Vagus

"Hey! "Thays exclaimed, seeing her brother get out of a carriage at the entrance to the Lawrence Palace."

Surrounding the water fountain shaped like a sea serpent, Thays ran to hug her brother. With his arm still bandaged, Theo gritted his teeth and felt a slight twinge in his fractured arm, but soon approved of his sister's hug.

"Lady Luanne," Camille said, surprised by the presence of the Priestess of Alunne. Bowing, she added, "It is an honor to see you here…"

"Aaaah, Camie "she said casually. "There's no need for such formalities. We're family here."

After Ethan left the carriage, Etrian ordered a group of butlers to remove the bags and take them to the residence. As they retrieved the bags, Theo walked to his mother.

Standing in front of Camille, the boy buried his face in his mother's waist.

"Have you found out anything about Magnum's father? "He asked in a melancholy voice."

"Not yet, son… "Camille's lips twitch. "Mr. Anton is still missing… But Magnum has been taken to a better home."

He shook his head, saying no. After all, no home is better than your own…

After Anton's disappearance during the Black Cataclysm, Magnum spent a week in the custody of the Loureto police, as did all the children whose relatives died, were hospitalized or disappeared after the world event.

Before they went to Athenian, one of these children fell into the care of Ethan and Camille…

With Michel having died during the Cataclysm, and her mother being in serious condition where she lost her life just a few days later, Agnes Hansen would follow the same fate as Magnum; being sent to an orphanage and disappearing from the Lawrence family's field of vision.

However, because they were close to the noble family, Agnes had been adopted by the Lawrence's. Magnum had also come into the couple's sights; although he was not adopted as a member of the family, Ethan wanted to take him on as his apprentice and, in the future, make him head of some secretariat of the duchy.

Being close to Anton, he wished for a better future for the boy… But before he could act, Magnum had already been taken away by an institution from another Duchy, to which he refused to return any of the acquired youngsters.

They claimed that Duke Landwell wanted them all for his garrison or service, without exception. Unfortunately, the law of that empire allowed this kind of action.

But Theo, even though he didn't know his friend's whereabouts, wanted to at least be able to inform him about what happened to his father if they met in the future.

Holding Theo in a hug, Camille chatted for a few moments with Ethan and Luanne, while Thays tried to keep up with the matters. However, everyone was concerned about the Duke's condition.

Compared to the previous night, Ethan was approaching things with a more pleasant outlook.

However, the night was becoming increasingly intense. The few streetlights at the entrance were no longer able to illuminate the distant corners of the small square. Still, a light in the eyes of the water snake in the fountain illuminated the true entrance to the house.

On a small hill, where a mini"wall of gray stone bricks rose six meters high, two staircases diverged on the sides, giving access to the upper fields. However, as he left Camille's embrace, Theo looked at something in the center of the stairs..."

In the middle of the small wall, a two"meter statue lay in a recess: a man thrusting his sword into the base of the statue."

Erling Lawrence, the man who created the base of that territory. One of the former revolutionaries, responsible for carrying out a coup d'état against the former dictators and, indirectly, responsible for the current Titans group existing.

Although he has no blood relation to Ethan, the current Duke claimed the territory because, after Erling's death in the imperial square on the day of the Government Protest, Loureto became the possession of the Caesar family.

Looking at Erling's image brought some conclusive thoughts to Theo.

"Dad, Mom… I want to talk to you tomorrow morning. Can I? "Theo asked, leaning on Camille again."

"Uh… You can… "Ethan said, hesitantly."

Camille looked at Luanne, seeking refuge. However, not even her godmother knew what to say.

"Okay. Mom, where's Agnes?"

Unable to respond slightly, Camille had her words stolen by Thays.

"In your hiding place, "replied the eldest daughter."

Theo nodded, as if he had gotten the confirmation he needed. Leaving where everyone was talking, Theo walked to the staircase on the left"he had always thought that was the shortest route to get to the field, since both staircases were equivalent."

Disoriented and swallowing hard, he disappeared from the adults' field of vision.

At the first post, at the entrance to that square, the hooting of a white owl set the tone for the night. Taking flight over the field of the residence, the owl landed on the front roof of the palace, where a small inactive tower served as a refuge.

