The grand strategy room emptied out in a flurry of movement as everyone assumed their positions. The plan for the night was set: absolute silence, total stealth, moving out into the dead of night without alerting the royal guards or the outer perimeter.
Lilith had already mapped out a direct, high-level transit route designed to plunge straight down to the main throne chamber of the deep Queen tiers.
To maintain efficiency, the strike team split into two tactical groups. Lilith, Ivory, and Bellona slipped out through the palace's private shadow-gates, while Toya, Rutherford, and Aeterna took the armored frontline transport to punch a clean path through the mansion.
Before making her final exit from the royal wing, Lilith paused. Her footsteps drifted toward Serephine's private quarters.
Pushing the heavy wooden door open just a crack, she stepped into the dimly lit room. Serephine was still fast asleep, cocooned in the lingering, heavy haze of the Drape Fruit, her breathing slow and even.
Lilith walked softly over to the bedside, lingering in the shadows for a long moment. She gently brushed a stray lock of hair from Serephine's forehead, her expression softening into a rare, quiet vulnerability.
"Hello... wake up," Lilith whispered softly into the quiet room, knowing full well the words wouldn't reach her yet. "I know that when you finally open your eyes and realize we left without telling you, you're going to be furious."
A faint, bittersweet smile touched Lilith's lips.
"But I'm sorry... Haruto matters more to me than anything else in this world. And I know deep down, he matters just as much to you, too."
Lilith leaned in, pressing a gentle, reassuring kiss to the top of Serephine's head before turning toward the door.
"So, I promise you this—wherever we go from here, you'll be right by our side when it counts. Rest up, Serephine. We're going to drag that idiot back, no matter what it takes."
Before heading out to join the others, Lilith quickly snatched a piece of fine parchment and a quill. Scribbling hastily under the dim candlelight, she wrote a brief message to the Queen to ensure she wouldn't panic when she discovered their absence:
Dear Queen,We can't sit around waiting any longer. I am going after Haruto—not alone, but with the full force of our team. Please don't panic. We promise to bring our idiot back home safely and soundly.— Lilith
She folded the letter neatly and slipped it quietly under the Queen's chamber door.
Returning to the shadows, Lilith, Ivory, Bellona, and Lustra pulled heavy, dark hoods over their heads to conceal their identities. Moving in total synchronization, they slipped through the palace's hidden secret exit routes, navigating the corridors with such precision that not a single royal guard even batted an eye or heard a whisper.
Once outside the palace walls, the team rendezvoused with Toya, Rutherford, and a thoroughly excited Aeterna. They hurried down to the farms, where a sleek, high-speed transport cart waited for them with supplies from kobi. Pulling their masks into place, they armed themselves with twin swords and charged their arcane magic cores, cutting swiftly across the land until they reached Haruto's quiet, secluded mansion to make their final preparations for the descent.
As the strike team converged outside Haruto's mansion under the cover of night, the air buzzed with a tense, restless energy.
Ivory crossed her arms, looking down at the selection of gear scattered across the courtyard. "Wait a minute, where's my proper sword? I need a real blade for this, not just bare hands!"
Lilith smirked, not even breaking stride as she checked her own equipment. "Shut it and take the front, Ivory."
Ivory bristled, letting out an annoyed hiss at the teasing dismissal, while Bellona effortlessly hoisted a massive, heavy broadsword onto her shoulder, swinging it through the air with a casual grace. She grinned, testing the weight. "Heh... now this has some real power behind it."
Lustra checked her arsenal, her fingers deftly sliding a multitude of razor-sharp throwing knives into her hidden belts. Alongside the blades, she clutched a slender, ornate magic wand that hummed with a quiet, lethal resonance.
Toya stepped forward, drawing his signature sword with a sharp, metallic ring, his expression completely locked into battle mode. Behind him, Rutherford adjusted his collar, maintaining his pristine, unflappable composure. Because he had been strictly ordered to maintain his disguise as Lilith's personal butler for the duration of the trip, he couldn't show his true combat form or draw any unnecessary attention, keeping his hands neatly folded behind his back.
And then there was Aeterna. Skipping around the courtyard with unbound, chaotic energy, she was easily the most excited person in the entire group, treating the dangerous rescue mission like an amusement park ride.
