In the early hours of the next morning.
Before dawn, a furtive figure slipped out of the hotel, looking every bit a thief as she used the darkness to duck into a corner. She glanced up at her teammates' rooms and pressed her palms together in the silent dark.
She murmured devoutly.
"Teammates, bless me. Bless me with a safe return."
In the silent night, a soft hum of indeterminate meaning sounded behind her.
"You pray to your teammates instead of gods or Buddhas? What sort of custom is that?"
Ye Buyu turned to look at the person in the darkness.
"Duke... no, Your Highness, how long have you been lying in wait for me?"
Slyder folded his arms. "That's none of your concern."
He had thought she would leave in the dead of night, but instead, she had actually slept until five, leaving him lurking around for half the night like a paparazzo.
Tsk. Miscalculated.
Ye Buyu raised an eyebrow. "You haven't been waiting here all night, have you?"
Slyder: ...
Don't you know to keep quiet even when you see through someone?
The thought of him waiting all night and only now catching her made Ye Buyu want to laugh.
She cleared her throat and asked, pretending not to know, "Your Highness, what are you doing here? Admiring the moon?"
"Asking questions you already know the answers to isn't a good habit." Slyder rolled his eyes. Every member of Hold Up the Heavens was his bane.
He tossed something over, and Ye Buyu caught it.
It was a silver-colored iron ring.
"It contains iron I infused into it. Throw it out, and it'll turn into a steel shield. It'll have no trouble taking a direct hit from a Level Ten Calamity."
By the time Ye Buyu looked up