Chapter 76: Clandestine gathering.
"Bloody hell!"
Frederick was positively rattled, but he didn’t show it.
When Luke had told him he would be tagging along with him to a meeting of very important people, he hadn’t expected it would be a meeting of such epic proportions.
Usually, meetings of the sort were with high-profile people he had no idea about within the Brotherhood of Shadow, and sometimes they also involved members of another organization Luke had told him was called the Praesagius.
But this time, the people taking part in the secretive meeting were people he knew.
People who were quite well-known in the mundane world.
And that was the reason he was at a remote military training facility with Luke and the mysterious man he only knew as Conrad.
The military facility was located on a remote island outside of Eden City.
After receiving the coordinates of the meeting place, trusted maestros from the different Great and lesser Houses agreed to meet at the remote island for several reasons.
The island’s lack of connection to the Brotherhood and Praesagius made it less susceptible to an attack from the unknown enemy.
The second reason was the distance from the mainland.
The island’s lack of proximity to the mainland conveniently ensured that, in case there happened to be a traitor in the Brotherhood and an attack from the mysterious maestro and his backer occurred, the Brotherhood could pass off the ensuing damage with the Government’s help as a failed weapons testing.
The assassins present would be able to fight without worrying about holding back since there would be no civilians involved. This also meant that there were no hostages in case the maestro got cornered.
The island staff had been moved to one part of the island under the guise of an impromptu training camp designed to test the military personnel’s reaction speed in case of an emergency.
Only a few skeletal personnel remained, all of whom were inside agents of the Brotherhood.
If the mundane media had known about the unusual meeting that was taking place, the clandestine gathering would certainly have made for a truly interesting and possibly newsworthy affair.
For one, both the governor and the city councilor were in attendance at the clandestine event.
The governor, Rudeus White, was a large, burly man with a rounded belly.
His three-piece suit strained immensely, barely containing the man’s bulk. The buttons at its front looked like they were on the verge of ripping, giving the vivid impression that they’d snap if he made any sudden movements.
The governor’s waxed bald head shone smoothly under the sun’s oppressive rays, small rivulets of sweat beginning to form and run down his massive neck.
His appearance contrasted sharply with the calm look in his blue eyes.
The governor’s eyes were those of a nab that had seen much and heard a lot of things, giving the impression that he knew much more than he let on.
Which was quite true in this case.
Frederick was definitely not surprised that the governor was one of the McAlister’s puppets.
Not just the governor but the councilor.
The Councilor, Ian Wright, was a tall, gaunt, dark-skinned man with dark brown eyes.
He wore a dark blue suit that had been tailor-made from the looks of it.
The suit covered the man’s skeletal figure, managing to give him an intimidating appearance despite his frail musculature.
A small entourage of personnel stood behind him, while some mundane bodyguards stood at his side.
Frederick inwardly scoffed.
" With the kind of people meeting here today, the mundane bodyguards are meat shields at best if anything happens."
He frowned warily, instinctively observing their surroundings for threats, a habit that had developed from his days of service in the military. Even in the presence of powerful superhuman allies, one could never be too sure about these things.
" At this rate, nothing should shock me anymore; hell, I wouldn’t be surprised if I found out several heads of state are the Brotherhood’s puppets."
Conrad smiled at that moment, raising an eyebrow in amusement.
" You’re quite right."
Frederick inwardly had a double-take.
" What the heck?! Is this guy able to read my mind?"
Conrad chuckled lightly but said nothing.
Of course, their first meeting with the enigmatic maestro had been nothing short of unforgettable.
The mysterious maestro had literally smashed one of Lord Marcus’ entourage through a solid concrete wall in the dojo where he and Morgan had been sparring.
Several walls, actually, if memory served him right.
Despite the solemnity and supposed importance of the gathering, the enigmatic maestro was clad in his trademark dark apparel.
A loose-fitting black long-sleeved shirt with sleeves folded up his forearms and dark pants.
