With bated breath Tepo entered the room behind the steel door. Despite getting rid of his clothes, he naturally wouldn’t leave his gun and knife behind. He held his precious weapons defensively before his body, even if only one of them still worked.

Anxious, the young man quickly scanned the room from left to right. Under the dim illumination of a few flickering oil lamps, he made out multiple tanks containing a strange green liquid. Bodies of different animals were scattered on a big table next to them.

The latter’s surface was dirtied by all kinds of liquids, most likely blood. Empty glass containers stood around. The right side of the room was occupied by some big apparatus. Shrouded in shadows it was impossible to make out its usage.

Carefully, Tepo took a step forward. A rancid smell touched his nose, origination form the table. Tepo wrinkled his nose. He was just about to inspect the tanks closer, when his body flinched. A voice echoed in the room.

“Charles? Charles, are you back?”

Tepo stayed quiet. He didn’t know if he had met an ally or enemy.

The sound of a chair moving sounded from within the shadows. A silhouette stood up. With light steps it slowly walked into the light.

Tepo held his weapons before his body. Since whatever was lurking in the dark could talk, he didn’t expect it to be a monster.

Finally, one of the oil lamps flickered. A flash of light illuminated a leg before it sank back into the shadows. Another step. A body gradually left the darkness.

Tepo’s tension toned down. Human legs appeared in his vision. A human upper body followed. Human arms. Human neck. And…

Drawing a sharp breath the young man looked into the human face with its empty eye sockets.

Except for this eerie feature the face would even be considered handsome. It was fair, without any edges. A straight nose separated two symmetrical halves. Long, blond hair fell graciously behind the head.

Tepo rose his brow. He had seen this man’s portrait in the study. Wasn’t this Lord Hoftal?

Just as this this thought came to Tepo’s mind, everything suddenly changed. The world before his eyes became blurry. A sudden pull yanked on his body. For a moment everything turned black.

Before Tepo’s mind could catch up he felt cold air attacking his skin. A grey cloud surrounded by storms appeared before his eyes. In the air floated a small ball of liquid reflecting all colors in the world.

Exhausted, covered in wounds, the investigator let his tired body fall onto the cloud. Lying on his back he watched the peaceful blue above, a forlorn smile on his face.

Finally, he had made it. Finding the lord in his lab apparently counted as evidence. It allowed him to clear the dungeon.

Closing his eyes, Tepo took a deep breath. His mind was exhausted, but the danger wasn’t over. The guard may already lie in ambush. He must stand up quickly.

Tepo had to steel his will. He groaned painfully. Only after the tension fell off did he realize the bad shape his body was in. He had… had to stand up. He had to move on!

Just as he opened his determined eyes again, He felt something at his shoulder. He hissed through gritted teeth. Immediately after, his body trembled. Did someone just kick me?

“Young man?”

A languid voice entered Tepo’s ears. He was confused. This certainly wasn’t a guard’s voice, right?

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“It appears you beat me to it! You cleared the dungeon first.”, the mellowly, male voice sighed. “Although you could have done so a bit more… elegantly, don’t you think?”

Perplexed, Tepo answered instinctively:

“That’s just how I always dress. Sorry if you don’t like it.”

The young man had expected to sound confident, but his voice came out incredibly dry. Everyone could tell that he was at the end of his road.

“Hmm.”, chuckled the voice. “If you can still joke around, your situation can’t be that bad. And here I was contemplating if I should help you.”

Knowing his dire circumstances, Tepo answered tiredly:

“Normally I wouldn’t plead strangers, but I might make an exception for you.”

“Whatever.”

After this languid reply sounded out, a white boot appeared in Tepo’s vision. The man stepped forward leisurely, his back towards Tepo. A fine, white robe was draped over his shoulders. A thick fur adorning its neck area. Artistic green lines ran down its back. Flowing, long green hair openly swayed in the wind.

From Tepo’s perspective it was difficult to see the man’s front as he passed him.

