Chosen By The Lover's Constellation-Chapter 175: Star Players, Part Four

"An Instinct that allows one to use others’ Instincts," Miss Taylor said. "That sounds broken."

Currently, Lianna was relaying what she’d heard from Athene. She told her about the attack, of course, but this was the focal point of the meeting.

"Not just Instincts. Traits, too."

"Wonderful," Miss Taylor blinked. "Additionally, it would appear as though a trend is forming here."

"What do you mean?" Lianna asked.

"Besides for the attacks on the random Watchful members, now, it would appear this girl, and whatever group she’s working with, are systematically going after everyone who went to help you in Garriden," Miss Taylor explained. "Xi, then Athene. If this pattern holds up, it’s likely Desmond and I are next."

Instantly, Lianna felt some concern bubble up.

"If that girl steals your Instinct or your Trait..."

---

Traits:

Seed of Heaven

{The world is in the palm of your hand. Learning, training, and improving are much easier for you than they are for others.}

---

Instinct:

The Heart of Nothingness - 30-second cooldown

{Your inner peace infects an enemy, lowering their bloodlust and desire to attack you}

---

Lianna didn’t want to see what an enemy with these abilities looked like.

"Indeed," Miss Taylor nodded. "Unfortunately, we don’t know for how long she can use an ability after she’s taken it. If she gets access to my Trait... She could train to become too powerful for us to defeat. As much as I want to track this opponent down and end her life, in my case, it may be better to avoid her."

"Same goes for me," Lianna responded. "If that girl takes my Instinct, she’ll be able to see what all of us can do."

"I agree. If that girl gets access to your Instinct and then manages to survive the encounter, fighting her will become that much harder."

"So, what do we do?" Lianna asked.

That was the gold star question. The opponent they were facing was someone they both wanted to take out as quickly as possible and someone they wanted to avoid at all costs. At least, in Lianna and Miss Taylor’s cases.

"The problem is that we don’t know if this person can imitate spells as well," Miss Taylor said, one hand under her chin. "If they can, sending someone like Mel would also be problematic. And, because it isn’t just Instincts that she can use, there’s no reason to assume that isn’t the case."

"Yeah," Lianna nodded and then sighed. "So, who do we send after her?"

Miss Taylor took a moment to consider that.

"Athene said that although the girl can use Instincts, she cannot mimic attributes. Whoever we send to face her would have to be someone with very high stats, but who does not rely on spells, traits, or Instincts to win battles. Someone who can simply overpower the girl, even if she can use the same tools as them. Athene is the obvious answer in my mind, but now that the girl herself is aware of Athene being a bad matchup, she will likely try her hardest to avoid facing her again."

Lianna quickly thought of Enverna, but then, she was reminded of the fact that Enverna would need Lianna to be nearby in order for her stats to be high enough to overpower this girl the way Athene was saying.

[Come on...] Lianna thought. [Who do we know that has high stats and can just brute force a win against this girl? Who...?]

Lianna went through all of her friends in her mind. The stats and abilities Target Analysis had revealed to her. Character sheets flashed before her mind until, eventually, she settled on someone.

[... Yeah,] Lianna nodded to herself. [That seems like the obvious answer.]

"Do you have someone in mind?"

"Mhm," Lianna nodded. "I do, actually."

---

{Caroline}

Caroline sat in the cozy comfort of her home, a steaming cup of tea cradled in her hands.

The recent events involving the defeat of the Fiends who raided the city, Jack’s demise, and the return of her family had brought a sense of tranquility back into her life.

However, amidst the quietude, her thoughts often drifted to Enverna.

[I wonder how she’s doing,] Caroline thought.

After the girl had left, Caroline quickly fell back into normalcy.

She took missions, she frequented taverns, took home lovers, and fought to the death against Fiends all over her region.

None of it felt exciting anymore.

She wasn’t too sure why.

As she took a soothing sip of her tea, a gentle knock on the door interrupted her.

"Excuse me, my lady."

A servant entered, bearing a letter on a silver tray.

"For you."

Caroline’s curiosity piqued as she accepted the envelope.

With a flicker of anticipation, Caroline broke the seal and unfolded the letter, her eyes scanning the writing on it.

"Caroline, hi! I hope you’re doing well," the letter began. "Recently, some events have transpired that I think you need to be made aware of. Here’s the rundown."

Caroline’s brow furrowed as she continued reading, her mind struggling to grasp the gravity of this message.

"Recently, Xi was assassinated."

Caroline’s eyes widened.

"The girl who attacked her also attacked Athene later, though Athene survived. She possesses abilities beyond our understanding," the letter continued, each word etching a sense of urgency and concern into Caroline’s heart. "She can mimic Traits and Instincts. A power we’re struggling to find an answer to."

A gasp escaped Caroline’s lips.

[That’s crazy!]

"We need your expertise, Caroline," the letter’s plea echoed in her mind as she read on, her fingers gripping the paper with a newfound intensity. "I think you’re exactly the right person to take this girl on, given that you mostly rely on your stats and not your Traits or Instinct."

"If you’re willing, we’d like to have you travel to Telvan."

"Please, consider helping us."

"With regards, Lianna."

Caroline’s thoughts raced.

The comfort of her home now seemed distant.

Setting down the letter, Caroline’s gaze drifted to the window, her determination mirrored in the resolute set of her features.

"... I guess my job’s not over, then," Caroline muttered to herself.

With a steely resolve, right then and there, Caroline made her decision.

She had to go.