Ellis moved stealthily toward the spies that were newly stationed around his abandoned palace.
He didn't wait until he arrived right in front of them before making his move, though.
This time, he carefully strengthened and compressed one Mana Bullet to its limit, then launched it from a distance. While doing so, he closely monitored the situation through his detection skill, ready to observe the result.
When he confirmed that his first kill had gone through cleanly and silently, Ellis became confident in this new method.
And so, slowly but steadily, he began picking off the spies one by one, continuing his silent hunt through the outer edges of the palace.
Before long, only one remained… the strongest among them.
Ellis stopped for a moment. He knew that even when he used his full strength, the effective range of his Mana Bullet was limited.
And with more distance, its force would start to weaken.
That's why, for this final target, he moved in closer, to the farthest point where he felt he could still remain hidden.
Once he reached that spot, he finally executed his skill.
Wosh.
The Mana Bullet tore through the air, sliced clean through the tree the spy was hiding behind, and flew straight toward its mark.
It was fast… so fast that the body of a third-stage Aura user couldn't react in time.
But that was only the body… not the Aura itself.
The spy, with sharp instincts and swift reaction, immediately deployed his Aura to block the incoming strike.
Even so, the thin membrane of protective energy that wrapped around his body couldn't withstand the sheer force of Ellis's bullet.
The barrier was torn apart the moment the bullet made contact. Without slowing, it penetrated the man's chest.
"W-wh..o…"
He barely got the word out before his body dropped lifelessly to the ground, eyes still wide open in disbelief.
Ellis frowned slightly.
Through his detection skill, he sensed that this time, one of the knights had noticed something.
Realizing he couldn't linger any longer, he turned and hurriedly took his leave.
However, instead of going back the way he had come, he slipped deeper into the royal grounds.
From behind him, he could already hear the heavy footsteps of a knight running, after all.
Ellis moved swiftly, taking care not to come across anyone, while weaving through this royals ground for the first time. Even if he had briefly revealed his presence, he was determined to avoid being seen directly.
After several turns and careful movements, he successfully misled the pursuing knight, then finally changed his route and circled around the palace to the other side, slipping back inside undetected.
As soon as he landed lightly in the hallway of the abandoned palace, a loud voice rang out, calling for him.
"Your Highness, please come out!"
For a moment, Ellis's expression changed.
Was he discovered?
That was his first thought.
But he quickly realized that wasn't the case.
The knight wasn't calling him because he had noticed Ellis sneaking out.
Rather, it was because they had already discovered the corpses of the spies he had killed earlier, scattered around the palace grounds.
'In that case, let's go out and see what they have to say.'
With that thought, Ellis changed his clothes back to what he had been wearing earlier, then made his way outside.
There, standing firmly in front of the door and blocking entry, was Silas.
She was clearly exhausted, her expression was worn, and dark circles clouded the skin beneath her eyes.
'Why did you not go and rest?'
These words hovered on the tip of his tongue as he looked at her. But in the end, he didn't speak them aloud.
Instead, he simply sent her an apologetic gaze, letting his eyes quietly express what he chose not to say.
Then, turning his attention toward the two knights, the same ones he had spoken with just earlier, he asked calmly, "Did you bring a priest or the ingredients listed on the paper I gave you?"
"No, Your Highness, but—" Doran began politely.
However, his colleague, seemingly in no mood to play along the farce like before, abruptly interrupted and spoke with open rudeness.
"Some corpses were found around the palace. What do you have to say about that??"
Ellis's eyes narrowed.
The insolent tone was beginning to grate on his nerves.
That was Ellis, who could still control his expression and temper.
But what about Silas… Silas, who could so easily lose herself when it came to things concerning him?
She was practically murdering the knight with her eyes alone.
In the end, before either Ellis or Silas could say anything, Doran, who also seemed to have had enough, acted. As though finally fed up with his colleague, who clearly didn't know what was good for him, he abandoned words altogether and used his leg instead.
Thud.
He kicked the knight to the ground, sending him stumbling back in shock, completely unprepared.
