Chapter 25 : Tampa Bay (3)
Chapter 25
Tampa Bay
There were five other people with him.
All of them were bigger than Dan.
And she could tell—they had been here long before him.
Dan, Roma, Freya, an unknown young man, an unknown man, an unknown woman… and Rafinya.
Out of the five, she only recognized two—Roma and Freya. The rest? Complete strangers. Not a single familiar face.
But if there was someone who stood out the most… it was one particular young man.
“So this is the kid you were talking about?”
He was a white-haired young man, around the same age as upperclassman Chiesa.
Dressed like a sailor, with a shark tattoo on his neck—and his eyes… they weren’t round like a normal person’s. They were narrow, like slits… like a shark’s.
“She’ll be with us for the whole day.”
After saying that, Dan turned to her.
“Follow behind me. Stay sharp. We’re about to move.”
“Yes, Mr.Fury.”
It seemed Rafinya didn’t need to know who these people were. No introductions were made. Perhaps Fury didn’t want her to get too familiar with them.
“The path is clear, Your Highness. I’ve taken care of the VIP lounge guards.”
“Good.”
After that, they moved as if they already knew exactly where they were going.
They headed toward the upper floors of the casino—the VIP zone. At that moment, one of Fury’s men pulled out a small metal rod that looked like an accessory… then connected it, revealing it to be a sword.
At that same moment, Rafinya overheard the group ahead. The voice came from Zeedee.
“Nice choice. Who picked this body for you, Benfiga?”
…Benfiga? His name?
What stood out even more—none of these Diablos showed the slightest hint of pressure in their voices or body language.
…As if this was just another ordinary day for them.
The scent of incense mixed with cigar smoke grew stronger as they advanced. People they passed glanced at them with curiosity.
The group stopped in front of a room deep within the VIP section. They softened their footsteps and pressed themselves against the wall.
Then Dan called her.
“Rafinya. Listen to what’s inside.”
The girl activated a sensory-enhancing spell in an instant, sharpening her hearing to pick up even the faintest vibrations.
And what she heard was—
A man’s voice: “Hurry the hell up! They’re coming! We have to get out of here! Go warn the others!”
A woman’s voice: “You need to burn it all first!”
“Did you hear anything?”
“…The people inside are trying to escape. But they said they’re going to burn something, Mr.Fury.”
Dan nodded.
“The intel was correct.”
He pulled Rafinya slightly behind him. Then she saw him raise his hand.
All his men readied themselves.
And the moment he pointed—
Roma kicked the door open with a thunderous crash that shook the entire lounge. Metal slammed loudly as he drew his sword and stepped inside.
At that exact moment, all of Fury’s soldiers surged into the room, fully armed, their timing perfectly synchronized.
Shouts erupted. The sounds of objects being thrown, blades clashing.
“Hey!? Who the hell are you!?” someone shouted—
But they were outnumbered. The noise died down quickly.
“Found you, you animals.”
“DIABLO!?”
“They can take human forms!?”
…Just how long had they been doing this, to move with such precision? Rafinya wondered.
Glass shattered. Screams echoed from within. She didn’t dare step inside yet—not until Dan moved.
Only when he began walking in to inspect the result did she follow.
The luxurious bedroom inside was in ruins. Furniture scattered everywhere… curtains torn apart, fragments of wooden walls flying.
And most importantly—
One of them was already dead, killed on the spot by the tip of Roma’s blade, in human form.
But one remained.
Pinned down by the white-haired young man, a sharp blade pressed against his throat—right at the Adam’s apple. His limbs were spread, knees forced to the ground.
His face was pale… breathing rapid… and the eyes Rafinya saw—
She knew instantly.
Those were not the eyes of a “human.”
So this… was a Shadow?
Freya walked past and slammed the door shut, then toppled a wooden cabinet with a loud crash to block it.
Rafinya glanced toward the bed area. There was a metal bin burning with fire.
“Mr.Fury… there.”
Dan followed her gaze with a slight motion of his chin. One of his men immediately went to inspect it.
As for the trembling man before them—
“You want to transform so badly, don’t you?”
Dan’s voice was ice-cold.
“Your hands are shaking because you want to use magic so badly, aren’t they?”
“You…”
“…I’m the one who cut their heads off. Me.”