Sitting on the edge of the roof, swinging her legs over the relief of the ceramic tiles, Agnes looked intuitively at the horizon… In the distance, remnants of the capital Loureto could be seen, with the residential lights illuminating the forest that separated it. However, the visual pollution was not enough to overshadow the brightness of the stars.

The moon, dominated by daytime clouds, did not reveal its waning brightness at that moment.

Attentive to the movements in the field of the house, where the last butlers entered the residence, her ears were flooded…

The butlers' voices quickly turned into a deafening, thunderous roar, accompanied by the sound of breaking glass. The shards echoed through the void of his mind.

Covering her ears, she sniffed. Remembering her mother's name, she writhed as she violently expelled the air from her lungs. Her nostrils flared and irritated. She adopted a frantic breathing rate as tears formed.

"Hey… How depressing, "said Theo, resting his hand on the girl's shoulder."

Sitting next to Agnes, the Young Master also looked towards the direction of the capital. Theo swung his legs as he tried to control his thoughts.

But Agnes' morbid silence made him instantly reconsider.

"About that ghost… "Theo said, looking at his feet."

"Theo, no…"

"Yes, Agnes. We need to talk about him, because… I believe you."

The girl instantly woke up from her state of sadness.

"How it is?"

"I believe in what you saw, Agnes. I believe that there are things in this world that our eyes can see, but our minds cannot explain…"

Agnes paid attention to her brother's words.

"He spoke like an adult…"

Theo chuckled.

"Well, I guess I'll become one in the future, right? Oh, unless I die first…"

Looking at her brother, Agnes was incredulous at his last words. She stared at him as if she were judging him intensely; in response, Theo tilted his head, closed his eyes and faked a gentle smile.

"Why… did you say that?"

"Vagus "he answered suddenly, as if he already had an answer ready. "During the days I stayed with Aunt Sthefanny, I asked her about the Four Great Orders…"

The great organizations a deviant is destined to serve in the future…

Myrddin, the order of deviant conjurers; where the majority of the social caste is present, those responsible for the balance of the magical world.

Solomon, the order of supernatural deviants; where mediums gather to study the supernatural, beings from other dimensions, the cosmology of the universe and, finally, the attribution of invocation.

Fulmenbour, the largest scientific society in the world; those responsible for studying, creating and developing the laws of alchemy and the science that studies energy cores, also where the global economy is monopolized and concentrated.

Lastly, but most importantly… Vagus, where kings are developed and heroes are born; where the safety of the world is assured, and strength is stored. The organization where the knowledge of the previous three is stored for the sake of global peace.

The Four Great Orders were founded centuries ago by ancient revolutionaries, but they only gained such visibility after the judgment of those who went against the laws of the world.

Every deviant's dream is to become a member of one of these four organizations... Sometimes even humans.

"I will become an agent of Vagus… I will discover every shard of this world and its mysteries. Furthermore, I will find the ghosts responsible for their deaths…"

"Theo… "Agnes said, stagnant, noticing the intensity of the boy's gaze."

It wasn't Theo's eye... But his alter"ego's..."

Remembering the day of his death, the black knight's voice echoed through Liam's mind… That being was involved in both the death of the former general, and the death of all those civilians.

Liam's selfish instinct only wanted to know his part... But, Theo wanted to find out why that knight was killing so many people.

'The boy has a bitter presence…' an empty thought broke the silence of the owl that was watching the children.

'What are you doing here, spirit of the night?'

A flaming light appeared behind the owl, transforming the night, inside that small tower, into the sunniest day.

Turning its neck, the owl found the source of that presence.

'Phoenix… The guardian of this home… So you were the one protecting the Lawrence family while the Duke was away? Why didn't I notice your presence…'

'You did not answer me, spirit of the night. You know very well that there can only be one guardian per residence…'

'Hey, hey. Calm down… I'm just here as a guest.'

'I know… As long as they're leaving soon, I don't care.'

A small flaming ghost flew over to the owl's side, abandoning the wall of fire that Phoenix had adopted.

'What is your goddess preparing for this boy?' he asked, looking at Theo.

'Hm… Divine matters cannot be spoken, even to me. However, if you want a bid… I think only Araav's fate can tell us.'