Chapter 23 Annoying to Obnoxious.
A small posse of townsfolk were clustered just outside of the bathhouse waiting for Isaac and Lenna to leave. More for Lenna than Isaac. They were all armed. Not all of them looked like they could use the weapons they had but they had them nonetheless. Isaac frowned at the sight. “Get out before we make you, dark elf scum!” One of the people yelled.
“Yeah! Get out!” Another geared.
“Let’s just kill her now!” Another prodded. At that Isaac was done messing around.
Isaac put a hand on Lenna’s shoulder and pulled her back behind him as he stepped forwards. “Silence!” He ordered with enough volume that it was probably heard at the guard station a few blocks away due to the acoustics of the town built into the stone. The group clammed up at the sudden outburst. Isaac’s voice had brokered no questions. It had been a proper command coming from a person with authority. “Get out of the way unless you want to fight two platinum adventurers in the middle of the street.” Isaac told them all.
The mentioning of platinum adventurers seemed to cause some of them to lose heart and a few looked like they were ready to leave. A few looked entirely unfazed and a few looked to still be on the fence. “Just get out and we won’t have any trouble.” One of the bulkier guys spoke up. “We don’t want her kind around here.”
Isaac frowned at the man. “If the duke allows her in his territory then your words mean nothing to me.” He replied honestly. “We have business in town. When we are done, we will move on. For now, get out of our damn way.” Isaac’s voice was measured but held a level of animosity that couldn’t be mistaken.
“What business?” One of the other group members pressed.
Isaac looked back over his shoulder at Lenna. “Let’s go. I’m hungry.” He told her and moved to leave. The group didn’t disperse. “I will go through you.” He said evenly.
A few of the group members got out of the way and then the rest started losing heart. Eventually the path was clear and Isaac continued forwards with Lenna right behind him. They were almost through the group when one of them made a swing for Lenna’s head with his sword. Lenna effortlessly tilted her head to the side and shifted her weight in the same direction. The attack missed by the smallest fraction of an inch and Lenna was willing to continue on without making a big deal of it. A person of that skill level couldn’t kill her. She could be drunk and blindfolded and still win in a duel against that man. Isaac, however, wasn’t one to let things slide. He had heard the attack but hadn’t seen it directly. He turned around to see the man in an awkward position from his failed attack and Lenna a half step off to the side of where she should have been.
Isaac appeared next to the man and grabbed his wrist. “What do you think you’re doing?” Isaac asked coldly.
The man’s eyes went wide as they met Isaac’s. “N-Nothing.” He lied.
The entire group, both sides, froze with bated breaths. “If any of you, so much as think, about doing anything to her, I will remove the offending appendage.” Isaac told them. His tone had started off with barely contained anger and moved into complete apathy. The shift was bone chilling to the man that had his wrist firmly locked in place within Isaac’s grasp. “Do I make myself clear?” Isaac asked with eyes locked onto the man in his grasp.
The man nodded quickly. He had tried to withdraw his hand as soon as Isaac had appeared but failed and now felt like he was completely at Isaac’s mercy, which he was. “My Lord.” Lenna spoke quietly but loud enough that everyone around them could hear. “Please, let us continue.”
“Tsk.” Isaac tsked and let go of the man’s wrist while turning to leave. “I’ll let you go this time because I’m more interested in breakfast than dealing with the guard.” Isaac told the man. “Be glad you didn’t end up being the example to others.”
The duo arrived at the inn where they had stayed the last time they were in Ben’s End without further incident. They walked over to the bar and Isaac sat on a barstool with Lenna standing behind him. “Hey barkeep. Been a while.” He greeted the man behind the bar.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
The man looked at Isaac and then Lenna with a confused look on his face. “I apologize but my memory isn’t the best. Could you remind me of your names? I’m Abe Edwards.” The man told Isaac with a pleasant smile and apologetic eyes.
“Isaac,” Isaac replied and then gestured back to Lenna. “and that’s Lenna.” He finished. “We just need breakfast and then we’re back to work. What do you have that’s hot and ready?”
“Just the bottomless stew I’m afraid.” Abe replied. “It’s nice to meet you again.” He said with a chuckle. “Gonna be in town a while?”
Isaac shook his head. “No.” He replied and then continued with small talk while Abe got the duo a pair of bowls of stew and some water to drink. The tavern was mostly empty. Mostly. There was a pair of adventurers sitting together and a table of other residents.
