Chapter 193: Prison Break (1/2)

“Be very careful where you mention that name Ilea.” Elise said. “Why do you think it was them?”

“Got a letter from Eve. Wrote it before she died. She mentioned she was looking for them.” Ilea said.

“That’s definitely an ambitious target. Not impossible for someone like her to be sure but still. If anything Ilea, I highly respect your deceased friend.” She said, shaking her head.

“What do you know of them?” Ilea asked.

“You know. Even with you saving me from here, I don’t think it’s a good idea to share this knowledge.” She said and looked towards the corpse in the room. “Ah fuck it. I don’t know much anyway.”

“It’s an order comprised of powerful individuals. Now take all of this with a grain of salt, even I don’t know any of this for sure. They likely have their eyes on the Library of Souls too, making it somewhat hard to find any records. I read the name in a couple letters we recovered over the years but since then the evidence has vanished. Not that difficult a task to be sure but to find their name nowhere in the whole library?” Elise shook her head. “While we didn’t have records about the order itself, the people mentioned in the letter we did know. One of them one of the wealthiest nobles in the Kingdom of Kroll, the other a commoner owning nearly a tenth of the capital’s businesses in one way or the other. Both known to be at least above level two hundred.” Elise explained.

“Now the letter implied cooperation between them, on a personal level. Going through records in regards to them and their businesses, I’ve found them cooperating with many others and in a grand scale. That’s why I believe they don’t care much about borders and countries, instead looking only to strengthen their individual stand. I have no idea if it’s just a trade organization or puppeteers involved in even the empress’ business,”

“We know about dozens, even hundreds of underground organizations, some even cooperating with the empire, some dangerous enough for us to ignore them. I think the Golden Lily is one of them, if not even more powerful than that. I stopped looking into the people when the High Librarian asked me personally to drop it, no reason stated.” Elise said. “Some knowledge is not meant for us.” He said. “So if you’re looking for more concrete information you can ask the man. I doubt you could force him to share anything though.”

“Stronger than you?” Ilea asked.

“Oh yes, more than just a little. Older too and he looks younger than me. Hasn’t shared that secret with me either.” Elise said. “Well since I’ve reached the two hundreds I’ve barely aged either. Should’ve worked harder when I was younger.”

“I think you look great Elise. Be more confident.” Ilea said with a smile, blinking into the other room and getting her glasses. “And these, they’re fantastic on you. Trust me.”

“Oh I know, still I appreciate it Ilea. Thank you for getting me out of this. I’d give you the records but I’m not exactly allowed back into the library.” She said as she cleaned her glasses and put them back on.

“Your clothes are back there too. I’ll wait for you to change.” Ilea said.

“You have what you wanted, don’t you?” Elise asked.

“Well now you can tell me why you’re a traitor.” Ilea said, Elise walking to the other room in her bloodied undershirt and thin pants.

“And so I wrote a letter, finally. Would’ve asked you to deliver it were it not for that bastard Rickson.” Elise said.

“The guy I met?” Ilea asked.

“That guy. You see, communication with any outside forces or governments is prohibited if you work in the library. Punishable by death actually. We know that when we go in and I was ready forty years ago. Year after year it got harder. I felt more and more isolated and seeing you come in at the brink of war, well I couldn’t quite help that tiny romantic voice inside of me anymore.” Elise said with a thin smile on her lips.

“I met him when I was still adventuring. A brilliant man. We wrote with each other for years after that until I joined the library upon my parents’ request. Honor and pride meant a lot more to me then than they do now.” She said. “I should’ve just joined the Hand.” She shook her head before looking into Ilea’s eyes.

“Well it’s worth to be on his good side, perhaps he knows about the Lily as well. Still, I like him anyways and if you want I can get you out of here. Planned to go to Ravenhall anyway as soon as I had the information I needed.” Ilea said.

