The next day, Austin sat and reviewed notes he made from Regulus’s explanation on his bracer. There was a lot to process, and he felt the need to review everything that Regulus told him. Apparently, all tower treasures worked roughly the same. They were all forged from the Aether of the tower guardian. The major differences between tower treasures were the form they took and the specific Aether that made them up.

  All tower treasures had two major benefits. They granted the user access to control the Aether types that made them up. This still required proper training and understanding, but it granted the user abilities that their personal Essence could not. The other major benefit was the ability to have vassals. The holder of a tower treasure could make bonds with people they were close to and give them access to the Aether types of the treasure. Regulus explained that a holder could not just give this out to anyone, though. Apparently, there was some sort of invisible force that determined if the bond was strong enough for a vassal connection.

  Austin also learned the Aether types that made up his tower treasure. He was mostly correct when he analyzed the treasure. His tower treasure was forged from lightning, wind, and sand Aether. Apparently, Regulus’s abilities were associated with the storm. Which made sense when he thought back to the abilities Regulus displayed in the tower.

  Austin decided that he would have to start training with his bracer immediately. Between his bracer and his personal Essence, he would definitely have his time filled with training. Which meant that he needed to get things in a good place for the town. He planned to meet with the leadership of the town to tell them of Natasha and Jess’s betrayal. Then he would have to find someone to replace Jess. After that, he hoped he could get some time to train. His next biggest concern was the gnolls. He could only hope that they did not have any plans to attack soon.

  Austin set his notes to the side and entered meditation. He had a little time before the meeting of the town’s leaders. He set the meeting for midday, so everyone had time to do their morning tasks. Austin also hoped it would give him some time to train after his meditation.

  Meditation felt different with the bracer on. Usually, Austin brought in Aether indiscriminately and refined it to match his own affinity. Instead, Austin had to focus more and avoid the bracer as he brought in Aether. It was not like he could even absorb the Aether from the bracer, but he noticed that even trying to absorb it had a sort of backlash. When he started his absorption of Aether, he made contact with the bracer and immediately felt like an invincible force hit him and exhausted him.

  Austin cautiously brought Aether into his body. His slower and focused approach made the process take much longer than usual. Before, his method of taking in Essence was like opening a faucet and just letting Aether freely into himself. Now, he had to turn the faucet only a little bit and watch as Aether dropped as little beads into his Essence. As Austin meditated, he came to realize that he would not have time to train before the meeting. He always had a certain amount of Essence that he wanted to refine per day. It was the perfect level of not too much, but not too little. Typically, he would have enough time to do independent training before the meeting, but he realized that he either would barely hit his goal or have to continue meditating after the meeting.

  As Austin’s meditation came to a close, he felt exhaustion take hold of him. The process was more intense than ever before. It gave him the feeling of taking a very difficult test and not being able to think afterward. He was forced to open his eyes and stop meditating; any more meditation would just have the opposite effect on him. As he walked out of his office, Austin heard a knock on his front door. He let out a sigh as he walked towards the door. Of course, he could not get a moment’s rest.

  Austin walked to the door and saw that it was Joe, Sean, and Josh. He did feel a little relief at the fact that it was the three of them. It was better than all the leaders showing up. Austin asked the three of them to come before the meeting. That way, they could vouch for the events of the tower. He especially hoped that Joe’s account would help people understand the situation.

  “So, you really think that our stories will help everyone understand?” Josh asked as he sat on the couch.

  “You and Sean may help some. Joe is what we are really counting on,” Austin said with a yawn. After his meditation, he really just wanted to take a nap. He did not want to go through a meeting.

  “Yes, because I couldn't care less if you or Natasha were the leader. It is only when she started talking crazy that I realized she was a problem,” Joe said as he pushed his glasses upward with his index finger. “As long as things are stable, I’m the least biased person in this town.”

  “I don’t really know how I feel about your perspective,” Austin admitted. “I would like it if you were at least somewhat loyal, but I can’t deny that your perspective makes you unusually valuable in this case.”

  “Oh, I am definitely loyal. I’m just loyal to the town and our continued existence,” Joe said dryly. “As long as you still work to ensure our safety, I’ll be loyal to you.”

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  “I see. Well, I plan to continue to strive to do what’s best for all of us,” Austin nodded. “Now, if I may ask a question, what do you think of our alliance with the orcs? Apparently, Natasha was not a fan of it despite what she said in our earlier meeting.”

