"To tell you the truth, I had been sent on a little trip by Antieeld, as a talent holder specialising in commanding troops and others, she wished her to get a better grasp of the various bastion of powers, and their ways, unfortunately, the obligation and opportunity of studying at the academy under your tutelage is not something that can be postponed or wasted in any capacity, I was thus sent in her stead, to travel the continent"
Osworth explained, both him and Rosemary by themselves in the academy's huge library, normally locked at this late hour, however, the volcanic mage had permission to go wherever she wished.
Both contrasted quite heavily, walking side by side, everything about Rosemary was red except for her skin and sclera, meanwhile, her new friend was dressed in ample dark robes and a mask, not even an ounce of his body could be made out, his steps were oddly silent at all times, he smelled of nothing and was wearing a variety of trinkets and items to conceal every aspect of his being.
Clearly, Osworth was not the same sort of bodyguard as Gelter was, he was no knight, more of a shadow to Antieeld, making one wonder if he had truly returned this day, or if he had only revealed himself, having been laying in wait and analysing everyone that came close to his lady, only coming out of hiding when deeming no one a threat.
But no, he had entered the academy like everyone else should, through the front gates and by showing an emblem of Antieeld, although that could be part of the ruse as well, though, Rosemary doubted that he could have evaded both her senses and that of the headmaster.
"It must have been a bit more than a little trip then, I have heard unwanted presences say that even solely Viridis was much larger than their former worlds had been in its entirety" Osworth brought one hand up to his chest and emitted a light chuckle, or something similar to one.
"Well, perhaps I am minimising my adventure, but it was not a problem for me, I simply wanted to bring this up for I have came across things that do not seem to have reached this country, if any" he revealed, stopping as they both stood on the middle of an immense alley, bookshelves reaching much too high to be practical.
"Firstly, my lady wished for me to meet with a certain Lady Syklon, said to be the uncontested master of battle arts, I was a bit late however, I only encountered ruins and nothing else, so instead, I headed to the royal palace, where many great users of the arts would surely be gathered, but they had all been slayed, Tochi is, as far as I am aware, without a ruler"
The discreet man said this first piece of information without much grandeur, like it was nothing worth mulling over, which was actually true, Tochi was much too far from Tamaris, and the king would never launch a conquest, he was pretty much an ally of everyone, and without actual rulers, initiating communications would be a foolish affair.
Neither of them were diplomats or any sort of government officials however.
"That was a surprise to be sure, so I felt like sharing it first would be most appropriate, what I meant to inform you about was concerning the mines collapses, you see, amidst all my stops and travels, I was not able of suppressing the feeling of curiosity, Antieeld did not care for whatever backgrounds anyone had as long as she deemed them within her reach to subjugate to her will"
Osworth was a man of few movements, people usually made many movements and shifted around when speaking, the commandant's shadow however, rarely moved outside for the means of walking, and the occasional hand grabbing.
Now however, he took a slight step forward, leaned and tilted his head to the side, a bit too close for general comfort but his interlocutor did not mind, raising an eyebrow and perking her ear up for what he was going to say next.
"I am keenly aware of where the culprit hides in between his acts of demolition, as well as his deeper schemes, dark ploys that could send shivers down even the two high-knights of his majesty, I am certain" his voice sounded, a bit more lively and seductive, perhaps it was just the mage's imagination.
"Gelter would never agree for Antieeld to venture anywhere close to the mines, however, I believe it will be a grand, masterful learning experience, especially with your presence, Rosemary"
He reverted back to his usual, neutral pose.
"This is all a conspiracy of a high order, Alizé, Defiler's, Puppeteers, they are in cahoots, it is difficult to guess who is the head, and what they truly expect to come out, since they are all mad beyond belief, the machine is well-oiled however"
"I can see that you wish for the best for all of your students, allowing them have controlled encounters with all of those forces, as well as sharing into the act of uncovering fangs aimed at the neck of the royalty, they will be able of earning good graces and renown without actually putting themselves into true dangers"
Rosemary closed her eyes and rubbed the back of her neck, her new friend was right, Osworth seemed to purely see this from an objective point of view, he was quite in contrast to his knightly colleague, Gelter would immediately imagine the worst case scenario, how a single moment of inattention could be fatal, after all, a defiler's attacks were not forgiving, wielding the Defiler's Flame, they claimed that it was the birth of this fire that had sent the gods into hiding, and many agreed.
Osworth seemed awfully confident in Rosemary's abilities, hearing tales and rumours was one thing, but he had never seen her in action, it had been a long while since anything had brought the might of an eruption out of her.
"You said that you only found ruins, but you certainly still attempted to meet with Syklon, was it her that made you so certain of my capacities?"
"You are somehow just as sharp as you are beautiful, indeed, Storm Of Blade spoke highly of you"