A tiny problem came up in Orion’s mind after hearing what they were asking him to do.

  “You do know I’ve only talked to the man once, right? He didn’t strike me as the sentimental type either, so I doubt I could convince him to change his mind when he’s made it clear he doesn’t want to take on such a public role.”

  He wasn’t necessarily against their plan. If this Venerable Archmage Ulysses was truly as dangerous as they believed, then it made sense to go for the nuclear option and try to persuade the one man respected by every major faction to step up, but the execution left something to be desired.

  Asteria pursed her lips. Clearly, she wasn’t comfortable asking the man who had once betrayed her for anything, much less conspiring with her only son to get him to the highest seat in the land.

  But Yue was quick to dismiss any other possibility. “If there were a better way, we would have taken it,” she said. She seemed genuinely pissed, and he could understand why, given that she had carefully built a reputation as a fair and independent representative, which was now at risk of being destroyed in an instant.

  If they failed to convince Antares, or if they did but Ulysses still won, the consequences wouldn’t be pretty, especially if the Venerable Archmage was as ambitious as they claimed.

  The fact that we’re going through with this tells me she received an order from the High Priestess herself. She wouldn’t risk it if it were just Set’s request.

  Desperate to find shelter in the storm, Orion turned to his friend. “I’m not opposed to doing this, but I need to know more. He will know if I’m being set up and won’t even consider my request.”

  What little he knew of his father told him he was a fiercely independent man who valued personal choices and talent above all else.

  He didn’t doubt that the three conspirers had a way to smuggle him into the Collegium without being noticed, but it would all be for nothing if he failed to impress his father. Convincing him at that point would be completely impossible.

  Fortunately, Set seemed aware of this. “I expected as much. This is all last-minute, and none of us will think badly of you if you fail, but the attempt has to be made. Not only because of what it means for our own future, but because Cyril’s stability as a whole is at risk. I’ve considered long and hard whether it was truly the best option to go with a mere tier four Archmage instead of rousing one of the old monsters, but each of them comes with its own host of problems. If I had at least a year, I could move enough resources, convince enough people, to attract some of the less dangerous ones, but Ulysses’ sudden interest has changed everything.”

  Orion could almost see the shattered remains of the careful web of entanglements that Set had been setting up. In a short time, he managed to tip the scales in his candidate’s favor when they were initially deadlocked, all without revealing his involvement to anyone except those who knew him best.

  The only thing that could have stopped him was a black swan event, and it seemed clear now that they were unfortunate enough to experience one.

  As they conversed, the carriage rolled on. The streets were completely empty, as not even the few more daring or powerful individuals who had confronted them at night in recent days were nowhere to be seen. This allowed them to move quickly, and before long, the Arcane Collegium came into view.

  Its crystal towers were perhaps the most representative piece of Cyril's architecture. Though visible from all over the city, the closer Orion got, the more he realized they were even larger than they appeared, and they were only a part of the entire Collegium.

  I sure hope they know where to go because if I have to find him myself, we might as well hang our cloaks back on the wall and call it a night. Forget the Senate vote, I’d get there after the Speakership has been handed to Ulysses.

  The closer they got, the more activity and lights became visible. Although people didn’t walk on the streets, lights spilled out from various important-looking buildings, all the seats of minor factions and organizations that owed their allegiance to the Collegium, and who were waiting to hear what would happen to their future.

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  “The main reason why Antares refused the Speakership, when Mallon announced he was stepping down and offered it to him, is that he sees no benefit in accepting it,” Set revealed, and Asteria snorted harshly.

  “Yeah, that sounds just like him.” She quieted down after that, clenching her fists, and clearly ignored the hole her mentor was burning in the back of her head.

  A lot was going on between the two women, but unfortunately, they didn’t have the time to discuss it now. Orion believed the two had resolved their issues, but clearly this sticking point had been overlooked so far and was resurfacing at a delicate moment.

  Set gave her a glance but didn’t let the interruption slow him down. “His main focus is, and has always been, progressing his understanding of magic, and taking on a role as demanding as the Speakership would take too much time for him to care. He’s also not interested in being a mere figurehead, so asking him to simply get elected and let someone else run things is out.”

  Orion nodded in agreement. That matched what he had observed about the man so far. He definitely wouldn’t want to suddenly have to give up half his research time for the bureaucratic and diplomatic warfare that was leading the High Council. He would like it even less if someone asked him to act as a living stamp and let others use his name and reputation to promote their causes.

  “The only thing likely to pull him out of his splendid isolation, as it has been called, is you.”

