Chapter 58

Nature of a Killer

“We were always here, corrupt and rotting, weeping and wallowing, waiting and slobbering; who would free us?! Who would release us?! Who would command us?! Where is our King?!”

Fragments

With little commanded rest and constant movement, Noah had managed to drag the five of them back to Elucido within a week's frame as he repeatedly jumped from one traveling carriage onto another, abusing the stash of Crowns he always carried with himself. Right now, beneath the scorching sun, he stood, having wiped out his makeup, returning to the appearance of the old Dacent. He had sent a letter to Olivia ahead of time to approve the entrance of two new slaves he’d acquired in the ‘wild’, Joshua and Iona, and their papers should be waiting for him with the gate’s guards.

Despite the heat, the line was long and winding, so much so that he suspected they'd have to wait hours in line to get in. The scrutiny of the newcomers was no doubt even greater now, as he suspected the news of the 'assassin' had stormed the Kingdom-wide and had every Noble shaking. Unfortunately, even upon his return, he would have no time to rest or wander about; despite the heightened tension, in part due to the 'Fire returning' and in part due to his own actions, he'd have to send some more shockwaves rippling out through the Capital. While the timing would be off, and he would have preferred to do it without the notion of the assassin and the fire hanging above the city, his enterprise known as the Amber Bank could not afford any of the potentially acquired losses.

With just over a year and a half remaining till the succession, he had little wiggle room to wait and bide his time properly for the right timing and was forced, virtually, to act. Perhaps, however, the upcoming chaos will afford him some more opportunities, especially now that he’ll have the court’s jester at his behest.

“… Dacent Noah?" a mellow voice caused Noah to glance sideways, where he saw a young woman garbed in low-class leather armor, looking at him expressionless. Just by the virtue of the appearances, he found her rather strange – notably, the stark, crimson eyes that shone even in the midday. As far as Claire and Lyon were aware, 'Dacent Noah’ was sent out of Elucido to pick them up as ‘Merchant Flint’ had left them just after they departed from the Weepwoods. Though they might suspect something, Noah knew the two were at least clever enough not to voice it.

“Yes?” he smiled at the young woman, though got no smile in return, just a bow.

“I was tasked with escorting you to the city, per Her Highness’ orders,” the woman said. “If you would please follow me.”

“Does that include my entourage?” he asked.

“Naturally,” she said, reaching into her pockets. “These are the documents Her Highness had asked me to deliver.”

"Thank you," Noah smiled still, nonetheless, and followed the woman while Myrell, Sash, Claire, and Lyon followed right behind him. "The heat is exceptionally strong today, and waiting was growing dull."

“Weather always warms when the Fire is to come,” the woman said nonchalantly as those still in line watched on with envy as she escorted him to the front. “This is only the beginning.” Shit, really?! It's already like thirty-fuckin'-degrees! No AC, no nothing except hollow winds… half the Kingdom might just die from heatstroke when all is said and done…

“Yet you seem entirely immune to it,” Noah chirped on, largely due to boredom and having only talked to the four behind him in the past two weeks. “You inspire envy, I must say.”

“… I was never bothered by the fire,” she said, glancing at him with a strange glimmer in her eyes, one that even he was unable to interpret. “Even less so the warm weather.”

“…” She’s interesting, Noah, if he trusted any part of himself, it was the judgment of others – and, right now, that judgment was screaming that he had to have her, by any means necessary. He couldn’t quite rationalize it, as he didn’t even know the woman’s name, but her gait, demeanor, manners, the walk – one in which she evenly angled her body toward the crowd, always resting her dominant hand near the blade’s handle, ready to explode at a moment’s notice… upon deeper scrutiny, he realized she was no ordinary guard – she was more akin to paranoid, war veterans who’d seen and experienced everything. Deciding to probe a bit and see her reactions, he settled onto a faint grin before speaking. “This may be slightly forward of me to say, but I highly doubt that line of exhausted and fat merchants, no matter how envious of this walk, would strike at us in the broad daylight, in front of the capital’s gates no less.”

“…” she shot him another glance, her expression finally shifting into a surprised one as she looked him up and down. “You are awfully perceptive for a book-dusted tree.”

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“…” Noah’s grin broadened – she was curious about him. She’s that ilk, huh? “What’s your name?” he asked.

“… Asandra." She replied after a brief thought, slowing down and matching his pace instead of walking upfront. By now, they had reached the slope and were ready for a climb toward the gates. "Were you a soldier or a guard before hanging up the blade for the quill?"

"… beyond the words and the histories," Noah eluded the question. "I am also a fervent studier of human nature. Something about it is just… curious to me."

“…” her eyes lit up for a moment as she once again scrutinized him, apparently uncertain as to what to make of him. “Is that so?”

“… yes.”

"Then, if you would not mind, can I pose an inquiry into human nature for you?"

