"Is there no other way—?" I stammered, glancing between Micah and Claude's headless body in the brightly lit hallway.

The cat was obviously Chase Daylan, and the favor was to die early.

Is Micah suggesting there's no way out of this but death?

He had told me to be ready at a moment's notice, but this was too soon. It had been but a handful of days.

"Luca, Leo is dead," Micah declared, his expression shifting to one of grave seriousness.

"No." I blinked my eyes. "How….?" I asked.

"He was within range when Claude activated this runic sphere," Micah explained. "He killed Leo and took me hostage. I can't leave it, nor can anyone enter."

Damn it.

I stepped back as Claude dragged his feet across the smooth stone floor, and the red runic sphere advanced slowly, casting an eerie glow.

I rubbed my temples while Leona chirped in despair.

It was the first death this round that affected me. There was my sister's guard that had died, but I didn't know them. Leo was different. He was a close ally. He had helped me with the Wobbly Pebble, as well as helping my sister with her inventions, helping bring her fireworks to a successful realization before the Summer Festival. And he was Elda's friend—one of her only true friends, her own age.

There was also the practical matter of Leo's value. He was intelligent and resourceful, and if his talent was nurtured, who knows what else he could have come up with alongside my sister? He could have been a great asset in the war against the Kobar Empire. Then, besides his value, there was the issue regarding his mother. Sarka Jarbez had been assured that her son would be safe within our protection.

But that promise is now broken. Will she continue to help us in the future? Will she be capable of it? Or will she fall into a pit of despair?

"Luca, look and remember this man," Micah commanded, bringing back to the present.

I understood his intention and obeyed.

My eyes swept over Claude's pasty white skin and his contrastingly black runic tattoos. I couldn't make out all of them, with some partially obscured by the placement of his head and the curvature of his limbs.

Chase had indicated that these runic tattoos were Claude's method of transferring information from one round to the next and that they might even have information dating back to the very first round. My brother seemed to have attempted to decipher them but failed before he could.

My memory, being faulty as it were, wouldn't recall the intricate foreign texts and images on its own. But I had a System that could memorize and relay any information.

<< System. Can you memorize what you're seeing? >> I asked in case tattoos didn't fall under the same scope as books.

[ I always do, Luca. ]

The blue screen acknowledged.

I moved to round about the red sphere. However, Claude had caught on to Micah's and my plan.

"Luca  Frey. So, you are an Awakened," Claude mumbled, his low voice resonating in the hallway.

His feet shifted, rotating his body ever so slightly that only the front remained visible to me. There was no world where I could run around the sphere faster than Claude could simply turn and block my view of his back. The most that I could accomplish was making him turn 180 degrees.

<< Leona, if you flew to the other side, would you be able to remember his tattoos? >> I asked hopefully.

"Peep!"

I am a magnificent and powerful phoenix, but that level of intricate memorization is impossible even for me.

Damn it.

But it was worth a shot to check. Leona was prone to surprising me with the extent of her abilities.

Claude stepped backward from me, continuing his methodical walk toward the entryway. I noticed a slight lag in the red sphere's movement, following only after the step was made.

Perhaps there's a limitation preventing him from simply running at all our guards and killing them with the sphere?

In any case, it gave me extra time to figure out what to do. I glanced at the hallway walls adorned with paintings and noticed a large mirror in the distance.

Aha.

I suppressed a smile, not wanting Claude to catch on.

If I could see his back's reflection, the System could record the tattoos. It wouldn't be perfect, but it was better than nothing.

 

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

 

Something is going on.

Gradov gazed out the large window of the Rose Room, surveying the activity outside. Dark clouds ready to pour rain hung in the sky. The guards and staff walking the grounds were fidgety, their restlessness indicating something was amiss.

The Frey Manor had been in a flurry of movement a little after he arrived, with guards scurrying and servants rushing about before settling into the current strange sort of lull reminiscent of the calm before the storm.

Grandov emptied the lukewarm remnants of his tea into his mouth. It was his sixth cup during his hour-long stay in the Rose Room. He had arrived earlier than he had informed Luca, hoping for an opportunity to observe the manor and examine the family's current situation. However, he had been stuck sitting within the confines of the Rose Room, unable to investigate more thoroughly.

"I apologize, but guests are not allowed to wander the Frey Manor unaccompanied," the maid that had set out the tea had explained.

Not wishing to stir trouble and possibly cause permanent damage upon future rounds, Grandov had no choice but to await Luca's arrival.

Before coming to the Frey Manor, he had stopped by Freida Stran's shop. There, he gained answers to the two inquiries he had posed to her. However, the information that he did not receive had struck his interest most.

Freida Stran's existence was an excellent cheat. She was what was known as a "Sage" amongst the Players, an NPC that could supply information beyond what the bipolar Systems could and were willing to offer. BlueLizard had found Sages within a handful of the other Games and kept their identities and locations guarded close to heart. Some cheats were meant to be gatekept, especially the likes of Freida Stran.

However, Sages weren't all-knowing nor immortal. They had a will of their own and a reflex for survival. Sages that didn't know where and when not to poke their noses were quickly killed—a terrible loss for any Player.

Adovoria's Fall was by far the most challenging Game to have ever appeared, and Freida Stran, for better or for worse, was exceptionally attuned to her instinct for survival. One easy cheat when finding a Sage was to acquire intel on the opponent and beat them based on the insights acquired. However, Freida Stan shut that conversation down immediately regarding Adovoria's Fall opponent, indicating a profoundingly difficult opponent.

