Unexpected visit

It had been over a month since Hera returned to Boothudurn. Her dad and Livy were getting along really well. Both enjoyed wrestling, boxing, and fighting competitions, and the Leviathan was a surprisingly good assistant in his woodworking shop. Even if she couldn't be in her humanoid form when helping due to her height. Lurize was helping with the logistics job when the Royal Explorers asked for supplies, and Nimbus helped take care of the house and everyone's meals. They were still going to the dungeons to practice, but aside from the day when Livy became the Leviathan, she spent only a couple of hours per day training with her court. Livy's welcome party was a big hit too. Many guides, including those she met while trying to get back home, showed up. Even Sammy participated in a video call. The turtle was also having weekly therapy sessions with the Empress to make sure she was doing ok.

During this time, her equipment also arrived. She got a pair of shoes called Gaia's Embrace. They looked like dark green sneakers and fitted exceptionally well on her feet, but the reason for this purchase was the extra options. It had a skill that increased natural regeneration by 30% and could stack with any other effects Hera cast on herself, including Edge's. In addition, she could stomp her feet and create a barrier that would recover her injuries and another called Terraform, which allowed her to temporarily reshape a small area around her. This effect would be continuous, changing the environment as she passed by and allowing her to change things to ice or slick stone, which could be a decent substitute for her gliding ability. Her pants were called Ethereal Veil Pantaloons. Despite the name, it was a very slick black pair of fitted jeans with some ghostly green details on the side. When wearing them, a veil of black energy would come out from the back of her waist like a half skirt, but it wasn't tangible. It had only one skill: letting her body from ankles to shoulders become intangible for 5 seconds. However, this wouldn't affect her feet, arms, and head. What actually happened was that the veil that was created warped around her body and teleported anything that hit it to the other side. If the 5 seconds passed and there was still something passing through, Hera would be pushed away from the object. However, there was some danger associated with this. After the initial 5 seconds, there was another set of 5 seconds for her to remove anything that was where her body should be. If she couldn't, the veil would break, and the object would appear where it was, even if that meant appearing inside her.

Lastly was the pair of gloves. Ironically called 'Shadowsteps,' those black velvet gloves would increase the damage she dealt while targeting something that was unaware of her presence and reduce the noise of anything touching them. Even if Hera dangled a set of keys, the sound would be muffled. It also gave her a 20% speed buff for 1 minute if she attacked an enemy from the shadows without being noticed. It was very stealth-based, but considering that the Empress was going heavily on the Jack-of-All-Trades concept, it made sense for her to have options to sneak around.

Adriel had talked with Rutigan and the others showing his hand and offering assistance in whatever they needed. For now, he was the 'carrier pigeon' of any communications between the dwarves and this secretive political group looking out for the non-human races in the MAZE. Despite everything, the king wasn't thrilled with the idea of getting their help. Not just because he had never met them face to face but also because organizing with another group of people felt very much like an aggressive move against the guild. The people of Boothudurn didn't want to fight the humans. All they were trying to do was to protect themselves. Joining another organization could make it seem like they were trying to start something and worsen their relations with the guild. Still, putting his feelings aside, Rutigan did open a communication channel, not wanting to cut off potential allies.

Today, on this seemingly normal Thursday, the Empress got a message from Becca of all people. The reporter knew Hera had come back and even sent her a message a couple of weeks ago, but now she was coming to Boothudurn for some reason and asked if they could meet. The reporter has stopped participating in any actual news outlets. She also stopped posting in social media in general. That wasn't completely unusual since every time she worked on a big story, she would vanish from the public eye.

Hera was walking towards the doorway close to the palace when she saw Becca walking towards her. Her hair was longer, and now instead of the various shades of bluish-gray, her hair had some splashes of green in the same platinum/pastel tones.

"Hera!" Becca smiled and rushed to give the Empress a big hug that was too intimate considering their relationship, but Hera didn't mind. It's been a long time since the two saw each other.

"How are you doing, Becca? I loved the hair, by the way."

