Servitude: The Hydrangea Chapters

Ch 66: Thwarted Designs of the Captor - Part 2

As the formation nears the Wall, Ervin already has tinctures in hand and has taken some, briefly closing his eyes before reopening them, with his Glass Eye activating. His craft, positioned at the back and with him standing behind the pilot, allows each craft to stay within his view. As the relays on each craft power on, the dozens of spheres contained within them begin to hover and oscillate rapidly within their containers.

In moments, each aircraft becomes invisible, maintaining formation as high above the ground as possible without the pilots feeling woozy from the altitude. The closer they get to the Wall, the more Ervin has to suppress the stress of being noticed, on top of the migraine quickly forming from his magic.

As they pass over the Wall, everyone except Ervin is watching the volcano in anticipation of the God of Fire, holding their breath as they pass over.

Miraculously, nothing has changed; the patrols below are also showing no signs of alteration.

With the passenger guards, armed with rifles and watching behind them in case of a sneak attack, they reach the point where they are out of sight.

"It seems we are clear, Your Lordship."

By now, the entire right side of Ervin's face is soaked in blood, his expression tense from the pain even after drinking a vial of tincture to ease the throbbing in his head. Even after having the Glass Eye for a little over a year, he still isn't used to the side effects, while Elek had several years to get used to them.

Once he dispels the illusion, he sinks into the seat set aside for him to rest, groaning and breathing heavily in pain as he presses the palms of his hands against his eyes. On top of the pain, he already feels smothered in the suit, so Ervin reaches for a container of water to drink.

Due to the pain and the effects of the tincture fighting against each other, Ervin can't help but slip into unconscious rest.

By the time Ervin regains consciousness, all he can hear are shouts and clangs. The pain still lingers, but less intensely, and he's soaked with sweat in the unbearable suit. He groans as he tiredly sits up, looking around and seeing a guard guarding the entrance to his aircraft.

"What's happening?" Ervin growls.

The guard briefly glances at Ervin before looking ahead to keep watch. "It seems the guards are being ambushed, Your Lordship. The men you brought here before are nowhere to be found, and sounds of gunfire are coming from inside the ruins."

Ervin takes a few deep breaths and gets to his feet, freeing himself from the restraints to push past the guard. The bright sunlight above is unbearable, so Ervin moves to the nearest shaded area with the guard following. As they hide, another guard falls from above and hits the ground, his armor making a loud clang against the stone.

To assess the situation, Ervin uses his spell to see through walls. His eye darting around, he observes his guards scrambling across the few floors of the ruins, as if they're searching for someone, shouting to each other.

Checking the rest of the structure with quick, shifting glances, just as the guard explained, not one of the men watching Elek's companions is here. On top of that, neither are the companions.

'Where are they?!'

Ervin's search focuses on a Colonial man with bright orange hair, wielding only a revolver, who is hiding and maneuvering around his men amid the chaos. When one of the guards enters a room near a balcony, the man fires at him, and the guard... begins to float? Confused and panicked from being suspended in the air by some unknown force, the man charges, ramming him to force him out and over the rail, with him soon falling to the ground.