Arc 2: Noble City V: Malice at the Palace

Disclaimer: I don't own Gate or Nihon-koku Shoukan as it belongs to its rightful owners.

Arc 2: A City, A Diplomacy A Dragon

Noble City V: Malice at the Palace

"When does a nightmare appear? If you were to ask me, it could come any time, any place, and sometimes right in front if you don't stay alert, in a beautiful palace such as this, there is no guarantee that everyone is going to be safe."

Excerpt from New World Journal

It felt like an eternity walking along the empty and silent halls.

His footsteps were the only noise that echoed and walking passed each window that displayed the rays of the sun.

He decided that going after this alone was a good idea. He had the easy task of looking for a specific redhead that he had seen earlier at the gathering. He could simply ask any official palace staff member or maid about this, but after searching the halls, he found not even one.

Not a single soul greeted him.

"Alright, this is taking me nowhere, and practically I am lost." Yuji told himself" But don't let yourself get anxious, you'll eventually find your way out of here or someone will find me." He sighed, thinking of any solutions to his current situation.

Besides, not having his own walkie to contact the others, his only answer was to continue walking...So he did.

Some minutes passed and he was still in the same empty hallways.

"Maybe this was a bad idea." He groaned, showing signs of regret.

He continued on his way and entered the next corridor. It was different this time. Aside from the massive glass windows, the area was decorated with several artistic massive vases and grand statues. Could there be a single soul around here who could assist him?

Yuji took more observations and steps and he finally saw something that the other hallways did not have.

A simple wooden door.

For some reason, He couldn't move forward as his attention was shifting and curiosity was taking over. He took a brief examination of the door and his eyes were glued to a small signage just beside it.

He couldn't decipher those words yet there was a part of him that encouraged him to check on the door. He ultimately followed that side of him and grabbed the knob, which was surprisingly unlocked.

He carefully opened it, and something bizarre confronted him.

The room was some kind of quarters. Not for the servants or the maids but for the palace guards.

However, he raised an eyebrow when he noticed a group of female servants gathered in one area, their hearts pounding as they cowered from whatever was transpiring right now. The man didn't know what to do at first but quickly decided to approach them to find out the truth, but he was stopped by one of the servants, who subtly raised a hand and pointed in the opposite direction.

His eyes widened in horror as he noticed many of the guards convulsing and twisting as if some evil entity had possessed them. Some were clutching their throats as if they had just had a bad drink, which they had. Further investigation revealed a number of chalices on the floor with a red substance splattered all over them.

"No kidding." He muttered to himself.

Sensing the danger in the situation, Yuji immediately but gently closed the door to the little dining area, he then turned towards the servants and gestured for them to stand up and get them to leave the room as soon as possible. At first, they hesitated and even refused to move since all of them were forcibly brought here and threatened to be killed if they tried to escape. Yet, the loud crashes from behind the certain door had their panics set in.

"Look even if you stay here, they're still gonna kill you guys!" Yuji argued as calmly as he could.

His efforts eventually paid off. The young servants all agreed to follow his advice and leave the room. Yuji immediately dashed for the door and grabbed the knob, but as he opened it, a palace guard stood before him, eyes staring with hostile intent.

"What are you doing here!?" he hissed menacingly, startling the young man as he was grabbed by the collar and thrown to the ground.

The female servants squealed in terror as they tried to distance themselves from the palace guard, wanting to avoid possible harm.

Yuji cringed in pain and was surprised that the latter was strong to lift him in one hand. He brought his attention towards the palace guard who was still approaching him.

"You cannot be here!" He exclaimed again, drawing out his sword this time.

Now with a chance to end this quickly, Yuji was tempted again to draw his handgun but the palace guard was so quick that he proceeded to use his sword to slash him. The young man with his own quickness, immediately avoided the blade as he rolled toward his left.

The female servants were crying and yelling as the current situation was affecting their emotions while the frustrated Palace guard made another attempt to slash his target but failed to hit him once more.

As Yuji rolled to save his life, he collided with a wooden chair, which he quickly grabbed and used as a shield by the time the man stabbed him again. It worked, as he successfully blocked the sword, which only slightly penetrated the wooden surface.

A small struggle ensued.