"Right, you were gone when I changed it. It was after the whole centaur thing. I just got upset about everything and started making changes in my life," Becca gave a sad smile.

"I'm sorry to hear it. Or not, depending on how things are right now."

"They could be better. Actually, this is part of the reason why I came here. First of all, what level are you?"

Hera raised one eyebrow, "I'm level 35."

Becca thought for a moment, "And what about your attributes if you don't mind me asking. Actually, do you mind if we go somewhere a bit more quiet? I don't mean your house, just somewhere in the open with few people."

Hera gestured to the side, guiding Becca to the lake since it was one of the places in the city that almost no one visited during this time of day, "I think I know a place, but why do you need to know my attributes?"

"Honestly… I need help. I'm involved in something… Something," Becca sighed, "It's dangerous, and if I tell you what it is, you will be in danger too. That's why I'm asking. I can't go to any of my high-level contacts since people would notice them moving around. But, before I tell you, I want to know if you are at least strong enough to handle yourself."

"I don't know how I can help, and I don't want my dad or my friends to be in danger," Hera noticed the desperation in Becca's eyes, "But if you really need me. All my attributes are at 99. I have a skill that lets me increase all of them simultaneously, and I have been using it since I started."

"All of them? Luck included?" Hera nodded in response, and Becca looked down as they continued walking. It was clear that she was thinking about something, "Ok... That might help a lot," Becca said nothing and continued walking until they reached the beach. Only then the reporter used a skill that was an upgraded version of Hera's soundproof bubble. Not only would it stop anyone from hearing them, but it would also create an illusion of them talking about something else, "I'm not going to give you the full details now. Just the overall idea, and you can decide whether you want to help. If you don't want to, don't worry. There are no hard feelings, and whatever happens to me won't be your fault."

"You are starting to scare me, Becca," Hera stared into the reporter's eyes. They were almost gray but showed an intensity that she never saw before.

"Probably because I'm also scared. Here is the thing. I've discovered a facility that is keeping people captive, a blacksite. It was supposed to be a prison, but apparently, almost no one in there is a criminal. This was made by the guild. I don't know what they are doing inside there, but I know for a fact that most, if not all, of the people being held there are from the other races."

"You are kidding," Hera asked, her voice filled with disbelief.

"Do you understand my fear now?"

"I do…" Hera looked down. This wasn't her problem, not really, but the thought of innocent people being held captive made her stomach turn, especially because of who was responsible. The guild was supposed to protect people, help others. They were created by one of the three heroes for the system's sake! How could they do something like that, "Do you have proof? That the people in there don't deserve to be there. That they didn't do anything wrong?"

Becca nodded, "Sharing that would make you involved. You still can walk away now. I hope you just don't tell anyone what I'm saying, but aside from that, nothing will come back to you. The moment I tell you more, that will change."

"Can I really help you?"

Becca nodded again, "The prison is in a room in the 12th layer. According to my sources, the people who work there are all between levels 30 to 40. There might be a couple stronger ones, but I also have a couple of people stronger than that to help."

"Are you sure about that?"

"I am. My sources are reliable, and it makes sense. People around levels 30 to 40 don't attract attention, and they are strong enough to be guards but not too strong to make it seem like they are protecting something dangerous. Not to mention that if you are above level 50, people keep track of where you are."

"Really?" Hera asked, feeling like that was a stretch.

"Where is Naka, the guard captain, right now?"

"She's with Risli, getting some potions and ointments for the guards."

"And how do you know that?"

"People were just talking about it as I was coming… Oh.."

"Exactly. It's not like we track them, but everyone wants to know about them when someone is that powerful. That's why you can't have high-level people around if you want to keep a secret for long."

Hera thought for a moment but knew that if she refused to help, she would hate herself, "Ok. I'm in. We can also talk with my friends. Helena might be a very good help."

Becca shook her head, "Helena is famous. Bonnie's father is famous. Blue has a legacy. The only one who might help would be Alex, but she's not back from Earth yet, is she?"

"How do you know that?"