Then, as if nothing had happened, Doran turned to Ellis with a composed face and said, "I apologize, Your Highness. My colleague was slightly agitated after what we discovered around the palace. He's usually not like this."
"You…!"
The downed knight scrambled to his feet, glaring furiously at Doran while pointing a trembling finger at him.
But Doran, seemingly not noticing him, continued speaking politely to Ellis.
"Your Highness, just now, while we were patrolling the area around the palace, we found several bodies. Do you have any idea what might be going on?"
Ellis raised his eyes slightly, a faint glint of intrigue flickering in them.
He couldn't help but feel that something about this exchange was off.
Both this overly polite knight and the insolent one… despite their contrasting behaviors, seemed to be performing a careful act.
Because in truth, despite the slight change in their words, the content remained the same.
And more importantly, neither of them had mentioned how these people were killed just now… just minutes ago.
So, were they trying to test him?
Ellis didn't particularly mind. Instead, he simply asked, "Were they there yesterday when you first came to this place?"
A brief glint flickered in Doran's eyes at the question, but he quickly shook his head and replied, "We can't say for sure, Your Highness. It was dark then, and we didn't investigate the palace grounds carefully. At the time, we prioritized your safety!"
'How proper!'
That was what Ellis wanted to scream in reply. But, of course, he held out.
In the end, he chose not to expose them immediately. Instead, he pressed further, "Where are they? Let me take a look at them and see if I can recognize any of them."
Doran shook his head once more. And this time, with a tone filled with carefully measured regret, he said, "Unfortunately, they're too disfigured. They're not in any recognizable state anymore."
Then he added, as if it were out of concern, "So as not to sully Your Highness's eyes, we believe it's better if you don't see them."
'If I hadn't been the one who killed them myself, and didn't know exactly what state their corpses were in… how clean they were, just from your tone alone, I might have actually believed you.'
That was Ellis's thought, but once again, he didn't say it.
Instead, he decided to keep playing along… to see just how far this knight was going to go.
But just as that thought settled, Ellis suddenly felt a presence… a group of people heading in their direction.
Are they also spies sent to investigate the situation? he wondered.
However, he quickly realized something different about them.
Unlike the previous ones, who had arrived alone and seemed to come from scattered, unconnected groups, this new group was moving together, clearly unified.
Moreover, they weren't trying to conceal their presence at all. They approached openly, making no attempt to move stealthily.
And then, most importantly… they were strong.
Not to Galen's extent, no, but strong nonetheless. And among them, there were even some mages!
With that alone, Ellis was able to deduce their identity without much effort.
That's why, calmly, he turned his attention back to Doran and said, "I don't know who those people you found dead are, and I don't care either."
"What I do know, is that you can't keep stalling with these kinds of excuses, just to slip away from bringing the priest or the ingredients I asked for!"
Doran's expression seemed to turn troubled at Ellis's firm statement. But before he could respond.
Both he and his colleague, who had already gotten back on his feet and was now standing silently to the side, heard something.
Voices. They were coming from afar.
That made Doran pause. He turned his head to look into the distance.
There, approaching slowly, was a group of people, and at the center of them walked a young man with striking blue hair and an elegant bearing.
His posture was refined, graceful, and composed, and every step he took exuded a quiet confidence.
Around him, the others moved like shadows orbiting a sun. Whether it was their fawning expressions, their overly respectful behavior, or the way they bent slightly as they spoke.
They looked like nothing more than lowly servants groveling for favor.
And yet, Ellis knew well… every one of them was strong.
Strong enough that if he were to face them now, he would have absolutely no chance of winning.
As for the young man they were serving… he wasn't just any member of the royal family.
He was the crown prince.
And now, after the king himself, he could very well be said to hold the greatest power in the entire Valemere Kingdom.
At the sight of him, both Doran and his colleague visibly stiffened.
Their expressions were a mix of fear, respect, and reverence. It was clear, they looked up to him.
That's why, even before he fully arrived.
Even when there was still a bit of distance between them.
Both knights dropped to their knees in perfect unison and spoke loudly, "We greet Your Royal Highness, the Crown Prince."