(Meanwhile, Lady Vivienne and Duke Denver Willow)
From their vantage point high within the castle walls, Lady Vivienne and Duke Denver Willow stood side by side, their expressions unreadable as they observed the unfolding events in the palace gardens below.
The moonlight illuminated the scene with an eerie glow, reflecting off the shimmering barriers that held Ben Faulkner and his disciple, TheBoss, captive.
Denver crossed his arms, his piercing gaze fixed on the two prisoners. "They don't look worried," he remarked, his tone laced with both curiosity and unease.
"Despite being surrounded by a thousand of our best soldiers and trapped in an impenetrable barrier, they seem… calm." He said while grinding his teeth, as he could not understand the reason behind the enemy's calm mindset.
Vivienne, leaning lightly against the stone parapet, tilted her head slightly, her lips curling into a faint smile. "Calmness can be deceiving, Your Grace. But I must admit, their composure is unsettling."
Denver's brow furrowed as he turned to her. "Do you think they're hiding something? Some trick or contingency plan we haven't accounted for?"
Vivienne tapped her fingers thoughtfully against the cold stone, contemplating the question.
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"It's tempting to think so," she admitted, "but I doubt it. Ben Faulkner has always been a man of conviction, and his pupil seems to follow in his footsteps. These two are not the kind to crumble under pressure, even in the face of death. That doesn't necessarily mean they have a hidden ace. Sometimes, people like them simply accept their fate with stoic resolve."
The North Duke's frown deepened. "That's a dangerous kind of person to face in battle," he said, his voice heavy with caution. "Desperation makes people reckless, but resolve makes them unpredictable."
Vivienne's sharp eyes narrowed as she watched the younger of the two captives with curiosity.
To her absolute surprise, Faulkner's disciple had suddenly wrapped the royal guard captain in dark vines of shadow magic, choking the life out of him with almost unnerving calmness. The sight of which made her lips press into a thin line.
"That boy…" Vivienne said softly, her voice tinged with both admiration and unease. "He uses magic although he's an assassin and that too with precision, not emotion. He's dangerous, not because he's reckless, but because he's methodical."
Denver nodded in agreement, his eyes narrowing as he observed the soldiers outside the barrier. They were attacking relentlessly, their swords, spells, and arrows clanging harmlessly against the shimmering walls. "He's manipulating them," Denver noted. "They're playing into his hands. Look how he's using the barrier as a shield, biding time for something."
Vivienne smirked faintly, impressed despite herself. "Smart, isn't it? Turning our own trap into his advantage."
"Should we break the barrier?" Denver asked suddenly, his voice low and contemplative. "If we leave them in there too long, it might give them time to figure a way out—or worse, use it against us. But if we break it now, we might play straight into whatever game they're planning."
Vivienne raised a hand, her sharp eyes glinting in the moonlight as she silenced him with a small gesture. "No," she said firmly. "Not yet. Let them squirm a little longer. If they have a plan, they'll have to show their hand eventually. Breaking the barrier now might give them an opportunity we don't want them to have."
Denver turned back to the scene below, his jaw tight. "You're certain? This feels… wrong."
"I'm never certain of anything," Vivienne replied with a wry smile. "But one thing I do know is that impatience is the downfall of every good strategist. Let's see what they're up to first. There's no harm in waiting a little longer."
As they continued to watch, Vivienne's thoughts turned inward. She found herself both intrigued and annoyed by Leo and Ben's audacity.
Their stoicism reminded her of the countless battles she had fought alongside or against individuals with nothing left to lose. But this was different. This wasn't the resignation of cornered prey. It was the quiet confidence of predators who had not yet revealed their claws.
Denver, meanwhile, clenched his fists as he observed the chaos below.
"If they kill another one of my men, I'm going down there myself….." he said with authority, as he seemed to have made-up his mind on what to do next.
However, Vivienne shot him down with a sharp look.
"No, you're not. Not until we're certain of their game. For now, let's wait. The moment we act, they'll act too. We must ensure we're ready to counter whatever they're planning." she said, as she demanded that Denver stay his hand for now.
The game they were currently playing was that of cat and mouse and the first one to show their hand was bound to be the loser.
This was a battle of nerves and hidden cards and the Royal Soldiers currently held the upper hand with both Leo and Ben trapped.
They could only lose their advantage from this moment onwards, while the opponent had nothing to lose on their end.
Hence, Vivienne suggested that they wait for a bit longer and let things take their natural course.
"Hmm…" Denver said with a frown on his face, as he begrudgingly accepted Vivienne's suggestion.
Looking down, he saw the soldiers continuing their fruitless attempts to breach the barrier, as Leo and Ben stood unnerved within their prisons.
*********
(Meanwhile Ben)
While Leo distracted and annoyed the soldiers, Ben placed his hands along the mana barrier, trying to understand the flow of the mana spell that was giving it a physical form.
Similar to how he broke out of Leo's Shadowbind back when he fought Leo a few months ago, Ben knew he could break out of this barrier spell too, as long as he overloaded the barriers mana flow at the right points.
To do so, he studied the constitution of the spell patiently, until he found the Achilles heel of the spell, at which point he signalled to Leo that he was ready to break out.