With everyone geared up, Kobi drove them right to the outer threshold of the Layer Entrance.
As the carriage came to a halt, Kobi nervously stepped down, opening the door for Lilith with a worried look. "Princess... please stay safe. I'm helping you because I want you to find him, but you know this has to remain our absolute secret."
Lilith offered him a soft, reassuring smile, stepping out onto the cold stone. "Thank you, Kobi. And make sure you keep a close eye on Serephine while we're gone."
With a deep bow, Kobi turned the carriage around and sped off back into the night, leaving the strike team standing at the yawning, shadow-drenched gates of the deep abyss.
The group exchanged a final, resolute glance as the massive, ominous shadows of the Layer loomed before them.
Ivory crossed her arms, casting a sideways glance at the skipping, hyperactive child darting around their feet. "Wait a minute... why is there a little kid tagging along with us on a suicide mission?"
Lilith offered a cool, unbothered smirk. "Her memory got wiped. Who knows? Maybe seeing Haruto will trigger something and help her remember."
Aeterna stopped skipping, turning her wide, innocent eyes toward the group. She clapped her hands together excitedly. "Come on! Let's go! I want to see what's happening inside!"
Without waiting for approval, she took off running toward the checkpoint, forcing the rest of the group to step forward and follow her lead.
As they approached the main checkpoint desk, the same young female guild attendant who had logged Haruto's entry days ago stepped out. Her eyes went wide with shock as she saw the sheer number of heavily armed, imposing figures marching right toward her restricted zone.
She threw her hands up, blocking their path. "Stop right there! I'm sorry, but this zone is strictly restricted—"
Lilith's eyes narrowed, a flash of irritation crossing her face as she prepared to drop her royal title and flash her crests. But before she could speak, Ivory suddenly grabbed Lilith's arm, yanking her back and shoving Toya straight to the front of the line.
"Hide your faces," Ivory hissed under her breath, giving Toya a sharp nudge in the back. "You. Step up. You're our captain."
Toya stumbled forward, his eyes going wide with sheer panic. "Wait, what?! Me?!"
"H-Hurry up!" Ivory snapped, glaring at him.
Sweating profusely and terrified of blowing cover, Toya swallowed hard, pulling his collar up to partially hide his face. He puffed out his chest, trying to sound as authoritative as possible. "Ahem. Yes... I am the captain."
The guild attendant raised an eyebrow, immediately pulling out her tracking ledger to cross-check. "Very well. State your names and present your team registry."
Toya froze, realizing his name wasn't logged for this sector. "Ah... we're not on your local records. We just arrived from the upper sectors."
The girl closed her ledger with a firm click, her expression turning unsympathetic. "Then I'm sorry, but you'll have to wait until morning clearance—"
Before she could finish, Lilith smoothly stepped up behind Toya and casually pressed her hand against his back, using a flick of mana to force his concealed hood back.
Click.
The hidden Level 60 aura crystal embedded in Toya's badge suddenly flared to life, projecting his verified statistics into the air above them.
The attendant gasped, stumbling back so hard she nearly tripped over her own chair. Her eyes darted up at the glowing numbers, her face instantly turning pale with utter terror. Level 60?!
She bowed her head so low her nose practically touched the desk, her voice trembling violently. "A-A thousand apologies, sir! I-I didn't realize! An operative of Level 60... you must be extraordinarily strong! Please forgive my rudeness!"
Toya quickly pulled his hood back down to cover his flushed face, coughing awkwardly to clear his throat. He forced himself to maintain a deep, rumbling tone. "It's fine. We are on a high-priority rescue mission. Open the gates immediately."
"O-Of course!" the girl stammered, frantically reaching for the manual levers to unlock the heavy security seal.
As she pulled the levers, she nervously glanced down at Aeterna, who was humming happily and swinging her legs. "Um... if you don't mind me asking, sir... who is this little girl? Bringing a child into the lower Layers is a death sentence."
Toya didn't miss a beat, gesturing toward Aeterna with a grave, protective expression. "Her father is missing down there," he lied smoothly, playing the part. "We're on a mission to find him, and we couldn't just leave his daughter behind alone on the surface."
The attendant's expression softened instantly into deep sympathy. She gave a solemn nod, stepping aside to fully swing open the massive iron gate. "I understand completely. May the gods protect your team. Please... bring him home safely."