Zayne was the last one in the room, and Reik and Edward quickly left, not wanting to stay here any longer, and neither did their defenders.

"Well, well, this whole thing could have been avoided." Zayne sighed, shaking his head before sitting down at one of the tables.

He picked up a bottle from the ground and tried to find a single unscathed glass, but they had all been broken during the battle.

Zayne glanced at the rays of sunlight that streamed in through the window and lifted the bottle above him with his mouth open. However, the only thing he got was the few scarlet drops that remained inside, dripping slowly down the dark glass.

"Damn... Just when I get the urge to drink something, I'm immediately hit with failure..." Zayne muttered, setting the bottle aside.

A dark silhouette appeared in the doorway, its blue eyes directed at Zayne, "Hey, I thought you were following us? Are you really that thirsty for wine? If so, you should have just asked, and I would have led you into my collection."

Zayne turned, meeting Alden's gaze, and smiled bitterly, "Hah, I'm over it, the moment is lost. I think it's all a little weird."

Alden raised an eyebrow, "What is?"

"Reik and Edward... Those two are some of the most influential people in the whole town, right?" Zayne muttered, looking up at the sun.

"Yeah... Even though they are idiots, only a few people can go against them, of course, I am one of them." Alden nodded deeply.

Zayne sighed, "That's exactly what I don't understand. I always thought that those at the top were those who were worthy of it, geniuses, talented people, real strategists, or extraordinary individuals..."

"Hahahahahaha!" Alden suddenly laughed, which made Zayne feel uncomfortable.

Alden's laughter echoed throughout the room, then he wiped away a tear and said, "Sorry, I just couldn't help myself, but you really are still a child. If everyone in this world were pacifists, your talent would be lost forever."

"Hmm? Maybe I'm being naive sometimes, but stop calling me a child!" Zayne frowned, clenching his fist tightly, "What's more, I try to work at it, circumstances force it, you know."

"Sure, well, as for your question. Just remember one thing, it doesn't matter who you are, a poor man, a thief, a nobleman, or even a king. Everyone can be a sage or a fool, it doesn't depend much on status." Alden smiled, as if he were revealing a great secret to Zayne.

Zayne nodded silently with a deep look. All his life he had been at the bottom, so his ideas of those who reached the top were too idealized.

Crackle.

Suddenly the door opened just as Reik ran inside. His face was filled with rage and fear that he seemed unable to resist, but he came in anyway.

"Bastard!" Reik exclaimed, pointing at Alden, "Why did you do that?!"

Alden's gaze grew sharp, "What are you talking about?"

"Don't pretend you don't know! It was definitely you!" Reik's veins swelled as his face flushed with anger.

"Just calm down. I didn't do anything outside of this room. I give you my word." Alden sounded as serious as possible, and it had an effect.

"Right... Then you must see this..." Reik muttered as his face darkened.

Zayne and Alden looked at each other, then they followed Reik.

They headed for the one manor house that was on Goren Family territory, but Reik had been there often, and so had Alden, since that was where Oracle lived, the one Edward always turned to for help.

Alden frowned, regardless of what happened here, it couldn't be anything good.

"Here... This here..." Reik muttered uncertainly, pointing to the door. He stepped aside as if he didn't want to go in there again.

Alden strode forward confidently and with a wave of his hand opened the door. The powerful smell of blood rushed out as Alden's face grimaced from what he saw.

"What the hell is that...?" Zayne muttered in disbelief.

On the wall hung a young man with a long blue mantle. His arms and legs were nailed to the wall by massive stakes with chains dangling from them. Oracle was definitely dead, and the proof was the hole where his heart should have been.

"I don't know..." Reik muttered, standing behind them, "I headed over here right away so he wouldn't send an inspection request, but... as soon as I walked in I saw this... Who could have done this anyway?"

Alden clenched his teeth, "Shit, you sure are two idiots for trying to set Zayne up, but we just lost one of the few Oracles in the whole town!!! FUCK!!!"

Alden slammed his fist against the wall, shaking it and causing cracks. Reik's eyes went wide since he realized that earlier Alden had purposely held back the force to avoid killing Edward.

"Agh... Well, I hope no one else knows about this but us... right?" Alden put his palm on his head and glanced at Reik through his fingers.

Reik nodded, "Sure, what shall we do?"

Alden sighed, "Hide the body, bury it deep in the woods, or better burn it. Find someone who looks like this Oracle and announce tomorrow that he's leaving our town for some serious reason, think of something."

Alden waved his hand, staring intently at the hole in the young man's chest, "That Oracle died in our town must remain a secret behind seven seals."

"Don't worry, I'll take care of it. However, what's next? We certainly can't leave it alone." Reik asked with a serious expression.

"I'll report it to Lucia, she can certainly protect their Oracle, and I'll take care of Rina's safety." Alden said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, "We'll start an investigation today. We have to find out who did this, by all means."

"Whatever you say, after all, we are under your command now, aren't we?" Reik smiled as he tilted his head.

Zayne looked at the whole thing with a slightly surprised look. A little while ago they had been enemies, but, it was only a matter of time before a more serious problem arose, and it was all forgotten and relegated to the back burner.

'Well, maybe that's the way it's supposed to be.' Zayne pondered, not noticing that his ring flashed once, with a blue light.

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