“Lemme... lemme tell you shomethin’. The Cappin’? The Cappin’sh the worsht of the... hiccup... lot! ‘John! Run thish here! John! I’ve got another pack... ooof... package for ya. Where? Other shide of the... hiccup... town. John! Take my fifty... fifty... fifty… stone sword to the blackshmith, would ya?’ I’m a Runner, dang it! Not a... hiccup... recruit you can make do your... hiccup... errands! Then there’sh that old man! Don’t get me... bleuuuuugh... shtarted on — ”

Yu Xiurong held out a hand, stepped back from the foul liquid, and pinched her nose. She didn’t know if the smell was the cheap booze the man was drinking like water or the man himself, and she didn’t want to know.

Once she was far enough away, she spoke.

“I… thank… you for the… warnings, good sir, but I shall go now.”

The man took another swig, swaying on his feet and waving.

“Good... hiccup... luck, pretty lady, with… whatever it was you were... hiccup... doing again.”

Yu Xiurong turned an eye twitching and walked away. As she did, the strange drunkard called after her.

“And remember! Be wary of the wasps! They’re watching! Always watching!!!”

Yu Xiurong sighed and shook her head, and walked on. The group had tracked the Star Thief from the abandoned ruins across the prairies and eventually stumbled across a small “scar,” the term used by the Radiant Sea natives for the paths left in the wake of their roaming cities. Scars would gradually “heal” over a few weeks, so travelers often used them to locate nearby settlements. Judging by the age and size of this scar, the Yu Xiurong and the disciples estimated its origin to be no larger than a medium-sized village and only a few days away at that.

The worrying part had been discovering the Star Thief’s signature turning in the same direction. The group had rushed after, praying they made it in time or at least found a few survivors.

Instead of the scene of death and devastation they’d expected, however, the group had found a quiet village making their way toward the nearby Earth Shrine. It was well into the village’s rest cycle when they arrived, with only the local Guardians and a few civilians wandering between carts.

In any other circumstance, the proper procedure would have been simply to walk into town, announce their presence and purpose, then ask questions of anyone willing.

Given the… strangeness of the situation, Yu Xiurong chose to take a more subtle approach. They still knew too little about the Star Thief or their motivations. If the Star Thief was hiding out in the village, showing their hand too soon might have dire consequences, especially for the peaceful villagers.

The group then split up, with orders to examine and explore the village as stealthfully as possible. A simple task, given that even the strongest Guardian in the village, a mid-step [Gold Spirit], was still far below the disciple’s peak step [Shackle Breaking].

That had been a few hours ago, and Yu Xiurong found herself… frustrated. What little the public seemed to know, or at least were openly speaking of, seemed to be mixed and twisted by rumors and gossip to where little of it made sense.

Hopefully, the others would have more pieces of the puzzle.

Soon, the four gathered back together near the edge of the village to share what they’d learned.

Qi Mingxi, Fang Peng, Lin Weiyuan, and Yu Xiurong stepped from the shadows of the village, one by one, silent and unseen, their very presence hidden under several layers.

Yu Xiurong was the first to speak.

“Report. What have you found?”

The young Qi Mingxi’s voice was soft as a shadow as she answered.

“The details are sparse, but there seems to have been some kind of accident recently. No one has openly spoken of it, but more than a few homes are observing mourning rites. Strangely, the actual atmosphere is mixed. Some are openly criticizing the leading council of Elders, while others appear to see the incident as more of a ‘force of nature’ than anything preventable.”

Yu Xiurong raised a brow,

“And no sign as to what happened?”

Qi Mingxi shook her head.

“No. None would openly speak of it, and any who tried were silenced before they could get more than a few words out. I observed many hand signs and other superstitious behavior often attributed to warding off bad luck, so I suspect that may have played a part in it.”

Fang Peng nodded and folded her arms, being the next to speak.

“That would explain some things on my end. I hit up the local tavern — ”

Yu Xiurong narrowed her eyes at the younger woman, who raised her hands in defense.

