Finally, they arrived at their destination and got off the carriage. Bertio shooed them from behind after the guards had let them pass. Vern couldn't help but feel a little sorry. After all, it was Bertio who would be held responsible for arriving so late. But there was nothing he could do about it. Instead, he visualized the route they had just taken over and over in his head, making sure to remember the exact spot where he had felt the sword's presence.

This time, they skipped the wait and were led immediately to the same room. As they entered, a third person was there among the previous people on the other side of the table. It was Kieran's father. Now every noble who actually had something to say was assembled in this room.

The four looked at the newcomers in dismay, and Bertio bowed down immediately. »I'm very sorry for our late arrival, my lords. I hope you will excuse the–

»Well, just sit down now«, king Artis interjected. »After all, we've waited long enough.«

Bertio shut his mouth and bowed his head a few more times as he took a seat.

»At least everyone is here«, he continued and his gaze shifted from Irina to Alvyn to Kieran. »There is important news that requires quick and decisive action. Oleg will fill you in on the details.«

The king leaned back in his chair as the man to his right spoke. »We've investigated the bailiwick thoroughly but haven't found any of the monsters that attacked you. However, something else happened yesterday night. The bailiwick's borders started expanding at a slow but constant rate. It has already completely engulfed the adjacent villages. They all have been evacuated in secret, but given the current situation, the truth will spread fast, forcing us to take immediate action.«

He paused for a moment, allowing his listeners to let the information sink in.

Vern wondered if they now believed in the existence of the Eldritch, given these circumstances. But he didn't dare to ask such a question and instead stayed silent, satisfied with their understanding of the urgency. After all, they now had to deal with the problem for real, and he also would soon be of actual use in this regard.

»Furthermore, the bailiwick will threaten the capital itself if the expansion keeps up, leaving us no option but to go in and destroy the core – or whatever else is causing it.«

Vern suppressed a smile hearing that last part.

»When will we go?«, Alvyn asked, more excited than the seriousness of the situation dictated.

»Well, you're correct«, Grewis replied to his son's words. »You'll be part of this mission, but there will also be plenty of knights joining in this endeavor. That means the logistics need a few more days of preparation, and we'll inform you on short notice when everything is ready.«

Alvyn nodded and calmed himself down a little.

»Now, the reason for your attendance«, the king said. »I wanted to ask each of you, individually, if you are ready to fulfill the task. I know you have lost two instructors recently, so you might not feel confident. If that's the case, please speak up now.«

He eyed up the three heroes, not even glancing at Vern. But none of them uttered a word. Instead, their faces were determined, even Irina's, which surprised Vern a little but also made him happy. At this point, he didn't mind being ignored. Soon enough, he could prove his worth and be up there with the other three.

»Very good«, king Artis continued. »I see that all of you come after your fathers. Strong individuals with bravery and the right sense of duty.« He paused, letting his words sink in. »You four may leave now, but please wait outside for a moment. There are just some small things we want to discuss with commander Bertio.«

Irina, Kieran, Alvyn, and Vern respectfully lowered their heads and left the room.

»Looks like it's finally happening«, Alvyn exclaimed, striding up and down the floor.

»You all feel good enough to do this?«, Vern asked them again, especially looking at Irina.

»I am«, she replied as her eyes met his. »It might be difficult and dangerous, but the four of us having each other's backs, I am confident we'll be fine.«

Vern nodded and smiled.

»I agree«, Kieran said. »I am just wondering how the rest will be handled, I mean the other knights. They're kind of pointless since they can't fight these strong, mana-using monsters in the first place.« His eyes flickered to Vern, a sympathetic expression on his face. »I know the others don't recognize your value, but to us, you're an integral part of the group.«

»Of course he is«, Alvyn added and patted Vern with so much force on the back that he almost fell over.

»Ah, yes. Thanks. I don't mind how they think about it.«

Their conversation ended abruptly as the door opened, and Bertio came out.

On the way back, they took a slightly different route due to congested streets, so Vern didn't pick up the feeling again. He could only hope it was stationary, or at least had stayed in the general area. But knowing its approximate location was all he needed.

