The peaceful atmosphere has been replaced by uncomfortable silence and the soft music by the beating sound of their hearts.
"Everyone... let's all calm down." Someone muttered, but it was more like he was persuading himself than them.
But no one paid him attention as they were busy pondering what had happened.
"Rosalyn?" Alberu called out, breaking the silence while a group of servants went to check his condition but he only shrugged them off and gestured to check the others.
Rosalyn took a deep breath while she calm herself, steadying her voice as she spoke. "I need to have a proper examination of it first, just to make sure."
At his nod, Rosalyn took out a handkerchief from her pocket before slowly reaching out to the orb and carefully lifting it. Rosalyn turned around and approached the nearest table and took out a thick book from her spatial dimension bag. They watched her back with curious gazes as she did her work.
Choi han kept his face stoic as he wiped the bloodied sword in her robe and nonchalantly tossed the headless body onto the side. He jumped down from the stage afterward, not having an ounce of care about the people watching him.
Alberu brushed a hand on his face and gathered his thoughts. "Haa... Let's get everyone home safely first."
"We can't." Beacrox replied.
"What do you mean you can't?" A stern man, an aristocrat, hissed from the crowd but had shrunken back and quickly withdrew his gaze when Beacrox's piercing gaze meet him.
Ron answered instead, he stood in front of the huge doors. "We literally can't." he even pushed the door several times to show them, and it did not budge even a bit as he did.
"Then why don't we just break them?"Choi han suggested and already approaching the door but was stopped. "I don't think that's a wise decision." said Ron, as he gestured his hands towards it.
Choi han raised his eyebrow at him before averting his eyes towards it, the others copied his movement and glance towards the said door, it took a while before they finally noticed something.
A faint light is covering all over it, and also every corner of the castle.
"It's a spell." Bud muttered when he recognized it, placing his hand on his chin as he sighed. They all turned to him.
"What kind of spell?" Tasha asked, she stood close to her nephew.
"A spell for binding, it is used way back before, mostly in wagons when selling abundances of goods." he supplied.
Bud raised his finger as he continued. "For instance, instead of needing a hundred horses to pull a hundred wagons, you will rather only need a horse to pull one while the rest of the wagons will copy its movement.
"But unfortunately it doesn't only copy its movement but instead it becomes one. So when one breaks, the rest will too. That's why merchants stopped using it way back and just labeled it as something useless." he finished and placed a hand on his hip.
"So you're saying is that, if we break through it, the others that bind with it will break as well?" They averted their eyes towards the person who asked.
It was Violan Henituse. Her eyes were steady despite the incident as she asked calmly, hugging lily between her arms while Basen stood beside them and Deruth supporting them from behind, placing his hands on their shoulders.
"Yes."
"It wouldn't be a problem breaking a few doors and glasses, but this one here..." Glenn said as he placed a hand over it. They can see a faint light covering it as well.
It was the main foundation of the castle. Without it, the ceiling would likely collapse and they would be crushed by it.
"Then how about we use a teleportation scroll or teleport right outside?" Eric, the young patriarch of the Wheelsman household, suggested while fixing his glasses with his index finger.
Amiru Obarr alongside Gilbert Chetter nodded their head in agreement but they both only shook their heads in response.
"Haaa... Of course, they placed a restriction spell as well." Eric grumbled and clicked his tongue.
Silence ensued until a string of curses escapes from Rosalyn's lips, gathering their attention, they all turn towards her.
"I'm guessing you already know what it is." Alberu calmly said.
She meets his gaze before answering. "... It's something called Télos."
"Télos?" they repeated. They have never heard of such a thing. "What's that?"
"hmmm..." Bud muttered, he remembered reading that word before, he just can't remember where.
"It's a device that is also used way back... It's used for punishment... Some sort of device that explodes." she answered.
It took a while before it started to sink into them. An explosive device is together with them.
The hall immediately filled with hysteric voices, throwing out their etiquettes as they asked what she meant while some even demanded to be let out even though they had already explained it was not possible.
"Quiet!" Alberu hissed, clearly getting impatient. They were reluctantly but still went silent, afraid that he will place his frustration out to them.
Alberu averted it back to Rosalyn. "Now... Can you elaborate more further?"
"It's a different kind of a bomb, powerful I must say. But for it to generate, it needs a caster and a host."
"Do you know how to shut it off?" Alberu asked.
"The only way to disable it is by destroying its main power." Rosalyn answered while handing him an opened book where the image of the said Orb is displayed.
"Then what the hell are you waiting for?" Someone asked in the crowd.
Tasha prevented herself from rolling her eyes.
"Because of its location... It is somewhere inside the host's heart."
"Is that even possible?" Amiru asked in disbelief.
"Well according to this book... Yes." Alberu muttered while his eyes scans the context.
Télos, a tool or a device used to punish outlaws or sometimes tribes by making their leader its host.
A tool that is connected to the host by exchanging its most valuable part. And once they are activated, they will set off at the first light.
The only way to defuse it is by terminating its main power located inside the host's heart, leading to the termination of its host.
