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Still a bit stiff. The sound mage wrinkled her nose in distaste. She stretched her neck from side to side, feeling the taunt muscles being pulled. She was back in the training area of the Crimson Lions base. After the first training from a few days ago, the vice captain had allowed her a few days off. The latter would have been right to presume that she needed the time to recover. That, and time to digest what she has learned.

Suna was not one to sit idle though, and had gone out to explore the Forsaken Region. Somehow, she had gotten herself entangled with a certain mercenary, even though it was meant to be a peaceful and uneventful exploration. Suna shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. No, she had to concentrate. No more thinking about someone she had just met, and probably will not see again for a while.

The elf bent down and slowly stretched herself out. She had been summoned to the Magic Knight headquarters, but got there earlier than the appointed time. There were only a few trainees in the area, but as she stretched, she watched them train. They did similar things as Lydia had put her through, exercises meant to tone their physical shape and form. She wondered, though, what they did for mental exercises. Would they put their trainees under some sort of psychological torture? Or in intense situations? There were all types of possibilities, and some of them would be crossing her moral boundaries. If she really were to join a squad or any type of group, she would have to submit to their teachings. As of yet, there has not been anything amiss within her conscience, so that was good.

A feminine but commanding voice broke through her musings. "Here!" She made her way over to the vice captain. "Oh, a mission?" She had not been expecting that, but neither had she expected the Crimson Lion knight to train her either. "Where are we going today?" She would not mind if they went to the Forsaken Region - she had her own plans that she would attend to after they finished the mission. Little did she know that would not be the case.

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"Kiten? Common Region?" The name was completely foreign to her, but understandably, as it was a town in a region she had yet to step foot in. The vice captain then explained everything - impressively in a single breath it seemed - and turned to go. Suna had learned that the other elf did not waste time or energy, and fell in step. Her mind whirled with questions. Female rogues? Widowmakers? Plans?

Before she knew it, she was standing in another office, which seemed to belong to the spatial mage called Claire. The vice captain and the other woman conversed a bit about Suna, and it made her a little shy. But all that was forgotten when the spatial user opened a portal for them, a circular inky mass that wavered in and out, enticing and forbidding at the same time.

Her aura, reflecting her inner elation, glowed at the sight. Suna had never used a portal before. She has seen one, sure, but never walked through one before. "Thank you," she said, addressing Claire. After a moment of hesitation, she quickly stepped over and in, like she was walking through a threshold. From the corner of her eye, she could barely discern where the two spaces met. There was only a thin wavering darkness, and that was all. Emerging on the other side, the elf carefully kept her facial expressions neutral, although her mind was screaming in excitement at the magic.

If that was not enough, Lydia seemed to have more tricks up her sleeve, and proceeded to change her appearance. Gone were the pink hair and red eyes. The woman standing before her was a blonde with blue eyes. Azure eyes widened as she took in the stranger before her. Truly, she was like a child seeing the world of magic for the very first time.

Suna looked down at her outfit. She had worn something more casual, but still with her signature blue and white colors. Did she need to change, too? However, the other elf explained the reason for the transformation, and it set the trainee’s heart at ease. A little part of her wondered how they would pass off as sisters, as they now look nothing alike. However, her mentor has spoken, and she would obey. After this, this was a mission she had planned for her - there must be a good reason why the older elf chose this for her. The sound mage followed the woman, though at a respectful distance. No matter what she looked like now, there was still a stark difference in seniority and experience that Suna would uphold.

The town of Kiten was more protected and fortified than she had thought. From the looks of it, it was no small town, nor of small significance. The towering stone walls testified of its past histories, of great battles won and lost on these very grounds. The atmosphere in the air, though busy and bustling, held a trace of fear and malice. Was it because of the knowledge that one could be the next one dead at the hands of a Widowmaker? Suna drank it all in, storing the information in her mind. It might come in handy later. The inhabitants hurried along on their own courses, taking little notice of the two elves quickly making their way towards...

A bar? Suna blinked in surprise. Sure enough, they were standing in front of a bar. From the outside, it looked like a modest-sized place, and while most other bars were closed, this one was surprisingly open. This early in the day? It was certainly a strange thing, but she held her tongue. It would not be unlikely that rogues would meet here. Perhaps there was another place in the back where the meeting would be held. Perhaps the bar was, in fact, run by one of its members. Who knows? All Suna knew was she had to choose her words carefully from here onwards...or not speak at all.

