The night passed quickly for all in the castle, most oblivious to the coming threat. The few who were aware were restless, but they slept nonetheless. It was incredibly important that they were well rested.
Grey sat at the table, eating his breakfast in silence with Aurora, Matteo, and Tyana. The air was heavy with tension, so thick that it could be cut with a knife. Aurora had attempted to make small talk several times, to bring their attention away from the assassination, but neither of her parents were in the mood.
Grey was busy conversing with Fallen Star, hypothesizing different methods to both increase Efficiency and Capacity faster. The modified version of Kim Jaehyun's Mana training, now dubbed Grey Light Mana training, in reference to the two modifiers, was an active technique, meaning that it couldn't be used constantly. He had things to do, after all. Also, Efficiency training, much like Capacity training, was active. His passive forms of both were incredibly slow, about as fast as a normal person doing their Capacity training.
'If only I could do the active training passively.' Grey sighed, lamenting his limits. While he knew he was incredibly gifted compared to normal, his goal was so far above them.
- Not even I can help you with that. Your body is close to finishing its development, and it is increasingly hard for me to modify your body. Last night's modification is the last one I'll be able to do for you. - Fallen Star informed.
'I see. For now, at least, I'll live without it.' Gret resigned himself to that limitation, focusing on more important matters. 'What can I do to ensure her safety?'
Grey looked over at Aurora, making a promise to do his best. They had only known each other for a few months, but Grey felt a genuine connection. He wasn't sure where they stood, nor could he say for sure about her feelings, but he knew something was there.
Luckily for him, he hadn't had a breakdown since his first Hunt, so he hadn't dreamt that terrifying nightmare. However, a stray thought crossed Grey's mind, wondering how his feelings for Aurora would measure up against the void of pain, anger, and sorrow that haunted him when he thought about his past.
He quickly tossed the thought away, not wanting to think of that, and buried himself in more thoughts. He pictured her face, finding it helped.
- He's made so much progress. - Fallen Star thought. In the beginning, simply a mention of anything related to his past broke him down, making him incredibly angry, but he was much better now, being able to draw his thoughts away from the pain. He had drowned himself in work as a child because he loved to do it, but as a being that resided in his soul, Fallen Star was more attentive to his inner emotions and thoughts.
He hated staying still; the memories it brought killed him on the inside. So, he buried himself in activities to keep his mind off the matter.
Emotions are as much a curse as they are a blessing, but having emotions and not being able to experience them fully was much worse.
---
They finished their food and exited the dining room. Anette led the group of four through the hallway, reaching a certain lamp and photo.
'Why are we here?' Grey wondered.
As if to answer his mental question, Anette pulled on the lamp hung on the wall, activating a chain reaction that resulted in a secret door opening.
Creak!
The door opened with a creak, leaving Grey and Aurora shocked, their mouths agape.
'Secret Entrance!' Grey cried, impressed. 'Awesome!'
'I didn't know this existed.' Aurora stated calmly. 'How many more are there?' She looked suspiciously at the walls, wary of the secrets they may hold.
Anette led the four in the room. It was made of four white walls, a white floor, and a white ceiling, making it incredibly hard to see the end. Anette navigated the room as if it were her own, having no difficulty in finding a certain spot.
She pressed the wall in front of her, causing the wall to shift, revealing several items. Hung on the wall were several vests and several weapons, alongside several earpieces. She grabbed one of each, handing them to Aurora.
"Your Highness, these are prototype Magicks from the dwarves. Hypothetically, the vest should dispel Magic below a certain level, the sword should be incredibly sharp when infused with Mana, and the earpiece should be undecryptable, indecipherable, however, you want to call it. Although you don't use a sword, anybody can swing one.
They've been tested extensively, but be careful. We're walking into a trap willingly, and we don't know the full details. Expect the unexpected, and don't place any hopes on these." Anette informed Aurora as she handed a set to each of the people in the room.
"We've made arrangements to have us surrounded at all times, but they may strike from anywhere. There'll be no reason to worry." She made an assurance to Aurora before walking out of the room.
Once all of them had left the room, Aurora closed the door the same way she opened it.
Grey who had stood at the side the entire time, was still doubting whether he should be there.
The night before, during dinner, Grey had brought up the idea of him staying behind, due to him potentially being baggage, however, Aurora had shot him down immediately.
'Nuh-uh. We've still got to hang out after the threat's dealt with, right?' Grey thought back to what she had said, smiling. Despite the risk to her life, she was still thinking about spending time with him. 'Still, she's got to be more serious. Thinking about that at a time like this.'
Grey put his vest on under his shirt and attached his earpiece, but then realized there was a problem.
"Uh, where do we put the sword? We have no way to hide it." A sword was a rather large, sharp, and pointy object, and there was no such thing as a Magic storage. Well, there was, Grey just didn't have enough Mana to realize it.
"Press the button on the pommel," Anette said with a smirk.
'Button on the pommel?' Grey held the sword, bringing the pommel to his face and inspecting it. In the very center, there lay a small hole with a button on it. The hole was much smaller than what Grey could reach into, so he used Mana to press it. Since everyone above a certain level could use Mana externally without an Element, he had nothing to worry about.
Upon being pushed, the sword split into sections, retracting into itself and shrinking into a dagger that could fit in his pocket.
"Impressive." He mumbled. 'The dwarves truly do deserve their reputation as expert inventors and manufacturers.
"So, are we ready to go?" The Queen asked. She clapped her hands with a smile on her face, looking more excited for the outing than worried about the threat. Clearly, she helped incredible faith in both herself, her husband, and their guards.
"Sure." Matteo nodded. He too looked forward to the outing, happy to spend time with his daughter outside of work. Of course, there was the looming threat of his daughter's death, but he wasn't worried. Again, he was one of the strongest people in the world, and very few could contest with him. If he was going to lose, there were very few who could cause him to do so.
Finally, after all their preparations, they stepped outside.
It was time for them to go have a day out.
---
"They're out." Through the static of the receiver, Raptor's voice could be heard. "Variable is with the target, and so are the King and Queen. I see the Bishop too."
"Fuck! That's not ideal, but it's within expectations. Stick to the plan, no changes." The leader's voice called out. "Crow, get in position."
The radio went silent for a moment, and a tapping soon rang out.
Tap- Tap- Tap-, Tap- Tap! Tap- ((A/N: This is morse, i think. it should mean 'ok'))
Three taps rang out, a second of space between them, and then another three rang out, several seconds later. The second pair of three was identical, however there was no space between the second and third tap.
"Good. Luce, are you ready?" The voice asked.
"Yes sir!" A cheerful voice rang out. Luce was clearly excited about this job.
"Alright, what about you Samor?"
"Done."
"Perfect." The man smiled. 'It's just me then.'