CHAPTER-3 Meeting

Part-1

Meeting

Mihika Dhār was the last to enter the meeting hall where she had been asked to be today. The room consisted of six other individuals, each with their own unique characteristics. Firstly, she noticed a black-haired, white-eyed individual wearing a robe that seemed to be concealing his face. He appeared frail and out of place, suggesting that he was not accustomed to dressing well and may not be well-off financially.

Next, she saw a woman, probably around 18 or 19 years old, engaged in a friendly conversation with the person she had observed earlier. The woman appeared to be of noble birth, judging by her attire. Mihika guessed she might belong to either the Agarwal or Deora family.

Then, there were Anila Khokar and Abhijat Agarwal, a duo of cousins known for their formidable skills in battle. The brother of the duo seemed to be observing the room and its occupants, just like Mihika herself. Their eyes briefly met before both looked away simultaneously, as if trying to size each other up.

In one corner of the room, a giant man stood with his eyes closed, seemingly meditating. He had a square face, a well-trimmed beard, and muscular arms tightly wrapped in bandages. Various weapons adorned his back and belt, including a sword, bow, spear, knives, and other equipment.

Mihika's thoughts were interrupted by a loud cracking noise. She turned towards the source and felt a wave of annoyance and disgust as she recognized the person responsible. It was Vaghat, a figure known to be a nightmare for both enemies and allies. He had dark hair with golden streaks and a mischievous demeanor. He deliberately ate a cracker biscuit in the most obnoxious manner possible, seemingly to annoy those around him. All eyes were on him, including Mihika's. He spotted her and greeted her loudly, attracting even more attention. In response, Mihika walked up to him, punched him in the gut thrice, and whispered-shouted at him to stop.

Vaghat replied, "Oh, I was just greeting a friend," maintaining the same tone as before. Mihika reminded him that they were part of a special unit, emphasizing the need for discretion. Unfazed, Vaghat began to retort but was interrupted by Mihika's punch once again. Then, a soft voice spoke up, suggesting that violence should not be used in the room, especially on someone as seemingly frail as Vaghat. Mihika turned around to see the noble lady who had been talking to the hooded figure observing from a distance. Mihika forced a laugh and made light of the situation, referring to their interaction as a friendly greeting.

Apologizing to everyone for the inconvenience, Mihika walked away while dragging Vaghat along with her.

Part-2

The room where the king had asked everyone to assemble was certainly interesting, to say the least. It wasn't the room itself but the people he found in it. There were no ordinary individuals in this room. Those who tried to blend in as commoners were the ones who stood out like sore thumbs. It was a wide assortment of people, ranging from nobles to commoners. Among them was a person who, like him, was analyzing the crowd. This person happened to be one of the two individuals dressed as commoners. She had dark hair, dark eyes, and a dark complexion, and she seemed to be above average looking. The way she walked clearly indicated that she wasn't a commoner but actually a seasoned warrior. He was having doubts about the other person, though. This other person was wearing commoner's clothing, moved like, well... a normal person, and seemed genuinely carefree. The only other person who seemed to be even close to his level of cheeriness would probably be the noble girl whose name happened to be Athika Deora of the Deora family.

Soon after the woman entered the room, he heard a cracking noise. He whipped his head around to look at the source of it and found the guy in the commoner's clothes. He saw him wave toward the woman who had just entered. He saw her half walk, half run up to him and punch him. They then engaged in a small exchange of words between Athika Deora before the woman dragged the man away to a corner of the room and reprimanded him while the guy held his hands up, making an apologetic gesture. So, they were acquainted; his hunch was proven right.

This meant he could confirm his earlier-made hypothesis of them being part of the rumored special unit.

It was plain as day that the king was gathering people with exceptional talent and skill. It wouldn't make sense for them to simply put civilians in it. Everyone in the room had basic combat and athletic skills as well. He then decided that he would perhaps probe a bit deeper into this matter by engaging them in a nice 'chat'. However, that chance was unfortunately interrupted.

'The king will now enter,' they heard a voice before the king presented himself to them. He wore your standard royal garb, with his neck and arms adorned with a few pieces of jewelry. The king seemed to have decided to grow his beard, which now had taken on a salt and pepper color, with his mustache being white. He was roughly around his 60s as of right now and had a very well-built body.

