Why would MI9 agents be here? Even if they got the location of the manuscript from that little brat, they couldn't have arrived this quickly…
Rosago, the "Marionettist," saw two women, one tall and one short, emerge from the shadows, blocking his way forward. A cascade of thoughts flashed through his mind, and he couldn't help but wonder: Could this all be a trap set up by MI9 to ambush me?
Yet, he soon dismissed the idea, realizing there were only two of them and no additional agents lurking in wait.
They must have a magical item with some sort of "spiritual travel" capability to arrive so quickly. Yes, my earlier divination indicated some danger, but it was within tolerable limits…
Relieved, Rosago decided to strike first. His "Wind-blessed" marionette floated upward, summoning over a dozen "wind blades" that sliced toward the spirited woman.
Meanwhile, Rosago himself kept his defenses up, attempting to manipulate the "spiritual strings" of the petite woman in the golden mask.
His intuition told him that the spirited woman was the true threat, so he planned to have his marionette keep her busy, while he would attempt to control the petite woman first, turning the fight into a three-on-one.
But as he advanced, the petite woman kept retreating, maintaining a distance of more than ten meters from him, and continuously firing spiritual bullets in his direction.
She's keeping her distance on purpose… They know I'm a "Marionettist"? Do they even know my range? Who could have leaked this? Even the embassy doesn't know my abilities in such detail… Was it the Hidden Order?
Dodging the bullets with the agility granted by his "Clown" abilities, Rosago tried to close the distance again, only to fail once more. He frowned and began considering a retreat.
At the same time, the spirited woman evaded his wind blades, pointed to the "Wind-blessed" marionette, and solemnly declared, "No flying here!"
In an instant, an invisible force bound the marionette, and the whirlwind beneath it started to falter, struggling to support its weight.
The woman's expression grew stern, and she spoke again in Ancient Hermes:
"Those who disobey shall face judgment!"
A gleam of dawn-like radiance appeared on her body, even illuminating her clenched fist.
Thud!
The spirited woman's tall figure shot forward like a spear, closing the distance to the Wind-blessed marionette with frightening speed. Her fist, imbued with unseen strength, punched out and shattered the air, striking the marionette down from the sky with inevitable precision.
Crack! Crack!
The marionette's ribs and spine snapped audibly. If it hadn't been a marionette, this would have taken a significant toll on its life.
Seeing this, Rosago snapped his fingers, unleashing invisible air bullets straight at the spirited woman. She dodged deftly, sidestepping the assault.
Taking advantage of the moment, Rosago tried to recall his injured marionette to his side for treatment, lest its damage hamper him in the battle.
But just then, he saw in his mind's eye the petite woman's pupils gleaming with a blinding flash of lightning.
"Mental Piercing!" An Interrogator!
Recognizing the technique, Rosago scrambled to counter it. He divided his focus, directing his Wind-blessed marionette to delay the approaching woman with a flurry of wind blades while he pulled a pitch-black mask from his pocket and put it on.
The mask had been loaned to him by the ambassador, a special item crafted to counter mental attacks, knowing MI9 agents would likely be "Arbiter" enemies.
Crack. A thin fissure appeared on the black mask, barely holding off the Mental Piercing.
But then came a whip of pure agony…
Snap!
The intensity of this "Whip of Pain" far exceeded a typical Sequence 7's ability. The black mask reached its limit, shattering in two and falling from Rosago's face.
They're using magical items now? Rosago's resolve wavered, and he realized this unplanned encounter was putting him in a dangerously disadvantageous position. Though his divination had deemed this danger within his tolerance level, there was no guarantee he would come out on top. His life was more valuable than any mission.
Finally abandoning the mission to retrieve the manuscript, Rosago decided not to even recover his Wind-blessed marionette—it had lost all ability to function and would only weigh him down.
Taking out a scroll from his pocket, he tore it open and chanted in Ancient Hermes. A "fire raven" materialized, darting off in a blaze toward the distance.
Rosago snapped his fingers repeatedly, using the tiny specks of light created by the fire raven to "jump" himself away, vanishing from the women's sight in the blink of an eye.
The petite woman was, of course, Xio. Before the mission, Ebner had briefed her about a potential encounter with a "Marionettist," detailing the abilities of that Sequence. This had allowed her to maintain a safe distance from Rosago, denying him any opportunities.
