“So… what exactly are we doing then?” Tucker asked.

  “We’re meeting up with Owl. The Head Administrator wanted to talk to him for a bit longer, but he’ll have the details of what we need to do,” said Alex, casting a quick side eye at Tucker. “Also, don’t face towards me when you talk. Your breath smells awful.”

  Tucker faced forward. “Do you think it’ll be an easy mission?”

  “Probably not if it’s given by the Head Administrator,” Alex replied, walking down the stone halls.

  Tucker followed closely behind with quick strides. “Then do you think I should go on it?”

  The veteran stopped in his tracks and stared at the rookie. He raised a brow at the youngster with eyes filled with confusion. “What?”

  “Well… let’s be honest, I’m not the best at these missions.” Tucker released a bitter laugh. “Even last mission, I almost fucked it.”

  “That wasn’t your fault,” Alex said in a stern tone. “Anyone in that situation would have been fucked. It was unfortunate and not something you could control.”

  “It seems like I’ve only had unlucky encounters,” remarked Tucker.

  “Perhaps, but it is what it is,” said Alex.

  Tucker clenched his fist at his side. “Then next time, you should abandon me.”

  “No.”

  “Listen, Alex. I respect you, but there’s no chance in hell I would want someone else to die for me.”

  The words that came out of Tucker’s mouth were something Alex never thought he would hear. But upon hearing it, he could see the trouble in his eyes. Alex placed his hands on his hips and let out a long sigh. His clothes were ragged, and both of them had yet to change into a new set of equipment.

  “Kid, I can’t say this about everyone in the Order, but take a look at us.” Alex held out his arms, showing his blood-stained and tattered clothes. “We’re a mess, yet alive. Had a few close calls but pulled through.” He laughed. “You’ve saved my life once, might have fucked up and caused the situation, but that doesn’t change the fact you came back.”

  “What’s your point?”

  “Most would abandon their partner in such situations, but you sent a mist hawk to the Order and came back. Completed the mission and risked your life to save an old man such as myself,” Alex added. “Not only that, from my conversation with the other scholars, you actually managed to find a reliable pattern that was used as a starting point for their encryption.”

  “I mean, anyone could do that. The pattern wasn’t hard to solve,” Tucker countered.

  “Perhaps, but you were the one that discovered it, and now you have managed to save Owl,” added Alex. “It takes a lot to admit you’re wrong. With your ego, I expected you to hold your ground and not blame yourself, but you didn’t. You were genuinely apologetic.”

  “Well… that’s obvious it’s because it was my fault,” Tucker replied.

  “Yes, but you’d be surprised at how many people refuse to accept that.” Alex motioned for Tucker to follow and began walking once more. “You can’t change the past, but you can learn from it. And so far, you’ve learned.”

  Tucker quickly walked beside Alex. “Yeah… but aren’t you too lenient with me?”

  The veteran’s lips remained sealed for a moment before slowly parting. “Some would say so, but they wouldn’t understand. Besides, you aren’t the only one that’s still learning. If I didn’t think you were good enough, I would have told the Administrators and had you assigned to a lower-tier team. Now stop worrying about it, and let’s go.”

  The rookie’s gaze lingered on the veteran’s back for a second. He watched the old man calmly move through the corridors and cracked a small smile. There was a feeling of doubt that persisted, but for now, he shook it off. With light steps, he followed the old man through the stone hallways, passing by the gothic arches and magic lanterns hung on the walls. After a few minutes, they stopped in front of a room with a metal plate that said the numbers one thousand two hundred and twenty-one.

  Alex gently knocked on the wooden surface several times and waited. Soon, a voice from inside called out to them, “Come in.”

  As the two walked in, Blaire glanced at them with his palms resting along the edge of the table. He was standing along the side, leaned over while reading the documents, and gestured for them to take a seat. Tucker trailed after Alex and quietly closed the door behind him before pulling out a wooden chair and sitting beside Alex around the round table.

  “Welcome, now that you fellas are here, I’ll go over the task the administrator assigned us,” said Blaire.

  Tucker narrowed his eyes. “Wait, us?”

  “That’s right, I’m not too keen on it either, but it’s what the Administrators want, so we’re now a three-man team,” Blaire replied.

  “Not too surprising seeing what we’re dealing with,” Alex said. “I take it you’ve already checked the finer details with the custodians?”

  “Yeah, it’s a mess, to say the least, but I’m sure we’ll get through it.”

