The cold weight of the dilemma settled on JaiJames

  “We have to make a plan to rescue her, and also don't want to directly interact with the two men,” Jai murmured, his voice tight. He glanced at the girl—small, helpless—and then at the colossal figures guarding her. “And we have to make sure we get the girl out with absolutely no injuries.”

  James backed away, the nervous energy radiating off him. “Bro, I understand your intentions, but we have a greater problem. We have to make sure we don’t reveal our disguises. They might be stronger than Tier Seven people, and they might reveal us the moment we’re strained.”

  Jai’s lips curled into a familiar, mocking smile—an expression James had learned to dread. “I know the trick to make our disguise permanent, but it’s kind of risky. And you know we cannot use the disguise all the time because of our Tier Ten powers and willpower

  “What do we have to do, then, man?” James demanded, urgency overriding his caution.

  Jai grew serious, the air around him becoming focused. “As usual, we have to pour our blood and activate this artifact by using our own core. But, the good thing is, if we use and refine this artifact with our core fluid, it increases our core's growth rate. It’ll help us advance faster to Tier Nine. The downside? We have to be tricky and constantly maintain our core energy usage, making sure the strain doesn't reveal the truth.”

  They both stood in silence, recalculating the variables. The rescue had just become a race against time and internal collapse.

  “First,” Jai decided, nodding toward the brightly lit bar, “let’s see them. Let’s make a plan by observing them.”

  They secured their humble cart and walked toward the bar. Just as James tried to approach their target’s wagon to glimpse the girl through the small mirror, Jai immediately stopped him.

  “Bro, look at that.” Jai pointed, his tone suddenly low and urgent.

  It wasn't a cheap shackle. Mounted flush against the steel door of the cage was a disc of obsidian-black metal

  They both recognized the chilling design.

  “The Chronos-Cage Latch

  “It is,” Jai confirmed. “If we don’t have the key, trying to pick it will cost us a hand, thanks to its crippling aura. We cannot risk any injury that exposes our true strength.”

  They understood the gravity. The lock was an obstacle that their Tier Ten powers could only bypass with cunning, not brute force, due to their temporary disguise

  They entered the bar, ordered a tankard of wine each, and sat near the two men. The guards, Vystan and Berlin

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  Jai approached them with a charming, easy smile, adopting the persona of a friendly traveler. “Hey, guys, what’s your name? My name is Arthur, and I wanted to introduce myself to you because you look like true gentlemen.”

  James followed, maintaining the role of the quiet companion. The two men, Vystan and Berlin, didn't seem particularly secure but saw no reason to avoid a simple conversation. They introduced themselves, claiming to be "brothers," just like "Arthur and Clement."

  As they spoke, Jai subtly—a movement only visible to another high-level cultivator—opened a small vial and dropped a pinch of Mable’s Miracle Powder

  The two men were asleep, heads slumped against the wall, before the wine could fully settle in their bellies.

  The rescue was immediate. Jai silently checked their clothes and found the key inside Vystan's waist pouch. He tried to snap it free, but the moment his fingers closed around it, a spike of searing, internal pain shot up his arm.

  “Dammit,” Jai cursed under his breath. The key itself emitted a powerful, draining aura. The true owner—Vystan—could hold it without harm because he had activated the lock, but anyone else could only endure its backlash for a few moments.

  “We have to go, and take out the woman as soon as possible!” Jai hissed, throwing the key to James.

  The drain was too much. The power of the Tier Eight key was clashing violently with the energy maintaining their disguise. The only artifact they could truly rely on, the disguise artifact, was one Mable had personally refined, allowing it to hold their core energy without taxing them much. This key, however, was an aggressive foreign core draw.

  Jai’s vision blurred. “You open it! The core drain is too fast for me to handle while maintaining the disguise!”

  James immediately took the key, enduring the painful aura. He shoved it into the crow-head lock. The lock yielded with a single, muffled .

  They yanked the door open.

  Curled in the corner of the small cage was a girl with snow-white hairazure blue eyesDwarf

  They tried to wake her, but she remained unconscious from the lack of nutrients and food.

  “I am going to carry her, you carry my bag,” Jai said, scooping her up.

  “OK!” James replied.

  But just as they felt relief, the two men suddenly woke up. The lock, sensing its key had been used by another person, gave a piercing, metallic siren

  WAAAAAA-OOP!

  Jai knew this was a possibility. He immediately got out of the cart, slamming the door shut. The lock clicked back into place, silencing the alarm, but Vystan and Berlin had already burst out of the bar. They saw "Arthur and Clement" carrying the girl and immediately ran toward them.

  A fire spell erupted. One man summoned a fireball

  “We can’t run over them! We have to take a right turn here, there is a huge river!” Jai yelled.

  “How do you know there’s a river?” James questioned, panicked.

  “You motherfucker, I already told you that I have the artifact that allows me to hear the surrounding area in a one-kilometer radius!

  James, shamed by his doubt and fear, immediately took the right turn. They saw the wide, churning river and jumped in. They stayed submerged and hidden until Vystan and Berlin, after an hour of searching, assumed they had drowned and left to inform their leader of the failure.

  Once the pursuers were gone, Jai and James got out of the river and came onto the shore, shaking the girl awake.

  “What’s your name? You look like a Dwarf, am I right?” Jai asked, his voice strained.

  “Yes, I am a Dwarf,” she replied faintly. “And my father is the king of the Dwarf Kingdom: King Borin Stone Head

  Jai and James looked at each other, stunned.

  “What is your name?” Jai asked again, the question now carrying the weight of a monumental political discovery.

  “My name is Morisa Stone Head

  They were more shocked than ever. They hadn't just rescued a girl; they had rescued Princess Morisa Stone Head