What the hell! was Sage’s first thought when she appeared in the not-rundown district she and the others had initially entered Io through. There was no one in the alley she had [Teleport]ed to. Even if there was, she would have simply knocked out the other party before leaving the place; making them believe her appearance had been a dream or imaginary figment when they regained consciousness. Her reaction was obviously not because the place was empty. Rather, it was the cacophony of noises that assaulted her the moment she appeared.


    Cheers, drums, trumpets; she heard all manner of noise-polluters from several blocks away, loud enough to leave her ears throbbing. She pursed her lips and winced, turning to the direction of the source.


    “What the fuck is going on here?” she spouted verbally. Could she have missed something?


    “It’s the parade Master,” the cat responded, his eyes as mirthful as his voice was sardonic. “The one with the king and high priestess... don’t you remember?”


    “Oh, yeah,” she whispered, ignoring his tone.


    The previous day at the Guild Hall she had heard something of the sort. Today was to be a parade commemorating the forty-seventh anniversary of the union of the Lethian king and Vestravan bishop; or something like that. Much time had happened since then, which was why the event had slipped from her mind.


    The Lethian King. One of only two Transcendents in the entire north western region. As these thoughts flowed into her mind, the flame of curiosity rose in her abdomen. She had yet to meet such a being? How would he be reflected through her {Index}?


    “Let’s go and see,” she said as she set foot out of the alley into the deserted streets. Midway through taking another step, she stopped and looked at the cat in her arms for a moment before throwing him out. Caught off guard but the act, the familiar let out a surprised to squeal as his paws hit the ground; after which, he shot her a bereaved look. “Change your form,” she simply ordered as she turned away.


    Honestly, she had intended to have Nyx assume another form for a while now. But because he mostly stayed in the shadows, she never got around to actually doing it. This time she was not taking chances though. Although she was eager to see the Transcendent, she was not as eager to have him see her. The average Lethian would likely not be able to tell her cat was actually a familiar, but there were those who would be able to; some who might have read about who always covered her face while accompanied by a black cat.


    Said cat let out a soft groan before shifting to a crow, immediately flapped its wings and perched onto Sage’s shoulder.


    “This doesn’t feel good,” Nyx whined.


    “At some point we’ve all got to do things we’re uncomfortable with,” she stated, looking down.


    Even from the sight of her shadow, she knew that she stood out. People would still see her as a witch, which- unless they planned on attacking her for the sin of having an aptitude for magic- meant they would keep their distance. Most likely they might perceive her just as another alchemist; the only respectable job a Lethian sorcerer could pursue.


    It doesn’t matter what they think I am anyway.


    If not for the parade she had forgotten about, the first thing she would have done after getting back to the city would have been to find the bastard and the brat so she could leave. Now, she simply pushed the schedule back a dozen minutes… maybe an hour.


    The presences she met on the way to the street that was the source of the noise, the one main street that wrapped around Io like a coiled serpent, were few and far between. Yet, each of them gave her scrutinising looks; probably due to how her clothing differed from that of those who would normally be seen around these parts. Or maybe it was not the clothes themselves, but the fact that she had piled up as much as she had close to noon; the recent passing of the Equinox had not flung them straight into winter! Or maybe it was not her choice of apparel, but the bird often thought a harbinger of death comfortably perched on her shoulder. Whatever the truth was, she did not care to find out.


    It took less than ten minutes to make it to the street. The sides were a jampacked mass resembling what would happen if several livestock were stuffed onto a square metre of grazing land. There was practically no room to manoeuvre, and half the noise made by the crowd seemed not be the cheering, but the complaints of lack of space.


    Sage took one look at the situation and shook her head. She was not going into the crowd to possibly be tugged on and be assaulted by unwashed auras. Also, as she was wearing a white coat, the last thing she wanted was to get it dirty in a struggle for breathing room. Instead, she began to look for alternatives, places where she could settle that would still afford her a glimpse of the main street. The most obvious solution was to get to higher ground, but even the roofs were occupied. It seemed everyone was pretty eager to see the king, she judged from the excited chatter that mingled with the cheers and complaints.


    The section of the main road Sage chose to come to was one where the drums seemed to be moving towards. With every passing second, they got louder, closer; and Sage still did not have a clear view of the road. Quickly, she looked left and right, checking to see if there was anyone watching, before retreating from the street. When she was certain there were no witnesses, she urged Nyx to take flight. Afterwards, she activated {Invisibility} and {Blink}ed above the main street where she hovered with the help of [Flight]. With the now-crow familiar circling above her, she looked down at the street.


    Her view was certainly clearer from this angle. At her current altitude she had little trouble making out the outline of the street, the jampacked crowds on the side- some of whom had little brats riding their shoulders- and a marching band of tens of dozens that roamed the street alone. The latter group pounded and fiddled their instruments with a ferocity that left her ears ringing at every instant; the rising cheers from below did not alleviate the strain on them.


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    The approaching marching band wore uniforms of red, gold and black. The first thirty or so vigorously beat their drums in merriment, while the following three dozen fervently pumped their trumpets. The group behind these two was one comprised of red robed sorcerers, likely Vestravan pyromancers. At first glance there appeared to be more than fifty of these clerics, who dazzled the crowd with pyrotechnics; some of which involved conjuring flame dragons that sent the crowds into a cheering frenzy.


    Following these three groups were a hundred mounted knights in golden armour and crimson capes, each with the crest of a golden crown smothered by a black dragon. This group in extravagant armour was most likely the king’s personal guard as they hauled a banner with the crest on their cloaks and another; one of a black dragon spouting golden flames on a crimson field.


