Later that very day as Aron isolated himself in his room, a knock resounded on his door bringing him out of his meditative state. Earlier he had thought he could finally release some of his urges to kill on the group that had arrived but the reality was they were much to weak.
His only option was either those who'd pursue a bounty on him or mana beasts he'd encounter once they set off. He himself preferred the latter as human settlements had far too many restrictions which he loathed.
"Enter." Aron stood up and responded to the constant light knocking on his door and Claudia walked in looking hurried. He had grown accustomed to this young woman who was ever organizing something and making sure everyone was in order.
"I came to report about the situation regarding the bounty hunter earlier..." Claudia placed her hand on her waist and stated her reason for being there before trailing off to see if Aron had any actual interest in the matter.
She too had grown accustomed to Aron's nature, unlike the inspiring and progressive leader she thought him to be he was instead reclusive and barely took part in faction affairs. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the factions foundation was built by Claudia.
"Go ahead." It was rare that Claudia spoke to Aron about things not concerning the faction so he curiously looked at her and awaited to hear what she had to say. "Why don't you take an active role in everything? You're smart enough to accomplish so much and on top of that you're incredibly strong but you seem so detached and unmotivated sometimes that I just wonder if you're really serious about this... I'm sorry if I'm being rude."
Claudia was always one to speak her mind and although she held back and swallowed her pride when it came to Aron, she began to grow unsure. Unlike Jin and Jagu who seemed sure about Aron, Xavier like her wasn't and he'd often bring his worries to her.
She worried that Aron had no real motivation and was just doing as he pleased because he was strong and intellectual to some extent but when the work came he distanced himself so trust in him began to wain.
"I just believe things would function best as they are. When it comes to socializing I lack experience and let's not even mention knowledge concerning Ettenheim and its noble households. I recruited capable people because I knew I couldn't do this as smoothly alone."
"I'm neither detached nor am I unmotivated, I'm just most comfortable and clear headed when I'm alone. I've seen you passionately lead the faction far better than I could as well so why change that? Much of what I do is unknown but if you feel I'm lacking then I can appoint you the leader instead, it's really all the same to me and titles don't amount to much." Aron responded and Claudia immediately shook her head, although she hadn't predicted what answer she'd get, she definitely didn't think it would sound so sincere.
"No, I shouldn't have asked. I tend to overthink and worry so it's probably all just in my head. It's... it's just that although we haven't known each other long I feel comfortable with the faction. I see so much potential and I just don't want to see it all go to waste. But thank you for your honesty." Claudia showed a small smile to Aron who gave a slight smile back and nodded. "It won't, I assure you that."
There was no pressure behind Aron's voice but his eyes showed he was being serious. His plan hadn't changed in any way and the second the opportunity to go to Limbo came he'd take it, As for Claudia and the others... it was up to themselves to achieve their goals using this faction they built.
"Well then I won't interrupt you further, Leave everything on the surface to me." Claudia said with a smile and renewed vigor as she left Aron's room. He could only sigh and return to meditating. 'It really is amazing what one can accomplish with words alone.' Aron thought before shaking his head, in the end he thought Claudia was just worried about her goal being affected if the faction didn't live up to its potential.
.....
In the coming two days Claudia had taken an even more active role in managing the faction. A few lesser independent factions had arrived during this time and they too of course tried their luck at getting the bounty.
But in the end it all ended in the same, Aron effortlessly defeated them all then Claudia handled the after math. She had sold the few beaten down airships along with miscellaneous items that were of no use to them.
Some factions held captives which she chose to free to better their image in the eyes of the public and slowly build up their reputation.
As for Aron, he began to spend more and more time with Evanora whilst keeping an eye out for any new beast sightings but no such thing happened.
.....
As the second day was coming to an end, Aron was seated in his room reading through some new information Khalifa had provided him.
"And you're sure this is all true?" Aron who was seated by a desk with his legs crossed and a piece of parchment in his hands asked this to Khalifa who stood behind him quietly. "I dare not bring you false information, everything there is accurate and has been confirmed." Khaifa replied confidently before Aron returned the parchment back to her.
Just then a knock resounded on his door and he gestured Khalifa to leave before walking over to open it. 'I guess Claudia should want to report, she hadn't done so recently.' Aron thought as he opened the door but much to his surprise the person on the other side wasn't Claudia but instead Lady Rose.
"Must be something important if you're here personally." Aron didn't hide his surprise at seeing Lady Rose standing before him but the large map she held gave away her intentions. "It is." She answered quickly before entering Aron's room without letting him say another word.
She strutted over to the only desk within his room and laid down the map she had there. Aron closed the door and joined her by the desk where he directed his gaze at the map with many marked locations.
The most noticeable mark was a large circle that isolated a certain part of the map. "You managed to narrow it down?" Aron reached the most obvious conclusion but still asked to hear her thoughts.
"Yes, it proved to be more arduous than I thought. This forest is rather strange, some of its geographical features and even recorded vegetation doesn't match what should normally be found here, however I can't reach a proper conclusion unless we see it for ourselves." She quickly explained as she brought out her notebook and pointed out some vegetation that Aron indeed found familiar.
Lady Rose then continued to explain as she pointed at a few highlighted ones. "It's not strange to find some vegetation from Limbo in an origin world so long as the region meets the requirements. This isn't the case here I'm sure." Hearing her bring up Limbo, Aron couldn't help but what to ask more.
Limbo was endless and Argos's knowledge was only helpful to a certain extent, learning more from someone else may bring new knowledge he may not have known. However he stopped himself from asking about that at the moment. 'I doubt she'll participate in a long conversation and freely tell me what I want to hear at the moment. Besides, I can't seem desperate…'
"That's true, especially for these two... they only grow well in regions with a mana density of 2.5 or higher. The density in much of the forest is less than 2 so there has to be source of denser mana somewhere within the region you marked. Possibly the ruin then?" Aron finally commented on the two types of flora that caught his eye.
"You're far more knowledgeable than you look. That's right, these two have made me confident in this region being what we're looking for. Even if the ruin itself isn't there I'm sure we'll know it's exact location once we uncover a bit more about the forest." Rose sighed and closed the notebook before handing the map over to Aron, she was sincere in that she found Aron's additions both refreshing and worrying.
But just like Aron, she stopped herself from asking more as per their agreement. "I'll take my leave then, informing the others and getting us there is up to you." After glancing at him for a moment, Lady Rose turned around and began to leave.
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