Finally, Liam boarded a horse carriage after walking about a hundred meters from his house, heading toward District Tezny. He had now arrived in Tezny, precisely on Street Number Twelve, Ahiston, following Leo's directions.
As soon as he stepped down from the carriage, he paused for a moment to recall the meeting location. In less than a minute, the direction resurfaced clearly in his mind.
He began walking while observing his surroundings. Rows of tall buildings with dome shaped designs left him slightly confused. Everything looked different from the district he came from, where the buildings were simpler and some had pointed roofs.
Tezny lay at the city's center. It was only natural that architectural development and technology were more advanced here.
Perhaps so, but Moran was the city farthest from the kingdom's administrative center. The technology here was nowhere near that of other cities, some of which already had steam trains, telephones, and electric lights.
Even so, Moran had a single station located in District Forgenate, on the western side of the city, an area twice the size of Chapena and including forests and steep valleys.
This contrasted with Chapena in the east, and District Hava in the northeast, far from other regions, close to the sea, and rarely receiving attention from the mayor.
After walking for several minutes, he saw three people standing beneath a large, leafy tree by the roadside, chatting casually.
There was a small roundabout separating four different roads. Inside it lay a fairly spacious garden filled with neatly arranged plants and flowers. At its center stood a large shady tree; whenever the wind blew, its brown leaves scattered in every direction, spreading across the surrounding streets.
From the lower path, Liam quickened his pace and waved from afar. The meeting was supposed to start at two in the afternoon, but he was ten minutes late. The three of them had already been waiting for quite some time.
Simultaneously, they stepped forward toward Liam, greeting him or rather, preparing to scold him for his lateness.
Leo immediately patted Liam on the shoulder, having assumed his invitation would fail. On the other hand, he did not expect his friend's personality to change so quickly.
"Hey, Zavi," Leo whispered, then added, "Forn invited Zeta, and she decided to come along."
Zeta Audervin was one of their former classmates. Coincidentally, she was deeply obsessed with occult matters and strange prophecies, including the apocalypse, much like Zavi used to be.
That castle? I just remembered the cause of Zavi's death happened after returning from that place. But does it have something to do with this… then why would he invite me there again? Damn it.
Liam panicked inwardly.
"So… how about it? Still want to go?" Leo asked, stepping back two paces, watching Liam's face suddenly turn pale.
"Honestly, I'm not that eager to go there myself," Leo added, shrugging slightly.
The location in question was a castle crowned with an emerald green dome that shimmered beneath the light. The building held significant influence and was one of the important landmarks in Moran City, Kingdom of Norn. As an ancient structure, the castle exuded a mystical aura, especially when night fell.
"Eaurealis Castle, huh?" Liam murmured softly. His thoughts became chaotic, and to mask it, he smiled at Leo and nodded.
Leo turned around and gestured with his chin for them to follow. He moved first, with Forn following behind.
Meanwhile, just as they were about to move, Zeta turned her head toward Liam, noticing his pale expression and suspecting that he was hiding something.
"What's wrong, Zavi?" she asked as she walked closer, unable to suppress her urge to ask.
"It's nothing," he replied briefly but firmly. He let Zeta approach him, then stepped forward, following the others.
Zeta stopped and fell silent, her brown eyes staring at Liam's shoulder from a distance without blinking. She let out a breath and forced herself to follow them so as not to fall behind.
Twenty minutes later, they arrived. The main street of District Tezny. Eaurealis Castle was crowded this afternoon. Yet despite the bustle, Liam's heart remained uneasy.
He stood dazed, staring at the open iron gate, reluctant to enter. Unexpectedly, Leo touched Liam's shoulder, urging him to move inside.
"They've already gone in. Are you just going to stand here?" Leo asked in confusion, noticing his friend's strange behavior.
But in his mind, it was probably because they had not met in a long time. Leo did not harbor any suspicion toward Liam.
Liam nodded. He slipped both hands into his coat pockets and stepped forward. From behind, Leo smiled and followed him.
Eaurealis Castle had beautifully gleaming marble floors. Each step echoed softly with the friction of shoes, filling the space with an elegant silence.