  “We’ll have to see. Our record hasn’t exactly been pristine.”

  Blaire glanced at Tucker and sighed. “I suppose so.”

  Tucker rolled his eyes, ignoring the sharp jabs from the veterans. “Hilarious. Now, I hate to break up your joyful reunion, but what exactly is our next mission?”

  “In short, it’s a sabotage mission behind the enemy’s front lines,” Alex replied.

  “Really? That shouldn’t be too bad,” Tucker smirked, opening the envelope. He carefully read through the contents, the muscles of his face slowly contorting. “Are they fucking serious?”

  “It would seem so,” Alex said with a grim expression. “This one isn’t going to be easy.”

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  “Yeah, how in the hell are we supposed to steal an artifact behind enemy lines and bring it back?” Tucker asked, throwing the envelope on the table. “We don’t even know how big the damn thing is or what it looks like! We just know it’s in a carriage that looks like this?”

  Tucker held up an image of a carriage that was simple in design, with a single crest of a tower wrapped in vines and an emerald gem at the peak. “This means nothing to us! What if there’s multiple carriages with this crest?”

  “It doesn’t matter. We need to make this work.” Alex took out a cigar and held it close to Sally’s mouth. Once the cigar was lit, he took a small puff. “It’s not the first time something like this has happened, and certainly not the last.”

  “That doesn’t mean it’s okay.” Tucker turned the page around and stared at the drawing, frowning even more. “And isn’t this the damn mage organization that’s neutral within the empire? Even if we did finish the mission, our relations with them would crumble!”

  “It’s already crumbled,” Alex replied with a stern glare. “Our relations with them… is more along the lines of formalities. If they wanted to be our ally, they would have supplied us with artifacts as well, but they’ve only helped the empire.”

  “It would have been a smarter move on their end to play it out, but I guess even those bastards didn’t think that far ahead,” Blaire added.

  “Regardless, we take it in stride. It’s one less betrayal to worry about,” said Alex.

  Tucker clicked his tongue and held back his frustration. He knew it was a stretch to get the Emerald Tower to assist them, but to think they would openly support the empire was another matter entirely. “Is there any other mage tower that’ll help us?”

  “Not unless we pay a price.” Alex leaned back in his chair and exhaled a steady stream of smoke that drifted into the area.

  “Then we can just negotiate the price. Surely our war chest isn’t that weak that we would lose to the empire,” said Tucker.

  The old man held the cigar between his index and middle finger and tapped the end against the ashtray. He looked at Tucker and shook his head. “No, because the price is never gold for matters like these.”

  Tucker shifted his weight and leaned over. “What exactly is it?”

  “Experimentation rights,” Blare replied.

  The rookie fell silent at Blaire’s words. He glanced at the veterans, whose gazes seemed to drift off into the distance, and gave a bitter nod of acknowledgment. “I see…”

  “It’s not surprising, honestly.” Blaire released a deep and long exhale. “War to them means new advancements in their research. Advancements that wouldn’t be possible during times of peace.”

  “Are we the only ones on the mission?” Tucker looked at Alex and Blaire, who were in mutual agreement, and nodded. “Then… what’s the plan?”

  “From what’s in the report, the envoys carrying the package are leading north along this road.” Blaire held out a map and laid it out on the table. He pointed at the path near the center of the front lines. “We approach from the eastern side, from this small batch of trees.”

  Tucker’s eyebrows knit together. “Beside the rest of the forest?”

  “Right, it’s a small patch of foliage, but enough for us to lie low,” said Alex.

  “That’s the idea, at least. Once they get close to the patch, I’ll create a thick wall of mist. It’s still early spring, and the Empire’s terrain is notorious for this, so it’ll be believable.” Blaire stared at Tucker. “You’ll have to blow the mist over the caravan.”

  Tucker pointed to himself. “Me?”

  “Unless one of us suddenly becomes a wind contractor, then yeah. It’s all you.”

  “Alright… I can do that, but let’s say we can’t steal this artifact. What happens then? Do we destroy it?” Tucker asked.

  “If we can’t retrieve them, then we’ll destroy it, but consider it a last resort. Barrier artifacts are hard to make and maintain. If we can secure them, it’ll make it harder for the enemy to take our cities.”

  Tucker watched as Blaire and Alex stood over the table in silence. Noticing the dire expressions plastered on their faces. After a moment, his lips parted. “Is the situation on the front lines that bad?”