On seeing him, everyone bowed down on instinct; his presence commanded obedience. Even Abhijat tended to feel a strong urge to bow every time he came face to face with the king. The king then ordered the guards to stand out. The guards seemed hesitant at first, and why wouldn't they be? There was a really smart general, i.e., himself, a really strong warrior related to said smart general, a noble woman, a seasoned warrior like a muscle man with weapons on him, not to mention the commoners and the mysterious hooded figure.

As soon as the guards left, the king's upright posture dropped. He seemed more relaxed compared to the upright posture he had when he entered.

The king then asked them to rise. He led them to a roundtable with exactly eight seats. The seating arrangement, which they naturally and wordlessly sorted themselves into, was as follows: on either side of the king sat the commoners. Abhijat took the seat exactly opposite the king, his sister sat on his left, on his sister's left sat the muscle man with bandages, on his right sat Athika Deora, and to her right sat the hooded figure.

"You might be wondering why I called all of you here, right?" the king began.

"Because you needed our help?" said the hooded figure.

"That is true, but before that… could you bother taking your hood off?" the king said.

"I'd rather not."

"Come on now. We're all going to be working together here; we should at least be aware of each other's faces, right?"

"That's true," Abhijat said.

"I don't remember agreeing to work together."

"Akish, could you please take your hood off?" Athika said in a pleading gesture.

"I told you not to use my name!" The robed man, now Akish, said.

"Ah, I'm so sorry, I forgot," Athika said, taking an apologetic body language.

"Ugh, there's no point in hiding it now, I guess," he said, finally taking his hood off after crumbling under the pressure.

He had a rather frail, bony face and seemed to wear a permanent scowl of annoyance. What stood out to Abhijat were his white eyes. They were not indicators of him being blind; rather, they indicated his lineage.

"Happy now?"

"Yes, thank you," Athika beamed.

He then turned away and muttered something under his breath, something about annoying nobles.

"Anyways, before we get started, I believe everyone should introduce themselves," the king said.

"Well, I'll go first since Miss Loose Cannon here went ahead and introduced me," said Akish, causing Athika Deora to look away in embarrassment.

"The name's Akish, just Akish. Not exactly nice to meet you. I am 21 years old, I guess. I don't really know when my birthday is, and I come from the well-known place called the streets," Akish said.

Everyone had thoughts similar to Abhijat.

'What a brutally honest self-introduction!'

"I suppose I'll go next," said the man with bandages.

"My name's Ripudaman Tandon. I hail from the village of Mekahandi."

"Mekahandi?" Abhijat's sister asked. "As in the border town?"

Mekahandi is the border town located east of the capital. It is a place that is very hard to live in due to the frequent bandit attacks and invasions that happen there. There is also a garrison located there, but their job is mostly done by the man who just introduced himself. It's not like the garrison is useless; it's just that the village probably would have sustained more casualties in his absence.

"Yes, I have taken up the role of defending my village from bandit attacks that happen on an almost daily basis."

"Are you perhaps the one they call 'The Wall of Mekahandi'?" Abhijat asked.

"That's quite right," Ripudaman replied.

Abhijat had guessed right. This man was the defender of his village, known for taking on groups of bandits on his own. A man who wielded any and all weapons, a jack of all trades, master of none, 'The Wall of Mekahandi' Ripudaman Tandon.

"I'll go next. My name is Anila Khokar from the Khokarian family," Anila said.

This single line caused everyone, except Abhijat, the king, and the man and woman in commoner's garbs, to go wide-eyed.

"Seeing your surprised faces, it seems that the need for any sort of elaboration is unnecessary," Abhijat interjected.

"It does seem like that, huh?" she said as she sat down.

"My name is Abhijat Agarwal. It is a pleasure to meet all of you," Abhijat said.

Everyone was stunned yet again, but the shock seemed not as high when compared to his sister's introduction.

