System Change

The group all ate and had pleasant conversation, much more pleasant than their introductions had been. Of course, Derek still wasn’t a fan of the King. Even so, with such a spread made by the best chefs from the Crown, it was hard to not be happy.

Though the dinner was mostly under a cheerful atmosphere, there was still the problem that was Gerald Torith hanging over everyone’s heads… well, some more than others. And that problem looked to solve itself when their feast was interrupted by the King receiving a communication via red crystal.

Gerald was back in the palace.

The King turned to Edward. “Go.” He commanded.

The Crown Prince stood and thanked Alanah for the wonderful dinner before rushing off. The Teleportation building was just across the way, and he would be in the capital in minutes. Hopefully, he would make it to the palace in time.

“Is he going to be okay alone?” Derek asked.

The King nodded. “He will have his guard and the Palace Guard to assist. It will be more than enough.”

Derek let out a sigh. “I hope you’re right. Gerald doesn’t seem like a person to go down without a fight.”

The King grabbed a glass of wine and drained it. “Edward is more reliable than you think.”

Derek turned his head and looked Edgar in the eyes. Edgar shrugged. “He should be fine. At least he’s not a pushover.”

Derek looked over just in time to see a red crystal vanish into Alanah’s storage ring. She smiled at Derek, but said nothing.

I guess I don’t have anything to worry about.

***

As Gerald made his way into the palace and toward the wing that was considered his, he noticed some unusual activity by the King’s Palace Guard-specifically, Brandt, the head of the Palace Guard, and the man trusted with the security of the palace while the King was away. The King’s personal guard was with His Majesty in Savannah, after all.

No, what Gerald noticed was not too suspicious, actually. Ever since his suspension, the guard had kept a closer eye on him. However, Brandt seemed in a hurry once he saw Gerald arrive back at the palace. It was concerning, but not too out of the ordinary. Just in case, Gerald summoned a private communication crystal and sent a couple of messages.

Gerald moved back from his wing to find some of his people. Of course, they were all employed by the palace and Royal Family, but they were still his people.

As it turned out, Brandt had been extra vigilant all day after having a conversation on a private communication crystal. And, though Gerald didn’t see it himself, when Brandt seen Gerald arrive, the man had moved to send a communication out as soon as he was out of sight of Gerald.

That caused all kinds of alarms to go off in Gerald’s head. Gerald, deciding to play it safe, turned and headed back out from the palace with an excuse of having another meeting. It shouldn’t be unbelievable that someone of his status had multiple meeting to attend in a single day.

***

Minutes after the King received the communication, Edward was back in the capital and moving toward the palace with three of his personal guard. As they came up on the entrance to the palace, Edward noticed Brandt waiting at the gates. Edward and his retinue stopped.

“Is he inside?” Edward asked.

Brandt nodded. “He is. He’s only been here for a few minutes.”

Edward looked through the gate, only to see Gerald making his way down the steps onto the palace courtyard. “It looks like I got here just in time.” He was relieved. It may have been better for him to have come back to the capital as soon as they made their decision, but that risked the chance of Gerald becoming suspicious.

Edward was supposed to be in Savannah for the next few days, so him appearing back in the capital out of nowhere could have alerted Gerald. Luckily, their plans seemed to have paid off, and the Crown Prince made it back in time to capture the man while he was still there.

The Crown Prince walked through the gate and met Gerald in the middle of the courtyard with his four guards. Neither was in a rush, and both were casual with their statements.

“Prince Edward, what are you doing back so soon? I thought you were to be in Savannah for the auction for the next few days.” Gerald asked with a smile.

“Oh, you know, politics.” Edward answered. “Actually, I wouldn’t mind getting your advice on some things. Would you mind following me back to the palace?”

Gerald frowned slightly. “Is it an emergency? I am already running late for a meeting, and you know I hate to keep people waiting.”

“It is rather important. I’m sure whomever you are meeting would understand your delay.” Edward showed Gerald a winning smile.

Gerald’s eye twitched, but he eventually smiled back. “Of course, Crown Prince. Please allow me to reschedule my appointment.” He smiled the whole time as he withdrew a red crystal from his storage ring and sent a communication.

The older man put the crystal away and turned back to the palace. “I guess I’ll lead the way.” Gerald said as he took a step forward.

Edward began to take a step, but kicked off the ground instead, shooting straight up into the air. He looked down at where he was just standing and was appalled by what he saw.

