Make no mistake. None of these people are weak as in they are incompetent, but they are easy to exploit. She studied every dark magic she could find and even a few hints from Ryota himself.
She could tell by the guards' skills that they are negligent in training. The corruption involving their guards are evident. They have soft hands and even soft builds for a soldier and their movements are sloppy. Their shadow manipulation is still a pain in her ass though. Despite being at war with another island country, not everyone in the country has ever trained or is ever conscripted into the war.
*
She analyzed the shadows as she fought against the users. They are visible no matter how dim the light source is, but the range is affected. They are heavily dependent on light. She found Norman in an underground dungeon, but it gave her no illusion of safety as the luminous stones provide unlimited light. Using Zelel's grimoire, she learns how to eradicate light as long as she silently repeats a mantra in her head every minute which is also a pain.
Amy stared blankly as she had her wounds rewrapped by Lisa, who looks both apologetic and grateful. She is in an even worse mess after rescuing Norman. Her body is bruised and cut, and she is extremely tattered and dirty. In fact, she is so tired that she is being catered like she is back at the mansion and none of them even have to do this. They are thanking her. Her muscles hurt, her wounds hurt, everything hurts. She is also completely drained of power and magic. As for Norman, Lisa never left her side since she teleported back with him. Even though she is currently out of it, she could pretty much guess that she is too pissed off at him to even want to see him.
After all, it took two whole days for Amy to find him, fight through the security and teleport back to the boat with him and apparently, this is the easiest way to get through to him. The underground was as large as the surface but more difficult to navigate and finding secret entrances through this mess is a nightmare and an impossible task while fending off so many people.
Despite the experience, she looks forward to coming back, hopefully in good terms. Ryota had made a promise to her that if she were to return, she will never have to go through with that again.
It had puzzled her even though the fighting.
*
She stared at Ryota with a serious expression, "You know if I succeeded, you might be punished if your involvement is discovered. I don't want to implicate you."
Ryota smirked, "Don't worry about me. I may be banished but no one is going to execute me."
"You are sure as hell confident about yourself. Why is that?"
"I am a former general. I heard that the war effort isn't going well for my successor."
"Don't put all your eggs in one basket. You need to think for a moment. You might be killed by your enemies."
"Amaryllis," Ryota says in a reassuring voice, "I am not in a position where my enemies can attack me. They let me do whatever I want as long as I don't get involved in military matters or politics. Even if I am set to die, I will not leave my country."
Amy could see that he's serious. Whether it is due to confidence or loyalty is unclear.
"The greatest weakness of Islanders are quite clear. No one knows magic like you do so their ignorance is your advantage."
"What exactly are you planning?"
Ryota had a small smile on his face. Both are at an understanding about something even without words. She was suspicious of his stock in weapons in a hidden place while he is in exile.
Let's just say that after your mission, things will start to change for the better the next time you come visit.
*
It was because of him that she got inside and got out. He isn't against stopping her and even encouraging her to go rescue Norman without asking much in return, only that she would come back to the island one day. She continues to trust him because he had shown no sign of betraying her nor not giving her any reason to not trust him. It may be wishful thinking, but their goals align. He didn't need to say it. She already knew; the hidden weapons stock, the nonchalant lazy persona he adopted, and his skills and knowledge cannot fool her. It is common for nobles to fake their personalities for their own safety and reputation, but they have to be smart about it, in order to make it convincing to fool everyone even themselves.
He's planning a coup.
The question is how far this man's ambition goes.
Lisa put her on the bed, getting her comfortable and ready for bed. Amy cannot move. She is far worse pain than she did as a kid who began training and went too far.
Amy wished she had more time to plan and explain to the others before she decided this. To make matters worse, she has to drink that potion again multiple times, so she hasn't slept at all either. Her stomach wasn't ruined like last time, but she had a strong urge to vomit and miss eating solid food during those two days. All of these people that are guarding the area are not soldiers, so Ryota assured her that they are actually quite weak, but the numbers just keep coming. She did her best not to actually kill anyone but incapacitate them, but she honestly couldn't make any promises.
*
Ryota saw the ship disappearing in the horizon while he is shaving his stubble. Good, she escaped.
"Goodbye, my young student. I didn't know you for long, but I know that we'll meet again."
Then two men appeared behind him: a young boy and a man around his age.
"General, all the remaining guards have been taken care of. We can storm in whenever we want." The man said.
"And her ladyship and the young master as safe as well." The boy said but his face grimaced.
Good. Everything is going to plan.
"I don't understand. You have so much faith in a young girl who is younger than me." The boy said, "How is beating the guards prompting us to start early?"
Ryota smirked confidently as he cleaned himself. "From the moment I met her, she excluded energy more powerful than any human, including the ones who came with her. Her aura is so blinding that it affects everything around her and if she desires to, she can reshape the world. Even my brother who is known as the Kin-oh cannot compare to her."
"I wish I could meet someone like that." The man said.
"You will one day. I promise to introduce her to the island without this stupid food rule and without any need for conflict. The reason why our soldiers are so lax and lazy is because Shou is too weak. They are at the brink of asking for surrender now, but they are preparing for a counterattack while the new general is doing nothing about it. Now," he turned to his subordinate, "Are the men ready?"
"Yes, Prince Yato."
Ryota grabbed a haori with a silver three-legged crow insignia; a symbol given to Ran's royal family and a sword at his hip. His still faced expression changed into a wide smirk.
"We're heading to the palace everyone. The day we're waiting for is finally here."