William: "I will wait for you right here. When you get the ring, you must come out and give it to me here. Do you understand?"
Aurelia: "Yes, sir!"
She said and climbed over the gate's bars. Once she managed to get inside the large courtyard, she began to move quickly but silently. At some point, she stopped walking and looked around... No one was outside... Could it really be this easy? She smiled, but then she heard footsteps... She turned her head and saw a young man approaching her.
Finny: "Aaaah... Why didn't anyone wake me up? It's really uncomfortable sleeping on plants..."
Aurelia took a step back, knowing that he had noticed her. Finny froze for a moment when he saw her. He had never seen this girl before, and the doors were locked... How did she get in? Did she climb over? Was she here to harm his master? That would not happen!
Finny rushed at her, and without a second thought, she punched him in the head with all her strength, causing his head to start bleeding. That only made things worse, as he looked at her with a crazed expression and lunged at her.
She pushed him away and took a few steps back. Finny started yelling.
Finny: "GET OUT OF HERE! GOOOO AWAY!"
Aurelia pulled a small pouch of powder from her pocket. She took a handful and blew it into Finny's face. He stood still for a moment before collapsing to the ground. The powder was a sleeping dust that William had taught her how to make.
Aurelia sighed, believing no one else had woken up. But then, suddenly, a bullet whizzed past her head. She quickly turned toward the direction it came from and saw another blond man aiming at her.
Aurelia began dodging the bullets with astonishing ease her speed was unbeatable. She hadn't expected such an attack, especially not so soon, and certainly not with firearms. Her heart pounded, but her composure never wavered. Her steps were precise, every movement like a dance, a melody of evasions that spared her from each shot by mere inches. There was no time to waste.
With her eyes fixed on the palace doors, she made a sudden move and sprinted toward them, hoping to escape the trap that had been set for her. But from the dense foliage of the bushes, a new presence emerged before her.
Mey-Rin, her eyes filled with intensity, appeared and immediately opened fire with her weapons—each shot precise and calculated. This was no random assault. Mey-Rin was trained to hunt down and eliminate targets with certainty and speed.
Aurelia was forced to halt her advance, turning her gaze to confront this new threat. As the gunfire rained down around her, adrenaline surged through her veins. It was clear now—this battle would not be easy, neither for her nor for her opponent.
She understood that if she wanted to complete her mission, she had to take control of the situation. With a swift motion, she pivoted and launched her counterattack. She wouldn't let them slow her down.
So far, only three people had appeared. If these three were already this dangerous, then the fourth must have been something far more terrifying. Although Aurelia had no trouble dodging bullets, she knew she needed to find another way in. She couldn't stay out here if the pressure kept increasing.
With speed, she ran behind the mansion, and Mey-Rin immediately followed—relentless and deadly. Aurelia had already prepared her grappling hook, and before Mey-Rin could catch up, she threw it with precision toward a window of the building. As soon as the hook latched on securely, she gained momentum and used the rope to swiftly scale the wall. Her heart pounded, but her composure remained intact. Within seconds, she was inside, leaving Mey-Rin behind.
Inside the silence of the mansion, Aurelia stopped and sat on the floor to steady herself. The tension was overwhelming, but she knew she had no time to waste. She exhaled deeply and immediately stood up, scanning her surroundings. She had landed in a dark library, filled with shadows and old books. The air felt heavy, carrying an unsettling sensation that something was off.
She carefully approached the door, opening it slowly, trying not to make a sound.
The hallway was empty, dark, and silent. For a moment, Aurelia felt like she had regained control of the situation. But despite the quiet, the sense of danger lingered. She moved carefully, step by step, hoping to reach the ring without further disturbance. Her senses were sharp. Every noise, every subtle shift in the air made her pause and listen.
And then, a voice echoed through the darkness. Soft, yet filled with authority and absolute certainty.
Sebastian: "My dear lady, what are you doing wandering these halls at such an hour?"
Aurelia's blood froze instantly. That voice... It belonged to the fourth. Sebastian. The man who was, without a doubt, the most dangerous of them all.
She turned slowly and saw him—tall, dark-haired, his deep, enigmatic eyes gazing at her with an unreadable expression of indifference and secrecy.
Time seemed to slow down. Every nerve in her body was on high alert. There was no hiding anymore. The enemy had come closer than she had ever anticipated.
And now, the only thing she knew was that her fate depended on how fast she could react...