Zeroth Directive

Archive III

[Urtica Investigation Report Excerpts] Lessing's upbringing was much simpler than expected. He was born to serve the Graf Urtica, as every child in his family has for generations. This tradition was abolished by the Witch King when he ascended to the position of Graf Urtica, but the Maeyer family took up the responsibility of protecting the Grafschaft of their own accord, working tirelessly to maintain the territory's order and prosperity. The aftermath of the Witch King's fall hit the family especially hard. Though no member of the family was officially denounced as an associate of the Witch King, they were put under surveillance for years, and the family went into decline. A few years later, the spire of Urtica welcomed a new Graf. Perhaps as part of the surveillance, or perhaps to curry favor with the new lord, a noble came to the Maeyer farm and requested they send their youngest child into the spire. That child did indeed come to the spire, his fate once again aligned with that of his family's, but a contradictory edict came the day he was expecting to meet the Graf who would be his master. [Scattered Records From Ludwigs-Universität] Oh, pay no heed to the child, Lessing Maeyer. He's no threat. So what if he grew up by the seat of my teacher? I know him. We're of the same kind. A trapped beast extending his tongue, trying to taste the sweetness of fate outside the cage, but his vision is so narrow that he can only see the dust-filled corners, not the spectacular scene above his head. What I shame... I thought he would be a comrade. When he fought back against the Gendarmerie who were dispersing the crowd and was beaten within an inch of his life, I didn't think he'd get back up, scratching and clawing, snatching the Gendarmerie's badge, biting until his mouth was bloodied. He yelled at the Gendarmerie, 'What difference is there between you and the people you're beating?' Even the professor glanced at him that day... I was the one who brought him back, gave him a chance to live. But he didn't learn a thing from the professor. Still just as useless, but with more shackles. ...Maybe I was wrong, maybe the professor never looked at him at all. [Conversation Log] 'If not for the professor's insistence, the Liches would have left Leithanien following the death of Herkunftshorn. The Twin Spires of the empresses are imposing, but hardly reassuring. Just because the sunset no longer tasted of blood didn't mean it was perfect. There are cracks in even the most beautiful of clouds. A new change was brewing... it's a story we've seen many times. The Liches that remained in Zwillingstürme took more care to hide their tracks, bringing their research projects to a close and were ready to fly at a moment's notice. But then one day, the professor brought a Caprinae back to Ludwigs-Universität. He said he picked him up from the Gendarmerie. We were confused and alarmed. You understand, right? Who would take in a new pet while preparing to move? Well, that's what I complained to the professor about, at any rate.' 'The Liches eventually got used to this outsider in their lives. You know how he is. He's like a piece of wood. You can't get a reaction out of him. Weird, yeah, but that weirdness comes in handy sometimes. When the professor is angry, the students dare not go into his office, and even the other Liches keep their threads stowed, lest he drag them inside and gives them a verbal smackdown. Lessing's the only one with the nerve to push through the crowd, open the door, head into the office, and pick up the books and equipment scattered on the ground, all without the slightest sliver of an expression on his face. It's like he's completely deaf, as the professor put it. Anyway, we learned to tell when it was safe to go in by the change in volume after Lessing went in. He doesn't talk much, but he's pretty reliable. Anything that's inconvenient for the Liches to do or buy on their own, they ask him to do, so he goes into town every month with a long shopping list, and comes back hanging a bunch of bags on his sword... 'Say, do you think you can give him the occasional vacation, you know, to visit Kazdel from time to time? I-I'm not saying we need him around to deal with the professor. Just tell him that, er, his sister and the rest of his family, er, miss him. Right, miss him.'

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