In the past, Raze had tried to do everything by himself. In the end, he had ended up failing. When the hooded woman had asked her questions, it made Raze think back to why he had ultimately failed in taking the Grand Magus down.
There were five of them, and although he had gotten into battles several times before with them, he had never fully been the victor going head to head. That was because they were more than just 9-star mages. They had large groups and corporations that backed them up. They had their pockets in nearly every business in Alterian. This was what had given Raze the idea in the first place to create a group in Pagna by selling the Qi pills that he had received.
He needed a group of his own to control, and since he was unable to step into Alterian himself, he needed others to do it for him.
"Create a Dark Guild!" The hooded man lifted his head with excitement in his voice. "A guild for magic users that specialize in Dark Magic. It will be a place where we can study and share knowledge with each other, and continue your goal!"
It felt like Raze had them right where he wanted them, in his pocket. A cult that was already naturally following him, this was a great start.
"Can I ask, how many of you are in your current group?" Raze asked.
The man stood up next to the woman, and the two looked at each other before he replied by lifting his hand, holding two fingers up.
"Right now, it's just us two," he stated. "There used to be more of us, but they have either been hunted down or captured. As you should know as well, those that know Dark Magic won't exactly share it with the others, but I am sure there are more out there."
Hearing this made Raze wonder if there were more followers of him and more people that used Dark Magic. If the next time he used this astral projection, if he could link with them. If he did, then he could inform them of everything and then recruit them into the Dark Guild.
He was sure those that knew Dark Magic would feel safer in a group. They all had the same stakes as well, since Dark Magic was a taboo from the Alterian world order.
"I see, well, this will be the start of our Dark Guild. We shall meet once a week, at the same time as today. So make sure that there are no eyes around you. We can discuss and update each other on the news then," Raze stated.
Thinking back to what he had heard from the message box, Raze knew he could use his magic skills, so it made him wonder if he could use some powers from his enchanted items as well.
Before he knew it, he had two blue Qi pills in his hand. They were the uncommon ones that restored one's mana for a minute. He soon chucked them over, and the two caught them in their hands.
They looked at the small pills and could see the DM marked on it, having a good idea what it stood for but no idea what the pills did.
"Those are mana potions; they will restore your mana for a full minute. Use it in an emergency measure. I am handing these to you as gifts for joining the Guild and will be willing to give members more in order to increase their power.
"Of course, don't think about selling it or allowing others to use it. You two are the only ones I have handed these items that were created by the Dark Magus. So I will know if they fall into others' hands."
Just hearing they were made by the Dark Magus, the two of them were treating it as if they had a piece of gold in their hand. They didn't want to even consume it if their life depended on it.
"Thank you for the gift!" the man stated. "So what is it that you would like us to do?"
When the question was asked, Raze could feel his body weakening, and the energy surrounding him going away. He had used up too much magic, and his body had stayed here for too long. The others could notice the weakness in the magic as well.
"In our next meeting, I wish for you to find out what you can about the Grand Magus. Give me full details of the current state of Alterian!" Raze ordered. "On top of that, if you can do research into any 9-star mages in the history of Alterian.
"Bring me a list and information if you can. Of those that either suddenly passed away or perhaps had gone missing and never found!"
The two nodded at these orders; they seemed simple enough. They couldn't understand why he asked about the second half, but this was a Dark Spirit that knew everything about what the great Dark Magus was thinking and planning.
'I should find the Dark Faction Founder. He probably wanted me to do this as well. If I find him, then it will lead to clues regarding the Atlas Orb, and just him in general,' Raze thought to himself.
"We shall complete the tasks, Dark Spirit!" The man said with confidence. "We will also look to bring more into the Dark Guild; not to worry, this is a glorious day."n((O1n
The woman felt that as well; she felt a closer connection to the Dark Magus, a person to her who was her hero.
"The next time we meet, I shall teach you a few things about Dark Magic in return for your help. Although I might not be so strong myself at the moment, my power will continue to grow, and I have the knowledge of the Dark Magus.
"The Dark Guild will become a force that will topple the Grand Magus!" Raze said, as his body completely started to fade; it was going away and soon turned into nothing.
Black smoke just dissipated into the air, and when the two looked at the same area as before, both of them were unable to see anything.
Immediately the hooded man grabbed the woman by the shoulders.
"See, I told you it would work out; I told you that the Dark Magus had been watching our actions, and now he is rewarding us from beyond!"
The woman looked at the position from before and nodded.
"This is our chance."
Back in the cave, Raze had opened his eyes and was covered in sweat; he was huffing and panting and almost collapsed right there and then on the floor. All of his mana had been depleted; he had used it till the very last moment.
Thankfully, he could feel a soothing energy now spreading around him, and it was the Qi from his dantian.
'Being both a Pagna warrior and a Mage sure is versatile,' Raze thought, and had a large smile on his face.
'I'm in Alter, The Dark Guild, the Dark Faction, the Demonic Faction. I'm starting to have my own eyes in every area. The only places I know next to nothing about are the Light Faction and the Bonum Society.'
'I guess the best thing to do is the next step, head to the Crimson Crane and join them, and head back to the academy.'
Meanwhile, at the academy, Gunther had the wanted poster in his hand, with the words "Dark Magus" written on it. He tore it up with both of his hands, ripping it up into smaller and smaller pieces.
'What is this? How could the reward be canceled just like that! And where are those damned kids!' Gunther yelled inwardly, sitting right back in his seat. 'When those kids come back, they're going to be Red Headband users, and the eyes of the top clans are going to be all over them.'
'For their sake, it might be best if they never come back.'
