Upon hearing Esther's invitation, the king gave her permission to lead them towards the border Vicente was helping to fortify.",

Some members of the royal guard weren't too keen on going to such a dangerous place, but the king wasn't the person one could contradict in public. With Ayden having made up his mind, his group accompanied him alongside Vicente and Esther.

Vicente's group stayed behind, except for Lauren, who had been accompanying her brother ever since they met.

On the way out of the city, the king couldn't help but talk to Vicente.

"Young man, I sense that there are some Dark Path magicians in your group. Do you trust them?" Ayden looked at Vicente, but the young Fuller couldn't help but notice the king looking at Lauren as well.

"Certainly. Apart from my sister, Lauren, all the Dark Path magicians have signed agreements with me. So I entirely trusted them."

The king's curiosity was piqued as he saw Vicente pointing at Lauren. "Is she your sister? Why is she wearing restrictive items?"

"It's a long story. Lauren was kidnapped a long time ago by a sect of the Dark Path who brainwashed her and used her until recently as a human weapon. I rescued her, but I'm afraid what they did to her won't be easy to reverse."

"I'm sorry for you." Ayden said as his expression changed, sensing that the story of these powerful siblings was more tragic than it seemed on the surface.

"The group I brought to Trevora Kingdom, I had in mind to leave one or two of my Dark Path Paragons here to help you. I intend to reactivate a Cataclysm Order post in the state to offer options for the local population to awaken their powers." Vicente changed the subject, while their group could already see the fences and watchtowers he had created.

"Cataclysm Order?" Ayden hadn't heard the name of this organization for a long time.

"Your Majesty, did you know that Dark Path magicians are the natural suppressors of Dark Path beings?" Vicente asked the king.

"Yes, I mean, I didn't think much about it, but the theoretical books on magic make the power of high-level Dark Path magicians very clear. But they've always been chaotic and unreliable. Why are you talking about this?" Ayden looked Vicente in the eye.

"It's true that they're chaotic. But that's a necessary evil. What would you prefer? The situation on the continent 50,000 years ago, when Dark Path magicians were as common as Light Path magicians, or the current situation with vampires?"

The king laughed bitterly. "Both options are awful. But one of them is only bad, while the other is calamitous. So I'd rather go back to the past than live in this hell."

"Well, Congregation of Revelations destroyed our defenses and made The Purification possible. Reversing the situation on the continent will be difficult, if not impossible. But the only way for us to achieve the best for the magical community is to revive the society of Dark Path magicians. Without them, this fight will be lost."

"You intend to do that with the Cataclysm Order?" Ayden understood Vicente's point.

"As long as I open the order's altars to the awakening of new magicians, it will only be a matter of time before new Dark Path magicians emerge and the community accepts the religion again.

I won't tell you I have the same goals as the old members of the order, but some of their struggles are necessary. Among them, we can't trust the Congregation of Revelations." Vicente replied firmly, as his group finally came to a halt near the end of the fenced area he had built so far.

Looking at that area, the king had already understood what Vicente had done there and how those fences could help his state protect itself.

But he continued to discuss the matter with Vicente. "Do you want me to support you?"

"Yes. Allying ourselves is the way to fight the monsters and vampires, but also to get rid of those who probably got us into the situation we're in now." Vicente said with a serious look on his face. "I don't want to fight fellow magicians, but we can't let those guilty of the calamity go free."

"I understand. In fact, I agree with you. But are you aware that some Dark Path magicians are also enemies? Some of them have betrayed the magical community and are working with the vampires." The king said seriously, pointing out to Vicente that these individuals also had to pay for their crimes.

"Of course. Except for my sister, I will punish all those who have committed atrocities against the magical community." Vicente said sincerely, clarifying that Lauren could not pay for any things she had done in the past.

The king understood Vicente's interests in protecting his own sister and admired him even more for seeing that he preferred to deal with the matter and make his position clear from the start of their relationship.

'This girl mustn't become a problem. With such a powerful brother, she doesn't have far to go.' Ayden thought to himself, not thinking it was bad that a person could get away with the things they had done.

"That's good enough for me." The king showed one of his hands to Vicente. "We can make an alliance agreement when we return to Stormhold."

Vicente smiled as he shook the king's dominant hand. "Certainly. For now, I'd like to introduce your group to the wonders of my armor and weapons, as well as how I'm building these fences."

In addition to the king's group, a battalion of men armed with armor, who were already waiting for Vicente and Esther in that area for the day's work, were nearby.

Vicente signaled for the men to move forward, while he moved the fences to make way for the group to move forward into the area not yet dominated.

Vicente ordered. "Today I'm going to let you act against the monsters while I build the fences. Show His Majesty what you can do."

The men cheered up, finally able to make the most of those powerful artifacts Vicente had made for them to use.