Infiltrating the Northern Sealed Palace

The sun began to set and Lucas hadn't moved from the place he had set camp. He was still looking and waiting for darkness to fall. Then, he will begin to move forward with his plan. "I have to be very light and fast. The people guarding the Palace, are very vigilant. One of them even sensed that they were being watched, while I was almost four kilometers away from them", he contemplated.

An orange hue filled the sky. Lucas enjoyed the view from the sunset, and he placed the sniper into his inventory. He then scaled the roof, entering his bedroom from his window. He grabbed a full-sleeved black tee and a pair of black sweatpants. He wore the boots and tried walking, using 'The Art of Stealth'. It was silent, and there was no squeaking noise. "Good. Next, cover my face", he thought. He then wrapped a black cloth around his head, leaving only his eyes visible.

"They can still differentiate me. I have to cover my eyes", he thought. He then picked out a white mask from his drawer. The mask had red lines coming from the left and the right sides. The place where the eyes were visible, was covered with a very thin black cloth. From outside, no one could see his eyes. He put the mask on and looked at himself in the mirror. "Ha Ha. I look like an assassin", he smiled.

He quickly jumped out from the window and landed softly on the ground, He began to run through the shadows, utilizing them to his full advantage. He neared the Northern Palace and quickly hid behind a bush. "It's going to be hard from now", he thought.

He waited until a guard passed by him. He quickly stood up and closed the guard's nose. He then used his elbow and tapped the neck, knocking him out instantly. "One down, two more to go", he counted. He waited patiently and then knocked them out. "Now, let's scale", he thought and ran next to the wall. He took out a hook and tied it to the end of a rope. He threw it to the top of the windowsill and climbed quickly.

After entering the building, everything now depended on his perception skills. He put the extra stat point which he had into perception and increased it. He then called the status window, to see his stats.

[Status]

[Name: Lucas Heart]

[HP: 100/100]

[MP: 100/100]

[Level: 4]

[Job: None]

[Title: Defying The Odds]

[EXP: 600/1500]

[System Level: 1/10]

[Strength: 40]

[Stamina: 29]

[Agility: 40]

[Perception: 32]

[Magic: 27]

[Stat points to be used: 0]

"Alright, now my hearing has been increased. Let me try and listen to how many people are there in the hallway", he thought and closed his eyes. He began to count. "Five people moving in a cycle. It's going to be hard to not get detected", he thought as he rolled behind a pillar, waiting to make the first strike.

A guard came and he hit the back of the neck, knocking out instantly. He hid the person in a cupboard and moved to the next person. He kept on repeating the same thing until he had knocked out all of them. He then went to a staircase that was leading to the basement. "One hour left", he thought as he ran down the stairs.

After reaching the basement, everything was dark. There was a moist feeling in the air. Lucas tried to listen but he couldn't hear anyone. He placed his hands on the walls, using them to guide him through the darkness. "[Fireball]", he thought and a small ball of fire appeared above his hands. He then concentrated on keeping it in his hands instead of shooting it out. "It worked", he thought.

He then saw a massive steel door in front of him. "The Ancestral Scroll should be behind this place", he thought. He then took out two needles and began to pick the lock. The lock was very complicated and took him almost thirty minutes to pick it. Right after that, he pushed the door open. It opened with a creak.

As soon as the door opened, lights began to appear from the side. He extinguished the flame in his hands and followed the light. A wooden podium was in front of him. And on top of it, was a scroll in an engraved glass. The door shut behind him, but he didn't listen to it. He was mesmerized by the wooden podium and looked at it in awe. "So beautiful", that was the only thing he thought.

He neared the wooden podium and saw something written on it. He then circled and saw writings on all four sides. He then saw a quill dipped in blood.

"A sealing technique? And to open, I can only answer all four of these questions here. Father gave this a lot of thought", he smiled. He then began to read the first question. "Turn me on my side and I am everything. Cut me in half and I am nothing. What am I?", he read. "A riddle? What kind of a sealing technique is this?", he thought. He then looked at the countdown. "Only fifty-five minutes left", he thought.

He began to think. "Turn to the side and I am everything. What does everything mean here? Is it in science? Or something else? Let's keep science as a base here. In science, what does everything mean?", he thought. He began to mumble. "Science, everything. Maybe it's Theory of Relativity? No. The answer shouldn't be complicated. The most complex riddles have the most simple answers. This is what I have learned", he said.

"Then let's look at the next line. Cut me in half and I am nothing. Let me use science as a base here too. Nothing means nothing, which is zero. Cut me in half, hmm, could it be? Wait, if I turn it sideways, yes! It is everything indeed!", he thought. He then picked up the quill and wrote the answer. "The number 8", he muttered as he wrote.

The writing glowed a faint gold color, and it dimmed. The glass panel opened up slightly, but not enough for him to take it out. "Alright, let's read the second riddle", he thought. "I am the beginning of everything, the end of time and space, and the end of every place. What am I?', he read it out. "What should I use as a base here? Let's use science again", he thought.

"The beginning of everything will be a molecule. Or to be more precise an atom. But the end of every place? What will it be? Let's try 'atom' first", he thought. he picked up the quill and wrote the answer. There was a dark red glow, and the floor rumbled. Water began to gush in from the sides, filling the room and slowly rising. "What? A wrong answer and I trigger a trap?!", he thought.

The water kept filling until it reached the level of his knees, The podium rose and stayed out of the water level. "It seems that I have to think a lot before I write", he thought. "What else would this be based on? Science seems to be the wrong answer, and Mathematics will not cut it. Maybe it's English?", he thought. He then looked at it again.

"I am the beginning of everything, the end of time and space, and the end of every place. If I take English into account here, then I have to isolate the words. Let's isolate everything, time, space, place. Now, if I follow the theme, the answer must be E", he concluded. He picked up the quill and wrote the answer, 'the letter E'. There was a faint glow of gold, and the glass panel opened slightly again. The water level also went down slightly below his knees.

"The right answer not only opens the glass, but it also reduces the danger of the trap", he thought. "This is a very dangerous game indeed. And I only have forty-five minutes left", he thought. He began to read the next riddle. "I beam, I shine, I sparkle white. I'll brighten the day with a single light. I'll charm and enchant you all. I'll bring the best in all. What am I?", he read.

"I can't make a mistake like last time. If I do, who knows how high the water level will rise?", he thought. "What is the basis of this riddle? So far, there has been not a very consistent theme. If there was, I could use the same base. Let's break it down", he said.

"I beam, I shine, I sparkle white. Light can beam and shine, but do they sparkle? Only gems such as diamond sparkle. And if light passes through it, it can beam and shine too. Let's take it to the second line. I'll brighten the day with a single light. Diamonds don't match here. So I'm back to square one", he thought.

The time was ticking and there was the risk of danger when he answered wrong. He chuckled nervously. He looked at his reflection on the water and smiled to himself. "You can do this, Lucas. You have solved a lot of riddles, and your IQ is high. You just have to think in the right direction", he thought. He stopped thinking when he saw his reflection in the water.

"That's it! This is the base for the riddle. A human's emotions. What sparkles bright, and enchants everyone? A smile!", he said and laughed out loud. "The answer was right here all along!", he said.