  The old man sighed and stared at the cigar between his fingers. “Our losses are minimal… but we’re being pushed back.”

  “How? I thought we rallied our armies in time.” Tucker leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. “We’re not so weak to get pushed back like that.”

  “We didn’t expect this either, but it seems like we made a miscalculation.” Blaire slid a piece of paper across the surface of the table and sent it to Tucker. “The Empire seems to have made a new creation. One that requires knights who had manifested their world to face.”

  The rookie held the page in his hands, staring at the diagram of what seemed to be a heavily armored knight. “What exactly am I looking at? Isn’t this just a standard knight?”

  “No, it’s the Avalon Empire’s new weapon. They’re far stronger than any golem mages have created and heavily equipped with runes and magic enchantments,” Blaire replied.

  “I saw something like this in the previous war, but it was pitiful in comparison. They say this thing is the size of buildings.” Alex glanced at the diagram and shook his head. “But their appearance shows how serious the Empire is in winning this war.”

  “If these things are the size of buildings, then how the hell did we not discover this until now?” Tucker asked.

  “They weren’t made in the Empire,” said Alex with a sharp tone in his voice. “They were made out of the country and transported in pieces through teleportation devices, then assembled in the Capital.”

  “Then… how far did we get pushed back?” Tucker looked at Blaire, whose eyes slowly closed.

  “Our forces have retreated to the city of Valin,” said Blaire.

  “That far?!” Tucker couldn’t hide his shock. Only a few days had passed, but the defensive perimeters of their kingdom had already fallen back to their first fortress city. Upon seeing the dire expressions on his comrade’s faces, he bit his lips and kept his head down. “Then… what’s the plan?”

  “First off, you’ll need these.” Blaire took out six small tablets and slid two to each of them. “Now, I feel like I don’t need to explain this, but I will anyway. These are poison tablets. If you think you are going to get captured, throw these in your mouth and swallow.”

  “Wait, but didn’t we take a spirit oath when we first entered the Order? Wouldn’t that be enough of a failsafe?” Tucker asked.

  “You never know,” Blaire replied. “Think of it as an extra step of precaution.”

  “You never were one to cut corners,” said Alex.

  “Now, once Alex and I reach the carriage, we’ll loop around and pick you up, kid. You have one chance to hop on the carriage when we pass by the starting position.” Blaire locked eyes with Tucker. “Do I make myself clear?”

  “Yeah, but what should I do if we fail to meet up?” Tucker asked.

  Blaire gestured at the tablet. “Either that or you figure some way to make it back to one of the safe houses in the cities. Most of the safe houses along the borders are closed. Your only choice would be to head to the southern border on the other side of the Empire.”

  “Wait, how come I can’t use the one we came from?”

  “Because if you miss the timing to meet with us, that means we’re already on the way there. Which means we’re most likely going to be chased. In such cases, after we use the device, it would no longer be synchronized with the one in the Order.”

  “Cause we would disconnect it, right?” Tucker asked.

  “Correct,” Alex replied.

  Tucker pocketed the two tablets and nodded. “Then what about equipment?”

  Blaire pointed behind them at the far wall. “Already sorted. Just switch it out, and we’re ready to go.”

  “Sounds good.” Tucker rose from his seat and moved towards the wall, pulling Blaire’s gaze along.

  Blaire focused on Tucker for a moment before sorting the pages and slipping them back into their envelope. He didn’t like Tucker one bit, but knowing that someone like Salamander was supporting him meant that the kid had some redeeming traits. The only problem was that he couldn’t trust the rookie to pull his weight on the mission, and that feeling alone was enough for him to hold his suspicions. That’s why he left him in the foliage, so he wouldn’t get in their way while they searched for the carriage.

  There was no telling what the Administrators saw in Tucker, but it didn’t matter. He just needed to follow his orders and carry them out. Part of his deal with the Administrators was to be a part of their team. But it was a small price to pay if it meant that his children wouldn’t get sent out on missions beyond their capabilities. He felt discomfort in his current situation, but thinking about how May and Mark ran to him and held him when they returned was enough to remind him of what he needed to do. There was no point in regretting that he couldn’t change their minds and send them down to a different career. And knowing this, all that remained was to see this war to its bitter conclusion and fulfill his end of the deal.

  Blaire took one final look at the envelope. His children’s laughter echoed in his mind once more, but war had no place for things like that. Such things were pointless, and in the end, war was always about someone else’s sacrifice. He just had to make sure it wasn’t them.