Return of the Runebound Professor Chapter 940: Sievan's Bargain

A second of stunned silence gripped every single one of the Faction Heads. Even Vivian could do nothing but stare in disbelief at the darkness composing Sievan’s rippling form. She was pretty sure her mouth was hanging slightly open. The Imperator’s mouth definitely was.

“Are you kidding me?” the Imperator finally managed. “Sievan?”

“There is no need to be uncouth,” Sievan said, his dark gaze landing on the Imperator. “Though if there was ever a reason to curse, then my presence would indeed be cause enough for it.”

Vivian’s jaw snapped shut. She didn’t even bother trying to keep her eye from twitching. Only Sievan could stride into a room acting this arrogant and still actually be entirely justified in his confidence. They might have all been Rank 8s — but he was the Lord of Death, and they were not.

There was a reason no Faction Head had ever attempted to expand their sphere of influence into the Damned Plains. It was the same reason that the Damned Plains were the only place in the worlds with absolutely no Truthseekers within them.

“I thought you never showed up to these,” Baress said, studying her fingernails in an attempt to look less stunned than she obviously felt. She glanced up to Sievan. “Though I see you couldn’t be bothered to grace us with your physical presence.”

“Do you me to show up in person?” Sievan asked, tilting his head slightly to the side. “Is that an invite to Obsidian Gate, Baress?”

The red-haired woman’s face paled.

“I — no. It is not. With all due respect. We would have a great deal to prepare for your arrival. I wouldn’t possibly be caught in a position where we could not offer a visiting Faction Head the honor they deserve.”

Sievan’s lips curled. “Then I would suggest you keep your complaints to yourself. The only person whose domain I am intruding upon is Vivian… and I trust she has no issue with my presence being a shadow of what I am capable of.”

Vivian wrested her stunned thoughts back into order. She didn’t like Sievan. He certainly didn’t like her. But it didn’t matter. Sievan was Noah’s friend. That meant, as much bad blood as there was between them, Sievan was actually going to be more likely to be on her side than on that of any of the others in the room. His arrival was actually — somehow — a good thing.

“This is a tournament for any of the Faction Heads,” Vivian said quickly. “You are more than welcome to participate. You’ll have to forgive me for not preparing more appropriate accommodations. I didn’t think you would be coming, much less that you had a disciple in the tournament.”

“Moxie is quite something, isn’t she?” Sievan gave them a cold smile. “I’m very proud of how far she’s come. I look forward to watching her replace one of you.”

The room bristled.

“What did you do to her?” the Imperator asked. “That magic…”

“An interesting one,” Sievan said. “It is uniquely suited to her. Moxie stands with one foot in death and the other in life. I do not believe another mage would be able to easily replicate what she has, even were they to get their hands on her runes. She is a very talented warrior. I have great hopes for her future.”

“She has Death Runes, then?” Vivian asked, realization building in her stomach.

“Ah!” Sievan turned to Vivian and gave her a wide smile. “So you know. I do believe our contract said that you would deliver any Death Runes found within the Coral Empire to me immediately, Vivian. It is disappointing to see that you do not value our deal nearly as much as I do.”

“Are you saying that you wanted me to take your disciple out?” Vivian asked carefully.

Sievan let out a cold laugh. “Nobody in this room knew she was my disciple before today, Vivian. I’m afraid that excuse won’t work. We’re going to have to discuss our terms.”

“I’ll find some time,” Vivian said stiffly.

“Is anyone else noticing that all the best talents in the tournament have already been claimed?” The Imperator asked, tapping a finger impatiently on the table. “Does anyone else want to come forward and reveal that they have staked claim to more interesting talent? Because I am going to have a problem if the next interesting recruit is somehow already spoken for.”

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The Faction Heads all glanced around at each other.

Nobody said anything.

“So we’re done,” The Imperator said with narrowed eyes. “No more surprise reveals as to secret disciples.”

“None that are secret,” Baress said. She crossed her arms in front of her chest. “That’s how it seems, at least. I’m sure we can agree that anyone revealing anything from this point onward is going to have some trouble. Building up excitement just to find it stolen out from under us is a horrible feeling.”

“I think I can support that,” Vivian said. “No more surprises. Not from our end. Let’s leave that to the competitors.”

Everyone nodded. It seemed that they were actually in agreement. That was definitely for the best. Vivian wasn’t sure how many more extraordinary low-ranked Mages she could deal with. This tournament had an absolutely unprecedented amount of them.

