: Increases dodge ability by 200 for one attack
I note the lack of a capital S on the skills, meaning that the increases are all effectively making someone better at dodging and perceiving the world rather than actively manipulating reality. It’s a fine distinction, and there’s an argument for Skills that affect skills. After all, for someone like Mikito, who relies on mundane skill to cross the threshold of raw power, the boost could make a big difference. Then again, raw power has a quality of its own.
A face-smashing quality.
“Do you lose Mana regeneration because of the bestowed Skill?” I ask. It’s the first I’ve heard of an artifact from an Artisan providing not just regeneration or attribute buffs but a passive Skill buff.
“No,” Mikito says. “But the buff is often short term. In this case, only twenty minutes.”
More than long enough for an arena battle. Not so much if you were crafting. Though I guess if you were crafting, you might be able to put his artwork in front of you and get the boost anyway.