The original plan to infiltrate the royal capital was scheduled for a week later, but because everything had to be moved up, the entire timeline was compressed to just three days.
Fortunately, Valtos had already been preparing for quite some time. In reality, they had only lost two days—and with Yuuki's help, three days was more than enough to finish setting up every teleportation magic circle.
Because of this…
Yuuki had no choice but to come up with a reason to delay the opening of his tavern, which was supposed to begin business in two days. There was no way he was letting that clash with an assault on the capital.
As for the excuse?
Two members of the Black Bulls were currently out on missions. If he was going to invite the whole squad, he obviously couldn't have empty seats.
He had already discussed this with Rebecca beforehand—his tavern's first wave of guests would be the Black Bulls, Asta's squad, along with Yuno's Golden Dawn.
Of course, those nobles from Golden Dawn were unlikely to show up, but Yuno coming alone was more than enough.
Having members from two Magic Knight squads dining in his tavern would be a tremendous boost to its reputation… and would conveniently mitigate a lot of trouble.
Rebecca naturally supported the idea wholeheartedly.
Two days later, just as dawn began to brighten the sky…
Yuuki, Valtos, and the gathered members of the Eye of the Midnight Sun finished setting up the final teleportation circle.
A dozen of the Eye's members stood respectfully to the side, each of them trembling with excitement.
"At long last," Valtos murmured. His usually calm voice carried a ripple of emotion.
"Indeed. Tomorrow's show is going to shock every royal and noble in the capital," Yuuki said quietly, gazing toward the towering silhouette of the royal castle.
"Assuming nothing unexpected happens tomorrow, you won't need to take action. Just keep yourself safe. I'll have the corpses Ladros is controlling keep their distance from your tavern," Valtos added, also glancing toward the capital.
Yuuki waved it off. "No need. Just do everything as planned."
He smiled faintly.
Valtos blinked, then returned the smile.
Whoosh!
With a nod toward Yuuki, Valtos wrapped himself and the other members in spatial mana, and they vanished.
Yuuki stared at the dim morning sky and the empty street, whispering, "It's finally about to begin."
He was just about to return to his tavern room and catch up on sleep when the grimoire hanging at his waist gave a faint tremor.
"Hm?"
He froze for a second—then a meaningful smile spread across his face.
"So Mars is moving faster than expected… As expected of one of the Eight Shining Generals. Looks like that nap will have to wait."
In the next moment—
Yuuki stepped into a spatial passage and disappeared.
When he reappeared, he was already wearing a black cloak and mask, standing in a narrow alley not far from the black market district—the same area where he had once met Mariella.
He didn't have to wait long.
Mariella, wrapped in a black cloak, leapt lightly from rooftop to rooftop. Within a few breaths, she silently slipped into the alley.
Seeing Yuuki waiting there, Mariella's heart tightened. She hurried forward.
When she reached him, she dropped to one knee.
"My lord."
"You contacted me on such short notice—did something happen?" Yuuki asked calmly.
Mariella didn't answer at first. Instead, she took a document from her cloak and respectfully presented it.
Yuuki accepted it, glanced over the contents, and smiled behind his mask.
As expected—Mars worked fast.
It was the official order canceling the hunt and arrest warrant for Domina.
"So quickly? I thought it would take you a few more days," Yuuki said with a light smile.
Mariella's heart trembled. So it really was this mysterious man who accomplished it…
When she received the document from the Assassination Division, she almost couldn't believe it. It had only been a few days.
But the words he once said—I'll help you repay that debt first—echoed in her ears.
She had doubted him—she was an agent of the Assassination Division, after all. She knew many hidden secrets. If he were merely using those secrets, she wouldn't have been surprised.
But this scene shattered her last remaining doubts.
To so effortlessly cancel the warrant on Domina—Vanjel's own wife—required enormous influence. Far more than anything the Assassination Division held.
What secrets could she possibly know that would matter to someone with this kind of power?
For the first time, she truly believed he had the power to help her achieve her revenge.
"The Assassination Division has its own communication channel. We can receive any message from within the kingdom immediately," Mariella explained, her voice even more respectful than before.
"I see."
Yuuki nodded. "So, do you believe in the promise I made you now?"
"I believe," Mariella said firmly, raising her head.
Then, after a small hesitation, she asked, "My lord… you truly aren't from the Diamond Kingdom?"
Even now, she was stunned. Domina was Vanjel-sensei's wife. Canceling her warrant so easily… Only someone with tremendous authority in the Diamond Kingdom could have pulled that off.
But he shook his head.
"I'm not from the Diamond Kingdom. Your teacher Vanjel's identity is too special—otherwise, I wouldn't mind helping clear their warrants as well."
"That is more than enough, my lord."
Mariella placed a hand over her chest and spoke solemnly:
"From today onward, Mariella will be the sword in your hand."
Yuuki sighed helplessly. "I told you—we're companions from now on."
But Mariella shook her head firmly.
"No, my lord. I do not have the qualifications to stand as your companion."
Her voice was unwavering.
Yuuki could tell she wouldn't change her mindset anytime soon, so he let the matter drop.
"You've been secretly protecting Domina all this time. You should know where she's living now, yes?" he asked quietly.
(End of chapter)
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