Bastion's eyes snapped open in the dead of night. Sleep was no longer an option—not with a new intruder in his room.
Unlike the silent observer who had watched him toss and turn, this intruder radiated malice. He didn't know how he knew, only that he knew. If he did nothing, she would kill him.
So he lay in wait, silently calling upon Earth and Light mana—his strongest elements.
The intruder crept closer, muttering something under her breath.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," the female voice whispered, over and over.
She moved closer to the bed, raised her dagger high—then suddenly spun around, intercepting a sneak attack from behind.
Clang!
Daggers clashed in the darkness as both intruders broke into a flurry of motion.
Bastion turned his head toward the noise but could only make out the occasional flash of sparks in the darkness. He sensed danger hadn't passed. Even if one intruder was fighting on his behalf, the threat wasn't over. So, he waited for his moment to strike.
A yelp rang out, followed by a heavy thud against the wall.
That was his cue.
With a flick of his left hand, he released his first spell. His right hand followed with a second.
Flash!
A brilliant orb of light burst in the room, momentarily blinding all present. The light hovered above the voyeur who had crashed into the wall. Bastion hoped it would blind his attacker and give his unlikely savior the upper hand.
Stone Bullet!
A round stone shot from Bastion's right hand, striking the back of the female intruder's head. The attack didn't seem to faze her, but it did get her attention as she turned to face him.
Bastion took a good look at her. She was wearing a maid outfit—and she looked absolutely furious with him.
Slash!
The voyeur whose shadowy figure was obscured by the light lunged, slicing deeply into the distracted maid's neck with a dagger.
The maid dropped her weapon and clutched her throat, but blood poured freely. The wound seemed fatal.
A few seconds later, she collapsed to the floor and lay still, bleeding out.
Bastion got up and switched on the lights.
He finally saw the face of the first intruder—the one who had been watching him sleep.
She was a shadow wolf demihuman with icy blue eyes, strikingly similar to Sibelle. She looked young. Roughly ten years old.
"Are you okay?" Bastion asked gently.
The girl was on her knees, staring blankly at the corpse, her dagger still gripped tightly.
She nodded but said nothing. Her small frame trembled from the aftermath.
Bastion approached, blocking her view of the body. He gently pried the dagger from her shaking hand and wrapped his arms around her.
"Thank you for saving my life. You did a good job. There, there," he murmured, holding her close.
Only now did he realize—this child might have been assigned to secretly watch over him. She was still young, though, and clearly inexperienced.
He held her close, gently patting the top of her head and running his fingers through her long, abyss-black hair.
After a few minutes of quiet comfort, her trembling eased, and her breathing gradually returned to normal. Then, she started actively sniffing him. She would occasionally breathe in deeply to take his scent in.
'Perhaps it was a trait of shadow wolfkin like Sibelle,' Bastion thought.
"Why don't you go tell Sibelle what happened," Bastion suggested softly, "and ask her to have my room cleaned. I'd do it myself, but I'd just get lost."
She nodded once more, then darted out through the balcony doors.
Bastion ignored the fact that they were five stories up and turned his attention to the corpse.
He wasn't shaken. Age dulled most emotions, and Bastion had spent the last five years mentally preparing for nights like this.
This was a world of nobility, swords, and magic. Deaths would happen. Corruption would thrive. Wanton massacres were inevitable. There were no police. No cameras. No accountability. In this world, people could act as they pleased.
He studied the body. The woman still clutched her throat in a death grip. Based on her repeated apologies, she had likely been blackmailed. She wasn't an infiltrator or spy—she had been a genuine maid of Diamondhart Castle.
The castle's maids were trained in combat, their skills on par with the guards. While the guards patrolled the grounds, the maids tended to the castle and its inhabitants. In the end, they were one and the same.
She definitely had a Class and Skills—probably at Apprentice Rank. But shadow wolf kin were known to possess superior physical abilities compared to humans.
Like Sorcerers, all they needed was to awaken their dormant talents to access the power of their bloodlines.
Bastion understood this well. A similar power lay dormant in his own blood—he was a descendant of the Hero, after all. That's why, even without a Class, he could continue to grow stronger, so long as he trained his talents.
A few seconds later, Sibelle emerged from his shadow.
With a wave of her hand, the maid's corpse was swallowed by darkness, the blood vanished, and the room was restored to its pristine state. Even the smell returned to normal.
"I apologize for this incident, Young Master," Sibelle said as she guided Bastion back to bed. "I promise it will never happen again."
She tucked him in gently before adding, "We will discuss this further tomorrow."
Then, with the lights turned off, she vanished from the room once more.
Bastion still had questions, but they could wait until tomorrow. For now, with the second near-death experience today behind him, he could finally get some sleep. The tension in his body eased, making way for a peaceful slumber.
