"Calling me nephew is weird." Isaac told Xlen with no signs of his words being in jest. "It makes it sound like we are in a cult."

Xlen laughed. "In a way, we are." He agreed. "Though no wretched beings of ungodly power are involved. We also shy away from tokens of our allegiance that cannot be discarded in the event we are being hunted by a dragon beyond our means. We would also appreciate it if none of the identities of our members, beyond those previously mentioned, are revealed to anyone else. Some dragons are known to attempt to hunt down our weaker members. That is actually the original reason why Cainen and I came here."

Isaac nodded in understanding. "And what about Lenna and Walter?" Isaac wondered.

"They are welcome to join. I will vouch for your mate in good faith and I am aware of young Walter's exploits." Xlen reaffirmed that Isaac was able to bring whoever he wanted into the fold along with him as long as they were strong. Xlen then placed two more coins on the table. It appeared that he had already foreseen what was going to happen, either that or he just came prepared for the best possible outcome. "Now, I believe you mentioned hunting a specific dragoness."

"Cha'Toh'Sha." Lenna said coldly. "She is a coward who chose to run rather than accept the fate that she herself agreed to."

Xlen smirked. "Please, do enlighten me." He told her and listened, while finishing his tea and pastries, as Lenna and Isaac explained their interaction with the red dragon who fled. By the end, Xlen was laughing. "Pride comes before the fall it seems." His hearty laugh resounded. "Very well. I will send out a message to everyone that I can reach, requesting information about the whereabouts of this blessed dragon." He then reached into his sash and pulled out two small boxes and one medium sized one. He placed them on the table and slid them towards Isaac, Lenna, and Walter.

The trio opened their boxes and found two sets of earrings and a slate. "If Lenna and I each take an earring, will we be contacted simultaneously or will they not function properly?" Isaac wondered.

"They will not function properly." Xlen said apologetically.

"Then we will take the slate." Isaac stated.

Walter eyed the earrings. "I've got enough stuff on my ears, can you get me a slate too?" He asked the old dragon slayer.

Xlen nodded. "I can do that." He agreed and took the boxes with the earrings back. "Do you have any questions?" He asked the trio.

"Can the slate be tracked and how does it work?" Isaac wondered.

"Elder Confluence can track them, if need be, but she will only do so in case of an emergency. She can see if any of them are unreachable and for how long they have been that way. If you were to leave it in a dimensional storage, for example," Xlen went on and gestured towards Walter. "with a sealed entrance, it would be unavailable for Elder Confluence. As for how it functions, simply write on it with mana and where you have written will glow for a duration related to how much mana was infused. A quartz crystal has been known to work for those without mana or those dangerously low on it. The matching one in The Venue will show whatever you have written for the same duration. They work both ways so you can write to Elder Confluence whenever you wish and she will reply to you when able."

"This elder, she operates as the central intelligence hub for the entire order of dragon slayers?" Walter questioned. "And she can handle it all by herself?"

"Elder Confluence is a title handed down a specific family line. At times it has been a male and other times a female. The present one to hold the title is a female and she is training her successor. There is always a title holder and a successor so in the event of multiple emergencies happening at the same time, both can aid in coordination and communication between Slayers." Xlen explained. "The earrings work by sending telepathic recordings to crystals in The Venue and Elder Confluence may use them to contact the wearer directly if they have to."

"The real names of the title holder and trainee are kept a secret to protect them I assume. Are they ever combatants?" Isaac wondered.

Xlen looked thoughtful for a moment. "Not usually, simply because of how often they are required to be on standby, but there have been some in the past who have been able to at least hold their own against more common foes." He saw no harm in explaining. "And yes, they are kept hidden for their protection. As is the location of The Venue."

Stolen story; please report.

"How many fighters are there that are actually capable of fighting an ancient dragon one on one?" Lenna wondered. The ancient dragons were beings that boarded on the edge of comprehension at times but were still technically killable, as Walter, Fable, Cain, and the Saintess that he had mentioned had done.

"Fighting directly? Maybe three." Xlen explained. "Simply killing an ancient dragon is a very different number."

"Oh?" Lenna wondered. "How many?"

"At least four." Xlen smirked. "Solo that is, as you had said. There are eleven teams who can do it however."

Isaac nodded. It seemed that the Dragon Slayers were not as weak as he had started to believe. There was the question of how big said teams were, but the simple act of killing an ancient was still incredible. "I don't have any more questions, for now." Isaac told him.

Lenna nodded. "I am satisfied as well." She agreed.

"Do you have enchantments, spell forms, poisons, or anything else specifically tailored to killing dragons that is not easily available elsewhere?" Walter questioned.

"Any poison that slows or loosens mana control is capable of causing a dragon to fall out of the sky. Dragons are generally heavily resistant to poisons over all, however, so I would not count on them being very helpful, unless you have prepared one capable of slaying a hundred warriors." Xlen answered one of his questions. "As for enchantments and spell forms, no. But we do have easier access to their corpses than practically anyone else in the world."

