Thesmeris Royal Castle,

The corridors beneath the Thesmeris royal castle were dim and silent.

Stone walls stretched endlessly on both sides, lit only by flickering torches that cast long, shifting shadows. The sound of armored footsteps echoed through the passage as three knights walked forward in steady pace.

Their helmets covered their faces completely.

No words.

Just movement.

They reached the end of the corridor and pushed open a heavy door.

Bright light hit them.

They stepped out—

At the rear side of the royal castle.

Above, armed soldiers stood along the walls, watching over the surroundings. The atmosphere was tense, even here. Security had been tightened everywhere.

The three knights didn’t stop.

They moved forward.

Ahead of them stood a platform—one that connected upward to the floating royal city of Glimmereach. Two guards were stationed beside it, watching closely.

The knights approached.

“We want to go up,” one of them said.

“Identification,” one of the guards replied immediately.

The three knights took out emblems of the Thesmeris kingdom and showed them.

The guards checked.

Then nodded.

“You may proceed.”

But just as they were about to step forward, one of the guards spoke again.

“…Is your companion alright?”

He pointed toward the knight on the side who seemed to be breathing heavily.

The leading knight gave a light laugh.

“He’s just tired. You know how it is—workload has increased a lot these days.”

A small pause.

“Especially with the wedding.”

The guard chuckled.

“What can we do? Nobles enjoy their celebrations… we’re the ones who handle everything.”

The knight nodded.

“…It is what it is.”

Both of them shared a brief, knowing laugh.

Then—

The guard’s smile faded slightly.

“Still…”

His eyes narrowed.

“Show me your faces.”

A short silence followed.

All three knights stood still.

Then the one in the middle spoke calmly.

“Of course.”

Slowly—

They lifted their helmets.

Three middle-aged men were revealed. The one who had been panting looked slightly older than the others, sweat visible on his face.

The middle one smiled lightly.

“Can we go now, Mr. Investigator?”

The guard laughed.

“Yeah, yeah. Go ahead.”

They lowered their helmets again.

Then stepped onto the platform.

A low hum filled the air.

The mechanism activated.

The platform began to rise.

Slowly.

Steadily.

The ground below drifted away as they ascended toward the floating city above.

After reaching a certain height—

A voice broke the silence.

A feminine voice.

“I am never wearing this again.”

One of the knights removed her helmet.

Selene.

Her face was flushed, sweat covering her forehead as she took a deep breath.

“…Finally… fresh air.”

The other two removed their helmets as well.

Maera and Drevin.

Both exhaled slightly, clearly relieved.

Drevin spoke in his usual calm tone, though there was a hint of fatigue.

“…What exactly are we doing here?”

He glanced upward.

“Professor’s plan is… complicated.”

The platform continued its ascent, carrying them closer to the floating city above, where the real danger awaited.

—

Some time earlier, inside the inn—

A private room had been secured.

Zane, Zayne, and Valeriana Azurecrest sat around a table, the atmosphere calm but serious. Outside, the city buzzed with wedding preparations, but inside the room, the focus was entirely different.

Zane leaned back slightly and said, “You could simply arrest these Vassel members… or inform the kingdom authorities.”

A small pause.

“But then we won’t know what they are planning.”

Silence followed for a moment.

Then Zayne’s voice echoed inside Zane’s mind.

That’s a lie, boss.

Zane didn’t react outwardly.

If we want, we can easily find out what they’re planning.

A brief pause.

And you know… sometimes I feel a little bad for lying to people in this world.

Another pause.

Especially to Valeriana.

Zane replied in his mind, calm as ever.

…And your point is?

Zayne hesitated.

Nothing. Just… feels bad. A little. Sometimes.

Zane ignored him.

Across the table, Valeriana spoke.

“I’m sorry, but we can’t help you regarding your students.”

Her tone was firm, though not cold.

“Even if I want to… they are officially prisoners of their respective kingdoms.”

She folded her hands lightly.

“I am here as a representative of Valdoria. One kingdom cannot interfere with another kingdom’s internal matters.”

A brief pause.

“Especially Thesmeris kingdom.”

Her gaze shifted slightly.

“It is a kingdom of immense wealth and trade. Almost every kingdom depends on it economically.”

“We cannot afford to damage our kingdom’s relationship with them.”

Zane listened quietly.

Then smiled faintly.

“Don’t worry about that.”

“My students will handle it.”

Valeriana looked mildly shocked but didn’t question it.

Zane then leaned forward slightly.

“But I have a question.”

“You say kingdoms can’t interfere in each other’s matters…”

His gaze sharpened just a little.

“Then why are you here investigating Vassel?”

Valeriana paused.

“…Right, you were gone for six months so you wouldn’t know about the agreement..”

Zane tilted his head slightly.

“…Agreement?”

Before she could answer, Zayne spoke.

“You heard about the attack on Astralis Arcanum, right?”

Zane nodded.

“I heard about it from an acquaintance and you know it’s my academy after all ,ofcourse I would know that..”

Zayne nodded and continued,

“After that incident—Vassel attacking an academy of that level as a debut—every kingdom took it seriously.”

A brief pause.

“All kingdoms… including the Malgrith kingdom(kingdom of demons)… made a joint agreement.”

“If a matter involves Vassel or corrupted mana…”

“…any kingdom is allowed to interfere but they can’t outright attack the other kingdom in name of Vassel .”

Zane nodded slowly.

Inside his mind, Zayne spoke again.

You could’ve known this instantly, boss.

Zane replied calmly.

Yes.

A faint pause.

But where’s the fun in that?

If it were urgent, I would’ve done it.

And you saying that but you wouldn’t hesitate to do the same for some fun.

Zayne fell silent.

He couldn’t argue that.

Zane then looked at both of them.

“Alright.”

“The plan is simple.”

He spoke clearly now.

“We three will enter the wedding.”

“To investigate Vassel.”

Then his gaze shifted slightly, as if already seeing the bigger picture.

“And my students…”

“…will enter from the back, in disguise.”

The plan was set.

—

Some time later, inside the inn—

Zane stood in front of his three students, already in his merchant disguise. The long hair, mustache, and attire were perfectly in place, making him indistinguishable from an actual trader.

Maera, Selene, and Drevin stood before him in their normal forms, listening carefully.

Zane spoke calmly, “As planned, I’ll drop you at the safest possible corner of the Thesmeris royal palace.”

Then he raised his hand and produced three small purple pills.

He handed one to each of them.

“I told you about these,” he said.

The students nodded.

They remembered.

Zane’s gaze turned slightly serious.

“Use them if necessary.”

A brief pause.

“Save your friends.”

The three of them tightened their grips slightly and nodded.

“Yes.”

The next moment—

They vanished.

—

They reappeared inside the castle.

A quiet section and dimly lit.

Far from the main halls.

Zane looked around once, confirming the location.

“This is as far as I can take you.”

He turned toward them.

“Stay sharp. Use what I taught you.”

“Remain calm.”

Maera, Selene, and Drevin nodded again, their expressions focused.

“Best of luck, Professor,” Selene said.

Zane gave a faint smile.

“I don’t need luck…”

A slight pause.

“But I’ll take it.”

The students turned to leave.

Zane also turned—

Then suddenly stopped.

He glanced back at them.

“…One last thing.”

A small grin appeared.

“May the force be with you.”

And then—

He vanished.

—

Silence followed.

Maera blinked.

“…What Force?”

She looked confused.

Selene and Drevin exchanged a glance.

None of them understood.

But there was no time to think.

They moved forward.

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