Elias was hit by an intense wave of familiarity, one which he could not pinpoint its origin.

The feeling was sharp and impossible to mistake as a simple coincidence, which was all the more reason why Elias was paying it any attention instead of dismissing it in the first place.

He was quite fortunate that he was simply using his Innate Blessing instead of one of his Runic Invocations for observation, as his forehead-placed Totemic Tattoo would have been glaringly obvious since he currently seemed to be stuck in a trance while observing the young lady before him.

He was eventually pulled out of his reverie by the intense strain born from his Tribulations, as his temples throbbed with pain as a result of him unconsciously maintaining the ether sight for more than 4 seconds.

The vague feeling of familiarity was enough to subconsciously attract the majority of his thoughts and attention, making Elias feel like a concealing veil was in the process of being lifted from both his mind and spirit.

This was why Elias decided to pay close attention to this seemingly unique situation, as part of his task here today was to discover and pay attention to abnormalities present in the banquet.

Elias wiped away the small beads of sweat on his forehead with a handkerchief, before subtly directing his gaze back to the lady of attention.

She was currently standing amidst a group of young conversing nobles, her face a blank canvas while another lady who resembled her in looks chatted with a young man before her.

Elias recognized the speaking lady at a glance, as even he who was a commoner from the lower districts wouldn't make the mistake of failing to recognize someone as well-known as she was.

Her characteristic snow-white hair and icy blue eyes were a major representation of one of the renowned human royal families, causing her identity to instantly weave within Elias's mind.

She was a pureblooded princess of the Nation of Frost, as well as a potential heir to the position of Monarch—Adele Elise Moreau, the Second Princess of the Lorrainian Monarchy.

This made the identity of Elias's subject of attention seem all the more obvious, as only one of the other direct descendants of the Royal Family could share such vastly similar qualities with the Second Princess.

A name slowly formed within his mind, one which matched the character of the lady before him as the younger sister of the Second Princess.

'The Third Princess, Yves Aubrie Moreau.'

Pah!

Immediately this name finished taking root it was as if a door was blasted open in Elias's mind, allowing scenes buried deep within his subconscious to rush into his memory like a running tide, bringing with them not only familiarity but also a wave of realization and recognition.

Elias briefly 'saw' the image of a young lady with shoulder-length hair the color of pure white snow, seated beside Aamiya in class with a calm and cold expression.

Her icy blue eyes turned to meet his, washing him in an aura of winter while causing a name to silently escape from his lips.

"Y-Yves?"

...

Aamiya was currently walking around the banquet hall with her father, greeting and familiarising herself with the elites and aristocratic nobles as if it was the most natural thing to do.

The Chelseas were a business-oriented family, meaning that both Aamiya and her Father, Redmond understood the importance of establishing as many networking ties as they possibly could with the various heads of society.

Aamiya also made sure to keep an eye out for the event, as she had never forgotten her goal of being here in the first place.

She had received numerous advances from both the young and old but was lucky enough to remain unattached as she had her father to ward off any of the unnecessary attention.

Redmond Chelsea was very protective of his daughter who was an only child, a fact well-known among every potential pursuer across each nation. This was why they had all backed off their advances after he expressed his concealed displeasure, leaving Aamiya to have on a cheery smile as she relished her freedom and peace while walking with her father.

They were both currently moving to offer their greetings to the master of the evening—Baron Cohen, who was currently engrossed in a conversation with delegates from the Council of Uncommons of Estica and the Silverbell Tower of Lyvaria.

Baron Cohen instantly noticed the approaching pair, which allowed him to pause his discussion while flashing them a welcoming smile.

"Ah, it's you, Redmond. I'm so glad you could make it."

Both Aamiya and her father offered the host a courtesy of respect, one which accorded with formal event etiquette.

Baron Cohen laughed it off heartily, before tapping on the shoulder of Aamiya's father.

"You don't need to do that Redmond, remember we are both Barons. Though I do appreciate you according me the respect, there is no need for you to be so formal."

Baron Chelsea smiled slightly. He was a man of little words and hardly spoke unless necessary.

Baron Cohen's attention then shifted towards Aamiya at the side.

"And you must be the young lady of Chelsea, the prized Silver Swan of Loral Lake and the most elegant flower of the Imperial Kingdom. It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Miss Chelsea."

Aamiya accepted the compliments as a young lady should, but couldn't shake the uncomfortable feelings welling up within her heart. Something about Baron Cohen's gaze was very agitating and perverted to look at.

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This caused her to respond to his greetings with nothing more than an elegant bow, which was an indirect indication that she wasn't interested in any further conversation.

Her father picked up on the concealed message instantly, causing him to draw Baron Cohen away as he joined the group discussing his upcoming project.

This left Aamiya with time for herself and was the first time that evening that she was granted some form of respite.

The young lady sighed, feeling that the environment around formal balls and banquets was quite stressful. It was never easy for a person of her character to be seen in a public setting, more so one that contained a vast number of high society elites.

There would always be someone who wanted to talk or associate with her, which came off as such a chore as she wasn't really interested in such a thing.

'I wonder how Eli is doing. He must hate me for bringing him along and suddenly ditching him at the venue.'

Thinking about Elias's nervous expression in the carriage caused Aamiya to chuckle in amusement, as his entire disposition on the way to the villa was very entertaining.

Her vision suddenly blurred as she was about to reach for a glass of cherry martini, as she seemed to see the banquet hall set ablaze in fiery hot flames with dead and mutilated bodies spiraling all around her.

