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nLeio Kingdom, a kingdom near the Meltierre Empire.𝗈𝑽𝓵xt.𝑐𝑂𝓜

nNear the central area of this kingdom, one would be able to find a two-story manor that had aroused the curiosity of many that have come across it.

nWith all of the buildings in its surroundings mostly appearing to be made out of finely chiseled stone painted in various colors, the drab-looking manor stuck out like a sore thumb, prompting those that let their curiosity get the better of them to ask around about its origins.

nThrough incessant querying, one would eventually come to find out that there were two possible stories regarding its origin, the first one being the story of how the manor was already in that spot before the kingdom had even been established.

nDue to how dilapidated the exterior of the manor was, with a great portion of the manor overrun with shrubbery and moss, it was a possibility that many had come to accept as fact.

nOn the other hand, the second story talked about how the manor was a project commissioned by an old prince of the current kingdom.

nAccording to the story, the prince, who was incredibly fascinated with the style of old architecture, decided to have a manor built in that style after pestering the king multiple times about it.

nWith how the prince would be the eventual heir to his throne, and the fact that he did not want to be pestered anymore, the king eventually acquiesced, recruiting all of the best builders in his territory to have the manor built.

nAfter the manor was fully erected, it went without saying that the prince was enamored by it, even going so far as to stay inside the manor for a few years.

nHowever, by the time the prince was crowned as the new ruler of the kingdom, the manor was gradually forgotten, causing its appearance to be what it was today.

nFor quite some time, many people had fought over which among the two stories was the correct story regarding the manor’s origins.

nUnfortunately, with the owner of the manor not even showing themselves to clear up the confusion after all this time, the people eventually decided that both stories had merit, even though the second one wasn’t as accepted by the majority.

nAfter all, with none of them privy to the true answer, even an outlandish claim on the manor’s origins could have merit.

nThen again…

nPerhaps such an outlandish claim was the closest one could be to the truth.

n…

nWithin one of the many rooms within the drab-looking manor was a middle-aged man in a unkempt black suit. Sporting a head of neat yet short gray hair, the man blankly stared out of the large window before him, the thoughts running in his mind unknown to others.

nCreak…

nJust as it seemed like the middle-aged man would continue staring out the window for the remainder of the day, the door to the room was swung open by a young man that looked to be in his late twenties.

nWearing a set of casual-looking clothes, the young man gasped for a bit as he looked at the middle-aged man with a hint of panic. “Master, I come bearing important information.”

n“You have disturbed me, but I’m all ears.” Raising his eyebrow in curiosity, the middle-aged man panned his pitch-black irises towards the young man as he looked on with a cold expression. “I hope the information you’re bearing is worth disturbing my afternoon gaze.”

nListening to the man’s words, the young man briefly shuddered in fear as he realized his wrongdoings.

nGiving the middle-aged man a deep bow as he apologized for his blunder, he took in a deep breath before proceeding to share the reason why he had entered the room in the first place.

n“This information comes from the 3rd Mystic Division,” said the young man to the middle-aged man. “According to them, Subject 003 has discovered the marker we’ve put on them and has applied a few protective measures around it to not let the marker affect them.”

nHearing the young man’s news, the middle-aged man frowned as he shook his head before returning his gaze back to someplace far beyond the large window. “This is worth disturbing me?”

n“Just tell the 3rd Mystic Division to apply more energy into the marker,” said the man soon after. “Of course, apply it in a way where it dispels the protective measures while not alerting Subject 003.”

n“That is indeed what the 3rd Mystic Division has been doing so far.” The young man nodded, twiddling his thumbs as he briefly pondered as to whether or not to tell the middle-aged man of the other things in his mind.

n“However, according to the 3rd Mystic Division, Subject 003 is currently on another spatial plane with a Tier 3 time dilation.” In the end, the young man made up his mind and did just that, continuing to speak with a fearful yet calm expression.

n“If it was only a Tier 2 time dilation, the 3rd Mystic Division wouldn’t have problems. Unfortunately, only those in the 1st and 2nd Mystic Division have personnel that can breach such levels of time dilation.”

n“Is that so?” Surprisingly, the middle-aged man’s interest was piqued by the young man’s next words, prompting him to look at the latter for a bit before nodding. “Since that’s the case, tell White and Vranim to help the 3rd Mystic Division for a bit.”

n“If they refuse, tell them that it’s my orders,” he added, to which the young man could only nod in response as he committed the information to memory.

n“Understood.”

nNodding back at the young man, the middle-aged man returned his attention back outside the large window once more as he asked the former a question. “Since you’ve mentioned Subject 003, how are the other subjects doing?”

n“Out of the six subjects under our control, Subject 002 and Subject O-003 have been showing exemplary results in sowing discord and chaos amongst the human and orc race.”

nInwardly glad that he had not annoyed his master with his report, the young man inwardly let out a wide sigh of relief as he confidently relayed information that he had obtained to the middle-aged man before him.

n“In terms of impact, Subject 002 is still in the process of setting up a massive event that would greatly affect the human race, while Subject O-003 has pushed the orcs to take on a more offensive approach when in contact with the humans,” the young man said.

n“Because of that, the skirmish between the humans and the orcs have now turned into a full-on war, with multiple human kingdoms already sending reinforcement to the point of the war’s origin.”

n“Good.” Though he continued to look out the window, the middle-aged man nodded in satisfaction as a response to the young man’s words. “Tell the Mystic Division handling O-003 to have the subject cause more chaos. What we want to happen is to also drag the elves into it, after all.”

n“I’ll make sure to relay your words, Master.” The young man nodded.

n“I’m sure you will,” replied the middle-aged man back. “Speaking of which, I have a feeling that Subject 001, O-001, and O-002 are still lying dormant, so tell the Mystic Divisions controlling them to prepare their awakening in the next few months.”

n“As for Subject S-004…” At these words, the middle-aged man went silent for a bit. “Have the 0th Mystic Division and 0th Soul Division take a crack at controlling him.”

n“For now, that will be all.”

n“We’ll do as you say, Master.” Giving a respectful bow to the middle-aged man, the young man swiftly left the room, allowing the former to continue with his previous task.

n“Ahh…” Taking in a deep breath, the middle-aged man let out a sigh as he faintly smiled.

n“The seeds of discord are blooming quite well.”

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