“I can eat later.” Lenna told Isaac just loud enough that he could hear her.
Isaac looked back over his shoulder at her. “If that’s how you want to do it, I won’t object, but just know that I don’t like it.” He told her. He really didn’t like how Lenna walked on eggshells all the time with the people who hated her for no other reason than what race she was born as.
Lenna nodded in response. “It is.” She assured him.
Isaac sighed but quickly dug into his food. “How much for the bowl and spoon?” Isaac asked Abe.
“You mean the actual bowl and the spoon?” Abe asked. He was confused because no one had ever asked how much his utensils cost.
“Yes.” Isaac replied simply.
Abe tapped his chin in thought. “Five silver for the bowl and two silver for the spoon.” He enlightened Isaac.
“I’ll give you a gold coin for them.” Isaac told the man.
He looked at Isaac with confusion written all over his face. “I have plenty so that’s fine.” He agreed. “I just can’t see why you’d want them.”
Isaac smirked and waved his hand over the second bowl of stew and a small wave of shadows followed behind his hand. The bowl was gone a moment later and in its place was a gold coin. “Lenna would prefer to save it for later and this was the best way.” Isaac told the man.
Abe looked on in bewilderment before eventually just accepting it. “Alright then.” He eventually said. “Well I hope you enjoy it later, miss.” Lenna just nodded in thanks but otherwise remained silent. Once the pair was done with Abe and the inn they moved on to the real reason they were in Ben’s End. It was time to get ready for the operation and to do that they needed to regroup with the sergeant. The duo bid a quick farewell to Abe and headed towards the guard station. Once they were close they saw the crowd from before all bunched up around and inside the door to the main room of the guard station.
“Well,” Isaac began. “this’ll be fun.”
“Why are they allowed in town?!” One of the gathered citizens called into the building.
“Yeah! Kick them out!” Another called.
“This went from annoying to obnoxious.” Isaac commented.
“This is worse than Safeharbor was.” Lenna agreed.
“I’m ready to just go through them.” Isaac replied calmly. He wasn’t going to actually kill anyone, probably. The duo was more than capable of just shouldering their way inside.
“The guard looks overwhelmed.” Lenna commented, ignoring Isaac’s statement.
“Yeah.” Isaac agreed. “Let me check something quick. Don’t move.” He told her and vanished.
—
The sergeant of the guard stationed in Ben’s End was not having a great day. First the Aaronson boy was caught stealing coins from behind the counter at the general store and then a pair of ‘interesting’ individuals showed up demanding his presence. His eye twitched at simply recalling them. The pair in question had then accused multiple people, all of which he knew personally, of working with a gang based out of the nearest city. After a rather unpleasant conversation with them he was then stuck trying to organize multiple simultaneous arrests without tipping off the people in question. He had been almost ready to send the order to go after the suspects when a rather disgruntled crowd arrived at his doorstep.
“I know you don’t want them here and believe me, I don’t either, but just deal with it for a few hours. Please.” He tried to placate the small mob to no avail. “Once their job is done they have assured me that they will leave peacefully and quickly. Just go back to your homes for now.” It didn’t appear as if his words were helping or hindering the situation either way. The group was still crowding his lobby and complaining loudly. He sighed and was about to get one of his men to help him push through the crowd when one of the members of the problematic duo appeared next to him. He barely kept himself from jumping at the sudden presence.
“Sergeant.” Isaac said in a voice that was pure business and none of his usual casual amusement nor his fierce anger.
“Adventurer.” The sergeant replied in greeting.
“I can disperse them all but I’ll need your men ready to bag the ones in the crowd that we are after.” Isaac told the man.
“How would you disperse them?” The sergeant asked.
“Dragonfear.” Isaac replied simply.
The sergeant’s gaze snapped to Isaac. “That really happened?” He questioned. An empty bottle came flying from the crowd at Isaac’s face. It was cleaved in two by a thin line of pure shadows without the mage even moving a muscle.
“Yes.” Isaac replied. “I’ll give you thirty seconds. Any longer and this will get too out of hand.” Isaac finished and then vanished again.
The sergeant sighed. “Hells, this day just keeps getting worse.” He said to himself and then looked to the side at one of his men. “Get ready. We are starting the operation. Now.”
“Now sir?” The guard questioned and looked at the crowd blocking their way out.
“Yes.” The sergeant replied. “Now.”