Ray listened to K's barrage of questions, her intense curiosity a palpable force even through the shimmering barrier. Ray didn't take the bait, didn't offer any hint about Serene Cultivator’s Aetheric Perception or the system. Instead, a small, enigmatic smile touched his lips.

"Perhaps your technique isn't as flawless as you believe, K,"

Ray replied softly, his voice calm and level.

"Or perhaps some truths resonate more strongly than any performance."

He immediately pivoted, his expression hardening, his voice sharpening slightly as he turned K's intense scrutiny back on her.

"My methods are my own,"

Ray stated firmly.

"What interests me is the Argent Hand's purpose. Why deploy an asset of your... reputation..."

Ray let the word hang, acknowledging K's legendary status,

"...a 'boogeyman,' for what appears to be a simple retrieval involving academy students? What makes Kaelen Thorne, or myself, worth your personal, and clearly considerable, effort?"

K looked at Ray for a long moment, her neutral expression utterly unreadable as she processed Ray's counter-probe. She didn't flinch, didn't react defensively. Instead, a slight, knowing smile touched her lips, neither confirming nor denying Ray's assessment.

"Perhaps,"

K offered, her voice smooth and cryptic,

"we are both more... valuable... than we appear. Some assets warrant a personal touch."

The non-answer was a deliberate deflection, a refusal to reveal K's true motives or the Argent Hand's purpose, resetting the psychological chess match.

The standoff resumed, the silence stretching thick and heavy once more within the glowing runes of the study barrier. K remained trapped but enigmatic, her calm demeanor a testament to her experience and control. Ray stood his ground, having successfully deflected K's critical question about his perception while confirming that the real Kaelen was alive, albeit grievously injured. He had also landed his own probe about K's high-stakes deployment, even if K refused to answer directly.

Outside the barrier, Sergeant Svane stood rigidly, his hand near his sword, his professional gaze fixed on the trapped operative. Rina watched, her initial terror replaced by a tense, worried silence, her gaze shifting between Ray and K. The unseen Shadow Guards remained motionless in the room's periphery, silent, tense witnesses to the quiet war of wills unfolding before them. The immediate danger to Kaelen Thorne's life had passed, but the larger, more dangerous game between Ray and the Argent Hand's most lethal agent was far from over.

Ray calmly gestured towards the main suite door.

"Sergeant,"

he said, his voice quiet but firm,

"step outside with me. Shadow Guards as well."

Sergeant Svane nodded curtly. He moved to the door, and the six Shadow Guards, previously blending seamlessly with the room's shadows, detached themselves and followed, their movements utterly silent. Ray followed them out, leaving Rina inside to keep a worried watch on the trapped K.

Once in the empty corridor, the seven elite guards turned to face the small boy. Ray got straight to the point.

"The objective has shifted,"

he stated, his innate Command Aura skill subtly reinforcing his authority.

"Information extraction is no longer the priority. We need to subdue the target and need to be handed over to the Headmaster for interrogation ."

He met Svane's gaze directly.

"If I were to deactivate the barrier now, what is your professional assessment of capturing the operative known as 'K' without casualties or escape?"

Svane considered the question, his gaze shifting briefly towards the study door before returning to Ray. His assessment was blunt and professional.

"Lord Croft,"

he began, his voice a low, serious baritone,

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"the target is a legendary figure. K's full capabilities remain unknown, but her reputation suggests mastery of infiltration, disguise, and likely advanced combat techniques. While your barrier currently provides a significant advantage, a direct confrontation, even with our combined force,"

he gestured slightly to include the Shadow Guards,

"carries a significant, unpredictable risk. Standard operational protocol against an asset of this caliber would recommend overwhelming force to ensure zero chance of failure. Given the academy is on break and Headmaster Andrade's current unavailability for direct command, assembling sufficient senior personnel and tactical mages would take several hours, at minimum."

"How long will the array hold?"

Svane asked, his gaze sharp.

Ray explained the barrier's nature.

"It's based on a natural containment rune formation that I have encountered before. It's designed to contain immense, chaotic energies. Theoretically, as long as the force exerted on it does not exceed its total energy threshold, it should hold indefinitely."

The guards exchanged almost imperceptible glances; the implication that this child had studied, let alone adapted, magic a natural containment rune was profoundly unnerving.

Ray continued, revealing his hidden card.

"Furthermore,"

he added,

"the array has a secondary function. A ‘Cognitive Stasis Field’ designed for incapacitation. Activating it will cost me significantly,"

he admitted, touching his chest briefly,

"but it should immobilize K long enough for secure capture."

Another flicker of surprise passed through Svane and the Shadow Guards. A targeted stasis field integrated into a containment array was advanced, custom work. Despite this added advantage, Svane maintained his professional stance.

