The Kind of Evil

‎Rasmus was awoken by the sound of chirping birds outside the window. He didn't expect him to be asleep for almost a whole day. Knowing that Aris didn't wake him up, it seemed that Thalior didn't want to disturb his sleep.

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‎After he took a bath, he left the house wearing a black robe and a hood that covered his hair. He noticed how peaceful the city was, even though yesterday it became a battlefield.

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‎"There are letters, from the Servil faction and the Alliance. Archduke Thalior wants you to see him in the palace once you're awake," Javi said and landed behind Rasmus. "Lady Aris is exploring the city, she said that she's bored."

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‎"Just imagine her as a caged animal. She has never been into other places than her village. You don't need to report to me about her, she knows where to find us even if she got lost," Rasmus said as he fixed his hood to keep his hair hidden.

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‎They went to the palace to meet with Thalior, interested in what the others were doing. When he turned to the corner in the hallway, he was surprised to see paladins along the hallway.

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‎The paladins glanced at them with a suspicious look on their faces, especially that Rasmus wore a robe that hid his face and hair. The moment Rasmus pulled down his hood, they immediately averted their gazes.

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‎"You didn't say anything about the Holy Nation, Javi," Rasmus muttered as he walked in the hallway.

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‎"Her Holiness told me to keep it a secret from you. She wanted to surprise you. My apologies," Javi answered as he lowered his head.

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‎Rasmus raised his brows, surprised that Astrea or the paladins could find Javi. He wondered how it happened, but at that moment, he chose to focus on meeting Astrea.

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‎The paladin opened the door for Rasmus, and that was when he saw Thalior, Novia, Astrea, and the Archbishops in the parlor. Rasmus stood at the door until Thalior nodded his head at him.

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‎"My, you have changed a lot, Count Blackheart," Astrea smiled gently at Rasmus. "It's almost a year since the last time we met."

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‎"Your Holiness," Rasmus bowed his head. "Yes, and it was quite a meeting back then," he said.

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‎"It was, you managed to fix the relationship between Saint Moriganne and Monica. You were amazing, your words touched my heart, and I still remember every word you said back then," Astrea chuckled as she slowly stood up and approached Rasmus.

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‎"I did it for my students. They deserve to do it their way while at the same time following their predecessor," Rasmus answered and stared at Astrea who stood in front of him.

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‎Astrea touched Rasmus's shoulder as she stared right into Rasmus's eyes. Everyone was baffled because it was a rare moment where Astrea would touch someone. It was believed that whoever got touched by her, they were blessed for life.

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‎Rasmus could sense an unfamiliar energy that went into his body. He realized it was divine energy, however, he didn't know what Astrea was trying to do.

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‎"Now I understand why Saint Moriganne said that you have dangerous thoughts. I can feel the deeds you have done..." Astrea said as she removed her hand from Rasmus's shoulder. "It's interesting and endearing," she smiled faintly.

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‎"Your words are wasted on someone like me, Your Holiness. Both for my own good and yours," Rasmus smiled at Astrea.

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‎Astrea nodded with understanding, knowing that Rasmus didn't buy her compliments. She then signaled him to sit with the rest at the table.

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‎"Since my time is short, let us hear about the situation here, Your Grace," Astrea looked at Thalior as she sat down.

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‎Thalior revealed the situation that the Servil faction handled. Xena managed to gather enough information to crack the alliance between the Revolutionary parties.

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‎Xena found out that there were parties that had decided to side with the demons and the emissary. More than half of the parties had chosen to become vessels for the emissary because they believed him as the savior.

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‎Xena also found out that those parties that didn't choose to cooperate with the demons and the emissary had lost their influence among their peers.

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‎"With that being said, if we played the cards right, we can persuade them to join us. We will listen to their demands and we will do our best to satisfy them," Thalior said as he looked at Rasmus and Astrea. "Is it achievable, Count?" He asked.

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‎"I sense pride from them, and I'm not sure if they can hurt their pride to get rid of their purpose and submitting to the people they're trying to against," Rasmus answered as he looked at the letter.

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‎Thalior, Astrea, and Novia thought about what Rasmus said. His words held a strong stance that was hard to argue because he was right about it.

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‎"We can compromise our goal and theirs at the same time, making a deal where both sides can gain something from this," Rasmus suggested as he leaned back and stared at Thalior.

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‎"Compromise? Like what for example?" Thalior asked with his brows furrowed.

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‎"If the Servil faction can become a neutral party that doesn't follow the rules from the South Neva Union, why can't they? Give them freedom while at the same time power as well," Rasmus tilted hishead. "Give them a piece of land like the Servil faction. We give them land to rule and we regain the land they have invaded," he continued.

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‎"In the long run, if we are on their good side, they will become an ally of the South Neva Union. After all, you and the others want a better world of the people," Rasmus said.

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‎"And we will eradicate the remaining revolutionary parties that have sided with demons and the emissary," Astrea added to Rasmus's words. "I don't see a problem with that solution, but again, the decision is yours, Your Grace."

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‎"I would love to do that, but at the moment, South Neva is led by us, the South Neva Union and the Alliance. It requires their agreement for this to happen," Thalior clasped his hands and placed them in front of his face. "It's both easy and not to do at the same time."

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‎"Leave that part to me, Your Grace. My purpose here is to see how the Alliance plays this whole situation," Astrea assured with a gentle smile.

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‎"Speaking of the Alliance..." Thalior pulled out the letter. "Something weird happened there..."

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‎Astrea read the letter out loud, letting Rasmus and Novia hear the content of the letter.

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‎The letter stated about the situation that had happened down south. They were surprised by how bad the situation over there was. The sighting of the undead took over the capital city and they also lost more than 4,000 soldiers.

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‎The most shocking part of the letter was when they mentioned the death of the undead. They speculated that the undead was about to invade the nearby cities that the Alliance had occupied, but the undead died mysteriously.

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‎"Those weren't undead, Your Holiness, those were Corrupted," Thalior said with a serious expression.

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‎Based on the description that the Alliance gave in the letter, they were convinced that it was indeed Corrupted. To imagine there were thousands of Corrupted, it brought bad memories to Novia, Astrea, and Thalior. They remembered how powerless they were in the presence of the Corrupted that even Swordmasters and Paladins struggled to fight them.

"You're saying there's someone out there who could kill thousands of Corrupted in a single night? And not to mention they died and didn't come back to life?" Astrea furrowed her brows, staring right into Thalior's eyes. "Are you sure it wasn't Lady Aris, Count?" She looked at Rasmus.

"No, Your Holiness, Aris was with me last night," Rasmus shook his head.

"I couldn't believe it either, Your Holiness. We all have shared the same experience in dealing with the Corrupted. The only thing that could kill them would be a powerful divine energy that only the saints possessed. To think that there's someone out there who could kill the Corrupted so easily, that person would be stronger than anyone in this world," Thalior answered as he rubbed his chin, unsettled by that fact.

"Whoever that might be, we need to find out who they are," Novia looked at Thalior and Astrea.

"I agree, and I think it's time for me to make a move, Your Grace. I will go there personally to check what was going on and check if what they said in the letter to be the truth," Astrea said as she stood up and looked at the Archbishops behind her. "We will take our leave," she said and then left the room.

Rasmus and the others watched Astrea and all the paladins leave the palace.

"Who do you think that might be, Count?" Thalior asked as he looked at Rasmus.

"I don't know, Your Grace. I have never seen anyone that powerful, and I know for sure that it wasn't Aris who did that," Rasmus answered, pretending not to know that the one who did that was Videl.