While traveling, he had finalized his plan. He wanted to check the spot out in daylight and come back at night to get it. With Velvet on his side, he could break in almost anywhere and with the mana ring, he could outrun basically anyone that hadn't one himself.

He waited a few more minutes before he made his move.

»Can we stop?«, he asked Bertio. »I have some stuff to do in the city. I'll find back on my own.«

Bertio looked at him doubtfully. »You sure you won't get lost again?«

Vern nodded vehemently, his expression serious.

»Well, alright«, Bertio said after a sigh and knocked against the front, signaling the coachman to stop. »But let's have a quick chat before you take off.«

Vern was surprised but followed him out of the now stationary carriage. Bertio shut the door behind him so that the others inside couldn't hear them talking.

»What's this about?«, Vern asked curiously.

»Well«, Bertio said a little hesitantly. »You know what the deal was, right?«

Vern didn't know what Bertio was talking about and just shrugged.

»I mean, that you are excused from not attending your training in the fort as long as we're in the bailiwick, which … well … did turn out differently than expected.«

Now he had a pretty good idea what Bertio was about to say, and he preemptively shook his head.

»Yeah, I am sorry«, Bertio said. »But your father said you have to stay there for now and train. You're expected to be in the fort by dusk, so please don't arrive late.«

»What does 'for now' mean?«, Vern probed. »Will I be excluded from the expedition into the bailiwick?«

Bertio didn't answer immediately but just looked at him in pity.

»I don't know«, he finally said. »But nothing is set in stone yet as the planning is currently in progress. So I am sure you'll be informed when it happens.«

They both suspected that wouldn't be the case, but Vern gave him a slight smile nonetheless for his assuring words.

»Please remember, don't be late«, Bertio said once again as he opened the door to the carriage.

»I won't.« He waved to the others as the carriage started moving and watched it disappear around a corner. Then he turned around to make his way through the bustling streets. Since he had stopped at a place with lots of shops and people to not raise any suspicions, it took him a while to reach the district the nobles had placed their luxury homes in.

Eventually, he stood at the exact spot the carriage had passed the first time around, and luckily the feeling still reached out for him too. As he walked on the large but almost empty streets, Velvet felt comfortable enough to appear next to him.

›You sure we're in the right place‹, he asked as he jumped through the fence onto a perfectly maintained plot of grass.

Vern had filled Velvet in on most of his plan on the way here.

›Yes, quite sure. But, weirdly, it's this kind of area. I can't believe Durant would sell the sword to one of those rich guys, which means he must indeed have some connections among the nobles.‹

›Most probably. Breaking into one of these will be even more fun.‹ Velvet leaped around all the beautiful gardens and rolled his body in the grass as they passed by. Vern watched him, delighted by his excitement.

A few minutes later, a mansion came into view that looked similar to the others. But Vern was sure that the feeling originated from inside these premises. So he stopped at the fence and studied the building from the distance. Unfortunately, it was too far away for Velvet to scout properly.

›How many people are in there‹, Vern asked as Velvet went to it as close as he could.

›I'd say five … no at least six.‹

»How may I help you?« A voice suddenly spoke from the side, startling Vern, and he took a step back. Both he and Velvet had their eyes so focused in front, not noticing the servant that had approached from the gate nearby.

Seeing Vern's reaction, his face went cold. »If you don't leave now, I'll call over the guards.«

»Oh, no«, Vern replied, brushing through his golden hair like Alvyn always did in front of a crowd on official occasions. »I was just looking, if I was at the right address.«

If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

»I see«, the servant's features softened as he had seemed to recognize him – or Alvyn, to be precise. »I very much doubt that you're at the right location though. My master is never home on this day of the week, and he rarely has any visitors, to begin with.«

»Oh, Is that so?«, Vern asked, suspicions forming in his mind.

»Yes. But if you think you're at the right place, I'll happily inform my master of your visit as soon as he arrives.«

»When would that be?«

»Not before the beginning of next week, I am afraid.« He politely bowed his head.

