Monica remained in the cellar with Art’s group while everyone else headed out to the main room of the Devil’s Den to meet with the Secret Eye representative. There was no need for them to reveal they were working together.
It would come out eventually, but Arwin still wasn’t sure just who the Secret Eye really were. He supposed that was only natural given their name. They could have been impartial as they claimed, but he wasn’t convinced they had no ties to the Adventurer’s Guild.
And even if they don’t, the Secret Eye is far from benevolent. They may have their own purpose and not be entirely malicious, but I don’t trust them enough to start showing them the cards we’ve got readied to play.
Still, this had been a long time coming. He’d been sure that the Secret Eye would have announced when the Proving Grounds would start some time ago. It felt like something had been holding them up, but at least the wait was over.
“Her again,” Lillia said as they emerged onto the dining floor of the Devil’s Den.
Standing near the door was a woman clad in black. Arwin recognized her instantly. It was Selen, the Secret Eye member they’d had dealings with ever since their first run in with the Ardent Guild. She inclined her head in greeting as the group approached.
“Ifrit,” Selen said. “Lillia. I hope you haven’t been kept waiting too long.”
“Longer than we’d expected, but I’m never going to complain about more time to prepare,” Arwin said with a shrug. “I take it you’ve come to tell us when the tournament will begin?”
“Not a difficult guess.” Selen nodded. “Preparations this year took longer than expected, but everything is in place now. The Proving Grounds will begin in three days’ time. The tournament will last two days, and no participants will be permitted to leave its premises during that time.”
Three more days? That’s… manageable. Enough time for Kien to get his new class and hopefully at least a few levels. It won’t be much, but in addition to the weapon I make for him and his existing skills and Titles, it should be enough to let him have a chance. The rest will depend on how competent Art and Vix are.That also gives me time to wrap up some of the other projects I’ve been forced to put off.
“Will we all be allowed to attend? Or only participating members?” Lillia asked.
“The only ones present in the Proving Grounds will be members of the Secret Eye and participants in the tournament,” Selen said. “It’s a newer measure. There have been too many rumors of groups planning to influence the results of the competition, so we are taking extra steps to limit those possibilities. You can rest assured that the tournament will be fair.”
I believe the bit about people wanting to manipulate the tournament, but I’m not so sure I trust the Secret Eye to be completely impartial either. I suppose there’s nothing I can do about that other than make sure my group is so strong that it doesn’t matter how much the other teams cheat.
“Good to know,” Arwin said. A thought struck him and he frowned. “Will three days be enough time for our team to make it to wherever the tournament is being held?”
“We will retrieve your team at the beginning of the tournament and return them to this location at its conclusion.”
Convenient. That sounds like some pretty powerful magic, though. Teleportation isn’t something that most people are capable of. Even the stronger mages in the capital had to put a considerable amount of time and energy into magic like that.
“And what of safety?” Lillia asked. “The rules of the tournament — are the fights to the death?”
“Killing is strongly discouraged. The fights are until defeat. Any groups found to be using excessive force will be removed. The purpose of this tournament is to determine the strongest guilds in the kingdom, not to slaughter our best talent. After all, we need the talented for the War.”
Arwin fought to keep his lips from thinning at that statement.
My ass you do. The only question I’ve really got is if the Secret Eye truly believes in the war, or if they’re just as deluded as everyone else is. It would be pretty sad if a group that prides themselves on information gathering doesn’t know the biggest secret in the kingdom… but I suppose we’ll find out.
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“Good to know,” Arwin said. “Our team will be prepared.”
“I look forward to seeing their performance,” Selen said. She crossed her hands behind her back and studied him with an intent, unreadable expression from behind her veil. “You know, the Menagerie has been a very popular topic as of late.” ȑΑℕȏΒЕṤ
“Is that so?” Lillia asked. “We’re thrilled to hear that people are talking about us. Everyone in the Menagerie has been working very hard to improve the city around us.”
“So people say,” Selen said. “There are rumors that you’ve got healers more powerful than the ones the Healer’s Guild has. That you’re going around replacing missing limbs and creating weapons of war that can turn even a normal woman into a killing machine that can take out hordes of assassins on her own. That the people staying in the Devil’s Den find themselves stronger and faster.”
