Wow, the people who attended this lecture seem wealthy. Lewis observed from the side of the room while looking for his sister. Many of the female students wore bright and colorful silk dresses while the male students wore an elegant two-piece suit- a common trend amongst the rich and powerful in Loen.  

The crowd had mostly thinned out since the wealthier students rushed out to start hailing private carriages. After a few seconds, he saw his sister speaking with the lecturer near the front of the entrance. Once she saw him, Claire thanked the professor and hurried over to meet Lewis. 

“Hey Lewis, what are you doing here?” his sister asked curiously “I thought you had a lot of errands to run?”  

Claire was only a year younger than Lewis, and many would have mistaken her to be Lewis’ twin based on their similar features and height. Her hair was only a shade brighter than his hair and her skin was paler due to her insistence on staying indoors.  

“I’m just here to escort you home, dear sister”, Lewis winked at her and smiled mischievously, “Mr. Oswald's office closed today, and I had time to kill so I decided to come over. Anyways, the streets at night are not safe at all if you plan to walk. “ 

“Well, I can’t say no to a person keeping me safe, “She gave Lewis a small smile before giving Lewis her bag. “Hold this for me while I clean up.” Claire smoothed out the creases in her long dark dress and straightened her gray blouse.  

Lewis frowned. Despite his constant efforts to try and make Claire open, she continued to maintain the same attitude. She preferred to be more restrained while out in public, with her insistence that it would make people treat her seriously.  

Well, I don’t blame her at all, especially when the Church of the Lord of Storms still has influence in the university. Still, though, she needs to loosen up that attitude or no one will ever fall in love with her! he bemoaned in his thoughts. 

Unaware of Lewis’ tumultuous thoughts, Claire straightened up and took the bag from his hands, “Thanks” 

 “No problem,” Lewis turned and started walking towards the doors, “Let's go, I don’t want mother worrying about why we both came home so late”  

Claire nodded and hurried after him, making sure to keep pace with his longer strides.  

“Well, what did you learn today in the lecture?” he asked, once they were out in the streets. The streets were bathed in a hue of red from the sun fading into the horizon. “I trust that the lecturers from the Church weren’t a problem?”  

Even though the weekly lectures were extremely popular with both the young men and women of Conant City, the Church of the Lord of Storms still maintained a disapproving attitude towards the women who attended their nautical courses.  

If Keene University were in a city much further inland such as Backlund, their protests would have been more muted because the Church of the Lord of Storms' influence was much weaker than the influence of the Church of the Evernight Goddess who advocated a more benevolent attitude towards gender equality.  

“The lecturers from the Church didn’t really bother anyone today” Claire replied, “The business and economics classes were more or less the same. However, we had an extra lecture tacked on the end of class about history”  

“Oh? Lewis said in realization, “Is that why you said that you were going to come home later than usual in that note?  

“Yeah, that lecture was probably the most interesting one that I’ve had in a while, “Claire blew away a strand of hair that had strayed in front of her mouth, “That lecturer was talking about the origins of myth and fables. He was comparing them to real-world examples and pointed out some similarities between them.” 

“What examples did he bring up?” Lewis asked 

“The professor talked about the fallen kingdom trope, especially the ones that may have happened hundreds, maybe even thousands of years ago. He goes into more detail in the lecture, but the main gist is that there was once a peaceful nation that lay hidden within the mountains.” 

Claire stopped to take a breath and continued, “The residents lived in harmony and worshiped a benevolent goddess who protected them with her powers. Sadly, one day, an evil goddess descended upon them and destroyed the whole civilization.” 

I could have sworn I heard Professor Soren say something similar. Wasn’t it the Evernight Nation? Lewis listened attentively before saying, “I think I learned something about that during my classes with Professor Soren” 

“I wouldn’t be surprised if you did, the lecturer mentioned that that story was a mutation that arose from the ruins of a civilization found in the Hornacis Mountains. Many of the locals around the peaks have had stories about the ruins and the professor condensed those down to the evidence that he could confirm from his findings.”  

Claire shrugged, “Then again, there happened to be a remarkably similar story that was said to have occurred in the Star Highlands down in the Southern Continent. In this case, it was the story of an ancient civilization that worshiped a god-king who advocated tolerance and mediated excess. Sadly, one of the bodyguards of the king, lustful for power, betrays the king and kills his whole family. The death of the king caused the collapse of a kingdom torn apart by strife. The lecturer mentions that the ruins of civilization are said to be buried in history as the jungle has retaken the city.  

“That sounds like an adventure of a lifetime,” Lewis couldn’t help but twitch his fingers excitedly. “I wonder if that story has any truth to it”  

That’s going to be the first place I explore if it is confirmed to be real! Lewis's mind was preoccupied with thoughts of discovering an ancient ruin 

Claire did not fail to miss the gleam in Lewis’ eyes and said amusedly “Are you still interested in exploring the Southern Continent? I thought you gave up on that dream after you found out you could not afford the journey?” 

