Chapter 284 - Threads and Puzzles
“Do you have any questions?” Kai finished explaining what they had discovered at Herry’s house cobbled together with the information Kea had shared with him.
The group gathered in the living room filled every seat available, watching him in stunned silence. Several layers of wards wrapped the house like soap bubbles, ensuring their discussion would remain private.
Well, no one is screaming anymore… So that's something.
Kea leaned against the kitchen table, her face dark like thunderclouds. After vouching for him, she had let Kai do the talking, just quipping on a few details.
On the battered sofa, Mari mumbled to herself, her words too quiet to make out. Niel opened his mouth, but no words came out. Caeli contracted her hands in her lap as if strangling an invisible enemy.
Given their recent acquaintance, Kai was surprised no one had accused him of lying.
They must trust Kea's judgment a lot…
Flynn slumped in a creaking chair and massaged his temples with a resigned look. “Are you sure it’s the same people that attacked our ship?”
“There are too many similarities to be a coincidence. The praetor title, the Darkness runes, the secrecy.” Kai sighed, mirroring his gloom. “It’s possible they’re not the exact same raiders, but there is some link.”
Running into the same group at sea and hundreds of miles inland, he wanted to curse his luck, though perhaps he should thank it. If they had to face a bloody cult, better the one they had already encountered.
At least we have an idea of the threat… just how big are they?
Rain studied the messy decor of the room with unfazed tranquility, balancing three pencils on his index finger. Hearing about the conspiracy, his eyes had lit like when visiting a tavern for the first time. Spirits willing, there was more than blind confidence guiding the siren.
Some kind of criminal organization had been kidnapping people all over Limgrell, possibly for years, likely bribing the Hall of Seekers and the local Republic officials to keep silent. It wasn’t a job a group of newly minted adventurers should be dealing with, but asking for help would only risk getting them killed.
Herry had admitted to setting up Kea’s team with the cloud fairies before blowing up his own house. Then the gruff thug they overheard said he would deal with them like some washed-up villain, only the threat was real.
They won’t act in the open.
Kai held onto that hope. If the kidnappers put so much effort into masking the disappearances, they didn’t have complete control of this town. And they wouldn’t act in the open to get rid of a bunch of newbies that knew little to nothing.
Being underestimated is our best asset. They have no way to know we were aboard the Intrepid.
When the muttering quietened, Kai stood straighter with a confidence he didn’t entirely feel. “Me and Kea want to figure out what happened to your teammate, and the other missing people. Then we can warn the authorities in another town away from here. If anyone wants to leave Limgrell, it’s better if you wait a few days to not attract attention.”
Direct and concise—all cards were on the table. The trio on the sofa began to argue among themselves, the words too fast and soft to make out.
“This will be fun.” Flynn groaned in his seat. He had seemed the least surprised by the revelations just giving him exasperated looks.
“I know this wasn’t what we planned.” Kai met his gaze with all the honesty he could muster. “You can go meet with Valela and I’ll catch up once this is solved.” It wasn’t fair to drag him into his deadly problems.
“And how do you plan to survive in a town without me?” Flynn scoffed with a friendly slap to his shoulder. “You know I’m not leaving you, or Kea. She’s my friend too. And someone must make sure you two don’t burn down Limgrell. We just have to deal with a cabal of murderous madmen and avoid this green praetor. How hard can it be?”
“Yeah…” Before Kai could make sense of the guilt and relief swirling in his gut, Kea stepped to give an awkward nod to Flynn. “I appreciate your help.”
She wasn’t nearly that nice to me.
Kea and Flynn hadn’t been particularly close when he left but a lot could happen in two years. The sister he remembered would have claimed she could do just fine on her own.
We’ve all changed.
Compared to the crackling fire Kai remembered, her dark green eyes had grown colder and calmer. The fiery temper was still there, contained beneath an icy coating.
Guess I would also be stressed out if I had spent a month in this town, and one of my friends got abducted. Spirits, grant us a breather.
Rain observed the room with an indecipherable look. “I’m staying too.” He offered him a serene smile. “I’ve already said I wanted to come with you and help your— Keandra.”
“Thank you,” Kai wasn’t sure the siren understood the dangers, but he also couldn’t afford to refuse his help. No one would suspect to find his race so far from the sea; they needed every advantage to get out of this.
“None of us is running either!” Caeli jumped to her feet, voice rising over her companions. “I don’t care if there is a green grade involved. I’m not leaving till we find out what happened to Caeden.”
Her eyes burned with rage and what might be a hint of fear. Whether for herself or this Caeden, it was impossible to tell.
He must have been a pretty interesting guy to inspire such loyalty. Maybe he was her boyfriend?