However, one of the female servants had mustered up the courage to help as she stood and grabbed a small vase nearby. The servant screamed in rage as she charged at the uncontrollable guard and smashed the vase behind him. Although, it did only disrupt what he was currently doing giving time for Yuji to recover.

"You ungrateful wretch!" The guard yelled, with a demonic voice.

Fortunately, the female servant was not alone, as her peers gained confidence by grabbing objects that could be used as weapons. Some of them grabbed brooms, while others grabbed plates and pans. They all charged at the evil man, who was now caught off guard and began beating him until he lay fully on the ground.

"I'm sorry sir but we have to do this." He heard one of the servants remark, indicating that somehow they still cared for the men who used to protect the palace and keep the staff safe.

The Palace guard lay on the floor beat up and muttering gibberish words.

Yuji stood up and briefly examined the man if he could still inhumanly recover yet moments later a dark essence emerged from the man finally being freed from whatever was controlling him.

The young writer was perplexed for a few moments before snapping back thanks to the various menacingly loud voices coming from the other door. The next thing he knew, there was banging from the other side, which quickly made him realize.

"Okay, time to really get out of here."

He looked towards the palace servants and gestured them to leave again, all the girls nodded and rushed to the door as quickly as possible.

They found themselves back in the hallway and the servants began to flee in a certain direction.

At the very least, this was the ideal time to ask about the precise path back to the main palace lobby. However, that glimmer of hope was abruptly snuffed out.

The door swung open, revealing a swarm of palace guards, each holding a sword and looking around for something to kill.

Yuji and the female servants were briefly frozen in shock as they watched the hostile guards charging at them like savages. Luckily, the young man came to his senses and drew out the only handgun he had.

"Girls! Get out here while you can! I hold them off."

What a big and bold promise. As if this was not the first time he had done this. Of course, he had not killed a person before, so was the situation just forcing him to be this way?

"Shit!"

His mind was in a mess right now. If he did shoot and killed one of them, God knows what consequences would he have to face if everything did go back to normal. His hands were shaking and his time was running out.

Be killed or survive.

Though, in the midst of that, an object in the form of a small round crystal landed in between him and his attackers. The said round crystal glowed brightly before the magic inside of it was released thus a big flash of light engulfed the attackers as they were temporarily blinded.

"Move!"

Just then a voice shouted as a humanoid figure made its presence and entered the scene. One by one, the attackers fell to the ground as the mystery rescuer knocked all of them unconscious in a matter of seconds.

Yuji stood there in surprise as he slowly realized the identity of the person.

He heard her name once during the first meeting with the delegation.

" Ms. Parna?" He muttered in surprise.

As the light faded away, the young bunny warrior stood in the midst of the unconscious bodies of the palace guards as she turned towards the writer.

"Come on! We gotta hurry!" she yelled as she hurried towards him and tugged him to where she was headed.

"What the hell is going on!?" He asked, wanting to know some answers.

"There's no time to explain, but we have to reach it before it's too late."

Another cryptic and suspenseful statement. Whatever it is, it's definitely that important.

The situation was escalating as time passed by. Yuji had a feeling that this was just the beginning.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The New Order, they say, will mark the second restoration of the Principality's lost glory. Secret societies and movements with similar agendas have been a recurring scenario in the past; they attempted to work in the shadows but were always discovered and erased from history.

Only one triumph till the end and now they were on a smooth path towards achieving their dream.

The negotiations were no more and fully became a complete take-over of authority.

As both delegates remained in their seats, they found themselves being forced to watch what appeared to be an orientation of what was to come ahead.

"Why are they doing this?" Pina kept asking the question to herself. She was trying to comprehend the situation, it wasn't normal for the higher representatives of the principality to commit such actions, let alone do this to their own allies and people.

Even the Prime Minister and his Cabinet members were taken aback by the unexpected turn of events.

The elder elves were in a higher position to impose their own authority and appear as superiors. Moreover, they were eager to educate and enlighten the rest of the attendants present and what would be a good way to show them a forgotten but glorified ideology lost in history.

One of the brainwashed guards placed a small stone tablet on the table and drew out a small gem which he placed on a socket located in the middle. The magic flowed in and moments later, an essence manifested above it and what appeared to be moving images of a lost era.

The leader of the elves proudly smiled.

"I present to you what was once the lost glory of the principality!" He announced, like a proud teacher to his students.