His tone was arrogant… laced with hatred. Rafinya had never seen this side of him before.
It was as if, in front of these Shadows… Fury became a completely different person.
“You filthy, lowly creatures…”
the man spat back.
“You think killing three of us will stop us?”
“I’ll keep killing until your kind goes extinct… and today, two more will disappear.”
Dan removed his glove, revealing a tattoo.
The man’s face turned deathly pale the moment he realized who he was speaking to.
But before he could fully react—
The white-haired young man drove a blade straight through his throat.
Blood burst out as his eyes locked onto Dan, wide with terror—
—and then his body collapsed.
Rafinya noticed something.
His limbs… were disintegrating into black dust. And as it fell to the ground, it stained the floor like rust.
“Your Highness.”
Fury’s men tore the room apart in their search—until they found something and brought it to him.
A docking ticket.
Dock 12.
A VIP docking pass—granted to those arriving in Tampa as elite guests. It meant protection… privilege… or involvement in secret dealings with the rulers of Tampa Bay.
“Dock 12.”
The moment he said it, everyone knew what to do next.
Roma opened the lounge window, revealing the outside world—green mist, the scent of the sea, and moonlight above.
One by one, they climbed out, leapt down—and then dashed across rooftops at such speed that no ordinary eye could follow.
“Freya.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Zeedee turned and winked at Rafinya.
“See you around, kid.”
Then she jumped out the window—
But unlike the others, she didn’t land on the rooftops.
She dove straight down into the sea below… and vanished beneath the surface.
Only Rafinya and Dan remained.
“Can you keep up with their speed?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“Kneel.”
She obeyed.
Then her eyes widened—she hadn’t been prepared when suddenly—
Dan jumped onto her back.
“Mr.Fury?”
“This body is just a student’s. What do you expect me to fight them with?”
“…Ah… I see.”
“I’ll hold on tight. Don’t worry. Go.”
“Yes.”
A red aura flared as her enhancement magic activated. The moment she pushed off—
She launched forward at incredible speed, carrying Dan as they leapt across buildings.
Toward Dock 12.
A massive dark-brown wooden ship was docked there. At first glance, it looked ordinary—like a cargo vessel. But it was clearly multi-layered.
Rafinya arrived and regrouped calmly.
The others, who had been observing the dock, turned back.
Dan climbed down from her back.
The white-haired man—Benfiga—approached and handed him a telescope.
At that moment, Rafinya felt a presence behind her.
When she turned—
Casca emerged from invisibility.
“So that’s their ship.”
“Yes…”
Dan lowered the telescope and turned to his men.
“Stand by. I have a feeling they’ll escape into the water.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Rafinya watched as the white-haired man and the others moved out.
Left behind were Dan, herself, Casca, and Roma.
“Rafinya. From here on, we’re entering enemy territory. We don’t know what’s inside that ship. If you were commanding a battalion—what would you do?”
She froze at the question.
After a moment, she answered:
“Strike fast. We should eliminate the dock guards first, then push in quickly. If we break their rhythm, we gain the advantage. If we hesitate, we’ll lose momentum… Mr.Fury.”
Her answer carried hesitation—perhaps because she knew who she was answering to.
Dan listened silently.
His expression gave nothing away.
“That works only when you can see your enemy, Rafinya.”
He pointed toward the ship.
“You don’t know what’s inside. It’s sealed. This isn’t an arena where you can clearly see your opponent.”
Rafinya had thought like a swordsman—not a general.
Casca reinforced it, as if she had expected that answer.
“The system trains us in one set of skills… but the skills we actually need are completely different.”
“Tactics always change with the environment. Right now, speed isn’t the most important thing… information is.”
“In real operations, your first priority isn’t to attack—it’s to find a way to control the situation.”
“A swordsman fights the enemy in front of them. A commander fights the limitations around them. Remember that, Rafinya.”
With that—
Casca Saint Maximin lowered her telescope slightly. Her golden eyes glowed with magic.
“There are three or four inside. Not many, considering the size of the ship. Looks like they’ve caught wind of something—they’re starting to move.”
Dan nodded.
Then he turned to Roma.
“Handle it.”
The man nodded, grabbed a short blade, and hurled it—
Striking the dock’s lamps.
The lights shattered, plunging the area into darkness.
And now—
With information in hand,
It was time to board the ship.