Piercing screams reverberated within her ears, making the scene which appeared just as an illusion become so much more real and life-like.

Aamiya could see the bloodied figures of her friends in different places around the hall, their bodies bearing different degrees of wounds and injuries.

Shouts of fear acted as the main tune of the illusion, and Aamiya could briefly see the dead body of Baron Cohen in the center of the hall, his cause of death being a small butter knife protruding through his heart.

This brought about an end to the vivid illusion, as Aamiya was pulled back into reality following a series of laborious breaths and pained eyes.

She instantly interpreted the meaning of her fleeting daydream, its existence standing as an ominous forecast of the now jelly evening's grim ending.

Aamiya spared no effort to make haste, swiftly excusing herself from her father before making her way back to her teammates.

She had to inform them about what she had just seen!

...

It took a while for her to locate Elias, as the young man was also doing his fair share of reconnaissance within the expansive hall.

Aamiya eventually found him standing at a secluded corner over at the reception with a plate of fruits in hand, vigilantly surveying every single person coming and going like a hawk.

She moved towards him with hastened but steady steps, trying to ensure that her posture didn't betray the fact that something was amiss.

This didn't seem to achieve the desired effect though, as Elias hastily put down his plate before moving to welcome her.

"What's wrong Aamy, is everything alright?"

Aamiya took a brief moment to catch her breath, before revealing the details of the illusion to Elias without concealing anything.

Elias listened to her recount in silence, his expression slowly becoming grave.

He ran his hands through his decently styled hair in thought, before quickly formulating a plan.

"Here is what we will do. You go look for Ne'em at the entrance. He is currently posted with the local police force guarding the villa. This will enable them to be faster at responding in case anything happens, which is always a good thing.

"Even if they question the revelation's source and validity, I doubt the Disciples and Apostles mixed into the security team will, as they are a lot more sensitive to these types of things than the mundane officers."

Aamiya gazed at Elias, her expression one of shock at the fact that he actually believed her.

Even if the Disciples under the Echelon of Possibilities indeed had the ability to experience such deja vu, it was limited and could never be too descriptive, creating a lot of doubts and questions around Aamiya's seemingly abrupt 'prophesy.'

This tied back to a major secret of hers, making her quite surprised that Elias wasn't currently showering her with questions but was instead actually taking her seriously.

Elias decided to ignore Aamiya's bewildered gaze, as the current situation was one of urgency.

He already suspected that Aamiya had a secret hidden beneath her soft and delicate persona but had decided not to pry, as it wasn't his place to do so. Besides it was more advantageous to consider her revelation rather than discard it, as they had less to lose from the former rather than the latter.

This was why he had switched into full detective mode, analyzing and scrutinizing every detail he had been told.

The point of the butter knife suddenly stood out to him, as he started to consider the possible disguise of the potential assailant.

"While you go do that I will move to Damien, and both of us will start looking out for the assailant.

"Inform Yves on your way and tell her to stay in close proximity to Baron Cohen in order for her to react to any sudden attack that might slip through. I seem to remember that she is skilled in swordsmanship, so she should be able to hold them off until security intervenes."

"Tell her to also prioritize ensuring her own safety as well, as I value her life much more than an assignment that can be made up for later. She is currently having a rest close to the violinists, you can't miss her!"

They both offered each other a resolute nod before scurrying off in their respective directions.

Aamiya had moved a considerable distance away before a thought slowly dawned on her.

How did Elias know where Yves currently was?

Unless he had previously recognized her it would be seemingly impossible for him to tell her specific location, as you had to first figure out who a person was before being able to recall where that person was, to begin with.

Unless...

'No way.'

Aamiya suddenly had an epiphany.

'Was he able to recognize her?'

...

Ne'em very quickly received the news from Aamiya which also led to him briefing the guards on the present situation.

Contrary to their expectations, the law enforcement officers actually took the news very seriously, springing to action soon after to better fortify the estate grounds.

Looking at them working very vigorously caused Ne'em to feel a bit guilty for lazying about, as he sighed and closed his book before deciding to contribute more towards the combined security efforts.

He started to move around the estate more, keeping a watchful eye for any discrepancy that could qualify as an anomaly.

...

Elias hurried towards Damien while the latter was in the process of merrily serving drinks to a group of noble ladies.

Damien told them a hearty joke which caused the group to chuckle in delight, as they were obviously satisfied with the services of this enthusiastic young man.

Elias suddenly grabbed Damien, dragging him away right under the shock and exclamations of the ladies present.

"Did that waitstaff do something wrong? Such a pity, he had such a desirable face."

"His personality is quite good too. I do hope they will go easy on him."

"The young man dragging him away looks quite nice as well. The standard of young men present in this banquet is no joke at all."

...

Elias quickly briefed Damien, questioning if he had noticed anything off with any member of the staff throughout the evening.

Damien thought for a bit before shaking his head, concluding that all of his 'colleagues' had been acting quite naturally all evening.

This led to both of them scurrying off to the kitchen, as Elias recommended going through the number of butter knives to see if any of them were missing.

The style and design of the knife were said to be a part of the knife set reserved for dessert by Damien, meaning that it was a valuable lead to the identity of the possible assailant since the inner kitchen could only be accessed by kitchen staff and workers.

And to none of their surprise one of the custom butter knives was actually missing, revealing that Aamiya's revelation was actually spot on!

BOOM!

A huge explosion suddenly sounded out before either Elias or Damien could react, bringing with it a short bout of silence before the entire villa descended into a flurry of panic and chaos.

'This...'

Elias narrowed his eyes.

The knell of the night had been sounded.