"I'm a reporter. That's what I do. But your friends attract too much attention. You do too, but not that much, not anymore, at least. After finding the wendigo and discovering Boothudurn, you vanished from the public eye. Also, the bigger the group we move with, the easier it will be to be noticed."

Hera knew that she, better than most, could handle being alone or in a small group, and she already had some ideas about how her court could help break people out of prison. But all of this still required more information. She couldn't just follow Becca blindly.

"Fine. I'll go alone, but I need more information, Becca. I'm only doing this if you can prove that this is the right thing to do. If you can't do that, I'm not helping. I won't get in your way, but I'm out."

"I think I can do that. Is there a place where we can talk in private? For real, this time. And yes, if you are not convinced, we can pretend this never happened."

"Come to my house. I was going to be alone for the afternoon."

With that, the spell hiding them was dropped, and the two of them walked toward Hera's home. They were still talking about random things. Becca asked about the Empress' journey and how it was to be stuck in the MAZE again with an uncanny naturality. Anyone who overheard their conversation would never imagine they were just talking about breaking people out of a blacksite. When they arrived, Hera opened the door and gestured for Becca to enter.

"Thanks," Becca smiled but accidentally kicked the floor, stopping for a moment to groan and rub her foot while in the entrance. During that brief pause, Hera noticed a small disturbance in the mana around them, as if someone invisible was entering her home.

'Did you feel that?' she asked her court, getting confirmation from all of them, 'Whoever they are, they might be after Becca. Let's get the drop on them.'

Becca apologized and walked in, followed by the Empress, who quickly let Lurize move behind the entryway table in his beetle form. Hera paid attention to the shape, realizing that it was humanoid and seemed to be moving with intent, always staying close to Becca. Possibly to find a moment to strike. Hera stepped closer to the couch and put her foot underneath it, pretending to have hit her knee on the hard part of the armrest with a yell.

"Are you ok?" Becca gasped.

"Yeah, sorry. It's an old wound from the trip. A monster did a number on my knee, and I'm still recovering," Hera replied while Livy and Nimbus appeared underneath the couch in their weapon forms. Usually, she couldn't control where her blades would come from, but if she focused, she could make them appear anywhere in her body, including her feet.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Are you sure you are ok?" Becca frowned, starting to get suspicious.

"Yeah. Don't worry. This won't affect my help. It should only take a couple of days for the treatment to be over. Also, there is one thing I have to show you," Hera raised both her hands and created a halberd using her [Venomous Arsenal] skill, "This is something I learned while traveling, and it might help us. At least we won't have to worry about weapons."

"Oh, that's nice," Becca approached to see the orange halberd as the invisible figure, who was like a hole in the environmental mana, followed, their feet getting close enough to the couch.

'Now!' Hera yelled in her mind as two massive dragon hands reached out and grabbed the figure's feet just as the couch jumped in the air, being pushed by Livy's body. Nimbus and Lurize appeared in their bipedal forms, grabbing the invisible figure by the arms while tackling them to the ground. Hera followed along, pulling Becca behind her, slamming the halberd on the ground right by the invader's neck, and pulling the blade to the side, stopping just short of decapitating whoever this was.

"What the.." Becca didn't know what was happening, but a voice came from the ground.

"Wow, wow, wow. I'm on your side. I'm on your side!" the figure appeared on the ground. It was a man with plump lips, a small nose, hazel eyes, blond hair, and pointy elf ears, "Becca, help me out here before she kills me!"

"Hera, wait!" the reporter snapped out of it, "This is Zestra. He is one of the high-level people who are working with me. I was going to introduce him now."

"Oh…" Hera looked down, "Sorry? But you kind of invaded my home. And we are talking about blacksites. I thought you were an assassin."

"Completely understandable, but how the hell did you find me? And what are those?" Zestra glanced at Nimbus and Lurize, who were still on top of them.

"Let him go," Hera told her court, "I think I have some explaining to do, and so do you," she turned to Becca, who just nodded, still processing what just happened.