[In this Star Quest of rescuing Lunaria, the Attribute: Nihility will be temporarily nullified.]
[Lunaria, the "Maid of the Moon" has sensed a familiar presence.]
[Lunaria, the "Maid of the Moon" looks forward to meeting you.]
Russell Moon, along with Freya Moon and Amelie Rose Merveil, was at a loss for words upon reading the System messages meant for the entire party. They were currently a few meters away, at least eight to ten meters, from the entrance of the secret facility where Lunaria, within the Cemetery of Oblivion, was living and seemingly waiting forever for something to transpire.
The eyes of several players or the ones guarding the enormous metallic gate quickly sensed the presence of three young individuals as soon as the Attribute: Nihility was nullified for some reason. However, at that moment, Amelie Rose shouted in frustration, causing Russell and Freya to grasp what she was trying to do to escape this current predicament that they were unexpectedly thrown into.
"Sigh, where the hell is this place?! We are in the middle of nowhere, and THERE'S NO ONE AROUND!"
They shifted their gazes around the area, acting as though they were ignorant of the existence of the camouflaged secret facility that was discreetly revealed in their eyes with the utilization of the artifact, "Dispel of Lies", trying to avoid appearing suspicious from the scrutinizing eyes of the numerous guards, who, at this moment, were glaring at them with constricted eyes. They were assessing if these three young individuals were just lost in these woods.
As Amelie Rose emphasized the last part of the sentence that she quickly thought of, to at least buy time before their next course of action, Freya then spoke, trying to calm herself down as she felt like the glares of those standing in front of the entrance could drill into her skull.
"Did we get scammed?! That "Teleportation" Scroll vendor! Argh-! Didn't he say that it will transport us to the summit of this vast mountain range so that we can hunt some rare Monster Beast?!"
Russell Moon, trying his best to calm his mind, interjected as he said in a casual manner, not minding the eyes of others, who seemed prepared to draw their weapons and strike them down even if one of them noticed their existence, veiled through the barrier.
"Sigh, I told you that it's a scam. I don't know why you two didn't listen to my advice. Well, there's nothing we can do. We've lost some money and we don't know where the heck we are right now."
As the three of them chattered and looked around in frustration, they hoped in their minds that those standing guard wouldn't notice that anything was amiss. After that, Amelie Rose stomped the ground as she sauntered in the direction opposite the entrance of the secret facility. The Moon siblings followed suit, trying their best to show their frustration in a way that's not considered overreacting.
***
"Hey, what do you think? Aren't those brats bluffing right now?"
There were four players, around A- to A+ rank, guarding the entrance of the secret facility where Lunaria was being kept. One of them asked, sensing that something was amiss in the actions of the three young individuals who appeared out of nowhere.
Then, pondering for at least a few seconds, the one who was asked answered:
"We have no way of knowing. Based on their appearance and demeanor, we can assume that they're around sixteen to eighteen years of age. Although we have no way of inspecting each of their Status Windows because of the barrier that's blocking and hiding us."
The Moon siblings and Amelie Rose were around four to five meters away from stepping into the barrier that's covering the entire facility. This also caused their presence not to be felt on the outside, and due to the seemingly lackluster alertness of the facility guards, they didn't manage to see any light that would appear from a Teleportation Scroll – a commodity commonly used for those who didn't have a player with Teleportation-related Skill in their party.
"That aside, it seems we are being half-assed in doing our job. So let's focus on the surroundings first."
Because of the barrier, any form of interaction outside of it was deemed impossible. In other words, the four guards wouldn't be able to feel the arrival of the Moon siblings and Amelie Rose. Although it's possible for them to see the three of them appearing out of nowhere as soon as the Nihility was temporarily nullified, due to negligence, they didn't manage to do so.
"Alright then. Let this matter slide. It seems they're finding their way back from these woods, though unfortunately, we can not help them."
Seeing the back of the party, who were stomping on the ground, with one scratching her hair, and the other sighing in disappointment, the guards fell silent and honed their vision to check the area if there was any lost individual.
"...Sir, I think their appearance doesn't make any sense. Should we investigate them? Of course, in a discreet manner."
The other guard, who was listening to the conversation of the first two, interjected. His suspicion towards the three young individuals was more severe than one of the previous guards.
"Hmm… Can you tell me why we need to go that far?"
The one who seemed to be respected the most among the four of them asked, curious about the possible analysis of the third guard.
"Their distance from the barrier's line was only around 3-4 meters. However, the way they appeared out of thin air doesn't seem like it's because of a Teleportation Scroll. It's just for a moment, but, if my eyes aren't deceiving me, I see that they're like smoke, appearing out of thin air."
The third guard was serious and his tone suggested that he clearly saw the strange phenomenon of the three youngsters appearing out of nowhere without the trace or remnant of the Teleportation Scroll.