Abhijat and his sister were quite popular throughout the kingdom. The reason being their impeccably perfect record of consecutive low casualty victories. It was as simple as that. His sister, the well-known warrior-general, was hailed as one of the best warriors in the kingdom. Meanwhile, Abhijat was hailed as the best strategist, and that too at a young age, which was quite a feat for both of them. They were practically legendary figures at this point.

"I'll go next. My name is Athika Deora of the Deora family. I am a fully trained advanced doctor working towards being the royal doctor one day. It is really nice to meet all of you," she said with an overly happy tone.

'A doctor, huh?' Abhijat thought. Aiming to be a doctor was a hard task since it required one to see blood on a daily basis. It certainly wasn't an easy task but was very well paid because of its scarcity. Being a royal doctor basically gave you the status of a noble. He didn't peg Athika as the type who would end up as a doctor, but it most certainly didn't surprise him. He had seen firsthand how determined she could be when she wanted to be. Although Abhijat had a feeling that she wouldn't remember him at all. The reasoning being she never knew his name back when they first met, which happened ten years ago when they were 11.

"I am next, I guess," the woman in commoner's clothes stood up. Before she could continue, the king interrupted her. "Introduce yourself along with your actual job description."

The woman seemed initially shocked yet managed to regain her composure within a fraction of a second.

"Understood, sir. My name is Mihika Dhār. I am a part of the special unit, Squad Number 2, specializing in espionage. It's a pleasure to meet you," she said.

As if on cue, the last person who hadn't introduced himself spoke up. "My name is Vaghat, just Vaghat. I am a part of the special unit, Squad Number 1, focusing on assassination and high-profile elimination missions. It feels awesome to meet all of you."

"The special unit, huh?" Abhijat said. "Pardon me if I am mistaken, but are you sure you're a part of the special unit?" he continued, looking pointedly at Vaghat.

"What makes you question my sincerity?" Vaghat asked, giving him an utterly confused look.

"It's just that your fellow special unit member felt like she was a part of the special unit because of her movements, the way she looked at everyone. She began analyzing everyone in the room the moment she entered. You, on the other hand, seemed free as a bird. Why is that?"

"Hm? Why should I analyze any of you when I already knew everything about you?"

Abhijat's mind went into a frenzy, trying to calculate and account for all the possibilities.

While doing so, he couldn't control the next set of words that left his mouth.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means I took the liberty of looking through each and every one of your personal files that are kept at the royal data center. Oh, and here they are," he said, producing a set of papers from a bag that he carried.

'The files from the royal data center?!' The royal data center is the place used to store all the details and records of every single citizen in the country, from their date of birth to their job and salary. Everything was there, and most importantly, there was also a record of their manifested abilities.

So, this Vaghat probably knew everything about everyone present in the room, and even if he was only half or a quarter as smart as a general, he had probably pieced together why they were called here. He knew who to look out for, who could be manipulated, and who could be dangerous.

Abhijat felt like a fool for the first time in a very long time.

He heard a snort of laughter from his left. He noticed that Akish and Athika were trying to control their laughter, while his sister Anila merely smirked at him.

In an attempt to save face, he responded with a forced smile, "I see, thank you for clearing that up."

"With that out of the way, now allow me to tell you why I brought all of you here," the king said.

"I'll be frank; I am planning an invasion of a certain country, specifically the Kings Of Sin alliance"

Abhijat's hunch was confirmed. To be perfectly honest, it made sense to him. It was now becoming more evident as to why the king had gathered them here. The conclusion he arrived at momentarily stunned him.

"So, uh, what's the Kings of Sin alliance again?" asked a clueless Akish.

Everyone had a look of 'how oblivious are you?!' on their faces when they looked at him.

"What?! I'm too busy looking for a way to get through the day to deal with inter-country political bullshit."

"Allow me to explain," Abhijat said.

"The Kings of Sin alliance, as the name suggests, is, on the surface, an alliance of kings. While that is true, it is not entirely the case. In the simplest possible words, the Kings of Sin alliance is basically an alliance between eight countries, seven of which represent each cardinal sin: Pride, Wrath, Envy, Greed, Lust, Gluttony, and Sloth. At the center of these seven surrounding countries lies the main country that controls it all. The king at the center is the head, while the other kings, the kings of sin, are either his friends, relatives, sons, daughters, or just puppets."

