Chương 129: Chapter : 129

Zaima leaned in close to Hestia's ear, lowering her voice so only the Princess could hear.

"Princess," Zaima whispered begrudgingly.

"As much as it makes me sick to agree with them... recovering the points is far more important than our pride today. If we fall behind the 5th Prince now, we might never catch up. We can use their numbers to find the artifact, and then we take the credit." Hestia closed her eyes and took a very long, very deep breath. She smoothed her white dress out one more time, fighting a massive internal battle between her ego and her desire to win the throne.

Finally, Hestia opened her eyes and let out a dramatic, highly annoyed sigh.

"Fine," Hestia said, slowly sitting back down in her chair. She glared across the table at Iris.

"I will agree to this temporary, strictly business alliance. But let me make one thing perfectly clear. I am not doing this to help you, Iris. I am doing this to erase the penalty on my own record. The moment we secure that Core, this little friendship is completely over." Princess Iris offered a warm, genuine smile. She didn't care about Hestia's insults; she only cared about the results.

"Thank you, Hestia. That is all I ask." Ken pumped his fist quietly in the background.

"Yes! The three-way team-up is officially happening! Does this mean we get to design matching t-shirts? Because I vote for dark blue. It hides stains way better than white."

"No matching shirts, Ken," Naomi whispered, rolling her eyes, though she gently nudged his shoulder with her own to let him know she thought he was being funny.

"Alright, we have an alliance," Hephaestus said, leaning back and looking much more relaxed now that the argument was over.

"But Iris, we still have a massive hurdle to jump over. We agreed to track down the masked thieves, but we have absolutely no idea who they are, where they went, or what they look like. They used a smoke bomb and vanished into thin air. How are we supposed to find them in a city of millions of people?" Princess Iris folded her hands on the table.

"We cannot find them on our own," Princess Iris admitted honestly, looking at her brother and sister.

"The masked thieves who stole the Core are professional mercenaries. They know how to hide from normal tracking magic. If we just send our vanguards out into the streets to ask questions, we will be wandering around in circles for weeks."

"Then what is the point of this alliance?" Hestia asked haughtily, tapping her manicured fingernails against the wooden table.

"If we cannot find them, we cannot recover the points."

"We can find them," Iris corrected her smoothly.

"But we have to use our biggest assets. We need to utilize our Advisors." The room went completely quiet for a second. Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. Ken tilted his head, acting totally clueless. He leaned over to Naomi.

"Advisors? You mean the giant metal guy who yells at me for waking up late?"

"Yes, Grandmaster Finlay," Naomi whispered back, keeping her voice low.

"The Emperor's rules state that Advisors are not legally allowed to fight in combat missions for points. But they are completely allowed to assist in tracking, logistics, and reconnaissance. If the Advisors work together, they can find anyone."

"Exactly," Sayma added, speaking up for the whole table to hear.

"Our Grandmasters possess decades of military experience. They have access to deep intelligence networks, informants, and tracking methods that regular servants simply do not have. If we pool their resources together, we can locate the 4th party in a matter of hours." Hestia's eyes lit up with sudden understanding. A proud, arrogant smirk returned to her face.

"Well, if it is a tracking operation you need, then you are in luck," Hestia boasted loudly. She snapped her fingers over her shoulder.

"Grandmaster Yukihime! Step forward." From the shadows near the back door of the parlor, a new figure stepped into the light. Ken's sleepy eyes widened just a tiny bit as he got his first look at the 16th Unit's Advisor. Grandmaster Yukihime looked absolutely nothing like Grandmaster Finlay. Where Finlay was a towering, massive mountain of muscle covered in thick silver armor, Yukihime was incredibly slim, elegant, and chillingly quiet.

She wore a sleek, spotless white and gold uniform that looked more like a traditional martial arts tunic than heavy armor. Her long, snow-white hair fell perfectly down her back, and she carried a long, elegantly curved katana at her hip. But it was her face that was the most terrifying part. Her eyes were a piercing, icy blue, and they looked completely, utterly devoid of warmth. She radiated an aura of sharp, deadly perfection. Yukihime stopped right behind Hestia's chair and offered a crisp, flawless bow.

"At your service, Princess."

"Grandmaster Yukihime was once the head of the Imperial Intelligence Division," Hestia bragged, gesturing to the elegant woman.

"She knows every dirty little secret, hidden tunnel, and black-market whisper in this entire capital. If anyone can find those masked thieves, it is her." Princess Iris smiled and nodded. She gestured toward the opposite door.

"And she will have excellent support. Grandmaster Finlay, if you please." The heavy wooden doors creaked as Grandmaster Finlay marched into the room. His massive silver armor clanked loudly with every step, and his thick gray beard bristled as he looked around the parlor. He walked over to stand behind Princess Iris, crossing his giant arms over his chest plate. He looked exactly like a walking tank. Finlay looked across the table at Yukihime.

The massive, armored giant and the elegant, icy assassin stared at each other for a long moment. It was a clash of two absolute legends.

"Yukihime," Finlay rumbled, his deep voice shaking the tea cups on the table.

"It has been a long time."

"Finlay," Yukihime replied, her voice as smooth and cold as winter ice.

"Try to keep up with me today. I do not have time to wait for slow old men." Finlay let out a hearty, booming laugh.

"We will see about that." Ken watched the two incredibly scary Grandmasters banter, completely fascinated. He leaned over to Naomi again, poking her arm.

"Wow, look at them. The giant metal mountain and the scary ice lady. This is like watching a highly intense buddy-cop movie. If they go out tracking together, they are definitely going to cause a massive amount of property damage. I am so glad I am not going with them." Naomi couldn't hold it back anymore; she let out a quick, quiet snort of laughter before quickly covering her mouth to hide it. She lightly punched Ken in the arm.

"Shut up, you idiot. They are professionals." With two incredibly powerful Advisors ready to go, Princess Iris turned her hopeful gaze toward Prince Hephaestus.

"Brother," Iris said warmly.

"If your Grandmaster joins the search grid, we will have total coverage of the city. With three Advisors working together, the thieves will have absolutely nowhere to hide."