They didn't enter through the gates.
Vile led them by a path buried behind Velthane's outer ridge. Overgrown, narrow, almost forgotten. No torches. No guards. Just stone, quiet, and distance.
They reached a half-hidden door tucked behind an old well.
Vile opened it without pause.
No sound but the hinges. No one was waiting inside.
They stepped into the dark.
The passage twisted through old servant routes... unused corridors layered in dust and silence. Vile moved with certainty. The others followed.
At the end, she stopped before a small storage room... cracked ceiling, broken crates, no windows.
"Wait here," she said.
Then turned and left.
The room sat quiet. Stale air. Faint trace of ash.
Minutes later, the door opened again. Mira stepped through. Hood down. Coat plain. Boots marked with dirt.
"You took your time," she said.
Zee stayed silent.
Sevi shifted, about to speak...
Vile cut her off. "It was my mistake, Master. I needed to recover."
Mira didn't look at her. "You didn't. And if you were any later, you would've shattered everything I've built here."
She stepped further into the room. Her voice was level, but clipped.
"I'm not in full control of what the Marshal left behind. There are loyalties I don't own. Forces I don't even see. If word of your arrival reached the wrong ears, I'd be cleaning your blood off council steps."
Sevi opened her mouth. "Actually..."
Zee cut her off.
"Vile nearly died," he said, gaze steady. "She's standing now. That's what matters."
Mira turned to him.
"I don't care."
She brushed a lock of hair behind her ear. Adjusted her coat.
"Well... what happened has happened," she said.
Then, quieter...
"Bendragon has taken notice of you."
She let the words settle.
"He's not easy to read. I don't know what he'll do...."
Zee didn't flinch.
"It was about to happen anyway," he said. "Let's focus on the next pillar."
Mira studied him for a breath... then moved to the center of the room and unrolled a cloth map across a barrel.
"The Church is the strongest of the three. Not because of weapons... because of belief. They are keeping the image of Bendragon as a god. They own people's hearts."
She handed Zee a folded scroll. No seal.
"You do what you do best."
Zee took it.
"I'll do what I do best. I'll fracture the Church from the inside. Legitimacy first. Faith after. You start with the names in the scroll."
She met his eyes.
"Their deaths will hit the Church hard."
They turned to leave.
Vile turned to follow them.
Mira spoke again, calm and final.
"Vile stays."
Vile paused.
"I can't risk her being seen with you," Mira said. "Not anymore."
Zee looked at Vile. Then at Mira. He said nothing.
The others walked on.
Vile stayed behind.
And the door closed again.
...
Later, in the lower alleys near the river edge, Sevi caught up with Zee. The sky was low. The mist hadn't lifted since morning.
"She didn't even flinch," Sevi said.
Zee didn't slow his steps.
"Mira's not an ally. Keep that in mind."
Sevi glanced at him. "You think she sent them?"
"I don't know," Zee said. "But she doesn't need to know it happened."
Then Sevi asked, "Then, Should we trust Vile?"
Zee walked a little longer before replying.
"I don't know."
...
Back in the storeroom, Mira stood alone, rolling the map slowly. Her fingers paused.
"Magic Liberation Army..." she murmured.
A faint exhale followed. No smile. Just thought.
"Could be useful... if they live long enough."