“Here, catch.” Saying so, the stranger casually tossed a pill over his shoulders. It perfectly landed on Tepo’s chest.

The young man was torn. He didn’t want to trust the mysterious stranger, but this was a great opportunity. It this man could bring him away from here, Tepo might not encounter the guards. But it was hard to gauge the stranger’s motives.

Gritting his teeth, Tepo stared at the inconspicuous pill resting on his chest. It tempted him greatly. As the son of an alchemist, Tepo had at least some knowledge.

From what he could tell this pill was a normal, low-level healing pill. Of course, if some experienced alchemist tempered with it, Tepo wouldn’t be able to tell. But from this perspective no one could trust any pill ever.

Tepmodus took a deep breath. His shoulder hurt as he raised his arm. He grabbed the pill.

Unbeknownst to him, every move of his was clearly observed by the stranger. This moment held a significance Tepo could have never expected. He looked at the pill for a second before opening his mouth and decisively throwing it in. He was ready to take this risk.

A light flashed past the stranger’s eyes. He had also come to a decision. He took a few more steps forward, approaching the liquid floating in the air.

As Tepo felt a warm current reenergizing his body, he felt relieved. With a refreshed mentality his eyes followed the stranger’s back.

Focusing on the liquid before him, the man calmly asked aloud:

“Do you know what this is?”

Uncertain, Tepo answered:

“This… is an artificial core?”

“Correct.”

Replying languidly, the man reached out with his hand.

“Artificial cores are pretty docile.”

A glass bottle appeared in the man’s hand out of nowhere. Pushing the liquid carefully, it smoothly entered the bottle.

Tepo frowned, seeing the man’s actions. But then he sighed faintly. He was in no condition to stop the stranger. But he still hoped to strike a deal.

“If you can get me home safely, you can have it.”

“Not a bad idea, but I’m not interested in the core.”, stated the stranger nonchalantly.

Bewildered, Tepo wasn’t sure if those words were true. Who wouldn’t take a free artificial core? Wasn’t this the best way to strengthen one’s core? Which warrior could resist such temptation.

Or could it be… this man is not a warrior at all? Wouldn’t this be even more trouble for me?

As the investigator came to all sorts of conjectures, the stranger finally turned around. Tepo was taken aback. Staring at the mask covering the man’s face, the situation seemed even more abstruse.

Lazy blue eyes focused on Tepo from behind a green mask with a white quill drawn on it. It covered the man’s entire face and even snugly embraced his neck.

Tepo felt weirded out looking into these eyes which appeared able to see through everything with a glance. He lowered his own view, mustering the stranger’s clothes.

The white robe’s front was as elegant as its back. It covered the stranger’s entire body. Only white boots and gloves protruded from it. Although the robe was airy, fluttering freely in the wind, it would still limit the arms’ movements greatly.

So… is this man really no warrior? He even holds a book in one hand. He has no weapons on him. Was my hope for naught?

If the stranger knew Tepo’s thoughts he would surely scoff at him. What a narrow worldview. Many would quiver in their boots when they laid eyes on him, but Tepo even questioned if he was a warrior.

Fortunately, the stranger couldn’t read minds. He leisurely approached Tepo.

Suddenly the young adult’s eyes bulged. As the stranger came to a stop next to him, his book suddenly vanished without a trace, replaced by a metal pole directed at his body.

Seeing Tepo’s apparent shock the stranger knew that he was dealing with an inexperienced individual. He calmly spoke up:

“Come on!”

“What?”, asked Tepo in confusion.

“Grab the metal pole.”

“Why? Is there anything special about it?”

“No.”, spoke the stranger in annoyance. “But you can’t expect me to touch you in your state, do you?”

Tepo blinked his eyes. He smiled wryly, grabbing the metal pole. With a sudden pull Tepo almost shot down the cloud. Even after multiple steps he still needed the help of his trusty Náree to stabilize himself.