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The original was posted on /r/hfy by /u/ralo_ramone on 2025-12-09 21:00:29+00:00.

“We’ll be fine!” Firana said, pushing me into the carriage.

Although she was at least fifteen levels below me, Wind Fencers had a greater strength growth than Runeweaver Sages.

The day of the anti-nobility rally had arrived quickly. I wasn’t planning on taking any of the kids with me, and I had expected some resistance, especially from Firana and Ilya. Even if the girls disagreed on virtually everything, they were pretty much on the same page when it came to world-saving endeavors. However, they approved the plan without a single complaint.

Firana, Zaon, Wolf, and Ilya were to stand guard at locations owned by the Arcane Circle in case Byrne made a move tonight. They were to remain within the inner wall, far from the rally site. If my calculations were correct, all that was needed to interrupt Byrne’s teleportation circle was to mess with two enchanted slabs. The four kids and the handful of Prince Adrien’s loyal people were more than enough for the task.

Still, Firana’s compliance rubbed me the wrong way. 

I put my foot in the carriage’s doorway to prevent her from closing the door behind me.

“Don’t deviate from the plan and stay in contact. Most likely nothing will happen, but it never hurts to stay alert. If something happens, contact Prince Adrien’s men immediately,” I said, for the tenth time that afternoon.

The enchanted radio sat comfortably in a backpack on Wolf’s back.

“Yeah, yeah, we know already,” Firana said.

“We have been doing way more dangerous stuff during the last year than watching abandoned houses. We’ll be fine,” Ilya added, giving me the thumbs-up.

“Don’t do anything reck—”

Ilya pushed my foot into the carriage with an [Entangling Vine], and Firana closed the door in my face. As soon as it closed, the carriage started moving. Despite having been monitoring Byrne’s for weeks with no apparent change, I felt that this time was different. It was just a feeling, but I had to swallow my worries all the same.

Holst raised an eyebrow, entertained by the situation. 

“Did they know all along?” he asked.

“Yes, since the Lich’s Monster Surge,” I replied, sitting down on the unpadded wooden seat.

He let out a dry laugh.

“You truly live up to your ‘child soldier apologist’ reputation, Robert Clarke.”

I ignored him. 

Holst had taken the news about my Runeweaver Class with initial skepticism, but a quick use of [Identify] on me was sufficient to clear his doubts. Then, surprisingly enough, it was all smooth sailing. It shouldn’t have surprised me, given that Holst was a Scholar. He was curious by nature, and there was still a great deal of philosophical debate over the true nature of the System among the erudite circles at the Library. When I revealed that the System’s goals did not align with the well-being of the people of Ebros, he just accepted it at face value.

“The Ruthless System Hypothesis states that any true detractor of the System would automatically be suppressed by the Zealots,” Holst continued with his questionnaire. “That begs the question, why are we alive right now?”

Talindra shifted uncomfortably by my side. She had also agreed to help me, but for completely different reasons. Playing with Corruption was a huge no for Ebrosian standards. Playing with a new form of Corruption so close to her newborn baby was an even greater no.

“The System is not as infallible as you think.”

I knocked on wood just in case.

Neither of them knew what that gesture meant.

“So, the Faulty System Hypothesis is also true?” Holst asked.

“I’m getting the feeling you are farming me for titles,” I replied.

Holst crossed his arms and glanced at me, still entertained.

“I was under the impression that farming a teacher is totally acceptable behavior,” he said, his voice not showing whether he was joking or being serious.

I sighed. He had a point.

“The Faulty System Hypothesis is true. Corruption is a problem not only for living beings, but also for the System. The more Corruption, the more errors it collects,” I explained. “Also, the Finite Fountain Hypothesis is somewhat true. The Fountain’s life is cyclical, and its length seems to depend on the amount of mana used.”

Holst nodded.

“Marvelous.”

The carriage slowed down as a group of masked partygoers crossed the street ahead of us. The coronation was one week away, and the city was celebrating. Technically, it had been celebrating nonstop since the announcement of the former king's death, but today it was special. The High Priest had announced the Church’s support for Prince Adrien’s succession, so the nobles of all the corners of the kingdom had decided it was the moment for an even more massive festivity.