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Not talking? Ha, wishful thinking.

Once they were in the bar, the vice captain had done a marvelous job getting them through the bartender - which certainly seemed like one of the members - and also smoothly explaining to the group how they were related. Lilith? Interesting name of choice that she picked... But then the leader turned her attention on the younger mage and demanded her to answer.

All eyes in the room turned to her, and she could feel the hostile scrutinies of those stares. She heard a sigh from her ‘older sister,’ and her brain scrambled to find a believable lie. She was put on the spot, and honestly, she was not completely prepared for this type of mission. But no time for regrets, she could only do her best. Thankfully, acting comes somewhat naturally to her, and she has used it several times when she was forced to manipulate her way out of sticky situations.

"We want to join because we have heard much of the good the group has done," Suna spoke slowly and carefully, emphasizing on the positive part, "especially in recent events." She may not know everything that the group does, but she figured it would not hurt to throw in a few flatteries. "After all, the Widowmakers have done a marvelous job taking care of those abusive husbands and unfaithful spouses. Those types of filth are not worthy to continue living in the pure innocence of their female partners." She actually did not know what she was talking about, but it sounded good. Even if they really were rogues who only wanted yul, she knew she could appeal to their feminine side, and refer to the general unfair treatment - it was a surefire way to convince them that she was on their side.

Her answer seemed to please the leader, who nodded and proceeded to lay out the plans for their next target. Suna let out a small sigh of relief. There was nothing more than the wrath of a provoked female, that much she has recently learned. The more Suna listened to them, the more she was drawn in to their goal. Sure, they may be doing it because of yul, but she believed that there were many of them who still cared about life, about their fellow sisters who were suffering behind closed doors. They still had certain standards, despite their unconventional ways. Heck, if she was not one with firm convictions on her boundaries, she could easily be caught up in their ideologies and goals.

However, she was snapped back to reality when the room began to move again. It seemed like the meeting had concluded, and two of the female rogues have been assigned to take care of their next target. Suna took note of the assigned assassins, and also of the target’s name. As the females started to file out, the elf gently tugged on Lydia’s--no, Lilith’s--arm, signaling that they could go now, too. They have their target’s name, and also the two rogues they would need to be careful of.

Just at that moment, one of the rogues swept by and paused in front of the two elves. "Pretty speech you did there," the rogue flicked her hair in their direction, referring to Suna, but then turned to the vice captain. "But you...you feel familiar." Although there was a slight smile on the rogue’s face, her clear emerald eyes had narrowed, not bothering to mask the suspicion and wariness that laid underneath. "Who are you?"

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Suna’s shoulders had tightened when the rogue had asked that pointed question. True, it was not towards her, thankfully, but it was still abrupt...and loud. There were still some of the other members in the room, and they had all stopped to listen. She listened with bated breath as the vice captain retorted back with some sarcastic replies--at least, it sounded sarcastic to her. It was all business and straight to the point, yet with a flair of sass.

Before she knew it, the other elf was pulling her out of the room. Suna let out a breath she did not know she had been holding. She was confused as to the quick exit - wouldn’t that raise suspicion? It was not until they were safely out of sight and in an alley when the transformation wore off. "I see." She murmured. Now she understood. She did not know before that Lydia’s transformation had a time limit. That explained the haste. It was fascinating though, kind of like a temporary shapeshifting.

It seemed like the pink-haired mage was rushing to go back home. "W-Wait, but don’t we need to protect the guy? No? All right..." She was a little dubious, as she was the type to see a task to the end. However, it seemed like the other elf had taken care of everything, and would report back to the Crimson Lions to send people over to guard the next victim. It was a good thing that she had come on this mission with the vice captain, otherwise she probably would have failed big time.

"Running all the way?" She repeated. Must be punishment for not starting the training earlier... Just what has she gotten herself into? Lydia had taken her under her wing and was training her well. However, she did not know whether she wanted to join a Magic Knight squad just yet - she has just recently come out of the Forest and wanted to explore a little bit more as a citizen. She shook her head. Indeed, what has she gotten herself into? The speedy mage had already taken off, and she would be left behind if she did not follow now. Suna sighed, and started running to catch up to the pink-haired figure up ahead.