"The Kings of Sin alliance has had its targets trained on us for quite some time now. It might not be evident, but they have attacked us in the form of revolts, strikes, bandit attacks, using conquered countries as fodder for invasion. The list goes on and on. This, in turn, weakens our country, seducing it with corruption and misinformation. These invaders take the form of refugees to enter the country and gain positions of power to abuse them. While we have been making efforts to cut them off, they are now firmly rooted in

in our country," Abhijat finished.

A feeling of gloom now emanated from the room. They all understood the situation, and some details they may not have known were now filled in.

"On that note, I can get to why I gathered you all here," the king said.

"I intend to employ the same tactic as them. I intend to not prolong it but rather strike swiftly and efficiently, and I need your help with it. To be more specific, I need you to infiltrate these countries and weaken them enough for a successful invasion. I ask the seven of you to infiltrate the countries in the Kings of Sin alliance and break them from the inside before they strike back at us."

Silence hung in the room. Abhijat's fears had been confirmed.

Then they all heard laughter, a laugh of mockery, a laugh of pure hatred. It all came from the man named Akish.

"Hah, do you really just expect us to say, 'Yeah, totally, we'll go because we totally are patriotic citizens of this oh-so-great country,' right?" he said, wiping the tears that had formed during his laughing fit.

"Honestly, I'm not up for it, really. Find someone else to do the job," he said, getting up from his chair.

"So, you're going to run away?" Anila spoke.

"Yeah, totally. Why should I save a country that did nothing but spit on me for the mere fact that I was born... Honestly? You know what? I have a higher chance of defecting and fleeing to another country to tell them of your plans just to spite all of you," he said.

"That won't work since the borders are closed," the king said.

"Of course they are, and now let me guess, you'll probably have someone keep an eye on me for the next year or two at least, huh, so that I don't leave or blab any secrets?"

"I won't deny it."

"Ugh, so I get a countrywide house arrest kinda? This really is a shit plan. Grr, fine, I'll go, but I have a few conditions that will need hearing after this... ah, briefing or whatever," Akish said, sitting down.

"Coming back to the topic... Will you help me, no, this entire kingdom?" the king asked everyone except Akish, because of his peculiar situation.

"Will my village be safe?" asked Ripudaman Tandon.

"We will declare war on the Kings of Sin alliance six months after your infiltration."

"Before we attack, we'll be increasing border security threefold, and I believe that while moving with the army, we will be cleaning up the bandit camps along the way. So, I believe that your village will be fine for the most part."

"I see... then I have no issues participating," Ripudaman stated.

Athika Deora spoke up next.

"Are the skills of someone like me really necessary?"

"Of course, with your ability, along with your excellent skills as a doctor, you are basically the backbone of the entire team."

"No objection on my end," Anila said.

"Me neither," Abhijat parroted.

"Do you really think you need to ask me and Mihika's permission?" asked Vaghat.

"Right, so I believe everyone is in agreement?"

"Hey-hey now, King, you're forgetting about me," Akish said in mock cheerfulness. Abhijat saw Anila's face scrunch up in annoyance.

"Ah yes, Akish, what are your... um, requests?" the king asked.

"They are more along the lines of demands, though," Abhijat thought. Was he doing this on purpose? Probably.

"First, for completing this mission of yours, I'd like to live the rest of my life, or until I feel like it, at the royal palace, with free food, clothing, and everything."

"Alright, I suppose that can be arranged," the king responded.

"Secondly, I'd like to propose a mutually agreed-upon condition. I want the freedom to run away and abandon the mission if I feel that my life is in danger at any given situation. I will instantly flee and return to the kingdom. If you agree to that, then I'll take part in this mission of yours," Akish stated.

Abhijat barely had time to say 'uh-oh' before his sister finally snapped.

"Pathetic," she said, rising from her seat and glaring at Akish.

"What's pathetic about this situation? The king? Yeah, I agree," Akish responded drily.

"No, I mean it's you who are pathetic," Anila growled silently.

