At the very last layer of the ship was the Supervisors' private quarters; a space untouched by the candidates, and free from the desperate scrambling of people trying to memorize the thousand rules, and not risk being kicked out.
Within the secret lounge, the air was thick with a haze of incense. It was a bar, crafted from alchemized silverwood, and polished by generations of sorcerers who sat here during other Sorcerer Exams in the past.
Vordera sat near the center. Her expression, as always, was unreadable; usually calm and slightly bored, but never unthinking. She took a sip from her glass of transparent wine and set it down.
Across from her sat Archmage Ralkov; a wide-shouldered, gray-bearded man with a missing eye, covered by an eyepatch. He leaned on the table with his elbows as he swirled his drink in silence before grunting.
"So, she's back."
Vordera didn't answer immediately. Her eyes had remained fixed on the swirling drink in her hand before she sighed.
"Yeah, she's back." She finally confirmed.
"Adelheid Schäfer," Ralkov muttered as he narrowed his one eye. "Blutsteinreich's little prodigy of carnage."
A younger supervisor near the far end, by the name Avleen, looked up from her notes with a curious stare.
"Is it true what the rumors say about her? The massacre?"
"It's not a rumor," Ralkov replied bluntly. "Two hundred and seventeen confirmed deaths, all during the third trial. The battlefield was turned into a mausoleum."
"And we let her back in?" Avleen asked, furrowing her brow. "Why?"
Vordera finally turned her head, answering flatly.
"She never broke the rules."
Silence followed that statement. It most definitely carried weight.
"Not once," she continued. "Not even then. Everything she did was within regulations. She knew the loopholes. She exploited the chaos. Every kill was technically legal." Vordera looked into her glass again with a scowl. "Which is what makes her more dangerous than any outlaw."
"Hah!" Scoffed Ralkov. "She's not just dangerous," he said, downing the rest of his drink. "She's crafty."
"And cold," Vordera muttered with a chuckle. "The others… they still see this as a game. A rite of passage. Some personal journey. But her? She's playing a completely different game."
Ralkvov nodded.
"She isn't here to pass, she's here to hunt like a beast. Adelheid believes that true strength only emerges from being broken, losing everything, confronting failure, shame, and helplessness." Ralkov stared at his reflection in his liquor. "She forces evolution through humiliation and survival, so her enemies could get stronger in the future, allowing her to hunt them down."
The room became tense… but to break the tension, another supervisor, who was an older woman named Sametra, poured herself a sparkling drink and chuckled softly.
"Well, what did you expect? This year's batch is odd all around." She raised a brow. "The Bloodstone girl might be the blade, but what about that Hasteheart girl? She's… curious."
Vordera looked up.
"Sable?"
Ralkov leaned back, scoffing.
"The one who read all 1,000 rules in a single night? I heard her reciting them aloud in her sleep through one of the scry orbs."
"She's Atreus's daughter," Verdora said quietly.
Sametra lifted her drink halfway.
"Ah, so she's that one."
"She tried hiding her last name, but I read the information in her soul, seeing all that I needed." Said Vordera.
"She doesn't act like a Hasteheart," Ralkov said. "She's… unrefined. If you never told me she was related to Atreus, I would've looked at her like any other wannabe sorcerer."
"But she was the first to learn all 1,000 rules in a night," Vordera said. "She's motivated, and that's all a sorcerer really needs sometimes."
Sametra tapped a finger to her glass.
"Sometimes it's the ones who look the weakest that stand the longest."
Avleen nodded with a smile.
"She's the only candidate I've seen who didn't give up when she realized how grueling the exam would be. She just got to work immediately!"
Vordera raised her brows slightly.
"You were watching her too?"
"Ahaha, yeah!" She rubbed the back of her head, laughing. "I was watching through the scry orbs, getting the chance to see everyone."
Scry orbs were small, metallic orbs that floated silently in the air like hummingbirds. Each one contained a magic circle etched into its surface to allow for levitation and stealth. They were normally used to record visual and audio data, and are linked to the Archmage Observation Hall, where supervisors can tap into any orb's view at will.
There was a scry orb in each candidates room; all of them could turn invisible and phase through walls if needed. It was the perfect tool to see if any of the candidates were breaking any rules.