What was shown in the magical image were the many accounts of armies in golden armor, ships of made metal, and thousands of dragons and wyverns which flew together in magnificence. Alongside the Principality, where countless kingdoms joined in order to fight a greater evil and finally fulfilling a thousand years of peace and prosperity. Besides that, in the center of all this glory was the superior light of the goddess that gave the spirit and hope. Qua-Toyne, all along was the blessed nation and what was once the anointed leader of the heavens and a symbol of hope.

Pina was silent." The old books..." She thought to herself.

"They were telling the truth." Her words were quickly followed by Hamilton's remarks.

The leader of the elves immediately noticed their reactions and he grinned deviously.

As the presentation had ended, the hall was put into a brief silence. The elder elves stood proudly as they expected the rest of everyone to be enlightened, especially, Sadera's delegation. Moments later, the same silence was broken as the controlled guards immediately gave rounds of applause and some even cheered.

Rinsui was disgusted the whole time.

The whole thing was basically rehearsed in front of his eyes, and attempting to manipulate the guards' minds is already deemed a violation of the privacy law.

"Do you really think that you could easily persuade us to join your cause?" He spoke, clearly not having everything presented a while ago." Who would really join you?"

"After what've you done at this moment..."

All eyes were on him.

The leader of the old council was amused." Of course, you must understand that this is the only way we could gather all of you to listen." He laughed." And this is the only way we could see this go on a peaceful approach." He explained his own side of the story.

"Peaceful...my arse!"

The old man swore for the first time, catching the attention of the young prime minister.

"I know you people have been planning this for a long time." He said, eyeing the elders intently." You are all desperate to change your image and I thank fate itself for siding with the truth and exposing how deluded you old elves are!"

His anger on the old council was finally released after many years.

Silence reigned once more.

There was something in his words that slightly changed the mood.

Pina had sensed it first as she observed the elder elves and their reactions.

The main leader of the council formed a smirk on his lips. He then eyed one of the so-called loyal guards and said." Bring that old man in front." He ordered with all the seriousness in his voice.

The guard accompanied by another one quickly headed to the latter's seat and forced him to stand up and after that immediately dragged him towards the front for everyone to see.

Prime Minister Kanata had enough and stood up in order to prevent his friend and surrogate uncle from being taken, but the other guards went to him and restrained him right away. The Cabinet members, who tried to resist received the same treatment.

The atmosphere in the room was tense, especially for the young representatives of the Saderan faction, who had been thrust into a situation they had never experienced before.

Hamilton was horrified yet did not fully show it while Pina tried to remain calm and became a little hesitant.

Her mind was in chaos as she had to choose whether to interfere and get herself involved in this mayhem or choose to remain in her seat and let the scene unfold, although, she knew what was the right action to take.

Meanwhile, Rinsui was thrown onto the floor and forced into his knees as the fiasco continued. The leader of the elves headed down the little stairs and came to face the old man.

It was a little stared down between the two old men.

There were no signs of Rinsui backing down even being held up by the guards who were once the protectors of the palace. His spirit remained strong and he was also in delight that their plans were disrupted.

He let out a smirk of his own.

"You're going to lose, Poidum..." He bravely remarked in front of the older elf."

The latter heard his name being mentioned as if it was just casual for the minister. That name was deemed holy and should be said carefully with the right tones.

He had indeed crossed the line.

Out of the blue, he raised up his hand and gathered magical strength, and slapped the old human on the cheeks which instantly caused a big bruise he then slapped him on the other side and grabbed him by the collar.

"I believe your words are too far-fetched." He remarked, before pushing him towards the floor.

He gave a small gesture as the guards heeded the order and continued to beat the old man up until he learned his lesson.

"Stop this at once!" Prime Minister Kanata exclaimed once again only to be ignored by them.

Tears were falling from Hamilton's eyes while Pina's desire to interfere and frustration were catching up.

Poidum devilishly smiled as he thought got his sweet little revenge.

It was now time for the next phase of the plan.

"Edwin!" He called the certain palace guard.

"Yes, sire!"

"Inform the rest of the men to retrieve it from its resting place." He gave the order only to receive silence from the guard.

"..."

"Is there something the matter?"

The latter slowly nodded.

"Then what is it!?"

Edwin could only take a deep breath and said."

