C8: The Hideout (P2)

"....I'm going to kill him."

Winry and Elijah were silent. Not one spoke. Alan on the other hand was too frightened to do anything. The lack of his powers was making him depressed. Only if he had the slightest of his mana that reserved in him... He could've moved.

"Now now... I said... He's gonna help us," Elijah said in a calm voice. Then, she slowly stepped forth and threw the chain he was holding to Winry.

Winry moved closer to Alan. She did not like the idea of chaining him, but Elijah did.

"But why? They burned our villages down... Killed our parents, our brothers, sisters, friends. All our riches disappeared. Why are we taking one of them in?"

Elijah closed her eyes for a moment to recover from the anger that was burning within her. Even thinking about the knights of Telor made her flame up with anger.

"I know what you feel, Aether. But remember..." Elijah paused for a second and said, "The true answer of a sword is not death..."

"But defeat..." her follower finished the line for her. Elijah placed her hand on Aether's shoulder and smiled at him.

"You're my favorite... Aether. I'm sure you can be better than those murderers." Elijah patted him on the back as she moved on.

"Now... Let's go meet the others."

-

-

Aether led them down the dark hallway, guiding them with the lantern in his hands. Alan took a look around and it was so old and dirty. There were cobwebs but the floor was swept... For some strange reason.

The place was perfect for a secret organization to hide in. Not to mention the teleportation spell that no one would ever even think of. Only a guy who's faced every magic in the world would know that one.

Aether pushed open a large wooden door and it led into a spiraling staircase made out of stone.

"Hahaha!" The wild laughs came through as Aether opened the door. He hung the lantern in his hand on the hook beside the door and turned back to face Alan.

"I can't believe I'm saying this to a goddamn murderer from Telor, but I trust our Captain. So... Welcome to the Woodland Foxes," the man said. Then, he stepped down the stairs.

'But he welcomed me like an ally when I entered here...' Alan thought as he followed the man.

The spiraling stairs led down to a place that looked like a considerable hideout. The hideout had more than 6 floors filled with all sorts of people.

"Damn..." Alan muttered as he passed by the place with a shop that had more than hundreds of weapons hungover in the walls. Axes, aces, swords, staffs... you name it!

And finally, they arrived at the lowest floor.

"Aether... Wha —" everyone went silent after seeing the man in chains. "Who's that?"

Aether looked at Elijah, hoping for her to explain. Elijah did expect him to turn this duty, down to her. And this was the problem... Aether may be able to handle these secrets, but would the others be able to handle this secret?

"Um..." Elijah made a slight pause. "This guy here, says he has a way to reach Telor. He can help us get into the castle and... Possibly bring down the king," Elijah declared.

Everyone's gaze fell onto Alan.

"Him? But... Why is he in chains?!"

"The castle! He must be a good one!"

Alan took a good look around. He observed all their levels thoroughly. Many were elite rankers, (Level 400 - 750) and some were lower. But none were Legends.

Of course, there weren't many... To be a legend, one had to do unimaginable things. Venture in perilous journeys across the uncrossable lands and face the god-like monsters that lurk in the world.

Alan would know this since he had his way around to the rank legend.

"Yes... And the reason for him to be in chains... That's a little personal." Elijah said with an uneasy mood, blushing slightly. "And of course... I would like you to treat him as an equal."

Alan never thought she would be so thoughtful for him. Her personality was strange. One time she's acting like a devil and another time she was a cute little princess. But always, humble and brave.

"Thank you..." Alan thanked the big sister in a whisper.

"Hmph! You owe me one!"

-

-

The hideout was a fine place, and most of all, with fine people. The place was quite dark, but the lanterns managed to give out a fair light.

Everyone was friendly and the people in the hideout weren't just elves. There were humans, fae, and even a fair share of demons.

"Hmm... So, what do we do now?" Alan asked Elijah, who had taken the chain back to her grasp from Winry.

"Well..." she had that devilish, sadistic smirk on her face. "You're speech is coming up. Tell us your plan to get into the castle."

Alan was speechless and at the exact moment, she said it, the whole hideout filled with utter silence. No one spoke... Everyone was waiting for Alan to speak.

But, he was used to this. In his past life, it didn't make him an elven girl's authority to silence the people around him.

"Well, I like to call this thing... The hard way up the mountain. We have to follow the rules the king had set up. Our king... Lucas..." he managed not to laugh out loud, presenting the low lives the laws he enforced.

"....had set up a single pattern. There's only one way to enter the kingdom. One must pass level 600 to enter the perimeter of the castle. And the most important part..." Alan paused to grab the heed. "Popularity. Yes. One must be popular to enter the castle. If you're popular in the underground, you can enter the castle from the shadows. And if you're popular in the villages, a random owl will approach you with an invitation to the castle...

"Just remember! No matter what you do. Do not pull down the mask you're wearing. If the mask goes down, the Midnight will haunt you."

Everyone gasped.

"Midnight! The most dangerous alliance that works under the crown!"

The whispers went by as Alan mentioned the Midnight.

The Midnight was the reason why Telor stood high. They say that everyone in that alliance is a legend. But Alan... The one king who climbed up the ladder from the lowest noble blood to the king knew how to accomplish the hard way up.