Walter frowned. "Good enough, I guess." He grumbled. "I'm outta questions, for now."

Xlen nodded once. "Good. Now, I can leave my job as Elder Dragon Slayer behind and move onto the next thing that was on my mind." The old warrior began to change the topic of conversation. "As the Guardian of the Fatebreaker, I would like to know what your Wish would be." He told Isaac and Lenna. "You do not need to tell me now, but I will know before it is granted. I would just like to know before I allow you to meet with him."

Lenna looked at Isaac and he just looked back at her with a look that practically screamed: 'I don't know. Why are you asking me? It is your wish.'

Lenna shook her head at her husband and turned to eye Xlen carefully. After a moment, she was satisfied and took a deep breath. "Fine, but we are going to need more snacks and tea." She told Xlen directly which got a soft chuckle from the old warrior.

"As you say, Lady V'Nova." Xlen agreed and waved down the waitress who had been waiting for them to leave. The rest of the building had been cleared out and the lights were out everywhere save for the second floor where the group resided and the first floor where they would have to leave by. The outside had turned very dark with only the dozens of soft yellow glowing leaves of the lampposts were left to illuminate the outside world.

"Yes, Master Xlen?" She questioned the old man with a slight bow as soon as she had arrived.

"We will be going, but if there are any sweets or tea left, I would be delighted if we could take it with us." The man in question explained. "I will return the dishware tomorrow."

The waitress looked heavily conflicted. "Let me ask the mistress, please make your way downstairs, in the meantime."

Xlen nodded and rose to his feet as the waitress left. He then turned back to the trio as they also started to get up. "We will have to take everything to the dining room in the hotel young Walter is staying at. Otherwise, some people may be in violation of certain rules if they wish to continue to serve us." Xlen explained and then the group started to head towards and then down the stairs towards the exit.

"What rules?" Isaac asked with narrowed eyes.

"Being out too late." Xlen easily explained. "The curfew lasts for exactly eight hours and it is nearly time for it to begin."

"What happens to those who break curfew?" Isaac wondered.

Xlen looked between the trio and then made a quick glance about to make sure that no one else was within earshot. "They get sent down a tier to the next lowest class area. If they are already in the lowest class, well, the kingdom will find a use for them one way or another." Xlen told them with strain on his face. It was clear that he didn't like the practice but there was also nothing that he could do about it himself, and it was likely to be a very huge hassle to get involved with.

It only took a few minutes to get everything that Xlen had asked for in a Bottomless Bag that the waitress had brought out with her. As soon as she had handed it to Xlen, she took off her apron, folded it, and tucked it under her arm. "Master Xlen, do you know what time it is?" She asked the old warrior who had kept her there so late.

"You have around ten minutes." Xlen explained. "Is that enough time for you to get home?"

The waitress paled. "I-I don't know. Maybe if I ran… but…" She looked around frantically. "Maybe I can stay here tonight?"

Xlen smiled and pulled an entire cloak out of his sash and handed it to her. "This will hide you from the detection array." He explained. "And I will escort you home. No one will cause a problem if you are with me."

"Won't they still be able to see where I went because of you?" She asked hesitantly.

Xlen shook his head. "No. I do not show up on the detection array." He explained. "Now, put it on and come child." He told her and then looked at the trio. "Go on ahead, I'll meet you there once I am finished. I am aware that it had been your original destination."

Walter nodded. "Sure, I don't mind." He told the old warrior. Xlen was bringing more tea and sweets after all. Walter then raised an eyebrow towards Isaac and Lenna in question.

Isaac shrugged. "It's not like there is anything else to do after dark in this 'too perfect' city." He replied.

"Agreed." Lenna said from right next to him. "We will wait for you, Xlen, just make sure not to take too long."

Xlen nodded. "I won't." He assured them and headed out first with the waitress entirely hidden under a plain brown cloak that seemed to be drinking in mana and sealing off whatever was inside it from any magic outside.

"Lenna, you need one of those cloaks too." Isaac told his mate as the trio, plus Gypsy, headed off towards Walter's hotel.

Lenna chuckled. "What? Do you want me to have a cloak for every occasion like how Shamesh has a suit for each one?"

Isaac looked to be contemplating it a little too hard. "I mean, that doesn't sound like a bad idea." He told her seriously.

"I've got a duster for regular use," Walter cut in and gestured towards what he was wearing. "this one. As well as ones without the dimensional pocket that are heat, cold, lighting, and heavily impact resistant." He definitely agreed with Lenna's idea and Isaac's train of thought. "I rarely use them, but they are nice to have, just in case."

"Sometimes, I cannot tell if you boys are geniuses or not." Lenna commented.

"Geniuses, most definitely." Isaac replied.

"Probably mostly just paranoid." Walter said at the same time.

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