He had already checked every room down the left wing hallway and after making his way down a third of the hallway, he concluded that the second floor of the left wing of the mansion was a dormitory. Every room just had sleeping cots or wooden-frame beds and a chest or two. He checked those chests but found nothing interesting inside.

With his Stone Sight, he saw the positions of the stone walls, and more importantly, he saw where parts of the stone were missing. Like the small square hole in the middle of a wall, in the room next to where two standing and one sitting silhouettes were.

Stone Sight [24] is now Stone Sight [25]

With Stealth to make his movements and the sounds of his clothes silent, Tercius gently walked past the doorway where the trio was. Seven long, heart-pounding meters past that point, he grabbed a door handle and opened the door just enough for him to slip in, while swiftly yet gently closing the door behind him. He held the door in contact with his whole body as he closed it. If he remembered correctly, the body was supposed to “absorb” some or most of the noise. His Stealth would also help in reducing the noise that way, it dawned on him suddenly.

Not that he needed to reduce the noise he made, what with the sounds of a commotion coming from below the windows.

As he looked over the room, he remembered something.

“You need to treat all homes as if they were your own. You need to be at ease and relaxed at all times. To you, there should be nothing strange about what you’re doing,” Lux had told him that night in Spheros. “But you will only become good at this when you start treating their floors, doors, windows, and furniture as if they are priceless heirlooms of the Emperor himself. Let me translate that. No scratching the floors or slamming the doors. You are a ghost. You leave no traces of your passing. You don’t move anything you don’t need, and in the case that you do need to take or move something you do it slowly and with the utmost care and gentleness you possess.”

So be comfortable and relaxed in any home as if it’s yours, but be mindful of everything inside the home as if it belongs to someone else, Tercius repeated Lux’s advice as he eyed the room.

Just like the others, this room was lit by moonlight, but unlike the rest, this room was more expansive and had more stuff inside, of a visibly higher quality too. The bed alone was enormous, with four posts that reached the ceiling. Dark, see-through fabric covered the sides, presumably there to handle the insects.

Tercius ignored the rest of the furniture for now and focused on what he came here for.

The hole he spotted with his skill was behind a giant wooden armoire, presumably accessed either through a false back of the armoire or by moving it out of the way. Tercius gently walked with his feet close to the furniture, using his Mana Sight, Stone Sight, and even Energy Sight to check ahead and behind him. He peeked behind the armoire, his cloak-insulated marble mask clicking on the stone wall in a muffle, but he saw that the large piece of furniture was close to the wall, with no space at all between them.

Tercius tried using Spring of Crystal Thoughts to move the armoire up and away from the wall gently, in case it was bolted to the wall. Even as the heavy piece of finely carved wood rose in the air and floated a meter away from the wall, he noticed a pressure manifest at the back of his mind.

Distance and weight, the two limiters of telekinesis. Increasing either lead to a spike in mana consumption, a cost currently handled by his Energy-boosted mana regeneration rate, and a faster onset of that mental pressure.

He was close to the armoire, a distance at which his telekinesis had very little cost, so Tercius guessed that the bloody thing had some major weight to it for his skill to pack such a fast mental punch.

Was there something in it? Most likely a defensive mechanism of some sort… The weight itself was a defense, he realized, whether intentional or not.

Mana Sight [46] is now Mana Sight [47]

Checking the mage on the floor above him and the people in the room next to him, Tercius grew worried that if his skills continued to level he would run out of Energy. Without Energy there would be no boosted mana regeneration, and without that, he won't be able to constantly use his skills. I should probably hide somewhere and harvest more…

He slipped into the darkness behind the armoire and used a quick Rune sequence to call forth a self-made item from his amulet. The object's stone-cold cylindrical handle appeared in his hand and Tercius grasped it, injected his mana into the light-orb at the top. Encased in stone on more than two-thirds of its omnidirectional light-giving surface the enchanted orb was limited to providing light in one narrow beam— a beam that he pointed at the wall.