"Wouldn't be the first time I was sworn at by a noble. To be honest, I've heard worse. This is really nothing," Akish retorted.

"I thought that since you were brought up in a rough background, you lacked basic etiquette, but this goes way beyond that. The fact that you make such selfish and cowardly demands shows that you are completely and utterly worthless," Anila said.

"Yeah, well," Akish said in a rather nonchalant tone, seeming to have taken no offense. His tone suddenly took a threatening turn. "What do you know about me anyway, for you to pass judgment like that, huh?" Akish said, narrowing his eyes at Anila.

"I have seen enough good-for-nothing fools like you to know how they think. They laze around all day just because they are a little less fortunate, thinking that the world owes them something when they really are just making excuses to hide their own weakness," Anila said.

"Like I said, you know nothing about me, you noble. So quit sticking your nose into stuff that you don't know. It may cost you dearly one day," Akish said as his powers began to slowly flare up.

"What's with the 'noble this, noble that'? Are you jealous of the status nobles have? Or perhaps the idea of staying at the castle as a permanent guest is your way of getting close to it?" Anila mocked.

"First, it really isn't any of your business. Plus, if I really wanted to be a noble, I wouldn't ask for this. Rather, I'd ask for something like 'make me a noble.' And lastly, I hate nobles with a passion, so I'd really rather not become one, or I'd be no better than you guys anyways," Akish responded with a hint of indifference.

Anila was about to respond when...

"Enough!" The king roared in frustration, silencing the room.

"Akish, I agree to your demands unconditionally. And Miss Anila, I don't remember it being your turn to speak, or was it?" The King snapped at Anila.

Anila flinched before responding, "It wasn't. I apologize, your highness," she said, bowing in apology. Her face contorted as if she was trying to swallow something bitter.

Throughout their whole argument, Vaghat simply watched.

Chapter 3-3

"That was a disaster, huh?" Vaghat said.

"Sure was," the king replied.

After the brief argument between Akish and Anila, the king called for a break, sensing the tense atmosphere in the room.

"Do you think they'll be able to do it?" Vaghat asked.

"Of course they will. I know it, and you should know it too, since you are well aware of what my ability is," the king responded with a chuckle.

"It's the perfect ability for a king, after all," Vaghat said.

"Quite right. Still, I can't help but sometimes doubt my own ability. I am scared for what's to come," the king admitted.

"I'll make sure they get through. I'll help them grow as well," Vaghat said. "After all, I am a friend of yours. I can do at least this much."

A moment of silence passed.

"What's his worth?" Vaghat asked.

"Who, Akish?" the king asked, deducing the question's target.

"Yeah."

"It's high."

"Oh, that's rare."

"I guess. My ability allows me to judge people's worth, but I don't want to rely on it. It does have its flaws."

"Only if its user is flawed."

"Fair enough. Sometimes, I still can't help but wonder if the times I used it were the right ways to use it."

"There's no such thing as a perfect answer or a perfect path. Sacrifices need to be made, no matter the path you take. The day you achieve perfection, you transcend humanity."

"You're right. And this isn't the time to dwell on the past. We should head back, I suppose," the king concluded.

Part-4

Once everyone had assembled, the meeting began again.

"Now, I shall tell you about the current plan of events. We intend to train you in the ways of espionage and how to conceal yourselves for six months, after which you will infiltrate the country of Sloth," the king explained.

"Why Sloth?" Athika asked.

"I reckon it's one of the easier countries to infiltrate, right?" Abhijat suggested.

"Right you are," Vaghat responded.

"Who will be training us?" Ripudaman asked. "I'm sure you said this was a secret mission, so I assume you won't involve anyone else, right?"

"That's right. You will be imparting the skills that you know to each other to make up for where one lacks," the king confirmed.

"Vaghat and Mihika will be taking on spy espionage and training the people who will be learning: Abhijat, Ripudaman, Anila, Akish, and Athika," the king continued.

"Ripudaman and Anila will be conducting combat classes. The ones attending will be Akish, Athika, and Abhijat. Mihika and Vaghat will spar with Ripudaman and Anila to improve their overall skills," the king explained further.

"Abhijat will teach history and commerce to Akish, Mihika, Ripudaman, and Vaghat," the king added.

