Chapter 58: Infiltration and Escalation
Master 22 stared at the frantic messenger, his masked face unreadable but his stance radiating disbelief. "Who attacked?" he demanded, his voice cutting through the operative’s panicked gasps. "Can you identify them?"
The messenger, still struggling for breath, stammered, "Master... it’s... it’s a child! With golden hair!"
At these words, Billy and Bryan, who had been bracing for their imminent capture, both stiffened. Their heads snapped up. Golden hair. The description was unmistakable.
Before either of them could voice their sudden, dawning horror, Master 22 scoffed, a harsh, dismissive sound. "A child? And you’re making this much commotion? Go and capture him!"
"But Master," the messenger choked out, his eyes wide with terror, "he’s... he’s killed everyone! All the guards on the first level! Many of them were knights – our own city guard contingent, and even some of the Roland Kingdom’s border patrol stationed with us!"
Master 22 froze. The casual dismissal vanished, replaced by a stunned silence. A child... with golden hair... capable of slaughtering seasoned guards and knights?
From behind Master 22, Billy spoke, his voice laced with a horrified certainty. "Master... it must be the Third Prince. His hair... it’s golden."
The messenger, desperate to convey the full scope of the disaster, added, "Master, there’s a girl with him too!"
Bryan, seizing the confirmation, lurched forward. "Yes! It has to be the Third Prince!"
Master 22 whirled around, his masked gaze fixing on Billy and Bryan with a new, burning fury. The earlier suspicion was now a conviction. "This means," he snarled, his voice low and dangerous, "that you two led him here!"
Billy stepped forward, his hands raised placatingly, though his face was pale. "No, Master 22! We would never do such a thing, not even in our worst nightmares! We swear!"