Arcadia's Ignoble Knight: Dark Elf Arc

Chapter 78

Caspian had no idea where the assassin had gone to. As he and Elincia ran into Fas Sheras, he looked around and grimaced when he realized he couldn't find any trace of them.

"Ele? Can you find them?"

"Hold on. Let me ask Freya and see if she knows anything."

He and Elincia stopped in the middle of what could be construed as the main road in this part of Fas Sheras. While many of the buildings were still in ruins, there were a few that had survived the disaster. That said, this part of the city had been mostly abandoned due to how little structures had survived, leaving the entire place feeling like a ghost town.

"Freya? Can you ask Heimdall if he can find the assassin who attacked us?"

Caspian placed a hand against his forehead as a strong female voice spoke up. "Hold on for one moment. Let me ask." There was a several second delay before the voice came again. "Heimdall has found her. It looks like she is traveling to Pertelum's mansion."

"Pertelum's mansion?" Caspian blinked. "That's the grand elder for the council of seven. What in Arcadia could she want to go there for--"

He paused as he remembered how he and Elincia had seen Acritalis traveling into a section of the palace that was restricted for most people. They had not been able to acquire any evidence to suggest he'd been responsible for poisoning the Sacred Tree, but it looked like they might be able to acquire proof now.

"Ele? How much mana do you think you'll have left over if you have Heimdall transport us to Pertelum's mansion?"

"Um... maybe half my mana pool..." Elincia scrunched up her face as she tried to answer him. "My contract with Heimdall isn't complete since I haven't had many reasons to call upon him. If I ask him to transport us somewhere, I'll be using my mana instead of his."

"Do you think you'll have enough left over to ask Loki to hide us?"

"Maybe... but I won't be able to maintain the gate required for a spell like that for longer than fifteen minutes..."

"Fifteen minutes should be enough--hopefully. Have Heimdall transport us to an unused room in Pertelum's mansion."

"Okay. Give me a moment."

Elincia took a deep breath and began circulating her mana, which Caspian felt suffuse the air around him.

"Heimdall," she called out. "Please transport me and Caspian to an unused room in Pertelum's mansion."

It happened within an instant. One second they were standing outside with the canopy and stars above them, and the next they were inside of a room made of white wood. It was a completely unfamiliar room. It didn't have anything in the way of decorations, but despite this, it looked like a very well-maintained room. Judging by the divan and dresser, this was probably a guest room of some kind, or maybe just an unused bedroom.

Elincia gasped the moment they appeared, staggering forward as she placed a hand to her chest. Caspian reached out to steady her. He allowed Elincia to lean on him for support, giving the girl a moment to recover.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"F-fine... I'm just not used to needing my own mana for spells anymore. I wasn't prepared for how draining it would be."

"Let's rest here for a moment. Once you've recovered, have Loki place an illusion over us to hide our presence."

"Okay..."

Bringing Elincia over to the nearest wall, Caspian set her down, easing her to the ground so she wouldn't slump down like a sack of bricks. She really did seem exhausted. Her shoulders and chest were heaving, and her cheeks had become flushed from exerting so much mana in a single go. She was definitely no longer used to exerting herself so hard.