Ye Ci did not forget the task that she had to perform even when she was captivated by Fleeting Time's maneuvering. She jumped out the moment the Iron Warrior fired off its rocket along with the direction of the blast.
Ye Ci appeared to be hurled across the room by the force of the explosion. Her movements were quick and precise that it was impossible for one to tell that it was faked.
Before her body collided with the platform, Ye Ci bent her knees in an attempt to reduce the damage she would receive, and activated Feigned Death at the same time.
Ye Ci's apparently lifeless body laid at the base of the platform moments later. It gave the illusion that she was dead, much to Ciel's glee. He laughed and called out to Fleeting Time, "Ha ha ha! Damned Elf! Have you seen how your companion died? Cease your resistance and I will give you a painless death."
Fleeting Time was worried. He cast a sideway glance at Ye Ci. Her act was so real that even Fleeting Time himself was deceived. Ye Ci's icon in the party member list that had not turned grey was a sign that she was still alive.
"How are you doing? How much health do you have left?" asked Fleeting Time as he waltzed around the palace with the agility of a lynx.
"I'm at 80% health." replied Ye Ci who laid on the ground. She could still observe the fight between Fleeting Time and the Iron Warrior, and she was impressed by Fleeting Time's agility. As expected of the guy who was known as the God among Hunters in my last life. Even I might not be able to pull that sort of maneuver off.
This man… He is indeed a worthy opponent.
"Use a Healing Salve instead of a Healing Potion when you get up. That thing has a higher aggro value, and Ciel might notice you." Fleeting Time was still able to give Ye Ci a reminder despite his fight with the Iron Warrior.
"Understood."
The critical nature of the situation did not allow much window for the duo to communicate. With Ciel's attention focused fully on the battle between Fleeting Time and the Iron Warrior, Ye Ci drank a Large Healing Salve and immediately entered stealth as her health bar was slowly raised.
She then advanced carefully towards the stairs of the platform.
With the stairs located at the rear of the platform and Ciel's position at the front of the platform, Ye Ci could easily climb up the platform while avoiding detection. She had observed Ciel's behavior, and found that the Goblin would stare at Llaesnyffan who was lying in the coffin every 3 minutes and return his gaze towards the battle after confirming that she was safe.
The Hunter class had a minor chance of exposing their position as they climbed up stairs despite being in stealth. A Rogue, however, did not share the same worry.
Ye Ci's progress up the stairs was severely slowed because of such a risk. Her efforts would be wasted if she was exposed before she could get within range of Ciel.
It took Ye Ci 10 full minutes to climb a mere dozen steps of stairs. She immediately took a crouching position as she finally arrived at the top of the platform. After all, stealth works best when a character is crouched, and this would reduce the chances of Ye Ci being spotted by Ciel.
Of course, this did not mean that she could avoid detection completely.
Ye Ci stood at the edge of the platform, and pressed herself against one of the pillars to place herself in Ciel's blind spot.
Her gaze then fell upon the crystalline coffin behind Ciel, and a sudden thought crossed her mind, "Fleeting Time, what did Ciel say to us when we first entered the throne room?"
Fleeting Time was caught off guard by the absurdity of Ye Ci's question, "It's something to do with a ritual that we've disrupted. I can't remember the exact words that he said."
That's it! We've interrupted his ritual! Ye Ci was certain that she saw that Llaesnyffan was enveloped by a strange light from the Gem of Life. The Gem of Life can activate an Iron Warrior that was barely working… Can it resurrect a dead Drow? thought Ye Ci to herself.
Ye Ci then remembered De'frei's words. The Dark Lord Naga has stolen the soul of Llaesnyffan. If that was true, this meant that Ciel's ritual was futile. He could never resurrect Llaesnyffan with the Gem of Life. The only way that Llaesnyffan could be resurrected was to exchange her soul with the Iron Warrior. The Drow in the coffin was Llaesnyffan's body, and judging from the great care Ciel took to preserve the body, it was certain that the king of Goblins intended to revive her.
A plan began formulating in Ye Ci's mind. She knew that her chances of success in grabbing Ciel's scepter are very low. Even if Ciel was a lvl60 monster, he was still the king of an entire race. Llaesnyffan could be used as a leverage against Ciel.
Ciel turned around and stared at Ye Ci's hiding spot before she could make her move. Ye Ci's could feel her heart in her mouth and her muscles immediately tensed. All would be lost if Ciel detected her presence.
Fortunately for Ye Ci however, Ciel quickly shifted his attention back to the Fleeting Time. That Elf was too damned agile. The Iron Warrior's weapons had destroyed half of the throne room, but the Elf was still able to remain on steady feet even when his surroundings was reduced to rubble. He was able to skip and hop into the Iron Warrior's blind spot and launch attacks after stinging attacks at the gigantic machine. Ciel's raged burned on, and rage was something that could cloud an individual's judgement. The enraged Ciel began channeling a spell. He was attempting to further empower the Iron Warrior with the Gem of Life.
Ye Ci relayed the information to Fleeting Time as she crept slowly towards Llaesnyffan's coffin.