Xio, however, had expended a good deal of spiritual energy after activating the "Whip of Pain" ability from her Golden Mask, so she hadn't been able to stop Rosago's retreat in time.
After meditating briefly to regain some energy, Xio glanced at her spirited, tall companion with a hint of confusion, sensing that she might have intentionally held back.
The spirited woman, Vera, pretended not to notice Xio's look and offered a mild explanation: "Subduing a 'Marionettist' isn't easy. Better to let him retreat on his own than risk a full-scale battle."
She nodded at the broken-boned Wind-blessed marionette nearby, adding with a smile, "Besides, we didn't walk away empty-handed. We can use this to help ease relations with the Storm Church."
You're the Highness; what you say goes… Xio shrugged indifferently and then followed Vera into the location where Ian had indicated the manuscript was hidden.
After disarming a few spell traps, Vera retrieved a stack of crisp, clean letter paper. Eyeing the manuscript she had painstakingly obtained, she remarked, "This is a copy; the original has already been taken."
"A fake?" Xio leaned in for a closer look but retreated quickly, defeated by the strings of formulas that made no sense to her.
"No, the information on it is genuine," Vera replied, tucking the manuscript away. "It seems someone transcribed the original and left it here… Looks like there's a third party in play besides us and Intis."
"But doesn't the value of something like this depend on how few people know about it? Why would a third party leave it?" Xio asked, puzzled.
"Maybe the manuscript itself isn't their real goal…" Vera replied cryptically.
…
Elsewhere in a card room at a dockside bar, the man who had met with the "Witch" Bianca packed a messy stack of paper, the manuscript, into an antiquated box. Summoning a messenger, he handed the box over.
After the tall, menacing messenger vanished, the man exhaled a sigh of relief and muttered, "With the original, the Lord should be able to divine Helmocine's whereabouts…"
…
Back in the Intis embassy, the Witch Bianca and the Constellations Master Cotton Surrey were crouched over Bakerland's corpse, inspecting the cause of death.
Their colleagues, led by the Sequence 6 Wind-blessed, had already left in pursuit of the assassin, though everyone knew it was too late and hope was slim.
"The ambassador's spiritual energy was depleted… Signs of losing control are present… He seems to have been tricked or hypnotically influenced… Then there's clear mental trauma, likely from an 'Interrogator's' 'Mental Piercing'… Then came the Witch's black flames… and the fatal blow, a wind blade. It wasn't particularly strong, but by that point, the ambassador's condition was already poor…" Bianca muttered as she examined the body, biting her lip.
"That makes at least four different extraordinary abilities…" Cotton Surrey, standing up, muttered to himself.
Suddenly, he glanced at Bianca uncertainly and said, "Could it have been the Shepherd?"
Bianca frowned, silent for a few seconds, before replying, "Or maybe a group… At least four different people."
"Then we're all facing disciplinary action!" Cotton Surrey denied the Shepherd theory, adding with a pointed look at Bianca, "Unless there was an inside man."
Bianca's brows shot up, and she snapped, "What are you implying?"
"Nothing, I'll just be reporting my observations…" Surrey responded mildly, moving on to say, "Regardless, the Shepherd remains a prime suspect. The Aurora Order are all madmen, capable of anything! Perhaps we should start with the infamous A of the hidden circles? Damn it, the Kingdom of Loen won't let us conduct our own investigation!"
"Those damned lunatics from the Aurora Order…" Bianca, relieved that Surrey wasn't pushing blame onto her, clenched her fists in frustration.
Regardless of the truth, the embassy's officers would certainly face repercussions… especially someone like her, whose background wasn't spotless.
…
Back in his villa at 28 Kinster Street, Cherwood, Ebner sealed his bedroom with spirituality, then began chanting the "Fool's" honorifics to report Bakerland's death.
Knowing that Klein was likely preoccupied with Sharon's watchful presence, he recited his prayer only a few times before stopping.
…
Under the cover of night, Rosago, having escaped using "Flame Leap," oriented himself and headed toward Minsk Street.
With the manuscript mission botched, he'd need to make sure to complete the other task the ambassador had given him, if only to have something to show for it.
(End of Chapter)