Over several tests, Grandov quickly learned that the information that Freida Starn refused to acquire was just as valuable as the information that she did. It helped prevent him from getting involved in overly troublesome individuals.

Unfortunately, Luca Frey, Micah Frey, and the Frey Merchant, as a whole, were within the realm of unattainable information. Moreover, given the current state of things, it was impossible not to get involved with Luca Frey and his family. The strange part was that in the previous round, Grandov had gained intel on Luca Frey before approaching him at the bar without any qualms, yet today, four years in the past, Luca Frey was considered untouchable by Freida Stran.

If Luca Frey is the snuck-in Player, that must be the reason. Moreover, Luca Frey was also aware of Freida Stran's information services, which means he is far cleverer than his Intelligence stat had indicated. Or perhaps he found a method of masking his true stats and abilities?

"Your tea, Sir Grandov." The maid with the yellow headband entered the Rose Room and set a fresh teapot on the table before him.

"Thank you." Gradov graciously accepted the newly poured tea and raised the cup to his lips, but only after having run a quick poison check on it first.

[ Poison Identifier in effect. ]

[ The tea is not poisoned. ]

It might have seemed redundant, it being his seventh cup, but one could never be too careful. He didn't see why Luca Frey and his household might wish to harm him. Still, with the many years of experience within the charming realm of Adovoria, BlueLizard had grown accustomed to checking first, killing second, and trusting in only the rarest occasions.

Grandov tipped the cup, savoring the rich fragrance and swallowing the pipping hot black tea.

There was a reason why the most nefarious criminals chose to reside within Adovoria or, at the very least, have their headquarters here. While BlueLizard comprehended Grandov's deep love for Adovoria and shared his desire to preserve it, she couldn't ignore the kingdom's underlying flaws. Gradov's rose-tinted glasses obscured the corruption, criminal activity, and depravity that festered within this kingdom. The nobles stole from their tax-paying citizens and indulged in their vile interests, successfully running businesses like the Frey Merchant Guild were no better than mobster enterprises, and the citizens were hardly poor little helpless sheep, many of whom were deeply involved in the shadow economy of the continent.

Of all the realms that BlueLizard had played within, this realm was undeniably the most cunning and treacherous. Other Players expressed astonishment at her choice to attempt clearing Adovoria's Fall, given its notorious reputation. However, BlueLizard was drawn to Grandov's genuine wish to protect the citizens, a purity akin to recently fallen snow. She was a sucker for such good-natured characters.

"What is happening out there?" Grandov inquired.

"Nothing you should be concerned with," the maid replied.

As Grandov examined her face more closely than the previous two times she came about, he felt a sudden flicker of recognition. There was something oddly familiar about it that he couldn't quite pinpoint. However, he didn't recall ever meeting her in all the playthroughs.

<< System, what is the identity of this woman? >>

When in doubt, BlueLizard always relied on the Game System to provide information.

[ Denise Klint. Age: 19. She has been a maid of the Frey Household for a year and about two months. ]

Denise? Klint?

Grandov's eyes widened. He took a new interest in the young woman's appearance. Denise had short dark hair, a no-nonsense hairstyle, and large hazel eyes.

<< Is she related to Fin Klint? >>

[ Yes. They are siblings. ]

Grandov smiled.

I can see the resemblance now.

Fin was a formidable force, a mage of exceptional prowess. Few could match the potency of his magic, and Grandov felt fortunate to have discovered such a talent. Having rescued him from the clutches of the Spiders had also earned Grandov considerable influence over the young mage.

Fin was captured by the Spiders sometime around when his sister had died. If she's still alive, then he might be free as well.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

Outside, hurried footsteps echoed through the hallway, accompanied by urgent calls.

"Young master Luca—!"

Just what is going on out there?

Hearing Luca's name, Grandov rose from his seat and approached the closed door. As he opened it, he saw Luca darting down the hall to the far left. Two guards turned their attention toward him, their expressions narrowed.

"Sir Grandov! You must wait here; guests are not allowed to wander the property unaccompanied," Denise's voice thundered as she joined him at the doorway.

"That was Luca, was it not?" Grandov inquired.

"He'll be here shortly. Please, wait inside," Denise responded sternly.

Grandov observed her strained expression.

"Denise, what is going on?" a boy's voice sounded from the hallway.

Grandov's head whipped over at the boy's entrance. The boy didn't have his defining silver-grey hair, nor did he have the battered air to him of the original. Instead, his hair was a soft brown, and he appeared to be an average boy before puberty. However, having fought beside him so many times, Grandov could tell immediately that the twelve-year-old boy before him was none other than Fin.

"I heard that Micah Frey was in danger? That he was taken hostage?" Fin asked, walking over.

Grandov noted from the corner of his eye that Denise was nudging his head toward him.

Fin's large hazel eyes met Grandov's, and he fell silent, taking the cue from his sister to stop talking.

Grandov sighed.

It now all made sense. Micah Frey had found himself in a predicament and edging on death's cliff. Of course, the staff was in a state of unease.

Just what lunatic decided to take him hostage?

Grandov rolled his head.

He didn't care much for Micah Frey, especially given his insights into Grandov's life and encounters with the eldest son of the Frey household. The feeling was mutual.

But might I earn myself a few brownie points if I were to save him? Or, at the very least, I'll learn something new in my first round back.