"Lord Croft, the stasis field increases our odds significantly. However, the lowest-risk protocol remains unchanged: acquire reinforcements for guaranteed, 100% success."

As Sergeant Svane finished outlining the lowest-risk protocol, a loud CRACK! echoed sharply from inside the study, cutting off his words. The sound was not of breaking wood, but of contained energy impacting force. Svane and the Shadow Guards instantly shifted from a state of alert discussion to full combat readiness, their hands moving towards their weapons, their bodies coiling like springs.

In the study inside the study barrier, K was no longer sitting calmly. She stood before the shimmering barrier, her posture radiating focused power. K's fist was wreathed not in the crackling blue of Mana, but in a dense, shimmering field of pure kinetic Aether. She struck the barrier again, and the silvery runes flared violently at the point of impact, absorbing the blow but visibly straining under the force.

K looked towards the corridor where Ray, Svane, and the guards stood, a cold, almost amused smile touching her neutral lips. Her voice carried easily through the barrier, stripped of any lingering performance, now just a cool, precise instrument.

"Apologies for interrupting your little strategy session,"

She called out coolly.

"But I find I have prior engagements. It's time for me to leave."

With that chilling declaration, K struck the barrier again, harder this time. The impact sent a visible shockwave rippling across the runic field, and the very air in the corridor seemed to shake with the force of the blow. The Silent Warden Array held, but the assault had begun in earnest.

Ray, Sergeant Svane, and the six Shadow Guards stood rigidly in the corridor, observing K's relentless assault on the Silent Warden Array. The shimmering barrier flared violently with each Aether-wreathed blow, the low hum of the runes rising in pitch under the strain.

Svane’s professional composure remained, but his eyes narrowed in shock and analytical focus. Beside him, one of the usually impassive Shadow Guards let out a barely audible hiss of surprise.

"That's not a Knight's Aura Burst,"

Svane murmured, his voice low and tight with professional assessment.

"It's purer... more focused. Raw life-force used as a battering ram. Dangerous."

The confirmation was stark: K wasn't just a master of disguise; K was a wielder of potent, offensive Aether.

Ray watched, his mind racing. He needed data.

System, status of the barrier,

he commanded internally.

The response was immediate, cool blue text overlaying his vision of K's furious assault:

[BARRIER INTEGRITY: 85% AND DEGRADING.]

[ANALYSIS: ENERGY OUTPUT FROM TARGET ('K') EXCEEDS ARRAY'S PASSIVE REGENERATION RATE.]

[ESTIMATED TIME TO FAILURE: APPROXIMATELY 3 MINUTES AT CURRENT OUTPUT]]

Three minutes. The clock was ticking faster than ever.

The system's assessment was not ideal. Ray processed the information, his mind working with cold speed. Svane's assessment of K's Aetheric assault and the rapidly degrading barrier integrity confirmed it: waiting for reinforcements was no longer an option.

He made the decision in an instant. The calm student vanished, replaced by the decisive commander forged in simulated battles. His voice, when he spoke, was cold, sharp, and commanding, cutting through the tense corridor air.

"Sergeant, Shadow Guards,"

Ray snapped, his gaze fixed on the study door where K continued K's assault.

"Prepare for immediate breach and capture. I will initiate the secondary function to incapacitate the target. Move the instant K is incapacitated."

Ray moved quickly, heading straight for his study desk. The continuous CRACKs from K's assault echoed behind him. He reached the desk and called out, his voice tight with urgency,

"Rina, come here. Stand close."

Rina hurried over, her face pale with worry but her expression resolute. Ray placed a hand lightly on her shoulder, drawing a small measure of strength from her steady presence, using her as both a physical and emotional anchor for the immense strain he was about to endure.

He reached under the desk, his fingers finding the smooth, familiar indentation of the master control rune. Taking a deep, shuddering breath, he focused his will and poured his intent into the command:

"System, activate the Cognitive Stasis Field."

A stark, urgent warning immediately flashed in his mind:

[ACTIVATING 'COGNITIVE STASIS FIELD'.]

[WARNING: SUSTAINED ACTIVATION DRAINS HOST AETHER AT AN EXPONENTIAL RATE.]

[15 SECONDS = CRITICAL DEPLETION.]

[20+ SECONDS = RISK OF HOST TERMINATION.]

[MAINTAIN MINIMAL DURATION]]

The moment the command registered, a visible wave of exhaustion hit Ray like a physical blow. Sweat beaded instantly on his brow, and the healthy color drained from his face, leaving him deathly pale. He gasped, his knees buckling slightly, forcing him to lean heavily on the desk with one hand and grip Rina's shoulder tighter with the other for support as the immense, debilitating Aether drain began.