Everyone was trying to get their piece of the cake early.

As the coronation day approached, nobles’ delegations began arriving in Cadria, and the inner city was uncharacteristically lively.

The Academy was filled with Imperial Knights, and the usually placid inner city had become a boiler. Although it was obvious in retrospect, I learned that most of the empty houses and small manors were vacant because their owners had their first residences elsewhere, or they were dispatched where high-level combatants were needed. Other than the servants, every inhabitant of the inner city was a wealthy, high-level person.

Talindra remained silent, and although it wasn’t difficult to read her expression, she refrained from voicing her thoughts. She didn’t care about the truth about the System. Anything that could endanger Little Robert had to go.

The carriage abandoned the main road and crossed the gardens to a side entrance beneath Prince Adrien’s chambers. We were entering directly into the royal family's living quarters. Royal soldiers were everywhere: enough to have a sizable force if something happened, but not enough to grossly catch people’s attention. Many nobles were overly keen about judging the number of armed forces at the host’s disposal.

A man with a captain's helm opened the door of the carriage and guided us inside. After crossing a couple of enchanted doors and magically reinforced walls, the presence of guards decreased. We climbed down a spiral staircase to the palace’s dungeons. The air grew damp and cold, and nobody was in the mood to talk. 

Finally, when it seemed we couldn’t get deeper, a corridor got us to an underground armory where a dozen people waited for us. On the farthest side of the room was Prince Adrien with Lord Vedras and Lord Jorn by his side. The three were dressed for the party that was about to take place in the gardens, almost directly above us. The other figures, dressed in commoner clothing, were members of Prince Adrien's intelligence network.

Given how relaxed everyone was, I assumed they had taken part in far more dangerous operations before.

“Robert,” Prince Adrien greeted me with a smile, signaling us to come near. “You look unremarkable today.”

As we were going incognito, I was wearing secondhand clothes I bought at the East Ward Market. 

“I have been a commoner my whole life. I was born for the role,” I replied, trying to sound casual.

Lord Vedras gave me a slight bow, and Sellen Jorn examined us with a keen eye.

“Too many untrained people,” Lord Jorn said, his voice devoid of any inflection as usual.

We had already discussed the operation beforehand, and I wasn’t going to give in on having loyal people by my side. Still, I understood his worries. Lord Jorn and Lord Vedras thought we were just busting the local anti-nobility rally. They didn’t know about the connection between the rally, the corrupted potions, and the Zealots. If the Quest subroutine marked me as hostile, I would rather have loyal people by my side than high-level spies from the most powerful dukedoms in the kingdom.

“They are essential,” I said.

“I will trust you, but only because Prince Adrien and Lyra do,” he said, his voice cold as a slab of ice.

Lord Jorn looked at his pocket watch. I didn’t need one. [Foresight] counted down the seconds until the start of the operation. Of course, Lord Jorn and Lord Vedras didn’t know about my true Class. Prince Adrien convinced them I was simply an extremely keen person who saw through the secrecy of the anti-nobility rally.

Prince Adrien also had hinted at the importance of the part I played in his ascent to the throne when Evelisse’s faction had been gaining strength by the day, but perhaps what had truly allowed me such an important part in the operation was that Vedras and Jorn already had a good impression of me.

“Roderick, Sellen, let’s go over the plans one last time,” Prince Adrien said, then turned towards me. “Go and get equipped. You can use anything in the armory.”

I nodded.

Lord Vedras, Lord Jorn, and Prince Adrien’s agents were being sent to watch from the shadows, tag important people, and follow the members of the anti-nobility rally. Only Prince Adrien knew all the pieces of the plan. For security, each of us was only aware of the details of our own part.

“Let’s go,” I said, leading the way to the adjacent room.

The armory wasn’t that different from the one back at Farcrest, save for the quality of the equipment. Rows of swords, shields, spears, and halberds covered the wall. Chainmail, plate, and linen armors were piled in the corner. Everything unmarked. I expected more enchanted items, but there were none. That wouldn’t be a problem for me.

“One might expect a Runeweaver to command way more respect from a group of orphans,” Holst pointe...

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