“ — cloaked, of course! I came across a group of younger adults. They didn’t look much younger than us, so I assume they were the newest apprentices to pass their tests. There wasn’t the festive air you’d have expected of a group like that, though. They were drinking and passing stories between each other, mostly about this person or that, none of whom appeared to be present. It reminded me of the old folks who’d gather and talk about their war days, but that seemed… Odd. My knowledge isn’t great, but I was under the impression the Wandering City’s apprentice tests were more of a formality than anything dangerous.”

Lin Weiyuan nodded as well and picked up from there.

“They are. The Radiant Priaires aren’t the only place to have such ‘apprentice tests.’ But because of the unusual ecosystem and higher level of danger present in this place, apprentices only graduate at a much older age and are far more skilled than in other parts of the world. Not only that, but the proctors for such tests often double as guards and safety nets. Ironically, this means that the rate of death, or even injuries during such tests, is far lower than in comparable groups.”

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

Yu Xiurong frowned.

“You think something happened to the apprentices?”

Yu Xiurongs’ mind flashed to the destroyed villages. If a group of fresh apprentices had been caught in something of that level…

Lin Weiyuan shook his head as he answered.

“Some? Not all of them, obviously, but given what we’ve gathered, it’s likely.”

Yu Xiurong raised a brow and asked, her fists clenching.

“Do you think our Star Thief had anything to do with it?”

Lin Weiyuan opened his mouth to respond, but paused, tilting his head.

“I’m… unsure. I encountered a group of children who were discussing a ‘Lord Protector’ of some sort. They mentioned little, but I snagged this from one of their… clubhouses.”

He said “clubhouse,” but the small shack built into the back of one store had been surprisingly well-guarded. Not only did the children rig the area with various traps and some simple arrays, but the children had even worked out guard rotations and regular inspections.

Nothing he couldn’t slip by, but even the inside had been neatly organized, with dozens of charts and graphs detailing various plans. Everything from simply pranks to more… ominous things. He didn’t know what “Project Swarm” was intended to be, but some of the summary details made him question if this really was a clubhouse or the hidden base of an underground criminal organization.

He’d even questioned if he should blow his cover and report what he’d seen to the village, but while there, he’d witnessed a Guardian sneak in through a hidden latch and make a record in an obviously well-worn notebook. It seemed the adults in the village were well aware of the children’s… hobbies already. No need to poke his nose in their business, then.

Lin Weiyuan reached into his sleeve and pulled out a sheet of paper. On it was a copy of a drawing he’d seen plastered on the clubhouse wall. A drawing of a large, four-legged beetle-like creature.

Yu Xiurong stared at the drawing, frowning as she spoke.

“Strange… I’m… not familiar with this creature. Are any of you?”

She passed the drawing around, though each shook their head.

Turning back to Lin Weiyuan, Yu Xiurong asked,

“Any idea what this might be? Could it be some form of Guardian Beast? I’ve heard of some towns in the Wandering Cities making such contracts, but I was under the impression those were much larger than this village.”

After all, proper care of a Guardian Beast worth anything was a major investment.

Lin Weiyuan shrugged and responded.

“Possible, but given the size of the village and what we’ve learned so far, I think there’s another possibility.”

Fang Peng raised her brow, finishing the thought.

“You think it could have been the Star Thief’s beast companion? Are we even certain there is one?”

Lin Weiyuan nodded.

“All the evidence points to such. It would also fit the narrative we’ve gathered here well.”

Qi Mingxi frowned as she asked.

“But why would the Star Thief’s beast companion be welcomed in the village? Or be labeled as ‘Lord Protector’? More importantly, where is the Star Thief themselves? I’ve heard no mention of someone like that at all.”

Lin Weiyuan shrugged again.

“I don’t know. It’s just a theory based on what we know so far. Maybe they got separated by whatever happened in the ruins. Or maybe the Star Thief became injured to where they couldn’t openly show themselves and had to use their companion as a cover. We still know too li — ”

An old, gravelly voice cut off the young man mid-sentence.

“So you want to know about that bastard, do you? I think I could help you out there.”