“I’m honored that people think so highly of us,” Lillia said with a polite smile. “I put my heart and soul into every meal I cook. Love can make even a plain meal inspiring, you know. And Ifrit has been working very hard to continue building his reputation. We hope to continue making our name known throughout the kingdom with this tournament.”
“Somehow, I doubt you’ll have any difficulty there. I greatly look forward to seeing your performance,” Selen said. “We have some very interesting teams this year.”
I haven’t forgotten. At the bare minimum, the Adventurer’s Guild has someone in the tournament running around with Kien’s powers. I don’t know what their aim here is, but there’s more to this tournament than there seems.
“I’m looking forward to seeing how our best perform against the kingdom’s greatest,” Lillia said diplomatically. Her expression hadn’t even flickered for a moment. She had complete control over herself.
“As do I,” Selen said. The Secret Eye member made to turn for the door, then paused. She lowered her voice. “I should not speak of this, but I think it prudent to inform you that you are not the only Dwarven Master Smith participating in this tournament, Ifrit.”
Arwin’s back stiffened.
How does she know that I’m a Dwarven Smith? She doesn’t have the most updated information, but I haven’t told anyone about my abilities other than Wallace and my close circle. Is someone spilling information?
“What?” Arwin asked, if only to buy himself time to think.
“Don’t look so surprised,” Selen said. “It’s my job to know things — and I’ve gotten looks at some of the work you’ve made. It’s clearly of Dwarven quality. You don’t have a hole in your inner circle.”
Arwin almost blew out a sigh of relief before he realized that Selen had read him like an open book.
“Why are you telling us this?” Lillia asked. “Aren’t you not supposed to share information about the other teams in the tournament?”
Selen coughed into a fist. “As far as anyone else is concerned, I didn’t tell you anything. I am an impartial member of the Secret Eye.”
“And as far as we’re concerned?” Rodrick asked, speaking up for the first time since Selen had arrived.
Selen’s lips thinned. For a moment, her cheeks colored in embarrassment. Then the woman had control of her features once more. “You may have forgotten the… incident with the Ardent Guild, but I have not. There was nearly a Dungeon Break in a territory that I am overseeing. I trust you can make conclusions from that. Best of luck, Menagerie. I look forward to seeing how your guild performs.”
With that, Selen turned and swept out of the tavern.
“Interesting,” Rodrick said, his head tilted slightly to the side as he studied the spot where Selen had been standing.
“What was that about?” Arwin asked with a frown.
“She’s trying to pay us back for saving her ass,” Rodrick said.
“I got that much. But why would she feel that this warning would be worth her job? Another guild having a Dwarven Smith working with them doesn’t feel like that huge of a revelation.”
“That does seem to be the question, doesn’t it?” Rodrick scratched his chin. “Well, I suppose Art and I have some fun ahead of us. We’ve got three days to figure out just what it was that Selen was warning us of. I know how the Secret Eye works, and it isn’t what they say that you should be concerned about. It’s what they don’t say.”
“You do that,” Arwin said. “And I think I’ll have a chat with Wallace. Maybe he’ll know something about it. Given that the Dwarven Council knows about the war…”
Lillia nodded grimly. “This may be related to that. I suppose all we can do until we know more is continue preparing. The Devil’s Den is going to need to be a lot larger if we manage to pull off a big performance at the tournament. We’ll get even more visitors than we already have.”
“Sounds like a good time to contact ridley,” Arwin suggested.
“Already on the plans after breakfast — which I’m going to go finish after I let Reya know we need to borrow one of her cloaks for Kien. The knives occasionally start fighting if I leave them alone for too long,” Lillia said, nodding to Arwin and the others before heading for the kitchen.
“I’ll follow suit,” Arwin said. “Good luck, Rodrick. Let me know if you need anything.”
They all split off in their separate directions. Arwin set a course for the Infernal Armory without wasting a second longer.
If there were three days until the tournament, he had time to make one or two more things. Kien’s weapon was one of them, but the former hero needed to finish his Quest and get his new class so Arwin could figure out what would suit him best.
And in the time that took… there was a project that Arwin had been waiting far too long to complete.
It’s time to make Verdant Inferno that core it’s been waiting for.
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