"Is this… the location of that meeting or something?"
At midnight three days later, in an empty warehouse in Worchester, some people suddenly appeared at the entrance, craning their necks as they looked around. After confirming that there were no security guards on patrol in the area, they began to look in carefully.
From the looks of their clothing, these were all commoners. Some looked like carpenters, some like hunters… If there was anything about them in common, it was that they were all holding the same invitations.
The doors to the warehouse were open. They peered in, but there was nobody inside.
"I told you it's fake, what Black Nightmare Society… The moment I heard it, I knew it was untrustworthy," seeing that, one of them, a middle-aged lady who looked like a housekeeper opened her mouth to speak. "We had better get out of here quickly, who knows if it's a trap by the Church."
When her companions, standing nearby, heard her, they cast a few more glances around before nodding.
However, it was right then that a mysterious person appeared from the shadow of the corner of the street. His entire body was cloaked, and appeared very suddenly behind the few people.
"...Are you here to join the Black Nightmare Society too?"
Those few people jumped in shock, turning around violently and staring at the mysterious man in a startled and suspicious manner. At high alert, the housekeep asked, "You… Who are you?"
"I am the founder of the Black Nightmare Society. Are you here to join the meeting?" The other person seemed to have noticed the invitations in their hands, and spoke slowly. "Please come with me, and don't worry. I will not harm you."
Saying thus, he turned around and moved as though he was about to leave.
"Go, go where?"
Those few people were uncertain and alarmed. They were still quite unable to make heads or tails of the situation.
"Go to the true meeting place," the mysterious man answered. "It was written on the invitation that the location is this warehouse, but the information may be leaked. For safety purposes, we have to change the location at the last minute."
Hearing that, they were stunned. However, the mysterious man had already begun taking steps away after he had finished speaking, walking forwards by himself. Thus, they exchanged looks amongst themselves, somewhat hesitant, but finally followed suit.
The night was quiet. They followed the mysterious man towards the south, passing through empty streets. Finally… They unexpectedly arrived at the harbor of Worchester.
Seeing that, those few people were somewhat surprised. "The meeting place is…"
"En, on the sea," the other person walked to the edge of the water and pulled over a small boat, speaking slowly, "We've rented a ship. The first meeting of the Black Nightmare Society will be on the ship to prevent all possibilities of being spied on."
Saying that, he got on the boat and beckoned to them, signaling for them to get onboard.
They looked at each other, their hearts filled with doubt. However… So far, the behavior that this other person had displayed seemed very matter of fact. To be able to rent a ship meant that this was not some prank or a simple gangster bunch. There people were for real!
Therefore, after some hesitation, they nodded and got onto the board. The mysterious man, standing on the front of the boat, loosened the ropes. With a light point of his finger, the small boat carrying them suddenly began to move by itself.
This time, their faces really changed.
"You… Are you a mage?"
At that moment, the boat had left the dock and was speedily travelling towards the ocean. The mysterious man turned around and opened up his cloak, revealing a face that turned out to be much younger than they had expected.
"Welcome, everyone, to the Black Nightmare Society. You can call me Benjamin," he spread out his arms with a smile on his face, putting on a welcoming attitude. "There's actually nothing to be surprised about. Aren't you guys mages too?"
The few people were still rooted to the spot. The amount of information before their eyes was too much; they were really unable to process it.
Mage Benjamin… This name seemed rather familiar!
"...This is so unexpected. The Black Nightmare Society we've heard about so coincidentally is founded by the famous water ball devil!" After a moment's silence, they finally came back to their senses. The housekeeper was the first to speak. "Of course, forgive us for our impoliteness. Who else but a mage would be able to carry out such operations against the Church so brazenly?"
Although they spoke as such, they were still unable to contain the astonishment in their hearts.
As a bunch of mages hidden in the midst of the crowd, they had always been low profile; other than the occasional contact amongst themselves, they had never really taken on the identity of a mage. However, this person was able to see through them just by meeting them. They could not help but feel aghast.
Was this what a legendary mage was…?
They had never even imagined that they would be able to meet the legendary mage Benjamin today.
A few days ago, they had seen the "mural" in the warehouse district with their own eyes, and had immediately discovered the location hidden in the letters: Tavern. They had not been able to control their excitement. There were already some amongst them who worked in the taverns, and these few days their ears had been perked up to gather information. Very soon, they had noticed the invitation to the "Black Nightmare Society".
...An organization aimed at fighting the Church? Interesting.
Having hidden their identities for so long, not a single one of these mages was an unsuspicious person. However, they had been oppressed in the darkness for too long, causing their hatred towards the Church to be difficult to control.
Perhaps this was a trap set by the Church, or maybe it was just a prank… Nevertheless, their strong curiosity drove them to make their decision: To just watch from afar, and disperse if anything went wrong. Everything should be fine.
However, who would have guessed?
Mage Benjamin… From the beginning, during the great water ball of the capital, until his rise to fame outside of the country, driving out the Church. The reputation of the Academy of Magic was one that even the fugitive mages in the Kingdom of Helius had heard of. Their existence was such that they did not even feel as though this person was of the same world as they were.
They had met the director of the Academy of Magic, the legendary mage…
Right then, everyone's hearts were beating faster. They did not know what they would discover, but they could strongly feel that their lives were about to undergo a complete change!
Nevertheless, Benjamin shook his head at that same moment.
"Don't think about it that way. Mages are not the only ones who want to rebel against the Church," he spoke slowly, "when you arrive, you will understand,"
Hearing that, they were silent, not understanding what Benjamin meant.
The small boat was being led by some unknown force upon the surface of the sea, moving as though in flight under the moonlight. By then, they could see a ship in the distance, waiting quietly on the pitch black ocean, not really attracting attention.
Then, Benjamin waved his hands, and the entire boat suddenly flew up. Carrying them, it landed straight onto the plywood of the ship.
During the entire process, the mages remained in a state of shock, their eyes wide and mouths gaping. They did not know what magic Benjamin was using, and even more so, why he had not uttered any spells… Even right up until then, they felt as though they were in a dream, not daring to believe that everything they had just experienced was real.
"Come and meet the other members of the Black Nightmare Society. You will understand that mages are not the only ones who want to topple the Church," Benjamin jumped off the boat and turned his head. He beckoned at them with a smile forming from the corners of his lips.
They returned to their senses, and nodded. Following him, they walked into the cabin.