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"Sorry, I was out of line." Eldrian said, not wishing to dig himself another grave. "But if it exists and is as powerful as Ilmadia showed, why does no one use it?"

"Like all types of magic, it has its pros and cons. For now, let\'s just say that the act of mixing your mana with your music entails certain dangers."

\'How?\' Eldrian was curious, but he understood that this was not the place to dive into a conversation about this. \'Perhaps the dangers are like losing control over a spell? But as the song is being resonated within you...\'

\'I\'ll clarify later, now\'s not the time to discuss this.\' Eldrian had been caught up in the moment when Ilmadia showcased her own path in magic.

Now that the excitement had passed, he could see that discussing magical theory in the middle of all these players was not the best idea. Even if he erected a sound proof barrier, he was still drawing everyone\'s attention and keeping the meeting from progressing.

"Alright, but we\'ll talk about this later. I\'m curious if this isn\'t something that might help me."

"Sure," Ceph nodded, not planning to keep things from Eldrian at all. "I just wanted to warn Ilmadia about the potential dangers." He paused, turning to her and ensuring that she was paying attention. "Be careful when you decide to make use of magical song."

"I will, thanks." Ilmadia smiled. Her mind immediately trying to pinpoint what the likely dangers could be.

\'It might be like an aura or spirit magic. Causing a certain strain on me as I play, though I haven\'t notice anything like that while playing... Or, is it because I become completely absorbed in the song? Does this simply open me to all sorts of attacks? Or is there a greater danger behind it?\'

"Right, I guess I should go meet with Elizabeth. We\'ve been entertaining everyone for long enough." Excusing himself, Eldrian headed directly to the guild leader of Phoenix. Her marker on his map clearly indicating her position. The same was true for all his friends.

He paused midway, shocked by the idea that had just flashed through his mind. \'No, I doubt that will happen... It can\'t.\' Denying the thought, Eldrian continued on.

—

"Why did you call me here?" Eldrian asked once he finally managed to talk with Elizabeth without a crowd surrounding her.

For the most part, the players were giving him his space. A few had tried to talk with him, but he had brushed them off, saying he would talk after they had concluded the meeting.

"The other guilds asked me to ensure that you would be here." Elizabeth answered without missing a beat. "I also thought this might be a good time for you to clarify what was the story behind the tournament interruption and duel. Many have asked us what you meant, and I wasn\'t sure what your new plan was."

Eldrian nodded, he hadn\'t talked with anyone but Ceph about that. He actually wasn\'t sure himself how he was going to approach things going forward. He wanted to be careful, but he doubted he could avoid trouble. "What do the guilds want?"

"As I said, many want to clarify what you had meant during the tournament. And many wanted to simply meet you. A few refused to tell me what they wanted to talk about, wishing to discuss it with you personally."

"Discuss things with me?" Eldrian echoed, unsure what their reasons might be if it wasn\'t about the announcement he had tried to give. He could think of a few reasons, but he didn\'t think he was really that big a deal to players outside the guild.

"Listen here," Elizabeth moved closer, not wishing to admit this loudly in the middle of all these players. "Many people think you\'re the true leader of the guild."

"Th-that\'s just... dumb."

"I agree. You won\'t survive managing a guild."

"Hey..." Eldrian wanted to argue, but the words died before they left his tongue. \'She isn\'t wrong. I would suck. Unless... I see, that\'s what they are thinking.\'

"Good to see you are caught up." Elizabeth nodded. "They think I am the figurehead or simply responsible for the managing the guild. But you\'re the true leader. Can\'t really deny it either, seeing as how most of the guild\'s achievements are because of you."

"That isn\'t true. It\'s because of you and the others working so hard."

Elizabeth nodded. "I agree, but it is undeniable that you had a massive influence on us."

"So, what\'s the plan for this meeting? When is it going to start, anyway?"

"When everyone arrives, we\'re waiting on two more guilds. And the plan is to decide how we will approach the incoming invasion. Can you still do that map hologram spell?"

Eldrian nodded and listened as Elizabeth explained the basic outline of the war plans. "I\'m sure you\'re already aware. Small towns and villages have been evacuated, and the larger towns were fortified and prepped for war. Our mission will be to move as an independent unit. The kingdom is going to give us autonomy for this fight..."

—

"Do you trust what he said?" Joren asked, finally having found the time to meet up with Constantin in secret. The two were talking while taking a stroll through Elton park. Keeping their voices low and having left all their electronics in their cars.

"I at least think that it is partly true. I doubt we needed to be so precautions for this meeting." Constantin replied.

In the grand scale of things, they were just two of the thousands of employees the company had. There was no way they were being monitored day and night. At most, their actions were being checked while on the job. However, Zaphreal had noticed their actions. So they couldn\'t be truly certain.

"I\'m not talking about that, and I\'m not taking any risks." Joren countered, seemingly quite shaken by something.

"Why, what did you find?" Noticing Joren\'s distress, Constantin probed his friend.

"It isn\'t what I found, but what I didn\'t. What didn\'t happen? You know the AI had to work with Eldrian to get him to the arenas, right?"

"Yeah?"

"Then why aren\'t we doing anything to limit their actions? Why was there no fuss, no news? Why wasn\'t I called in to help isolate and control the AI?"

"They didn\'t call you?"

"They didn\'t call anyone in the department to fight the AI. So, how did they control the situation?"

Constantin fell silent. "You\'re thinking they have betrayed Eldrian?"

"I\'m not sure if it can be called a betrayal. But I am sure there is something fishy going on. Their goal has always been to escape the prison that ANW is. They might not outright betray him, but they will probably make use of him."

"That\'s sophistry. Using someone does not differ from betraying them." Constantin frowned.

"Perhaps you\'re right. But you know that they\'ve existed as gods for countless millennia. They are used to manipulating people towards a certain path. The manipulation isn\'t always bad for the person being guided, but..." Joren faltered. "It might not align with what Eldrian wants."

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