"Once we control the mansion and smash whatever is making that barrier there's nowhere they can hide to." The ember of the lantern flickered on crimson eyes, gazing down on the simple map as if trying to peer within the mansion just from the piece of parchment. "Magical scrying will flush them out soon enough. But regardless, there's merit in preventing them from wasting our time. And to that end..."

A small bronze coin was added to the map, what design visible between old bloodstain and green oxidation was foreign to Kindeance. It represented the third token on the frontal assault team, Yvonne flashing a grin that was more teeth and snarl than anything resembling a smile.

"I'm sure she remembers who castrated her beloved pet, yeah? Anyone got a bardiche I could borrow?"

"Gimmie muh bug back Rosie.." drawled Lily. She and her sister had stopped staring at Evan when he ceased his evening wash ritual, disappointed that the pants never came off. Now their attention was drawn toward the group assignments.

"Uh.. ok lil.." came the confused response, as she fumbled with it off her arm, then handed it back. "What ya gunna?.."

"Evr'eh buddeh else got a thingm'abob tuh shows emselves on at little slab o' hide 'cepts us. Uh's gunna fix 'at." She said rather determinedly, as she slipped it back over her head. The odd bubble formed around her again almost immediately.

"Don' hurt ya'self lil... we gots tuh has all we gots fer dis.."

"Dun' remin' meh.."

Lily scrabbled in the moonlight, selecting two different stones to work with, then unfolded her tool roll, and quickly set to work. Rose could see magic being subtly employed as the rocks got scratched, scraped, chiselled and shaped rather hastily into two more-or-less bear shaped figurines making obscene gestures, as the bubble finally collapsed. Rose couldnt help but chuckle.

"Why don' we tells em how we realleh feels, hmm?" She askeed her sister cheekily.

"Dun think they coulds handles it!" She joked back. "Dis'll has tuh do." She once more removed the pendant and handed it back to her sister. "Gunna has ta figure out hows tuh fill dis darn thang now Rosie, its run ou'."

Rose took it and wrapped it back around her arm and rolled her eyes as her sister scampered up to the knot of people by the map, and dropped the two offensive tokens in the sneaking infiltration team.

"At bitch aint gittin' away!" She barked, then sauntered back to her spot again.

"Hope ya know what ya doin'.."
"Oh, uh does Rosie, She goin DAOWN."

After her dinner, she rested her mess kit on the ground. She leaned to Erwin's shoulder.

"We must sleep well after this since we depart at zero four hundred hours the next day." Louise said only the both two can hear her voice.

"Then let's sleep love." he whispered quietly as he smiled at her, his hand touching her cheek as he smiled a bit, "sometime in the morning, alright love... just let's go to sleep."

Louise remained herself leaned on Erwin's shoulder as the two kept listening on briefing.

There were several things that had been decided, and some more would have to wait for tomorrow.

There were no objections voiced, nor any contention being brought up. Jazdia felt satisfied enough with the conclusion but would still keep her ears open. Some of them hadn't voiced their opinion about the plan, and in a group with no established chain of command, disagreement could happen at unexpected times.

But the time waits for nobody. The squire lovebirds were already resting on each other's arms. The bear twins were busy talking with each other. And Yvonne Rosenving, after voicing her preference for tomorrow's assault retreated back to her spot after no one answered her call for a polearm to borrow.

Everyone else seemed to be absorbed with their own thought. Varya declared his choice, but it seemed as if he was talking to himself. Either because no one found any fault in his already sensible decision, or simply out of reluctance to make a small talk. For Jazdia though, she would rather do something to combat the coldness of night air.

There were plenty of fallen branches around, and she gathered them in the middle of their encampment. With that arranged and her bedroll already unrolled, Jazdia stood up, a small fire danced on her finger and she flicked it away to fall into the middle of the pile, igniting the branches alight and steadily.

Sitting now in front of the campfire, the elf opened her satchel back, using it as a temporal workbench as she tinkered with her pocket watch. Its needles stopped at 9:10 o'clock.

