CHAPTER 70: BLACK ACCORD

Vacuse studied Drenvar as he entered the room. He looked pale and a little thinner from the night before, but his eyes blazed just as bright.

’...he must have been caught completely off guard by yesterday as well...’

’...I’m glad you don’t die you bastard maker... I still haven’t felt the satisfaction of having your blood on my hands...’

Vacuse scanned the room for the other guests.

Skya Vorrakyn was sitting there with her face worn and tired, but her eyes glaring as usual. A man with red eyes sat beside him, and then opposite him stood a man with brown eyes and black hair mixed with white.

The man with the brown eyes had no aura of Soulbearer, but his presence was that of a person used to authority.

Then completely away from the table, another table was set far away from the side, and on it sat different people, including Lyra.

Vacuse took a step forward, clasped his hands, and bowed. "Your Grace."

All the attention settled on him as he straightened, and he accepted it all with a slight smile. "You don’t look so well... father."

Drenvar scowled, and then his eyes scanned Vacuse, a hint of irritation flashing in his eyes. "And you look so well... son!"

Vacuse realized that the majority of the people in attendance still had blood and dirt on them. Meanwhile, Vacuse had bathed, changed into new clothes, with some jewelry on his ears.

He waved his hand casually. "Oh, that. You know it won’t do if we all appear so dull and down, as if we had swords hanging around our necks. Someone has to set a brighter tone."

Before Drenvar could speak, the man with the brown eyes turned to him with a snort. "Might I remind you, Lord Vacuse, that we are having daggers on our neck!"

Vacuse frowned at the man. Why is someone who is not even a Soulbearer talking to him so casually? He was deciding how to respond when the man shook his head with a sneer. "This isn’t a game or some joke!"

His voice was loud, and all the attention sharpened once again.

Vacuse’s frown only deepened. "I was wondering if I should do like Zephyr... who I killed, by the way... and just twist your neck before asking questions.

"But then I realized you wouldn’t be here if you didn’t have some uses. So I’m going to assume that you know who you are talking to."

Vacuse said all of this with an amused smile on his face. Even his eyes were warm, as if he was sharing a joke with a friend.

But the man didn’t think so. He recoiled, looking shocked. He opened his mouth and closed it.

Thankfully, Skya cut in. "This is the Association Head for Kragthar."

Vacuse frowned. "I don’t know him."

Skya smiled with a dark face. "That’s because the chairman, the vice chairman, the deputies, almost all the stakeholders are dead."

Vacuse raised his brows and turned his attention to the man. "I see. We do have daggers to our throat."

"Enough," Drenvar said with a gloomy scowl. "Gavyn Froshmmer, Head of Kragthar’s Association. That is Vacuse Vorrakyn, the future Dragon Lord. Do with that information as you want."

Gavyn stiffened, but he didn’t say anything else.

The Association is something that encompasses the whole Empire and a way for the common people to have a tiny bit of say on things.

That was because the Association is the representation and made with the cooperation of other guilds. Like the farmer’s guild, the merchant, the artisans, and such.

And in recent years, the Emperor had been using them in a way to force things among his nobles. He set new prices of things and tried to control each region’s trade.

It wasn’t going well, but it’s going.

Vacuse sighed as he understood what it meant that Gavyn Froshmmer was sitting there. Things aren’t looking good for Kragthar at all, and it’s going to hit the surrounding towns and villages even harder.

The Emperor might even use this to intervene very firmly and harder in the affairs of the West. Of the Vorrakyn.

Vacuse pulled the chair directly in front of Drenvar and sat down.

Drenvar looked at Skya and nodded at her. "Now. We will start."

Skya nodded back, cleared her throat, and began to speak. "Yesterday night we were attacked by some intruders that we have now identified."

Vacuse straightened. They knew who the intruders are now? He focused entirely on Skya.

"They are The Black Accord."

Vacuse was shocked to hear that. "The Black Accord?"

The Black Accord are one of the notorious gangs in the Empire, and although they started out as a gang and people refer to them as such, they are more of military bandits than anything else. They are powerful, and they are very much elusive.

They boast several S-ranked Soulbearers among them, of high Advancement Stages. The problem was that there was not one single place that could be pointed to as the base of the Black Accord in the whole Empire.

That made them really dangerous.

And fucking expensive.

Not a lot of people could afford them.

Vacuse narrowed his eyes. There are also rumors that they were being secretly backed by a powerful noble... or the Emperor himself.

But they were just rumors.

Vacuse didn’t dismiss it though. After all, anything could happen. "The Black Accord. Do we find out the reason why they attacked us?"

Drenvar’s eyes darkened. "The Vassals! Those fucking greedy bastards that wanted more than they could swallow! They are the ones that invited them!"

Drenvar was angry. He was seething with it, and it made his eyes look like red fire.

Skya nodded with a cough. "That’s not all. Some of the Dragon Guards, the New Dawn, the servants. Members of the family, core members of the family. They were all in this together."

The more she spoke, the more gloomy Drenvar’s expression became, to the point where his aura began to crawl out.

On the other hand, Skya seemed to be relishing everything. "Someone like the Wing Brigade Commander, Fenris Vorrakyn!"

Drenvar snapped.