-----
In a hidden underground chamber somewhere in the Kingdom of Brilliance, five priests stood around a smoldering pyre. The space was damp and dark, thick with the stench of dried blood and decaying corpses. The priests spoke in hushed tones, their robes casting flickering shadows in the firelight.
"All our assassination attempts have failed," one of them announced grimly.
"All four targets?"
"The lion was a long shot, but the others too?"
"The diamond had a shadow, the warrior's abode was impenetrable, and the phoenix uncovered the traitor early. We almost succeeded with the lion—if not for that damned priest of the Goddess of Brilliance visiting that day."
"Have they found anything?"
"Nothing. We erased all traces. They're aware we exist, but they know nothing specific."
"Can we try again?"
"Their security has tightened. Our next opportunity will be when they arrive at the Royal Academy."
"Not during their travels?"
"You're welcome to try—at your own expense."
"It makes no difference. The prophecy is clear. The Great One shall be freed. The children are irrelevant to the Great One's true power. We'll strike again, but not at the cost of our true purpose. Our priority is to strengthen the Great One."
"For the Great One."
"For the Great One."
-----
Early the next morning, Bastion was awakened by Sibelle and took the chance to finally ask.
"Would you mind explaining why I almost died twice yesterday, Sibelle?" Bastion asked in a calm and mature tone.
"The maid who tried to kill you twice yesterday was blackmailed by a certain organization. That is all the information we have at this time," she replied.
"Why were none of my family surprised?"
"They were made aware of certain movements from this organization, so they weren't surprised by the attempt. Above all, you would have managed to survive if you had consumed the poison. I have plenty of potions to ensure you are brought back to full health."
'Then why did I feel like death was guaranteed? Was my judgment off?' Bastion thought.
"I suggest you investigate that poison more thoroughly, Sibelle. I'm sure I would have died from it."
"I will see to it, Young Master."
"Now, about that young girl yesterday. Would you mind explaining the situation a bit more clearly, Sibelle?"
"Of course, Young Master."
Long ago, after the hero's victory in the northern lands, many demihumans chose to follow him back to his homeland. They pledged their allegiance and vowed to stand beside the hero's descendants in the inevitable battle against the Demon Lord's return.
The hawkmen swore loyalty to the firstborn. Though mostly human in appearance, they bore talons for feet, feathers in place of hair, and powerful wings upon their backs. They excelled as aerial scouts, unmatched in the skies.
The shadow wolf-kin pledged themselves to the secondborn. With abyss-black hair, reverse-jointed lupine legs, furred ears, and a tail, they thrived in the wild. Masters of stealth and assassination, they were ideal companions for forest warfare.
The lizardmen devoted themselves to the thirdborn. Their bodies were covered in durable scales, with thick lizard-like tails. Highly resistant to heat, they served as formidable frontline defenders—perfect for shielding the fledgling Phoenix Mages within the volcanic mountain ranges.
The dwarves gave their loyalty to the fourthborn. Contrary to popular tales, they were more broad than short, and powerfully built. Renowned as the greatest diggers and forgers, they were indispensable in mining the riches of the southern mountain range.
Ever since then, the Diamondharts had been bonded with shadow wolf-kin—loyal companions who served as their lifelong personal shadows. Fiercely loyal, the shadow wolf-kin favored this arrangement, unlike other demihuman races who maintained more transactional ties with their lieges.
The hawkmen served as scouts and royal messengers. Lizardmen filled the ranks of the Phoenixhart's army, while dwarves, aligned with the Steelharts, toiled as exclusive miners and master forgers.
"The girl yesterday was a candidate to become your shadow when you turn fifteen, Young Master. Just as I serve your father and your older brother Alexander has his own shadow, you will have one chosen from among a dozen talented candidates," she explained.
"If you're Father's shadow, then why are you basically my personal maid? You've been with me since birth, after all," Bastion interrupted.
"Your father does not trust anyone but me to take care of you, young master," Sibelle said with a smile. "Also, I can be in more than one place at the same time. Now, focus."
"The girl yesterday snuck off to see for herself who her supposed master might be. She must have heard from the maids that you would be out in public yesterday and took a curious peek. Fortunately, she was there to ensure your survival during the attack."
"Yes, quite fortunate," Bastion said with mild skepticism.
If she can be in more than one place at the same time then she should have been there watching over him the entire time.
Sibelle went on to explain that the shadow wolfkin had served the Diamondhart family as personal assassins since pledging their loyalty millennia ago. They had a village of their own near the great forest and would nominate gifted children whenever a child was born to the main family line.
The prospective shadows were trained at the castle from young until the child turned fifteen. At that point, the child could choose one of them to serve as their shadow. The two would then attend the Royal Academy together and grow into their roles as master and shadow.
All of this was to fulfill the tribe's ancient promise to the hero, to literally fight alongside his descendants in the battle against the Demon Lord.
-----
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