Of Roses... And Blood? Wait What-?

Forest of Darkness

They were off with an awful start. It was only a moment of peace before the knight decided to barge in to Alberu's room without knocking. It made it obvious that he was a newbie knight. Unfortunately the knight didn't seem to realise that he was being extremely rude to the crown prince.

Alberu at least inwardly applauded for the knight's sense of justice and keen sense of detail. If it weren't for the wrong timing, the knight could be considered amazing for noticing that something was off with the crown prince's room.

Alberu exhaled a long, deep sigh. Things were already going south and they haven't even started yet. Perhaps this mission wouldn't be going as easy as he thought it would. Thankfully, the people around Alberu has always been particularly sharp. No... They could be considered superhumans as it is technically true. Choi Han and his group had noticed the presence of the knight a good amount of time and swiftly took action by putting on their hood. Alberu's advice of hiding their identities were deeply instilled.

Of course, Alberu himself also noticed the knight's presence. Although a little later than Choi Han who's ridiculously overpowered, the assassin duo who specialises in stealth, and Wolf King Lock with his sensitive hearing. His speed at which he sensed the presence of the knight was more or less synchronised with Rosalyn's.

But there was no need for Alberu to disguise himself as he was in the comfort of his own territory. If he had chosen to pull up his hood, he might've looked even more suspicious.
Plastering on his best princely smile, Alberu spoke to the knight. "I admire you for taking action as soon as you noticed something out of place. But recently there has been a change of plan for my schedule. I won't be going out until later evening. Thank you for your understanding."

It didn't take much to convince the knight. He was a newbie with not much experience. Added to Alberu's charming looks... There was no need for the knight to convince himself that anything was wrong since crown prince Alberu himself said so. But the knight's vision did linger towards the four hooded figures in Alberu's room.

The knight was smart enough not to question anything. He 'knew' that it must be some sort of top secret mission, and that these individuals must be the crown prince's most trusted unit. If Alberu could've heard what the knight was thinking, he would've sighed at the newbie's highly imaginative mind, yet be thankful for said imaginative mind at the same time.

"Pardon me, your highness!" The knight once again gave his salute to the esteemed crown prince of the Roan Kingdom before stiffly marching away out of Alberu's room.

Alberu let out a deep sigh of relief as the ordeal was finally over with. "That was a close call. Nevermind that it serves as a reminder for us to keep our guards up. We can't stay lax even for a second."

All of Alberu's subordinates nodded. They were still on edge with the unexpected 'intruder'. Evident by the way they kept their hood up. Truly they can't take a breather until this was all over. Seeing as silence began to overtake the room, Alberu took this as a sign to continue with his words.

"As I was saying, keep our hoods on, and stay undetected. We should first try and find the Alberu Crossman of this world. Wherever Alberu Crossman is, it's a given the rest of the party would be there. That includes Choi Han, Rosalyn, Lock, Beacrox and Ron. That's six people, including my other self. I'm still thinking of whom to bring for the other four. It's a tough choice. But for now we need to focus on finding our other selves. As long as we find Alberu Crossman, our other members would be in our hands."

Alberu's subordinates quickly went to work, in search of their other leader. Choi Han was the first to arrive in the middle of the Capital, where the city is bustling with citizens. Despite the overall western feel, it also reminds Choi Han of the markets held in Korea back when he was a teen.