I Reincarnated to Another World as a Woman-Chapter 298: Recon

"We’ve been out here for a while now. And the gate is closed. You guys know how it is with a closed gate. We can’t enter unless the dungeon is cleared or everyone inside is dead. Are we even sure Hawk is in there?" Carter asks.

"We’re not sure, but I believe he is. His phone is off, and he hasn’t been back since lunch. That’s not like him," Ethan says.

"Maybe he’s back at the hotel right now, looking for us too," J.C. says. He catches a glimpse of Liam in the distance, and his nose starts to throb.

"If he were, he would’ve called or texted one of us. But he hasn’t. I think Ethan is right. Hawk is in there," Taylor says.

Ethan looks toward the stone arch gate. He can see someone crouching near it, with another man standing over him.

Around them, people are busy searching through the rubble, trying to rescue survivors.

"Ethan, this is a mutated Six. If Hawk is in there, do you think he can clear it solo?" Carter asks.

J.C. and Taylor look at him like he has lost his mind.

"What are you talking about? He can’t even clear a level four solo, let alone a mutated Six," J.C. says.

"Does that mean he’ll die in there?" Carter presses.

Ethan exhales. "I honestly don’t know, Carter. I’m as clueless as you. If I could, I would go in and get him. But we can’t do anything right now. We can’t just volunteer. And even if we could, we can’t use magic in there. Not to mention, we can’t even enter the gate."

They fall silent.

As much as they clash with Hawk and hate his arrogance, he is still their Vice Captain.

Still their comrade. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

"But why is Rhaenas here?" Carter asks.

"That’s Arthur Montrose, right? And Liam Monfort. Both of Rhaenas’ powerhouses are here. Does that mean DEU called them in?"

J.C. glances at Carter. "You didn’t know? Arthur Montrose is the interim chief of DEU. Him being here isn’t strange."

"Yeah, but he doesn’t need to bring Liam, right?" Carter says.

"What’s your point?" Taylor asks.

"Well... maybe something else is going on. If we could enter the dungeon with them, we might find out how they clear dungeons with so few members," Carter says.

"That’s wishful thinking. Like I said, we can’t just volunteer. And even if we could, and somehow got in with them, we can’t use our abilities without exposing ourselves," Ethan says.

"I know all that. I just wish I could do something instead of standing here waiting for who knows how long," Carter mutters.

Silence settles over them again.

------------------------------

"Jules..." Arthur starts, his tone calm and gentle.

"Stop it! Just stop it, Art. Like I said, I can’t give you a time frame for when this gate will open, okay?!" Julian snaps.

Arthur sighs and steps back. He knows he has been hovering over Julian, and it is getting on his brother’s nerves. But he cannot help it.

"Arthur."

Someone calls from behind.

Arthur turns and sees Liam and Maeve walking toward them.

"What do you have?" he asks.

"One of the four men is Jason Charlie Port, or J.C." Liam glances at his phone.

"He was a Monfort Sentinel before resigning three years ago. He was among the strongest. He got arrogant, was disciplined a few times, and eventually resigned due to personal reasons," Liam explains.

Arthur nods. "He was problematic?"

Liam nods. "Yeah. Since he was one of our best, he got assigned to many missions. I had just joined in a professional capacity and was assigned to a lot of missions as well. That pissed him off. He said I only got in because I’m the Monfort Crown Prince."

Julian stands and grins at Liam. "What did you do?"

Liam grins. "I broke his nose."

Maeve shakes her head.

"Hey, I was provoked. It was either him or me. I chose him," Liam says.

"And after that? He resigned?" Arthur presses.

Liam nods again. "Yeah. He’s been freelancing ever since. I don’t believe his ’personal reasons.’ I think he couldn’t handle the loss. I crushed him."

"Good job, bro." Julian raises his fist.

Liam bumps it with a grin.

Arthur glares at Julian.

"What? I can’t take a break?" Julian shrugs.

Arthur turns back to Liam. "Did you find anything on the others?"

Liam looks at his phone again.

"It’s Baldy. He was in the Khaldrin military before being dishonorably discharged for beating someone half to death," Liam says.

"That’s it?" Arthur asks.

"For some reason, their files are pretty thin. Lieutenant Cole couldn’t find anything through official channels. I got J.C.’s records because he was a Monfort Sentinel. And Baldy’s because he was in the Khaldrin military, a country that doesn’t exist anymore. And Maeve has something to add."

The three of them turn to Maeve.

She shows her phone, displaying an image of the four Hunters. She points at one of them.

"This is Ethan Barlett. He’s an Apprentice, like me."

She takes a deep breath.

"I think it’s time I tell you about my secret society. Is there somewhere we can talk freely?"

Julian immediately says, "You guys go ahead. I’ll keep working on the gate. Fill me in later."

Arthur nods. "Let’s find an empty tent. The supply tent should be free."

------------------------------

"So, there are thirteen Custodians, and some of them have apprentices to one day replace them?" Liam asks.

"After everything I’ve told you, that’s your question?" Maeve teases.