The air turns a little colder, as Evan approached the two bears Lily and Rose, as they were nearest to him and still awake.
"Hello. What is a bardiche?" Straight to the point. The bears didn't seem to mind.
"Sorreh han'some! No idear!"
"Be'er try da shor' ladeh o'er yonder-- bu' it soun' like sumthin' sharp 'n nasteh!" Rose pointed towards the exact woman wearing red armor, who wanted to borrow a bardiche.
Of course. Evan should've just asked her directly. She'd know the exact item she wants to borrow.
"Thank you." Evan nods and leaves.
"Anuh time, sugar!"
"Ya always welcome!" Rose giggles.
Evan merely thought, such friendly bears.

On the way, he noticed Jazdia by the fire. The unusually long-eared woman tinkered with a device he was unfamilar with. It looked complicated.
He elected not to disturb.

Evan then approached the woman in red armor. Something sharp and nasty... Evan could probably make that. He is familiar with several basic weapons. It shouldn't be a problem.
"Hello. What is a bardiche?" He asked the same exact question.

"Huh?" It was the pale man that asked the unusually philosophical question... or perhaps it was just curiosity. He certainly looked young enough to have no experience in the matter. But anyway, he was asking about bardiches? Yvonne barked out a harsh laugh, grinning at the unusual addition to their merry little murder troupe.

Where did Freddy pull out all these colorful individuals from?

"Ah, I didn't actually need to borrow one! It's just a reminder of the last encounter with our dear old Stritzel. But to answer your question, it's a type of poleaxe with long but narrow... blade?" Her words trailed into a moment of confusion as the man started shaping his ice, a pale bluish white construct dully reflecting the moonlight. It first took the shape of a standard poleaxe, but as she spoke the blade lengthened and narrowed accordingly. Huh, that's interesting. "Even longer, about twice as long as that. Without the speartip or back-blade. The bottom of the bearding connects back to the handle to facilitate better heft just by shifting the grip. Yeah, juuust like that."

Yvonne whistled as he passed the finished construct to her, the ice surprisingly... neutral. Much closer to room temperature than what she expected of a block of ice. The balance was different from regular polearm on account of the entire thing comprised of the same material, feeling more like a wooden weapon, but the edge was razor-sharp. As for the durability, she tapped into a small amount of her inner strength before trying to bend the pole.

No give at all. Interesting...

"Do you mind if I knock it around a bit?" She asked, the man shaking his head in acquiescence. Her grin wider, Yvonne knelt on the ground with the ice weapon before her as she took out her dagger and strike it at the flat of the axehead.

First, with the pointed end. A soft clink echoed before the daggerpoint scraped sideways, barely leaving any mark in the process. Flipping the weapon, she tried a pommel strike only to get a dull thunk for her trouble. Another whistled escaped as she stood back up, patting some dirt off her knee before sheathing the dagger back.

"Awesome! Wouldn't need to worry about replacement weapons with you around, yeah?" No one had introduced their strength and weakness, so it's a nice discovery to find out that one of the newcomers had a fun magic to play around. There's so many applications she could think of... "I'll be sure to make a good use of it tomorrow. Thanks, bud!"

All she got in reply was a mild nod before the man departed, but she chalked it to his personality being quiet. It certainly suited his appearance, as generalizing as it were. Still, she doubt Frosty would mind the opinion at all.

Moving a bit away, Yvonne spend a couple minutes getting used to the weapon's reach and weight before eventually getting ready to call it a day.

Time passed, and everyone who felt they needed to sleep finally got their rest.

The hands on her clock were clicking toward 2:30 when Jazdia awoke. The fire was still burning brightly, and although she felt refreshed and adequately charged, it would still take some minutes to fully gather her wit. After that, all was simple; after having some bites of waybread and steaming tea in a tankard, she was ready to depart.

Rechecking the map, she gave the party some time to wake up on their own. During the wait, she sorted four arrows from her quiver and channeled her magic into them. All four were the explosive kinds, with the outer coating slightly harder than usual so it could withstand reckless handling.

Ten minutes passed, and it was apparent that not everyone seemed to possess a similar level of discipline. Jazdia felt it was too rude to rouse them up one by one, and she also felt reluctant to ask Solomon or Veronica to do the deed.