His eyes lingered a lot longer at the last paragraph and recalled what Elisneh previously said when they suddenly heard a voice in their heads.
'Are you alright?'
'We are fine.'
'Eruhaben-nim!'
'We're alright.' They were a bit startled but managed to respond instantly in their heads.
The others shot them a confused glance, wondering why their heroes suddenly went silent.
Eruhaben sighed in relief, he was already on his way here when it happened and was only able to arrive just after the incident.
'I'm here together with Lock... It seems like the castle is surrounded with binding and restriction spells.' Eruhaben informed them as he looks at him. Lock is scowling as he glared at the castle.
When he arrived here, Lock has already raised his fist and was ready to strike the glass door. He was in the garden when it happened, that's why he was locked in the outside.
It's a good thing Eruhaben spotted him earlier and was able to stop him right in time before causing more disaster.
'Do you think you can get us outside?' Alberu asked in his head after he explained what happened and about the bomb.
Eruhaben withdrew his gaze and looks at the castle. 'I don't think I can use my powers in there... It seemed like they used a powerful restriction and not just one.'
It is already difficult for him to reach them, and the only reason he was able to, was because he was a bit far from the castle.
Considering the number of restriction spells that have been cast, and him, who is reaching the end of his life is impossible to break the spell.
'But I can try getting inside-'
'No.' Alberu quickly interjected. 'They might be pulling another stunt. With all the powerful individuals trapped here...'
The Roan is left unguarded and unprotected, these are left unspoken but Eruhaben understood well and agreed with him by nodding his head even though they can't see him.
After a while, Eruhaben asked. 'Then what are you planning to do now?'
They all turned to him, waiting for him to decide. He felt a weight drops on his shoulder.
Alberu sighed as he think of a way to get out here. A room with over a hundred people, not even including the servants.
The restriction spells are not bound permanently, he is certain that it would last only for hours, the longest would be a day. They can teleport outside by then. But because of the bomb that could explode anytime, they have to evacuate immediately.
Leaving them with only two choices in hand, one is to be blown into bits or be buried here under the castle.
Unless they find out which one of them is the host, then there's a big chance of survival for all of them but there's also a big possibility that it could be one of them.
If it was him five years ago, he would have chosen the last option in a heartbeat.
He remembers the famous saying that he had told to when he was young; Sacrifices have to be made in order to achieve something, a belief that he held onto unwaveringly and one of the reasons for what he become today.
Because you see, it never said sacrifices have to be made from him, it can be from others-but of course, for his goals and that's just what he did.
a ruthless manipulator you may call him, but he is, what he is.
But he did sacrifice little things here and there but are not too important to mention.
And yet it's different compared to now, for the past five years of being together with them, even if their interactions are limited and their topics are mostly about the ongoing war and ways to defeat the White Star. He is proud to say that they are his companions, friends even.
But regardless of all that he is now the king, the future of the Roan kingdom and its people lies in his hands.
If they all die here, with nobles and aristocrats from powerful families and their future successors and him, the king.
The Roan kingdom would likely- no, it would undoubtedly collapse.
And he can't just stand by and watch it.
Instead of answering directly he calmly asked. "Is there any way to know who might be the host?" His eyes were still in the book.
They all understood his meaning and accepted his decision without question.
Rosalyn shook her and said. "Not that I know of, no. Unless, we are going to ask the caster who it might be, but unfortunately..." not knowing how to continue as she recalled the headless body on the corner.
"... Some bastard has lost his temper and ruined the chance we have." Ron continued. His voice was low but loud enough for everyone to hear.
Choi Han's face darkened, his jaw tightened, the others flinched while some even looks away but Ron remained unfazed and even looks at him in the eyes. Whilst Beacrox went closer to his father, his face was stoic.
The tension around them grew thick as the awkward silence resided them.
Alberu deliberately ignore them and focused his eyes on the book while reading carefully and repeatedly in his head.
'They will set off at the first light.' it means dawn. They have to find the host before sunrise. 'A tool that is connected to the host by exchanging its most valuable part.' "The valuable part..." he mumbled.
Alberu gave out a shallow smile and turned towards Rosalyn and asked. "What do you think is the most valuable part of a person?"
Rosalyn was caught off guard by his sudden question and answered precariously. "The heart?"
Alberu shook his head and said. "That's what others think but it is actually..." He places a finger on his temple, tapping it a few times.
"The Mind."
"We're not following-"
Alberu cuts Rosalyn off. "It says here that they exchange their most valuable part and by that... The host has its main power and the tool has the host's Mind.
"What does the brain have, Miss Rosalyn?"
"Knowledge."
"Memories." Alberu corrected.
He handed her the book before continuing. "And if we happen to have access to that memories..."
"... We might be able to identify who is it." continued Tasha.
"It is quite possible." Rosalyn then turned her back to them and examine once again the orb.
The others were half relieved and half scared, relieved that they might get out and scared that it might be them.
without knowing what resided inside the said orb are not merely any memories but the verity that they are not prepared for.