  That was where Orion disagreed. The analysis so far seemed reasonable, and he trusted Set to understand the intricacies of the Collegium’s internal politics, but Antares didn’t strike him as the kind of man to risk everything for his family, especially given his track record.

  Set must have read the disbelief on his face, because he was quick to defend his statement. “Only twice has Archmage Antares publicly stepped out of the Collegium since achieving his rank. The first was when Mallon sent him to deal with a Hydra threatening villages in the northeast just weeks after his appointment, and the second was to intervene in your trial. I know it might not seem like it, but he cares.”

  “Whether it’s because anything you do reflects on him, a desire for a legacy, or actual paternal instinct, doesn’t matter,” Yue interjected. “You are the one thing that changed his pattern of behavior, and since our entreaties and offers haven’t moved him, this is what we are left with.”

  That makes more sense. I doubt it’s truly love that’s driving him, but any of those reasons could be valid. However, there's still one thing I need to know.

  “Alright, you’ve convinced me,” he said, getting nods from his three companions. “But let me ask one question. This is clearly a long shot, and I know you three well enough to know it can't be all you have left to rely on. So why are we all going to the Collegium if I’m the one who’ll have to do all the work?”

  The carriage began slowing as it left the residential areas behind and finally reached the part of the city that was essentially an extension of the Collegium. A brief silence followed, and Orion did his best to stay patient, knowing an answer was coming.

  Eventually, it was his mother who spoke. “We aren’t the only ones aware of your connection, moonbeam. They cannot stop us, not with an Archmage on our side, but the people who have switched sides and pledged themselves to Ulysses aren’t likely to let us walk up to his chambers without doing something about it.”

  It didn’t escape his notice, or anyone else’s, that Asteria still couldn’t even bring herself to say Antares’ name. Despite that, she seemed more than determined to see this thing through, so he didn’t draw attention to it, for once showing an ounce of social awareness he was quite proud of.

  The carriage eventually came to a halt in front of something so enormous that Orion had to stretch his neck to see that it was gates.

  Standing at least forty feet tall, composed of pure blue crystals woven with so much mana that his skin buzzed, he finally reached the Collegium’s entrance.

  “Archmage Suketh orders the gates to open.” His voice boomed, and a moment later, the gates slid open without a sound.

  “How much resistance should we expect?” Orion asked, feeling a bit more nervous now that things were coming to a head. Not that his personal strength would matter much when monsters of the fourth, if not fifth, tier were in the game, but he would have felt a little better if he had been given the time to complete his research projects and finally rank up.

  Yue eyed him as she glided past, her lips twitching into what could have been called a reassuring smile, if only by a blind man. “That is yet to be seen. We expect at least a couple of well-known supporters to show up and delay us, and since the Senate will convene in just two hours, that might be enough to win. They will have all the power to punish their enemies afterward. But you should focus on your duty and leave these matters to the adults.”

  For once, Orion didn’t feel the need to pay her back tit for tat. He was confident in his chances against anyone in his tier, and even most within tier two, but this was clearly beyond his scope.

  Despite the tense moment, Orion still felt his breath rush out as he finally took a moment to look around.

  If the gates had been majestic, the actual Collegium was a masterpiece. It reminded him of the Murano glassworks he had studied to demonstrate fluid mechanics, only built on a scale that spanned an entire town, with so much intricate detail that it would be impossible for humans to complete within a dozen lifetimes, even if all the island’s masters worked on it together.

  A palace the size of a football stadium stretched across the horizon, made of silver and blue crystals that were dense enough to appear almost black in the fading light. However, it was the towering structures that overshadowed it that gave the entire scene a mystical quality.

  It was as if someone had taken the emotions evoked by Arcane mana—the constantly changing, mysterious, yet incredibly solid qualities it imparted to magic—and crystallized them into a single structure.

  “Enough gawping, we have work to do,” Set ordered, and they headed toward the main plaza, which Orion was quite sure could hold the entire mage population of Valderun and still have space left over.

  Few people were out and about, despite this being the heart of the political turmoil threatening the nation. Among them was a robed figure Orion recognized as Archmage Siuth—the woman Yue had brought into the Sanctum’s embassy—and was stunned to learn his true identity.

  “Yue,” she greeted curtly.

  “Siuth. What’s the situation?” The elder replied, just as directly.

  “I’ve managed to stop the hemorrhaging, but you’re going to need to pull something big out of your sleeve, or it will be for nothing.” Then, her eyes fell on Orion, and he saw a nasty grin spread across her worried features. “Ah, that might just work.”