Infiltration
Leylin was clear that this was a huge test for him.
If his disguise did not get through the leader of the Emberwings, everything was over. He could forget gaining his trust and the entire plan would have to be revised.
Hence, he had to go through with this, but it wasnât as if he was entirely unprepared.
At least, the two Giant Kemoyin Serpent Dukes had stealthily entered as well and were constantly on the watch outside the residence. If the leader noticed anything, Leylin would immediately use his Kemoyin Serpent Transformation and attack. With three Morning Star Warlocks together, it would probably be enough to escape.
After all, the three Kemoyin Elders from before had the record of fighting evenly with a rank 5 Radiant Moon Magus. Though the most powerful First Elder had already fallen, Leylin believed he was no less powerful than him.
With three Giant Kemoyin Warlocks working together, it was enough for them to escape even if they could not win. That was what the three of them had counted on before daring to draw up this plan.
âA.I. Chip!â Leylin called out in a low voice.
[Beep! Beginning to conceal energy undulations.] The A.I. Chip intoned loyally, causing the aura on Leylinâs body to become more obvious as if he was a pure Emberwing.
The hidden strength of the point mass of a Morning Star, the secret technique to hide bloodlines as well as the support of the A.I. Chip gave Leylin the confidence that he could get away with all this under the rank 5âs nose!
Taking a deep breath, Leylin followed Schiker into the room, bowing to the figure at the middle.
This was a large study room. Simple armour, oil paintings and the like filled it with a history that changed the atmosphere. What surprised Leylin was the feeling that a domain had automatically been created in the study room.
This was not the domain of Morning Star, but a special space that had been formed due to the long period of time it had existed.
âSchiker, youâre here!â The headâs voice was gentle as he watched Schiker and the rest enter.
âFather!â Schiker called out after he went through a thousand different expressions.
âItâs been hard on you, get up. Are these your two subordinates? Excellent!â When the sound fell, Leylin felt his heart squeeze, and entire self get nervous. Immediately after, he felt something like a boiling hot gaze sweep at his body, causing him to tremble.
When the gaze was on his body, his point mass shuddered, as it his soul force defences was being forced to the surface, but Leylin firmly stopped it.
Meanwhile, his Fireplume, which had reached the peak of the ninth level, formed a giant energy tide that kept the point mass within. Terrifying flame energy began to revolve spontaneously, resisting the spying from outside.
âHm?â The head made a light sound of surprise. âYou must be Ley, right? Raise your head.â
Though the voice was gentle, it held the hint of an irrefutable command. Almost at the very moment the voice was heard, Leylin raised his head like it was a conditioned reflex.
Following that, he saw a handsome young man with red hair and eyebrows, looks slightly similar to that of Schiker. He wore a loose white robe, and his eyes seemed to hold⦠praise, within them?
âPretty good strength, and a pure flame energy.â The red-haired young man nodded, and turned in the other direction.
Lokeâs body shivered, but the head said nothing. It was no surprise either, though. Just a soldier at the seventh level of the fire feathered technique was not enough to attract the leaderâs notice.
âIâve already looked through your achievements in detail. I hope you will continue to work hard in the future and protect our Unionâ¦â The handsome head encouraged them and waved his arms.
Leylin and Loke immediately retreated with expressions of reverence.
*Thud!* The door to the room closed, leaving only Schiker and the head inside. The headâs aura changed once more, and his expression while watching Schiker turned emotional, âItâs been hard on you these past few years!â
âItâs service for the union!â Schiker had a taut expression while speaking, but his clenched fists displayed the dissatisfaction in his heart right now.
âForget it. I know you care nothing for using my name and working, so Iâll let things move according to the usual procedure. Your contributions are enough for you to be promoted to be an admiral. Make some preparations, you will work at the Tylasus garrison!â
The leaderâs voice was gentle.
âUnderstood!â Schiker answered coldly. Seeing this expression, the leaderâs brows furrowed slightly.
âOne more thing. Thereâs something off about your two subordinates, Ley and Loke.â
âWhatâs wrong? I donât need to say more about Leyâs loyalty, and as for Loke, heâs a descendant of the Eiffel familyâ¦â
The muscles on Schikerâs face tensed. He cared quite a lot for these two subordinates.
âThereâs not a large issue with Ley. Heâs long since broken through to the ninth level of the fire feathered technique, but heâs been concealing it and only revealing the strength of level eight. Itâs probably on purpose,â the red-haired head commented.
