Silas went back to the camp and summoned his people. Inside the carriage, there were four people.
Silas, Roland, Ice-pick and Luna.
Silas spread out the map and drew three circles with a pen.
"Those are the possible locations of the experiment." Silas said. "I have sent my knights to check those areas already. We will wait for their information to be processed."
"We are close to Floen, right?" Luna asked.
Silas nodded.
"Then why don't we just ask for their help? They have manpower."
"It is complicated, Luna." Silas said, thinking about whether or not he should reveal. He gave a thought and smiled.
"I suspect Floen is a part of this experiment." Silas said.
"That is.." Luna stuttered.
"Unacceptable." Roland slammed his hand on the table, energy leaking out his body. He noticed and bowed his head.
"I am sorry." He apologized. "Silas, we should report this to the king."
"Stop. Stop. Don't rush. We don't have enough evidence to file into the court and besides Floen had the backing of many central noble families. We need to handle this matter carefully."
Silas paused and looked around. Ice-pick was the one who didn't care about all this. She was after all a monster. She lived differently than humans.
Silas didn't blame her for that. She could change but not right now. He needed a cold hearted person to operate this assault.
"Anyway, forget about Floen and let's just focus on the mage. We don't know his power but we know about our strengths and weaknesses." Silas said.
"Can we handle a sixth circle mage?" Silas posed a question.
"I can charm for a brief second with my ability." Ice-pick said.
"Good one, Sinne." Roland said. "I can cut within that second."
Ice-pick shook her head. "Then, I can't charm him. During the charm, I have to assure the mind that there is nothing going to harm him."
"That is difficult. We can't set a trap?" Luna asked.
"No." Ice-pick said.
"But hey, it is only a possibility right?" Roland said. "There is no way a great mage at Sixth circle will be there."
Silas didn't answer. After all, if the information in the game was correct, the first creator of the mind control crest was developed by the High mage of Floen, Thamior.
Thamior was dying and to free from the death he tried to create a new way to preserve his life. As a result, he developed the mind control crest, the incomplete spell.
The Floen Family noticed the spell and took over it after Thamior's death, gaining influence over the central nobles.
That is why the main villain at the start of the game was the Floen Family who try to gain influence in the Academy.
That was why Silas avoided this train of thoughts. He didn't want to face them. He knew how hard the main protagonist struggled.
But now that he was alive in this world. He couldn't ignore the innocent. He wasn't a saint or hero. Just someone worthless, gasping onto life.
"I will face the mage." Silas said. "You guys just focus on saving the victims."
"How?"
"I have my own trump card." Silas said.
***
After preparing and waiting for the knights to come back, they arrived.
Silas finally knew the location of the cave.
He called the knight and squeezed in the information. The geographic location and how the mana level.
Although the knight can't sense mana well, their other senses were sharp enough.
"The cave is covered by a grand illusion." The knight said. "I managed to find it because I saw many footprints around the cave."
Silas nodded and dismissed the knight after getting the information.
"Looks like we are going to attack the place, let's head now." Silas said. "Let's discuss our plan again."
Roland nodded.
"My role is a distraction. I will blast open the cave and assault with my energy." Roland said.
Ice-pick yawned, "I will charm all the victims and guide them here and meet with the rest of the group."
Seeing that, Luna didn't speak. Silas looked at her.
"Luna, you have the most important job." He reminded her.
Luna nodded. "I know."
Luna's role was to set up a barrier and hide the victims. He asked her for this job because of her concealment talent.
Thamior would find her, if he searched for real.
Silas nodded and declared. "I will kill the mage. This land is founded by my family and I will not let such evil run wild."
Roland and Ice-pick left the camp. Silas looked at Luna and placed his hand on her head.
"Brace yourself, Luna. Because escape is not an option. I am terribly sorry for dragging you into this mess." Silas said with a soft smile.
Luna looked up and shook her head. "Don't worry about that. I do it because I can save others."
Her reason shook him to the core.
"You are kind, Luna. I don't know why you are associated with the underworld." Silas said.
"It is complicated, Sir."
"Yes, everything is complex."
"You are also kind, sir. You explain the lessons with such dedication." Luna encouraged him.
Silas nodded at that.
Maybe he was a good and kind person, but he wasn't exactly pure and virtuous.
***
The three people marched into the forest, following the marking of the knight. Silas checked the tree and nodded.
He then crouched down, ordering Roland and Ice-pick to follow him.
He pointed at the front where a large tree was standing tall amidst the small trees.
"See that tree. Like he said, this is a secret lair of the mage. I can see mana in the air acting strangely. I suspect that the mage put it in a hurry."
Roland nodded, taking out his sword. "I will walk in the front."
As they got closer to the tree, the mana became more strange.
Silas manipulated his mana and fought the spell weaving into the tree. The tree vanished and replaced what seemed to be an old lighthouse.
Seeing the lighthouse in the middle of the forest gave him unexplainable dread. Something out of the world
Mages were like that.
Looking at the base, Silas could decipher the mind behind the base.
The lighthouse was about two stories tall, barely hanging with the trees beside it. And there was no movement in the lighthouse according to Roland and Silas's senses.
They stopped at the door and looked at each other.
Knock or bust open.
Roland chose to destroy. In an instant, his body blurred and the door was turned into pieces.
He returned and smiled. "This is a good workout."
Just as Roland was about to take a step, an ominous presence rushed over the three. Fear spread over and took control over their body.
Roland was sweating furiously.
The presence was inviting them to the lighthouse, almost like welcoming them. Roland swallowed his saliva.
The first to move under the presence was Silas. He walked in front of the group and created a tier 3 barrier, blocking the attack.
Roland calmed down and immediately gathered energy around him, to fight the presence.
The Sixth circle was the peak of humanity, one step away from reaching beyond. Even if the mage was one step away from death, he was still much stronger than Silas's group.
They were basically walking to the death's door and asking them to take them.
Why? Why were they risking so much to save someone they didn't know?
As for Roland, his knightly vow can't ignore someone in need. Especially, if that someone was from children.
Ice-pick was aloof, not caring about anything. She just did it because Silas asked her nicely. That was all. It was not like she was attracted to him or something like that. She was just bored. Bored of living a calm and peaceful life.
Silas, on the other hand, didn't understand why he was going. He knew that it was the right thing to do. But he didn't know why He was doing it.
He was, after all, a liar and a con man.