Marshall stopped in his tracks, his hand hovering on the door handle. Wyn's words rang in his ears, bringing back the feeling of failure the night his plan turned against them. He sighed and closed his eyes, taking a moment to compose himself.
"That was different," he said, turning back to face the deity. "It was inside the Chastity Tower, where everyone knew my face. And the plan went wrong because I didn't know enough about demonic energy."
"Are you confident you know enough about Gi Gaia?" Wyn countered.
"Confident enough," Marshall replied, keeping the snow deity's gaze. "She's unpredictable, but I know her tendencies well. If she's going to run, she'll definitely head to Lou. And she has the Smaragdine Lily on her."
Elysia stepped between Marshall and the main door. "You should listen to Chioni Wyn. Why don't we think this through? If you move too fast, you might slip up."
"That's why I'm going alone this time. I don't want anyone else to take the fall in case anything goes south," he moved to push past her.
"No, wait," she grabbed his arm. "I broke into the archives without a plan, and look where it got me! You heard my story, so don't make the same mistake."
The disciple's brows knitted together as he stared at the distraught expression on Elysia's face. He understood her worry, but he had to be fast with this. It was better to jump in and figure the details out later than to miss the right time to act.
"You are about to act based on nothing but your assumption that Gi Gaia left Sky Oriels," Wyn's voice reverberated through the hall with a firm resolve. "Not only do you not have a plan, you have no solid proof of her destination either. Slow down."
Marshall bit into his cheek hard as he stared at the snow deity. While he was glad to have Wyn back, it had been very peaceful without anyone grilling him. But it was for the best. If no one doubted his plans, he wouldn't have felt the need to come up with fleshed-out explanations.
"I might have no proof, but waiting won't make any evidence float to the surface," Marshall remarked.
Sun Hayden, who had kept his distance once the tension rose, posed an urgent question, "Marsh, what if the Stygian Overlord decides to go to Lou Sect next due to its crystal collections?"
"Then that's another reason I should go, to get to Lou before the Overlord does," Marshall used his friends question to argue his case.
Elysia tugged him away from the door. "But it's dark outside, it'll be hard to see. At least wait for the morning."
"Yeah, demons are active right now. I know you have the power to stop them, but still..." Sun Hayden joined, coming to drag the disciple upstairs to get dissipate the rigid energy in the main hall. "Let's sleep and then go together! You weren't actually going to leave us behind, were you?"
Marshall pressed his lips together. At the moment, he was, in fact, going to leave alone. The year in Liangdu had equipped him with the necessary information to get around there.
But it was undeniable that having the Liangdu disciple with him would have been useful. No one could beat a fish in a swimming race. But if he brought Sun Hayden, he might as well bring Wyn and Elysia too.
With a slow nod, he made a decision. "We'll head out with the sunrise."
He looked at the blond disciple, recalling the previous day, "And in case I'm knocked out, you better wake me up this time."
"Yeah, yeah, I will," Sun Hayden smacked him towards the stairs. "Enough talking! Let's go to bed or I will fall asleep while standing up."
Elysia interjected, "What about Lai Rylan and Young Dame Calla?" She picked at her fingernails. "Are we going to leave without informing them? We should at least wait until the next meeting."
Marshall's gaze swept over the hall, pausing at the pile of notes on the desk. "I'll leave them a note. I bet their lives will be easier with us off their backs for a while."
Sun Hayden snickered, jesting, "Definitely! They'll be happy to get more time to spend alone. A budding romance might finally bloom into a full flower, hehe!"
"What romance are we talking about? I've only seen them chat here and there," Marshall countered. "And even if there was anything going on, Lai Rylan is the type to take his affections to grave."
"Augh, you don't know anything!" Sun Hayden waved, scowling as if he found the claim absurd. "Bachelors shouldn't open their mouths when it comes to romance!"
Marshall scoffed, his mouth opening in disbelief. "What bachelor? I'm not even twenty!"
The yellow robes rustled as he walked away, "Let's talk again when you get some dating experience, Mister Too Busy To Date!"
"What do you mean I don't know anything? I've been on dates before!" Marshall followed him up the stairs, complaining.
"Oho, you think that counts? You go on one date with a girl, then decide you don't like her, and rip out the roots before a bud can form," Sun Hayden hummed teasingly, skipping steps, running out of Marshall's reach. "Have you even kissed before?"
"Look at you speculating. Now that it comes to romance, suddenly you have all the energy, eh?" Marshall nudged the gossip-awakened cloud.
Sun Hayden wiped the grin off his face, hurrying down the hall, "No, I'm tired and going to sleep! There's nothing to discuss about your love life anyway."
Marshall was laughed off his frustration, then stepped aside to let Elysia pass. They exchanged a brief good night wishes, and the door closed behind her back, leaving him and Wyn alone in the hallway.
"We need to talk," Marshall murmured, gesturing for the snow deity to follow him back to the main hall.