»Oh, alright, then I decline. No need to bother your master.«

The servant nodded, clearly confused by Vern's sudden change of mind.

»Thanks, for your help«, Vern said. »Now I know that I am at the wrong address.«

»Alright, I'm glad I could be of help.«

Vern smiled and left, casually walking back on the path he had come from.

›Well looks like we now know where Durant is spending the rest of the time‹, Velvet said, walking beside him. ›You sure you want to go through with this?‹

›Most definitely. We'll do it tonight, even though starting from the fort might be an inconvenience … I'll figure it out. As long as Durant isn't home it should be an easy job. I doubt anybody else is able to see you.‹

›You're probably right. But what are you going to do when he inevitably finds out?‹

Vern hadn't thought about that yet, so he couldn't answer immediately. ›When he finds out, we will already have defeated the Eldritch at this point, hopefully. So it will be alright as the sword won't fall into enemy hands.‹

›If you say so.‹

›Yeah should be fine. Let's take it step by step and not think too far ahead. If Durant's wrath is the biggest of our problems, we'll have done pretty well, I would say.‹

They walked the entire way to the mansion and discussed the information Velvet had gained so far that would help them break in.

In the late afternoon, Vern finally arrived. He took the carriage to the fort that waited outside immediately after saying goodbye to Irina, Alvyn, and Kieran.

While riding, he paid attention to the time it took him and estimated that he had to cover about 25 kilometers for one way. That meant the entire 50 kilometers from the fort to the sword's location would completely eat up the contents of his mana ring if he wanted to finish this in a reasonable amount of time. He didn't especially like doing it this way since would take him days to fill it up again, and he didn't know when he would need it again. But on the other, getting the sword was way too important, so he really had no choice.

As he arrived at the fort, one of the recruits in the yard informed him that Marlow wanted to speak to him, so Vern made his way to his room. There, Marlow told him that he had to 'catch up' on training which for some reason included guard duty for an entire week starting today. Though Vern wanted to object, he knew it was pointless and kept his mouth shut. Instead, he tried to figure out how he would execute his plan under these circumstances as he walked to his own room.

»Oh, you're back«, Mantel greeted, sitting on his bed and polishing equipment. »How has it been?«

»Well, I don't think I am allowed to talk about it at this point«, Vern replied apologetically.

»That bad?«, Mantel said jokingly, and as he saw Vern nodding, his smile vanished.

»But don't mind it for now«, Vern assured him to not dampen his mood. »More importantly, I wanted to ask a favor of you.«

»Sure, what is it?«

»I've just had a chat with Marlow, who slapped an entire week of guard duty on me. Problem is, I really need to be somewhere else tonight.«

»So you want me to do it for you instead?«, Mantel concluded. »I wouldn't mind doing it, but if you get caught, we're both in trouble.«

»Well, yes. But I definitely won't. And if I do, I'll try to take the entire blame, and if I can't, I'll find a way to make it up to you.«

Mantel scratched his chin. »That does sound pretty urgent. Well, I'm in, but you'll better hurry and make sure you don't get caught.«

»Thanks a lot«, Vern said, relieved. »It won't take too long, probably around four hours max.«

»And you'll take two guard shifts of mine in exchange«, Mantel added.

»Naturally. That won't be a problem.«

After they had eaten dinner, Vern went to bed like normal while Mantel headed off to guard duty. However, Vern told Velvet to wake him up around midnight, when it was dark enough, and the city streets would be empty. Until he fell asleep, he visualized the route he planned to take several times.

Eventually, it was time, and he heard Velvet's voice in his head, waking him up. He yawned and peered through the small window into the clear night sky. The moon stood high, illuminating the surroundings a little. But Vern hoped that wouldn't be to his detriment.

He quickly got ready, taking on the cloak he had brought with him to hide his identity on the streets. In the meantime, Velvet scouted the surroundings for other people and guided Vern to the spot where he had decided to cross over the wall. They reached a wooden door that led upon the walls, a place patrolled by people on guard duty. Velvet told Vern he had to wait and gave him the clear sign after five minutes, but he had to be quick.