"That's the problem sire, The Artifact...It's gone from its case when the men got there."

The elder elf's eyes widened in surprise." What!?

This could only mean one thing.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Once he had escaped the little horror show of him almost being killed by the palace, the silence that had filled the halls was back and it was somehow a relief. In exchange, he was forced to accompany her to several exclusive locations around the palace. Spots where the old-century-old construction may have had minor flaws.

Yuji knew the situation had changed but he didn't quite get the entire picture at it all.

He knew the guards were good people and somehow they were being controlled to an extent and magic was the obvious answer to this.

"It's quite complicated."

Then there was the young bunny woman herself, decked out in battle gear, preparing to sow the seeds of destruction by attaching a small tablet with an open socket to a specific wall and then inserting a tiny rune.

"It's not entirely magic but just a way for them to do their filthy work while keeping their hands clean." She explained, giving the writer a look." There are a lot of options that can control a person's actions against their will." She then continued." That being one of the most dangerous...and another."

The young man slowly nodded in understanding." I am guessing someone was generous enough to supply you with those potions?"

Quietness filled the small area they were in.

Parna let out a small smile." A friend shared the idea and in turn, I had the pleasure of doing the rest of the work." She confidently said.

"I guarantee, it's the only way they could be blinded by their arrogance and recklessness."

She recalled those words during the private meeting. Now, the next step was to finally destroy their plan's foundations. Hopefully, things will go smoother from now on.

Yuji raised an eyebrow as a question came up to his mind." Then why go this far as to involve almost everyone?" He said, ready to dig for more answers." From what I've learned, you're kind are experts on assassinating someone without even breaking a sweat."

A slight chuckle escaped from her.

What was that a compliment?

"Why didn't you just kill them right away in the dead of the night?" He wondered." Considering, you have all that time in your hands and a lot of chances."

Parna remained silent for a moment." I could do it if I wanted to..."She trailed off for a moment." Yet, for some strange reason, I thought of it as something only a coward would do."

"Yes, they are dead but they died along with their own devious secrets and agendas that they kept from everyone else." She explained, wanting to achieve that certain sense of justice." I know, I've done a lot of mistakes and made horrible acts in the past but now, I only could only dream of redemption."

There was a change in her heart.

It wasn't that easy but she was ready to face any consequences.

"You want to expose them," Yuji remarked, figuring out the gist of it.

Parna gave a glance before confidently smiling." Something like that." She replied, standing up as she drew out a certain brown leather pouch.

"Mr. Yuji...I believe that I could place my trust in you from now on." She looked at him in the eye, handing the pouch to him.

The young man looked at the object for a few moments before returning his attention to the latter. "Hey listen, I have no plans to set up those runes and tablets, and even if you teach me, I am not capable of using magic," he explained.

The bunny warrior just continued to look at him, before giving a small laugh.

"Apparently, I am finished with that task." She revealed, before adding." I only want you to honor me a small favor." Her eyes gave that warm and friendly feeling.

"Keeping a promise that is..."

The mood began to change.

Yuji slightly sighed as he eventually agreed to her small request." Alright, what's the small favor about?"

Parna gave a smile.

"I want you to protect this all cost...Keep it until this struggle is over."

"Even if my life is taken away, promise me that you will keep it safe from the wrong hands."

By then, the man felt a chill that went down his spine. The pouch carried a slight weight as he placed it inside his small bag.

He felt the little butterflies visiting him since he had a new responsibility, though was more curious about its true appearance. Yet, he chose to put that aside and focused on the next step ahead.

"So what's your next plan after setting up those runes?" He asked.

Parna turned her gaze towards the window which also included a good view of the building where the rest of the diplomats and delegations were currently residing.

A small smirk formed on her lips as she simply said.

"Probably, bringing those elves to their rightful place."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Once panic, frustration, and confusion had settled in, the entire hall descended into a little chaos.

In a familiar scene that mirrored much of daily life's most common acts, it was the oppressor against the suppressed. People fighting for their right to know the truth while getting no response from the other faction with the exception of them having to tell them to stay silent and behave.

That was not going to work.

"We demand answers!"

"What has happened to the Prime Minister!?"

"Let us go!"

So many questions were firing at once. Most of them were from the representatives and delegations who were at the top of their own frustrations.