Vivian swallowed. That was a terrible, horrible thought.

And it was almost certainly what they were aiming for. If the Truthseekers managed to get people into Solstice and wrested that power for themselves, they would actually be able to stand against the other Factions on their own feet. They’d become far more than just an incredibly destructive annoyance.

Vivian’s lips thinned. The Prophet wasn’t here. But if his Apostles were recruiting for him, it was possible. That could explain a lot. And there was no way for her to interfere without breaking the mandatory impartiality that she was expected to upkeep.

The other Faction Heads wouldn’t be willing to bend to her suspicions just because she and the Apostles had bad blood. Unless she found proof that they were working with the Truthseekers, there was nothing she could overtly do. She’d just have to hope that Noah or one of her other agents would be able to dig up the proof she needed. Until then, all she could do was guess at what their true goals were.

“Vivian?” Sievan asked.

She blinked. It was clear someone had said something to her, but she’d zoned out. Rake was no longer in the room. Neither was Baress. “What? I wasn’t paying attention.”

“Quite clearly,” Sievan said with a wry smile. “Everyone suddenly found that other matters were temporarily calling to their attention.”

“Preparations,” the Imperator said with a snakelike smile. “Have to start making moves on the other interesting mages in this tournament. There are quite a few, after all. And since we’ve all agreed that nobody has claim to any anymore… well, it would be a shame to wait to start contacting a few of them. Enjoy your chat with Sievan.”

Then the Imperator, too, was gone.

Vivian and Sievan sat alone in the Faction Heads’ room.

“If I didn’t know better, I’d say that you didn’t look very pleased to see me,” Sievan drawled.

“What do you want, Sievan?” Vivian asked with a weary sigh. “And I’d like it to be known that sending your own disciple into my land with Death Runes while I’m busy preparing a tournament is just disrespectful. Do you find enjoyment in causing trouble for me?”

“Some,” Sievan said, pulling a chair out and lowering himself into it. “But that’s not why I’m here. How did your chat with Spider go? Did you heed my advice?”

Vivian hesitated. Then she grimaced. “Not as much as I should have.”

“I can’t say I’m surprised,” Sievan said with a dry laugh. “But I cannot blame you. That mortal and his friends… they are quite the fascinating group. They’ve been making shockwaves for a while. Even in the Damned Plains, they were quite the handful.”

“They?” Vivian tilted her head to the side. “You know his other allies?”

“Don’t bother asking me about them,” Sievan said. “I won’t answer. But they don’t answer to me, if that’s what you fear. Neither does Moxie, for that matter.”

“What?” Vivian’s eyes narrowed. “You lied about her being your disciple?”

“A lie? No. She is indeed my student,” Sievan said. He grinned and shrugged. “But that woman is not one who can be controlled or leashed. She’s a wildfire. I would never dream of such a thing. I simply gave her the knowledge she sought and sent her on her way. I’m just here to see what burns.”

“She’s from Arbalest,” Vivian muttered. “All of Noah’s allies are. That’s how you know them.”

Sievan inclined his head. “They are.”

“How haven’t I noticed them yet?” Vivian asked, befuddlement twisting through her. “How many made it out? I thought that there were only a few survivors. If any of them got close enough, it would have been incredibly obvious where they’re from. I — oh, you clever bastard. You’ve split them apart?”

Sievan smiled. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You realize that Noah is trying to find everyone again, right?” Vivian asked. “And if he gathers them, anyone who is interested in learning about what happened to Arbalest will be able to track them down. Their souls will of the Night’s Shadow.”

“That does sound like a problem,” Sievan mused. “But it doesn’t seem he’s managed to gather everyone yet. It will likely take him a little time to do that. Who knows how powerful he’ll be by the time he does. He’s advanced to Rank 6, hasn’t he? And his people grow as well. They will be a small army by the time anyone manages to figure out the truth.”

“An army?” Vivian asked. She rose to her feet in alarm. One Noah was enough. The fact that Moxie was on his side was more than enough. But an army was not composed of two people. “Sievan, how many of Noah’s people have you hidden in my tournament?”

Sievan’s smile grew.

“Best of luck, Vivian. I’ll see you at your next social event. It seems like it might be enjoyable.”

“Hold on! Don’t you dare…” Vivian exclaimed, but it was too late. Sievan was gone, leaving behind nothing but a puddle of melting darkness where he had been.

Vivian’s eye twitched.