King Of Limbo

Aron stood in the now partly bloody lecture theatre with his eyes fixated on Arkus's now dead body. 'To think he would go this far...' Aron thought and furrowed his brows.

Even he didn't think Arkus's goal was to commit suicide but by doing so Aron realized that Vonstein's goal was to incriminate him then perhaps use that against him. However this didn't make sense to him as there was one major loophole to this plan.

Before Aron could think any further the two doors behind him burst open and a few individuals came rushing through.

"Lord Arkus!"

"Murderer! Murderer! Quick inform everyone!"

The individuals who found this scene immediately began to yell but Aron could easily see they were part of this ploy as some of the voices began shouting this even before entering room.

Their goal was clearly to alert people who weren't a part of it. 'I could kill them all and flee... but no. They need me alive if they went through this much trouble.' Aron turned to face the two men standing by the doors who were obviously there to stop him trying to escape.

Aron however made no sudden movements and instead raised his hands in the air while glaring at them both. The two couldn't help but gulp and take battle stances with great anticipation in their eyes as to what would happen next.

Much to their surprise Aron remained stationed where he was and made no offensive moves.

As they saw other individuals approaching, they couldn't help but sigh in relief and show large grins on their faces.

"What's going on here, what... oh my..." Among the first to arrive was Belle along with some other professors and inquisitors of the academy who showed similar reactions to the sight before them.

However looking at their body language, Aron assumed they were far too calm.

Soon Lady Uva along with Lord Treiss and some other emissaries made their way there and were aghast upon seeing what happened.

"You killed the Vonstein's emissary! No matter the region this is a capital offense! Explain yourself!" Lord Treiss yelled out in anger but from what Aron could tell he was genuinely surprised by what was going on, either that or his acting was truly superb.

Aron already knew his explanation would be useless but he still needed to at least act like the victim. "This is clearly a set up, this Arkus Vonstein..." Aron proceeded to explain how he was invited and what exactly transpired here but as he thought his words weren't believed. His calm demeanor really didn't show any fright, surprise or worry about the current situation so it was hard to tell from appearances alone.

"Preposterous! Lord Arkus would never mingle let alone invite a pleb such as yourself. Even more preposterous is that you dare say he committed suicide to frame you? What madness is this?" A professor belonging to the Vonstein family immediately rebuked Aron's words and many agreed that it was indeed quite silly.

Lord Arkus was among the biggest figures against granting commoners more privileges. Even Lady Uva who attained the rank of the strongest in all Pesia was looked down upon by him so why change for Aron... it made no sense.

​ Many now began to murmur what they thought transpired before Lady Rose appeared and decided to speak up.

"Can you all cease with this idiocy. We can simply hold a trail with the orb of truth and question Aron along with those who reported this incident to know what exactly transpired." Lady Rose suggested the obvious and some individuals agreed but some remained against it.

"The orb has always been in the hands of Galos Academy! For all we know it's been tampered with to suit your needs!? I refuse to believe in such a method for this, we demand solid evidence."

They refused to trust the authenticity of the orb of truth which now made things slightly more difficult.

"To doubt the authenticity of the orb is to doubt my self and all the higher ups of the academy, which means you're accusing us of colluding is that right?" Lady Uva asked with visible anger in her voice, making the professors and emissaries who supported the prior statement to grow stiff.

To go against such important figures for the sake of Arkus was truly not worth it so some kept their mouths shut.

"Now Lady Uva, considering the gravity of this situation I do believe it would be best to attain some evidence and I'm sure the other members of the academy here agree. Otherwise we would look like we use our status to support the wrongdoings of our students and such cannot be allowed." Lord Treiss suggested calmly before glancing towards Aron.

Yohan and Belle agreed without hesitation to this meaning Lady Uva was out supported. If she still chose to push the matter then it would indeed seem that way which made her angry.

"Thank you for words Lord Treiss, to ensure no colluding occurs he will be brought to the City of Vonstein for trial before the members of our family and all relevant parties." The professor suggested while bowing towards Lord Treiss.

"Naturally, and I along with the other heads shall travel alongside you." Lady Uva declared making the professor show a look of worry but he had no reason to deny this.

Lady Rose glanced at Aron and saw that he had a small smile on his face, she returned a similar gesture before some individuals approached and bound him in mana constricting chains by the hands, legs and neck.

'They're made to restrict an individual from manipulating the mana around them... but what about within them?.' Aron thought with a smile as he got taken away from the lecture room.

As he passed through the passageways many students who could only wonder what was happening saw him being taken in chains and were greatly surprised.

Later that very night it was announced that Aron would be trialed for the murder of Arkus Vonstein.

....

A little later that very night, the upper heads of the academy had gathered briefly to discuss the scenario.

"It's been agreed that we will set off for the City of Vonstein tomorrow. Then a week after our arrival their the trial will commence, for now please prepare adequately." Lady Uva revealed to Yohan, Rose, Belle and Lord Treiss who were all seated within her office.

Lady Rose was the first to nod at this and stand up as she saw no purpose in lingering around. "If That is all then I shall meet you all in the morning, good evening." She said bluntly before excusing herself and turning for the exit.

"Do not expect favoritism from us just because you have some sort of relationship with the boy Rose. As far as I'm concerned the heads shouldn't even have to appear for a mere Harbinger." Lady Belle reminded with a smile but Rose only turned and showed her a small smirk. "I don't expect anything from any of you, him and I are enough." Rose replied bluntly before exiting the room.

After leaving, Rose didn't return to her tower but instead went to Aron's residence.

Once there she had found Evanora in the living area glancing keenly at the pages of a large book. "I take it you've heard what transpired?" She asked but Evanora only turned to her with confusion on her face.

Lady Rose could only let out a sigh before explaining in simple terms what was going on. "... so that about covers it. But I'm already prepared, I only came to inform you that he won't be back for some time and that you shouldn't move about haphazardly... I mean a lot." Lady Rose corrected herself after seeing Evanora show surprise at hearing a new word.

"Oh! Evanora remembers!" Evanora declared loudly but maintained a rather unmotivated look as she walked over to a cabinet and retrieved a small letter.

"Evanora was told to give this to you if something happens to Aron." Evanora handed over the letter to Lady Rose who wasted no time opening this.

[ If you're reading this then it can only mean my suspicions were correct and that I've fallen into a trap. What kind it is I remain unsure at the moment as the possibilities are quite many, whatever the case should I fail to deliver another letter to you within two days then it means I'm likely unable to handle the situation myself without ruining our foundation thus far. I'll leave it up to you to make measures of your own just in case, best case scenario we use this to our advantage. ]

After reading the letter Lady Rose tossed it into the nearby fireplace and crossed her arms before falling into thought. 'Well it's clearly a ploy, one rushed and poorly done considering the current variables. Given the evidence I have the worst case scenario is him still going free and no party receiving the blame but that would be rather disappointing now wouldn't it...'

The smile on Lady Rose's face faded as the embers of fire engulfing the letter reflected in her eyes.

"I'll be sure they thoroughly regret wasting my valuable time better spent on research and experimentation."

...

At around the same time in the upper class residential district of Galos City, Juliet was in her manor contemplating the current situation in her private quarters when suddenly...

*knock*

A light knock resounded on her door and she didn't bother delaying to open it. Upon doing so she found Anastasia awaiting her with a serious expression on her face.

"I need your help."