Just hours after the large-scale attack on the kingdom of Mitrohr, Musall Castle became the primary focus of an investigation by Imperial authorities. Not many know it, but the family maintained direct ties to the central nobility: distant relatives of one of the most important bloodlines and close allies of the Church's highest hierarchs. This web of connections explains why, before the smoke of the battle had cleared, a contingent of forces traveled from the Imperial capital with unusual speed.

  Among them were several figures dressed in the white, crimson-rimmed robes of the Oculus of the Border, an organization feared even by the Court magi. Its members, specialists in combating cursed cults, were rarely deployed in such remote regions.

  The group was led by Connor, a level-seven mage and dimension walker. After several hours of exhaustive searching inside the castle, the man was resting on the first floor of the Musall residence, in one of the few armchairs that hadn't been destroyed by the fighting. The metallic smell of blood and burnt flesh still permeated the air, but Connor seemed unconcerned. His fingers played with a small, shiny metallic object, while his eyes scanned the empty space in front of him.

  Suddenly, the door creaked, and a middle-aged woman strode in. Short blond hair, blue eyes, and a face hardened by years of service. She wore a white uniform almost identical to Connor's, with the exception of an armband bearing the Intelligence Section seal.

  "Reports came in from Mitrohr's military forces," she reported bluntly. "They recorded over 100 simultaneous attacks in different locations throughout the region, including the capital. Most of them were of no strategic importance… with the exception of a guard station in the city of Falirk, where almost everyone was killed.”

  Connor barely looked up from his metal toy. "Any messages claiming authorship?" he asked listlessly.

  "Various messages pointing to cursed cults," the woman replied, crossing her arms. "Especially Narakel and Korvax."

  Connor gave a skeptical smile, turning the metal piece between his fingers. "A classic example of anyone seeking attention... It's impossible to know if it was them or not. But I dare say it wasn't." His gaze hardened for a moment. —Very little death. And Korvax doesn't behave that way.

  The woman tilted her head, hesitant. "Then who?"

  “This could be the work of anyone,” he said, crossing his arms and putting on a thoughtful face. “Some enemy of the Musall family within the region, who wants to weaken their influence in the Mitrohr court. The King of Mitrohr himself could be behind it as well, seeking to gain more control over the area, especially considering the attacks were almost symbolic with the exception of here. Perhaps even some new power we don’t know about.”

  It was then that a third individual entered the room silently, a man. He was short, completely bald, and wore the same white uniform with crimson trim, though his own was soaked in fresh blood, especially on the sleeves.

  Connor looked up expectantly. “What are the results of the analysis of the bodies, Daniel?”

  The newcomer didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he calmly searched through the remains of furniture until he found a cushion in good condition. He placed it on the floor in front of Connor and sat on it with both legs crossed, as if it were the most natural thing for him to do.

  “At first,” Daniel began, his voice calm and deep, “it seemed typical of a brutal attack of this nature. You know, bodies completely ruined, then burned to hide evidence, all done in haste when perhaps they realized reinforcements were coming.”

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  He leaned forward. “The guards… most of them were killed in close combat. Clean sword slashes that apparently no magical defense could stop. We’re talking physical mages at least level five or six.”

  The woman nodded seriously, and Connor raised an eyebrow. Daniel continued, lowering his voice slightly. “Poor General Sigmund…” He paused, as if pondering the weight of his words. “He died a terrible death after his neck and cervical spine were pierced, nearly decapitating him. I have information that he had a body modified for maximum defense, so whoever did that has impressive physical strength, as well as an excellent sword… What was peculiar, though, was what I found on his face. In his eyes, to be exact. There were metal fragments embedded in his eyeballs, iron to be exact.”

  Connor narrowed his eyes but said nothing. It was the woman who asked, worried, "And what about the guards at the entrance?"