There was a small square metal door where the hole was supposed to be. A metal safe box. The small handle meant to open the door was held in place by a padlock. The rough-looking metal lock had a large hole at the front, clearly meant for a skeleton key.

Hmm… Tercius pondered as he looked at it.

He didn’t have infinite time in this room, nor this house. How could he open it quickly and quietly?

Jabbing a finger at the lock, he used the dark mode of his Mana Sight to focus on his Crystal Metaforce that flooded the insides of the lock. To his eyes, this mana type was silvery-white and contrary to other kinds of mana, incredibly dim. He had tried to make his telekinetic skill have that cloaking ability that the elder mages used for their spells, but the lack of knowledge on his part was seen. Literally.

If his intention had worked as he intended, his telekinetic mana wouldn’t be seen even by his eyes. As it was, his failure allowed him to see the mana that flooded the chamber of the locking mechanism and he could see just how the telekinetic mana interacted with the metal. Both were physical in nature.

As his wandering eyes closed in to take a really close look, he saw the dark emptiness of the notches and curves of the lock and he acted accordingly. He made a telekinetic key, shaped its tip according to those notches and curves, and turned it clockwise. It didn't work. A couple of alterations later and it did.

As the metal door started opening, Tercius hid behind the door and pressed his forearm where the creaking hinges were. Slowly he opened the safe door and when nothing jumped out, he pointed his flashlight inside. Four leather pouches— all fat with contents, jiggling as he stored them— one thin box holding a necklace with seven inlaid gemstones and two small finely engraved boxes filled with even more jewelry, which he took of course, along with a stack of papers bound in leather and three small leather-bound books.

He stashed everything into his amulet, leaving nothing behind. Then he looked at the safe. It was probably worth a lot, as well. But if he took it, that would mean that he had some kind of special help… either manpower, skillpower, or would they even suspect mages? Tercius decided against taking it. The custom flashlight was also returned back into the amulet. The heavy armoire was returned to its place and Tercius roamed the room a little longer, searching under the carved table and the bed.

Abruptly the noise of combat, cheering and stomping stopped and someone started talking.

"Sixteen times. That's the number of times you would have died if this wasn't a spar." A male voice said. "And you didn't even get close enough to me once. So do you want to explain to me how exactly the spear is inferior to a sword?"

People laughed as Tercius came close to the edge of one of the windows and observed the event downstairs.

"I thought so." the man from before said, and Tercius saw him catch a rag of some kind. He wiped his head and neck with that rag and then turned towards Tercius, but the nighttime and flickering torchlight made it more difficult for him to get a clean look.

As the man drank from the pitcher and then emptied it on his head, he briefly looked directly at him and Tercius moved a step back. He realized his mistake immediately. Lux had warned against movement in these situations.

“The eye is more suited for catching movement, nephew, so if you’re even reasonably concealed— don’t move. It’s as simple as that.”

Tercius used his Mana Sight to observe the man’s mana outline and other than a brief look at the window, the man did nothing, no hand gestures or head inclines to his men.

“Everyone, go to sleep.” a moment later the voice said again. “If I find even one of you smelling of the bottom of a bottle in the morning, I will reduce everyone’s payment. You have been warned.”

He could be mistaken, but that man could be Caeso. The so-called leader of this group. The man's outline moved away from the mansion, towards the pool Tercius saw from the window.

I need to keep an eye on him…

Avoiding people came easily to him and Tercius managed to move about the mansion even with the new additions inside it. As more rooms were filled with sleeping silhouettes, one was emptied of them. Soon after the sounds of the mansion grew quiet, two silhouettes went to that room he found the safe in, while the third one went to the basement.

Stone Sight [25] is now Stone Sight [26]

The man of whom Tercius suspected was the leader, Caeso, was the one he paid close attention to. Before retiring to his bed, the man had briefly gone to a room on the ground floor. A room Tercius visited with haste, as soon as the leader made himself comfortable in his bed in a room Tercius had yet to visit.

Avoiding the two night guards was as easy as breathing when their mana silhouette revealed their position. He found a desk filled with papers and he skimmed a few of them under the moonlight, ultimately deciding on taking them all with him.