“I’m not going to leave without you,” Niel said, his tanned face a shade paler. “We all knew the dangers. And now we have some idea of what we’re up against.”
Mari nodded her support, leafing through her journal. She chewed on an enchanted pen of black enamel. “Can you identify the man Herry met? Any detail could help.”
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
“We were hidden behind a bookcase.” Kea shook her head with pursed lips. “I couldn’t even see his shadow.”
“I might recognize his voice if I meet him.” Kai tried to fix the gruff and drawling voice. At the time, he had been too busy staying still without breathing to consider peeking.
“Are you sure no one saw you enter or run from the burning building?” Flynn shifted his gaze between them. “If they know what you saw, we are as good as dead.”
“We were careful all the way,” Kai reassured him. He had kept his cloak of Shadow at all times and melted any ice shard before running. Once the Fate wards woven into the house burned, Hallowed Intuition would have warned him if someone was tailing them.
“We should go through everything from the beginning.” Mari scribbled on her leather journal. “There might be some details you missed, or you thought unimportant.”
Kai considered telling them about his skill to save time—enough people knew already. “Alright. What do you want to know?”
They went through what happened from the moment he and Kea stepped outside this morning to when they reached this house. Belicia’s tip about Herry’s location, the path they had taken, anyone they met, any strange smell or sound. Mari noted down everything in scrupulous detail.
Everyone visibly relaxed in their seats after confirming they hadn’t left a trail back to this house. They were safe, at least for now.
From the heat of the explosion, Kai would be surprised if Herry was more than a pile of charred ash. No skill below Green would be able to identify his body. With some luck, the gruff thug would suspect the informant had cut and run. The conversation they had overheard hadn’t been very amicable.
Hopefully, it will make them lay low for a while.
He could understand the mistrustful and skittish passersby on the streets. Rumors spread like sea breeze in a small town; people must know something wrong is going on—if not exactly what.
“You could have waited for us to tell Mat,” Caeli grumbled at Kea, her eyes on the documents spread on the table. Copying papers from the archives of the town hall would land them in a military prison if discovered.
Niel lay a hand on Caeli’s shoulder and slightly shook his head. “What’s done is done.”
From the looks between them, the discussion was far from over, just delayed till they were alone. Niel’s gaze hardened toward Kai and his friends. “You must swear not to mention any of this outside a warded room before discussing it with us. No more exceptions. We’re all on the same boat.”
“You have my word,” Flynn vowed with unusual solemnity, a hand over his heart. Kai repeated the oath followed by Rain. The siren got a few looks when he passed three fingers over his face and muttered about the Deep, though no one commented.
“Good.” Niel walked to the papers on the table. “We must decide the next steps. There are more people involved than we thought. Until we know for sure, we must—”
“I’ll go check on Herry’s house,” Caeli spat the name like an insult. “If that slimy prick chose the victims, the kidnappers will check he hasn’t left clues behind.” She grabbed a brown leather jacket and was halfway to the door when Niel barred her path.
“No one is rushing out of here till we have a plan.”
“Move,” she hissed. “No one will see me.”
“Yeah, you‘re always so unassuming… Tell me you won’t chase after the first suspicious guy you see.” They stared each other down till Niel took a step back, still blocking the door. “Caeli, please,” his tone softened. “I know you’re angry, but we can’t afford mistakes.”
“Subtlety was never your strong suit,” Mari quipped in, still intent on her journal.
Caeli snapped toward her like a growling drake. “We can’t waste this opportunity. It’s the first actual lead we have.”
“They’re right, Caeli. We aren’t even supposed to know that it was Herry’s house,” Kea said, silencing everyone else with a look. “We can’t draw a connection between us and the fire. I’ll go.”
What? No!
“That’s not what I was saying!” Niel clenched his jaw.
“I’ll just give a quick look and be back,” Kea shrugged as if the conversation was over. “It’s worth a try. We've combed this town for over a month. It would be weird if none of us checked on the fire. You know I can blend in and keep my cool.”
Kai observed from the sidelines to not act overbearing toward his sister. He expected to hear more protests, but her group accepted the words with a little reluctance.
She can’t go alone.
“I’ll come with you.”
“No.” Kea raised a hand to anticipate his protests. “You’re too eye-catching with your grade and skills. If anyone senses your mana skill, they will look into you.”
“Hmm… I’ll go with her.” Flynn stretched his legs, hopping to his feet and offering Kea his arm with a theatrical flair. “Just two old friends catching up who went to check the commotion. I’m good at judging people and overhearing rumors.”
Kea eyed his arm for a second before taking it stiffly. “Thanks.”
“We’ll pass unobserved and be back in an hour.” Flynn gave Kai a reassuring smile over his shoulder and grabbing their coats. The door clicked close behind them.
