Chapter : 1367

"She is thorough," Lloyd said, sweating slightly. "Very thorough. She probably found a microscopic crack and is writing a thesis about it."

"I will go check on her," Wilfred said, turning away.

"Wait!" Lloyd shouted. "I haven't told you about the best part of the Star-Glass! It... uh... it sings! Yes! It hums a lullaby!"

Wilfred paused. "It sings?"

"Like a choir of angels," Lloyd lied. "Come, let me show you the box again."

He was stalling. He hoped Mina was fast. He hoped she was already grabbing the Heart. Because he was running out of lies, and Wilfred's hand was drifting towards the sword at his belt.

Mina’s hands were steady, but her heart was pounding against her ribs like a trapped bird. The lock was a masterpiece of paranoia. Three concentric rings of runes, shifting every ten seconds. She had to time her movements perfectly.

Click. The first ring aligned. The red glow turned amber.

Click. The second ring locked into place.

"One more," she whispered. "Come on."

She reached for the final ring. She saw the symbol she needed—the Eye of Horus. It was rotating into position.

She reached out. Her finger brushed the cold metal.

Suddenly, the compass in her pocket vibrated violently. A surge of energy spiked from the door. It wasn't a trap she had seen. It was a trap she couldn't see. A proximity sensor buried inside the metal itself.

A high-pitched, piercing shriek erupted from the door. It was deafening. It echoed down the tunnel and blasted into the main cavern.

WEEEEEEE-OOOOH! WEEEEEEE-OOOOH!

Mina jumped back. "No!"

Red lights began to flash along the tunnel walls. The Vault door didn't open. Instead, heavy shutters slammed down over it.

In the main cavern, the conversation stopped dead. Wilfred froze. His eyes went wide, then narrowed into slits of pure rage.

"The Vault alarm," he hissed. He turned slowly to Lloyd. "You... you are thieves."

Lloyd dropped the act. The bumbling investor vanished. The Major General appeared.

"Well," Lloyd said, his voice cold and sharp. "That concludes the presentation."

"Guards!" Wilfred roared. "Kill them! Seal the exits!"

Dozens of mercenaries drew their weapons. The workers dropped their tools and ran. The cavern became a kill box.

Lloyd didn't hesitate. He grabbed the heavy ebony box from the table and smashed it into Wilfred's face. The lord stumbled back, blood streaming from his nose.

"Mina!" Lloyd yelled into the chaos. "Plan B! Run!"

Mina came sprinting out of the tunnel, her dress gathered in her hands. "I didn't get it! It was trapped!"

"Forget the rock!" Lloyd shouted. "We need to leave!"

He ran towards her, dodging a crossbow bolt that whizzed past his ear. He met her in the middle of the cavern.

"They're blocking the stairs!" Mina panted.

Lloyd looked up. The catwalks were filling with soldiers. The main exit was barred. They were trapped underground with a small army and a very angry warlord.

"Hold on," Lloyd said. He grabbed her waist.

"What are you doing?" Mina shrieked.

"Improvising," Lloyd said.

He tried to summon Iffrit. He reached for the bond in his soul. Come forth!

Nothing happened. A dull ache throbbed in his chest. The air around them shimmered with a sickly grey light.

"My magic," Lloyd realized with horror. "It's gone. He has a dampener."

Wilfred, recovering from the blow, laughed. He wiped blood from his face. "Did you think I would leave my masterpiece unprotected? The entire cavern is shielded against spirits! You are powerless here, thief!"

Lloyd cursed. Just like Jager's trap. No spirits. No big guns.

"Okay," Lloyd said to Mina. "New plan. We run. We run fast."

"I cannot run fast in these heels!" Mina yelled.

"Then take them off!" Lloyd shouted.

He looked at the soldiers closing in. He couldn't use magic, but he still had his Void power. The dampener blocked external spirits, but his Steel Blood was internal. It was part of him.

He focused. He felt the metal in his blood. He thrust his hand forward.

Clang!

A dozen steel chains erupted from the floor, tangling the legs of the first wave of guards. They tripped and fell in a heap of armor and cursing.

"Go!" Lloyd commanded.

He pulled Mina towards the side of the cavern, away from the main stairs. There was a service lift. A chain-hoist for moving parts.

"We're going up," Lloyd said.

He slashed the rope holding a counterweight with a manifested steel blade. The platform shot upward. Lloyd grabbed Mina and jumped.

