(Author's note: Sorry for the delay, I won't be able to upload much these days so please bear with me. My laptop is still not fixed and I'm currently busy with exams. I'll bless y'all with a mass release after everything is settled so plz be patient?.)
...
At night.
Outside Lunareth, near the hidden cave. Nolan landed with Hepta in her arms.
"We're here," she spoke as she landed.
"How should we get into the city?" Hepta asked as he straightened out his clothes.
"No choice, we'll have to sneak in. It's nighttime now and security is tight so it'll be a little difficult, but we should be fine."
Nolan pulled out a sleek-black mask, shaped like a wolf's face. It had glowing blue lines that traced along the edges, making it look magical in the dark. It also had sharp, narrow eyes, giving a fierce, mysterious look.
Even with her features hidden, her face was still the same, so she had to hide it for the time-being. This was also because she couldn't use her 'Morphing' magic on herself.
She put the mask on and walked out of the cave. Just outside, was a small pond of water nearby.
She stood in front of it and looked at her reflection in the pond, it was nighttime, but the moonlight illuminated everything. Making it easy to see herself in the water's reflection.
The mask suited the alias she was trying to create; it hid her face well and gave her an air of mystery. However, her dyed blonde hair fluttered about, long and mesmerizing.
Since arriving to this world, she had never cut her hair. So, it grew longer and longer every day. Currently, it's length was just below her knees from the back.
It was too long and eye-hatching.
She frowned and grabbed a handful of it. "This is too flashy," she murmured.
With one smooth motion, she drew out her sword. The blade hummed with power. In a flash, she swung it up and sliced through the thick bundle of hair. The cut strands floated to the ground like fallen feathers.
Now, her hair was shorter, just above her waist. She pulled out a ribbon and tied it up into a ponytail.
She looked back at her reflection in the pond. The figure staring back at her had sharp eyes through the mask and tied up hair. She looked less like a noble and more like a warrior.
Nolan gave a small nod.
"Better." She murmured to herself.
"Let's go. We'll enter through the city's walls." She said as she turned and walked towards the city.
Hepta stood for a while longer behind her, dazed-looking at the bundle of hair Nolan had just cut off on the ground.
"Master's hair..." he muttered to himself silently as his eyes gleamed in subtle interest.
The 'clone' special ability was truly a broken cheat, but it had its own fair share of side effects.
The clones all had absolute loyalty to Nolan, even to the point of obsession over everything related to her. Hepta stood frozen, looking at the bundle of Nolan's hair on the ground.
Meanwhile Nolan walked all the way to the city's south-end wall, she had sensed it last time she visited Lunareth. The south-end barrier was the weakest in the city, making it an ideal place for infiltration.
She stopped in front of the wall, "Okay, we'll enter through here. Get ready," she said. But there was no response from behind, she turned around thinking Hepta was behind her but found no one.
From the distance she came from, she suddenly saw him running over.
"Sorry master... I got lost in thought." Hepta said as he stopped in front of Nolan. On his waist, was a small bag. Nolan stared at it for a bit but said nothing.
After that, she used her magic to infiltrate into the city's barrier without being noticed.
Luckily for them, the magicians responsible for maintenance of the barrier were either 3rd or 4th circle. So, it was easier to sneak in without detection since there were no magicians stronger than Nolan.
Although it was nighttime, it was still early into the night, so the city was still bustling with people.
After making it into the city, Nolan and Hepta blended in with the crowd.
In this city, adventurers were common, so Nolan's mask didn't draw much attention. Hepta's looks occasionally drew some of the ladies attention while they went through the crowded streets.
They were headed for one of the city's guard posts, this was where identity tokens were issued and re-issued for those who lost theirs.
Arriving at the guard post, Nolan went inside while Hepta waited outside. Two hours later, she walked out with 8 identity tokens.
She had used illusion magic on the guards. The guard post was mostly guarded by level 2 and 3 Adept swordsmasters and a few 3rd circle magicians further inside.
The head of security was a 4th circle magician, since Nolan's magic was stronger. It was easier for her to fool all of them with her illusion magic.
Initially, she only needed 2 identity tokens, but since the opportunity presented itself. Nolan decided to make identity tokens for herself and all the clones she had so far.
She had to prepare for the future; her clones were too powerful by normal standards.
She had to make tokens for them in case the empire's officials discovered and visited the village while she was away.
Other than that, these tokens would be useful if she decided to send the clones out to gather allies when they became stronger.
As of now, the clones were the most powerful force she had in the village. And they would certainly grow more powerful as she became stronger herself.
She had them stay and protect the village for the moment.
After getting the identity tokens, it was already late, well into the night.
They had to find a place to rest.
After walking around the city for a bit, Nolan and Hepta found an inn and booked a double room to stay for the night.
...
The following day, early in the morning.
Lunareth was in an uproar, the entire city was shaken to its core.
A major event was taking place, 50 Valkari Steeds surrounding a carriage drawn by 6 Skymanes stood still in the air at the city's entrance.
Many headed to the gate to see who it was.
Upon noticing the Skymanes, everyone had guessed the status of the person in the carriage.
Other than the royal family, who else would dare ride in a carriage drawn by the legendary Skymanes. Not to mention the elite Valkari steeds around it.
The atmosphere in the city was lively from the early hours of the morning.
Word had spread fast throughout the city.
From the nobles all the way down to the lowest beggars within the city, even some people from the slums had come out to watch the spectacle.
Members of the royal family were extremely rare outside the capital city, just seeing the Skymanes in Lunareth was enough to satisfy the curiosity of many people.