“I only got discouraged about the price of traveling,” Lewis complained, “I thought you supported my dreams” 

“When did I say that you shouldn’t go?” Claire rolled her eyes at Lewis, “I think it's a wonderful idea, but it should be something you do only after you have enough money and experience to do so.” 

“I guess that’s a fair point” Lewis conceded, “Can you imagine it if your very own brother turns out to become a world-renowned explorer who discovered a lost civilization in the jungles of the South? I will be the first to tell the entire world!  

“And become rich from the gold and lost treasures, “he added in his thoughts  

“More and more every passing day, Lewis,” Claire grinned at Lewis before the siblings burst into laughter. 

They turned around the corner of Geddes Street and started walking down Decker Street. The streetlights began to flicker on once the light from the sun faded.  

“Anyways, you completely missed the point that the professor was making. There are so many distortions with legends and mythology, how do we even know if any of it was true? Claire kept her eyes forward as she spoke, “The best evidence we have are just dusty textbooks with faded images and rusty artifacts” 

“I’m sure the more the years go on, the more we would be able to confirm whether any of those stories were based on factual evidence,” Lewis said thoughtfully and then said teasingly, “Enough about history, do you think you have what it takes to take over Everett’s position?” 

“I definitely do, I know how to handle any of the cases that the lecturer brought up in class today for economics,” Claire adjusted her hat and said seriously, “Once I can graduate from university, I bet that I would be able to succeed his position within three years.” 

“Impressive, Everett would love to hear about the good news once he comes back from Bayam,” Lewis congratulated Claire only half-jokingly.  

“Speaking of father. Has there been any update on when he will be coming back?” Claire asked in passing, “I heard there was a giant storm that disrupted one of the sea routes to the Rorsted Archipelago.” 

“I haven’t gotten any letters or telegraphs from the post office” Lewis shook his head “Besides, that storm only lasted for a couple of days and none of the ships passing through were seriously damaged. What is the exact purpose of going to Bayam to purchase iron and copper? Aren’t our suppliers still giving us a discount on the metal” 

“Bayam is not known as the City of Generosity for nothing. The iron, coal, and copper deposits on Blue Mountain Island are especially plentiful,” explained Claire, “Plus, Bayam is under the main authority from the Church of the Lord of Storms. Everett probably wants to negotiate a discount with the church due to their influence in Conant City and the Rorsted Archipelago.” 

“What's wrong with our current supplier, Reinhold & Kings?” Lewis thought for a moment before asking, “Don’t we have a discount with their operations?” 

Since when do you care so much about what Everett does? “Claire raised her eyebrows at Lewis. It was very unlike Lewis to pay so much attention to the administrative and business side of the family. Even though both siblings were raised at an early age to help with their father’s job, Lewis was never interested enough to care about external reasons.  

Am I that poor of a brother and son to show that I don’t care at all for Father's business? Lewis was taken aback by his sister’s question. He looked at Claire and chortled, “I am just concerned about my father's job. Also, I have a feeling it might help me if I know a little more about business administration for my new job tomorrow.” 

Claire widened her eyes in surprise and responded seriously, “Reinhold & Kings base their operations in the Amanda Mountain Range in Winter County, the Church of the Evernight Goddess headquarters is located there. In addition, Lord Reinhold is a devout believer of the Evernight Goddess, part of the reason he was able to establish a company there.  

“The Church of the Evernight Goddess and Church of the Lord of Storms are rival organizations!” Lewis said in realization, “Is Everett going to try and use the Church’s influence to avoid paying with the D-type taxes?” 

“That’s what I think as well. If the Church agrees to his proposition, then I expect they will probably own a portion of the company in stocks which fall under C-type taxes.” Claire nodded slightly, “You know, Lewis, you’ve always had a skill for business administration, why don’t you focus on it more?” 

“It's not really what I’m interested in the long run,” Lewis looked away. “I know everyone says that it's a phase, and even if it is, I still want to explore the Southern Continent before I settle down.”

Sensing the awkwardness in the air, Claire kept tactfully silent as they walked back home. The streets were much quieter now with only the occasional shout of a drunken man and the creaking of wagon wheels from hawkers heading back home. 

The sonorous chimes of a church bell filled the air. Lewis counted the number of chimes as they rang. Eight times, he thought idly Mother must have finished cooking dinner by now.  

A cool breeze went through the streets, ruffling the siblings' hair. Then, as if from thin air, a thick gray fog covered the buildings, coming from the direction of the harbor. It obscured many of the buildings leaving only the silhouettes of a select few buildings to be visible.  

The Gray Ghost! Lewis cursed, Shit! I completely forgot to ask the sailors about when it would happen. Thankfully, I could see our house at the end of the street, if it happened when we were by the Underway, our bodies might have been discovered lying by some street gutter! 

“We were pretty lucky this time,” Lewis exhaled in relief, “If the fog happened earlier, we could have been in some serious trouble.” The siblings hurried towards their front door, only stopping once they were inside. 

Authors Note: Sorry, no action in this the chapter. Also #NoMoreWar