Terra Nova Online: Rise of The Strongest Player

Chapter 216: Fake It Till You Make It

“Intruder? Who dares intrude on the Royal Palace?”

“Whoever the intruder is, I just hope they come down this hall once-, just once, it will become one of those legendary moments where I stop the intruder and my life changes forever.

I could be promoted to captain you know!”

Two low ranking palace guards chatted amongst each other, as Leo passed right by them when they were fantasizing about taking down the intruder.

“Sir!”

“Sir!”

The two of them stomped their feet and gave Leo a salute as he walked past, as although Leo himself did not understand it, the guard uniform he was wearing was of a guard captain and not that of a regular guard.

“Watchout for anyone who comes down this hall. Let me know immediately if you see anything” Leo said in a confident voice, as the two youngsters shuddered in joy.

This was the first time someone had given them some important instructions and hence they stood clutching their spears in palpable excitement.

Fantasy scenarios of them taking down dangerous intruders ran through their heads as they hoped to be praised about it later by seniors.

Unfortunately for them however, the intruder had already walked past them, even issuing instructions to them, as the duo remained completely oblivious to his deceit.

This confidence wasn’t something that Leo naturally possessed, he wasn’t a very skilled actor or a con-man capable of pulling such stunts.

However, when put under duress, instead of crumbling into a puddle of nerves, he managed to bring out such skills from within, which he himself had no idea that he possessed.

When under duress, Leo managed to summon skills he never knew he had, including the skill of sheer dumb bravado.

‘Fake it till you make it! Show no weakness… you are a Royal Guard! You are a Royal Guard! You are a….. Oh God, this Armor is too large, I’m feeling itchy and sweaty underneath….’ Leo thought, as he distinctly felt sweat forming on his back, threatening to roll down his skin, as he tried his best to keep a straight face.

Inside the guard captain’s uniform, the armor clung to him like a sauna, and his heartbeat pounded so rapidly he thought it might be echoing through the corridor.

However, despite feeling like his itch could become unbearable at any moment, he maintained a stoic expression, keeping his chin up and his gaze unwavering.

His inner monologue, however, was a different story, as although he projected the image of a cool indifferent royal guard, internally he was thinking stuff such as ‘Oh, please don’t let them notice how much I’m sweating,’ or ‘If I have to salute back one more time, my arm might just fall off.’

Yet despite all the inconveniences, he forced a confident nod and barked out crisp commands every time he passed by soldiers to keep up appearances, all while wondering if they’d notice the suspiciously large stain spreading under his armpits.

Each time a guard gave him a curious look, Leo returned their gaze with such an exaggerated glare that they quickly straightened up.

He even found himself giving a dismissive wave once or twice, imitating authority with such bravado that it would have made a real captain proud.

Deep down, though, he knew he was one false step away from giving himself away. But until that moment came, he hoped he could fool them all—if not through skill, then at least through sheer, sweaty bravado.

**********

( Meanwhile, in the interim-passage where Leo dumped the body of the unconscious guard captain behind the fountain )

“KYAAAAAA”

A guard shouted, as he fell flat on his bum looking towards the body of the naked guard captain hugging the side of the fountain wall.

“What happened? What happened? Where is the intruder?”

“Why are you screaming? What’s wrong?” another guard said, as he walked towards the guard pointing at the bottom of the fountain, curious as to why he looked so pale.

“WHAAA, WHAT THE FUCK-” He screamed as well, the second he saw the unconscious body of their guard captain, as the duo’s reactions alerted all the guards nearby.

“That’s the guard captain! This means Ben Faulkner has changed into the clothes of the guard captain and is probably making his way out of the palace wearing a guards uniform…..” A third guard said, as he made a very accurate assessment of the situation.

“Hey guys, did we not see a guard walking in the opposite direction of the alarm while screaming ‘INTRUDER ALERT’ , just a few moments ago?” Asked a fourth guard, as at that moment, all four guards looked towards each other, blinked twice, before realizing that they’d all been fooled.

“Fuck– Ben Faulkner is running away posing as a guard” the third guard said, as he began running down the corridor they saw Leo moving in, with the other three following him at a distance.

“STOP YOU IMPOSTER BEN FAULKNERRRR” Shouted the third guard, as his rapid descent down the hall alerted all the other guards patrolling the area, who could not understand the reason behind the sudden rush.

*********

( Meanwhile, The Virex Guard Captain )

“Check all the rooms, especially the rooms of all the semi-final contestants and the Nobles staying overnight. I don’t believe in coincidences and the fact that this attack happened on the same day as we are hosting lots of guests makes me suspect this might be an inside job.

If anyone is found missing from their rooms, or appear to be suspicious, detain them without reason and throw them into the gulags.

It’s better to apologize later than to let a murderer walk free now” The Virex Corps leader instructed his subordinates, as an immediate search of all guest rooms began.

With Leo having almost made his way to his room in the royal guard captain disguise, it was now a race against time to see whether or not he would be caught in the act, or successfully get-away with an unbelievable escape.