Liam sighs heavily. "That’s a lot of information to process in just a few minutes."

Arthur stays quiet. He is also processing everything.

He had guessed what Maeve’s secret society might be, but he never expected it to be this complex.

"So Barlett’s teacher, Isabelle Crowly, is part of a faction called Arcanus Verdant. They have five Custodians, and they believe magic is exclusive?" Arthur says.

"Yes. Only for the selected few. And as Custodians, guardians of magical records, they believe they have the right to decide who should be taught magic and who shouldn’t," Maeve nods.

"Maeve, is it okay for you to tell us this? You said you took an oath," Liam asks, concerned.

"To tell you the truth, I’ve been communicating with Victor ever since that night with my teacher. Victor Langford is the unofficial leader of the Custodians. From his updates, especially lately, he believes Arcanus is planning something that will go against the Custodians’ beliefs and duties."

She sighs. "Right now, Arcanus has a team called the Hunters, similar to Rhaenas. Their job is to clear dungeons. And they don’t share the heartstones with the rest of the Custodians."

Arthur frowns. "I don’t understand."

Maeve exhales. "You know the main reason I’m with Rhaenas, right? I mean from the Custodians’ perspective, not mine. They believe I was sent here to earn heartstones for them, because they lack the resources and funding to operate."

"They’re afraid they can’t control you. That you might cheat them out of their share," Liam adds.

"Ah," Arthur says. "So they want their own dungeon-clearing team. And they chose Ethan Barlett as their magus."

Arthur nods slowly. "I see."

"Then what happened?" Liam asks.

"Arcanus refused to share the heartstones with the others. They said Ethan and his team risked their lives for those stones. On what basis should the others get any?" Maeve says grimly.

"Ouch," Liam mutters.

"But Maeve, you still haven’t answered my question about your oath," Liam adds.

Maeve nods. "I’m getting to that."

She takes a deep breath.

"Another Custodian, Thomas Calder, saw with his own eyes that members of the Hunters are magic users."

She pauses.

"He reported it to Victor, and they came to the conclusion that Arcanus is teaching magic to all members of the Hunters. So twenty Hunters are now magi, not just Ethan Barlett."

She continues, "Victor, Thomas, and three others are neutral. They follow the Custodians’ teachings and duties. They were never involved in the conflict between Arcanus, who believes magic is exclusive, and Vitari Garnet, who believes the opposite."

She looks at Arthur and Liam.

"But after seeing this, Victor is leaning toward Vitari. He doesn’t want to be caught in the middle without any defense."

She turns to Arthur. "He trusts you. That’s why he gave me permission to tell you everything. He wanted to tell you himself, but you’ve both been busy."

"Thea was right. The five of them can use magic. But she said they’re weak, because they learned magic that doesn’t match their own resonance," Liam says.

"Even so... if a group of magi starts a war with another, imagine the collateral damage," Arthur says, his tone serious.

He looks toward the gate. "And one of them is in there with Thea."

Liam sighs. "Art, we know you’re worried. We are too, just not as much as you. We know Thea can handle herself. And Alicia is there with her."

Arthur takes a long, deep breath and looks at Liam.

"I know that." He nods. "Yeah, I know that."

He whispers, "I know that."

Maeve pats his shoulder. "It’s going to be alright. She’s fine."

Arthur looks at her and nods. "She’s fine."

He shakes his head slightly. "Let’s go back to the Hunters."

His eyes sharpen. "I believe they are the Hunters, with Ethan as their leader. It makes sense. A team like that would only respect strength. And Ethan, having trained in magic longer, should be the strongest."

He looks at Maeve. "Is he strong?"

Maeve thinks for a moment. "Honestly, I can’t answer that. I’ve never seen him use magic. Apprentices don’t train together. I’ll try to get more information from Victor and let you know."

Arthur nods.

"Alright. So far, this is what we know. There’s another team out there that uses magic, called the Hunters. They have twenty members, and we assume their leader is Ethan Barlett."

He looks at Maeve and Liam in turn. "Why are they here in Solarys? What’s their purpose?"

Liam adds, "And I think it’s safe to assume they know about us. Not about us using magic, but about us as a rival team. Remember, Thea said Baldy was staring at her. And all five of them were in front of our building. Why?"

Arthur looks at Liam. "You think they were doing recon?"

"They might be. They could have come to Solarys to check on us, because we’ve been in the news. And if the rest of the Hunters are as arrogant as J.C., they’d definitely want to size up their rivals."

Maeve adds, "I think it’s also safe to assume they’re suspicious about us using magic. Arcanus brought this up with Victor. They’re already half-accusing me of teaching you magic."

Arthur claps his hands once. "We need more information on them."

He looks at Maeve. "Find out everything you can from Victor. And let him know I’d like to speak with him after this dungeon is cleared."

Maeve nods.

Arthur turns to Liam. "Can you use your channels and connections to dig deeper into these five men?"

Liam nods. "I can try."

Arthur nods, satisfied. "Good. Let’s move. I’ll go back to harassing Julian."

They all grin.

"Meeting adjourned."