"If you raise even the slightest suspicion, the bomb will blow up, got it?" Isadora pressed her fingers against her forehead and rested against the carriage window as she warned.
"Yes."
"Hm?"
"Yes, princess."
Seated in the carriage far behind, Varian spoke through their soul link. But he couldn't stop smiling.
[All ranks: 8 (unsealed)
Very Important Note: Why does a man have no shame when he gets this much help from his woman?]
Ignoring Logos' whining, he traced the obsidian sword tattoo on his wrist.
It's the 'bomb' Isadora personally installed or so she said.
Just to test her, he tried to esacpe in the previous round. Turned out, it's not a bomb but a location tracker.
"Your life is in my hands, so you better behave." Her cold and strict voice rang in his mind but Varian found it cute.
'Will she be embarassed once she regains her memories?'
Hiding his smirk, he replied in a respectful voice. "Y-Yes, princess."
Hearing the fear in his tone, Isadora nodded to herself in satisfaction and closed her eyes to rest.
The group left the public space and entered the military district.
While the holy squad of three looked at Varian suspiciously, the man didn't even spare them a glance.
From the time he got down the carriage, his gaze was fixed on Isadora.
'Why would I watch three old geezers instead of this pretty lady?'
"If you fail the test, don't try it again and again. It can lead to aura shock and even death." An old man from the holy squad said.
"Oh." Varian nodded, not paying them much attention.
After Isadora finished the verification, the holy squad did theirs.
"Fuck!"
"Arghh!"
"My back hurts!"
The elderly warriors collapsed on the floor, panting heavily, trying to not lose consciousness.
Varian stepped forward with a carefree smile.
The smile quickly collapsed under the violent energy from the vortex which shook his soul.
Using the slivers, Varian kept up the appearance that he's a rank 9 and was hence qualified to enter the forbidden grounds.
Thankfully, his paths were unsealed and no problem occured this time.
Even though he slumped on the ground and ended up with a rough breath, he looked much better than them.
"This kid…"
"Who the fuck is he?"
"The princess said he's a warrior she trained secretly…but are you serious?"
The holy squad was dumbfounded.
This world had a different progress speed compared to the real world. With stuff like legacies, inheritances, precious elixirs having miraclous effects, it's not uncommon for a young person to reach rank 9.
For instance, Princess Isadora being a rank 9 was not only not surprising, it was even expected with all the resources she recieved.
Certainly, there were only a handful of such rank 9s. After all, the resources to raise one were absolutely precious.
What's surprising, however, was for a young rank 9 to be so strong.
"Buckle up."
Princess Isadora unsheathed her sword and gave Varian an inexplicable gaze before stepping into the vortex.
"See ya later, old fellows!" Varian jumped to his feet and ran after her.
"Wa-Wait! We're supposed to be the holy squad!"
The old man leading the group pulled himself up and trudged to the vortex.
A hammer materialized in his hand and he jumped in.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The world turned black and white before it exploded into a multitude of colors. Sounds of explosions so loud that it made one wonder if the world was ending rang in their ears, causing their eardrums to rupture without any resistance.
When the twisting space finally landed them in the destination, all five of them were bleeding from the ears.
"…#@#$"
"^&#@!"
"!!%%#*~"
Varian tilted his head at the holy squad talking to each other. Why was there no sound?
His ears should've started healing. Basic hearing should've been no problem.
"~#!@$"
He opened his mouth to ask them but no sound came out from his throat either.
That's when he realized what's happening.
'A law…this place has a law that prohibits us from speaking.'
The old men tried to write on a sheet of paper but no words were visible even though the ink was used.
They even tried to write words on each other's skin, it failed. The receipent's sense of touch was affected, neutralizing the attempt.
In the end, sign language also failed as a mystical force made the fingers invisible.
'Verbal, written, tactical communications are banned.'
Varian's lips twitched as he foresaw what would happen. His mind went ultra-active in the situation and started playing music.
"Hoo!"
"Hoo!"
"Ba! Ba!"
"Boo! Boo!"
The old men gestured to each other, slamming their chests. One old man pointed in one direction. Another shook his head fervently. The old woman shook and nodded her head.
'Even cavemen eating raw flesh could do better.'
Varian sighed and turned to the princess.
She was surveying the world with a pensive look.
It's an endless stretch of gray land under a red sky. In the far distance, there's a pillar of black light, with countless black sparks gathering towards it. It looked like a shining black tornado, slowly sucking everything around it.
And then there's a huge translucent barrier not too far from here. In front of that barrier were hundreds of thousands of large blue rocks.
Isadora exhaled and turned back to face them.
There would be a different set of restrictions for every expedition. This time, it was speech. The princess was mentally prepared and wasn't downcast.
With a few simple gestures, without involving any hint of language, she explained the plan.
'We need to get into the barrier.'
That's it.
But there was a caveat.
Sliding her index finger over her neck, the princess pointed to the holy squad and then to herself, before nodding lightly.
'I will have to get in at any costs, even if you have to die for it.'
Since they were already prepared to die, the old warriors didn't complain. They turned to Varian and created a 'V' formation. Putting Isadora in the center for protection, they marched forward at a quick speed.
As they approached the barrier at a terrific speed, the ground began to shake. Small stones, grey sand particles and thin dust rose into the air.
Then, as if someone was playing drums, there was a sound.
'Huh?'
