My Goblin System : Levelling up with my SSS Class Devouring skill-Chapter 314

"The detection spells," Sylvara said. "How do we bypass them?"

"You don’t bypass them," Cassius said simply. "You go through official channels. The wards are designed to catch infiltrators who sneak through—they don’t trigger for people who enter legitimately through the checkpoint. As long as you’re registered in the official log and vouched for by a guard, the wards read you as authorized and ignore you completely."

"You’re going to vouch for us," Satou said.

"Exactly. I’m on duty tonight with another guard named Marcus Thorne. He’s lazy, greedy, and more interested in getting through his shift without trouble than in actually doing his job properly. I’ve spent the past week building a relationship with him specifically for tonight."

"Relationship?" Sylvara asked.

"Shared drinks after shifts, complained about the boring work together, loaned him money when he was short on rent, established trust and camaraderie. Standard social engineering." Cassius pulled a small leather pouch from his belt, coins clinking inside. "Last night, I mentioned casually that I had relatives traveling through the region—distant cousins I haven’t seen in years who are merchants passing through Valstrath. I asked if he’d help me wave them through quickly as a personal favor since they’ve had a long journey."

"And he agreed," Satou said.

"Immediately—especially when I offered him half my week’s pay as a thank you for the ’favor.’" Cassius’s smile showed fangs briefly. "Marcus doesn’t care about security protocols. He cares about money and getting to the tavern after his shift. For ten silver coins, he’ll barely glance at your faces and will happily stamp whatever I tell him to stamp in the registry."

"We’re supposed to be your relatives," Satou said, a hint of amusement creeping into his voice despite the serious situation.

"Distant cousins visiting from the south," Cassius confirmed. "You’re traveling merchants—Renna and Tomas Blackwood from the city of Keldris. You’ve had a long journey and just want to get inside before curfew. I’ll vouch for you, Marcus will take his bribe and barely look at your faces, I’ll register you in the official log, and the detection wards will read you as legitimately authorized visitors. Simple, clean, minimal risk."

Sylvara studied Cassius with undisguised professional respect. "That’s... actually brilliant. Most infiltrators try to fight against security systems. You just convinced the system to let us walk right through."

"Years of intelligence work taught me that the best infiltrations don’t involve breaking through security—they involve walking through the front door with permission and a smile." Cassius pulled out two dark traveling cloaks from a pack he’d hidden in the underbrush nearby. "Put these on. They have deep hoods that will shadow your faces. Lord Satou, keep your head down and the hood pulled forward. Your dragoblin features won’t be visible in the torchlight shadows if you’re careful not to look up directly."

Satou took the cloak, examining it with tactical appreciation. Quality material, well-worn enough to look legitimately used rather than suspiciously new. The hood was deep enough to cast significant shadow, and the color was nondescript brown that would blend with any crowd of travelers.

"You’ve thought of everything," Satou observed.

"That’s my job," Cassius replied. "Intelligence work is ninety percent preparation and ten percent execution. The fact that you arrived tonight instead of two days from now means my preparation paid off. Now, here’s exactly how this will work."

He shifted position slightly, settling in as if preparing to give a formal mission briefing.

"You two will approach the gate acting tired and eager to get inside before curfew. Not nervous—nervous draws attention. Just weary travelers who’ve had a long day and want to find an inn. I’ll intercept you as part of my routine inspection duties. Marcus will barely pay attention because he’s already been bribed and expects ’my cousins’ to arrive sometime tonight. I’ll ask a few basic questions for appearance’s sake—where you’re from, what brings you to Valstrath, how long you’re staying. You give short, boring answers. I mark you in the registry as authorized visitors. You walk through. The whole interaction should take less than two minutes."

"What about weapons?" Sylvara asked, touching her concealed daggers. "Don’t they check for those?"

"Merchants are allowed basic self-defense weapons—daggers, short swords, traveling staves, that sort of thing. Highway bandits are common enough that no one questions merchants being armed for protection. As long as you’re not carrying obvious military-grade equipment or magical weapons displayed openly, it’s not an issue. Just keep your more exotic gear hidden under your cloaks."

Cassius’s eyes shifted to Satou, assessing. "Your shadow abilities and magical weapons won’t be detected by casual inspection. The detection wards are designed to catch unauthorized people sneaking through, not to analyze every traveler’s magical capabilities in detail. They’re looking for intruders, not cataloging what abilities registered visitors might have."

"What about my appearance?" Satou asked, the practical question. "Even with a hood, if someone looks closely..."

"That’s where Marcus’s laziness works in our favor," Cassius explained. "He’s worked twelve-hour shifts for six days straight because the garrison is understaffed. He’s exhausted, bored, and counting down the minutes until he can leave. When I vouch for you as my relatives, he’ll accept it at face value because actually verifying would require effort he doesn’t want to expend. The hood, the dim lighting, his tiredness, and my vouching combine to make him simply not look closely."

"And if he does look closely?" Sylvara pressed.

"Then I accidentally knock over the registry book, creating a distraction while apologizing profusely and picking up scattered papers. In that moment of chaos, you slip through with the other travelers who are also waiting to enter. By the time everything is sorted, you’re already inside and officially registered. But—" Cassius’s expression became serious, "—that’s a backup plan. The primary plan will work if you follow the script and act natural."

Satou donned the cloak, pulling the hood up and adjusting it carefully until his face was properly shadowed. The fabric fell well past his shoulders, and when he kept his head slightly down, his distinctive features disappeared into darkness.