If not for the rest of the guards blocking their way, the one in charge would have been already beaten to death.

He stood in front of the furious crowd attempting his best to calm them down.

"Everyone! I assure you that all of you will be enlightened by the truth." He said." It's just a matter of time for these doors to be opened and you will finally see the true vision that our beloved council has prepared."

It was definitely a cringeworthy moment.

"Hey, weren't those guys just giving us death threats before, and now they all wanna make friends?"

Carl had been observing the event for quite some time as the young man sat down on the floor with the rest of the squad, who are currently confined in a single area and being constantly watched by guards. Surely, he had an excellent grasp of what was going on with those men. He even recognized a number of these individuals with whom he had a good conversation during those dinner events. They were generally good people, but something happened that caused them to act in this manner.

Then a thought came to him that slightly gave him the creeps. Based on all his experience so far, the magic of this world is certainly strong, and that led him to realize the negative aspect of it.

"It's some form of dark magic but I am not sure how it was able to enter or influence the minds of these men."

He heard more remarks from the other delegations, specifically, One woman and a man dressed in old ancient but stylish robes and a blue cap on their heads, who were in the same position as him which also raised his interest in the subject.

"Excuse me, but you saw it too?" He asked, joining the conversation." I mean the black smoke that appears whenever they threw fits."

Startled by his presence, one of the two representatives gave a small gesture, telling him to keep his voice down."

"Oops sorry..." Carl whispered, this time laying low even more." I almost forgot they're still watching." He gave a nervous grin.

The woman sighed in return." Yes, It's not that difficult to distinguish the type of magic these men are affected by." She explained, before noticing the man's overall appearance, and that made her realize which land he came from.

"Nevermind..."

The American Ranger nodded in understanding." I see but do you guys have any clue how to turn them back to normal?" He asked, pointing to a palace guard." I mean can that dark magic thing erase a person's memories?" He elaborated, trying to make his case heard." Because I met that guy a lot of times and He didn't even recognize me."

The two glanced at each other before both shaking their heads with uncertainty.

"The truth is...We don't know yet."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Was there ever a time they looked away from the crowd or got distracted?

Itami had been wondering for the past several minutes, being one of the spectators watching small clashes between guards and delegations.

He couldn't believe that some were attempting to take a risk in order to know answers that these people wouldn't even get.

The sudden switch to hostile treatment and the way those guards played around is something that they would never really do. The idea of the Prime Minister being the one responsible for this action is highly unlikely as he didn't see any sign of suspicious behavior or bad intentions from him during the previous meeting, his cabinet officials were even attentive and showed care, rare qualities that the politicians back in his world don't have. The only ones that bothered him were the old elves that were also present during that time and when the Demi-Goddess nearly broke them emotionally, it helped him clear his doubts.

"What's really going on?" His thoughts were broken by a familiar voice from behind.

Representative Tanaka had quietly wondered.

Instead fear taking over, there was confusion and concern that filled his eyes.

"I hope everyone inside the meeting hall is alright." He said quietly, observing the environment around him.

In all his life of serving in the diplomatic world, this was the first time he had been in a scenario much like this. He looked to his right and saw his American counterpart, who was just quietly sitting on a lone chair and seemed to be in deep thought.

"Tanaka-san, is everything alright?"

The Japanese lieutenant had entered the scene and voiced out his concern.

The Representative slightly smiled and slowly nodded." Yes, Itami-san." He replied, before following his question.

"Any word on the prime minister, or did those guards give you any updates on the ongoing meeting?" he asked, his voice lowered.

Itami shook his head." None, apparently, we tried to negotiate them out for answers but they only told us to be patient for the enlightenment." He explained.

"Enlightenment? What do they mean by that?"

"No clue, they've been giving us the same answers for almost an hour now."

Tanaka scratched his head and became more bewildered.

"None of this doesn't make any sense."

"Although, there is a couple of news I could share," Itami said, causing the man to raise both his eyebrows.

"Brian-san is still trying to contact the control room but the bad reception is getting in the way, so it may take some time to inform the others and also HQ." He explained.

"I see and the second one?"

Itami sighed, this was something that bothered him a little.

"Some of the other delegations are hatching a plan to distract the guards and escape."

"You know that's a really bad idea," Tanaka's expression changed as he commented, and he looked around the area to see if any action had been taken. Even so, the palace guards maintained control.