He could read it, but nothing on the pages made any sense.

The few he read ended with sentences like— I wish you luck on your hunt— Your sister is well if a little tired from your continued absence. She wishes you well in your endeavors and urges you to visit as soon as you can—

All were signed simply as "Your Uncle.". He could guess what the "hunt" and the "urges you to visit soon" parts could mean. At them, his eyes sharpened and his heart grew calm.

Searching for clues in them now was foolish. Those kinds of “clear” sentences were rare. Many were simply strange, those at the beginning of the letters, some even with some words he never saw before. He would bet that somewhere around was a guide to understanding these codes. Maybe close to Caeso? Maybe on him?

Or maybe Caeso did as Tercius would if he were in his case— memorize everything and destroy the guide.

In any case, Tercius decided that he had to visit another room. Unlike the sleeping room, this one was locked, but it took Tercius barely thirty seconds to make a key. Unsurprisingly, the room was a study. But there was no secret hiding place in the walls or the floors. He saw nothing under the rug and found nothing on the table, or under it. The drawers, on the other hand, were filled with papers of expenses and revenue. The idiot didn't even hide these things and then Tercius realized that there was no need for him to hide them. Commoners who knew how to read were a minority. While Nobles knew reading and writing, a requirement by Imperial Law, mathematics was a whole other beast. Most stuck their whole lives with addition and subtraction. Still, even if one percent of the Empire's population could understand This man, Claudius vin'Serus by his letters, at least had a clear system to his bookkeeping, one that Tercius found easy to go over.

Claudius taxed seven farming communities— a nice name for a collection of small hay and mud hamlets surrounded by farmland— he owned north of Nurium, along with five more south of town. From there, he took half of the crop grown and animals bred, with a preference for products that could last for longer periods of time in hot environments.

His lands to the west had an iron mine on them, one stone quarry and one marble quarry, all three of which were “rented” out at steep prices. Just the money he got from rents of the previous month was about how much Tercius, Neiran, and Ciron would get from a year and a half to three years of stonework.

Tercius took everything. He emptied the drawers— even taking a pile of wrinkly papers from one bottom drawer. Since Claudius had kept them, crumpled as they were, Tercius figured that the man must find some value in them. And if Claudius valued them, Tercius did too.

He skimmed the book collection present, searching for more worn-out covers and then flipping their pages rapidly, but nothing came of it.

There was a lot more space in the mansion which he could search, more than he had time for even if he wasn’t hiding from people, but only two had evident appeal. The room where the mage was and the room where Caeso was.

He lamented not having more time to prepare for this. If only he had the potion that muddied a user's mana… It would have been a welcome addition for this evening. Without mana, there were no skills or spells and he could just roll over these people. Note to self, ask Mistress Kalina how they work. Maybe you can see it made?

Whatever that substance that Mistress Kalina and Lux used to put people to sleep was, it would have made things infinitely easier.

As things stood, he had to make do with homemade stuff. Like his grandmother's personal "Tercius don't you dare get anywhere near this again" stash.

A tea made with a dash of dried and ground Homilinus root was used to help with constipation. If he dumped anything more than a dash into the breakfast at this place… The result— and he knew this from personal experience— were blazing shits that were barely minutes apart for a whole fucking day. At some point, your bowels seemed to be slowly eating themselves as they tried to exit through the rear end. It took him two days after it stopped to feel normal again.

This one was a tame option.

Then there were the more bloody ones.

A finely ground blood-red powder created from the stem of the Loraferan Flower, a rather rare plant that only grew along Hippotion, which made the blood clot faster. Pregnant women inhaled the powder when they went into labor, but with extreme regards as to the amount taken. Soldiers used it constantly and even they knew never to take too much too quickly. It could save your life now, only to take it later. For some, it was a price they could and would pay.

His grandmother had a whole batch of it prepared, most likely in preparation for Petra's delivery. If Rona had stayed home, Tercius did not doubt that she would have sold the majority of it for a tidy profit to one of the local brewers. As things stood, Tercius found it and a few other things he could use.

