The Poet's System
Chapter 60: Unsettling Weight

Chapter 60: Unsettling Weight

"We haven’t gathered any concrete information about them yet," Astara said, locking eyes with Captain Stanley, "but we’ve identified a pattern in their attacks." The others remained quietly seated.

"Operating at night has become their greatest advantage, especially since most people now fear venturing out after dark.

Also, given the number of disappearances, we believe there are more than just three of them—perhaps even an entire army serving under their command."

Astara’s words lingered in the air as Captain Stanley met her gaze, a mischievous smile tugging at his lips.

After much deliberation over what to tell Captain Stanley, they ultimately decided to paint Giselle as the true villain, steer the Chivalry in that direction, and hope to quietly close the case once she was arrested.

However, there were clear downsides.

Someone within the Honor Guard—or perhaps even the Honor Chivalry Association itself—was aiding Giselle, proving her influence reached unsettling heights.

This meant that trying to clear their names by convincing the Chivalry that Giselle was behind the Fools might ultimately achieve nothing.

"Is that all you’ve got? That’s a weak effort, Princess," Captain Stanley said, his expression unwavering.

Astara exchanged an uneasy glance with Daylan and Medora before her expression hardened. Clenching her fist, she spoke firmly.

"I don’t want to be part of this mission anymore. I’m leaving everything in Daylan and Medora’s hands. I trust them to handle it swiftly."

Medora, confused and feeling a sting of betrayal, was about to question Astara—but Daylan, still seated calmly, gently tapped her hand, silently urging her to stay quiet.

It was a brief moment of tense silence—subtle, yet enough to draw attention. But not once did Astara flinch or glance back at Daylan and Medora.

Stanley smirked. "I’ve heard a lot about these two—especially the guy. What’s your name again?"

Before Daylan could respond, Astara cut in quickly. "Day... his name is Daylan Rhys," she said, still refusing to look their way.

"Alright, Princess. If you believe in them that much, then I’ll leave it to them," he said, his expression darkening as a sinister edge crept into his voice. "But you’d better solve this case—before I solve it for you."

He locked eyes with Daylan, likely hoping to intimidate him with his fearsome gaze. However, Daylan saw it as an opportunity—one he intended to exploit to read his mind.

Fractal Echo

In an instant, Daylan reached for his hand in agony—only for blood to begin trickling from his nose. His attempt to read Stanley’s mind was violently repelled by a surge of intense, crashing sound waves that nearly shattered his thoughts and split his mind apart.

Stanley smirked. "Interesting. I like you, Daylan."

As he spoke, the blood trickling from Daylan’s nose abruptly stopped. The droplets lifted into the air, forming a small sphere before evaporating completely—gone before Daylan could even raise a hand to touch it.

Daylan’s expression shifted to sudden shock.

What...?—he thought, the realization sinking in—crossing Captain Stanley might have been a serious mistake after all.

Astara immediately rose to her feet and requested that the meeting be adjourned—unless Captain Stanley had anything further to add.

Stanley simply leaned back in his seat, flashing them a thumbs-up with a playful smirk. With that, they took their leave.

Medora was irritated by Astara’s decision and was ready to confront her the moment they stepped out of the office—but once again, Daylan stopped her.

"You can use the house as long as you need.

Just solve this case before it spirals out of control," Astara said, still refusing to look in their direction—let alone meet their eyes. The moment the words left her lips, she turned and walked away.

"How can you be so calm about this?"

Daylan let out a soft chuckle. "I don’t know. Maybe because it’s not her fight anymore. She’s already done more than enough."

Medora sighed as they both watched her walk away.

Despite his words, Daylan couldn’t help but feel a hint of betrayal—at the very least, a warning from her would have been appreciated.

Still, given her recent shift in behavior, he chose not to judge her. Instead, he held on to the hope that one day, she would explain herself.

The task had already been a heavy burden on six shoulders—now it rested on just four. They needed to return home quickly and rethink their approach to confronting Giselle without Astara.

However, Medora gave Daylan no room to breathe on the way back. Every word she spoke dripped with resentment, revealing just how deeply she despised Astara’s decision to walk away, especially in such a critical moment—and without even having the courage to look them in the eye.