"Good morning, Baron Evan. Already awake I assume?" Jazdia tried to not forget the pleasantries, smiles, and greets, but time was a precious commodity she couldn't help but be curt. "We are ten minutes behind our schedule, and I would like you to command your animal to give them a good howl.

The man only gave her a nod, but behind such a small gesture, he apparently was quite creative with his command. All Three of his canine companions gathered, and like a choir group, they started singing with unusual and off-pitch howlings that reverberated in the early morning's chilly air.

After some grunts and rude awakenings laced with displeased curses, most everyone else followed suit with their preparations not long after. Weapons, equipment, and horses are readied. The plan was set and they started riding to the north.



It was 4.01 AM when they arrived at the outskirts area of Stritzel's Manor.

Jazdia asked Veronica to come with her before walking toward the northernmost tree near their parking spot. Activating her eyes once revealed the bluish veil protecting the area ahead of them from any magical spycraft, and carefully she stretched her hand, feeling the magical current. Thankfully it was a passive magical jammer designed only to distort.

The second time she activated her eyes, the manor and its surroundings finally came into view. It was a two-story building, and gloomy was probably the perfect word to describe it.

Its front was on the south, straight facing the gates. The roof, while seemingly in a good condition was rather squalid, with moss hanging by its gutter and old branches strews about on its old and stained rooftails. In the middle of the roof, there was a spire enclosed only by wooden railings on its four sides.

Below, several windows showed lights behind their dusty curtain, a small ray of hope despite being surrounded by dilapidated walls that already had their plastering chipped off here and there. In the middle of the building, a wooden door sealed the manor shut from the outside world. There was a path leading to west-side of the building, and there, she saw an entrance almost as large as the inner gate itself, leading somewhere underground.

Surrounding the manor was two fortifications in the form of outer and inner wall. The outer wall was a two-meter wide, five-meter tall masonry work with parapets on both sides that seemed to have seen better days but was still a solid obstacle nonetheless, and the inner one was a pasalide made of decorated metals and brick. Both walls had gates made of irons and were quite sturdy for a dilapidated dwelling.

"The opposition seemed minimal. I only saw four patrols near the inner gate, while in the outer courtyard, there are six more thugs congregating around some sort of a camping spot."

Jazdia beckoned Veronica to walk a bit ahead of her. "I can't see anything more than what's inside their inner courtyard. Not in this distance at least. But I tell you, the veil is already behind us, and if you try to scry the entire building from here, your vision will not be impeded. Still, if Jonas Delving is really here, there is still a risk that your attempt could alert him. He might not be able to pinpoint our location that way, no, that's not how that kind of sense worked. Not without specialized talent or training. Anyway, it's your call."

Location: Outside Stritzel's Estate, Western Kindeance.

---

The night watch was thankfully uneventful. If asked, Veronica did not have much to say about it, and that suited her perfectly fine. "Nothing" was, after all, what any night guard ideally would rather have to report. Jazdia was amongst the first of the early risers, not that Veronica had expected any less, and one chorus of howls from a recruited Evan's warg pack later, the rest of the group was roused if that hadn't already.

Similarly uneventfully, the journey to Stritzel's manor passed without incident, much to her relief. Veronica kept watch as best she could in transit, her darkvision sufficient to scan the early morning murk, the sun's light still hours distant, but her concern seemed largely for nought, which was for the best really.

---

Upon arrival, Veronica followed Jazdia a small way ahead of the group to test the elf's theory, and to the pale woman's pleasant surprise... it was exactly as she said. Stepping through the veil's boundaries, Veronica allowed her protective magic to fall away, as her Sight bloomed back into full functionality. She briefly cast her Sight towards the outer wall, nodding at the far too close loom she got at the old stonework, before letting it fade away.

She considered Jazdia's words carefully and nodded. "There's still the risk Jonas has the expertise to detect me, yes, but now that we have our full strength prepared, he will have little time to react even if he does." A small chuckled escaped her lips. "The time for stealth is largely past us, it seems. Now is the time for shock and awe, speed and brutality. I suppose I'm just putting off the inevitable, but I've always been a bit of a perfectionist at heart."

Veronica closed her eyes, and her Sight came alive.

In moments, her perspective had soared high above, a bird's eye view that was still within the scrying veil's boundaries. She idly noted the same guard positions Jazdia had, her mind whirling with considerations of her own approach.

