Something threatening loomed from the mountaintop.
Raiden took careful steps backward, his feet scraping against the beach stones as he neared the blue sea at his back.
He could feel the threat approaching, his thoughts spinning wildly. He had to back away for the moment—maybe the mountain was the threat itself. Even so, he scanned desperately for another way out, knowing their situation might be worse than he could fathom.
Who could it be? The Laughing Princess? Or something far worse?
He swallowed, watching his comrades take similar defensive positions, soaked and ready for the worst. Even as fear shot down his spine, he found himself yearning for more choices, his mind already drifting to their fallen comrades.
"What do you think it is?" Chrono asked, scanning frantically around them. Follow current novᴇls on N0velFire.ɴet
Raiden remained silent, his mind churning with desperate thoughts of escape from the absolute domain.
Through the hazy confusion, Raiden’s heart skipped. The threat was approaching even faster now, whatever it was moving at impossible speed.
"Fuck!" he muttered, forcing himself to stay calm even as sweat beaded on his palms.
But through the heated moment, Noelle went still, her face calm and collected as she looked at Raiden. And when her eyes finally moved away, she murmured: "Rule Domain."
The golden aura radiating from her surged outward, forming a perfect sphere that enclosed them all within her domain.
She didn’t have to say anything. Raiden could already sense what was running through her mind. She wouldn’t lose anyone else—not again. But unlike him, she was brave enough to devise an alternative solution herself.
"Bring it on, you asshole," the Rulekeeper said, her fists tight as she maintained her stance, violet eyes turning deadly.
Raiden looked up sharply, seeing shards of rock cascading down from above, battering against Noelle’s golden shield but unable to pierce it.
Raiden’s thoughts scattered as a figure dropped from the peak, rocks tumbling in its wake. The figure moved impossibly fast, leaving only a ghostly trail.
Raiden’s head snapped toward the blur. Without the falling debris and his screaming instincts, he might have missed it.
Even so, he understood the reality: depending on the Laughing Princess’s strength, Noelle’s barrier could only last so long.
"This is definitely a human. The Joker is here." Raiden, the Bookkeeper, spoke quietly, every muscle coiled and ready.
Yet whatever had dropped from the peak was nowhere to be seen, making no move to approach them.
"Don’t you think we’re being a bit paranoid?" Aeris said out of nowhere, concern and sarcasm mingling in her voice. "I mean, there’s literally nothing here."
She let out an awkward giggle, sweat beading on her forehead. She didn’t want to die, and neither did any of them. But this couldn’t be dismissed as paranoia; there was definitely something.
"There," Levi whispered, his hand indicating their left side. His eyes strained as though focused on something only he could detect.
"Invisibility, huh? Nice trick." His nonchalant tone felt wrong given the danger they faced. "Though it’s just a cheap copy of my ability."
They all looked left. Ice coursed through Raiden’s veins. If this enemy were male, it definitely wasn’t the Laughing Princess. And if even he couldn’t get a clear view for analysis, they were in serious trouble.
Levi’s eyes narrowed slightly as he reached for his dual daggers, flickering them between his fingers with practiced ease.
At this moment, Raiden was willing to put their differences aside and listen to whatever Levi had to say. And from those squinted eyes and cocky grin, he was most definitely seeing something interesting.
"His yellow crest has no number, no aura." His smirk widened. "I think we’ve found ourselves someone on Klein el Seer’s level of mystery."
Raiden’s chest seized tight that very instant. Klein el Seer, leader of the Nightmare Cohort, the very person who had helped them get this far in his own twisted way.
Could they be related somehow? If not, then they were better off calling the leviathan back and fleeing this absolute domain while they still could.
"What did you say?" The voice from the barrier spoke as its owner finally materialized.
The figure was a young man, perhaps twenty years old, with a calm and relaxed demeanor. His blond hair was brushed back casually, framing deep red eyes, and his bare torso was complemented by black trousers and matching boots.
Raiden stepped back for a moment, the threat he had been sensing beginning to subside. But that wasn’t what perplexed him most—it was the unnervingly quiet demeanor of their supposed threat.
His chin rested in his palm as he stared at Noelle’s domain with careful interest.
"Which part do you want me to say again?" Levi asked with a startled look. "Oh, you want me to repeat the bit where I told you you’re nothing but my cheap knockoff?"
"Interesting... so you are the new rulekeeper." The blond figure said, dismissing Levi completely as he stared in Noelle’s direction.
"And you are a guardian." Noelle responded, her eyes finding his, as though they both perceived something neither could fully comprehend.
"You know each other?" Aeris said gently, relief evident in her sigh.
It certainly seemed that way from their exchange. But the detached expression Noelle wore as she regarded the blonde made Raiden think otherwise.
"I can’t remember seeing you among the portraits of past guardians," MK said, her expression mirroring Noelle’s detachment.
"I suppose you’re the Rulekeeper’s guardian then?" The blonde smiled. And before any of them could utter another word, he spoke again:
"It is obvious you know Klein el Seer as well." He turned and started walking away, moving toward the distant end of the mountain. "Allow me to take you to the princess. She will be pleased to meet you."
Noelle remained silent for a moment. "I don’t trust him, but there are things I need to understand." Her gaze was colder than the mountain stone.
"I agree, my lady. He can’t hurt you after all," MK added. At that moment, Noelle deactivated her domain and followed behind the blonde without giving him even a glance.
Chrono approached Raiden and placed a hand on his shoulder, smiling. "You never cease to amaze me." He let out a soft chuckle. "I’d suggest you consider who to sacrifice when we’re ambushed."
He added before cockily following the others, leaving Raiden and Levi in his wake.
Raiden remained lost in his daze. Chrono’s words didn’t faze him; he didn’t have to speak for Raiden to know what he was thinking. But what troubled him most was if they were being too trusting.
His danger senses were silent, but wouldn’t it be wise to exercise some caution? Were guardians really that trustworthy?
"He’s a bastard," Levi said, beginning to follow the others. "But I think it would be best if you eased up a bit."
"Particularly after such difficult times."