As Lady Rose's group continued to travel one could notice the shift in the mood as everyone had become somewhat more silent.
Sharla had moved to the front and walked beside Lady Rose herself, giving her directions and pointing out shortcuts they could take. Mirai had remained in the middle alongside Lucas and Evanora and maintained silence the entire time, the worry she felt remained written all over her face making Lucas feel sorry for her.
He wanted to speak up and lift her spirits but didn't know where to begin, in the end he also just remained quiet while occasionally casting glances at her.
At the far back both Juliet and Aron had grown more alert of their surroundings and didn't exchange much words. It wasn't until they finally drew closer to their destination that someone finally broke the silence.
"I see it." One of the scouters they had brought along revealed whilst standing atop a tree and looking forward.
The landscape of Aethel wasn't as troublesome to transverse like that of the Komi Islands but it was still difficult to see ahead if traveling at ground level.
The large trees and varying height of areas made it hard to see more than a few hundred meters ahead unless one continuously used the trees.
…
With the ruin in sight, they quickly came to a halt so as to discuss a manner of approach.
They were currently close to a kilometer away from it and chose to stop as the sun was beginning to rise, the journey having taken them the entire night.
The ruin itself was particularly quite hard to see especially from afar unless one was looking for it. It was composed of numerous bland run down brick building not more than a story high.
What made them so hard to see was that the majority of them hard vegetation nearly covering them entirely with large trees sprouting above them.
The only reason the scout was easily able to find them was because of the surrounding camps made by the Aethelians to either protect or explore them.
"Let's stop for now, I'll need to see what we're dealing with." Lady Rose instructed with the intent of using her scouter to know what was going on.
Making it blend in with the surroundings was but an easy feat and was more convenient than sending out someone who she felt would easily get spotted by the Aethelians surrounding the place.
While she was doing this the others settled down to rest for a bit after traveling nonstop the entire night. Mirai in particular looked to be at her physical limits, sweating profusely and looking paler than usual.
"Mirai…" Sharla could see her condition wasn't well and worried for her health, any non combatant or those lacking in stamina would have had trouble with such a strenuous situation. Even Lucas and other three individuals brought along looked exhausted and immediately plopped onto the ground to rest their feet when the chance arose.
They could only glance at Evanora and the others like a monster as she looked the same way she did prior to the journey along with Juliet and Aron who still looked fairly alert.
"This war… what are your thoughts on it?" Juliet suddenly asked Aron as the two were quietly standing at the base of a tree with Evanora sitting cross legged beneath them.
"Seems like an excuse for Ettenheim to expand it's territory without incurring the wrath of the people. No matter how strong an empire, if the majority of the people aren't supporting them then it's doomed to fall." Aron replied with what any knowledgeable person would see of the situation.
The declaration that they had made about granting roles depending on performance only served to support this theory. Ettenheim's rule wasn't tyrannical at all with some considering quite fair.
Nations previously defeated by it were assimilated and allowed to keep some remnants of their culture without receiving inhumane treatment like slavery and the like. So although they had their fair share of disapproval, the majority supported them leading to a somewhat stable empire.
Aron remained unsure of what Aethel had to gain from this or what their motives were but it was clear that they too were actively participating not to just defend their nation but to also win and shatter Ettenheim's short reign.
"You're right, it's pretty pointless… the weak tend to do so many pointless things, don't you agree?" Juliet replied while looking at those who had chosen to rest almost in disgust. Her words held no malice nor did her tone suggest anything but her eyes clearly showed she didn't see them as equals not because of her status but rather her power.
Aron couldn't help but notice this little display, however just as he was about to comment Lady Rose walked over and brought an end to their short exchange of views.
"How do you want to approach this? They are around twenty Aethelians present, possibly more within the ruins. Five are acting as eyes atop the trees, ten are patrolling at ground level and the rest are within the tents." She quickly explained after barley spending any time looking over the area with her scouter.
Even now the usefulness of her device was something Aron found impressive. "It'd be best if we could prevent them from calling for help, given how scattered they are though it will be difficult to take them all out in one go." Aron replied as he fell into thought.
"Don't forget we need at least one alive to question them about said ruin." Lady Rose added causing the situation to seem or the more difficult.
Juliet couldn't help but glance at Aron curiously. 'You have the power to end them all so why chose to be careful? I don't understand.' She thought as it didn't make sense to her why someone needed to be careful if they could just overpower whatever obstacle they faced.
"Right, well then you use your scouters to deal with those atop the trees and prevent them from escaping. We'll handle those patrolling. We can deal with those in the tents last, it's likely they know more anyways." Aron concluded after a short moment in thought, it wasn't something he needed to think long and hard about.