The western tree line would suffice for her purposes. It wasn't as close as she'd have liked, but it was as good as she was going to get. Tracing the path to her goal swiftly, she noted that the outer walls had no guards patrolling atop them. It was something she'd seen in her first, physical pass through, but double-checking never hurt, not if there was the slightest possibility they'd mixed things up. Regardless, Jazdia's intuition was on point; the defender's numbers were thin, too thin to properly man their most effective barrier. Instead, they had four patrols moving about behind the wooden palisade that comprised the inner wall.

Veronica narrated her own observations aloud as she went, ensuring Jazdia was on the same page. "The basement entrance leads to a large, standard basement area. This area contains a corridor leading to an underground facility. Following through these corridors..." Her brow pinched, a frown spreading across her lips. "I've found Cedar. He's in a cell, cuffed, unconscious. He looks... thin. This can't have been good for his health; I doubt they've been feeding him well enough or even keeping him lucid enough to feed himself. The basement level's defenses are minimal, only five guards... and a redheaded woman in another cell. There's..." Veronica's brows rose high towards her hairline. "-another bear here. He's huge, bigger than Cedar. He's sitting on a bunk, and the redhaired woman is administering something on one of his arms. Might be an ally; could be a fellow prisoner."

She waited for a while longer, watching, but there didn't seem to be much else she could glean right now, not while time was of the essence. She turned her sight back from the basement, heading for the upper levels.

"The manor's population seems to be about the same as when I last saw it, largely abandoned. However, Stritzel is sleeping in a room on the second floor, and there are five thugs standing motionless in another." Odd, but moving on. "A large room on the first floor appears to have been fashioned as a barracks for Delving's Usuals. Although..." She cast her Sight around swiftly, yet... "Jonas Delving is nowhere to be seen." Troublesome, but it didn't take Veronica long to consider the reason. "I'll bet he has an extra, personal layer of scrying protection on himself, which means he might as well be invisible to our magic; yet, if intelligence is to be believed, he must still be here somewhere."

Veronica opened her eyes, her Sight fading away, as she glanced at Jazdia. "Keep an eye out. The preexisting plan should still work... hopefully. I could go as far as to inspect the other people here until I find someone talking to something only they can see, but if we haven't already alerted Delving to our presence, I'd rather not push our luck."

Cracking her knuckles, Veronica grinned, crimson eyes glinting under the pale moonlight. "Lets finalize the teams and get this party started."

One after another, warstaves made of hardened ice emerged from Evan's lap as he kneel-sat amidst the eight other people in camp. Nothing sharp protruding at any part of the warstaves. Looks like he's content to only bruise and debilitate their opponents.
In total he made five warstaves, and they're all for himself unless someone asks. Three of them latched onto the back of Evan's longcoat, and he placed the other two on the ground beside himself.

The wargs eyed the scenery, looking for spots to lay low and be close enough just in case someone needed to be fetched out of battle, but there's a problem dawning upon Evan's mind right now as he looked at these people.
He didn't know a single one of their names. It'd be a problem if his wargs couldn't identify who's who.

Reluctantly, he raised a hand ✋ to attract their attention. Just this first step alone was already daunting, but he had to push on. A partial gap in his mouth, a moment of hesitation, before he spoke.
"Hello. I am Evan."

On the arrival nearby the Traitor's Manor. Louise is on their waiting area behind the tree line. She is wearing her armor set that isn't reflective to avoid getting spot, protected herself against physical harm. Along with it, was her coat and scarf. She was armed with musket. Her shield was attached on the back and her sword is unsheathed on the scabbard that attached on her waist. Watching their six on crouching and ready aim, waiting for the order to assault.

No, she isn't the type of shoot first then ask later.

"Yvonne." Said the mercenary back to the pale man. She had the travelling cloak on, but underneath she's dressed for war with her full set of equipment and the pale bardiche at hand. Not quite the most subtle weapon, but turned out the defense was even sloppier than she expected. What's the point of walls if there's no one to man it? This was beyond even skeleton crew, more like a single fingerbone crew. Three men with a sturdy tree limb as long as the wall was tall will bypass it within half a minute without anyone to stop them.

