By the time Cipher returned to the Adventurer's Guild, night had completely fallen. She was still pondering the White-Bearded Old Mage's words. His meaning was clear: he would assist if their strength surpassed the enemy's, but if the enemy's power proved overwhelming, he would prioritize his own safety.
Now that the Empire might intervene, the Old Mage was clearly preparing to leave by morning. Cipher had no real desire to keep this questionable "ally" around anyway. Whether the grumpy old coot helped or not made little difference to her.
What use was a Diviner with no combat prowess, unable to pinpoint the Hell Book's location or provide any intelligence? Utterly useless.
The situation seemed to have reached a stalemate. The King remained hidden, the Hell Book's whereabouts unknown. Were they simply doomed to wait until His Majesty successfully activated the book, completed his plan, and then confront him head-on?
Cipher glanced at her System Page. Thanks to the day's events, her Fame had skyrocketed to 9,500, just shy of the 10,000 mark.
Cipher guessed that the main contributors to her growing Fame were the King, the Black-Robed Man, and the demon she had frightened away (though the demon was likely the biggest factor).
Now that news of the "Imperial Assassin's" assassination attempt on the King had spread throughout the city, her Fame was steadily increasing. She estimated it wouldn't be long before she could unlock her next Identity.
Therefore, as long as the King didn't immediately execute his plan tomorrow, if she could just wait a little longer until Cipher accumulated the remaining five hundred Fame, then no matter which Demigod Identity she drew next, neither the Hell Book nor the Imperial Army would pose much of a threat.
Returning to her room at the Adventurer's Guild inn, Cipher immediately noticed Aria sitting on the bed, polishing an Owlbear egg with a cloth.
Cipher couldn't help but ask, "What are you doing?"
Aria replied, "Oh, nothing much. I just noticed the egg was a bit dirty, so I thought I'd clean it. Keeping it clean might make the little one inside feel happier, right?"
"By the way, Sister Cipher, you're not planning to sell this egg, are you?"
Five hundred Gold Dragons might seem like an astronomical sum to ordinary people, but for Cipher, it was merely the yield from a single raid on Viscount Braun's vault. Selling the Owlbear egg would involve finding a buyer, haggling over the price—too much trouble, she thought. It simply wasn't worth the effort.
Cipher nodded, then quipped, "It's just an egg. How could the embryo inside possibly care if the shell is clean or dirty?"
Still, since Aria had already cleaned half of it, Cipher didn't stop her. Soon, the egg was "sparkling clean." Aria then placed it on the bedside table, wrapped it snugly in a blanket, giving the impression she was incubating it.
In reality, incubating an Owlbear egg required no such fuss. These creatures had astonishingly robust vitality; even if left completely unattended, the hatchling would emerge without issue.
After a leisurely bath, Cipher settled into bed to rest. Meanwhile, in a humble but reasonably priced inn in Cloudsea City, a messenger located the bard Dio, who was staying there.
The messenger held out an envelope to Dio. "Sir Dio," he said, "His Majesty the King wishes to propose a deal. If you're willing to provide a small service, he will entrust the Hell Book to you upon its completion."
"The Hell Book?" Dio visibly startled at the mention of it. After a moment's hesitation, he frowned. "How does your King possess such a thing?"
"That's irrelevant," the messenger replied. "This is a personal transaction, just between you and His Majesty. No one else will know about it. Upon completion, you will receive this Divine Artifact. Isn't that what truly matters?"
Without a moment's hesitation, Dio smiled. "Very well, I accept. What do you require of me?"
The messenger blinked, taken aback by Dio's swift agreement. "What? Surprised?" Dio chuckled. "I am a Bard, and the Hell Book is a Bard's Divine Artifact. To obtain such a treasure for a mere favor—isn't that a bargain?"
The messenger smiled in response. "Indeed. Your task is simple. His Majesty's plan will commence tomorrow. All you need to do is..."
-
The next day arrived swiftly. Cipher, an early riser, entered the Adventurer's Guild hall and immediately spotted Yuna and her companions looking dejected.
She couldn't help but approach them in surprise. "Hey, didn't you guys go on that adventurer's quest?"
"Senior Cipher!" Yuna greeted her with a mix of delight and frustration. "We did accept a quest with a good difficulty level and reward, but... Cloudsea City is under lockdown today. No one can enter or leave, so we can't even leave to complete it."
Yuna wasn't alone in her frustration. The entire Adventurer's Guild hall buzzed with sighs and grumbling. Some cursed the lockdown, while others nodded in understanding. "After all, His Majesty the King was assassinated yesterday," one said. "A lockdown is to be expected, right? And did you hear? Last night, a whole bunch of soldiers seemed to have gotten into a fierce battle with someone—the commotion was insane!"
Cipher frowned slightly upon hearing the news of the city's lockdown. Unlike the others, she knew that the Imperial Commander and his Adjutant had successfully broken through the blockade the previous night and left Cloudsea City. This lockdown was completely unnecessary.
If the Imperial Assassin has already escaped, what's the point of sealing the city now?
Soon after, the rest of the Hero Party woke up and gathered in the main hall. Cipher immediately explained the situation: how Imperial soldiers had taken the blame for her actions, been mistaken for assassins, and broken through the blockade, leading to the city's lockdown.
Feidric frowned. "This doesn't make any sense."
Douglas exclaimed in surprise, "Imperial soldiers in this city? We're doomed! Knowing them, there's definitely an Imperial Army hiding nearby!"
Aria froze for a moment, then turned to Cipher, muttering, "Taking the blame for you? Mistaken for assassins?"