It was early evening when they arrived home, Daylan suggested they discuss their next move—before Captain Stanley decided to take matters into his own hands.

After what had happened at the office, Daylan was already rethinking his plan to outsmart him. Not now—he thought. Not until he was strong enough.

"I bet we’ll handle this way faster without her. Tsk."

Whether it was true or not, they had to make it true. They had a plan—one that probably wouldn’t guarantee success. But even if things went sideways, there was still a chance to twist the outcome in their favor.

Daylan was prepared to do whatever it took to evolve Spiral Mind into a weapon—something capable of altering thoughts, bending minds, and reshaping how people feel about certain things.

It was a near-impossible feat—but it would allow them to face Giselle on their own terms, without rushing headlong into defeat as they had before.

To do that, Daylan needed a portion of Giselle’s army—enough to convincingly claim they were the Fools.

If they could pull that off, the Chivalry would have no choice but to get involved, forcing the blame onto the Phantoms and giving them the support they desperately needed.

He had come to realize that weak-ranked abilities did not affect stronger opponents. To ensure Captain Stanley and his lieutenants didn’t see through his charade, he knew he had to grow stronger.

"How exactly? We keep saying this, but we never actually do anything effective."

Before Daylan could respond, a knock sounded at the door. Medora stood up to check it, while Daylan stayed on the sofa, massaging his forehead, struggling to find a better way for them to train effectively this time.

The moment Medora opened the door, the room fell into a heavy silence. Confused, Daylan turned to see her frozen in place, her mouth slightly parted. Concerned, he quickly moved to her side.

Standing at the door was Medora’s mother, Lyra—and, as always, her presence left Medora struggling to even function. But she wasn’t alone. Four guards stood behind her, their expressions unreadable.

"I didn’t want to believe you had kidnapped my daughter—but here you are." She turned to the officers and gestured sharply. "Arrest him."

Medora tried to speak, but her attempt was cut short by a sharp slap. Her eyes fluttered, stunned, as she watched the guards move toward Daylan.

Can today get any worse?—Daylan thought grimly, as he surrendered without resistance.

"I’m sorry, Day."

"Don’t worry, Dora." He winked at her.

Daylan was shoved into the guards’ carriage, while Medora silently stepped into her mother’s. As the wheels began to turn and the carriages rolled away, Daylan leaned his head against the seat, closing his eyes, trying to find a sliver of peace in the passing wind.

His thoughts felt distant and hollow; he didn’t even have the will to make sense of what was happening. For some reason, all he wanted was to find some kind of closure in the silence.

He fought the urge to scream more than once, settling instead for running his hands through his hair and over his face, trying to keep himself grounded.

Before long, they arrived at the guardhouse in the Southern District, not far from the church premises.

Daylan had been there before, to visit his mother. Still, he wasn’t completely used to the place. It was a massive hall, with over five cells built right into it. No privacy, just overwhelming.

The guards refrained from using violence since Daylan was part of the chivalry and they had little reason to suspect him of kidnapping. Instead, they politely asked him to meet with Captain Rhea to give his statement.

As soon as he stepped inside, Daylan was greeted by a warm smile from Captain Rhea.

"We meet again, Daylan," she said.

He returned the smile with one of his own.

"You’re quite popular around here," she added lightly. "But that’s a conversation for another day. Now, please—tell me your side of the story."

Daylan explained that he had been assigned a mission to apprehend the Fools and that their stay in the city had been legally authorized by Captain Stanley.

But even after hearing his side of the story, Captain Rhea informed him that he would still be held in custody until his claims could be verified.

Daylan braced himself, letting the moment sink in as he quietly followed a guard toward his cell. The looks he received from the guards—and even from Captain Rhea—were enough to tell him something wasn’t right. Something felt off.

The cell was no different from the one his mother had once been held in. Mice and cockroaches scurried freely, and not a single lantern lit the corridor or the cells—it was as if the place hadn’t been cleaned in years.

His cellmates were all old, their faces worn and hollow, as though they’d been rotting away in that darkness for decades.

"At least I get to see her pretty face from here." He murmured to himself with a smirk.