CHAPTER 77: THE OPALINE TERRACE

"Kids, don’t wander off too far!"

A young father shouts after his two children, a boy around ten and a little girl of eight.

"Yes, Father!"

The two children play chase with their golden retriever near their parents, who are setting up a picnic spot.

Two hours later, the same young father is yelling at the top of his lungs, searching for his children who suddenly disappeared.

Meanwhile, his wife is crying and trembling, trying to call the local police.

Less than ten minutes later, three police officers arrive at the scene. One interviews the sobbing mother, while the other two search the area with the frantic father.

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BEEP BEEP

BEEP BEEP

Julian checks the alarm and frowns. He had set up alerts for missing-person reports around Mt. Helene.

"Another one? This isn’t normal..." He squints at the screen. "That’s the third report in the last twenty-four hours. I need the exact last-seen location. Oh my god — they’re just children. Ten and eight?! What kind of crazy culprit—"

He talks to himself, which is a normal sight in the lab, so everyone ignores him.

He sighs. "I’ve got to do something."

He gets up, stuffs his gadgets into his space pouch, shrugs out of his lab coat, throws on his jacket, and walks out of the lab.

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"Sir? Just an update — the mining site manager called again. He said DEU is harassing them and forcing them to stop the mining."

Arthur sighs in exasperation. "I knew Stille was stupid and corrupt, but petty? That’s new. I should’ve guessed. Thanks, Sam."

"Is there anything you want me to do? Besides the usual?"

Arthur shakes his head. "No. Let the mining stop for today."

"Yes, sir." Sam turns to leave.

"You know what, Sam? Tell the manager to pack everything and leave. I’ll call Yuki and let her deal with Stille."

Sam stops, turns back, and grins. "Gladly, sir. Stille’s going to lose his mind."

He heads out of Arthur’s office.

Arthur’s phone chimes. Julian again, normal. Arthur ignores it for now; he’s busy reading reports on the Arvion High Société. His mother and sister are at a luncheon with them, and there are some nasty characters in that club. He wants to be ahead of everything.

He pinches the bridge of his nose. Reading these reports feels like going through the gossip section of a tabloid.

He shakes his head and bravely continues to keep reading.

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"Harrison, are you disturbing the mining again?" Baroness Maristella’s voice can be heard through the phone Chief Stille is holding close to his ear.

"Yes, Your Ladyship. The paper work of that site is a mess. The mining rights are still unclear. DEU has conducted safety inspection and the mining site doesn’t pass it. As the chief of DEU, I cannot allow any of these misconduct to continue. I have a city to protect." Chief Stille explains to the Baroness in his utmost respectful tone.

"Hmm. I understand. You have done well. I agree with you. As the chief, you need to comply and follow the rules to the T. I will reward you later."

Chief Stille’s chest is puffed up. He smiles, "Yes, Your Ladyship. I thank you very much."

Knock. Knock.

"What?" Chief Stille covers his phone with one hand.

"I’m sorry, Chief Stille. But Ms. Noritsu is on line three for you, sir."

Chief Stille freezes.

"Noritsu? As in Yuki Noritsu? Of Monfort Industries?" He whispers.

His assistant nods. "The one and only, sir."

Chief Stille pales. "Shit."

"Crude language will not get you anywhere, Harrison. You are playing with the bear cub, you bound to anger the mama bear. It’s called consequences." Baroness Voss’ voice crisps through the phone.

It startles Chief Stille. "My apologies, Your Ladyship."

"It is not a matter of my concern. I will hang up the call. I am needed elsewhere."

She hangs up.

Chief Stille takes a few deep breath before taking the call from Yuki Noritsu of Monfort Industries.

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In the heart of Arvion, there is a large man-made private park. It’s surrounded on all sides by the skyscrapers of the city.

Inside the park, the contrast is stark. It is pleasantly quiet. Birds are singing, water is trickling, and the wind blows softly through the trees. The place gives off a sense of serenity and tranquillity that feels almost unreal for a city this loud.

In the innermost corner of the park lies the Opaline Terrace, a high-end all-day dining venue that offers the view of nature without any of the chaos of the city outside.

