Chapter 871 Percy's Wi
"I like your idea… No, scratch that, I LOVE it, but there are some steps that need to be taken so that I can be sure that I will not be implicated when there is an official inquiry."
Getting a small smile on his face, Percy nodded and sat back down.
It was that gleam in the eyes of the one in front of him, and these words that allowed him to finally relax completely and understand that he had been right: his idea really had saved him.
In fact, half the credit went to Perfect, who had luckily told him enough of the back story of these brothers for him to understand that this was one way in which he could get out of the situation. Although it could be said that he could have gotten a hint from the conversation he had, too, it was only both pieces of information placed together that had allowed him to get that idea that he had acted on.
Feeling his heart calming down, he said, "Do state them. I don't think they should be too severe, because it is obvious that you wish the same thing as me: for me to go inside and hopefully do something that will completely disrupt your brother's track record and his reputation in the Order."
With a nod and a bright smile that was clearly due to him imagining the fate of the man who had scorned him his entire life, Benjamin sat down and said, "You're both right and wrong, actually. Yes, it's true that I want the same thing as you, but I also want to be completely safe. Sometimes, the Order… Likes to make an example. And I definitely don't want to be in that position. So, the precautions need to be watertight. First, I've already made the plan that this entire thing is happening one hour after this conversation. The way things played out is that I had left after handing over my responsibility, and you came and knocked out my brother. After that, you carried out your plan normally, with him incapacitated for quite a long time, because he is a Mage, after all, who has neglected training as a Fighter."
Smiling at the corner of his mouth, Percy had to admit that it was the simplest, and most effective plan.
Seeing his reaction but not commenting on it, Benjamin continued.
"The tricky part is my brother's memory: he will remember that I was here. Hmm…well, I'll just leave a note in the bathroom. He was chastising me about something, and when he does that, I do have a tendency to just leave abruptly. It'll be a bit suspicious, but that can't be avoided. Finally, there's one last thing: I'll change your memory to show events in the way that I just narrated. Then, there will be no way for anyone to find out my part in this even if you are caught and have your mind checked by those from the Order. Yes, my friend, there is no other way- you'll have to trust that I won't mess around with the rest of the memories. You either allow this, or the deal's off. I'll call on the Order, and be applauded for thwarting you. So sit back down and make your decision."
Percy had stood up abruptly as he heard the part about him having his memories altered, because it would mean that he would be baring his mind completely to this person whom he had met only a few minutes ago. Even with everything else, this seemed a tad bit too risky: while scanning his memory, this person could definitely do something else, and the worst thing would be that he wouldn't even know what had happened. Hell, it might even be that all of this was a ruse, and that Benjamin wanted to incapacitate him in this manner. After all, if he were to directly attack, he would have to contend with all of the Hero level trinkets that Percy was ready to use, so this would be the perfect method for him.
After a moment, he did sit down, but his mind was working in overdrive while analyzing all the possibilities.
At the same time, he also started to think of ways in which he could reduce the risk.
He definitely could not let this deal go, but allowing someone like Benjamin who couldn't be trusted to rifle through his mind was not an option, either. There were things that definitely had to be hidden, such as all the information he had been told by his senior disciple brother, and his dealings with their master.
So…what should he do?
Benjamin looked like he had all the time in the world, but Percy knew that that was not so. The trinket he had used would only keep Jefferson unconscious for a limited period, and he had to use that time to the fullest.
Was there really no other way except to leave it all to blind faith?
Suddenly, his eyes widening, Percy hit on the perfect plan.
"An oath! Damn, how did I not think of that? Swear an oath that you will not see any other memories, and that you will only change the most recent one, and do nothing else. You can wriggle out of it later, but for the moment, you will have to follow it! If you have no other intentions, you should have no problem with this, right? I'm not even asking you to promise anything else! Just swear these things, and we have a perfect deal!"
Seeing Benjamin's eyes instantly narrow as he heard the proposition, elation burst in Percy's heart, knowing that he had once again hit the ball out of the park.
Just like the one that Benjamin had made, the plan was simple, yet highly effective.
Even though Champions could unravel normal oaths later on, they would still be in effect for a brief period of time after they were made. In that period, the oath given would have to be conformed to, as otherwise, the oath giver would die, or at least be gravely injured.
