Watching his brother fight multiple warriors at once, turning what should have been a one-sided beatdown into a fair fight, and then starting to push them back, was quite something.

Nick had known Devon had grown, as he’d sparred with him quite a bit since coming to Alluria, but it seemed that in the weeks he’d been staying at the Tower, he hadn’t been idle.

His ghostly figure ducked and weaved through blows that shattered chairs and tables, always using the least amount of energy necessary to slip past swords and maces, and ending up in a favorable position that allowed him to counterattack and scatter his enemies through the suddenly empty tavern.

It was quite a show, and Nick noticed that even the Duke appeared impressed, as he kept glancing at Devon from the corner of his eye.

Still, his eyes remained fixed on one of the assailants. He wasn’t anything special, really, and as he watched, he took several blows that any decently trained Knight should have been able to at least parry, but that wasn’t why his attention was on him, no.

Nick recognized the man as one of the secret guards who protected One-Ear during high-stakes meetings.

Is he more involved in this matter than I thought? I guess it wouldn’t be beyond an organization as powerful as the Circle of Pure Souls to infiltrate and subvert information brokers.

A small part of him twinged at the perceived betrayal, but he ruthlessly squashed it. He simply didn’t have enough information to know whether One-Ear himself was a member, just another pawn, or the subject of a conspiracy himself.

Assigning blame here wouldn’t accomplish much, but it would distract him from what's important.

I expected there to be more to this whole thing, but everything I learn shows just how deeply they have gotten their hooks into Alluria. Even if their goal was never to attack directly, the fact that they could have done so unnoticed is very troubling.

Devon’s ghostly image kept fighting, eventually gaining the upper hand and starting to herd the attackers into a corner, gradually and skillfully overwhelming them through sheer skill.

It was a less bombastic approach than Nick had used to face the failed apprentices, but his brother had less mana to use. If he had started throwing high-intensity skills, he could have exhausted himself before all the attackers were defeated.

Yet, before he could finish the fight, Nick saw Anthony’s figure wobble up from where he’d fallen in the chaos, and his hands glowed as he unleashed an attack at Devon’s back without hesitation.

A gasp broke the silence, and everyone turned to Sonya, whose hands covered her mouth, and her eyes were fixed on the betrayal, even though she knew Devon was safe and sound beside her.

“Stop,” Nick called as Devon’s image took the blow and staggered, clearly drained by whatever magic had been cast on him. He wasn’t out of the fight yet, but his decision not to use overwhelming force from the start was the only reason for that, or he’d have been too exhausted by now.

The thought of what Changer might have done if Devon had fallen then and been taken to the underground ritual chamber made his blood boil, but Nick was experienced at keeping his mind clear of raging emotions and was able to set them aside and notice something.

Nausicaa hesitated, but a nod from the Duke made her freeze the image.

“Is it possible to get a better look at Anthony’s face?” he asked.

He wasn’t exactly feeling charitable toward the boy, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t see that something was wrong. No matter how much of a traitor he might have been, Anthony was a scout, and a pretty low-level one at that.

He couldn’t have cast that stunning spell by himself.

“Ah, I see,” Tholm hummed once his face was revealed, and the others made surprised noises.

Anthony’s ghostly image was completely blank. His eyes were dull and lifeless, while his expression was unnaturally slack. Meanwhile, veins bulged in his neck and head, clearly indicating that something was terribly wrong.

“He was possessed. Not for long, but he wasn’t the one to attack Devon,” Nick explained to clarify for those without a magical background. “It must have been Changer. I didn’t expect him to be able to cast through a possessed thrall.”

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That must have been what most of the tattoos he proudly displayed were about. Changer was a formidable enemy, but not one with enough magical skill and finesse to pull off something like this on his own.

However, that means the Circle of Pure Souls can grant his abilities to others. There may be a high cost, as no power is free, but if they’ve done it once, they can do it again.

The implications quickly dawned on everyone around him, and Nick saw even Xander narrow his eyes in surprise. Only Tholm seemed unaffected, but with his rings back on, Nick had no way of knowing what the man was thinking.

“So he might not be a traitor, after all,” Devon muttered, eyeing the still form of Anthony with some pity, and Nick shrugged. It was too soon to tell, but it was still true that Anthony hadn’t attacked of his own volition.

“But why choose such an unremarkable child for this?” Sonya asked, voice barely above a whisper. It was clear she felt a great injustice had been done, and the seemingly random selection of a teenage boy from thousands with similar backgrounds who lived in Alluria only made that harder to accept.

The Duke’s eyes slid from her to Devon and back again, but he said nothing, even though high nobles were usually very strict about servants speaking in their presence.

Instead, he turned back to Nick, “Yes, why do you think that is, Young Crowley?”

Nausicaa was clearly surprised that he was the one the question was directed to. With an Archmage present, Tholm should have been the obvious choice, and if not him, then her, as a mage in the Duke’s employ, should have been trusted with such an assessment.

