Around 7:00 PM, just as darkness fully settled, Jones was already waiting on the outskirts of the Royal Capital.
Standing alongside the leopard-eared girl were several intelligence operatives tasked with receiving the team and providing final reports.
"Start the fires!" One of the operatives shouted.
"Yes, sir!"
The operatives immediately ignited the pre-arranged woodpiles. As the stacks on the small hill caught fire, flames shot into the sky, creating a beacon that was strikingly visible in the dark. Fortunately, they were far enough from the capital that they didn't need to worry about being discovered.
"..." Jones frowned. She didn't understand why they needed such a massive bonfire; a signal flare shouldn't require such a waste of wood.
Being a woman of few words, the leopard-eared girl didn't ask. Her reason for being here tonight was to see how many people were coming to rescue Catherine, and whether she could borrow some of them to save Lucy.
In truth, she wasn't holding out much hope. Letters could be sent via messenger pigeons, but people couldn't. Jones assumed Sedona City would, at most, send a few men or put out a bounty for sellswords to do the job; she was merely clinging to a sliver of wishful thinking.
"They're here! They're here!" The intelligence operatives shouted happily.
They had rehearsed this for days. If this mission succeeded, they would receive massive rewards—perhaps even a house in Sedona City.
"They're here?" Jones frowned, her red eyes scanning the horizon. There wasn't a soul in sight. Her leopard ears perked up, but she heard no sound of hoofbeats.
How could anyone be here? Was it possible that she, a top-tier beastkin expert, was less observant than a few humans? The thought seemed impossible.
Jones turned to the operatives and was stunned to find them all staring at the sky. She instinctively looked up, her red eyes shrinking and her mouth falling open in shock. Little points of light were drifting down from the heavens toward their location.
What is this? Are the birdkin here?
And they were carrying lanterns in the sky—how was that even possible?
Jones was completely dazed, her usual composure shattered. This was too much to process—coming directly through the sky? Weren't they afraid of getting lost in the dead of night?
In reality, Rhea and her team had reached the capital around 6:00 PM. To avoid exposing their identities, they had circled high in the clouds until nightfall. Darkness was their best cover.
Whoosh... whoosh...
A light breeze descended from above, accompanied by the rhythmic flapping of wings. Rhea was the first to land. She glanced at Jones and the operatives before scanning the surroundings, satisfied that the open space was a perfect landing zone.
Whoosh!
Rhea took to the air again to guide the hot air balloons down. Within half an hour, over a dozen balloons had landed one after another.
"..." Jones watched the entire process in a trance—massive objects falling from the sky, followed by dozens of people: humans, elves, and birdkin.
"Hello. Are you Miss Jones?" Chris stepped forward and introduced himself. "I am Number One. Lord Lucas sent me to command this rescue operation."
"Yes," Jones nodded coldly. She never expected that nobleman named Lucas to be this formidable, sending both birdkin and elves.
"Jones." Elisa stepped forward, her modern compound bow slung across her back.
"Elisa, you came too." Jones's icy expression softened slightly. The success rate of the rescue had just jumped significantly. Having birdkin meant they didn't have to struggle through ground defenses; they could simply drop in from above.
"What's the status?" Elisa asked anxiously.
"Princess Lucy's exact cell hasn't been confirmed," Jones frowned. "But Catherine's location is certain."
"That's a problem," Elisa said grimly. Their plan was to extract both simultaneously; rescuing one first would inevitably alert the enemy.
"I understand." Chris had also gathered the intel he needed from the operatives. He turned to Rhea. "Miss Rhea, I must trouble you to infiltrate the palace and locate princess Lucy."
"I'm going with her," Jones declared.
"Very well," Rhea agreed. She didn't know what Lucy looked like, so having someone who knew her was perfect.
"Then, everyone rests. After we eat, you two will move out at midnight."
Chris turned to the Air Force soldiers. "Set up sentries and pitch camp."
"Yes, sir!" The soldiers moved with military precision. They would stay here for two nights and one day—extract the targets tomorrow night and fly back the day after. Tomorrow would require extreme vigilance, as the mission was bound to cause a massive backlash.
Between the trained soldiers and the elven squad, the camp was set up with remarkable efficiency. After a quiet meal, they began their rest rotation. Chris, however, stayed up to finalize the plan for tomorrow; he wasn't just here for a rescue—Lord Lucas had given him an additional objective.
Midnight arrived. Rhea took the somewhat stiff leopard-eared girl into her arms and took flight toward the capital.
Jones's entire body was rigid with fear. Her mind raced with irrational thoughts about being dropped.
"Don't be nervous," Rhea said calmly, feeling Jones's slight trembling.
"I'm not," Jones replied, refusing to look down.
As it turned out, the elite leopard-eared warrior had a crippling fear of heights.
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