"Athika will lead healing and first aid classes for Abhijat, Anila, Akish, and Ripudaman," the king concluded.

It seemed that Akish had been assigned to every single class. The others seemed to notice this as well.

"It seems that Akish is the least skilled at everything. It's truly a shame. Are you sure you won't run away from it?" Anila asked.

"Of course not—" Akish began to retort, but he was interrupted.

"Ah, yes, I forgot. Akish will be taking Ability Manipulation classes for everyone," the king announced.

Everyone seemed surprised. "Ability Manipulation classes? Why would we need something like that?" Anila questioned.

"One of the reasons you were chosen is because of your abilities. I would like to have these abilities reach their best possible potential, if possible," the king explained.

"Why Akish then?" Athika asked.

"That's because he is the best ability user among all of you. Akish is surprisingly adept at it," the king revealed.

Akish was stunned. How did this man know so much?

"H-How did you know?" Akish stammered.

"I just do," the king replied, smiling at him.

"Ah, I already regret signing up for this," Akish muttered.

"Speaking of abilities, it's about time all of you revealed yours to each other," Vaghat chimed in, ruffling through some papers.

"Hmm, starting with me. I call mine Eye of Mind. It allows me to see really far, even at night, and I am also able to observe fast-moving objects and even minute muscle movements," Vaghat shared.

"Next up is Abhijat. Super hearing, huh? Interesting. Its range is quite impressive," Vaghat continued, explaining each person's ability.

"Ripudaman Tandon has Weapons Mastery, which allows him to use any weapon intended for killing," Vaghat said.

"Athika uses Animal Language Comprehension. It allows her to understand what animals are saying. Simple, straightforward, and useful as heck," Vaghat remarked.

"Mihika has the ability of Disguise. Next up—"

"No comments on mine?" Mihika interrupted.

"Nope. You'd probably punch me again if I did," Vaghat said sheepishly.

"Good," Mihika replied.

"Anila has Intimidation. Hmm, interesting. By the way, were you using your ability when you were arguing with Akish?" Vaghat asked.

"I was," Anila confirmed.

"No wonder I felt like shitting myself," Akish said, adding distastefully, "It does suit you."

"It must be quite useful when you're in combat, to give you the upper hand," Ripudaman commented with what seemed to be a bitter smile to Abhijat. 'Does he perhaps disapprove of her ability?' Abhijat wondered.

"Finally, Akish..."

Everyone seemed to hold their breaths, curious about what kind of ability this person had mastered.

"It's ghost manipulation," Vaghat announced.

"It's quite a broad term," Ripudaman remarked.

"I agree. It seems to have a wide range of applications," Mihika added.

"Right you are, Mihika," Akish replied.

"I can summon ghosts, condense their souls to use as armor or a weapon, and use them to lift and assist me with tasks. I can also have them possess a part of my body or someone else, but only for a short time," Akish explained.

Silence filled the room as everyone remained shocked. Akish let out a dry laugh.

"I know, scary, right? Woo, ghost summoner. He's gonna get you. Are you all disgusted by me now? Hmm, I'd understand if you did," Akish said.

'Disgusted?' Abhijat thought.

"N-No, Akish, that's not it. We're just amazed at how proficient you are at controlling your ability," Abhijat reassured him.

Truth be told, Abhijat was quite surprised to see the many applications of Akish's ability. The potential of an ability often goes unused for most individuals' entire lives. Abhijat had read this theory in an old library once.

Abhijat felt rather skeptical about the whole theory, but now, standing before him was an example that shattered the doubts he had. No wonder the king wanted Akish to help improve their abilities. His mind went back to their earlier discussion.

"Really? Is that so?" Akish said, eyeing everyone else in the room.

"I'm looking forward to your class, teach," Vaghat beamed at him.

"It would be wonderful to be able to use my ability more efficiently," Abhijat remarked. It was what he truly felt. If he could use his ability efficiently, he could develop better strategies, plans, gather information, and achieve better results.

The rest of the discussion focused on working out schedules, the king dictating some basic rules for staying in the castle, and various other miscellaneous matters.