Chapter 202: A Night In The Capital

Masked Man’s POV

Earlier in the day

After losing track of Nox, the masked man gritted his teeth in silent fury. He wanted to lash out, but the guards' efforts and the brief chase had already stretched his authority thin. Any further commotion might alert the Silverwaters and the imperials to their work.

That absolutely cannot happen. Not until the plan is fully set in motion.

Taking a deep breath to steady himself, the masked man strode back to the shack they had prepared for their investigation. A few busybodies lingered nearby, trying to discern the source of the earlier commotion, but the guards swiftly dispersed them with threats of martial law violations.

"Did anyone suspicious attempt entry while I was away?" the masked man asked, his voice cold and sharp.

"N-no, sir," one of the guards stammered, shaking his head. "Just a some dirty peasants snooping around after the disturbance. We've taken care of it."

"Good. You know very well what would happen if anyone learned of our activities here." The masked man brushed past the terrified guards and approached Elian's corpse.

How pitiful, he sneered, gazing down at the noble's lifeless form. You chose the wrong house to grovel at; a dog who whimpered for scraps at a table soon to be overturned.

Pushing aside his contempt, the masked man focused on his mission. He needed to secure the information Elian had been carrying, as per his master's orders. He meticulously searched the noble's clothes, combing through every pocket. Yet, even after multiple sweeps, he found nothing but cheap jewelry and miscellaneous trinkets.

"How could this be?!" the masked man snarled, causing the guards at the door to flinch.

"Is-is there a problem, sir?" one guard ventured, approaching with timid steps.

The masked man whirled, seizing the guard by the throat and lifting him off the ground. "You ask if there's a problem?! The problem is you! How could you fail at even one simple task?! If I discover you let any rat slip in here while I was away, you can kiss your family's lives goodbye!"

"Sir, we swear no one entered," another guard groveled at the masked man's feet. "We stayed vigilant the whole time. There's no way anyone could have snuck past us."

In a fit of rage, the masked man hurled the guard he was holding at the one cowering on the ground. He then stormed out of the shack, pausing to address the two trembling guards outside.

"You two, take that noble to the cathedral. Tell them he died en route." He then turned to the guards inside, who were still struggling to catch their breath. "As for you, retrace your steps here. If you find a letter on the ground, bring it to me immediately and do not read its contents. If I discover your curiosity got the better of you, I'll sever your necks on the spot."

"Right away, sir!" the guards chorused, not daring to meet the masked man's gaze as they hurried to fulfill their duties.

Alone in the back alley, the man's thoughts churned. That old bastard who dared to interfere with this mission must have something to do with this. His skills were those of an assassin, and an extremely skilled one at that. I must report this to the master.

The masked man's spine shivered at the thought of reporting his failure. However, he knew there was no escaping his master, and any attempt to do so would only make his punishment more severe.

  *

Thorian’s POV

After resting for a couple of hours in his room, Thorian was ready to move out. His mana capacity hadn't fully recovered, hovering around 70%, but he wasn't anticipating any immediate conflicts. With his fatigue washed away, he felt prepared to continue his tasks.

As he exited the dorms, he found night had fallen. The moon's reflection shimmered on the serene lake adjacent to the dormitories.

Time to meet up with Nox and Vigil. Hopefully, their first day went well.

More than their work with the church and assassin guild, Thorian was most interested in the masked man he had instructed Nox to follow. This individual was their lead to the mastermind behind the capital's ongoing plots.

I hope that mission went smoothly.

With his destination in mind, Thorian made his way to the city's outer layer. Given the capital's vast expanse, it took him over half an hour to reach the meeting place, even at a brisk pace.

Near the gate, Thorian waited for his teammates. Having given them only a vague "at night" instruction for the meeting time, he wasn't perturbed by their absence. Instead, he used this opportunity to hone his secondary element manipulation skills.

After two hours, Vigil and Nox finally appeared.

"No matter how often I see you, I can't get used to your new appearance," Nox chuckled. "You're like an old man in a child's body."

"Look who's talking," Thorian snorted. "The pot calling the kettle black."

As the two shared a laugh, Vigil offered a slight bow. "How was your first day, my lord? The mage court must be honored to have you."

"Honored or not, it's irrelevant. My day was quite fruitful," Thorian replied, shaking his head. "What about you? How fared the cathedral?"

"It was... an interesting experience," Vigil admitted. "The priests here are divided by the deities they serve, of which they recognize six. Given my celestial blessings' affinity, I was recruited into Miraphor's order."