Would taking a whole lot of the powder make these people die of blood clots lodged inside brains and hearts? Most likely. Would he be a murderer? Yes, but he already was. If he were to do it he would just be upgrading the title, so to speak.

To rob someone else of their life had been difficult… in ways, he still didn't internalize. That mage of Tripatis, Haem, still made an occasional appearance in his dreams. Sometimes he was alive, sometimes dead.

But Haem's visitations aside, he felt this incredible sense of thankfulness towards Lux and Seliana.

Over a year ago, this option he considered now would not be an option he even thought about. He had held on to his old view even in a new world and they took it upon themselves to broaden his view of this world with a gentle push.

To rob someone else of their life was and is difficult, but it would be even more so if something were to happen to anyone in his family.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Tercius retired to a dark corner of the study and took a few minutes to restore his Energy reserves. He pulled out two knives from his amulet and held one in each palm. The smooth surface glinted wickedly, seemingly edging for blood. He produced their holders and attached them to his belt, at his hips.

With Mana Sight he looked at the mage’s outline and then at Caeso’s.

The mage was a surprise wildcard, and one he didn’t have to touch. The outline had barely moved from its position since he had infiltrated the mansion. Caeso, on the other hand, seemed to be having some trouble sleeping. He was currently in a sitting position on the edge of what he guessed was a bed.

Tercius left the study, locking it behind himself. Somehow it seemed the polite thing to do. He did the same thing with the safe, after all. It was certainly in line with what Lux had advised.

And it was time for the next objective. Paper Trail and Gold Rush were done.

Severing was next.

Tercius moved along the quiet hallway, down a flight of stairs, and then waited until one man passed by him and behind a wall. He moved to the next location and then waited until another guard was past him. From there, Tercius just walked straight into Caeso's room as if he was supposed to be there.

The man’s back was bare and by the time Caeso realized that someone was behind him and started turning around, Tercius had closed the door.

“What do you think you’re—” the man said but stopped when he realized that Tercius had jumped on the bed and was just a meter behind him.

Stealth muffled Running was that useful.

"You—" before another word got out, Tercius used his telekinesis-covered hand to clamp on his mouth and pushed the guy back into the bed. With his skill to aid him, the man stood no chance. He could literally lift the giant bed with the two of them on it if he wanted.

While he had done it, the man had tried to grab his shoulder and pull him over the bed, but instead of flying off like he was supposed to, Tercius’s skill was holding him in place. He wouldn't be the one moving in this scenario, not if he didn’t want to.

“I’m here on the order of Lux P—”

Just as he expected, as soon as his uncle's name was said, the man went wild. His frantic eyes had been replaced by something far more dipped in fear and sudden desperation. His whole body started trying to escape, wiggling like a worm. Despite his muscles and strength, Tercius' skill held his head in place. He grew worried that the man would snap his neck…

While his left hand held the man’s squirming head in place and mouth quiet, his right hand closed into a fist and punched the struggling man into the center of his abdomen. The first punch was a bit weak, barely getting a grunt from the man, but it was an experiment. Something to set the bar. The second and third ones were much better. The third one was the one that pacified him.

"Be still. If I wanted you dead, we wouldn't be having this pleasant conversation." Tercius whispered, unsheathing the knife from his right hip and bringing it close to the man's eye. His voice was filled with the biggest false cheerfulness that he had ever mustered. "Your lungs would be slowly filling with your blood, your voice gone with your severed vocal cords. And then everyone in this little house would follow after you…"

Even to himself, he sounded a little loony. Was it the childish voice with which the words were spoken? Maybe he should tone it down a few notches? Mistress Kalina was observing after all…

“Actually, that’s still an option. After all, I won’t force you to talk to me— I’m not that kind of a person— but if you choose not to partake in my offer, then my only option is to—”

Tercius drew the knife close to his own throat, gurgling sounds escaping his mouth. “—make sure you never talk to anyone else. So how about it, friend?”