"I saw potential in her! Lots of it!" Said Avleen.
"Potential doesn't mean survival," Ralkov muttered, already pouring another drink. "It won't matter how hard she tries if someone like Adelheid decides she's a nuisance."
"She won't." Vordera said flatly.
Everyone turned to face her with confused expressions.
"Adelheid's here for a different reason than before," she explained, sipping her wine. "You saw her on the deck. The way she handled that boy? She didn't kill him, nor did she even try. From what we learned last time when Adelheid was here, if the weak tend to fight back even after she defeats them, she'd kill them without mercy, but that didn't happen this time."
Everyone looked confused by Vordera's claim.
"This time, she's here for something more, I could see it in her eyes, she's planning for something much bigger than before. She even waited for Scott to approach her on the deck, when normally she's confident enough to stay in her room." Vordera shrugged, taking another sip of her wine. "She's playing her cards differently this time. It's as if she's trying to eliminate all future obstacles for something else."
Ralkov hummed to himself, brushing his beard in thought.
"So she's trying to stay on the down low is what I'm hearing?"
"Exactly!" Vordera replied. "She knew Scott would come after her, so she immediately neutralized the problem so he wouldn't get in her way in the future."
Avleen looked skeptical.
"And you think that makes her less dangerous?"
"No," Vordera said, leaning back with a sigh. "It makes her worse… because she's likely searching for the Book of Spells."
Ralkov's one good eye narrowed as he stared at Vordera.
"You're not serious…"
"I wouldn't say it unless I was," Vordera replied, swirling the last of her wine.
Sametra set her glass down gently as her voice dropped immediately.
"That book was lost. I heard it was sealed from rumors? It vanished after Atreus's death, didn't it? How the hell would she even know it still exists, let alone want it?"
Vordera exhaled slowly.
"Because I think she knows who has it."
Everyone turned toward her again.
"You're saying… Sable? I guess that would make sense… if she's Atreus' daughter." Avleen blinked.
"Think about it." Vordera said, leaning forward. "Adelheid is a monster, but she's not reckless. She didn't return just for bloodsport this time around! Most, if not, everyone, knew Atreus had a daughter who went missing after his death. It was only logical that the daughter would take the Sorcerer Exams so she could obtain the Arcane Sigil."
Everyone glanced at Vordera in deep thought.
"That Grimoire has a collection of ancient magic, but it's still incomplete. It is missing a bunch of ancient spells that can only be gained at secret, forbidden libraries. However, if Sable were to get her Arcane Sigil, she would be given permission to access these libraries and gain the knowledge she needs to complete the book."
Rolkav continued brushing his beard in thought.
"So, are you saying Adelheid knew that Atreus' daughter would come to this year's Sorcerer Exams from a mere assumption?"
Vordera nodded her head.
"Yes, but a more logical assumption, I'd like to say." Vordera tapped her finger against her glass. "She's smart and cunning, and she plans her every move in advance. She just has to find the daughter of Atreus, and take the Book of Spells away."
Ralkov leaned back with a grim expression.
"And if she finds it…?"
"We're all fucked." Sametra said bluntly.
There was no overstatement in her tone.
The Book of Spells wasn't just a Grimoire, it was a keystone of magical history, and a book that had the power to override arcane laws themselves through some unfound metaphysical logic.
It rewrote how magic worked for the person attuned to it, and once it was complete, its wielder could become the Archon of Magic; a title granted to the strongest sorcerer in existence.
Atreus Hasteheart had nearly finished it… before the Ordo Genesis got to him.
Ralkov stood, setting his glass aside.
"If Sable really has it… or if Adelheid thinks she does…"
"She'll come for her." Sametra whispered.
"But she didn't attack her," Avleen said. "That means she doesn't know Sable has it yet."
Vordera nodded.
"Precisely! Nobody knows of Atreus' daughter's name, so Sable is safe for now, but she is a cautious girl. She did change her name to Sable Blackheart, after all, so she does know that people are after her."
Ralkov crossed his arms and began pacing.
"And if Sable doesn't know what she's holding… then she's a lamb walking into a den of wolves."
"Let's hope that's not the case." Said Vordera.
Sametra folded her arms.
"Then I guess we have a time bomb on board… and a target painted on her back."