After a pause, Aria's eyes widened in realization. "So... the Imperial Assassin everyone's been talking about is Sister Cipher?! You went off alone to do something dangerous without telling us?!"
Hearing this, Cipher couldn't help but press a hand to her forehead, a look of utter exasperation on her face. Aria wasn't just slow on the uptake; she was practically ten steps behind!
While that was true, it wasn't the point at all. The real issue was the bizarre city-wide lockdown—it was clear something major was about to happen.
"But..." Aria began to protest, but Cipher swiftly placed her tail in front of Aria's face, interrupting her. "You can touch my tail whenever you want from now on..."
Aria froze, then nodded frantically like a pecking chick. "Sister Cipher, you promise?!"
Watching this, Cipher began to wonder if Aria's supposed slowness was genuine or a calculated ploy to ensnare her.
Just then, Yuna's eyes lit up as she chimed in, "Can I..."
But before she could finish, Cipher and Aria shouted in unison, "No!"
"Fine..." Yuna lowered her head in disappointment, pouting and adopting a pitiful expression.
Witnessing the scene, Douglas couldn't help but remark, "Little Cipher sure is popular, isn't she?"
Feidric calmly replied, "With her beauty, is that really surprising? It's only because Beastmen are generally disliked in this country. If she were in the All Nations Alliance, she'd have even more suitors."
The group soon returned to the matter at hand, discussing the city's lockdown. At that moment, a figure appeared at the entrance of the Adventurer's Guild and strode directly toward Cipher and her companions. It was Dio, the Bard.
The instant Aria spotted him, she drew her weapon and pointed it at him. Without hesitation, Dio raised his hands in a gesture of surrender. "Don't, don't cut me down! I'm not here to harass Miss Cipher this time! I have urgent news!"
"It's about the Hell Book. You followed the trail of this Divine Artifact from Stone Pine City to Cloudsea City, didn't you? I know where it is now!"
Hearing this, Aria reasoned that her agreement with Dio—"If you harass Cipher again, I'll cut you down"—didn't apply to serious matters. Slowly, she lowered her weapon.
Still, her gaze remained fixed on Dio, ready to draw her sword at the slightest hint of ill intent.
Cipher and Feidric also looked puzzled. Just as the group found themselves at a loss, mired in a stalemate, Dio's sudden arrival with this crucial information seemed too convenient to be coincidental.
Feidric asked suspiciously, "How did you know we came from Stone Pine City? And how did you learn about the Hell Book? You seemed completely clueless about it during our conversation yesterday."
Dio shrugged. "I am a bard, after all. Isn't it natural for me to be well-informed? But that's not the point. The important thing is that the King plans to activate the Hell Book's power today. The ritual will take place ten kilometers north of Cloudsea City at eleven o'clock this morning. If you want to stop him, you don't have much time left."
Seeing the skeptical expressions on everyone's faces, Dio scratched his head. "You still don't believe me? Fine, fine, I'll just be blunt. My information comes from one of the King's messengers. He invited me to help him carry out his plan, but I naturally refused. Once the Hell Book is activated, countless lives will be lost. And since I still consider myself a decent person, I don't want to see that happen."
Now that he'd laid it all out, Feidric nodded slowly. "If what you say is true, then this sudden lockdown of Cloudsea City makes sense. So, we need to find a way to escape the city while it's sealed off and reach the location ten kilometers north of the city?"
The city gates would undoubtedly be heavily guarded by soldiers, making this no easy task.
Just then, Yuna stood on tiptoe, raised her hand, and exclaimed, "Me! Me! I can help!"
Feidric looked at her in surprise. "You have a way to get us out of Cloudsea City?"
Yuna shrugged. "There's no other way. I could hurl a fireball at the castle in the city center. The explosion and fire would definitely grab the soldiers' attention, right? Or I could just smash a fireball into the city gate while you slip out during the chaos."
Feidric stared at her, speechless.
It was a brutally simple plan, but upon closer inspection, it... wasn't entirely unreasonable.
Cipher spoke up. "What about you? The soldiers would definitely hunt you down!"
Yuna puffed out her chest confidently. "No problem! I can cast fireballs from a distance and run before they even get close."
The Ranger, one of Yuna's two companions, chimed in. "I scouted Cloudsea City yesterday and got a pretty good grasp of the terrain. I know a few excellent vantage points."
The Warrior added, "I can carry Yuna to safety after she throws the fireball!"
In short, the task of diverting the soldiers' attention fell to these three.
"This... Alright then," Cipher finally agreed. "But if you're in real danger, shout my name loudly. I'll rush to save you!"
"Mhm! I got it!" Yuna nodded earnestly and set off with her two teammates. Feidric added, "Let's get ready too. We'll head near the city gates. As soon as the explosion happens and the soldiers rush to put out the fire, we'll make our move."
Cipher interjected, "You two go ahead. I have something very important to take care of first. I'll catch up later!"
Her "very important task" was simple: to grind out the remaining five hundred Fame points in these final hours.
An assassination attempt yesterday, and launching the plan today? This was definitely ahead of schedule. Cipher hadn't anticipated the King's impatience. If she had known, she would have stayed up all night grinding Fame. Still, she figured she had enough time.
Her method was straightforward: using Divine Speed, she would rapidly sketch a bunch of Cat Heads, then sneak into Cloudsea City's treasury to steal money, and distribute it—just like she had done in Stone Pine City.
While doing this, she would be darting all over Cloudsea City, keeping an eye on Yuna and the others. If anything went wrong, she could rescue them promptly.