Chapter 72: A Pack of Hounds

He subconsciously glanced at Althea, but she had her gaze forward. It turned out her Order Edict did not have a lasting effect. The only one with the power to stabilize the chaos within was Finn himself.

In his mind, he brought up his Soul Register and glanced at the Aspects section.

[MYTHOLOGY ASPECTS]

Active Aspect: Loyalty and Obedience

Adaptations Made: 1

Time Till Next Adaptation Recovery: 46 Days

Note: Loyalty and Obedience has been fully impressed upon: Storm Prowler Wolf.

Instinctual chaos fully suppressed. Behavioral essence fully restructured.

Further adaptation of same Aspect is not recommended until full recovery. Moderate risk of Soul Drift (self loss) if unheeded.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

So far he still did not fully know the mechanism behind the fact he could somehow embody certain characteristics — Aspects — of Mythological Figures and Creatures, using them to essentially change the nature of his Soul Masses.

But the fact remained that he could. Given private time and space, Finn could counter this wild, chaotic nature of the Ferropteryx Eagle soul mass with a fitting aspect from a similar, yet behaviourally opposite creature from myth.

…And already, he had the perfect creature in mind.

But presently, there was neither the time nor the space to try adapting an Aspect.

Even if he had the space and time for it, he was currently under the vigilant watch of the Preceptor. Suddenly assimilating a soul mass to stable levels, especially after the terrible effects of the soul debts had been seen from his monstrous form, was going to draw an immediate, focused attention… something Finn wanted to avoid for the time-being.

He wanted to be as low-key as possible, biding his time till they reached the Ossuary and he could settle, then have the space to personally try out things he wanted.

So, for now, he knew Althea’s ’band-aid’ Order Edict was the safest solution for him.

But even that was inaccessible at the moment because of the Emissary.

Speaking of the Emissary…

They all descended into the Feugeur family estate under the watchful gaze of the plethora of Arcanists on the Feugeur family payroll.

Not like they could do anything, though…

The force was powerful, yes. Extremely so. From their presences alone, Finn could tell there were at least twenty Master-Rank Arcanists among the nearly fifty who stood at attention to receive them — a staggering number, considering Master Ranks weren’t just cabbages you could see anywhere.

And who are these guys too? Finn observed a group of people standing at the fore of the receiving party. A total of seven people — four men and three women — all of regal demeanor, reeking of pure high-born class. They regarded the Preceptor and the Emissary with light smiles as they walked forward after descending.

“Family Head Malcolm. To what do I owe this opulent reception? You know I do not like excessive displays,” the Preceptor said as they all walked towards the steps of the Emerald Villa.

A man that looked like a spitting image of Micah, save for the hair that was black instead of green, and the more ’healthily rotund’ figure he had, stepped forward and spoke:

“The Preceptor would have to forgive me. But it has just reached my ears that there was a… regrettable

incident at the Needle Tower this evening.” Malcolm Feuguer’s voice was calm, carrying just the right amount of concern without a trace of accusation. “As the head proprietor of the Xanth Merchant Round Table, I felt it necessary to personally ensure our esteemed guests suffered no undue distress during their stay in our fair city.”

His eyes flickered over briefly to Finn’s monstrous form — the wings and his predatory features — before returning to the Preceptor with that same pleasant smile before continuing:

“Naturally, such incidents can occur in any major trade hub. Xanth attracts all manner of… colorful individuals. We’ve already begun a thorough investigation and will, of course, handle all repairs and compensations personally. No need for the Ossuary to concern itself with such mundane administrative matters.”

He’s sweeping the damage caused under the rug… Finn realized. And making sure we know he’s doing us a favor by not asking questions.

“Your consideration is noted, Family Head Malcolm,” the Preceptor replied with the barest incline of his head, acknowledging nothing.

“Preceptor Elias, if I may?” One of the women stepped forward — elegant, perhaps in her fifties, with silver-threaded hair that was perfectly arranged in an elaborate style. She wore the deep blue and gold colors of Mechanus nobility. “Duchess Maren Talvos of the Mechanus Federation,” she introduced herself. “We’ve heard whispers of unusual occurrences in Aethelos recently. Chaos breaches of… unprecedented nature?”

Her tone was light and conversational, expertly careful not to sound confrontational, while maintaining a tinge of open curiosity.

“The world is full of chaos breaches, Duchess,” the Preceptor said simply. “The Ossuary, in conjunction with the Arcana, handles hundreds and thousands every year across all three continents. I’m surprised such routine matters would interest someone of your stature.”

“Ah, but this particular breach was anything but routine, from what we’ve gathered,” interjected another man — this one was younger, perhaps forty, with the usual bronze skin and elaborate tattoos of Feraxian high nobility. “Lord Johan Wyndstrider, First Circle Seat of the Beast Council,” he quickly introduced himself. “We’ve received reports that an entire section of Aethelos terrain was… deleted. Smoothly. Cleanly. As if it had never existed.”

He was more bold with his words and let them hang in the air like a challenge.

“Terrain deletion, a world-class Ossuarist mobilizing, the Queen of Aethelos herself arriving at the scene…” A third voice, an elderly merchant with shrewd eyes and fingers adorned with exquisite rings, added. “These are not routine matters, Preceptor. And when such matters occur, those of us who facilitate trade across continents naturally become… curious about potential disruptions to established routes and markets.”

Malcolm quickly raised a placating hand and interjected, as if to stop his fellow merchant from being too forward. “Of course, we understand the Ossuary’s need for discretion in sensitive matters. We merely wish to extend our hospitality and ensure that should any information become relevant to continental stability, Xanth — as neutral ground — stands ready to be of help in any way.”

These guys are experts at their game, Finn thought cynically. If not for the fact his expression was consciously schooled, he might not have been able to help an instinctive roll of the eye or even a sneer.

The same could be said about the Preceptor. Being the recipient of their glib-tongued attack, the Preceptor’s expression remained utterly neutral, but Finn could sense the old man’s growing irritation — not at the questions themselves, but at the coordinated nature of the inquiry. These powerful and influential figures had clearly convened before their arrival, aligning their approach to be in fluid sync.

It was even more apparent considering the fact that during the banquet organized earlier in the evening, the whole lot of them hadn’t been this forward with the Preceptor at all.

But now that they had a ’reason’ — in form of the chaos at the tower, and the exchange itself was which about to begin — they came at him like a pack of hounds.

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