“Y… you.” Elise said, brushing away tears from below her glasses. “Ilea. I knew trusting you was a good idea.” She said and smiled.

“You got tortured and nearly killed.” Ilea retorted.

“Life goes on. Getting tortured builds character.” Elise said, waving her off as she put on her second boot.

“And trauma.” Ilea said.

“That too.” Elise answered. “Now if I know you at all, you’re not going to leave those records lying on my desk behind.” She said, brushing off her clothes. Elise didn’t look like a woman who had just escaped torture.

“I mean it’s war now. The library might not stand anymore tomorrow.” Ilea said.

“You’re right. Now you have a storage device?” Elise asked, waiting for Ilea to nod. “Good. I worked for them for decades. Time to finally take something back.” She said.

“Anybody else you want to get out?” Ilea asked.

“No contact, remember? Anybody I liked at the library will be fine. Oh by the way, if we get in a fight we better run. The Library of Souls has never been taken. Not ever.” Elise warned.

“Well I’m sure you know a couple secrets that would allow us to get in without a fight.” Ilea said with a smirk.

“I do. Don’t steal too much though. If their library is empty they’ll have no other choice but to come look for you personally. As much as I think you’re strong, that would be akin to hunting down something like the Golden Lily.” Elise said.

“We get everything you have on Eve and the people she might’ve been. Anything you need or suggest we get?” Ilea asked, taking the warning seriously. If the woman alone was a mage at level two hundred, she didn’t want to face the whole staff. Not the way she was right now. Something told her that this wouldn’t be the last time she entered that particular library.

“Oh yes. Any records about me.” Elise said smiling. “I know where they are. Spent quite enough time to plan such an opportunity.”

“And you get caught immediately when you finally have it.” Ilea said.

“Ah shut it. The reason I didn’t leave before speaks for its difficulty.” Elise said. “Plus I didn’t expect Rickson of all people to have those kind of guts.”

“How will we get out again if it’s so hard to do?” Ilea asked.

“Getting out of the library was never the issue. Getting out of the city though…,” Elise said. “They insert an enchanted piece of metal into each and every member. Now you don’t want to be hunt down by the members of the library, the royal guard or an assassin squad specifically put together to rip you to shreds.” Elise said, sitting on the table.

“It’s a difficult operation and normally I’d have asked or paid you to get a healer. Now we don’t need that, do we?” She asked.

“You have one here.” Ilea said. “Where’s the piece?”

Elise tapped her chest. “It’s fixed to the back of the sternum.”

“So you have been tortured before.” Ilea murmured as she tapped on the woman’s chest.

“I guess I have.” Elise said, unbuttoning her shirt again.

“Should I try to knock you out first?” Ilea asked.

“Don’t waste your mana and the time. One quick cut here and you rip it out, bone and all. I assume you can heal missing bone?” Elise asked.

“I can. I’ll try to be as quick as possible. Want something to bite on?” Ilea asked, summoning a dagger from her necklace, heating her body up and coting the blade in heated ash to kill of any bacteria that might’ve still remained on it.

“The muffled screams might give us away.” Elise said and closed her eyes. Ilea didn’t wait any longer. Making sure there wasn’t anybody close to the cell, she put Elise to the wall behind her and stabbed her with the dagger, punching through the protective bone before she stored the blade and moved her hand inside the wound. Ilea’s hand closed around the woman’s sternum before she crushed it, a scream resounding through the room.

Pulling out the broken bone, Ilea found the metal connected to it while she healed Elise with her other hand, focusing on recreating the bone and then the flesh. The woman’s screams calmed down soon after until her chest looked the same as it had been a minute ago. Healthy and closed.

“You alright?” Ilea asked, looking at the woman. She just shook her head.

“Need a moment.” She said and sacked down.

“Here.” Ilea said, holding out a cup of ale that she gladly took and drank in one go.

“So things like this exist.” Ilea said and held up the piece of enchanted metal. “Is it kept running through your own mana?”