  Daniel ran a bloody hand over his forehead, as if remembering the detail. "That is something strange. I found no signs of a struggle. No weapon wounds and no trace of magic. Their bodies were intact... except for one detail. A small hole in one of the eyes, perfectly round, passing through the skull and into the brain."

  The woman frowned. "Ice or air projectile?"

  Daniel shook his head slowly. "I thought so at first. But those magics are advanced, and there's no exit wound in the back of the skull, which is common in such cases and given the low level of the guards. Also, as I said before, there are no traces of magic. Although..." He reached into his robes pocket and pulled out a tiny metal fragment, still covered in clotted blood. "...I found this inside several of the brains."

  The woman and Connor watched him in silence.

  Daniel continued, his voice deepening, "One of my men, a specialist in magical metals, analyzed one of these fragments and came to a clear conclusion: it's lead wrapped in copper."

  The woman raised her eyebrows, approaching Daniel and taking the object between her gloved fingers, holding it up to the light. "Any traces of spells? Inscriptions, tiny seals, hidden matrices?"

  Daniel shook his head slowly, as if that denial outweighed any affirmative action. "None of that. Turns out it's just pure lead and copper."

  There was an odd silence in the room. The woman, after inspecting it more closely and finding nothing special, sighed with slight disappointment and returned it to the man. "So why do you sound like it's something too important?" she asked, losing interest.

  Daniel looked up at Connor, his expression hardening to almost stony. “Because this particular copper,” he said, each word heavy with gravity, “that thin layer that covers the lead, has an almost absolute purity.”

  The air seemed to tense for a moment.

  “According to my expert,” he continued, “we’re talking about a quality that has only been achieved in the laboratories of the best alchemists of the four empires. And even then… solely for research purposes. There’s no military application for something like this. No one in their right mind would expend resources of that magnitude to manufacture projectiles of this type.”

  Daniel leaned forward, his eyes still fixed on Connor. “It doesn’t make any sense.”

  Connor simply nodded. “That’s just one more thing to add to the mysteries of this attack.” Then he threw the metallic object he was still holding toward the other man. “What do you think?”

  Daniel caught the piece easily and held it up to the light. It was a metallic cylinder, thinner than a pinky finger, shiny bronze in color. He turned it over in his fingers, frowning. “It looks like jewelry,” he declared after a moment, “although it doesn’t look like gold, but rather polished bronze. The inside smells burnt… like soot trapped inside. Is there anything special about it?”

  Connor didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he rummaged in his pockets and pulled out two more identical objects, tossing them toward Daniel in a swift motion. “Compare them.”

  Daniel snorted, though his gaze lit up with interest. From his clothes, he pulled out a small set of tools: fine gauges, rods inscribed with precision, even a magic magnifying glass that he placed over one of his eyes. Silence reigned as he meticulously inspected each piece, taking measurements, comparing thickness and weight, even gently scratching the surface.

  After a few minutes, he stopped. He exhaled deeply and looked up at Connor, his expression grave. "They look exactly the same."

  The woman blinked in disbelief. "The same? What does that mean? That they're completely identical in every way?"

  Daniel nodded firmly. "Right down to the smallest detail."

  Connor, with icy calm, took out another of the same objects and held it between his fingers, letting it spin like a meaningful die. "I'm no expert on this sort of thing," he admitted, "but I daresay only elite artisans, or renowned jewelers, could craft something so small with such precision. And that... only if they worked under controlled conditions and with plenty of time... We're talking about far too detailed work to end up on the floor as waste."

  The woman crossed her arms, growing increasingly restless. "So... what the hell are these objects?"

  "That's what I'd like to know," Connor said with a hint of annoyance in his voice, closing the hand holding the object. "Now we just have to wait for the team of specialists to determine if any portals were opened nearby and do everything possible to catch the culprits."

  He paused, his gaze hardening as the shadows in the room seemed to grow around him. "Although if it really is the cursed cults…" his voice deepened, "I have very doubts we'll catch anyone."