The world twisted.
One moment, they were standing near the dungeon’s exit, the next, they were somewhere else entirely.
The dimensional aperture behind them snapped shut, sealing the pseudo-dungeon off in an instant.
Nick turned, expecting to see the swirling, otherworldly shimmer that had marked the entrance. Instead, there was nothing—just a faint distortion in the air, like heat haze rippling over a summer road.
For now, the dungeon was closed.
It would reopen eventually, resetting itself for the next round of adventurers. But at this moment, nobody could enter.
Ray stretched with a loud groan, rolling her shoulder as she held her new baseball bat loosely at her side. “Well, that was a mess.”
Nick barely acknowledged her comment. He was already surveying the outpost.
The guards had noticed them.
More than that—they were counting.
Nick’s eyes narrowed. The moment they stepped forward, he caught a ripple of movement—one of the stationed guards quickly turned and disappeared inside. The others exchanged uneasy looks, hands inching toward their weapons.
Ray raised an eyebrow. “…Huh.”
Nick sighed. ‘Of course.’
Jantzen hadn’t come back.
And they didn’t encounter anybody else in the dungeon, even though others had supposedly gone in before them.
The dungeon only closed after everybody inside had exited, so everyone else had either snuck past them somehow or…
Or everyone else was dead.
Since they didn’t see any human corpses after finding the expedition guard, the rest were either buried with the goblin bones, or they disappeared in some other manner.
Either way, the dungeon had taken them.
Nick barely took three steps toward the outpost before the guards moved.
“Hold it!”
The lead guard, a man with sharp, narrow eyes and a badge marking him as a senior officer strode toward them with stiff urgency. His gloved hand rested on the pommel of his sword, not drawn—but not at ease, either.
Behind him, a dozen others shifted into a loose perimeter, forming a quiet blockade between them and the outpost proper. The subtle tension in their postures was enough to confirm it: they were on edge.
Nick slowed his pace, coming to a stop. He met the officer’s gaze and waited.
Ray, of course, did not.
She hefted her baseball bat onto her shoulder and tilted her head. “What, no warm welcome?”
The officer studied her for a moment, his gaze wandering to the baseball bat, a weapon that he wouldn’t recognize.
“You’re the only ones who returned from the dungeon today,” he said, voice flat. “The duke’s son, Jantzen Rovar, was seen entering with you. Explain.”
Nick crossed his arms. “He died. I’m sure you’ll see him in the cathedral later.”
A ripple of movement ran through the gathered guards. Their expressions hardened.
The officer exhaled slowly, his expression unreadable. “You’re sure he’s dead?”
Nick met his gaze. “We saw it happen.”
The officer’s lips pressed into a thin line. “I see.” A pause. “And the others?”
Nick shrugged. “We only saw one guard for an expedition group. There weren’t any others, as far as I know.”
The silence that followed was heavy. The other guards exchanged glances.
The officer’s gaze roamed over their group, studying them. “You’re saying that an entire expedition with dozens of guards was wiped out, in addition to three other adventuring parties that entered before you, and the duke’s son—and yet, here you are.” His tone remained neutral, but the implication was clear.
Nick didn’t give him the satisfaction of reacting. “That’s how it is.”
The officer’s fingers drummed against his belt. “That’s a hell of a thing.”
He wasn’t outright accusing them of anything—not yet. But he wanted answers. A reason. He was fishing for any information that would give him an excuse to detain them.
Nick pulled Jantzen’s adventurer license from his pocket. “Here. Proof.”
The officer took a step forward, hesitated, then reached out to take the license. His brows furrowed as he examined it. The mana imprint matched. It was authentic.
“How did he die?”
“We encountered a mysterious entity inside the dungeon. During the encounter, he got crushed by a heavy object and then burnt to death.”
The officer glanced toward one of his men, who nodded subtly.
“Not a single lie so far…” the officer muttered. “But we need more than that. What was this ‘entity’ you encountered? Was it a monster? Did it have an affiliation?”
Nick shook his head. “I can’t say for sure what it was.” He let his voice drop slightly. “It was something powerful, though. Something old. It seemed like the embodiment of darkness itself, and we barely survived our encounter with it.”