"Assault team get through the walls and start the killing as loud as we can, yeah? Simple enough." Simple plan was the best plan. There's no need to overcomplicate stuff. And Yvonne knew exactly how to be loud.

"Lileh"

"Rose"

The twins smiled briefly, then looked around.

"Pleased tuh meet ya han'some bu' we gots work tuh do--"
"--Yup. Gotta save our idji't brudder naow... Buh come sees us la'er, hmm?"

They turned to the short lady, apparently named 'Yvonne'. Well, that's another name out of the bag.

"Pleased tuh meet yous too miss..." Lily stammered over the vowel-consonant slur that started the name, before finally finishing with the incorrect, but probably close enough "..Yonnie." Ursine mouths were not made the same as human ones.

"Hope we get all da rest'ya names la'er-- If'n yous bashin' in da door, whe'h we sneakin' in at?"

Jazdia and Veronica returned back to the group, ready to finalize the plan.

"Alright, Veronica here will lead the infiltration team," said Jazdia. Her gaze first fell on the blue elf.

"Varya, that team will need a reliable frontline, and ranger so you go with her. You will also need Doc Solomon and his expertise for this rescue mission. The Twins, you two are coming with them as well. Help them find your brother."

Returning to Veronica, she flipped open her pocket watch and asked the pale woman to do the same with her metal compass. "I will monitor your approach from the courtyard. We may have the power to see through obstacles, but it is dangerous to be entirely dependent on it. Check your corners and tread lightly at any crossroad. I strongly suggest the western wall be your insertion point."

Turning to Varya, she gave the elven man three of her explosive arrows. "Use them to defeat any insurmountable obstacle. Or to give your enemy a nasty death if you feel so inclined." Winking, she added. "Or consult with your team before use. These are strategic ammunitions, so it is wise to use them sparingly."

Varya Chandrar

Varya didn't like attacking during the dark of night, save for the most extraordinary of circumstances. He thought it was cowardly and underhanded to attack the enemy while they slept. Ideally all fighting would start at sun rise and and end at sun set, but these were not ideal circumstances. Varya had conducted night attacks before at the behest of former employers, much to his chagrin. Now was not the time to complain or debate the proper way to wage war, not with Cedar's life on the line and time being of the essence. While he can only hope this won't be a trend, he knew sometimes concessions had to be made, and this was one such occasion.

Varya donned his usual gear, Crescent Bow, his war-hammer and shield, his butterfly swords, and his gambeson padded armor. He decided to leave behind his chain mail, even though he could apply leather straps to minimize their rustling, speed and subtlety were needed more than anything, and nothing could be left to chance. He tucked his shoes into his belt, electing to walk barefoot, feeling the earth beneath him. If he was to perish in battle, he wanted to be touching the Earth Mother. Upon arriving just outside the manor proper, Varya sat in a corner, cast his Earthing spell and quietly prayed to The Great Spirit. "Dear Merciful Lord, please protect Cedar and deliver him from his torment. Protect and guide Thernous as he goes forth to deliver peace across the land. Give us the strength to fight on the side of righteousness. Blessed be your Holy Name, and Thy Will be Done." With his prayers done he looked towards Jazdia and Veronica for the plan.

Then Evan raised his hand and introduced himself to everyone. "Hello. I am Evan." Again with the odd timing, but there was something endearing about this dorky human man and his earnest attempt to make a statement. Varya smiled ever so slightly, taking humor as a reprieve from a very tense atmosphere, and spoke in a more cordial and warmer tone than he had shown before. "Hello Evan, I am Varya Chandrar of Varenheim."

Jazdia and Vernoica returned, and Jazdia spoke. "Alright, Veronica here will lead the infiltration team," It was refreshing to know there was a plan and an established chain of command, as Varya loved order. Jazdia then turned to address him specifically. "Varya, that team will need a reliable frontline, and ranger so you go with her. You will also need Doc Solomon and his expertise for this rescue mission. The Twins, you two are coming with them as well. Help them find your brother." She then gave him unusual arrows that pulsed with power.
"Use them to defeat any insurmountable obstacle. Or to give your enemy a nasty death if you feel so inclined." She then Winked. "Or consult with your team before use. These are strategic ammunitions, so it is wise to use them sparingly." Varya felt honored that the elvish warrior Jazdia entrusted Varya with such important tasks and weaponry, and he also felt the weight of expectation and responsibility weigh heavy upon him. He clutched the arrows tightly, placing them in his quiver with care. Varya then gave a deep bow of reverence and respect to Jazdia. "I will not fail you Lady Jazdia. I will rescue Cedar, even should it come at the cost of my own life."

