34 Hours Before the Wedding: Crimson Sky Inn
“I wonder which unlucky bastard will fall for the prank trap I left back at the Shipyard.”
As she spoke, Willowlia stepped back and looked up at the unfinished spell array sprawling like vines across the left half of the hall.
After checking her calculations and confirming she hadn’t gone off course, she completed another ring.
“You seem to enjoy using your intelligence and magical talent for simple pranks.”
Corundum rose onto her tiptoes, trying to mark a tiny star on the wall, which was clearly much taller than she was.
When that failed, she had no choice but to use the human race’s universal levitation ability to reach the spot she wanted.
“Do you think it’s childish?”
The young mage placed her hand against the spell array’s interlocking lines, and blue candle flames lit the dense letters and strokes one by one.
“Having the leisure to tease your opponent means you’re in control.”
After making it clear through her actions just how tiny she was, the captain landed steadily on the floor.
The two of them worked with ease, chatting as they went.
When she got thirsty, Willowlia even used her highly precise wax-shaping magic to make drinks for herself and Corundum to share.
Corundum didn’t seem like a talkative person, but she seemed quite happy to play with words and meanings alongside the candlefolk princess.
As a result, the 8-hour job hadn’t left either of them too exhausted.
As they chatted, blue flames finished igniting the half of the hall covered in spell arrays, then greedily spread toward the other side.
But the flames spread with a certain restraint, each following an interlocking path.
On closer inspection, every line and tiny rune had been burned into sharp focus.
“Drawing a spell array with a spell array…”
orundum’s voice showed an unusual hint of uncertainty.
“I thought only seasoned array experts could make tiny modifications to an array while keeping it functional…”
“They say my array patterns are at least two eras ahead of theirs.”
Willowlia gave a self-deprecating laugh.
“That’s why no one can put my techniques into practice or popularize them. My greatest contribution to society has actually been reducing the cost of sailors’ rations with a new kind of food wax-shaping magic. Isn’t that absurd?”
The girl couldn’t quite understand how she had become so far ahead.
She’d only incorporated a little programming knowledge from her previous life, and she hadn’t even been an expert in that field.
She also couldn’t understand why the locals couldn’t learn her approach.
She was perfectly willing to teach them everything she knew so the modern system of magic could stop relying on flesh-based reagents.
But that was how things were.
No one could learn it or understand it.
“Rumble!”
As if venting its frustration, countless spears formed instantly with the aid of the massive spell array, smashing the wall at the front of the hall to pieces and connecting it to the hall on the other side.
One hall was large enough for most banquets, but this time they needed a relatively larger space.
32 Hours Before the Wedding: Candlefolk Embassy
“It’s been 8 hours, Mr. Cavendish.”
Helianne frowned and tapped the table twice.
The reception room was now crowded with scrolls wrapped in matte metal foil.
The diplomat hadn’t been bragging.
His collection of documents related to dueling law proved that he knew the field well, not to mention that nine-tenths of them were special metal-bound editions designed to withstand tidal damage.
The two of them studied the relevant laws while waiting for replies from other candlefolk cities.
But as Helianne said, 8 hours was far too long.
The candlefolk, with their wax-shaping magic and more sophisticated devices, shouldn’t have been so slow at sending messages.
“…Could the Tide be interfering with the signal and slowing it down?”
“You don’t seem to be a student of meditation or the academy.”
Helianne stood from the sofa and began carefully scanning the room with her will.
“The royal capital’s Eye of the Tide communications station has a uniquely favorable environment. It’s the finest observation station in the entire Rift. The Tide would have to cause a city-level crisis to prevent it from receiving a signal.”
The playboy realized something was wrong, too.
He hurried over to the seated communication device and checked it from top to bottom for malfunctions or signs of tampering.
“You don’t need to check. I inspected it when I sent the message.”
Helianne walked closer to the wall beside the communication device.
“I wouldn’t make such a rookie mistake.”
There was no source of interference or signal dampener in the room, but a faint sense of wrongness convinced Helianne that the problem was inside the tower.
The girl suddenly narrowed her eyes and spoke a spell.
A flash of fire melted a large hole in the white wax wall, but beyond it wasn’t a view of the outside.
It was a dense fog, like a sky swallowed by mist.
“How dare they!”
Cavendish’s voice was nearly furious.
“They actually embedded a dome inside the embassy wall!”
“We need to change our strategy.”
Helianne’s voice was instead heavy with concern.
“We’ll split up. You find a place where we can actually send a message. I’ll gather the unmarried men eligible to duel right now. If they’re willing to cut our lines of communication, they’ll also come up with an excuse to take people to the police station.”
30 Hours Before the Wedding: Stained Glass City Police Department Operations Room
Mo Sichen’s fingers moved down the parchment list, the candlelight casting deep shadows across his features.
The names and titles of seventeen candlefolk nobles were listed one by one on the parchment, like seventeen chips waiting to be claimed.
“Viscount Orlando of the Fourth District is watching <The Legend of Charlemagne> at the theater,” his deputy said, spreading the reconnaissance report across the tactical board.
“His box has six candlefolk civilian guards armed with spring-loaded crossbows.”
The police captain tugged at the collar of his new medal.
After failing to find anything in the hideout, he’d quickly been reassigned to the police station.
“For the two ladies about to be married, it’s entirely possible they couldn’t find anything because there simply wasn’t anything to find.”
That’s what the city lord’s messenger had told him.
The captain had found the explanation convincing.
“Have the third squad pose as ushers.”
He circled the theater’s layout in red ink.
“During intermission, use the Mourning Bell to disrupt the communication device in the box. Remember, the viscount is the honorary president of the drama association. Leave him his dignity.”
“Captain!”
A team member rushed into the office.
“When we reached the inn where Mesames was staying, the room was empty!”
They realized something was wrong.
Mo Sichen didn’t panic.
Instead, he gave his orders calmly:
“Have the fourth squad keep watch around the embassy. Everyone else, pick up the pace, and don’t use force.”
He pointed out the intersections around the embassy on the map.
“As long as they haven’t entered the embassy, you’ve got the authority to bring them back to the police station.”