Itami did the same as the tension was growing faster.

"I know sir, the situation is getting uglier by the second."

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

It's been a stressful hour since the tables have turned and the guards began their campaign on treating everyone as hostages.

The conflict between the two factions grew more heated as the top brass kept putting up threats toward the furious crowd. Threats that strangely appeared to be mixed with care and assurance.

"Halt what you're doing or face the consequences! We have already informed you that all your lives are in good hands if you just let your patience settle in."

"Don't you people understand!? The New Order will honor your request if you all just behave."

In the middle of the growing tension, Lieutenant Brian found a small refuge from behind one of the huge pillars which kept the roof of the halls together. The man took a deep breath as he continued to talk through the small walkie as well as the earpiece which the guards surprisingly failed to confiscate. Communication was their only possible hope of escaping this mess.

"Al, This is Brian...Do you copy?"

"Al...Crap!"

He quietly swore as he tried to find a way to get a good signal amidst the continuous static sound ringing through his ears.

How fortunate for him that recent tensions resulted in an advantage for him to go under the radar as the event had caught most of the palace guards' attention.

Yet his only setback was time itself.

His eyes glanced back and forth from the walkie and towards his main surrounding to see no guard patrolling spot to his relief.

Brian looked down once more and continued to fix the little error that the device was experiencing.

In a rare moment, a part of him prayed for a miracle in these desperate times, and not too long, he was reaching the light of day.

The static noise was fading away and he could hear the clearness of the sound.

He had now the chance to talk as the signal was back.

"Al, can you hear me?" He spoke and waited once again.

The sound reacted and a faint voice emerged.

"Br- Is that y-"

The man's eyes lit up, somehow it worked.

Although, as he was about to speak for the second time, a furious and unfamiliar voice beat him to it.

"This way!"

Brian immediately hid his device and stood up straight, putting aside his act. This time the scene he witnessed was different as a large group of guards emerged from the main door from the entrance heading towards a certain direction.

"Find her and retrieved the artifact!"

"Kill her if you must!"

Orders were being barked once more.

Something had definitely happened.

Sensing that he was still safe from being detected, the Californian lieutenant went back to his device and began contacting the control room again.

"Al, this Brian, if you can hear me, I want you to contact HQ and tell them to-"

Yet another setback arrived this time he saw a bright flash of light followed by a series of loud explosions that caused the entire surroundings to tremble.

Everyone's attention had shifted and the tension immediately died. The palace guards who were heading towards the only exit were greeted by one of those explosions as the large doors were instantly destroyed by another mysterious blast.

Panic quickly set in and thick black smoke began to cloud the entire halls.

It was not too long that someone would have realized that this was their chance to escape and almost immediately more members of the delegations made the run for it, although some decided to duck down on the floor in hopes of avoiding the chaos.

Apparently, Itami had decided to take that action as he quickly brought the Japanese and American diplomats toward the ground.

Meanwhile, the leader of the palace guards began barking orders once more.

"Don't let them escape! Kill them if they resist!"

It was those words that brought horror to the ears of the Alnus envoy as this was now a game of survival.

The dark essence that was emitting from the palace guards became stronger and made them more animalistic and aggressive.

"Carl!" He tried to call out his fellow coalition member amongst the thick smoke, traversing through the growing stampede.

"Damn, this is so fucked up already..." Brian couldn't help but swear to himself. He had to take immediate action as he moved his eyes in locating a certain object.

Moments later, he caught a shade of green laying on the floor surrounded by broken chairs.

It was that specific bag containing the ammo, a couple of small handguns, and certain devices that he instructed Carl to hide and keep safe from the hostile guards.

"You there! Where are you going!?"

Amidst the chaos, a palace guard had taken notice of him.

"Shit!" Brian exclaimed as he quickly made a dash to that certain spot.

Much to his dismay, the guard drew his sword and also made a charge to chase him, and strangely, the man was enveloped by the same dark essence and was now catching up to him faster than he expected.

As he was about to reach his destination, Brian made a dive in time to grab the bag, immediately opening it as much ammo was now scattered on the floor. His eye caught a glimpse of a small handgun, quickly grabbed it.

Ammo was the only thing he need but he suddenly found himself looking at his enemy who was now on its way to slash him with the sword.

