Chapter 77: Saga 77: Gathering Intelligence
True to his word, Baldric spent the following weeks quietly compiling every scrap of information the guild’s archives and contacts could provide about the Wastelands and the rumored Lust System, the process considerably slower and more frustrating than any of them had initially anticipated.
"The Wastelands don’t exactly welcome outside scrutiny," Baldric explained during one of their regular briefings, spreading a collection of fragmented reports across his desk. "Most kingdoms treat the region as effectively lawless territory, useful only as a buffer zone between civilized lands and the demon realm. Formal records are sparse, and most of what exists comes from unreliable secondhand accounts."
"What have you actually managed to find?" Sylvia asked, scanning the assembled documents.
"Fragments, mostly. References to a powerful entity the local nomadic tribes worship, or fear, depending on which account you believe. Some call it a goddess of temptation and desire. Others describe it as a curse afflicting anyone foolish enough to wander too deep into its territory." Baldric tapped a particularly worn map spread across the desk. "The rumored territory overlaps significantly with the border region claimed by the demon kingdom, which complicates any potential expedition considerably."
"Complicates how?" Kael asked.
"The demon kingdom doesn’t welcome uninvited visitors, particularly not human hunters. Relations between our kingdoms remain civil at best, thanks to old treaties predating most current rulers, but civil doesn’t mean welcoming. Trespassing into contested or demon-claimed territory without proper authorization carries serious legal consequences, assuming you’re not simply killed outright by border patrols first."
Claire, reviewing one of the fragmented tribal accounts, frowned thoughtfully. "This passage mentions the entity specifically by name. ’The Lust System, who claims lordship over flesh and desire, sits at the heart of the wastes, neither fully divine nor fully demon, feared by mortal and demon alike.’"
"Neither fully divine nor fully demon," Sylvia repeated. "That’s an unusual classification."
"It matches the pattern we’ve seen with the Sleeping Ruin and whatever guided Vane’s ritual," Kael said, working through the implications. "Something ancient, something that doesn’t fit neatly into the categories mortals usually use to understand these threats."
[Confirmed,] the system offered. [I’ve been running comparative analysis on everything Baldric’s contacts have provided. The corruption signature patterns, while not identical, share enough structural similarity to the Sleeping Ruin and the Hollow Choir’s ritual components that I’m increasingly confident these represent related, if not directly connected, phenomena.]
’Related how, exactly? Same source? Same intent?’
[Unclear at this range. Direct investigation would provide considerably more clarity, though I’d caution against underestimating the risk involved. Whatever this Lust System actually is, the accounts suggest a threat level considerably beyond typical Wastelands hazards.]
Baldric, watching their exchange with visible concern, finally spoke up. "I won’t pretend I’m comfortable sending you all into contested territory bordering the demon kingdom based on fragmentary rumors and a foreign Saintess’s hunch, however credible her research has proven previously."
"We understand the risk," Kael said. "But if this is genuinely connected to the Hollow Choir, ignoring it doesn’t make the threat disappear. It just means we’re less prepared when it eventually surfaces again."
Baldric considered this for a long moment, clearly weighing caution against necessity. "Very well. I’ll arrange proper documentation and diplomatic clearance where possible, though I doubt the demon kingdom will grant much cooperation given current tensions. You’ll need to proceed carefully, and I’d strongly suggest avoiding any actual contact with demon border patrols if at all possible."
"Noted," Sylvia said.
"I mean it. The demon kingdom’s patience for human incursions, however unintentional, has grown considerably thinner in recent years. Whatever you find in the Wastelands, tread carefully, and don’t give them any excuse to treat this as a hostile act."
As the briefing concluded and preparations for the coming expedition began in earnest, Kael found himself simultaneously excited and apprehensive about what waited ahead—another mystery to unravel, another ancient threat potentially connected to the growing pattern behind the Hollow Choir’s activities, and, if their luck held even slightly, hopefully not another international incident to navigate on top of everything else.
Later that evening, the team gathered in the safehouse common room to review Baldric’s compiled materials more thoroughly, spreading maps and fragmented tribal accounts across every available surface.
"The border region here," Harriden said, tracing a line across the worn map with one finger, "is apparently contested even among the Wastelands tribes themselves. Whatever territory this Lust System actually claims, it’s not simple to define even for people who’ve lived there generations."
"Which means we’ll likely have to actually cross into it to get any useful information," Yuki said, "rather than just interviewing people from a safe distance."
"Probably, yes," Sylvia confirmed. "Assuming the tribes are even willing to talk to outsiders at all."
"I’ll handle diplomacy if it comes to that," Adian offered. "Charm works on most people, regardless of species or territory."
"Please don’t try charming an ancient desire entity, Adian," Claire said, only half joking. "That feels like exactly the kind of decision that ends badly for everyone involved."
"I make no promises. My charm is a gift, not a weapon I can simply holster on command."
Despite the gravity of what they were planning, the familiar banter eased some of the tension gathering around the upcoming expedition, and Kael found himself grateful, once again, for a team that could face uncertain, potentially dangerous unknowns with humor still intact.
"We leave in three days," Sylvia said finally, gathering the scattered documents into some semblance of order. "Baldric’s arranging what limited diplomatic clearance he can manage. Everyone rest up properly. Something tells me the Wastelands won’t offer much opportunity for peaceful evenings once we arrive."
Kael lingered after the others had drifted off to their rooms, staring at the worn map a while longer, tracing the contested border region with a growing sense that whatever waited for them out there, it would prove considerably more complicated than a simple rumor-chasing expedition. Whatever the Lust System actually was, he suspected they were about to find out the hard way.
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End of Chapter—