Under The Divine Veil 【bxb】

CHAPTER VII

♱
SEVEN

                     The Saintess Faction spared no time in retaliating against Emperor Augustus. A month after the spring gathering hosted by the royal family, the Faction set fire to a building owner by the Rhendors as revenge.

The video of the burning building was broadcasted everywhere, across several news stations all over the empire. The citizens descended into extreme worry and concern— if property of the royal family themself could be destroyed, what did that mean for the regular citizens of the empire?

The emperor himself had to appear on live broadcast with a grandiose speech, reassuring everyone of their safety.

Atlas and I had watched both the broadcast of the burning building, and the emperor's speech. We had to clearly assess every action associated with the royal family for our mission.

Now, I sat at my office desk, writing my first monthly report to Master Saer. In the letter, I made sure to mention my encounters with Princess Annabelle, Duke Onyx Valois, the spring gathering, as well as the situation between the royal family, the Saintess Faction, and other related events.

In a different section of the letter, I wrote about my time in Lunaris, as per Celeste's request.

All of the monthly reports were required to be handwritten and on paper. Master Saer refused to use virtual reports for confidentiality reasons— although encrypted, there was always a possibility that the royal family could find a way to bypass it.

Since my terminal was modified in the Underground, like every other resident there, the majority of the information in our terminals were already set with standard encryption technology. Master Saer was a very careful man, so he would no doubt take extra precautions, even with the encryptions in place.

My desk was installed with a holographic screen-projection, which could be turned on and off at will— much like the one back in Master Saer's office. I had the projection on while I worked on the report,  occasionally searching a few things.

Once I finished the report, a servant came in to collect it. She was a trusted subordinate of Master Saer, who had been around before I was even born.

"Here's the report, Alice," I said to the old servant. She was the designated messenger between Master Saer and the spies, sending our letters and receiving his.

Old Alice gently took the letter from me. She was an aging, elderly woman, her face filled with wrinkles, drooping slightly. Although she always wore a warm, unassuming smile, there was no doubt that there was more to her than she showed. To be such a trusted subordinate of Master Saer's— she definitely wasn't ordinary.

Old Alice gave me a warm smile. "Oh, little Rion. I've watched you grow up, and how overjoyed I am to see you be so responsible," she chuckled. "This is your first mission, isn't it?"

I paused. "There will be more missions?" I slowly asked.

Old Alice gave me a hearty laugh. "Oh, little one. You really thought the master would just let you back into the Saer Family after this?" she grinned. "No, no. There will definitely be more to come, although they might not be as difficult as this one."

I frowned, but I knew she was right. Master Saer was not so benevolent. Technically speaking, I was no longer a part of the Saer Family. I never was.