[Moments Earlier: The Merchant City]
"This is weird…"
Rey and Esme were walking alongside each other, though with both of them cloaked, no one around could see them.
They couldn't hear them either.
"Why haven't we spotted a single Warehouse with any slave in them?" Esme muttered, her tone showing signs of impatience.
She was, of course, in her full-plated armor, and her face was covered in a dark helmet. Still, that didn't stop the emotions she displayed from leaking out.
"I'm not surprised." Rey answered her, causing the Half Elf to turn in his direction.
"What do you mean? You knew this would happen?"
"No. I wasn't sure. But, with all of this happening, it's pretty clear what's going on now."
Esme's quizzical expression was hidden underneath her helmet, just as Rey's smile was also locked behind his mask.
Both of them merely spoke without once being able to visually express their current emotions.
"With Scylla and her cohorts already aware that the Full Sweep is happening today, it's very likely that they have already transferred their assets to a different location." Rey finally answered.
To this, Esme groaned.
"But we've been searching a lot of places for days now. Nearly two weeks, even." She sighed, slapping her hand against her metal helmet.
If not for Rey's control over sound Magic, her sudden action would have definitely attracted attention.
"Does that mean we'll have to search for them all over again?"
A slight chuckle echoed from Rey as he looked at Esme, wishing he could see what kind of expression she had behind the Orichalcum.
"You're very smart and collected, but when it comes to matters like these, you really are naive and excitable."
"W-what?"
"Pfft! Relax. I don't blame you for being unaware of how things work in this sphere of life." Rey shrugged, his tone still containing hints of amusement.
"You don't know anything about the Criminal Underworld."
With Scylla now in control of the entire Slave Trade business, it was previously assumed that she would have her Slaves in the regions that were now under her command.
However, none of the merchandise could be seen there.
No single slave was spotted there.
"That means they've been transported to places that aren't even on the map, or they exist somewhere close… where they're very accessible." Rey added.
"But we've checked the Merchant City through and through and we've found nothing." Esme sighed. "And you also added that there's no underground area for trade here."
Rey nodded slightly.
Unlike in the Capital, where an entire underground space had to be built in order to ensure the business of the Black Market flowed well, the Allied Merchant City had Black Market activities seamlessly blend well with mainstream businesses.
Unless there was an expert in the field, or a proper investigation was carried out, it would be difficult to differentiate the two.
"Which was why I also thought we had to search through the Merchant City. But, after finding nothing, I think there are only two options left." Rey sighed, both hands in his pockets.
"Firstly, they might be in unregistered areas that aren't on the map. That'll make our search more difficult."
"And the second option?" Esme quickly asked, neatly cutting Rey off when he spoke.
A short moment of silence ensued after she did this.
"S-sorry for that…"
Esme's head hung shamefully on her shoulders as she apologized. She was clearly anxious and extremely worried for her family.
Rey understood that.
'I guess moments like this really show how young she is.' He smiled underneath his mask before proceeding to tell her what she wanted to hear.
"The second option is simple. They're located at the closest place they can be to Scylla—the venue of the Dark Gathering itself."
"A-ah…?"
"Thinking about it well, even if there's no underground region for trade here, Scylla could have an underground area in her territory meant for storing her goods. It's the perfect place to hide merchandise." Rey found his lips widening the more he mulled over the possibility of his suspicions being correct.
Before he could get very far, though, Esme's voice surged forth.
"Why do you keep referring to them like that?"
"Pardon?"
"The slaves. They're people, you know? Why do you keep referring to them as goods and merchandise?"
Rey hadn't particularly been paying attention to his use of language, but he didn't particularly think they mattered in the context in which they operated.
"I call them that because that's what our targets use to identify them. If I want to figure out where they are, I need to think the same way the opponent thinks."
In essence, only by putting himself in their kind would he be able to fully grasp their thought process and imagine situations that could arise as a result.
"I see…"
Esme's voice seemed neutral, though Rey felt like she was sort of disappointed in him.
'It doesn't matter, though. Once she sees how helpful such a methodology is, she'll understand.' He shrugged all of those thoughts aside
"Either way, it doesn't matter which of the two options is true. We'll be able to find out everything once the Dark Gathering begins." Rey chuckled as he stared at Esme.
"I believe It's time we returned to Rebal."
*******
~VWUUUUSH!~
Space parted, spitting out Rey and Esme in the process.
The two walked in on Rebal and Kara seated on their beds, with the duplicate of Rey—or rather, Ralyks—standing in the corner.
"Y-you're back, Sir Ralyks!"
"Welcome back, Sir Ralyks and… well, his partner."
As the two awkwardly gave their greetings, Rey nodded at them.
"It's evening already. A couple more hours, and the Dark Gathering begins." He smiled at the group, though his mask prevented anyone from seeing anything.
"I still have to take care of one more round of business before we begin, so I'll be taking my leave now."
Of course, Rey still planned on leaving his Replica in the room—
pending the time he returned.
The place he was headed to was none other than the Royal Estate; the living quarters of the Otherworlders to be exact.
"Later, then."
~VWUSH!~
Once he took his leave and arrived at the living quarters, he found it to be obviously empty.
'Based on my sensory link to the Replica, I can tell that they're done with facing the Monster. And, just as instructed, the Replica was able to land the final blow.'
He was also thankful that he had tuned in to the Replica when he did, so he was able to stop Belle from freaking out on the rest of her classmates.
That was truly a close call.
With a wide grin on his face, Rey gave his last instruction to his Replica while transforming his body into what he would look like as a battered Rey and not the powerful Ralyks.
His instruction to the Replica was simple: to teleport all his classmates back to their living quarters.
Once the replica did so, he positioned himself exactly where he would have been among the rest of the Otherworlders.
As a result, he was able to blend seamlessly with them.
Everything that happened after that was done by Rey… and Rey alone.