"I can't believe it! A member of the royal family is actually here!"
"Shh! Do you want to die?! Can't you see those royal knights and magicians!"
"I wonder what they're here for?"
Many people whispered among themselves within the crowd.
Inside the carriage, Elric looked down on the city and was surprised, this was his first time in Lunareth. But the city itself was not inferior from many other major cities in the empire.
He had expected Lunareth to be a little desolate since it was far from the capital, but to his surprise. It was bustling with life and a variety of many diverse people.
Around an hour later, they entered the city and headed straight for the Moonspire of Luna.
Along the way, Elric looked down at the bustling streets within the city from the sky.
This city was truly one of the empire's major cities, although it didn't compare to the capital. It was still a sight to be hold.
"Truly a place worthy of the Moon's favorite," Elric murmured to himself.
Just then, as he was looking down. His eyes locked into a blonde duo moving within the crowd.
A tall and handsome young man with a little girl in a wolf mask.
Strangely enough, he felt a feeling of familiarity with these 2, especially the little girl. Almost as if something was drawing him in.
Down below, Nolan felt Elric's gaze and looked up.
As soon as their eyes met, a message from the attribute panel suddenly popped up.
[Ding! Discovered one of the fallen Gods' reincarnations]
Nolan was stunned frozen as she read the message. She hadn't expected to meet one of the Gods' reincarnations so soon.
Part of her mission was to take the Gods' reincarnations as her disciples, but it wasn't time yet. Her current strength was too weak. Not individually, but as a force, she was too weak to protect the god's reincarnations.
Looking at the passing carriage in the sky, she fell into deep thought.
Even if she couldn't take Elric as her disciple right now, it was still better if she knew his identity.
'Hmm... judging from the Skymanes. That person is definitely from the royal family... too young to be the eldest or second prince, and too old to be the fourth prince... then it must be the third prince.' She thought.
She noted Elric's identity in her head after that.
For now, she had more important matters to deal with. The adventurer's exam, she and Hepta were currently headed to the adventurer's guild.
They had to take the adventurer's exam and receive ranks in order to become registered adventurers. So, Nolan withdrew her gaze and went on about her way.
Elric peered out the carriage window and looked back at Nolan's back, curiosity written all over his face.
...
Meanwhile, in every corner and alley of the city.
Clocked figures silently moved about, placing dark red crystal stones imbued with feint demonic power. These cloaked figures were members of the Ash Hands.
Around the same time Elaria received a revelation from Luna, the Ash Hands' dark priest had also received a revelation from the 'revered one.'
Although they had decided to create a new core after they failed to capture Nolan. This was a difficult task for them.
So far, they had sacrificed many of their resources to create a new core. But the result was a defective core, half-complete and half a failure.
Just as the Ash Hands were at a crossroads, the new revelation came. Stating that Nolan would once again come to the city, along with another suitable vessel for the core. Which was the third prince of the empire.
Upon learning of this revelation, the Ash Hand planned to deploy all of their manpower throughout the city.
They couldn't guess Nolan's intention for returning to the city, but they could guess the third prince's intention for coming here.
The Ash Hands also had connections in the capital, so they knew of the royal family's affairs better than anyone except Selia in Lunareth.
They knew the prince was headed for the Moonspire of Luna to seek treatment from Elaria.
Even though the prince was accompanied by many royal knights and magicians, he was still weak.
Between the unpredictable, strong Nolan, and the protected third prince. The easier target was obviously the prince.
They knew where he was going and why. Even though they weren't a match for the royal knights and magicians, throwing the city into chaos would force them to act. Leaving the temple and the prince unguarded.
Not to mention they had spies within the temple, all they had to do was lure the temple's high priests, along with Selia and Elaria outside the temple and this would make it easier for them to capture the prince.
Compared to this, Nolan was a wild card. With the strength she displayed last time, capturing her would be difficult, especially with the temple's holy knights spread all over the city.
A slight disturbance would cause them to rush over. So, the Ash Hands made plans to capture the prince instead.
Since the current core was partially complete, they could use it in their plan to temporally plunge the city into chaos while capturing the prince.
As soon as he made his grand entrance, the Ash Hands fully deployed their manpower all over the city. Making the necessary preparations for their plan.
Deep beneath the city in a dark sanctuary.
The dark priest stood before the High Inquisitor.
"Are you sure this plan will work?" The High Inquisitor asked in a serious tone.
"Yes, as long as we capture the prince and use him as the core before the defective core crumbles, we'll be able to complete the plan." The dark priest replied in a nonchalant manner.
Not far away, the red-eyed clocked woman was silently watching with a frown on her face.
Ilyra, that was her name. A half-devil raised by the Ash Hands along with her twin brother. Her red eyes were proof of her bloodline. She was one of the Ash Hands' most powerful executives.
Raised by this organisation, she and her brother were trained and brainwashed to believe that the Ash Hands had the ultimate goal of reviving the fallen gods.
Although she didn't like how the organisation worked, she had done many cruel things for the organisation. Believing it was for the good of the world.
However, despite all this, she had always been wary of the dark priest and the so called "revered one."
'Something is off,' she thought to herself at this moment while looking at the dark priest and High Inquisitor.
She had always questioned the Ash Hands' true objective. After all, their methods weren't in line with their ultimate goal.
'I have a bad feeling about this plan,' she silently thought to herself.
Meanwhile, the dark priest had a sinister smile after discussing the plan with the High Inquisitor.