"I agree with him. However, I think it's best if we don't leave our post. It's possible that they saw this facility we're guarding, but because of the confidential information inside, there's no way these kids know about it. In other words, apart from the strange way they appeared, and acting ignorant to avoid us, they're scared that they discovered this place accidentally."
Of the curiosity of the first guard, this time, the fourth guard spoke in a composed manner.
"I see. That's entirely possible. So, some of us should follow them and erase their memories of this place, right?"
The second guard, the most respected in the group, said. He's weighing his options on how to handle the three, whose backs disappeared from the woods.
"But Miss Ayleen isn't here right now. So… It's best to capture those youngsters first."
After some time of discussion, the decision had finally been made on what to do with the Moon siblings and Amelie Rose.
***
"It seems there's no turning back now."
After taking their distance, around a hundred meters away from the concealed facility, Russell analyzed the situation, especially the nullified Attribute, which at this moment was in the same state as if it's a switch that's been turned off.
"But Oppa, there's another System message that might be helpful to us, right?"
"You're right. There's one."
The moment they were trying their best to avoid the suspicions of the four guards at the entrance, several notifications rang in their heads, but most of them were referring or directed to the one with the Star Quest itself.
[You will be drawn to the "Maid of the Moon" as your distance gets closer.]
[Lunaria, "Maid of the Moon" will send her help in any way possible.]
Although Russell Moon had no idea how the considered Boss Monster of the Cemetery of Oblivion would send them help, he was at least relieved to know that it seemed to be the exact price for the nullification of Nihility.
<Russell… Freya… Two men exited the barrier and are silently approaching the direction where we disappeared.>
Through telepathic communication, Amelie Rose spoke to the Moon siblings. She was currently in her Shade Transformation state and was observing from a distance the secret facility as they thought that they wouldn't get out of that situation without garnering suspicion.
<Hmm… They're around A-rank, so it will be hard to face them head-on, but we can at least knock them out by catching them off-guard.>
After a few seconds of making a decision since the movements of the two guards were quick, the Moon siblings and Amelie Rose prepared for what was to come.
***
The third and fourth guards, who were in agreement in bringing the three suspicious individuals that suddenly appeared in front of the concealed facility, ran through the woods of this mountain.
After a few seconds since they exited the barrier, and as they traversed the direction where the three individuals disappeared, they heard a horrifying scream.
"Ah-! M-monster!"
"H-help!"
"G-get behind me!"
"Grr-!"
Familiar voices from before entered the ears of the third and fourth guards as they glanced at each other for a moment before hastening their steps. After at least eight to ten seconds, what was screened in their eyes were the three horrified youngsters with their backs leaning on a thick trunk of a tree. Then, on the other side, it was a strange monster that they never saw even once in their life.
This monster had dark-greyish skin, three crimson eyes, and three protruded horns. The two guards seemed to instinctively compare it based on what they've encountered. Although it's different, it's still somewhat possessed a striking resemblance.
"It looks like a Goblin."
Without hesitation, as the two of them saw the boy in front holding a sword, trying to defend the two terrified girls on his back, the two guards went in front of the three youngsters that they deemed suspicious and faced the peculiar-looking Goblin.
'What the hell is this… Its aura is intimidating.'
The third guard thought before addressing the three individuals, trying to survive the unknown monster.
"Are you okay? What's that monster?"
"W-we don't know. We're just looking for a way to get back to the city because we're lost, but after some time of walking, we heard a sound in the trees and then it just jumped in front of us."
Freya Moon said, making up a complete lie.
"Alright. Don't worry. We'll guide you down this mountain after we get rid of that."
The third guard said in a reassuring tone. However, looking at the strange monster, although he's A- rank, he couldn't help but feel chills down his spine.
"T-thank you, Sir."
"And where's the other one with you?"
At that moment, the fourth guard, who was ready to strike the strange-looking Goblin, stopped as he glanced back after hearing his co-worker's words. But it was too late.
Amelie Rose disappeared from their sights due to the Shade Transformation that she activated as the third guard seemed occupied tending to the acting Freya.
[Activated the Skill: Shriek of the Shade]
Out of nowhere, without knowing the exact location, although the two guards knew it was very close, they heard an ear-deafening scream, which caused them to be momentarily paralyzed from where they were standing.
The Chaos Goblin, Met, who was tasked to act as a common unintelligent monster, lunged forward and attacked the two guards.
Pak-! Pak-
Using the back of the blade, the two were knocked out as Met hit the back of their heads.
After that, Russell took out from his Dimensional Inventory the items he utilized in restraining the Student Council President and his companions – Mana Nullifier, the military-grade artifact to restrain someone from utilizing Mana.
***
Sometime later, as the current situation had been settled, Russell then took out the Mask of Night, which he previously lent to Met. Looking at one of the two guards, Russell activated one of the effects of the special artifact.
[Activating the Intrinsic Effect: Shadow Disguise.]
[Copying the physical features of the target…]