“… go ahead.” Noah smiled sheepishly for a moment, ignoring the sweat that was breaking out of every pore of his body.

“I do not know when you had left the city,” she said. “But, some months ago, there was a murder that occurred – an ordinary butcher found dead in his shop, his neck sliced, no traces of the killer found. What is your take, if you’d care to indulge me, on the killer?” Oh, you mean the guy standing right next to you?! Noah knew he was dancing close to the fire and that there was a high chance he might get burned if he stayed, but now he wanted her even more. He also realized why that was his gut reaction – she reminded him of Sheila, his long-time nemesis and partner back on Earth, with whom he’d cooperated as many times as he’d tried to kill her, and she tried to kill him.

“… I’ve heard,” Noah wiped his smile and turned to a serious expression, lowering his voice and forcing her to draw closer to him, until her shoulder was bumping his. “Though I make no claims that I am right, I shall share my own view of it. As far as my studies and inquiries into human nature have taught me, there are only so many reasons one might kill another person – the most common one is anger and wrath, bolstered either by long-planned revenge or in-the-moment loss of control. After that, we have greed, where murder turns into a secondary intent to the act of robbery. In my studies, I have also come across men who claim they needed to kill – it was like hunger, they said. Then, of course, you have assassins – the professionals. Their nature of murder is so different than anything else I was never able to pinpoint it; some do it to feed their families, some due to personal satisfaction, some due to the aforementioned need, some due to idealistic approaches to life…”

“…” Asandra listened carefully, occasionally nodding, slowing down as much as possible, not wanting to split just yet.

“In my humble opinion, that sounds like either an assassination or murder predicated on the basis of revenge.”

“… but he was a small-time butcher,” Asandra frowned for a moment. “Who would waste money on hiring an assassin to kill a butcher?”

“…” Noah’s lips turned up as she drew even closer, apparently understanding the indication. “Then you should not be looking into the assassin, no? As you said, who would hire an assassin, and why, just to kill a small-time butcher. Human nature is fickle, and sometimes we unintentionally slight those we ought not to. The coin is a damnable thing, in the end."

“…” though he said nothing explicitly, by her stunted expression it appeared she picked up on his clues. Though him diverting the investigation would mean little as it is now, he’d already had some plans on how to relay his future murders in the city onto others. Deflection, after all, was one of the most powerful strategies, be it with small-time murders or massive acts of human suffrage. ‘We killed a million as to save ten they would have killed’, ‘we’ve imprisoned the thousands because they were obstructing tens of thousands’… time and again, back on Earth, he’d watched individuals, governments, corporations, everyone and everything, deflect and come out of a massive scandal unscathed.

“We are here, I am afraid,” Noah said as they reached the front gates while he handed the documents to the guards who respectfully bowed when they saw his Royal Dacent insignia inscribed upon his chest. “It was very lovely meeting you, Asandra.”

“… y-yes, likewise,” she stumbled out of her thoughts, her disappointment visible in her expression. “It’s a shame it was so short.”

"I agree," he said, taking out a small parchment and handing it to her. "If you wish to share a cup of tea with me in the future and discuss the nature of man, hand this parchment to the Royal Guards and they'll relay it to me."

“I will! Definitely!” she picked up the parchment immediately and held it tightly in her hand, afraid of losing it, smiling at last.

“Until that day, then.” He smiled and bowed slightly toward her as he passed the gates.

“Thank you, Lord Dacent.” She bowed deeper and watched his back vanish into the streets of the city, a smile still hanging on her face.

On the other hand, Noah’s expression had turned dull already as he went into his thoughts. Though the four behind him knew something had happened, none inquired; Claire and Lyon because they did not know the man and were rather wary of him still, and Sash and Myrell because they knew it was none of their business.

Asandra… I should look into her and see if it’s possible to hire her as a personal guard, he mused inwardly. She was an experienced fighter, and someone who’d underwent harsh training and experienced harsh reality more than once in her life, that much it was possible to see from the way she behaved. Furthermore, she was just like Sheila – curious to the point of insanity. One time, Sheila tried infiltrating Pentagon because she was convinced they held secrets to alien life. She failed in the end, but, before he left the Earth, he heard rumors of her trying to hatch up a group to give it another shot. Perhaps Asandra wasn’t that far off the spectrum, but her nature was an asset to him as it was extremely easy to abuse. One more thing he caught is that she was not necessarily interested in the ‘killer’s nature’ to catch them, but that the desire was fueled on a more personal level. And those eyes… the lumps of Dark in him moved on their own whenever he’d meet her gaze. He didn’t know why, but that, at least, signaled there was something special about the seemingly ordinary member of the Guard. Ah, let’s put that off for later… he thought, glancing at Claire. For now, let’s reunite our star-crossed lovers…