Dammit.
With danger around, his chest clenched letting his sister out of his sight. He took a few shallow breaths to relax his tension.
She’ll be safe. I can’t always watch over her.
He never thought he’d become the overprotective brother, but the idea of losing her scared him like little else despite their rocky relationship. They had just started to mend their relationship and she ran into danger.
The clam calls the oyster stubborn.
It was her life. He had to accept her choice and do his best to support her.
The house turned silent enough to hear the scratching of Mari scribbling. Rain studied the faded embroidery of a dog on a pillow, also indifferent to the atmosphere.
“Well, we better figure out this mess.” Niel broke the silence first and gestured to the documents on the kitchen table. “A new set of eyes could catch something we missed.”
“More dusty papers. Just what I needed.” Caeli scowled but followed his lead. “Where are the ones you took from that traitorous weasel?”
Kai leafed through the piles of documents to find the lists of names. “Here.” Joined by Rain and Mari, they delved back into the pages to untangle the conspiracy.
They narrowed down the number and locations of abductions, far higher than what was officially reported. But names and places couldn’t tell them why or where those people were being taken.
Kea and Flynn returned about an hour later. The guards had cordoned off the site of the fire, stopping anyone from coming near. If that wasn’t strange enough, an old lady could swear she had seen a hooded figure rummage through the charred rubble.
“So the guards are traitorous bastards too. How surprising." Caeli scoffed, her hands crumpling the paper she was reading. “They should all get executed.”
“We don’t know how many are involved.” Niel tried to pacify her with a grimace. “They might have just been bribed to let someone slip through.”
“They’re either corrupted or incompetent. I don’t see much difference.”
“Let’s focus on what we can do,” Kea said, her tone not less icy. “If we can pinpoint their next targets, we have a lead.”
The discussion, theories and shuffle of paper continued well into the night. It was like trying to complete a blank puzzle with two-thirds of the pieces missing. Grasping at straws for a plan that wouldn’t get them killed, they took turns sleeping on the old sofa and the bedrooms till the sun rose again.
The rush only stopped around mid-morning when Flynn drew back a window, letting in a blinding ray of light. “C’mon, we’ve already gone through everything thrice, a fourth time won’t help. And it’s starting to smell of dead bodies in here.” He scrunched his nose. “Someone will get suspicious if we hide longer. It’s too late to feign we’re not working together, but we shouldn’t make it obvious either. I don’t know you, but I’m starving. Anyone wants to grab a bite? I need to pick up some things I left at the inn.”
“I’ll come with you.” Rain yawned, looking fresh despite not having slept a wink. “I also left a few things at the inn.”
“Good, we should always move in pairs,” Niel chipped in. “Keep to the main streets and don’t mention this case even if you think no one is listening.” He liked to organize people, though Kea and Caeli never failed to remind him he wasn’t in charge.
The two women paired together to stretch their legs and buy groceries. Hopefully, they would keep each other in check.
Leaving only three of them inside, they wrapped the sensitive documents in a hidden compartment of one of the bedrooms. Kai was tempted to offer his spatial ring again, it would be far more effective than the jumbled arrays they used for a safe.
They seem nice enough, but I don’t really know them.
Mari had already pulled out a tattered black tome in place of her notebooks, the golden filigree of the title was too worn to make out the words. She raised her eyes from the page to look at them. “I’m happy to stay here. Someone must keep an eye on things, or leave a dead body if they break in. I’ll try to write some clues with my blood.”
She spoke with such a flat tone, Kai couldn’t tell if she was joking or being serious. “Uh, I… I wanted to visit the Hall.”
“I’ll accompany you,” Niel said with an awkward chuckle. “Are you sure you’re fine being alone, Mari?”
Instead of answering, she raised her book to cover her face.
“Okay… Stay here till someone comes back.” Niel offered him an apologetic look and strode to the door holding it open for him.
“Thanks.” Kai was relieved when the chill hair washed over his body. He squinted at the light and drew his coat tighter. The sky was a piercing blue with only a thin veil of mist over the houses closer to the lake.
They had crossed two semi-deserted streets before Neil asked the obvious question. “Hmm, why do you want to go to the Hall?”
“I want to check the contract. Maybe they have finally updated it.”
That was part of the reason. Amidst all the unknowns, there was one piece they hadn’t probed: Belice, the friendly clerk of the Hall, who somehow got her hands on the location of Herry’s house. Kea had insisted Belice had always been good at gathering rumors. Coincidences did happen, especially when Favor was involved, but Kai had the inkling there was more to it.
Hallowed Intuition hummed in the back of his mind. The sound was soft, a thread of fate pulling him toward a potential lead.