Varya was as excited as he was nervous, the eve of battle excited his nerves even as he breathed deeply to calm them. Now was his chance to show his entourage, and by extent the King what he was made of, and to do good for others.

"Right, before we go." Yvonne reached to her belt, fingering the shape on the flasks' rim before taking off a pair of them. She squinted at the infiltration team under the sparse moonlight, pondering... before handing over the stuff to Veronica. "Our bear's in a bad shape, isn't he? Use these if necessary. The one with rounded rim heal wounds quickly. The one with rope pattern numbs pain and allows someone to press on despite injuries."

The alchemist that made it calls it fleshknit draught and iron will tonic, but she ain't saying that out loud. Dumb as hell names. It's rather pretentiously inscribed on the flask anyway, if anyone's curious, because of course it was. That said, the effect was a real deal so she had no options but to accept the dumb names.

That left her with four. A pair of fleshknit and second wind, respectively. Hopefully she wouldn't need them, damned thing were expensive.

---

Wargs. Creating ice and manipulating it near faultlessly wasn’t enough. The pale man named Evan also could also command wargs made of hard light. Already knowing Veronica, it was clear to see Antigone had done her homework when she requesting aid from those beyond the walls of Rascade. The skills of Charles of Farris have yet to be seen, but ultimately, it didn’t matter. They were going to stay with the carriage. Athena seemed to trust them, so Solomon decided not to question it.

Early morning, the atmosphere was cold as the remnant of winter still clung to the air. Soft breezes rustled the grass and the leaves of the trees. Everyone was up, and underway. So far everyone was on schedule. They were just outside the Stritzel estate when Veronica and Jazdia departed. It wasn’t long before the silence was broken again with Evan’s introduction. Right, he was new. Though he was with Veronica, not everyone was introduced.

“Doctor Solomon Sparrow.” said the well clothed undead. He nodded his head to the others. “I apologize if this is the first you’re hearing it.”

“Oh, I’m Athena. I’m thinking for the two team plan, I’ll go with the attacking party.” she said, “Once Jazdia comes back and we begin setting out I’ll do my best to protect you.” Athena was easily awoken when the time came to depart for the mission the hour earlier. Despite having basically slept all day, she was able to return to her sleep that night without consequence. Perhaps that is why she was up and ready in record time.

Solomon agreed with Jazdia when the two women returned from their followup. Not just because of his medical knowledge, but he felt better being able to sneak in and give support. He really wasn’t suited to take to the front lines and he chose to avoid it himself when he could. For that he normally had other allies. The party was still new, so calling forth those allies would probably need to wait for now. The party was decently sized and given the news that Stritzel seemed to not be concerned enough for her safety, felt they would be fine. The noblewomen would probably be fine usually, but she seemed to dismiss the position she placed herself in the political conflict.

“Oh, those are interesting medications.” said Solomon, as he rounded behind Yvonne as she handed the containers to Veronica, “Such little faith in my abilities, I see.” his sentence ended in a chuckle, finishing his light teasing.

Location: Western outer wall, Stritzel's Estate, Western Kindeance.

---

The corner of her lips quirking upward, Veronica restrained a fond(?) sigh, as she returned to the rest of the group.

There goes Jazdia again, taking charge.

Veronica listened, as Jazdia swiftly "voluntold" a few people onto the infiltration team... several of whom had already voiced their intent to join it if she didn't misremember. Well, whatever. Veronica wouldn't have changed a thing as far as choices. She'd made a similar assessment prior of who to bring, but without knowing more about the group personally, she couldn't discern the nuances of the abilities enough to say any of the others would be better options. Given that Jazdia had probably "insisted" on reading the group's dossiers again, she was likely the most well-informed on what they were probably capable of.

