By nightfall, preparations shifted from training to logistics.
Maps. Routes. False identities.
Stonehaven was neutral only on paper. Its guilds controlled trade, mercenaries, information. The Guildmaster sat at the center like a spider, smiling while flies came willingly.
Owen sat at the table, listening as Glauderia spoke with Oriana tacticians.
"No knights snooping," she said. "Too clean. Too obvious."
She glanced at Owen.
"Our unofficial asset walks free."
Owen understood immediately.
He wouldn't be protected by rank.
He wouldn't be shielded by authority.
If something went wrong, it would be on him.
Later, alone in his assigned quarters, Owen was packing his belongings once again on the floor with Seishi laying right next to him.
The blade was silent now.
Too silent.
He thought of Stonehaven.Of Lysa.Of Brunn.
Of graves waiting.
"I can finally fight back, for you." He sighed "I told you guys I'm not helpless. And when I'm done wiping out that outpost, I'll send you off properly one more time. I promise."
-
Stonehaven greeted them with noise.
Not the honest kind, no clanging forges or children shouting in the streets—but the layered hum of whispers, deals, and footsteps that never quite stopped. The city smelled of ale, damp stone, and secrets left out too long.
Owen felt it the moment they crossed the gates.
This place watched back.
The carriage rolled through narrow streets lined with guild banners, each one stitched in bright colors meant to inspire trust. Owen counted seven in just one stretch. Too many.
Zach leaned out the window, grinning. "Still hate guild cities?"
"I never said I hated them," Owen replied.
"You're scowling."
"I'm thinking."
"Stop thinking too much then. You'll hurt your head."
Glauderia sat opposite them, boots on the bench, hands behind her head, eyes closed like she was napping. Owen knew better. Her mana was spread thin across the city like invisible tripwires.
"Remember," she said lazily, "we're nobody important here."
Zach snorted. "I'm deeply offended."
"You're deeply expendable," she shot back.
The carriage stopped.
Stonehaven's central district loomed ahead, tall stone buildings stacked tight, bridges linking rooftops, and at the center of it all, the Black Rose Guild Hall. Massive. Polished. Smiling.
Owen felt his heart ache the moment he looked at it.
But that wasn't their destination.
They got off at a near park with a fountain.
Harribel park Owen muttered under his breath
"You've been here?" asked Glauderia.
"Spent most of my free time either in a pub or laying on this grass" Owen replied.
Glauderia didn't reply. She simply walked in to the park, towards the fountain.
A man not much older than Owen and Zachary stood right in front of the fountain. White cloak immaculate, hands folded behind his back. Light mana radiated from him subtly.
His eyes locked onto Owen immediately.
"…So this is him," Lucius said.
Owen raised an eyebrow. "And you are?"
Lucius smiled thinly. "Someone who doesn't jump out of windows to assault guests."
Zach burst out laughing.
"What's that about?"
Lucius ignored Zach entirely as is gaze never left Owen.
"You don't look like much," he continued. "Hard to believe you survived Sky Judgement."
Owen met his stare, unblinking. "Hard to believe you talk this much without being asked."
The air tightened.
Light mana flared. Dark mana answered.
Glauderia clapped once. "Enough. Save the sexual tension for later."
Lucius exhaled slowly. "I've been investigating Stonehaven for three weeks. Guild movements, supply chains, slave trades."
Owen stiffened.
Lucius noticed. "You didn't know?"
"No," Owen said quietly.
"Figures. Guild reports list it as 'temporary relocation.'" Lucius' tone sharpened. "Children don't relocate."
That sat heavy.
Glauderia finally opened her eyes. "What did you find?"
Lucius turned, gesturing subtly toward the Black Rose Guild Hall.
"The Guildmaster is clean on paper. Too clean. Every suspicious record is signed by intermediaries guild officials, merchants, adventurers."
"People you trust," Zach muttered.
Lucius nodded. "Exactly."
" We're splitting up." Glauderia suddenly spoke up. " Owen. Black rose is yours, infiltrate it as a mercenary."
Owen nodded.
"Lucius you continue with you're investigation." She turned to Lucius.
"At your service my lady" Lucius bowed.
"Zach and I will snoop around and see where they're doing the experiments." She continued. " You are NOT to engage recklessly. Be discrete and lay low."
Everyone nodded.
And they split shortly after.
Zach disappeared into the city like a spark jumping rooftops, tasked with watching movement and rumors. Lucius headed toward the cathedral district, using church influence to dig where guild hands couldn't. Glauderia went into the northern districts of Stonehaven looking for clues.
Owen was left alone.
Unofficial. Unmarked.
Perfect.
He walked Stonehaven's lower streets, hood drawn, Seishi wrapped and hidden. He listened. Tavern laughter. Whispered contracts. Adventurers boasting about easy jobs that paid too well.
Every thread led back to Black rose.
By dusk, he stood before two familiar graves on a quiet hill outside the city.
Lysa.Brunn.
He knelt, uncorked a bottle, and poured the ale slowly onto the earth.
"…I'm back," he said softly. "this place feels wrong without you two. The time we spent together was never enough but all those memories will last forever. I've never really told you guys this but, I'm grateful I met you two that night. You've brought me nothing but happiness. I'll live on, for both of you."
Silence settled before he suddenly chuckled.
"On second thought..." he scratched his head smiling. "If I'm about to die, I wont fight to live. Things are already too complicated for me to fight to live when I'm about to die. I'll be joining you soon."
Somewhere unseen, a figure watched him quietly.
That was until Owen suddenly turned and stared it down. Eyes dull, face unreadable but one thing was for sure, Owen didn't just turn in his direction. No. Owen knew from the moment he arrived in Stonehaven, he was being watched.
They stared at each other for a moment before Owen walked off.
The figure disappeared from the tower right after.
-
Night time came.
Lantern light bled across wet stone streets, taverns grew louder, and guild runners moved faster, cloaked in purpose. Owen blended in easily. He wasn't a knight here. He wasn't anything.
That made him invisible.
He returned to the lower districts just as the evening rush peaked. Adventurers spilled out of inns, armor half-removed, egos fully intact. That's where people talked. That's where lies got sloppy.
"Another beast job?" one man slurred."Yeah, outskirts. Easy pay.""Guild's been generous lately."
Too generous.
Owen leaned against a post, listening, when a voice spoke beside him.
"You look like you could use a drink."
He turned.
The man was unremarkable in every way. Brown hair, average build, black rose guild insignia worn but clean. A friendly smile that didn't push too hard.
"Name's Eren Valcyr," the man said, lifting his mug slightly. "Guild handler."
Owen kept his face neutral. "I don't remember asking."
Eren chuckled. "Fair. But you've been listening to my people for an hour. Thought I'd say hello."
Dangerous. Direct.
Still… not aggressive.
"I'm new," Owen said after a pause. "Looking for work."
"Stonehaven's full of it." Eren gestured toward a nearby tavern. "Come on. First round's on me."
Owen hesitated.
Then nodded.