88: Princess Assassin (Part One) (Patreon)

NOTE: I'll be updating the San convo chapter with a reason for why this urgency is needed. Mina's about to make her move on her brothers, which is why Riyan sent Vir to Daha after only 6 months of training. Same for why San wants to move quickly with this.

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Dusk gave way to darkness, and when night arrived, Vir was ready.

After spending all day working on Empower, moving around to several districts to avoid depleting Ash prana, he’d finally mastered the timing. Empowering his arms still took longer than it did for his legs, but he could work around that limitation. With good prana reserves, it took four seconds to charge. Four seconds was a long time in the middle of battle, but he was confident he could bring that number down further with more practice.

The hardest part was routing the prana through his body while focusing on other tasks—like combat.

He’d shadow boxed as much as he could, and had even wrestled with Neel to give him more distraction. Four seconds was his in-combat timing. If he spent all of his mental power solely on activating the ability, he could do it in two.

Satisfied with his progress, he’d returned Neel to the Brotherhood Sanctum and had even checked up on Bumpy. If things went south and he needed a quick escape, Bumpy had to be ready to go. The Ash’va was more than ready for some exercise. Even with the regular trots he’d been getting, Vir could tell he was rearing to stretch his legs.

Vir had then turned his attention to his disguise before the sun set, robbing him of light. The mask Riyan had given him was an odd thing. Made of a rubbery material, it looked horrific when missing its adornments. In fact, it hardly even looked human.

But it took well to makeup, and the best part was Vir could apply the makeup perfectly without the use of a mirror. After spending an hour on it, he now looked like an average Dahan. Tanned skin with gaunt features. The inside of the mask was sticky, so after applying it to his face, it even mimicked his facial gestures—though he had to exaggerate every expression to make it visible through the thick material.

The worth of the mask wasn’t in mere disguise, however. Vir already had makeup on his face. What it did was give him a second disguise. With only a moment’s notice, Vir could rip off the mask, change his outfit, adjust his voice and body language, and he’d be another person.

It was like a freebee in that regard. A priceless boon for someone about to infiltrate the royal castle.

Vir idled on a rooftop until the dead of the night to make his move. San said the priest slept early, but he wanted to give enough time for Mina’s sedative to take hold.

Four hours after the sun set, he began.

Vir slunk down into the alley containing Mina’s secret hatch in the Upper West Side Commons district. Cleverly placed next to several crates and bins, it blended in with the ground almost perfectly. Despite knowing where to look, Vir only found it by the Magic Lock orb discreetly embedded into it.

This was his first hurdle. It was locked from the outside, and there was no physical keyhole. The lock might be mechanical, but the key was magical. Which meant Vir’s lockpicks were useless.

Dance of the Shadow Demon would allow him passage, but he loathed to use his trump card this early on. While the Ash prana in the area had recovered, it was still barely enough for a single Dance activation. It was his last resort.

Using Prana Vision, Vir analyzed the hatch’s hinges, probing for any weak spots. There weren’t any, but the wood itself wasn’t especially thick. A High Jump might have delivered enough force to break the door, but Vir had better options now.

Activating Empower, he relied on his katar’s superior thrusting force, and struck right where the wood met its hinge.

His newly sharpened weapon pierced right through, breaking the hinge.

The door fell when its other hinge broke with his next strike, falling loudly into the stairway below.

Vir froze, scanning the alley for anyone who might have heard the sound, but there was no one around.

The secret passage was now completely exposed, rendering it a secret no longer. Vir stepped down the stairs and entered the long, dark tunnel.

Letting Prana Vision guide him, he ascended the spiral staircase that seemed to never end. He’d felt it was long on the way down, but the way up was far worse.

Vir was forced to take it slow, for fear of sweating and ruining his makeup under his stuffy mask.

After what felt like an eternity, he finally reached the exit. The wardrobe that served as the secret door obstructed Prana Vision, but Vir could tell there was someone lying on a bed in the room beyond.

He took an entire minute to swing open the door, praying it didn’t creak on him. If San’s sedative was as strong as the prince claimed, it’d make no difference, but Vir didn’t want to risk the chance.

Its well-oiled hinges allowed it to open without a sound, and Vir edged closer to the sleeping princess.

He froze.

Without the wardrobe obstructing Prana Vision, he could now see the sleeping girl’s affinities.

They were not Mina’s affinities. They weren’t Water and Lightning.

The person who slept there possessed Apex Earth affinity. A Talent wielder, and a strong one at that.

What’s more, they wore armor. And they weren’t asleep. The rise and fall of their chest did not resemble the calm, even rhythm of sleep. Rather, it looked more like someone trying to feign sleep.

This is a trap! Mina knows I’m coming.

Vir looked to the door of the princess’ room, and through Prana Vision, saw a dozen guards posted outside, weapons at the ready. Pointed outward, at the hall.

Why’d they be guarding from intruders coming from the hall? Unless…

Vir wracked his mind to piece together this puzzle as fast as he possibly could. He could not linger here, with the Talent wielder so close. Should he abort? Or should he proceed with the mission?

Mina knew he was coming. Did prince Sanobar betray him? Or did her taste tester somehow catch wind of the sedative?