Another great reason why this was perfect was that the man in front of him was a Fighter. Mages had methods to take greater control of their consciousnesses and try to ensure that the backlash of not following an oath could be controlled and made almost assuredly nonlethal, but Fighters could do no such thing. They had complete control of their physical body, but their consciousness could only be sensed and trained properly in the later realms.
Thinking about everything and confirming once again that his plan minimized risk for him to the greatest extent while still being acceptable to anyone who didn't have ulterior motives, Percy waited for Benjamin's response.
If he took too long to respond, it would become clear that he must have had something on his mind.
Yet, it was only a second later that the bulky man shrugged and said, "All right! I have to admit that that was smart…I'll swear the oath right now, and we can finish quickly."
As Percy nodded, Benjamin gave the Oath.
"I swear that I shall not intrude into memories that exist within your mind that record incidents prior to you entering this house, and that I shall do nothing else except change the memories after that moment to reflect you not meeting me at all."
Percy cast the common spell to form an Oath that was known to even Human-level mages, and immediately, he saw Benjamin wince as he must have felt the strings tightening around his consciousness.
He confirmed that he could feel it within his mind, too, which was what one would have to settle for in case they didn't have an Oathstone. Only after using multiple spells and trinkets to check that he was not hoodwinked in any manner, Percy sighed and braced himself before gesturing at Benjamin to get on with it and opening his mind.
He closed his eyes, too, and a couple of seconds later, he could immediately feel the tentacles of the memory editing spell that was being cast by Benjamin.
Because the man was a Fighter, he was using a trinket for this purpose, and hence, it was rougher than it would have been if an experienced mage was doing the same thing. Percy frowned due to the unpleasantness that washed over him as those tendrils reached into his mind and found no resistance, and as they approached his consciousness, he felt an instinctive feeling of danger.
Before he could react, though, darkness engulfed him, and the last thought he got was that he didn't care what happened to him after he finished this mission. He owed his master his life, and to repay that debt, he was ready to die a thousand times over. Hence, his only wish was that he would prove to be useful, and while thinking in this way, he completely lost consciousness.
When he woke up, he blinked and looked around groggily before finding a man unconscious on the table in front of him.
The memories flooded back into him in a moment: he remembered knocking out the only person present before realizing that he was a mage. After that, he had fainted because of some countermeasure that activated, but after checking himself and seeing that he was fine, he shrugged it off.
With that, standing up and knowing that time was short, Percy hurried out of the house.
The Hero level trinket he had used to knock out the mage was of the sort that would make one think as if they had naturally fallen asleep, so he had nothing to worry about except to finish what he had come to do before the man woke up.
After getting to the Palace, all he needed to do was activate another camouflage trinket which once again made him invisible. It hadn't failed to bypass the formations laid down by someone from the Order, so there was no chance of it failing to hide him from the security measures in the Palace. It might have been different if his senior disciple brother was present, but now, barely a minute later, Percy was standing in the center of a large corridor that led to the King's chambers.
He knew who he needed to find, but he didn't know in which direction to go. Thankfully, eavesdropping for a bit resolved the problem, as a few maids nearby started gossiping about how the Grand Court Mage was staring out of the west corridor again, and that he looked exactly like someone who was mooning over love that had been lost. They even started to go into the details about what kind of a woman would be perfect for such a stately man, but Percy ignored these and quickly walked west until he reached the large balcony which looked out over the entire Kingdom.
The man he had come to find was right in front of him, with drooping shoulders that indicated some burden which was weighing heavily on his mind, and a back which had definitely been straighter before. Even his hair looked like it had gotten whiter recently, as if something had caused him to suddenly grow older.
Sighing with relief, Percy was about to walk forward to finally finish his mission, but he froze as a transmission started to reach him.
It was from Perfect, and by the time it ended, Percy's face was so filled with rage that he looked as if he wanted to go destroy the Order right at that moment, with his bare hands, if such a thing were at all possible.
"I've found out their plan! Those diabolical-ARGH! It makes my blood boil! Taking a page out of what happened in the Central Continent's past, the Overseer wishes to cause a massive massacre in the Alliance, which will look as if it has been carried out by the Church, to unite the people against them and ensure that everyone will be conscripted voluntarily when the time comes! In that massacre, the plan is also to gravely injure a fake King in order to galvanize all those who love him even further! Quoting his injury, he will then be replaced! IT NEEDS TO STOP! Percy, I don't know how all of you do it, but it must! That man gave me a purpose in life, and I cannot stand something he loves so much being used like this! DAMN THEM!"