“…”
The officer didn’t press immediately—instead, he studied them with a new consideration. A flicker of wariness crossed his face.
“If it was so dangerous, how did you survive…?”
Ray noted the shift in the conversation and began idly twirling her baseball bat, watching the way the officer’s eyes glanced toward it every time it passed through the air.
Then—
She dropped it.
BOOM.
The ground shook. A deep, echoing thud reverberated through the outpost. Dust kicked up from the impact, and a deep, fist-sized crack appeared from the exact spot the bat landed.
The tension in the air spiked.
One of the younger guards paled, staring at the crack in the ground.
“Gods,” he muttered.
Another elbowed him sharply. “Shut up.”
Ray blinked. Then smirked. “Huh. Maybe I should stop twirling this…”
She bent down to picked the bat back up and immediately started twirling it again.
“I’ll change my question,” the officer said. “Did you defeat the monster?”
“We repelled it,” Nick answered. “It’s probably still alive, somewhere.”
The officer’s gaze lingered on the newly cracked earth, then back to Nick. “I need to report this.” He shot a look to one of his lieutenants. “Get a message back to the city.”
The man nodded sharply and ran off.
Then the officer turned back to them. “By order of Duke Jantzen, you are summoned for further questioning. You will not refuse.”
Nick expected as much. He raised an eyebrow. “Can we at least stop by our inn first? I’d rather not meet the duke covered in goblin blood.”
“Fine,” the officer nodded. “But you’ll be escorted.”
Nick smiled. “Wouldn’t have it any other way.”
As the guards began to reorganize, Nick let out a slow breath.
‘Step one: done.’
***
The streets of Cairel were never truly quiet, even in the late afternoon. Merchants called out their wares, workers bustled between shops, and adventurers loitered near taverns, trading stories over drinks. But as Nick and Ray made their way through the lower district, their presence—and more importantly, their escort—turned heads.
A formation of armored guards flanked them, their rigid posture and disciplined strides commanding attention. Conversations quieted as the group passed. Onlookers whispered behind hands, pulling back against storefronts and market stalls to clear a path.
Nick could hear snippets of hushed murmurs.
“Those guards are from the outpost, right?”
“Gods, what did they do?”
“Aren’t they the ones who beat Sebastian?”
He ignored them, focusing his thoughts on navigating the ordeal in front of them.
Ray, however, was clearly enjoying the attention. She strode forward with her usual lazy confidence, spinning the baseball bat in one hand like a street performer twirling a cane. Occasionally, she caught a guard glancing at it and grinned as she pretended to almost drop it in their direction.
None of the guards from the escort said a single word, but their expressions ranged from unreadable to mildly suspicious. A few of them eyed Ray’s antics with visible wariness.
Finally, they reached The Copper Flask.
The moment they stepped through the door, the tension lifted slightly. The escort remained outside, only two guards stepping inside the entrance while several others circled the building to cover every entrance and exit.
The warmth of the inn’s lantern-lit common room was a stark contrast to the cool, tense air outside. The scent of roasting meat and fresh bread replaced the dust and sweat of the streets.
Behind the counter, Tabby was wiping down a wooden mug, her sharp brown eyes scanning the new arrivals. Beside her, Delia was stacking plates, though she immediately stopped when she saw the armored escort filing in behind them.
Tabby sighed loudly, setting the mug down. “Nick, darling. Please tell me it’s not as bad as it looks.”
He gave her a tired smile. “Depends. You got any beer? Or is this more of a vodka situation?”
She snorted. “Funny.”
Ray strode past the counter, giving Delia a casual wave. “You keeping out of trouble?”
Delia pinched her nose. “You smell weird.”
Ray paused and sniffed herself. “…Oh. Yeah, mostly goblin, I think.” She grinned. “Definitely some of my blood in the mix, though.”
Delia blinked in shock, her face turning white. “Wha… your blood?” She started to panic, waving her hands ambiguously. “Are you okay? Do you need medicine? I can get a rag…”
Ray giggled and ruffled her hair in response. “Don’t worry about it.”