The Opaline Terrace was founded 189 years ago and is owned by the Mircael Family, one of the wealthiest families in Concordia. It has survived all kinds of disasters, both natural and man-made.

Right before the era of the first dungeon discovery, during the Great War of Resources, the place was looted and burned to the ground by the poor and by extremists.

Jocelyne Mircael, the last surviving member of the family, rebuilt the Opaline Terrace beyond its former glory. The Mircaels had all lived on the same land as the restaurant when it was destroyed. Now, the establishment is run by Jocelyne’s grandchildren.

The Opaline Terrace is one of only nine dining venues in all of Altheon to receive six Altheon Crowns from the Royal Guild of Culinary & Hospitality Arts for excellence in food, service, and location.

The Altheon Crown is a ranking system created by the RGCHA, where one crown represents Acceptable and six crowns is considered Nearly Unattainable.

The venue had managed to earn six crowns for five consecutive years, a feat none of the other six-crown establishments had achieved, making it worthy of its nickname: The Jewel of Concordia.

It’s not far-fetched that CEOs, socialites, even princes, princesses, and foreign leaders would visit Arvion just to dine at the Opaline Terrace.

The Arvion High Société regularly holds their luncheons here. They even have their own table that’s visible from the entire place.

The building itself is surprisingly simple, but fully equipped with heartstone technology, bringing the classic combination of old and new to a whole new level.

Theo and company enter the park gate precisely ten minutes before the invitation time.

Theo blinks. He can feel the mana here, denser than the rest of Arvion. The difference is significant.

What is this place? Why is the mana denser here than outside?

Their car glides silently and slowly toward the dining venue.

The closer they get, the more uncomfortable Theo feels. Not from nerves, but there is something dark and ominous inside the park.

Miranda notices him fidgeting and mistakes it for nervousness. It is his debut into this ridiculous society, after all.

She cups her hand over his. "Don’t worry too much. I’m here. Claudia’s here. No one will bully you or your mother."

Leila turns to him. "Are you nervous?" She smiles softly. "Don’t be. Just be yourself. You are a lovely young lady. They won’t do anything to you. I’m here. I won’t let those witches hurt my daughter."

Theo chuckles. Leila looks every bit like a mother tiger, ready to pounce on anyone who dares.

He places his free hand on hers. "Don’t worry, Mother. Aunt Miranda. I’m not nervous about those women. They’re not worthy of my mind. We’re here to help Arthur, and we’re going to do exactly that. Nothing will stop us Montroses."

Leila is suddenly overwhelmed. Her eyes glisten. Hearing those words from Thea, this confidence, she can hardly believe it.

Where did all that self-hate and insecurity go? Dr. Leighton was wrong.

She nods firmly. "Yes. They’re not worthy. We’re here to help our family."

"Leila, you’ve become such a crybaby lately. You can do it any other time, but not now." Miranda pulls out a tissue and gently dabs her eyes.

"You’ll ruin your eyeliner."

Leila sniffs. "If my tears can ruin your eyeliner, just throw it away. It’s not as tear-proof as it claims."

They all laugh.

"But I have to say... I also feel uncomfortable," Claudia suddenly says. "It’s like something in the air... and it’s choking me a little."

"That’s impossible, Claud. We’re still in the car. How can outside air be in here? And the air outside should be fresher." Miranda argues. She starts sniffing. "I don’t smell anything."

"It’s not something you can smell, Mir," Leila says quietly. After Claudia mentioned it, she feels it too.

"Do you feel it as well, Lei?"

"I don’t know if it’s because Claudia said it, but I do. It feels... you’re right, Claudia. It feels suffocating. Choking. And the closer we get, the stronger it is."

"You girls are scaring me." Miranda pales slightly.

Theo clasps her hand and smiles. "Don’t worry, Aunt Miranda. You have me."

All three ladies laugh again.

But Theo isn’t bluffing. He releases a little mana to disperse the oppressive air, and it works.

The three ladies immediately go back to chatting as usual, the discomfort gone.

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A pair of eyes suddenly open. They look in Theo’s direction.

A smile curls on the woman’s thin lips.

"Interesting," she murmurs.