He stood nonchalantly with his hands in his pants, and with the dark sunglasses he had on, it was impossible to tell what he was thinking.
Even standing next to him, Frederick could swear there was no one there.
" Thank God we never had to fight these monsters in battle."
Frederick couldn’t even begin to imagine what would happen if regular human soldiers had to go up against the Brotherhood.
He shuddered to think of the repercussions of such a clash.
" It would be an outright massacre, a bloodbath the likes of which the works had ever seen."
Luke stood at the head of their trio, standing with his arms clasped behind his back.
The man was clad in a crisp black suit, emanating an air of danger and aloofness.
His unusual eyes were hidden behind a pair of dark sunglasses.
At that point, the space around them shattered visibly, unnatural jagged cracks running through the air.
" A maestro?" Frederick thought, standing vigilantly.
At the same time, several points in space fractured and raptured-a sign of numerous dimensional overlappings occurring at the same time.
" Or rather Maestros."
The cracks widened, forming vertical slits that stretched through to reach the ground.
From these rifts, people emerged, stepping onto the field outside the base.
From the nearest rift, a blonde-haired young woman stepped out, walking at the head of a group of intimidating figures in black suits.
Clad in a white suit and long black overcoat, she was the picture of elegance and royalty.
Her silver eyes created a startling contrast with her golden hair, creating a strange, almost hypnotic magnetism that drew one in if they stared at her for too long.
An unnatural breeze stirred around her as she moved, her hair fluidly moving through the air.
Conrad grinned, a wide smile appearing on his face.
" Well, I’ll be damned, is that Nadia? And she’s all grown up."
Frederick glanced at him, then continued observing the newcomers.
" Sounds like she’s some big shot."
Luke’s dark glasses shifted almost imperceptibly, a glow of red light emanating from within, but his face betrayed no emotion.
" Mind your tongue, Conrad. That’s Lady Nadia to you. Besides, you’d best pay attention to her entourage."
Behind Nadia Varas, a tall man walked, stalking behind her with perfect control over his movements.
Even at a distance, the man had a subtle presence that made him seem almost unremarkable.
His piercing brown eyes glanced at the trio momentarily, for such a short time that Frederick almost missed it.
It could have passed for a coincidence except that he’d looked at the same time Conrad had started speaking.
" This man is dangerous."
The space around the man shifted almost imperceptibly, melding smoothly around him almost unnaturally.
" Hiding in plain sight," Conrad muttered under his breath.
In the next moment, Frederick noted something strange, so strange that an unnatural chill ran down his spine.
The shadows around the group’s feet seemed longer than ordinary, despite the afternoon heat and the bright light, and were subtly darker.
It was almost like they were loosely attached to their feet.
Frederick cast a furtive glance at Luke and Conrad.
" I wonder how these two measure up to him. "
Conrad smirked derisively.
"For the infamous Spectre of House Varas to deign to grace us with his presence, this must be more important than I thought."
When the group arrived, Luke was the first to speak.
" Lady Nadia, Lord Drake," he nodded, shaking both of their hands.
" Luke Sanguine, it’s a pleasure to meet you again after all this time." Drake Varas spoke, his deep voice carrying over silently.
Indeed, the last I saw you, you were merely a boy; how you’ve grown." Luke said with a smile.
Drake nodded silently, then turned to observe the remaining arrivals.
" What the heck?"
Frederick experienced the same unusual experience he felt with Conrad when he glanced at Drake.
It seemed as though the man wasn’t there, even while seeing him withhis own eyes. It felt like his mind was rejecting the man’s presence.
" What a bunch of monsters!"
Frederick cast a furtive glance at the silver eyed beauty. Almost like she’d felt his gaze, she turned around at that exact moment.
Nadia pierced him with a icy gaze.
Frederick ignored her stare, looking blankly into space like she didn’t exist.
She scrutinized him for a while before turning away.
Frederick inwardly sighed.
" It seems today is going to be quite the long day."