So Vern opened the creaking door and immediately accessed the mana in the ring to increase his speed. Swiftly and only tapping the ground lightly with his feet to reduce noise, he reached his exit point.

There was a large tree that bent towards the fort about 20 meters behind the wall. Vern moved as far back as he could and then jumped off with all the momentum he could acquire.

He flew through the air at the tree and grabbed onto a thick branch with his stretch-out hands while his body kept moving forward. It strained his arms a lot, and he could feel the friction through his gloves, but as he swung out, it got easier. He climbed down the tree and looked up at the wall he had just passed. It towered above him with its 30-meter height, creating a massive shadow even in the moonlight. Arguably he got quite lucky that this tree hadn't been cut down yet, as jumping down directly to the ground was a questionable choice, even with the ring aiding him.

He channeled the mana to his feet as he turned around and started running at high speed, Velvet slightly in front to illuminate his way. Thirty minutes later, the city came into view, and Vern slowed down a little.

Entering the city through the gate wasn't a problem as it was usually open day and night. But he had to make sure not to raise suspicion, so he walked up to it slowly and took off the hood.

After getting inside, he still only traversed the streets at normal speed. It was a painfully slow progress after just running ten times faster.

Eventually, Vern arrived on the outskirts of the noble's district and put his hood back on. At night, there was even less activity than during the daytime, but that was somewhat deceptive since guard personnel would be mostly hidden and much more attentive.

He relied on Velvet's eyes and moved along the fences. Soon, he picked up the feeling drawing him closer, which eased some of his tension. After all, it would've been terribly unlucky to make all that effort while the sword was already somewhere else.

He stopped a few meters away so Velvet could scout for anybody on the property. Then, he used mana to enhance his body, pushing himself off the ground and overcoming the three meter tall fence with ease. As his feet hit the grass on the other side, he immediately continued moving forward, crossing over the open area into the shadow of the mansion's walls.

›Do you see any good entry points?‹, he asked after he had arrived at the spot where the feeling emanated the strongest.

Velvet vanished into the walls while Vern hid next to a bush.

›I think the window is a good spot to enter‹, Velvet said. ›But you should wait a little longer since there is someone in the vicinity.‹

›Alright, tell me when it's clear.‹

Vern waited and waited, but Velvet didn't say anything.

›How much longer?‹, Vern asked after 15 minutes.

›I don't know. They still haven't moved.‹

He grimaced. ›Have you actually checked that the person isn't sleeping there? I don't want to wait forever.‹

›Oh, yeah. Forgot that was a thing people do at night …‹

›Wow, I thought you wanted to this kind of stuff‹, Vern said, rolling his eyes. ›You should at least pay some attention then.‹

›Yes, sorry.‹

Vern moved out of his cover, below the windowsill. It was far above his head, so he couldn't look inside. He had to trust Velvet's questionable reconnaissance work and jumped up, getting his fingers on the sill to pull himself up. It took significant effort even with mana, but he managed it and balanced himself on the narrow plateau, looking inside.

It was completely dark aside from Velvet's shimmering body, so he was able to see at least the contours of the furniture inside.

He shifted his attention to the window and its locking mechanism, trying to figure out the best way to open it silently.

Velvet wasn't any help in this, not that he even tried, as he just looked at the walls instead.

Vern put his hands on the wooden frame and pressed against it, slowly increasing the output. But it didn't seem to be correct. Next, he put his fingertips at the bottom of the window and tried to push it up. This time the window screeched, and suddenly all resistance was gone as the lower part of the window moved behind the upper. Vern quickly crawled through the opening to release his body from this awkward position. The window fell shut behind him, and Vern walked over to Velvet. Many paintings hung on the walls, making it look like a small art gallery. Velvet seemed to be completely absorbed in them.

›Did I wake them up?‹, Vern asked.

›Oh, er …‹ Velvet turned around and looked at the wall behind him for a moment. ›No., should be fine. At least there is no movement.‹

›Good. Didn't know you were such an art enthusiast.‹ Vern looked at the paintings as well but couldn't really find any appeal in them. They mostly depicted different sceneries in nature.