  “Well, I think Natasha just said what you wanted to hear. I think she thought that was a way to let down your guard. Little did she know about your little birdy,” Joe replied as he motioned his head towards Sean. Shock came over Sean’s face as he realized that Joe knew about his birds. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to tell anyone. Sometimes a little spying is okay. I also think only a few people know about it. Now, as for the orcs? I agree with the alliance. We shouldn’t just enter fights for no reason. They have given us no reason to distrust them.”

  “I appreciate the perspective,” Austin said. “With that in mind, would you like to take Natasha’s place as my advisor? I would have to run it by everyone else, but I think your unbiased opinion would be useful.”

  “I wouldn’t mind it,” Joe shrugged. “It could be a good use of my time. As long as you are okay with me being honest. I don’t plan to cater to you.”

  “That’s exactly what I would want. Obviously, that is what Natasha did, and we saw the truth of the matter,” Austin said.

  “Then I’ll be okay with it if everyone else agrees,” Joe said.

  Before the discussion could continue further, there was a knock at the door. Austin took his phone to check the time and then sighed. The time had gotten away from him, and it was time for the meeting. Austin forced a smile on his face as he walked to the door and welcomed everyone inside.

  Everyone took seats in the room, and there was an obvious tension as they sat down. With the tower gone, it was obvious that Natasha and Jess did not make it back. It was made even more obvious that something drastic happened because Austin called for an emergency meeting.

  “So, I know you are all wondering why I asked for an emergency meeting,” Austin said to the group. “I do not want to lie to you guys. I also want to get straight to the point. Natasha and Jess tried to attack me for the leadership of the town. I had to respond with force.”

  The room continued to be silent. Everyone sat with their thoughts for a moment. It seemed as though they did not know how to react. Austin was honestly surprised. He thought that they would instantly get angry with him at the revelation.

  “Truthfully, we have only known Natasha a little longer than you,” Mike was the first to speak up. “Jess was her friend from before the Survival Game, but the rest of us met her later. While I am appreciative of how she gathered everyone together, if that is how you felt, then I trust your judgment.”

  “Mike is a little more practical than I am,” Beth admitted. “I don’t want to cause a stir, but can I ask you for the specifics of what happened?”

  “Sure, I think it is best that Joe tells you,” Austin motioned towards Joe. “He has significantly less bias than I do. He also entered the tower with Natasha and Jess.”

  Joe then explained the events of the tower. He specifically emphasized Natasha’s desire to be a dictator of the town and her plans to go to war with the orcs. As he finished speaking, the room grew silent. Shocked looks came across the faces of almost everyone in the room. The major exceptions were Brian and Grayson.

  “I did not think she would ever go that far,” Grayson said. “But this is sort of what James warned us about.”

  “I agree, he had a feeling that Natasha was hiding a much darker side,” Brian nodded. “I had hoped it was not true. I started to believe that she did not have those feelings over the past few months. I guess she was just trying to trick us all.”

  “Yes, I’m sorry to say that was the case. I am relieved that you all have been understanding,” Austin said.

  “You have done a lot for us. While it’s not the best outcome, I think you have earned our trust,” Ava said.

  “Thank you, I appreciate it. There is something else we need to talk about, though. We need to discuss who will take Jess’s place in the town,” Austin said. “While that is the most important position to fill, I would also like to fill Natasha’s place. I feel like Joe would be a good fit. Even if he can be somewhat apprehensive, he cares about the people of the town and is mostly unbiased.”

  The group looked towards each other and seemed to unanimously nod in agreement. Mike then took charge of responding. “I think that will be fine. Do you have any suggestions for who will take Jess’s place?”

  “I am honestly not sure,” Austin admitted. “I have not been keeping that close an eye on the hunters to give a recommendation.”

  “Well, they have been working for the scouts lately,” Gavin said. “I think that Zoe and Katie would be good fits. They are both incredibly skillful at hunting, and they work well together.”

  “So, you think we should have two people leading the hunters?” Austin asked.

  “I don’t see why not. Those two work better together than separate,” Gavin said.

  “I agree with Gavin’s suggestion,” Brian said. “I have seen their work, and they definitely would work well in that position.”

  “I’m fine with it. Does anyone oppose?” Austin asked the group. He waited for a moment to see if anyone had anything to add or if anyone disagreed. When no one did, he spoke once more. “Then Katie and Zoe will be the new leaders of the hunters. Joe will work as my personal advisor. With that, I think our meeting is done for the day.”