Veronica received the metal compass from Jazdia with a nod, flipping it open and chuckling at the words of warning. "My thanks. I shall."

Turning to Yvonne, the vampire received the potions with surprise and gratitude. "These will make things much easier in the worst case. Thank you. Hopefully, we won't need them, and I'll be able to bring them back untouched." So saying, Veronica committed the concoctions' functions to memory and tucked the potion flasks into her backpack, letting out a chuckle of her own at Solomon's teasing commentary. "Not to worry, Doctor Sparrow, I'd prefer to default to your expertise before using up such valuable commodities as these."

Casting her gaze across those that had either elected or been directed to join the infiltration team, Veronica smiled and sent them a nod. "If we're all ready? I'd like to go ahead and get a head-start before the other half of us start knocking on the doors." Turning on her heel, she jerked her head towards slightly more distant forestry. "Let's move."

---

The route Veronica traced was wide and circuitous initially, arcing firstly away from the estate's walls, before passing through the western forests for the majority of the following arc. In the dark, accompanied by those that might not be treated kindly by a breakneck pace, Veronica restrained herself to human levels, leading at something closer to a brisk jog than an all-out sprint.

Despite knowing that there should be nothing and no-one out there to see them, Veronica couldn't help but remain tensed and expectant of trouble, her senses straining with every step to intake every scrap of information about her surroundings they could gather. Even with so many factors in her apparent favor, she couldn't help but be doubly and triply sure, going to all her usual lengths just on principle.

Eventually, the group broke from the tree line, and Veronica led them directly towards the outer wall, before turning and making a straight run northwards to the northwest corner tower, keeping herself close to the wall and well out of easy sightlines in the infinitesimal chance someone happened to be above them.

Upon reaching the northwest corner of the wall, Veronica finally came to a halt, reaching into her pack to retrieve a grapple hook attached to a length of sturdy rope. Glancing at the rest of the infiltration team, she asked quietly, "How are you all with scaling walls?"

Saying that, she glanced up the weathered stone structure, all 5 meters of its height, keen slitted eyes picking out little blemishes and indentations that she could have used to scale the structure barehanded if need be. In the interests of speed, however, the grapple hook would be her best option right now, especially since she didn't have to worry about the light clank of it catching hold of the parapet edge potentially being heard by a guard atop it.

Meanwhile on Jazdia's side.

The other party had made their advance, and it was time for their turn. Jazdia activated her eyes, monitoring the infiltrator until they reached an adequate distance for her to start the assault.

"let's move out," she said, gesturing her hand to point at the gate, and they followed.

When the elf walked down the road leading to the manor, she prepared her arrow. It glowed bright, temporally illuminating the path ahead of them, until she released it and had it fly straight to the gate, blasting it open in a fiery explosion.

The sudden clamor alerted the camping thugs. Some of them jumped up from their sleep, and some already brandished their weapons. As the party continued their quick advance, so did the thugs running toward the gate to welcome the gate breakers.

The wall was worn and rough, but presented very little surface to grip.

Rose quickly and wordlessly passed the amulet she had worn all night back to her sister, the latter slipping it over her head, then the two of them considered the wall more closely...

They had never ... tried... to climb something like this. Trees, sure-- but.. Not a wall. Not like this.

It was a sketchy operation that left them very worried and frightened, but they took their time, and slowly ascended it, claws scratching and biting at the rotting masonry and finding footing they did not expect to gain, before finally arriving at the top and then looking over.
"Waow... Never woulda guessed..."
"-Me Neither.."

Louise readied herself as the elven woman raised her bow and shot an explosive. She quickly moved front of Jazdia's while kept little in distance ahead from the elven woman. Dunked her shield on the ground as it stood tall and straight with a secret stake. She the rested her musket at the top of her shield for better stability. She aimed her gun on the first charging thug. Quickly calculated the distance and the sped of approaching target, she then pulled the trigger. As the thunderous sound of gun fire, the bullet fly straight into the closest charging thug.

”Reloading" Louise notified her team then she started reloading her musket. The bayonet is attached on her musket and ready to use it when the enemy get her closer to her range. Her sword is ready to unsheathe for another attacker.