Chapter 347: Trojan Horse
"I do have to appreciate your skill, Mrs Turner." Gen said, chewing on the steak. "It is incredibly delicious."
"Thank you." Mrs Turner preened under the praise.
"I've always told her that but she never once believes me." Mr. Turner boomed playfully.
"That's because you'll eat anything." Mrs Turner said to him before turning to Gen. "But Ms. Defoe here is an elegant young Miss."
"Oh, thank you." Gen said smiling back while suppressing an unladylike snort. If only they knew the kind of things she did for fun.
The Turners were the last of the guests she'd been visiting. She'd specifically chosen people who wouldn't be turned away at the door for anything.
People who were influential enough that turning them away from the party when they were already invited would start a media frenzy.
Turning away one would not be too bad but turning away as much as fifteen? Even James won't want the attention that came with it.
She'd used her Aura to convince her guests that she was important enough to be invited for dinner.
She hadn't come as herself but wore a new face as Miss Defoe. And she'd used each dinner to reinforce the message she wanted.
"So, to reiterate, what would you do at the party?" She asked her hosts with a smile.
"We'll go about our business like everybody else." Mr. Turner smiled. "And when the party is well underway, we'll find a knife and kill Harlow Industries' Chief Operating Officer, Alfred with it."
"Good." Gen nodded, sipping at her wine. "Remember. Do not take any weapons with you. Find them yourself at the party. Understood?"
"Of course." Mrs Turner giggled like they were not just discussing murder. "We're not kids."
"Good. And after this dinner, you'll forget all about me and what I just told you. Discard everything you know about me completely. Purge it from your whole being." Her voice turned a bit melodic on the last sentence and the effect took hold.
The Turners nodded.
"But hide the plan only deep in your subconscious. Remember it only when you're inside the party. And then, carry it out."
"Yes, Miss Defoe." They both nodded.
"Good." Gen smiled and the dinner continued like the previous conversation never happened.
She'd visited enough people to cause chaos at the party. They'll never see her real attack coming.
At the end of the dinner, Gen made her way to a place she shouldn't be caught in.
It was already dangerous for her to be within the city. Who knows when James will do another search?
But right now, it was time for her to do something dangerous. Something so wild that getting caught will result in her dying on the spot.
It was either success or destruction.
She would be sneaking into James' estate.
Gen activated her tattoo, slipping onto the mirror dimension and the world immediately went dark.
It was scary when she first activated the tattoo. She'd been surrounded by a darkness so deep it wasn't just an absence of light.
She could feel just the barest traces of beings lurking in the darkness. Separated from her by another dimension. A dimension she couldn't cross.
Something tells her it's the progenitor's gate and those beings were natives of the abyss.
She steeled herself and banished away the darkness closest to her with an activation of her Aura. The world blossomed to life around her.
Her world was now limited to the length of her Aura. She felt her vitality burning up steadily at the use of this tattoo.
Luckily, she'd saved enough to achieve this and still have a lot left for other parts of her plan.
Even with the short range of vision, she still knew where to go.
She followed a now familiar path from her time building the map to a side entrance. It was the opposite from where the workers setting up the ball were passing in and out.
One advantage of her ability was the fact that in her mirror dimension, all doors could be unlocked with her vitality.
The more powerful the lock, the more vitality is used up.
However, she doubted she'd have enough vitality to open something like the progenitor's lock even if she saved enough vitality for fifty years.
However, she'd chosen this entrance because it was less likely to be under a strict watch.
She was taking a gamble here. She was confident in her ability to sneak past any vampire of the fifth ring and below.
But for sixth ringed vampires and above, she couldn't risk getting near them. Sixth ringed vampires are all granted the Dominion ability.
Just by being around them, lesser vampires would feel their abilities waning. Getting within range of James would allow him to discover her in an instant.
Which was why she was sending an astral projection to him. By knowing where he was, she'd be able to go around him.
Her projection floated up to James's study, giving her another set of vision.
She walked down a long corridor, heading to her destination, the basement.
Then she froze as she heard muffled footsteps walking towards her. Her vitality surged within her and she expanded her Aura, praying that it wasn't James.
She leaned in as a shoe stepped into her Aura. It was as if the world slowed down as the person walked in.
Alfred.
She sighed in relief. Fortunately, her Aura is not in the natural world and cannot be felt there. It only worked in the mirror dimension, helping her light her way.
As Alfred walked towards her, oblivious, the thought crossed her mind.
She could use this opportunity to kill him and remove him from the board.
All she needed to do was drop the dimension the moment he passed her and plunge her hand through his back to rip out his heart. He won't see it coming.
But she decided against it. It won't be worth it and would do nothing to further her plans.
Killing Alfred now might even end with her getting caught. It wasn't worth it.
Besides, he wasn't her true target. Her target was someone else. Someone whose death would be impossible to keep quiet.
She stood there, watching as Alfred walked past her and eventually left her range of vision.
Gen shook her head and went on her way.
Above her, her projection finally arrived at James' study. He was there, sitting at his desk.
"Hello, James."