Chapter 254 (1/2)

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Chapter 254 – They Make Their Move

I'm back. I asked for a boat, and I was thinking of going alone—」

「At times, we take out the wicked!」

「At times, we leave mysteries behind!」

「And sometimes, we incur grudges from people!」

「And sometimes, we act with no regard for others!」

As soon as Hikaru entered the hotel room, Hikaru saw two girls wearing black cloaks and silver masks.

「We move in the darkness of the night and s.h.i.+ne like the morning star!」

「We are—」

Spreading both arms, Lavia and Paula brandished their staffs.

「Silver Face!」

「S-Silver Face!」

The room went completely quiet and as still as death.

「…What?」

「Not much of a reaction.」Lavia said nonchalantly, removing her mask.

「Nooooo… This is too embarra.s.sing.」Paula said, covering her face with both hands and crouching down on the floor.

「Uh, my bad.」Hikaru apologized.「Whoa. What. In. The. World?」

「Now that just sounds too forced.」Lavia said.

「Noooooooo!」

「What's going on?」Hikaru asked.

Hikaru returned to the hotel to inform them of the current situation and he was greeted with this. In a way, he was caught by surprise.

「Don't you remember? We bought masks since we sometimes need to conceal ourselves too.」

They bought the cloaks and masks just in case they needed it. It would be best if they never got to use them. Lavia's fire magic and Paula's healing magic were both among the most powerful ones in this continent. If there was a chance they would draw attention, they could just blame it on Silver Face.

「Okay, so now what?」

「So we thought I'd be more interesting if we had like a trademark pose.」

More interesting?

「I read something similar to it in a book a while ago.」

「I see… I think you shouldn't do that, though.」

「What?! Why not?!」

「You mentioned “darkness of the night” and “morning star”. Someone out there might draw the connection to us since our party name is New Moon Star.」

「Ah…」

She didn't seem to notice. A rather unusual mistake for Lavia to make.

「Hmm… We should change it to a different line instead.」

「Let's not do it again.」

Lavia and Paula started discussing. It's so peaceful here, Hikaru thought.

The Ruined Continent's wars.h.i.+ps were anch.o.r.ed just far enough that it couldn't be seen from land. The messenger's boat was heading towards Ville Zentra, carrying a flag painted with yellow and black lines.

It was dusk, and the small boat—fast for its size—could be seen clearly. It didn't have any sail; it seemed to operate using a different method. Thick smoke billowed from the funnel sticking upwards from the boat.

「Captain Landon. What do you think powers that boat?」

「It's different from ours. I'm interested in that black smoke.」

Luke Landon, the young knight who welcomed Kaglai in Ville Zentra, stood in the docks, waiting for the messenger to arrive. The harbor had been cleared of fis.h.i.+ng boats to an extent. Unfortunately, removing all vessels from the huge port was impossible.

I believe painting the flag with yellow and black lines is an old practice, Luke thought.

Luke happened to hear about that tradition as he belonged to a military family. The flag meant “we wish to negotiate”. There was quite a disconnect—these invaders possessed unknown weapons to them, yet still used old methods.

As the boat drew nearer, Luke saw a lone man standing on the stern.