Hajin planted a stylus beside the six defensive perimeters marked on Ferra's citadel model while his companions gathered around.
The model forced every specialist to own a lock instead of trusting one spectacular strike to open the palace.
The contracted palace loomed in miniature at the center of the slate map, ringed by six distinct defensive perimeters.
Every specialist in the squad stood around the table, their breath rising in thin plumes within the morning air.
"The royal court relies on six interlocking protections to punish any uncoordinated assault," Hajin began, tracing the outer boundary with a stylus.
"If we send the wrong specialist against the wrong layer, the backlash will rebound through the captive districts!" he warned with sharp emphasis.
"And there is a seventh element," Rumi added, stepping forward with her twin lynx ears perked toward the ceiling.
"The mountain road!" Nari chimed in beside her, tapping the open plateau marked beyond the western ridge.