"Die!"

Seeing this, Brian reacted and immediately rolled over to evade the attack, successfully grabbed ammo nearby, and was able to reload in time.

As the enemy now took a more demonic appearance, the man had no choice but to pull the trigger and take the shot.

He knew he was going to regret this but at the same time, a part of him took over and gave him hesitation to shoot the man, so he decided to try a different way and aim down instead.

He pulled the trigger, firing the shot that instantly hit the guard's right leg, slowing him down but not putting him down on the floor. The man did not even feel the pain.

Brian was semi-surprised and eventually decided to smack the guard in the head using the handgun and that fully took him down to the ground.

As the guard lay there unconscious, the small dark essence emerged from him and disintegrated in the air.

The man witnessed this and an idea came up to him.

"Get over here!"

"Please don't hurt him!"

"Help!"

At the same time, his attention had shifted toward the rest of his surroundings and saw numerous scenes of palace guards dragging away the helpless diplomats to be punished and tortured.

He wanted to contact Lieutenant Itami and Carl to inform them to keep their own diplomats in safer hands, but something convinced him to fully trust them and their responsibility, so he didn't bother using the earpiece and walkie this time around.

Amidst the stampede and the thick black smoke, Brian pulled out a small set of goggles from the bag and immediately wore them. He pressed the small switch thus revealing all the heat signatures of the now brainwashed fiendish palace guards, who were about to perform their own atrocities. Lastly, he drew again from the bag and took a small tube, attaching at the tip of his weapon.

Seeing through the black smoke and with a determined look, Brian gripped his gun and proceeded to pursue his main objective.

As the chaos continued, multiple shots rang across the entire hall.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Welcome to your life

There's no turning back

Even while we sleep

We will find you"

"Acting on your best behavior

Turn your back on Mother Nature

Everybody wants to rule the world"

The song began to play.

Despite the humid weather, things were going smoothly in the control room. Who would have guessed that the guest house had its own portable air conditioner in the form of large table-like stones scattered throughout the premises? One can be found in the control room itself. Although Al was still unfamiliar with such magical devices, the Demi-Goddess herself was kind enough to assist him in activating one.

Once Rory placed the rune on the empty socket, the whole room was immediately overwhelmed with fresh coolness.

"Damn, feels like I'm back at the HQ." The man remarked recalling how cold were the air conditioners back at the main base, relaxing in his seat as he resumed the usual job of managing the monitors.

Small cameras were secretly installed in various locations of the guest house and its surroundings. Moreover, the team tried to install cameras in the main palace yet they were unable due to the tight security of the place. Thus they put the plan aside and temporarily depended on radios for communication.

Yet there was this tiny recurring problem.

Al was baffled as to why he hadn't received any updates from the two teams assigned to their missions. The last radio messages came from the Escort Team that accompanied Lelei and Tuka in the main district, recalling how Kurata's excited voice told him that they had finally found the elf girl's childhood friend or possibly her boyfriend.

It had been almost an hour and a half of waiting and he was getting worried every second passed.

He felt compelled to leave the room and set out on his own to the main palace to assess the current situation, as he awaited a response from Brian and the rest of the delegation. Nonetheless, he remembered the man's instructions to stay in the room no matter the circumstances and to keep the main base up to date.

As he tried to comprehend his thoughts, a certain Rory had entered the scene.

"Everything alright dear?" Her voice brought him back to reality.

Al shook his head." Uhmm, Yeah, just wondering what things I'm going to do for the rest of the time." He explained."Don't wanna be bored to death ya know.."

The Oracle giggled in response, observing the man as she finished making another cup of camomile tea. By then, she smiled and said." I have suspicions that you might be bothered by your thoughts, although, I might ask for a small favor." She informed him.

The man slightly nodded." Sure, ...What's it all about."

"When that "Time" finally arrives, promised me that you'll do everything in your power to keep the people in this palace safe."

Al blinked as he was left speechless by her words. " What does she mean by that?"

Rory continued to smile placing her full trust in him. "You will eventually find out." She finished her words, finally taking a sip of her tea.

The man had many questions and he wanted to clarify if she was making another prophecy, but at the same time, a loud static sound was heard and a voice emerged from the radio.

"Base camp! Do you read me? Are you there?"