Meanwhile, Zeta and Forn had already gone deeper inside, leaving the two of them alone at the castle's vast and towering entrance.
"Where did they go? Did they already go inside?" Leo asked in confusion, glancing left and right, then looking at Liam who was staring at something.
Leo followed his gaze and saw a cracked castle pillar. Some people inside the castle screamed upon seeing it, panicking and running while pushing others out of the way.
Several visitors reported it to the guards on duty. Two other guards began directing visitors to evacuate immediately, uncertain whether the ancient structure that had stood firm for so long was about to collapse.
"Tch, there's no way this is just a coincidence."
Liam moved straight ahead, wanting to get a closer look at the crack. But he struggled to push through the crowd rushing toward the exit.
The two castle guards stationed at the entrance were overwhelmed, trying to manage the flow as visitors shoved one another.
Meanwhile, Liam sensed something wrong with the castle, which had begun to crumble just as he and his friends arrived. He abandoned the idea of going deeper inside and instead gestured to Leo to leave immediately.
"Don't worry about them. I'm sure they're fine," Liam said with a panicked expression.
Leo nodded, and they finally moved outside to find a safer place. As they exited, they saw several people covered in blood from falling debris, and two others with dislocated arms after being struck by rubble.
"Did something already collapse inside the castle?" Liam murmured.
Through a small gate on the right side of the castle, Liam briefly saw Zeta and Forn carrying a middle aged woman.
Then the sound of cracking echoed again, from both inside and outside the castle, louder than before. Residents paused in their activities, watching and murmuring among themselves as the mystical castle seemed on the verge of destruction.
Not long after, ten local police officers arrived. They wore black uniforms complete with leather belts and silver emblems on their chests. Each had a star shaped badge on their shoulder, indicating their rank.
One of them, who appeared to be the most senior, stepped forward. His gaze was sharp, and his voice heavy as he spoke.
"We received reports of suspicious activity around this castle," he said while pushing aside people blocking his path, with the other nine officers following behind.
The atmosphere suddenly fell silent. With the noise gone, Liam turned back and watched the ten uniformed officers with silver badges approach.
Reflexively, Liam pulled his friend aside, stepping about five paces to the left to clear the way.
One of the officers with black hair winked at Liam.
Seeing that, Liam immediately shook his head, thinking the officer was being overly familiar.
The ten officers stood before the castle, its doors still open. Several of them exchanged glances. Then their senior officer stepped forward, preparing to enter the castle to search for anyone trapped inside and investigate why it had suddenly begun to collapse.
"Be careful, sir," said seven junior officers.
The senior officer nodded before entering the castle, followed closely by two trusted subordinates.
A few seconds after entering, the senior officer heard something from the staircase on the right.
He gestured with two fingers toward the stairs. The two officers behind him nodded, each drawing a gleaming silver pistol.
They ascended the stairs on the right side of the castle, moving silently along the second floor corridor. One of them briefly caught sight of a shadow darting quickly across two straight hallways ahead. He suspected someone had just passed through, possibly the cause of the castle's destruction.
"There!" the officer shouted, raising his pistol and charging forward without waiting for orders.
Running, he reached the intersection of three corridors. Acting on instinct, he fired at the figure fleeing away from him.
Bang! Bang!
The bullets shot forward swiftly, but the person dodged them with ease.
"Huh, could that be the criminal several units have been searching for?" he muttered, turning left to look at his two comrades who had just arrived. "Senior, John. I saw that person again."
John was startled and said, "Order the others to block all exits."
They both nodded and ran downstairs to inform the officers guarding the main entrance of Eaurealis Castle. Meanwhile, John chose to pursue without hesitation.
They reached the entrance, intending to relay the message. But unexpectedly, a cold voice echoed from atop the castle's dome.
The people there were shocked, including Liam and his three friends. The voice belonged to one of the mysterious figure's accomplices, a member of the criminal group hunted by the police.
"I will turn this district into a sea of fire," the voice said, paused briefly, then continued, "Now… be destroyed."
He dove downward, and seconds after confusion spread among the people around the castle, a powerful explosion erupted inside.
A bomb!