Shadows stretched out through the courtyard, eventually wrapping themselves around his personal guard and Brandt. The shadows ran up to their waists, immobilizing them all at once. Edward would have been in the same situation if not for his instincts and literal lightning reactions.

Unfortunately for the guards, it didn’t end there. From the ground in front of them, four spears made out of what seemed like vines shot up. They tried to block the spears with their arms, but were still cut and penetrated. That alone wouldn’t have been enough to seriously injure the four guards, but what came next was.

A seven foot tall stone wall rose both behind and in front of the guards. Both walls were layered with stone spikes. If they hit, there was no way his team would come out safely. Edward surveyed the surroundings, unable to find the man with the shadows, but made out a figure with his hand on the ground controlling the earth, a figure he recognized. Behind the earth user was another person, one in a cloak who Edward did not recognize. It had to be the vine user.

The earth user was Cliff Aarden, the first son of House Aarden, and one of the strongest families in the Kingdom. Cliff, himself, was no slouch. He was currently said to be the strongest member of the Aarden family, even stronger than his father, the patriarch.

The problem was that he was the perfect counter to Edward. He was one of the few men that Edward believed could take him in a fight, and he was here, attacking him and his team.

Everything happened in a flash. Edward, with his high Wisdom was able to make out everything in an instant, but he was not fast enough. Using everything he had, he flung himself at Cliff. With his sword in hand and it radiating lightning, he stabbed out the same time that Cliff clapped his hands together.

The sword almost made it to the man’s armor, but he just smiled as a vine appeared and wrapped itself around the blade. Cliff then reached out with a hand coated in earth and tried to grab Edward’s wrist, but the Crown Prince was too quick. He yanked the sword back, slicing the vines in half and avoiding the earth user.

Edward took in his surroundings once more. His guard, for all intents and purposes, was out of the fight. Two were dead, and the other two, including Brandt, were in a dying state. The walls retracted, showing holes stabbed everywhere in his guards.

Dammit! Edward cursed. In less than a minute, his men were ambushed and all but dead. Edward tried to summon a crystal to call for backup, but as soon as it appeared in his hand, a shadow fell over him. He looked up, only to see a figure wreathed in shadows with two large wings radiating from its back.

The shadow struck out and knocked the crystal out of Edward’s hand. He was alone. The strongest of the guard was with his father in Savannah, and he had no way to call for help. The remaining guards in the palace were no match for Cliff and the shadow wielder. Edward had a sneaking suspicion of who the shadow wielder was, but he hoped he was wrong.

“Keep him busy while we escape. You can catch up later.” Gerald calmly told the shadow figure.

Edward tried to fly down to stop Gerald, but the shadow moved in front of him. “Sorry, I can’t let you do that.” A feminine voice warned, all but confirming Edward’s suspicions of who his opponent was.

“Why is the Assassin’s Guild protecting Gerald Torith? You’re not bodyguards, you’re assassins.” Edward shouted out.

The shadow covering the figure’s face slowly receded, showing a pale woman with black eyes and black hair flowing down her back, writhing like the shadows around her.

“That is for me to know.” She smiled.

Edward tried to get around the Vice Leader of the Assassin’s Guild, but she was too fast. Her figure would fade out of existence, then appear directly in front of him. However, she didn’t attack. It seemed her objective was not to kill the Crown Prince, but to delay him while Gerald, Cliff, and the vine user escaped. The fact that she was as fast, if not faster than Edward, meant she would be able to escape at any moment.

His lightning may be a decent counter for the shadows, but at this rate, Gerald would get away. At least that’s what he thought until he saw an arrow covered in a dark gray aura practically sprout from Gerald’s back. Gerald flew back from the momentum of the arrow, leaving a trail of blood in the process.

Edward traced the trajectory of the arrow until he saw a man standing between the open palace gates. A sense of relief washed over the Crown Prince as he recognized the man.

“Now Gerald.” The man said. “I must insist that you exchange some pointers with this humble commoner.” The man also looked over at Cliff. “You and your friend can join if you want, Mr. Aarden. It’s been a while since I’ve had a good fight.”

With that, the man took a step forward-bow in hand and daggers ready at the waist. Most people knew the man as Avery Swan, the Crown Restaurant’s number two. Most people had never seen or heard of him fighting. But there was a reason he was almost always by Alanah Swan’s side, and it certainly wasn’t for his cooking skill.

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