"This is Higashi from the Escort Team speaking."

The voice turned out to be from Higashi himself.

Al quickly resumed command and got the radios working.

"Copy, This is Al, Mr. Higashi any updates on the situation?"

He asked, his heart beating faster every second.

"We ran into a little trouble in the city, If Captain Itami is still there, please inform them immediately and tell him that-"

The conversation ended abruptly and the man never got to finish his message.

"Mr. Higashi, Do you copy!?"

He waited for another response and surprisingly, one came out but a different yet familiar voice altogether.

Al! Do you copy?"

The man said through the radio, who seemed to be in the middle of great distress.

"Heard you clear! Brian is that you?"

He liked to believe that his message was smoothly sent, yet he got a different response.

"Al, this Brian, if you can hear me, I want you to contact HQ and tell them to-"

The message had ended from there, replaced with another static sound.

The stress was definitely real.

"Oh please not again!" Al almost cursed but held this tongue in control. Apparently, the signal was on a downward spiral yet again.

Was this the best time to contact Main Headquarters right away?

By this time, another event had reached him, and a series of thunderous explosions rocked one of the main palace buildings, causing the ground to tremble for a few moments.

"What the hell was that?" Al remarked, looking in the direction where the lone window was located, and caught a glimpse of black smoke emerging from one of the buildings.

He was aware that something was wrong, and that the situation had changed. His first instinct was to see how Rory was doing, and he was not expecting to find her still relaxed while enjoying a cup of tea and playing with her gaming device.

"Ms. Rory..." He mentioned her name.

The Demi-Goddess, who was also aware of the developing scenario, wore this amused expression and could only voice her own thoughts on the subject.

"Oh my...It looks like we're ahead of schedule."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The silent horizon was definitely deceiving. A morning sky herald was something that gave everyone a fresh start.

In the seas, small boats set up on a small journey to fish, just near the coastal areas of the land, they waited as their nets were thrown underwater.

The fishermen were greeted with a hopeful day as they spent the rest of the morning in high spirits. Though, little did they know that all of it was about to change. From one of the small boats, a boy and his father, sailed through the bay to find the spot where most of the fish thrive at this hour. Along the way, they were provided with a beautiful horizon as well as a view of the port city.

"Father, do you think we'll be able to attend the celebrations after we are done with our task?" The boy asked, observing the walls and watch towers nearby.

The fisherman smiled." Well, as long as the fish are cooperating then it is possible." He said as he threw the nets on the waters.

The boy nodded as he shifted his focus to a different view. He looked up towards the sky as he could feel that something was odd.

It was eerily peaceful and yet, there was this sense of urgency that slowly filled his mind. From the skies itself, he noticed a small dot that had passed by the clouds and towards the direction where the port city was located.

"Is everything alright boy?" His father called him out." You seem quiet today."

The wind grew stronger thereafter.

The boy couldn't think of a way to explain his thoughts and only said." Nothing Father, just wondering about the celebrations."

"I hope everything will be alright there."

AN: Hey there! It's been quite a while since the last chapter, apparently, this chapter is a replacement for the Original Document which somehow got corrupted. Mind, it was a 17k-20k word chapter that included scenes and events from the Palace and City districts itself, leading up to the main arrival. The OG chapter also included scenes of the great Gordon Ramsay doing his stuff so yeah. Moreover, real life manage to catch up and I had no choice but to put writing aside and focus more on my job. Along the way, I kinda lost the motivation to write but I always did try to push myself whenever there is free time.

So far, the 6-month delay, kinda made me rusty, and I couldn't write 10k word chapters (It's energy-draining, to be honest) So I had no choice but to cut the chapter in half and rewrite the scenes all over again (Which was also tough). Along the way, I did pick up some fire(After revisiting positive reviews, chapters, and of course people still reading the story) and pushed myself to write more until I got a plot structure for the replacement chapter. So here it is, a bit more leaning into the action side and character interactions. The whole thing about the guards sometimes doing some pretty weird stuff is mainly due to the dark magic-filled potions' incomplete and badly made properties.

Brian using the thermal goggles is an idea that came at the last minute.

The next chapter ahead will possibly focus more on the City district side and then back towards the palace and then the beginning of the climax.

With that said, Thank you so much for understanding and for your support as well. I really appreciate it!