They landed on the rising platform. It jerked and swayed, shooting up towards the ceiling vents.

Chapter : 1368

"Stop them!" Wilfred screamed from below. "Shoot them down!"

Crossbow bolts pinged against the metal bottom of the platform. Lloyd shielded Mina with his body, manifesting a thin sheet of steel over his back as armor.

"This was a bad idea!" Mina yelled over the noise. "I told you it was risky!"

"You said it was 'unfortunate'!" Lloyd yelled back. "This is significantly worse than unfortunate!"

The platform slammed into the upper gantry. They scrambled off, running along the high walkways. They were fifty feet in the air. Below them, the cavern was a swarm of angry ants.

"The vent!" Lloyd pointed. A large ventilation shaft, pumping out steam. "It leads to the surface!"

They ran for it. But a massive, armored figure stepped out of the shadows, blocking their path. It was the Captain of the Guard, a man the size of a bear holding a hammer the size of a child.

"Going somewhere, little lord?" the Captain grunted.

Lloyd didn't stop. He didn't slow down. He charged.

"Duck," Lloyd told Mina.

Mina dropped. Lloyd leaped over her. He used his [Void Step]. Even with the dampener, his internal space manipulation flickered. He didn't teleport far, just five feet. Just enough to bypass the hammer swing.

He reappeared behind the Captain. He didn't have a weapon. He didn't need one. He placed his hand on the Captain's back and pushed with a burst of kinetic force.

The Captain stumbled, lost his balance, and toppled over the railing. He fell into the darkness below with a long, fading scream.

Lloyd grabbed Mina's hand again. "Into the vent!"

They dove into the steam-filled tunnel just as a volley of arrows clattered against the opening. They were in the walls now. Crawling through darkness, heat, and soot.

"We failed," Mina coughed. "We didn't get the Heart."

"We're alive," Lloyd said, pushing her forward. "That counts as a partial success. Now keep moving. Before they turn the fans on and turn us into soup."

They crawled desperately towards the faint light of the surface, leaving the Golem Heart behind, but carrying something almost as dangerous: the knowledge of exactly where it was, and exactly how hard it was going to be to get it back.

The ventilation shaft was a nightmare. It was hot, cramped, and smelled of burning oil. Lloyd and Mina crawled on their hands and knees, coughing in the thick, dark air.

"How... far?" Mina wheezed. Her beautiful blue dress was now black with soot. Her hair was a disaster.

"Almost there," Lloyd promised. "I see light."

They reached a metal grate. Lloyd kicked it. It clanged but didn't budge. He kicked it again, reinforcing his boot with Steel Blood. The grate flew off, spinning into the night air.

They scrambled out onto a high stone parapet. They were on the roof of the fortress. The cold mountain wind hit them, freezing the sweat on their skin.

"We made it," Mina gasped, collapsing against the stone wall.

"Not yet," Lloyd said. He looked around. They were on the highest tower. The only way down was a hundred-foot drop into the courtyard, or a narrow stone bridge connecting to the outer wall.

Below them, the fortress was waking up. Alarm bells were ringing. Torches were flaring to life in the courtyard. It looked like an angry beehive that had just been kicked.

"There they are!" a voice shouted from below.

An arrow whizzed past Lloyd's head and shattered against the stone.

"Move!" Lloyd yelled.

He pulled Mina towards the bridge. It was a narrow arch of stone, barely wide enough for two people. As they ran onto it, a door on the other side burst open. Three guards charged out, blocking their path.

"Trapped," Mina said, her voice tight with fear.

Lloyd looked behind him. More guards were pouring out of the vent access.

"Not trapped," Lloyd said. "Just... challenged."

He couldn't use his spirits. The dampener field covered the whole fortress. He couldn't fly. He couldn't nuke them with fire. He had to be physical.

He focused on his blood. The iron in his veins hummed.

"Hold on tight," Lloyd ordered Mina.

"To what?"

"To me!"

Mina grabbed his waist. Lloyd faced the three guards ahead. He didn't draw a sword. He raised his hands.

Thwip-thwip-thwip.

Three steel chains shot out of his sleeves. They wrapped around the stone railing of the bridge.

"Jump!" Lloyd shouted.

"Are you insane?" Mina screamed.

Lloyd didn't argue. He grabbed her and vaulted over the side of the bridge. They fell into the open air.

Mina screamed. It was a long, terrified sound.