Tabby sighed, eyeing the guards lingering by the entrance. “So. What’s going on?”
Nick shrugged. “We’re under summons. The duke wants to talk.”
The innkeeper’s gaze sharpened slightly, but she didn’t pry. Instead, she jerked her chin toward the stairs. “You got five minutes before these guards need to scram. You’re hurting a poor old lady’s business right now.”
He laughed. “We’ll be in and out.”
Nick climbed the stairs at a steady pace, the wooden boards creaking softly beneath his boots. Behind him, Ray trailed lazily, still twirling the baseball bat. The guards remained stationed by the entrance, their silent presence lingering in the back of his mind.
He pushed open the door to his rented room, stepped inside, and closed it behind them. The instant the door shut, he let out a quiet breath.
The moment of privacy was fleeting.
Without missing a beat, he summoned his infinite wardrobe, positioning it so that it would appear directly on the floor to reduce the noise.
It materialized with a familiar hum, solid and unwavering, its presence warping the air around it. The moment it appeared, he was already moving—pulling the doors open.
Lexi tumbled out first, landing lightly on her feet, her ears twitching as she adjusted to the space outside.
A half-second later, his second avatar stepped out.
It was a strange feeling, experiencing it from two perspectives at once. His usual self stood in front of the wardrobe, watching—while his other self stretched, rolling his shoulders as if shaking off the stiffness of being stored away.
The weird part wasn’t the physical movement. He could feel his breath, his heartbeat, the subtle shift in balance—all duplicated. The sensation was both perfectly natural and deeply unsettling.
Lexi sniffed, her tail flicking once before curling loosely behind her. “That was… strange,” she hesitated, brows furrowing. “It’s really stuffy in there.”
Nick smirked. “Too cramped?”
Her nose scrunched up. “Not that. It was like being… somewhere, but also nowhere? I could move around in the wardrobe, but there was this sense that there was nothing else but the wardrobe.”
Nick’s other avatar grinned as he adjusted his sleeves. “I know. I was in there, too.”
Lexi stared at him. “…This is still weird.”
Ray, sitting casually on the edge of the bed, kicked her feet up and yawned. “I think you’re focusing on the wrong thing. Isn’t this, like, the coolest thing ever? Nick can sneak whoever he wants into the city.”
Nick chuckled. “True, but that’s only the beginning of what I can do with this.”
Ray nodded sagely. “I bet you could hide a lot of corpses in there.
Lexi’s entire body stiffened. “…What?”
Nick shot Ray a flat look. “Sure, but did you have to go there?”
She grinned. “No, but I wanted to.”
Lexi grimaced. “Why would you want to!?”
Ray waved a hand. “Relax. It’s not like I’ve actually done it. Yet.”
Lexi took a step away from her.
Nick sighed. “We’re getting off-track.”
He stepped inside the wardrobe, running his fingers along the neatly hung suits. Black, charcoal grey, navy blue, light grey, cherry red—tailored pieces from his previous world. An arrangement of ties rested beside them.
A slight smirk tugged at his lips. When he bought these suits before, he never pictured himself wearing them to a meeting with a duke in a fantasy world.
He pulled a charcoal grey suit from the rack, holding it up against himself. A sharp cut, understated yet professional. Enough to blend in without looking unremarkable. He set it aside and reached for a deep blue tie with faint silver threading, subtle enough to avoid looking flashy but still hold presence.
Behind him, Ray whistled. “Fancy.”
He didn’t turn around. “You should pick something formal, too.”
“You have stuff for me in there?”
He pointed toward a corner of the wardrobe. “Over there.”
Ray wandered over, eyes scanning the selection. “Were you some kind of noble? There’s a lot of fancy stuff in here.”
He smiled. “It’s a long story.”
While he waited for Ray to change, Nick stood in front of the wardrobe’s full-length mirror, rolling his shoulders as the suit settled over him. The fabric sat effortlessly against his frame, fitting perfectly thanks to the wardrobe’s enchantments. He adjusted the blue tie, tightening the knot until it rested just right against his collar.