âHe must have a pretty high potential to reach this level at such a young age, and you can definitely consider roping him in. His intentions are too complex⦠Give him the tenth level of Fireplume later, Iâm sure heâll definitely be even more loyal to you after thatâ¦â
âSo heâs already reached level nine?â Schiker ducked his head, slightly ashamed. From his point of view, Leylin had probably hidden his strength because Schiker had yet to advance himself. He did not want to pressure his superior.
He raised his head to look at his father, the number one genius of the Emberwings, and could not help but let his head hang down, defeated. He did not seem to have inherited even an ounce of talent from his father, and no matter how hard he worked, he still could not measure up to those geniuses. This was why he had been discouraged and left Tylasus City.
âI understand.â Schiker huffed out a long breath and nodded.
The headâs next words caused Schikerâs brows to raise. âLoke, however, is a very serious problem.â
âHis appearance is a pretence. Iâm afraid the real Loke has already died, and the one in front of you is of another race!â
âAnother race?â Schiker cried out in alarm.
âYes! I canât tell if heâs from the Triserpent Sect or Mobius Organisation, but he probably has his eyes on the Holy Solar Festival.â A sneer appeared about the leaderâs lips.
âIâll seize him immediately!â Schiker got up, understanding the situation. His heart was filled with fury from the betrayal.
Never had he expected that Lokeâ the man who usually worked hard, was responsible, and very much to his tastesâ was a spy from the enemy. The shame from not realising this hovered in his mind.
The leader stopped Schiker, âThereâs no hurry. Theyâre just a few bugs, what do they matter? What you need to do now isâ¦â
â¦â¦
After leaving the residence, Leylin bade Loke farewell and found an inn to stay in.
Though the Special Task Force members had a station in Tylasus City with many unoccupied rooms and better facilities, Leylin was obviously not going to choose to stay there. He would perhaps go there later, but for now, it was better to find a place that would not attract attention.
After sending the maid away, Leylin locked the door, and the light in the room dimmed.
âHow is it? Are things going well?â Two translucent figures emerged from the dark corners of the room. They were Gilbert and Emma.
âIs this place safe? Make sure itâs secure!â Leylinâs brows furrowed.
Emma replied, âDonât worry. Weâve long since set up a concealing spell formations and boundaries. Even the staff and guests of the inn have been \hypnotised, and weâve also used some spiritual force pressureâ¦â
Leylin did not ask more and began to narrate the happenings of the day slowly, âThings are going well on my end. Iâve obtained part of the map of the building, and even met the leader successfullyâ¦â
âSo he didnât suspect you? Tsk tsk! So that leader is a pretty boy!â Emma giggled.
âProbably not, but he did notice my faked Fireplume, something I intentional revealed,â Leylin laughed. He had long since gotten used to how these female Warlocks jumped from subject to subject so suddenly.
âHow powerful is he?â Gilbertâs focus on his power more than his appearance was only expected. They had exchanged blows with the leader before, but wanted to know Leylinâs opinion.
âI canât tellâ¦â Leylin looked absent-minded, as if he was recalling the scene from the meeting. âBut I can confirm that his soul strength is very powerful. Itâs probably the strongest out of all the Radiant Moons Iâve seen!â
âHe is the best of another world. Heâs trained up to the thirteenth level of Fireplume, so heâs probably not any weaker than Radiant Moon Magi with level 5 meditation techniques in the Magus World. Not to mention heâs been using firasource stones and supplementing his soulâ¦â
Gilbert sighed, recalling the scene when he had fought with their opponent, and his body involuntarily trembled.
âIn our operation this time, weâll try our best not to make contact with him, and all should be fineâ¦â
Leylinâs heart sank but he continued and asked Emma, âHowâs your preparation going?â
âItâs smooth-sailing. Hehe⦠From now, you need to call us Viscount Flower and Earl Violetâ¦â Emma giggled. It looked like she was doing well.
Leylin was rather speechless. The Atlan Union had actually let outsiders do so well that they became earls. He had no idea how Emma had gotten through the nobility examination.
âAlso, weâve found traces of activity of several Jupiterâs Lightning Morning Stars in Tylasus!â
Gilbertâs other piece of information immediately had Leylinâs attention, âAre they here to take revenge on us?â he asked as he touched his chin. After all, Collins was slain by them.
Gilbert shook his head. âIâm afraid not. Their target should be the same as ours.â
âIs that so? Then the difficulty of our operation should increase by a large amount. Of course, things might also become more convenient for usâ¦â Leylinâs eyes glinted profoundly.