There was still some time to wait, so Vir sat on the rooftop and meditated, focusing on his blood pathways. Over the past months, he’d come to the conclusion that the only way he’d learn Empower was if he learned how to channel ground prana through his body. The problem was that his blood pathways were too convoluted, the route too long. By the time supersaturated prana entered his arms, it’d diluted to where it was no longer useful.
To counter that, Vir had been running blood through his blood pathways, slowly enlarging the smaller ones, and thus creating shortcuts for his blood. It was just a theory, and he had no idea if it’d work, but shortening the path was the most obvious solution he could think of. The only issue was how long it took. He wasn’t quite there yet.
Vir finally opened his eyes as the sun descended, casting the capital in hues of oranges and reds, and the thoroughfare abruptly turned empty. Guards and soldiers corralled spectators, while an advance group of Ash’va riders cleared the street of any traffic.
They had blocked the thoroughfare from some distance away to make way for the royal procession.
The rhythmic sound of hand drums soon dominated over the sound of the crowd, hushing the crowd into a charged silence. Ash’va riders dressed in formal emerald and gold coats appeared, beating their drums.
Behind them came flag bearers and knights—a dozen of each. All wore full plate armor, and the knights carried glimmering polearms. All pristine and beautiful.
Vir heard the main attraction before he saw it. A great trumpeting resonated through the air. A sound unique to the most massive prana beast in the Known World.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Each footstep shook windows and reverberated through walls. The roof shuddered underneath Vir.
Two enormous ivory tusks appeared from the alley, followed by the rest of the massive beast.
The elephant towered over its surroundings, easily reaching two and a half stories in height. The top of the domed palanquin that rode on its back almost reached Vir’s own vantage.
Gold ornaments decorated the elephant from hoof to trunk. The princess’ palanquin complemented the gilded theme, while the curtains hiding its occupants were Hiranyan emerald green.
What a show of opulence, Vir thought. He’d seen the Warrens and the slums within the city. To think royalty indulged like this while its citizens suffered… It showed where King Rayid’s priorities lay.
Then, as the beast approached the square, the curtains drew back, revealing the princess herself.
She was not alone.
Beside her sat an old, wrinkled man dressed in far too much gold. Gold earrings, gold necklaces and rings, a gold robe… and a gold headdress that could only mean one thing.
The Royal Priest.
The man at the top of the chain who’d caused the deaths of Apramor, Aliscia, and Rudvik. And he was just a few paces away.
Vir’s blood simmered.
The plaza roared, the previous silence broken. Hoots, cheers, whistles, and shouts sounded through the large space, crescendoing into a deafening cacophony. People threw flowers of all colors and even entire bouquets into the elephant’s path, which it trampled underfoot.
From his position, Vir couldn’t see the princess’ face well, but what he did see was her flowing black hair and the enormous amount of gold she wore, just like the priest beside her. Her long green dress matched the elephant, and with a small smile, she waved to the audience that stood with bated breath.
More than the princess, it was their reaction that surprised Vir. She’s really well-loved.
While good to know, it wasn’t enough to satiate him. At this rate, the procession would pass by, his opportunity lost.
Prana Vision told him that—as he’d expected—each of her guards were strong, though he discovered something interesting. For some, the ability couldn’t pierce through their armor, and that included the chainmail the princess wore under her lavish robe.
Her armor blazed with prana, but it wasn’t her prana.
Magic armor, Vir realized in frustration. It’s blocking Prana Vision.
The ones wearing non-magical armor were interestingly the mejai themselves, each with two Greater Affinities. Though Vir couldn’t see through the interference, he guessed all her knights boasted either Shadow or Earth Affinity prana, making them Talent wielders.
It made sense that Talent wielders and strong mejai would comprise her personal guard, but it also meant that any hostile action on Vir’s part would be suicidal.
Thinking quickly, he dropped his rucksack onto the rooftop and rummaged around for his alternate clothing. He couldn’t let this chance go so easily.
He changed into ripped rags and ditched his iron katar. The good one—the one Riyan gave him—he tucked under the rag.
Smearing his hands with some charcoal, he then plastered it over his makeup, using the small mirror in his travel kit. Now, he looked like an urchin. Perfect.
If her armor was interfering with Prana Vision, he just had to get closer. The ability grew more powerful with proximity, and he doubted their armor could deceive him from up close. Learning the affinities of Mina and her bodyguard was too significant an advantage to pass up. Vir decided it was worth the risk.
“Stay here, boy,” he said, petting Neel. “I’ll be right back, okay? Make sure no one steals my bag.”
Aroo!
Vir left his gear behind with Neel and activated Dance of the Shadow Demon, appearing in an alley nearby.
He sprinted into the square and dove into the throng, ducking and weaving his way through like a snake through reeds. The issue was the princess’ height atop her elephant. He was hardly any closer to her now than he had been on the rooftop.
I need to get her off that elephant.
“H-hey! Grakking chal!” a lady shouted as Vir grabbed the bouquet out of her hands. He was gone faster than her eyes could track, blending back into the crowd.
Finally, he made it into the path of the procession. This was the trickiest part of the plan. He needed to make it look believable, but he also had to get close enough to the elephant for it to work.
Patiently, he waited until the knights passed by. Then the flag bearers. And only when the elephant was a mere five paces away, did he dive onto the street.
Directly into the massive beast’s path.
C’mon, you dumb elephant! Stop! Don’t crush me!
Of course, the chances of that happening were slim. If the animal showed no sign of stopping, Vir would just Dance away, but that would foil his plan.
Luckily, it noticed, rearing back on its hind legs, making its occupants cry out in panic. Vir lay sprawled out on the ground, right until knights swarmed him, grabbing him by his arms.
“Do you have any idea what you’ve done, urchin?”
Vir feigned fear and opened his eyes wide. “I-I-I’m sorry, ser! Only jes wanted t-t-ta give dese f-flowers! Jes, someone pushed me! I swear! Please, ser knight! Please believe me!”
The knight questioning him shook his head and addressed the knights restraining Vir. “Throw him back. We’re holding up the entire procession. Kid, do not do this again if you know what’s good for you.”
Vir nodded vigorously, keeping one eye planted on the elephant. It took all he had to suppress a grin when a ladder dropped from the elephant, and the princess descended. Despite the awkwardness of using a rope ladder, the princess managed the feat with superhuman grace, almost floating to the ground.