"Good. I'm sure you'll dazzle them with your performance," Thorian nodded before turning to Nox. "And you? Did you manage to join the assassin guild today?"

"Unfortunately, I did," Nox replied, his expression conflicted.

"Unfortunately?" Thorian raised an eyebrow. "Did the matter with the silver-haired masked man not go as expected?"

"I followed him to the inner city's entrance, but could go no further. The guards barred my passage, and when I tried to scale the walls, a magical barrier blocked me," Nox explained. "I didn't want to risk breaking it and drawing unwanted attention."

"You did more than enough," Thorian reassured, patting Nox's shoulder. "If that masked man entered the inner city with the guards' blessing, he must be affiliated with one of the capital's major powers. We've narrowed down our potential suspects substantially."

"I'm glad I could help," Nox offered a faint smile, his gaze downcast.

This guy... I wasn't expecting him to uncover everything from the start. It's unrealistic for such powerful people to leave too obvious a trail.

Sensing Nox's disappointment, Thorian steered the conversation to more positive territory. "In any case, the mastermind's identity will be revealed sooner or later. Meanwhile, I want you both to use these seven days to increase your skill proficiencies. Whether it's healing and blessing people or taking on assassin guild requests, do as much as you can. This floor is an excellent opportunity to enhance skills you don't normally use in combat."

"Oh, we could do that?" Nox exclaimed. "In that case, I'll focus on training my shadow manipulation and Laceration Web skill. I rarely get to use them in serious battles."

"And I'll make sure to heal and bless as many people as possible with my powers," Vigil added. "Especially those in the slums, since that's where the sparks of rebellion seem to be emanating from."

Thorian smiled at Vigil's quick-wittedness and nodded. However, just as he was about to conclude the meeting and call it a night, Vigil halted him.

"My lord, why don't we take this opportunity to visit some taverns?" Vigil suggested. "You'll get a better sense of the situation here on the ground than in the lofty mage court."

"Yeah, that's a great idea!" Nox exclaimed enthusiastically, his manner contradicting his aged, somber appearance.

Thorian considered Vigil's proposal, finding it reasonable. However, a practical issue arose. "How do we visit inns and taverns without money? I've checked my belongings and found nothing resembling currency."

"That's likely because your funds are stored in the bank, my lord," Vigil explained. "You can use your identification to withdraw some of your funds."

While appreciative of the explanation, Thorian remained in a quandary. "That may be true, but what do we do now? Is a bank even open at this hour?"

Vigil shook his head before producing a pouch heavy with coins. "Don't worry about such matters, my lord. Let's just enjoy the night."

Though his pride stung at not being able to provide for himself, Thorian sighed and followed Vigil and Nox. He silently vowed to cover all their excursions for the remainder of the seven days.

The night proved merry, with the three friends—lord and subjects—savoring good mead and wine. For the first time since entering the narrative floors, Thorian felt grateful for his new, weaker body. It didn't take copious amounts of alcohol to make him tipsy. While Vigil's ostensible reason for bringing him here was to gauge the capital's pulse, Thorian knew it was just an excuse to spend more time together. There was no way the taverns and inns of the outer layers would be privy to the highest nobility's secrets. Yet Thorian didn't mind. He, too, wanted to enjoy this time with his comrades.

  *

Thorian awoke to a pulsating headache. As he looked around, he found himself in his new room at the mage court's dormitory. The window's curtains were open, allowing the first rays of dawn to peek through.

Recalling the previous night, Thorian smiled. Well, that was certainly a fun change of pace.

While that time could have been spent more efficiently training his skills, Thorian didn't consider it wasted. He couldn't keep all his interactions with his comrades purely business-related. If he didn't forge strong bonds with them through shared joys and sorrows, he'd be repeating the mistakes of his past life.

That cannot happen. No matter what.

Stretching his muscles, Thorian made his bed before tending to his personal hygiene. Afterward, he instinctively moved to head to the Cultivation Hall, as he had countless times before. It took a few seconds to remember he was in another world.

As he chuckled at his mishap, an idea suddenly sparked. Wait, shouldn't I be able to cultivate since this is technically a new day?

Thorian didn't know the answer. The narrative floors he'd experienced in his past life never spanned multiple days like this one. He'd heard murmurs about such occurrences but never delved deep into them. Being rare, they were of little use to a lord creating systems for tens of thousands of soldiers.

Theoretically, there shouldn't be any issue. If you level up in a narrative floor, those increased stats persist even when you return to the real world. The only question is: Does the system the gods created recognize this as a new day, even with the time dilation?

There was only one way to find out. Thorian sat down cross-legged and began his breathing technique.