A Villainess Should Be Strong

"..Here you go. Do you have any ideas on what this is?" Estelle gave the item to the person cautiously.

The person rummaged the item, raising their free hand into the air and casting magic circles over the item. A strong, radiant purple light flashed and gleamed around the item.

"Not particularly. But I might have a clue that can lead to the discovery of who made this thing," They stated.

Estelle raised a brow, wondering how that was possible.

The person sighed, handing the cloth back to Estelle as they crossed their arms and spoke.

"It is a group that I... No, we have been tailing recently,"

Before Estelle was able to get more explanation on those words, Frey interjected the conversation.

"You are really a member from that institution, right? How come you guys are getting involved with the world's selective issues? I thought it went against your Association's policy," Frey questioned.

The mysterious person slowly turned their head towards Frey's direction and cast a fast ice ball towards her way.

[Ice?] Estelle marked down the element displayed by this unknown figure.

The attack was of course, dispelled by Frey.

"What was that for?!" Frey brushed off her hands, which was slightly hurt due to the person's sudden attack. She had to react fast and couldn't deflect it fully without getting injured a bit. Although, she immediately recovered herself right after.

"...Was there a need to state that? Furthermore, am I not helping you Elves in solving this case right now? Isn't that a form of involvement as well?" The person raised their volume.

"Well, we did not ask you to do so. You were the one who came here and readily accepted the offer Neil made for formality. You are tagging along with us, not the opposite," Frey rebutted. "If you are not sincere in this, then just back out now. Losing you in this trip isn't too much of a big deal for us. Right, you two?" Turning her head around to Aleksei and Estelle, she tilted her head and asked.

Estelle did not know the identity of the person yet, so she couldn't offer up a fair judgement, but judging from the situation, it seemed like the mysterious person and Frey had quite the relationship.

She also mentioned Elysium and the keyword: Association. Estelle spun her head around to recall what might the two words imply and narrowed the selection down to one notorious organization that was by no means transparent to the public.

Elysium's Order.

It was an organization that was composed of talented, influential people that ruled over the lands of Elysium. Because Elysium's ruling system depended highly on freedom, instead of being true Rulers, the members of this association were akin to judges.

Overseers. They would look over the lands and cater to the problems. Accept and educate talented people for future purposes.

They also accepted people from all over the world, but the members' reasonings would always be separated into two. Ones that wanted to become a 'permanent member', meaning that they were to stay in Elysium and act as one of the judges for the country. Ones that wanted to become an 'honorary member', meaning that they would be free to leave Elysium and go back to their respective countries, but they would still have duties attached to the Order and connections with the institution.

No one except for their direct members could fully explain what went on behind the doors of this Association. They had many buildings, but their ultimate direction was one, that is the Order situated in the center point of Elysium, neighboring with the famous Elysium Academy.

To tell the truth, one could be an honorary member of the Order and they could pass through a random street with no one recognizing their connections to the infamous institution.

Thus, this made Estelle suspect that Frey and Aleksei might possibly be the Order's member. It was possible. Both were powerful figures that studied with their respective fields, and yet no one could pinpoint where they culminated their talents at.  Both were acquaintances with each other and with this mysterious person.

If the answer was that they were members trained at this Association, then it would make sense.

"I am not tagging along. I have a duty for the Order. It is an issue that we have been actively discussing within our ranks. A world rank threat, a possible breach for all countries," The person stated. "The fact that I came to Alfheim was not only for sightseeing. If you haven't noticed yet, then I must say that you have dulled down, Frey Agatha. There is clearly something wrong with your country.. Well, not only your country, but the entire world,"

Estelle was shocked by the amount of words the mysterious person spoke. Before, they were silent for most of the time.

"But you hold a position in the Order's Major Board. That's more than enough reason for you to not mingle with the world too much, isn't it? Does it have to be you? Couldn't the other minority members come, since you are busy with Elysium's matters?"

Frey's words sounded provocative.

"I was pushed to the position by that person. You were almost forced on a seat too, who are you to talk? Never mind all that, there is still someone who does not know my identity right here," The person complained. "If you keep talking about personal matters, then I am going to get mad soon,"

"Frey," Aleksei called out to the Witch with a stern voice, indicating that he was warning her.

"...I got it, I know. I just don't like this person at all," Frey sighed.

They had a complicated relationship. They were once close friends at the institute, back when they were young and still pursuing education. However, Frey had done what the other person considered as an 'unforgivable act'. Their friendship broke down and they separated into their own paths.

Frey went to Alfheim, whereas the other had to stay in Elysium as the primary board's major seat holder.

"I am here to collect information, and confirm some things. The threat I mentioned is still not shared within the minor seat holders, hence why I said 'our ranks' and not the Association itself. It is definitely not something that should be handled by the minority members,"

"Still, why does it have to be you?" Frey fought back.

"I did nothing wrong. I am innocent, hence why I can interact with you smoothly. I am not at fault, but you are the one who has some lingering debts with me,"

Estelle began to fantasize about what exactly went on between these two figures. They were clearly acquaintances back in the days, before they settled in their respective positions. They had to have been close, or at least shared a rivalry bond.

Then, what happened? Debts? Faults?

Was there something that triggered the discord between them?

"Shit, I really can't stand you," Frey ruffled her hair. "If you know something, then hurry and spill it out. Rather than bickering, let's just go and solve this damned problem and go back to the capital,"

"...So be it. However, it must be noted that you were the one who started it in the first place," The person sighed. "That aside, I will repeat my hypothesis. I suspect that this material, this discovery came from the group that we have been trying to catch. Their names are unknown, but we have attached the name 'Noir' to them. The descriptions Estelle relayed seemed to have matched with one of our findings on the group,"

"In actuality, its hard to say that they are one group. Although this hasn't been confirmed yet, it is suspected that 'Noir' has a sibling group, which we have decided to name 'Lune'. Like their names, they are polar opposites, yet their actions seemed to be headed the same way, and that is basically causing chaos over the whole world. As I said before, the minor seat holders and honorary positions haven't been notified yet, but us at the main chairs have been talking about this for quite some time," They explained.

"I suspect that this deed was not done by casual trespassers.. But instead, it was the work of 'Noir'," The person stated. "So, to te-"

A large clashing sound elapsed.

It was a powerful attack launched out of nowhere, and again, Estelle did not feel the attack's presence up until it was visible to her eye. It was fast, vigorous, and nearly undetectable if it wasn't for their polished eyes.

It was aimed at the group as a whole, but concentrated around Frey's side.

The one to defend that right away was the mysterious person, who was now a few steps away from them, with their hand in the air and purple magic circles surrounding her. The attack was contained within that split second.

Estelle blinked, her adrenaline spiking up as her body instinctively wanted to reach out when her reaction time activated. And yet, this mysterious person beat her to it.