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This was where the major difference between him and Juliet laid, something she would finally witness up close and personal.
"Can Evanora sleep afterwards?" A sleepy looking Evanora asked while stretching her arms, seemingly ready to achieve the task at hand.
As Sharla saw the four of them looking ready to leave she looked concerned and Lady Rose's next words confirmed what she'd feared.
"The four of us will take care of the Aethelian forces, use this time to rest as we will advance immediately after." She said confidently, they were no ifs or whats, it was already guaranteed they would succeed.
Mirai lowered her head slightly upon hearing her say this and she turned to face Aron's direction, his mana always standing out to her. "Will you kill them?" She asked in a low tone and received an immediate answer. "Yes." Aron didn't need to bother explaining as it was already clear why.
"I understand." Mirai didn't like the thought of her people dying but she was a realist who could understand the situation, if they were spared and sought reinforcements then that would only lead to more conflict.
After that short exchange they could only watch as the four of them began advancing towards the camp, the outcome of the confrontation already clear in their minds.
….
The first to meet an untimely end were the unsuspecting Aethelians on lookout atop the trees.
Without warning a fast moving object collided with one of the figures and completely lead to a gruesome death in which a large portion of the body was brutally destroyed.
This was the result of one of Lady Rose's scouters colliding with a body without any protection. The scouter alone was made from material considered extremely hard and durable so to have that collide with a flesh body at a frighteningly fast speed would only lead to death.
It occurred so fast the others didn't realize it before falling victim to the same attack. The two speeding scouter's tore apart their targets at their blind spot and brought instant deaths to the victims.
When Juliet observed this she couldn't help but look at Lady Rose differently. Although she was someone who couldn't be considered a physical combatant, her threat level was apparent.
No matter who it was in Pesia, if they were caught off guard by one of those attacks then it would be an instant death she theorized.
Even Aron knew the only reason he'd survive one of those attacks is because his bones were harder than the material her scouters were made of, his flesh however would certainly get torn.
Evanora was the only one who made no comparisons and only waited for her role. "Evanora wants them to die."
With the command given and an attack envisioned, Evanora's attack came next. It was just as sudden as Lady Rose's and caught the victims off guard as well.
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Similar to what she had done at the Veldrea settlement, arrows congealed from mana appeared in midair at their target's blind spots and immediately shot through their heads without any resistance.
Once again Juliet couldn't help but consider the odd girl a threat. Most pure mages who couldn't augment themselves were considered even more inferior to her since preparing arts or techniques usually took some time unless the individual was very competent and was also fairly straining on one's mind.
However she cleanly took out her targets with little preparation and didn't look the least bit affected which either meant she was insanely focused and well experienced or just that much of monster, considering her age the latter was more likely.
What Aron saw instead was her growth, compared to when she first used it the attack this time around was more deadly as it appeared in the target's blind spots. Something he could only assume she mimicked after observing Lady Rose's attack.
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The only question he held was, just how far could she grow?
With her attack done and four enemies down, it was now time for Juliet to act. Without any arts or techniques needed she burst forward and charged towards her enemies.
The closest was immediately alerted and was about to prepare an attack but… it was too late.
Juliet closest between her and her victim in no time at all. Aethelian's normally wore light armor due their lack of physical strength, something Juliet was keen on exposing.
They made up for this in speed but unfortunately this was something Juliet far surpassed them in.
!!
With the distance closed her victim could only look at her with widened eyes before Juliet unsheathed her great sword and slashed diagonally, nearly slicing through the Aethelian completely.
In that time the other two closest to her had enough time prepare their attacks. The one closest to retaliating was targeted first as Juliet launched her sword towards them with great power, forcing it right through their head.
The last couldn't help but tremble at this sight. The suddenness of the situation was hard to take in and accept, this small cloudiness in judgment caused the attack which was a simple wind based technique to be easily dodged.
Juliet then closest the distance once again before hitting the Aethelian with her elbow at their chest, causing their ribs to shatter and their heart to be pierced.
After she was down she turned to see how Aron would fight, only to find he was already holding his last victim by the scruff of their neck before snapping it with one hand.
From there she could now see the major difference between the two of them. She was a vanguard type of combatant who used sheer force to take down her opponents, whereas Aron was an effiecient killer who chose to end fights quickly by capitalizing on an opponents weaknesses.
Such a person was already fairly difficult to be matched against but what made Aron even more so a headache was that even without such a trait he was incredibly powerful by Pesian standards, making him a nightmare to face for anyone… including herself.
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