If the former, then Vir would be best served by doubling back and aborting the mission. But if it was the latter… well, maybe he couldn’t take out the princess, but at least the royal priest was still an option. If Mina thought this was an attempt on her life, then the priest ought to be sleeping in his quarters.

There was no doubt that turning back now was the safest, wisest option. He could regroup, ascertain Sanobar's loyalty, and then formulate a new plan.

But...

When Vir's thoughts turned to the man who'd ordered  the deaths of those he'd loved, he found himself unable to retreat.

The priest would be gone tomorrow. Maybe Vir would get a chance to kill the man in the future, or maybe he wouldn't. But tonight was his best chance. Even if it meant giving up on Mina, he had to take this opportunity. With Mina on guard, there may not be another.

Moreover, Vir couldn't live with himself knowing he let an opportunity to end Harak had slipped through his fingers.

With his mind set, he snuck over to the large stained glass window next to Mina’s bed, carefully stepping with his heel first, bending his knees, all to soften his steps.

Once again, Dance of the Shadow Demon could get him outside the room, but if he used it here, he’d lose his greatest power.

The window was the kind that swung open. If he could get there unnoticed, he could sneak out, then scale the wall to the castle’s roof. From there, he’d use the fortress’ ramparts to get closer to the temple building where the royal priest slept. It’d been his plan all along, just that the stakes were now higher.

Vir edged to the window and grasped the latch. Taking a deep breath, he slowly opened it.

Unfortunately, the window’s hinges weren’t nearly as lubricated as the wardrobe. It squealed—only for a split second before Vir stopped—but it was enough.

“Who goes there?” The woman in the bed shouted. In one smooth motion, she jumped off the bed and drew her talwar.

Vir didn’t wait. Riyan had warned him about Mina’s bodyguard. Balar 100. If this was her—and Vir doubted Mina would trust anyone else with this task—he stood no chance against her.

Activating a micro Leap, he crashed through the window and sailed through the air to the castle grounds.

Using Light Step to dull some of the impact, he threw himself into a roll, leveraging his momentum to run through the gardens.

Mina’s guard, being a Talent wielder, was hot on his heels. He had to assume she possessed every Talent he had, plus some others.

She’s catching up!

Vir vaulted hedges. He ducked and rolled and sprinted as fast as he could, but it wasn’t enough. The woman Leaped with each step, rapidly closing the distance.

He had to do something, or he’d end up fighting her. Even if he could hold her off, it’d only be a matter of time before guards swarmed him.

Dance was unavailable; running made it impossible. He needed his feet on the ground for at least thirty seconds. In anticipation, he changed his trajectory. Out here in the open grass, he was a sitting duck. He angled for the walls of the castle instead.

His pursuer made her move. Feeling a pulse of prana behind him, he threw himself to the side. Just barely in time. A blade of pure prana shredded all the vegetation in its path, leaving a line of upended dirt and devastation. It only dissipated after it had traveled far into the distance.

Blade projection? No!

Projection merely doubled the reach of the blade. True masters could triple their blade length, but that was the limit. The Talent she’d just fired was far, far more powerful. It was pure Earth affinity prana that traveled independently. Like the C Grade Wind Blade, but far stronger. Where Wind Blade was small and traveled through the air, this Talent traveled through the ground, cutting everything that touched the earth in its path.

Blade Launch!? Vir realized as his blood ran cold. It was a Mythic rarity Talent that few in this world possessed. Was she really only Balar 100? Or was that a deception?

Chala’s Knees, I almost lost my legs…

Vir immediately stopped and raised his hands, slowly turning around.

There was no winning this battle. To try was to die. She was in a league of her own. The only way out—the only chance he had—was to stall… and hope she took mercy.

“Please,” he drawled. “I—I surrender. I’ll tell you anything you wish to know.”

Twenty-Five seconds…

Mina’s bodyguard Leaped right up to him and leveled her katar at his throat. “Drop your weapon. Do it now!”

Vir slowly retrieved his katar and threw it down.

“Your chakrams and chakris too. You can’t fool me, assassin.”

Tch. Vir reluctantly dropped his weapons one by one, taking his own sweet time.

Ten seconds…

“You’re a slippery one, aren’t you? I’ve been monitoring you since you entered the city, and believe me, you haven’t made it easy. You’re quite good at hiding, I’ll give you that. But all was for naught. We have you now. We know Riyan Savar sent you. There’s no point hiding it. So, will you come quietly? Or shall we do this the hard way?“

“P-Please don’t hurt me! I was coerced into this. He—he threatened me!”

“Oh? You seem a bit too proficient for someone doing this under blackmail. We know all about General Savar’s plan. He sent you as a distraction while he made his own move. But unfortunately for both of you, things aren’t going to work out as you’ve planned. We’ve already dealt with Riyan.”

Riyan was going to launch his own attack? Vir thought. He hadn’t heard anything to that effect, though it wouldn’t surprise him if the man was operating in secret behind the scenes.

“I—no!” Vir said, feigning shock. “And you’re mistaken. It wasn’t this Savar person who sent me.”

“Oh? Then please enlighten me.”

“W-Well, you see, I was most surprised myself,” he said slowly. “I work for someone you know quite well, after all. I was sent… by your mother.”

By the time she reacted, Vir had already disappeared into the shadows.