›Yeah, didn't know myself. Can we take some with us?‹

Vern frowned. ›No, of course not. We're not some petty thieves … just borrowing something for a limited amount of time.‹

›If you say so.‹ Velvet reluctantly turned away and walked through the door. ›Which direction?‹

›Hmm, I'd say to the left.‹

›Alrighty, everything is clear.‹

›Have you even looked properly?‹

›Of course I have. What do you think I'm doing?‹

Vern didn't answer that and instead carefully opened the door. He peaked around the frame into both directions of the corridor before he followed Velvet. They moved around a corner and stopped in front of the next door.

›In here, I think‹, Vern declared, and Velvet went ahead. Luckily, the door wasn't locked, so he could easily follow.

The room looked a like a normal bedroom, filled with bed, closet, table, and chairs. But everything was in its most luxurious variant imaginable. Vern wondered more and more why Durant spent so much time in that shabby shop of his. His thousand-year life must have really had some terrible effects on his brain.

Vern walked towards the bed, stopped on the crimson carpet, and looked down. This was the exact spot. He stepped aside and pulled away the carpet. Beneath the wooden floor, there was clearly a hidden compartment, and Vern carefully loosened some of the planks. And there it was, the dim black metal, reflecting Velvet's light in an eerie way.

He reached out his hand, his heart pounding faster than at any point during this mission. The handle felt as perfect as the first time. No, it was even better. The same purple shimmer radiated from the sword as he held it. He looked at this mesmerizing allure for a moment before Velvet snapped him out of it.

›You want to stay here all night?‹, Velvet taunted him. ›If so, please move over a little so that I can look at the paintings again.‹

›Err … let's just go.‹ He wrapped the sword in a piece of cloth he had brought with him and moved the planks and the carpet back to where they were. Then he left the room and sneaked back to their entry point. Although he ideally wanted everything to look the same as before he had entered, the window's mechanics were definitely damaged, leaving behind a clue to his break-in. Vern hoped they would connect the dots only after he had proved himself with the sword.

The exit was as easy as the entry. No one in the vicinity spotted him. He quickly left the crime scene, slowing down a bit after he had reached an adjacent district. His excitement increased with each step, and he visualized himself swinging the sword, slaying every monster in his path. Passing the city gate didn't pose a problem either, and as Vern used his mana to increase his speed, he appreciated how easy the whole thing went.

Half an hour later, he stood at the foot of the fort wall once again. There was only one thing left to do to call it a full success – getting back in. He climbed the tree he had used before and took the sword off his back. Then he cut off he few smaller branches that blocked his improvised runway. The sword cleanly cut through everything like butter, barely requiring any force. Vern wondered if that was how it felt for Alvyn when he used his.

After he was done, he tapped with his mind into the mana ring, getting every single drop out of it. Since he didn't want to smash into the wall, he really needed to make sure that he got this jump right, which was much harder than the other way round. But with everything working out perfectly so far, his confidence was high.

He waited for Velvet to give him the signal, and then he started accelerating. The branch beneath his feet shook with each step, and as he pushed himself off, it almost broke off entirely. Vern traveled through the air, much less elegantly than before, and couldn't stop himself from crashing head-first atop the wall. In the last second, he curled up his body and used some of his own mana reserves to protect him. But it still hurt like hell when his shoulder tackled the stone floor. It had looked so much easier than it actually turned out to be.

Vern frantically looked around and dusted off his clothing before he quickly made his way to the wooden door. Nobody had seemed to notice his entry, so Velvet had actually done an excellent job today, after all. As he sneaked back to his bed and massaged his swore shoulder, he thought about what kind of gift he could get for Velvet as a reward. Maybe some paintings would do?

He decided to think about that tomorrow after that temptingly cozy bed of his came into view. It didn't even take a minute for him to be fast asleep.

A commotion outside woke Vern up, and he reluctantly opened his eyes. At first, he thought it was time to stand up, but then he heard the screams outside and Velvet's voice alerting him.