Even Xander, who had traveled far and wide and seen most of what the world had to offer, would have been a more sensible choice.

But the Duke only had eyes for Nick, and he clearly expected an answer to come.

As far as Nick knew, the Duke shouldn’t have known he was the one to defeat Changer yet, but the certainty in his question made him think he strongly suspected it.

Logically, it makes sense. If it had been Tholm, he wouldn’t have needed to bring me, and the old man isn’t really one to get off his ass and get his hands dirty anyway. If it had been Xander, neither Tholm nor I would have been here. And Devon was under house arrest, sworn not to leave the manor on Xander’s word. That leaves only me.

It was a seemingly simple leap of logic, but only because Nick already had all the answers. The Duke would be relying more on instincts than knowledge, yet he had correctly assessed the situation for what it was.

“There might be some randomness involved in the choice,” Nick admitted, but even he wasn’t entirely convinced. “But Changer didn’t seem like the kind of person to rely on luck. More likely, he had a way to assess compatibility with his method of possession, and Anthony was the one who proved to be the best fit for it.”

As for how that was possible, Nick had no definitive answers, only guesses. But he was certain of one thing: it wouldn’t have been a subtle effort, even for an organization as secretive as the Circle of Pure Souls.

“I want every physician’s residence and clinic in the city inspected,” the Duke said aloud after a moment, and although nothing appeared to change, Nick could sense several hidden guards waiting just outside the nearest wall silently depart.

“And someone should check which temple this kid got his class at. I want those records.” More guards left, leaving only two men to wait for the Duke.

“That’s not gonna be easy,” Tholm chuckled. “The priests will be in a tizzy the moment they learn the Circle was here. The low-level ones might not know they exist, but Bishop Umlaut certainly does, and I doubt he would have put two and two together by now. That man enjoys his vices, but he’s very cunning under all that fat.”

Xander snorted like a bull, lips twisting in a grimace. “I hate to give that man any credit, but he’s not the type to give up such valuable information without getting a high price. That is, if he hasn’t already sealed the records after somehow discovering what’s been going on.”

The Duke nodded thoughtfully, but didn’t seem moved. “We’ll have to see. Even someone like him has to think twice before denying my request.”

And that was that.

The rest of the fight went as Nick expected, with his brother regaining the upper hand despite Anthony’s occasional intervention with seemingly impossible spells, until the tavern’s door flew open again and more people rushed in.

By then, Devon was clearly exhausted. His hair was sweaty and stringy, and he was breathing heavily, so he could have been forgiven for not immediately realizing that they weren’t more would-be kidnappers but soldiers, especially since they didn’t wear the city watch’s uniforms.

It was easy to see where the misunderstanding originated, but that didn’t make the subsequent brawl any less embarrassing to watch.

Watching his brother dropkick a soldier, then use his body to slam into two more behind him, was more amusing than it should have been. Nick could tell that everyone else felt the same, even if no one said anything about it.

Eventually, the memory of the fight faded, and in the chaos, Anthony sneaked out of the tavern, following dark alleys until he reached a familiar mossy stone wall.

He clicked a seemingly unremarkable brick, which formed an archway for him to pass through, and he slipped into the darkness, falling for several seconds until his feet touched the ground, splashing water all around him.

“The thieves’ tunnels,” the Duke murmured, watching in fascination as Anthony walked for several minutes until he reached a blank section of the wall. When touched, it revealed an opening into the residential district, very close to where the basement had been.

From there, he followed a path similar to Nick’s, greeting the guard standing watch over the wall with familiarity and slipping into the deeper tunnels, avoiding the basement floors altogether, until he emerged into the ritual chamber, where someone was waiting for him.

All of a sudden, Anthony’s ghostly image sagged, as if only now realizing how tiring the fight and subsequent flight had been, but he didn’t fall because a hand caught him just in time.

“Master,” Anthony groaned, bowing as well as he could.

Changer, disguised as an unassuming middle-aged man, smiled kindly at him and guided him to the ritual altar, where Anthony sat, visibly relieved.

“It must have been hard, son,” Changer said, and anyone could have been forgiven for thinking the man was genuinely speaking to a child of his, with how much warmth he put into his tone.

Truly, he was a nasty motherfucker.

“I did it, master. I was able to frame someone else, and the people you told me to seek acted just as you predicted. I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough and that I needed your help in the end.”

Changer’s eyes didn’t lose their warmth, but Nick suspected that beneath the mask, he wore a very calculating look.

“Don't worry, child. With this, your revenge will soon be complete. I promise you, those priests who refused to heal your father just because of his allegiance to a different god shall rue that day.

Anthony smiled in relief, with a hint of trepidation, and lay himself down on the altar, this time without his body being puppeted, waiting quietly until Nick finally appeared on the scene, then he resumed acting as a terrifying victim once more.

What the hell? I’m sure he was genuinely scared back then!