He let out a slow breath.
This felt… familiar.
The preparation.
The moment before stepping into enemy territory.
The last breath before stepping into a room where every word, every action, every glance would be judged.
It was the same feeling he had before attending negotiations back on Earth.
His reflection stared back at him.
There was no turning back. If he wanted to play the game, he had to play it well.
This wasn’t just about clearing suspicion anymore. It was about gathering information, understanding the power players, and establishing himself as a presence in this world.
The duke would want answers. So would any other important figure in attendance.
And Nick?
He wanted leverage.
Outside the wardrobe, Ray had scrubbed off the worst of the grime and finished securing the last few clasps of her borrowed outfit—a fitted black dress with sleeves that ended just past the shoulder. She stretched, cracking her neck.
Nick’s fingers paused for a fraction of a second as he adjusted his tie. The dress was a familiar one. A quiet weight settled in his chest, the kind that never quite went away.
Ray had no idea, of course.
She walked up beside him and turned toward the mirror, tilting her head as she examined herself.
“I feel like a noble’s bodyguard,” she mused.
Nick shook off the moment. He gave his tie one last sharp tug before turning to her. “You basically are.”
Ray grinned. “Guess that makes you the noble.”
He scoffed. “God forbid.”
She snickered while retrieving her baseball bat and hanging it over her shoulder. “You ready for this?”
He reached out and snatched the bat from her hands and tossed it into a corner of the wardrobe. “You’re not taking a baseball bat into a formal setting.”
She stared at the bat where it landed. Then she slowly turned back to Nick, mouth opening slightly in pure, unfiltered betrayal.
“Excuse me?”
He crossed his arms. “You heard me.”
She placed a hand over her chest, offended. “You’re taking away my only weapon?”
He rolled his eyes. “As if. I’m only slightly reducing the amount of chaos that you can cause.”
She gasped. “I would never!”
He raised an eyebrow.
She dropped her gaze and shuffled her feet. “Maybe a little…” she pouted. “But it’s not illegal, so who cares?”
He sighed. “No baseball bats in formal settings.”
Ray muttered something under her breath about ‘oppression’, but after a few seconds of sulking, she stomped a few steps away and then paused.
Her eyes landed on a sleek black cane resting next to a stack of old, poor-quality cosplay weapons.
She grabbed the cane and gave it an experimental twirl.
Nick pinched the bridge of his nose. “Ray.”
She held up a finger. “Wait. This is different.” She rested her weight on it, nodding in approval. “See? It’s classy. This is what sophisticated folks use to beat the shit out of people.”
Nick sighed. “Fine. Just—keep it under control.”
Ray beamed. “Always.”
He shook his head as he led the way out of the wardrobe, unsummoning it once they were all outside.
“We’re probably long past five minutes at this point. Let’s get out of here.”
He gave one last glance around the room, his gaze landing on his second avatar and Lexi. They stood near the window, comfortably hidden in the shadowed corner of the room. Lexi’s ears twitched, her tail curling as she adjusted her stance.
“Stay put,” Nick instructed. “Don’t draw attention. If anything unexpected happens, don’t get involved—just wait for my signal.”
Lexi’s ears flicked in hesitant agreement. “We’ll until the guards are gone.”
He gave a short nod. That was enough. He would be with Lexi with his second avatar, so it wasn’t like he was actually leaving her to fend for herself or anything.
He turned toward the door, adjusting his cuffs as he reached for the handle. “Let’s not keep the duke waiting.”
With that, he pulled the door open and stepped out, Ray following at his side.
The guards at the entrance straightened as they emerged. Without a word, they reformed their escort and led them down the hall, boots clicking sharply against the wooden floor.
Inside the room, Lexi idly traced the links of her chains. She glanced toward Nick’s second avatar, who leaned against the wall with an easy smirk.
“Are you nervous?”
Nick shrugged. “Nah. If anything, I feel bad for the poor bastards who get in our way.”
She hesitated, then nodded.
Outside, the steady rhythm of marching footsteps faded into the distance.
They were alone.
All they had to do now was wait for the right moment.
Project Knightfall 