The Lufthansa Duchy. Westernmost region of Edinburgh.
Untamed wilderness. Near Badlands. Around 2 PM.
Mana-harnessing redwood trees have made it almost impossible for the sunlight to reach the ground even at the peak of the afternoon.
There's one such giant tree in the middle of the monstrous vegetation that has a trunk with a circumference of up to 100 meters. The tree is not special because of its unusually large trunk. It is special because it serves as a gateway to another subspace.
This subspace is called The Last Blood Bastion by its denizens.
There's a giant city hidden in this subspace. As large as the city of New Beginnings. Even larger if one were to consider the patches of urban settlement outside the city walls.
This subspace has its own ecosystem. It is as big as the Lufthansa Duchy. Compared to the subspace's spatial dimension, the size of the city and its smaller settlements are insignificant.
This urbanized settlement as a whole is known as the city-state of Ancient Blood, run by an organization called the Ancients. An organization that is known outside the subspace as a cultist organization.
The city was established for half-blood residents of the Anfang continent. The subspace and the giant city it featured were accessible from several entrances scattered across the continent. The giant tree trunk found in the Lufthansa region near Badlands is only one of many entrances.
Only half-bloods have access to the entrances to enter this space. The mutagen in their blood serves as their key to getting into the only haven that has been left for Half-Bloods in this era.
Ancient Blood has many regions and their respective deputy representatives. Each deputy is in charge of their own region as well as additional responsibilities provided by the Ancients.
Fenris province, inside the Ancient Blood. Governed by the Fenris clan.
Fort Fenris. A spacious hall that serves as a meeting room. There's a long table that can be used for both dining and holding meetings.
There's one high chair at one end of the table, which is reserved for the clan's head, who is also serving as the duke of the Fenris region. There's a man currently occupying this chair.
This man has black hair and wolf-like eyes that are vertical. He looks to be in his early 30s. But looks are often deceptive when it comes to rankers. It becomes even harder when these rankers are turned out to be half-bloods.
This man is surrounded by a wild beastly aura. He has uneven stubble on his face, indicating that the man doesn't make an effort to groom his beard.
This half-blood man has a muscular physique semi-hidden underneath his open fur coat that serves as the only piece of clothing for his torso. His well-defined chest and abs are out in the open for everyone to see because he has not buttoned his fur coat. To be precise, there are no buttons on his coat. He doesn't need it.
This man is having an afternoon lunch in silence. There's nobody to serve him anything. He is picking things he likes straight from the vessels they have been served in and eating them voraciously without leaving anything behind.
"Alright. Don't just wait outside. There's no right time. Come in and tell me what you came here to discuss."
As he ate his fill, he said. He had picked up another leg piece of an unknown ranked beast that was still imbued with mana. He brought that roasted leg piece to his mouth but stopped himself from taking a bite.
The young man watched as the only entrance to the hall was being used by a young woman. She had been waiting for him to finish his meal for quite some time now. He saw her bow in front of him before speaking up.
"Clan Head Sirius, I'm sorry to bother you while you were eating."
Seeing Sirius Fenris, the young woman said and bowed a bit. She then looked at the roasted leg piece he was holding near his mouth and had a peculiar shine in her golden eyes. Sirius shrugged his shoulders before telling her.
This young woman's name was Fiona Fenris. She had a shapely figure, black hair, and golden eyes. She had worn leather pants and an exposed-shoulder top. She also had a hood attached to the top, giving her a mysterious appeal whenever she raised that hood over her head.
Fiona had olive skin that wasn't tan at all. It meant that she was most active at night, whether she was inside Ancient Blood or not.
"Take a seat, Fiona. Grab yourself something to eat while you tell me your report."
Fiona was surprised by her clan head's offer. She gave the reply that was expected from her.
"I… I wouldn't dare, lord Sirius."
Sirius sighed when he heard Fiana speak about not wanting to dare. Yet for some reason, her eyes couldn't look away from the roasted leg piece he was holding. He coughed before speaking to her in a domineering voice.
"I, Sirius Fenris, head of the Fenris clan in the city of Ancient Blood, order you to sit with me and share a meal with me, Fiona.
Haah! This should be enough of an excuse for your gluten brain. Now sit and start eating before I get angry."
Sirius said while taking a bite from the roasted leg piece that was covered with various spices and herbs. He feared that if he kept his food dangling in front of this gluten subordinate of his, she would be driven mad by hunger and then would forget what she was supposed to do.
Her Lord offered Fiona the food for a compelling reason, and Fiona grinned in satisfaction. She bowed in front of him one more time before grabbing a seat beside him.
She followed her Lord and picked straight from the roasted-leg piece basket. Then she remembered that she was a lady and shouldn't show any ill mannerisms in front of Sirius' presence. So she coughed and thought of grabbing a dish first.
'Oh yeah, the report.'
