"I want a distraction," Javier had lied smoothly. "I want you to disable the outer magical alarms for exactly four minutes. Let my army march into the valley. And while my army distracts the grandmasters, I want you to sneak into the royal vault. I want you to steal the 'Ode to a Nightmare' for me. Give me the book, and the crown is yours."
Noir agreed to the deal immediately. He did not hesitate. He wanted power. He wanted respect. He was totally willing to betray his own family to get it.
He disabled the alarms. He watched from a window as the dark army marched into his home. He heard the citizens screaming. He heard the grandmasters fighting. He did not feel sad. He did not feel any guilt. He just turned around and ran down to the vault. He used his royal bloodline access to open the magical seals. He grabbed the wooden box. He ran to the panic room. He locked the door.
Now, he waited. He stared at the dark wooden box.
"The invasion is over," Noir whispered to himself. He laughed a quiet, crazy laugh. "My father is gone. The city is quiet. Javier won the battle. I hold up my end of the bargain. I am finally going to be the King of Bluemoon."
He walked over to a small wooden chair in the corner of the room. He sat down. He placed the box on his lap. He waited for Javier to send a messenger. He waited for his shiny new crown.
Outside the royal palace, the ruined city was completely silent. The purple fog still drifted slowly through the empty streets.
A tiny object floated through the dark sky.
It was a black orb. The orb was the size of a small apple. It was made of pure, concentrated dark magic. It did not reflect any light. It looked like a floating hole in the air. It made absolutely no sound as it moved.
The black orb floated over the broken cobblestones. It passed by the unconscious citizens. It drifted over the shattered stone walls. It moved with absolute purpose. It flew straight toward the royal palace. It passed right through the broken front doors. It traveled down the long, empty marble hallways. It floated toward the hidden stairs leading to the panic room.
Far away from the ruined kingdom, the 13th Unit estate was completely peaceful.
The front door of the estate opened. Ken Eliot walked inside. He slouched his shoulders. He looked incredibly tired. He wore his navy blue suit pants. His white shirt hung entirely untucked over his belt. He did not wear a tie. His black hair stuck up in messy spikes.
He kicked his left shoe off. It hit the wall. He kicked his right shoe off. It landed under a small wooden table. He walked into the living room in his white socks.
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He walked straight to the large, soft sofa. He collapsed onto the cushions. He fell flat on his back. He threw his arms wide open. He let out a massive, dramatic groan.
"I am officially broken," Ken announced loudly to the ceiling. "My legs are staging a protest. They refuse to do any more work. They want to separate from my body. I need a new pair of legs. Please buy me some robotic legs. Robotic legs never get tired. They do not complain about walking."
Naomi walked into the living room. She carried a large plate of fresh sandwiches. She wore her dark combat pants and a simple gray shirt. Her red hair was tied back in a neat ponytail.
She did not yell at him. She did not tell him to sit up straight. She smiled a very warm, friendly smile. She walked over to the sofa. She set the plate down on the coffee table. She playfully bumped his knee with her hand.
"Stop whining, Ken," Naomi teased gently. "You survived the day. You did a good job staying out of trouble. Eat your food. You need to recharge your energy."
Ken popped one eye open. He saw the sandwiches. He immediately sat up. His sleepy eyes lit up with pure joy.
"You are the absolute best person in the world, Naomi," Ken cheered happily. He grabbed a sandwich. He took a huge bite. He chewed loudly. "This is exactly what I needed. Bread and cheese fix all of my problems. I am a very simple guy."
Naomi chuckled softly. She sat down in the armchair across from him. She crossed her legs and relaxed.
Sayma sat at the large dining table nearby. The Vice-Captain pushed her thick glasses up the bridge of her nose. She held a neat notebook. She clicked her pen.
"The reports from the border are very confusing," Sayma stated politely. She looked at her notes. "The massive dark plant in the Bluemoon plaza was completely sealed. The dark mages were totally defeated by an unknown force. The invasion just stopped suddenly. The threat is over. But it feels very strange."
Ken swallowed his food. He wiped his mouth with his sleeve. He leaned back against the sofa cushions. He looked at Sayma.
"I totally disagree, Sayma," Ken mumbled lazily. He took another bite of his sandwich. "It does not feel strange. It feels exactly like a classic decoy tactic."
Laxmi walked into the room. She tossed a tiny orange spark of fire between her fingers. She grinned wildly. "A decoy? What are you talking about, Ken? The bad guys brought a giant flower and an army of monsters. That is a real invasion."
Ken shook his head. He pointed his half-eaten sandwich at Laxmi.
"You guys do not watch enough anime," Ken explained casually. He settled into a comfortable slouch. "You do not understand how the villains operate. This is a very common plot device. It happens in almost every single ninja show. The bad guys never show you their real plan right away. They always use a flashy distraction."
Zinia stretched her strong arms near the window. She looked at Ken. "A distraction? An entire army is a distraction?"
"Yes!" Ken nodded enthusiastically. "Think about it. The bad guy summons a giant, glowing purple flower in the exact center of the city. The flower shoots a massive beam of light into the sky. It rains black water. The citizens turn into zombies. The monsters run everywhere. It is incredibly loud. It is incredibly flashy. Everyone looks at the giant flower."
Ken took another bite. He chewed it slowly. He swallowed.
"When the heroes are busy looking at the giant flower," Ken continued lazily. "They fight the monsters. They try to save the zombies. They spend all their time and energy attacking the big, loud problem. But the main villain does not actually care about the flower. The flower is just a shiny toy."
Sayma stopped clicking her pen. She listened very closely. Her analytical mind processed his goofy words. She realized his silly logic made a lot of sense.
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