Chapter 1666 (1/2)

In the darkness of the warehouse, the three teenagers exchanged another tension-filled glance. Cassandra opened her mouth to say something, but Delilah flicked out her hand and made a muffled snap with her fingers. Then her hands blurred into the lightning-fast hand signals that were required learning for all attendees of Kharon Academy. Listening Skills are common. Don’t speak.

Cassandra blinked several times, bit her lip, then moved her hands in painfully slow imitation of Delilah’s adroit display. Let’s retreat.

However, Mint’s eyes hardened into a determined set. And when he moved his hands, it was clear that he took the lessons much more seriously than Cassandra. We need to at least investigate, to report to my dad that someone else was present here when they shouldn’t be. Follow me.

Delilah followed after the older teenager, his suddenly flinty expression causing her to suspect that he planned to apply to an Order after graduating from Kharon Academy. In those kinds of situations, being a part of a rather famous incident would do a lot to earn him recognition.

Or perhaps he even wouldn’t apply to other places, but wait for one of the sought-after and mysterious recruitment letters of the Order Ducis to be slipped under his door. From her observation of Mint, she had learned that he had chosen the Defect of Weakness, just like Delilah herself. And while she hadn’t seen him practicing much during the observation period, he didn’t make a sound as he crept forward between the tall piles of materials in the warehouse.

His fundamentals were impressively sound.

Clang! Clang!

The strange noises at the other end of the warehouse continued, acting as a constant beacon that guided the three through the maze of tarp-covered objects. Mint led the way, stopping at the right moments to peer ahead of the group and keeping the silhouette of his body covered by the various items stored in the warehouse for the future auction. Delilah followed behind, her eyes glowing with trap and heat detection Skills to make sure there weren’t any surprises ahead of them.

Cassandra, after her nervous hesitation, fell in quite adroitly behind Delilah. She was just as silent as Mint in her movements, and twice as agile. In her heart, Delilah inwardly apologized to Cassandra. The busty teenager had chosen the Defect of Apathy to address in her stay at Kharon Academy, which was often considered by the combat-focused groups to be the joke Defect. But although each of Cassandra’s steps looked like she was dancing, it was a dance of silence and subterfuge.

Should I try a dance class…? Delilah wondered. But then an image of her small and slight form standing on a dance floor, opposite the tall and dryly smiling Annon, and Delilah stopped dead in horror. Why the hell had she pictured herself that lump of wood Annon?!?

Delilah had stopped so suddenly that Cassandra had to execute a graceful pirouette to the side to avoid stumbling into her. Even more galling was that the obviously nervous Cassandra attempted to put on a brave face and patted Delilah on the back. In those jerky, slow hand signs she communicated. Don’t be scared. We are together.

Delilah chided herself for being a fool and hurried forward, banishing any thought of Annon from her head.

Mint had slowed his advance as they approached a particularly large object, gesturing for them to do the same. They huddled behind a massive pile of glittering metal ingots, likely a new type of alloy churned out by Kharon’s industrious furnaces. All three crowded together, Cassandra’s chest pressing against Delilah’s back and arm as they peered around the corner.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Completely ignorant of the watchers, the mysterious figure continued to work about ten meters from their current position. To both their benefit and detriment, between their cover and the figure was a partially obscured object that could only be an Earthfire Sculpture from the Deep Rift Danger Zone. Despite being covered by a tarp, the inner fire of that rare material glowed with enough lumens to release a halo of radiance that slipped out from the bottom lip of the covering.

The yellow-orange light provided a little more visibility in this corner of the warehouse, but it was also difficult to make out details of the dark figure while peering past this light source. Even with Delilah’s vision Skill, she was unable to make out anything concrete. The figure was fiddling with something past a light of stacked crates, wielding some shadowy implement that intermittently produced those clangs…

Cassandra pressed more tightly up against Delilah’s back, stretching out her hand so Mint could see as she moved her fingers in her typical stiff jointed effort. I. Can’t. See. Anything.

Shaking her head in irritation, Delilah stretched her hand forward too. Those boxes, do you see the symbol?

Darksteel. Image Kill Suits, out of Zone 1. Mint responded just as quickly. But I cannot tell what-

Something changed in the air. The hairs on Delilah’s arm began to tingle. Then things began to accelerate.

Without appearing to move with any urgency, the figure twisted and glanced over its shoulder. The next instant, Delilah’s training kicked in; she didn’t even see the figure fling the object before her fingers splayed outward and she conjured a Hex Barrier Shield only a few inches in front of Mint’s face. Delilah had spent altogether too much time training under that witch Lucretia to be caught by surprise ever. That horrid woman delighted in ambushing Delilah at the strangest moments, birthing in the girl a constant sense of vigilance toward her surroundings.

However, in the following moment as recognition arrived, Delilah felt somewhat foolish as the glowing blue shield of hexagons appeared in front of her. The object that trembled slightly, sticking against the front of her shield, was a thrown playing card. The laughing face of a joker leered at her through the barrier, mocking her effort.

Just as Delilah’s expression darkened, she was abruptly vindicated in her decisive measures.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM!

Congratulations! Your Skill Hex Barrier Shield (R) has grown to Level 169!