It took Ye Ci two full minutes to cross the 10 yards between her and the coffin. Her heart was in her mouth and her gaze was fixated on Ciel as she advanced slowly. She immediately tumbled behind the coffin and concealed herself when she was a safe distance away. Just then, Ciel turned around, detecting the lurking danger behind him. When he found nothing after studying his surroundings for a long moment, Ciel's attention shifted once again to Fleeting Time.
Ye Ci stood up and extended a hand towards the coffin, and a smile formed on her face. The unlidded coffin was not protected by any forms of barrier, and Llaesnyffan was easily within her reach.
She lowered her head and stared at Llaesnyffan. She was a very beautiful girl, but her skin was sickly pale due to her death. She studied the coffin for any magical runes and then poked at Llaesnyffan's arm with a finger. When nothing happened despite her actions, Ye Ci was sure that Llaesnyffan was stored in the coffin without any forms of protection.
With such a knowledge in mind, Ye Ci took in a deep breath and lifted Llaesnyffan's corpse after muttering an apology to the beautiful Drow. She then chuckled at Ciel.
Ye Ci's chuckle was soft, but it was a very terrifying sound for Ciel. He immediately faced Ye Ci and the Gem of Life glowed with the crackling of energy as he pointed his scepter at her.
Fear was actually present in Ye Ci's heart. All would be lost if Llaesnyffan was not as important as what was mentioned in the quest description. Was her action a foolish one?
"Hello, Your Majesty. We meet again." said Ye Ci with a smile despite the fear she harbored in her heart.
Ciel was momentarily stunned before realisation dawned upon him, "You've deceived me! I'll kill you!" screamed the Goblin king as the glow of the Gem of Life intensified.
Ye Ci ignored Ciel's threat and placed her short sword on Llaesnyffan's throat, "Your Majesty, do you think that your spell is faster than my sword?"
"You damned Elf! I'll kill you!" screamed Ciel as he began channeling a spell.
The smile remained on Ye Ci's face as the blade of her sword sliced open the skin on Llaesnyffan's neck. Of course, no blood flowed from the dead Drow's neck, but the cut that Ye Ci made had exposed the flesh under the skin, "Your Majesty, I'm sure you know that you'll never be able to revive a being with its head cut off, even when you're in possession of its soul…"
"No! Stop it! Stop it at once!" Ciel was terrified when he saw the wound on Llaesnyffan's neck. He immediately stopped the spell and screamed at Ye Ci, "Oh, good Elf, I beg of you! Please, stop it!"
Ye Ci let out a sigh of relief. Her gamble had paid off. Despite De'frei's statement that Ciel was in love with Llaesnyffan, there was still doubt in Ye Ci's mind. Ciel was a king while Llaesnyffan was nothing but a beautiful girl. Was the love between the two true love between a man and a woman, or merely the affection shown by an aloof ruler towards his pet.
She finally realised from Ciel's reaction that the king truly loved Llaesnyffan even when they were not members of the same race.
Despite his madness, Ciel's decision to abandon the entire kingdom to ruin for the sake of Llaesnyffan was a sign of true love.
"What do you want? I'll fulfill your demands as long as you don't harm Llaesnyffan." Ciel was reduced to begging for Ye Ci's in a very pitiful manner.
Ye Ci stole at glance at the ongoing battle not far away. The Iron Warrior was no longer functioning at full capacity. The mighty machine was slowing down, and smoke began to rose from its massive body. It was apparent that the Iron Warrior shall be defeated soon.
"Give me your scepter." said Ye Ci after looking at the quest description. The duo had to defeat the Iron Warrior and acquire the scepter.
"No, I can't. This is a very important treasure to the Goblin kingdom. I can't hand it to a member of another race." it was apparent that Ciel retained some of his pride as a king.
"Your Majesty, Vo'sok is gone. The races that walk this earth no longer recognize the Goblins as a proper race. Why are you still holding on to the scepter? Just listen to me. If you hand me the scepter, I'll return Llaesnyffan to you."
"No…" despite his protest, Ye Ci could tell that Ciel's resolve was shaken.
"Your Majesty, the palace is about to collapse. Don't you know that Vo'sok will crumble along with the palace? Why are you not willing to let go of the scepter? At this point, you're not handing over your authority, but proving your true love. Are you going to abandon your loved one at a time like this?" Ye Ci's voice was soft.
"B-but…"
"Come, hand me the scepter." Ye Ci extended an arm towards Ciel while tightening her grip on Llaesnyffan's throat with her free hand.
"Llaesnyffan… Oh, my beloved Llaesnyffan…" muttered Ciel as he stared at the beautiful Drow and then at Ye Ci. He even had the illusion that his loved one is alive. The Goblin king began to walk up to Ye Ci with the scepter.
"Hold still, and toss the scepter over." Ciel was a danger as long as the scepter was still in his hands.
The king of Goblins immediately halted and tossed the scepter at Ye Ci. The scepter soared across the air in a graceful arc, and landed…
Right into Ye Ci's hand.