Morning.
Richard woke up, washed up, and stepped outside to wander around near the residential quarters. On one hand, he was trying to familiarize himself with the layout of the Pombo Family Residence so he would not get lost. On the other, he was pondering the problem he had encountered yesterday.
His out-of-body exploration yesterday had confirmed that the Book of the Void he needed for his mission was indeed in an underground secret chamber beneath the Pombo Family's estate outside the city, personally guarded by Arun Pombo.
So how was he supposed to get it? Sneak into the secret chamber and steal it?
That was clearly not a good option. Arun Pombo had already sensed something when Richard went there in his out-of-body state last night. If he went there in person, there was a high chance he would be discovered.
If not that, perhaps he could take a different approach and find a way to negotiate with the Pombo Family.
For example, the next time Annie left the city, he could simply kidnap her and demand that the Pombo Family exchange the Book of the Void for her.
This method was somewhat feasible, but it also had certain drawbacks.
For example, it would be difficult to predict how the Pombo Family would respond, and it would reveal his objective to them. If the negotiation failed, it would become much harder for him to obtain the Book of the Void by other means.
Or he could be more straightforward and use the simplest, most direct method—take it by force? He was not afraid of confronting Arun Pombo, a Level 3 Wizard, head-on. But a unit of Magic-armored Knights was stationed beside the estate. If the battle dragged on and drew them over, things would become troublesome.
After all, he