Before entering the castle, Enrico had entered the Elf Dimension just a few hours earlier with his companions who had been chosen by Elaris. The problem was that Elaris's appearance in the Elf Dimension caused a ripple to move through the air, and they had to split up to confuse their enemies. He himself altered his appearance with his unique ability, Transform, to disguise himself and draw them toward him.
'They're talking quite a bit.'
After luring them, Enrico managed to attack one of the guards who were following him. After killing the guard and making that body disappear, he transformed into the guard and joined the others. That way, he managed to reach the castle entrance with relative ease. The fact that there were no guards watching all the time also helped.
"Garno should have followed her faster; he's simply useless."
"Calm down, Coresi. The princess must have gotten stronger. Don't you remember she was called the Chosen of the World Tree?"
"I remember, but even so, if the queen finds out, she'll kill us."
Enrico was behind two elven guards who had been talking since they lost his trail. Both had eyes as dark as pitch, and Enrico knew what that meant. It was a magic placed on elven prisoners who corrupted the World Tree of their own free will.
'Looks like we've arrived.'
Enrico saw the castle door without much surprise, since he had seen it many times during the elven battle of the original story.
"Garno, why are you standing still? Go in already."
'I think it's time to end this.'
Enrico walked toward the two who were about to enter the castle. When he got behind one of them, he grabbed Coresi's head and twisted it in one motion, killing him quickly.
"But what—"
Before the last guard could do anything to react, a line of fire was already at his neck. With a flick of his hand, the guard's head was severed from his body.
"They talked a lot, but they were fun."
[They were fun and you killed them in cold blood.]
'I said they were fun, not that I liked them.'
[How scary. I expected nothing less from a dark beast like you.]
Enrico simply ignored the sarcasm in the system's voice and dispelled his transformation. That was because he knew the barrier around the place canceled unique abilities, which was why he decided to kill the two guards.
'Time to clean up.'
Enrico dragged the two bodies to the side of the entrance and made them disappear quickly with fire, before any residue of mana could draw attention. He pulled up the hood of the clothes he was wearing and observed the corridor ahead for a few seconds, feeling the constant pressure of the Elf Dimension on his body.
'The barrier starts here.'
He took a step into the castle and felt it immediately. Something snapped almost imperceptibly, like a thread being cut inside his head.
'Unique abilities nullified… the cancellation was so light that if it weren't for my body's instinct, I wouldn't have noticed.'
The green torches lining the corridors were not ordinary. They didn't truly illuminate, only projected strange shadows that moved on their own. Enrico kept his distance from them, using the blind spots between pillars and ornaments of the castle for a specific reason.
'Elithia's eyes… if I look directly, she'll sense it.'
He silently climbed a side column, using small, almost invisible protrusions, and latched onto the upper structures of the ceiling. From there, he crawled along the dark beams, always avoiding the greenish light.
Two guards passed below, and before they could react, Enrico released his body and dropped behind the first, snapping his neck with a dry movement. The second tried to scream, but a fire arrow had already pierced the base of his skull. No sound beyond the impact of the bodies hitting the ground.
Once again, he incinerated the bodies and moved through a doorway. After a few seconds of watching, he climbed along the wall and continued advancing along the ceiling until he reached a wider opening, partially consumed by darkness. From there, he could see the main hall.
[Why kill those two? You could have just passed by them.]
'Those two were guards who would cause problems thanks to one's high-level heart magic and the other's forest control.'
There wasn't much sound from their conversation, but it was enough to see and hear what was happening.
Elithia sat on the throne, posture far too relaxed for someone in a negotiation. Valdir stood in front of her, dark cloak, rigid posture. Guards were positioned strategically, not to protect, but to control. They discussed something. Sacrifices. Quantity. Valdir clearly pressing, Elithia smiling, provoking, testing. At one point, she laughed.
'That crazy woman is as annoying as ever.'
Enrico crossed his arms, watching. Valdir seemed too confident for someone asking for help. Elithia seemed too interested for someone who should refuse. It wasn't a simple alliance; it looked like a game.
'So that's it.'
He noticed the hidden magic circles on the floor of the hall, connected to the green torches. Everything there was under her control.
'She's already decided… she's just choosing how far to let him go.'
He retreated into the darkness, memorizing every possible position and detail to use later.
'If I go in directly, I die.'
[Then go in, it'll be fun.]
'Shut up, I didn't ask you.'
Raising his hand toward the system, Enrico saw a light shine on his ring and let out a slightly tired sigh, because besides seeing that, he felt something behind him.
'Looks like I've been caught.'
Letting himself fall to the side, he dodged the spear of one of Malik's sons. The two stared at each other for a moment, and then an explosion of fire and wind collided, causing a blast in the ceiling. Both were thrown outside and fell to the ground, rolling.
"Elven wind magic."
With great speed, the spear came close to Enrico's eye, but he managed to duck and grab the elf's hand. With great strength, he spun the elf through the air and slammed him to the ground, but his opponent turned into wind and moved away with a narrowed gaze. Seeing elves begin to gather through the hole they had made, Enrico moved backward, but Malik's son followed him.
"Where do you think you're going, human?"
Seeing the elf's irritated expression, Enrico couldn't help doing what he liked most. Provoking someone for fun, especially if it was someone he hated or liked.
"Why all this fury? I was just spying."