Chapter 192: All is Revealed

He was proud to say that this was not the first time he had been teleported before, but he could honestly say that this was a new feeling for him. It was like being tilted upside down and getting swung by his feet like the blades of a helicopter.

However, when he opened his eyes he felt fine. It was like vertigo was suddenly gone.

He still felt the person’s hand tucked tightly into his and turned to see who was still grabbing his hand. And he was slightly shocked to see who it was. A pair of sparkling rainbow eyes that had hints of panic stared up at him.

Huh, not who I thought it would be, he thought to himself. He had originally believed that it was either Tia or Nessa, perhaps even a nervous Polux who had grabbed ahold of his hand. He didn’t expect to see Reinera there holding his hand.

Once they met gazes, she quickly removed her hand from his. “I’m sorry, I just…” She trailed off as if she didn’t know what to say.

For the moment, Julius ignored her apology and took a look around. The cavern was replaced with a narrow corridor, something that he had previously been expecting when they entered the rift. It was still dim and the only lighting was from the small number of lanterns hanging from the walls.

Where the hell are we?

However, there was a much larger issue. Unlike the cavern, when he sent out a pulse of [Spatial Perception] he ended up detecting several monsters far down the hallway. The walls were still blocking most of his skill, but he could still sense around the nearby corners.

When he noticed that the princess who was with him was about to speak again, he held up his hand and covered her mouth. He felt her freeze when he touched her, but she didn’t try to pull away, which was weird. He honestly thought that a princess would hate being touched by a stranger like him.

He took the time to take a look at the person who he was seemingly stuck with. Her brilliant silverish-white hair was a stark contrast to the dark and dreary stone walls around them. Her eyes were literally glowing in the dark as well.

She doesn’t exactly blend in, does she?

Eventually, she carefully pulled his hand away from her mouth. “What? Do you sense something?” she asked him in a quiet whisper.

He noticed that she hadn’t let go of his hand right away and was still holding it in her hand. He gave it a pointed look and she dropped it quickly after she realized what she was doing, her blush was subtle in the darkness, but he could still see it.

“At least six monsters ahead,” he told her before sending out more pulses, trying to penetrate the walls of the labyrinth.

Julius was feeling very confused at the moment. He had so many questions.

He had no idea why there was a teleportation circle in the middle of the rift. He didn’t even know if they were still in the same rift. That teleportation had taken them here, but for what purpose?

Was it an attempt on the princess’s life? That seemed the most plausible answer, but why go through all of these complications? If they managed to set up a teleportation circle wouldn’t they be able to just kill her directly instead?

Or perhaps they were hoping to separate the princess from the professor and the others, hoping that the monsters would kill her for them.

It was a very odd predicament, one that he wanted nothing more than to ask the girl next to him about.

He quietly walked down the hallway, away from the group of monsters he sensed. He was assuming that this was still a labyrinth type, considering their current environment. That meant that there should be multiple ways to the exit.

When he didn’t sense anything with his perception skill, he finally turned to the princess.

“Do you know what is happening here?” He asked her bluntly.

She winced and gave him a guilty look. “I have a suspicion,” she admitted.

He gave her a blank look. “Well, whenever you want to let me in the know, I am listening.”

She started to pick at her fingers anxiously, something he noted as familiar.

“This might have been an assassination attempt on me,” she said carefully.

“I guessed that might have been the case, but where I am having a hard time understanding the reason for all of this,” he said while waving at their predicament.

She nodded gravely. “I’m guessing that whoever wants me dead can’t make it so obvious. That’s the reason for the teleportation circle. It’s not exactly a new way to kill a noble before. There have been similar cases when they want to make it look like an accident or to shift the blame, they use these kinds of methods to do so,” she explained with a frown.

Julius pinched his nose. “Why not just kill everyone immediately instead? That could still look like an accident.”

She shook her head. “Not with Professor Rowe there with us. If something was able to kill a Tier 4 in a Tier 2 rift, it would be too suspicious.”

“And this isn’t?” He asked doubtfully.

“This way there are more options to explain what went wrong. A random teleportation circle in a labyrinth is not unheard of, it is actually a common trap at the higher tiered rifts. While it shouldn’t be in a rift that Goldencrest controls, it can be chalked up as a mistake on behalf of the school. And if I were to die, then who’s to say that I didn’t die in the transport?” She said bitterly.

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“But we didn’t,” Julius pointed out, like it wasn’t obvious.

“No, but I assume whoever planned this expected that. If I die to the monsters in here, then who’s to know any different?”

“Are you saying that the others are probably okay?” Julius asked, a little concern for his team seeping into his voice.

“Oh, it is highly likely that they were transported out of the rift and are safe and sound. You can’t exactly kill over half a dozen prominent scions and risk offending their families.”

“And yet it’s okay to kill you?” Julius asked.

“I’m a princess with a target on my back. It certainly will not come as a surprise, it’s just a part of the game. People will know it’s an assassination, but if there is no hard evidence, nobody can really do anything about it,” she said sadly.