The group jumped at the sound of the voice and turned their guard instantly up.

On the covered porch of a nearby homely-looking shack sat an old man, slightly balding and face full of wrinkles. He sat in front of a small chessboard, staring down in contemplation. He picked up one piece and smiled, moving it into place.

Yu Xiurong stepped forward and smiled, bowing slightly as she spoke.

“I’m sorry if our conversation disrupted you, good sir. We’re just travelers passing through your humble village on our way to the Earth Shrine and were curious about the events we’d heard about while here. You said you might shed a bit of light on them for us? I’d hate to impose….”

The old man waved them off, not bothering to look up from his chessboard. A second later, he picked up another piece on the other side of the board and moved it as well, frowning before answering.

“It’s fine, it’s fine. I’ve been having trouble sleeping, anyway. Not like a little noise will make much of a difference.”

Yu Xiurong bowed again and responded.

“Nonetheless, I appreciate your understanding. You said you knew more about this... ‘Lord Protector’? Is that true?”

The old man laughed, throwing his head back.

“Ha! Lord Protector, that’s a good one! The bastard is a menace, is what he is! Walts into town, pretending to be the hero, all the while wrapping everyone around his finger. Bah! I can see right through his type!”

The old man sighed and shook his head.

“And you should see the things he taught the kids! Shameful is what it is! Irresponsible!”

Yu Xiurong frowned, her eyes narrowing.

“I… see. That does sound like a problem. Have you not told elders or authorities about your suspicions?”

The old man turned and pointed to her.

“I know, right?! If you’re going to corrupt the kids, at least do it in a way they don’t realize! Manipulation is all about subtlety! You’re supposed to plant the seeds, make them think that they’re the ones having the ideas! How are the kids supposed to grow and learn if you just give them everything?! — ”

Yu Xiurong nearly spat blood as the old man continued. He turned back to his game and shrugged.

“As for the other children, not much point. There’s no way the youngins here could have done anything against something like… that. Better for everyone to keep up the illusion and see them on their way.”

Yu Xiurong’s frown deepened, but she asked anyway.

“That’s… understandable. Would you happen to know which way they went? We maybe be simple travelers, but maybe we could warn others on the way about their… corrupting ways.”

The old man went silent for a moment, moving pieces back and forth on the board before shrugging.

“Sure. I could do that.”

The old man processed to give them strangely detailed directions to where this mysterious “Lord Protector” had gone. Yu Xiurong’s group quickly departed from the village and followed the old man’s instructions.

The entire time, Yu Xiurong’s mind kept wandering back to the interaction with the old man in the village. Something had been… strange about it, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

However, such thoughts were soon left behind as the group came across a fresh trail, just as the old man had said. The four shared a look with each other and nodded before continuing down the trail.

The hunt was on.

— — — — —

WHACK!

“OWE! What was that for?!”

Malaki rubbed the back of his head as Maliit loomed over him, frowning, a thick book clutched in her hand.

Maliit rubbed the bridge of her nose with her free hand and asked.

“Really, dear? Was any of that truly necessary? I thought we would keep our hands out of this one?”

Malaki tsked and looked away, still rubbing his head as he spoke.

“We are! They’d have caught up, eventually. Besides, it’s funnier this way. Not like they’re gonna hurt anyone, anyway. Think of it as an older, wiser man giving a lesson to his juniors about biting off more than they can chew.”

Maliit raised an eyebrow and countered.

“And when that boy starts a war?”

Malaki waved her away, moving another piece on his board.

“Bah! He was always going to do that, anyway. War’s in his blood. I can taste it.”

Maliit sighed and shook her head.

“Sometimes, I don’t know why I married you…”

Malaki turned to look up at her, grinning ear to ear.

“You know you love m — ”

Maliit cut him off by leaning over and moving a single piece from the other side of the board.

“Checkmate.”

Before the old woman walked back inside.

Malaki paused, narrowed his eyes, and stared at the board. The longer he looked, the more his brow furrowed. Finally, the old man stood and, with a yell, flipped the board.