The entire world was gloomy, from the sky to the land and sea. Although the south central area of the Kingdom of Graycastle wasn"t covered by endless snow, the impact of the Months of Demons was inevitable—the sun was hidden by an expanse of gray clouds which filled the whole sky. A pale fog rose from the earth, shrouding the land, rocks, and jungles. All that was revealed was the black and gray mountain peaks above the clouds, which stretched towards the southern end of the continent, and acted as the visual guide for Nightingale and her companions.
While flying in the sky on Maggie"s back, Nightingale intensely experienced just how terrible the cold wind was in the open air. Even with a set of customized windproof clothes on, which were given to her by His Highness before they left, she could still feel the cold penetrating her body from her scarf and cuffs. In particular, her ears and fingers would soon get numb due to hypothermia. They often had to stop and rest for a while, making the normally half-day journey eventually extend to the next day—even flying at full speed.
"Here we are." Lightning approached her.
Nightingale peered out and realized the ridge had become much lower, as if it was sinking into the ground. A city built on the hillside emerged faintly from the fog, which should be their exact target—Fallen Dragon Ridge.
"Let"s land." She patted Maggie"s back. "Be careful and don"t let anyone see us."
"Awh!" Maggie nodded, folding her wings as she glided down. The Mist soon enveloped the three of them as they landed. Nightingale found that the visibility around them was so low that she couldn"t see clearly what was only 50 steps in front of them, let alone over a great distance.
This was a good sign for the witches—at least they wouldn"t be easily noticed.
After entering into the Mist, the true colors of the world would be revealed, but she wasn"t worried about running into the church"s Judgement Army due to the thick white fog.
"You just wait here, this shouldn"t take long," said Nightingale.
"His Highness asked me to keep a lookout from the air." Lightning shook her head.
"And he asked me to be the emergency contact in case you kidnapped the target. Coo!" Maggie transformed into a fat pigeon, crouching on the top of the little girl"s head.
"His Highness gave some meaningless commands," Nightingale thought. "In that case, let"s go."
Suddenly, the world became black and white—the fog disappeared, or transformed into something else, which no longer hindered her vision. All of a sudden, the view became clear. The dark city wall was 200 meters away, extending out of the mountain side, and linked the city and the mountain like a dome. The stone wall was much shorter compared to the outer wall of Longsong Stronghold, and there were no sentry guards on it.
Nightingale went to the side of the wall and found the entrance through the curved lines. She stepped forward and realized that she was already on the other side of the city wall.
The city was half the size of Stronghold, and it was more like a small town in this area just outside of the mountain cliffs. But Fallen Dragon Ridge was located within the rocky mountains, and the Lord"s castle built on the hillside could be seen from far away.
Nightingale a.s.sured that Lightning and Maggie were following her into the city, and then she went straight towards the castle.
This mission wasn"t new to her and she was very proficient at it.
When she served old Gilen, it was a common a.s.signment to infiltrate into other n.o.bles" mansions and castles. Most of the buildings were similar in structure, and the owners always liked to live in the most s.p.a.cious house right in the center. Back then, she was unable to go in through walls freely and could only conceal herself—while carefully avoiding any possible traps and the G.o.d"s Stones of Retaliation—before stealing the letters and doc.u.ments hidden in the cabinet.
Now with the help of the Mist, she could easily do these things, since the lightless black hole presented by the G.o.d"s Stone of Retaliation, embedded at the corner of castle"s aisle, seemed as attractive as the moon hanging in the dark sky. The hidden traps could be seen clearly, as their twisted contours were like creeping earthworms, and she could easily destroy them after pa.s.sing through the walls. While under the influence of her ability, Nightingale was perfectly free to move—the walls, doors, and roofs were just inconsequential to her.
Walking into the largest house at the top, she found her target.
Although they had never met before, Nightingale identified Marquess Spear Pa.s.si, the Lord of Fallen Dragon Ridge, at first sight because a magic blue light was rotating in her body, which was the only color visible in the world of the Mist.
Sitting in front of a desk with a quill in her hand waving back and forth, the Marquess seemed to be writing something. She was about 30 years old with wrinkles at the corners of her eyes, and the silver curls of hair and plain robes she wore made her look older. Nightingale examined the room carefully and found that there was no G.o.d"s Stone of Retaliation or trap, and that Parcy"s only weapon was a delicate and luxurious short crossbow hidden inside her sleeve.
After leaving a mark on the side of the window, she dissolved the Mist and revealed herself.
"Greetings, Marquess Spear Pa.s.si."
Shocked by the unexpected voice, Spear Pa.s.si raised her head swiftly and saw Nightingale. She quickly calmed down and asked, "Who are you?"
Nightingale remembered the scenario of her first meeting with Prince Roland一his first reaction was to try to escape and she had to stop him by using a dagger, which in hindsight was really funny.
"I"m Nightingale and I"m from Border Town of the Western Region. As you can see, I"m a witch."
"I thought so, as no one can come here without an invitation, except a witch." Spear Pa.s.si pretended to be calm, as she moved one of her hand slowly into her sleeve. "You should knock on the door before coming in."
"Then I"d be welcomed by your guard, not you." Nightingale laughed softly. "Don"t worry. I don"t intend to hurt you. I just want to have a talk—so you won"t need that crossbow inside your sleeve."
This surprised Spear Pa.s.si and her face got more serious. "You know quite a lot." She took her hands out and crossed them in front of her chest. "Well, why are you here?"
"I bring you a message from Lord of Border town, Guardian of the Western Region, the fourth prince of the Kingdom of Graycastle, His Highness Roland Wimbledon." Nightingale bowed slightly. "He"s creating a new order of the world that allows witches to live together with average people peacefully, and he hopes you can a.s.sist him."
"Prince... Roland?" Marquess frowned. "The incompetent n.o.bility who was always laughed at by everyone?" With an absurd look on her face, she said, "This is ridiculous, Lord of Border Town? He"s just a rebel banished to a waste land!"
"Timothy was the real usurper," Nightingale said, "and Prince Roland will soon dethrone him. But that"s beside the point... His Highness needs your magic power to strengthen the ability of a witch. Would you mind making a trip to Border Town?"