    These Lethians certainly do not skimp on festivities, Sage thought as her eyes fell upon the guard in front. He was a bear of a man with brown hair tied in locks and a shaggy beard to match. His frame was much larger than his fellow knights and when he opened his mouth to speak, his voice boomed across the place as he uttered words that must have been repeated a dozen times prior.


    “PEOPLE OF IO, CITIZEN’S OF LETHIA! PRESENTING TRENSCH LETHWELL, THE GREAT TRANSCENDENT; AND THE LADY BISHOP HIRAGORA, THE FLAME’S DESCENDENT! PRAISE BE THEIR UNION, FOR IT HAS KEPT THE BORDERS OF LETHIA FREE OF THE SCOURGE OF RAMPANT MAGIC AND FAE WORSHIPERS.


    “ON THIS ANNIVERSARY OF THAT MOMENTOUS DAY, MEALS AND BEVERAGES ACROSS THE CITY WILL BE FREE. THEREFORE, EAT! EAT AT THE CROWN’S EXPENSE AND REJOICE! CELEBRATE YOUR KING AND QUEEN!”


    At this moment, the crowd’s already loud cheers elevated to an even higher level; obviously because of the announcement of free food and drinks. Sage scoffed at their enthusiasm as her gaze fell upon the parade stand on the tail of the caravan. More opulent than anything else, this massive structure- drawn by six horses- was lined with expensive looking tapestries. On it two massive chairs were propped as high as could be with five men and women surrounding them, making it appear as if they were propping the two seated folk up. These were clearly the king’s descendants Sage guessed from their appearance; the king’s descendants but not the queen’s.


    Different from the other folk on the stand who possessed brown hair and pale skin, the queen’s skin was dark and her hair pitch. Two golden orbs radiated with intensity as her stoic face inspected the crowd. Her crimson robes seemed to flare to life when she shot fire out her ornate staff, demonstrating a pyrotechnic level above that of the rank-and-file priests.


    In Sage’s opinion, appearance was ofttimes not a good indicator of kinship. But looking at the woman, she was quite sure the king’s offspring could not be hers. Like their sire, they were human while she…


    Race: Dragon


    Physique: Grade 1


    Mana: S (Green)


    Title(s): Firekin


    The Great Flame’s offspring alright, Sage could not help thinking. The bastard scored a dragon as his queen.


    Too bad humans could not mate outside their races.


    Speaking of the king, Sage’s eyes darted to the figure who sat on a slightly higher pedestal. He appeared to be on the cusp of middle age, a figure with short hair and a trimmed beard. He might not have been as big or as brutish-looking as his Grade 1 announcer, but his vibe was magnitudes more intense. Even though his clothes covered most of his body, she could almost sense his arms bulge out of his shirt; almost feel the power contained by his form. His presence bore upon her shoulders like the sky itself. This feeling and the sudden urge to flee though she had yet to be seen, these were enough to ensure her of this being’s status. An apex existence, one who had transcended mortality.


    Despite that urge to flee, curiosity made her stay.


    How would this being be reflected through her {Index}? A question she repeated as she used the skill once more.


    Words flashed before her eyes, but only for an instant before her vision turned white and a sharp pain flashed across her mind. In response, she let out a little groan, masked by the cheering crowds as she stabilised herself to maintain her {Invisibility}. The last thing she needed was for the camouflage to be broken and have her floating exposed in the middle of the road. What would the Transcendent, his dragon queen and their scores of guards think if she appeared before them during their parade? She had no desire to find out.


    What the fuck was that? She questioned while massaging her temple. It was as if the {Index} had glitched out. That had never happened before! And those words, what-


    She stopped her train of thought as her eyes returned to the Lethian king. He was looking right at her.


    That’s impossible! Her {Invisibility} ability was much better than spell. Even if he was a Transcendent, there was no way he should be able to detect her, at least not without Ultra Order magic which he clearly had no access to. And yet… his glare, matched by a frown, left her under no illusions that he had picked up on her presence.


    Shit! Gotta run! she thought quickly, preparing to {Blink} away. She would move to Isaac and Mylah, whom their bonds told her were further up the road. Then she would grab them and [Teleport] away from Lethia and never return!


    Or at least that was what she would do if he sprang into action.


    Contrary to her expectation, the king simply watched her for a few seconds; or the spot she was in. His sight was not lined with her face, which lent credence to the fact that he could only feel her presence and not actually see through her ability.


    Afterwards he leaned down and whispered something in one of his descendants ears. The order appeared to confuse the fellow, but only for an instant before he produced a quill and a paper. At this point even the queen had noticed something was off as she tersely watched her husband scribble on the paper before folding it into a plane and flinging it… right at Sage. The damn thing was so fast she did not get a chance to react. It’s sharp point impacted her side in a manner that felt akin to a needle stab. She winced but managed to grab the plane before it plummeted to the ground.


    This action of course did not go unnoticed. The dozens of mounted guards, the weakest of whom had Grade 3 physiques, narrowed on her spot. Some of them raised and drew their long bows and they would have released if not for a curt command from the king; even the crowd seemed to hold its breath here. Only half of the order managed to reach her though as she {Blink}ed away, appearing back in the alley she was before.


    When she was certain no one was present, she undid {Invisibility}, unwrapped the plane and read the words clearly intended for her. Come to the palace; an invitation.


    Perhaps a few more hours in Lethia will do me good, she thought as she watched Nyx’s swoop down to her.


    Although it had only been for a brief moment, the words reflected through {Index} were vivid in her mind. Brief, different from what she usually saw.


    Order: #86


    After gestating them, she recalled another set of words: Previously I have offered this choice to ninety-eight others. Words said so long ago on the onset of her journey. From the very beginning she had expected such a day would come; the day she met an outsider like herself.