CHAPTER 420: CHAPTER 420: INTO THE PALACE

The night air carried a chill that had nothing to do with the weather. David stood on the rooftop overlooking the Sun Palace, its golden spires gleaming like captured starlight against the darkness. Even from this distance, the structure radiated an oppressive warmth that made his skin prickle with unease.

Perfect, he thought, analyzing the patrol patterns below. Guard rotations every twenty minutes, blind spots at the eastern corners, and Veylith’s intelligence suggests minimal magical detection on the servant levels.

A sharp spike of pain lanced through his skull, and David’s hand instinctively moved to his temple before he caught himself. The power suppression was getting worse, the careful balance he maintained over his abilities felt like trying to hold back a dam with his bare hands. His fingers trembled slightly as he reached for the Umbra Veil mask.

"Master," Luna’s voice whispered from his shadow, concern threading through their bond. "Your aura is fluctuating again."

"Tactical assessment," David replied smoothly, though his breath came shorter than usual. "Focus on the task ahead."

The Umbra Veil felt cool against his skin as he secured it in place, the shadowbound armament immediately beginning its work. David’s reflection in the palace’s distant windows shifted and blurred as his features morphed. His height adjusted downward by three inches, his broad shoulders narrowed, and his facial structure softened into unremarkable, forgettable lines. Even his voice modulated to a different timber, the rough cadence of a night-shift worker rather than the measured tones of nobility.

"Fascinating," Vespera murmured, her ethereal form materializing beside him with arms crossed. The former Winter Devil’s expression held professional appreciation. "Complete biological mimicry. Most shapeshifting artifacts only manage surface-level changes."

David flexed his fingers, testing the transformation’s completeness. His movements had automatically adjusted, the confident bearing of David De Gror replaced by the slightly hunched, quick movements of someone accustomed to avoiding notice. The Umbra Veil doesn’t just change appearance, he mused. It rewrites behavioral patterns. Useful.

The communication crystal pulsed with soft light, and Veylith’s voice emerged crisp and professional: "Final briefing, darling. Guard shift change in eighteen minutes, my puppet-maid will be at the secret entrance in fifteen. Salomonis and his companions are in the upper-class detention chambers, three levels down from Princess Solaria’s quarters."

David nodded, then paused as something in her tone shifted.

"Be careful tonight," Veylith continued, uncharacteristic worry bleeding through. "Something feels... wrong about the deeper levels. My puppets report strange magical signatures they can’t identify."

Something feels off about this place, David mused, studying the palace’s imposing structure. The golden spires should have radiated pure solar energy, but there was an underlying wrongness he couldn’t quite identify, subtle but persistent, like shadows hiding in broad daylight.

"Understood," he replied. "We proceed as planned."

Another wave of pain crashed through his skull, and this time David couldn’t quite suppress the sharp intake of breath. Luna’s concern spiked through their bond, while Vespera’s expression sharpened with predatory focus.

"I’m fine," David said before either could speak. "Luna, can you maintain shadow travel while I’m disguised?"

"Yes, Master," she replied, though worry still colored her mental voice. "The Umbra Veil doesn’t interfere with our connection."

"Good. Vespera, invisibility range?"

"Fifty meters while following your movements," the Winter Devil confirmed. "Though I’ll need to manifest briefly if we encounter magical detection wards."

David studied the palace one final time, memorizing sight lines and escape routes. The strategic part of his mind catalogued every detail, guard positions, lighting patterns, architectural weaknesses. But beneath the tactical assessment, frustration simmered. The power suppression was hampering his abilities just when he needed them most.

No matter, he decided. Overwhelming force isn’t always the solution. Tonight calls for precision.

****

The secret passage near Princess Solaria’s chambers was exactly where Veylith had indicated, a narrow opening concealed behind climbing roses that had clearly been designed for discretion rather than comfort. David approached with the measured gait of a late-shift worker, his transformed appearance drawing no attention from the distant guards.

A servant girl emerged from the shadows, her movements carrying that peculiar precision David had noticed in Veylith’s other puppets. Her responses came a beat too quick, her eyes tracking with mechanical accuracy rather than natural human rhythm. To a casual observer, she would seem normal enough, but David’s enhanced perception caught the subtle wrongness.

Interesting technique,

he noted. She maintains their basic humanity while overriding voluntary control. More elegant than simple necromancy.

The puppet gestured silently toward the concealed entrance, and David followed her into the narrow passage. Stone walls worn smooth by years of use stretched ahead, lit by occasional magical crystals that cast dancing shadows. Luna flowed seamlessly within his shadow while Vespera trailed behind like a whisper of cold air.

"Tight quarters," David murmured, calculating angles and movement patterns. "Luna, you may need to shift between wall shadows in the narrower sections."

"Already mapped the optimal paths, Master," she replied with quiet pride.

They moved in practiced silence, David’s transformed instincts guiding him through the servant corridors with natural ease. The Umbra Veil was truly remarkable, it didn’t just change his appearance but his entire behavioral framework. He moved like someone who belonged here, who had walked these halls a hundred times before.

The first complication arose at a corridor junction where an unexpected guard patrol rounded the corner. David’s enhanced senses caught the approaching footsteps three seconds before visual contact, giving him just enough time to adjust.

The transformation was seamless, his posture shifted into the deferential hunch of a cleaning maid, conjuring appropriate tools from his storage ring while the Umbra Veil modified his appearance accordingly. When the guard’s eyes passed over him, they saw exactly what they expected: an unremarkable servant going about her duties.

Perfect, David thought as the patrol passed. The disguise handles behavioral authenticity automatically, leaving my mind free for tactical planning.

****

Inside the palace proper, the oppressive atmosphere intensified. Golden walls that gleamed majestically during daylight now seemed to trap shadows in their ornate carved surfaces. The air felt heavy, suffocating, and that underlying unease David had detected from the rooftop grew stronger with each level they descended, whatever was wrong with this place, it was getting worse the deeper they went.

"Master," Luna’s voice carried new tension through their bond. "The magical signatures here are... disturbed. Something is feeding on the palace’s solar power."

Before David could respond, Veylith’s guidance crackled through the communication crystal: "Two guards approaching from the east corridor, duck into the storage alcove. Kitchen staff rotation in three minutes, blend with them when they pass."

David pressed himself against the alcove wall, fighting another spike of pain that threatened to break his concentration. The power suppression felt worse in here, as if the palace’s ’corrupted’ atmosphere was interfering with his careful balance. His hands trembled slightly as he adjusted his disguise.

"Master, your aura spiked again," Vespera observed, her ethereal form phasing through the wall to scout ahead. "Whatever is causing you distress, it’s getting worse."

"Environmental factors," David replied smoothly, though sweat beaded on his forehead despite the cool air. "The magical interference here is... significant."

It wasn’t entirely a lie. The unease in the air was real, and it did seem to exacerbate his condition. But the deeper truth, that his own suppressed power was slowly tearing him apart from within, remained unspoken.

The kitchen staff appeared exactly on schedule, and David seamlessly joined their group. The Umbra Veil shifted his appearance to match, a young woman carrying cleaning supplies, her movements quick and efficient. His voice adapted automatically when one of the actual servants asked about his assignment.

"Upper floor chambers," he replied in the servant’s dialect, complete with appropriate accent and terminology. "Lady Veridian requested fresh linens."