*Da Dump Da Dump Da Dump*

Clover’s paws pattered down yet another winding alley through a quieter part of the slums, his pace finally slowing down from the fast haul he had taken earlier, with as much a satisfied grin on the young sabretooth’s face as one might find on a large dog running about in the park.

Diane, however, was seemingly much more bored. The excitement from earlier was quite clearly wearing off.

“Hey Em, do ya know anywhere more fun we can go to?”

Emily flinched at the question, then vigorously shook her head. Diane’s urges for fun usually meant more trouble. Not that she could ever do anything about it anyways…

But maybe this time we could just have a normal, quiet day?

Emily’s hopes were promptly dashed when she heard the angry yelling of another group of kids. Simply because… if she heard it, then that meant Diane did too.

Diane’s mischievous grin all but confirmed it.

“C’mon Clover! Let’s go check it out!”

Emily hung her head in defeat and grabbed on tightly, as the Sabertooth took off once again.

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All Kristoff could do was wedge himself between two large crates, kicking off another kid who kept trying to grab his leg and drag him out.

“Stop hiding like a little baby! Get out of your little corner, or do you want me to tell your slut mom how you hit me?!” A taller, skinny blond kid sporting a prominent shiner on his cheek taunted Kristoff.

He was flanked on all sides by his little squad of hangers on, jeering together.

“Maybe if you stupid midtowners didn’t insult my mom, I wouldn’t have had to hit you! I guess money just makes you dumb though!” Kristoff grinned, as he wiped the sweat from face and his matted straw hair.

As if I’d fall for your stupid taunt! My mom isn’t so dumb either!

The blond boy snarled back, “If your mom isn’t a slut, then where’s your dad? Huh? I bet it’s one of those guys who keeps visiting your house!”

“What? Like your dad?” Kristoff jabbed back.

Sure, lots of men visited his house. But all they ever did was talk with his mom for a while, and would sometimes bring books or food over. Rarely would they get any money, and his mom always made him read those books. A bunch of useless old books. Although the one about the importance of composure and reading situations was coming surprisingly in handy!

The blond kid turned a deep red in the face. “Just drag him out already!” he sputtered to the large kid next to him.

The large kid returned a beefy, malicious grin, before his eyes opened wide and he stumbled a few steps back.

“Gahhh, Alphonse! Look!”

Kristoff could hear a soft pitter patter approaching, but he couldn’t see anything around the crates, and he wasn’t about to risk giving up his protective cover.

However…

“HELP HELP! THEY’RE TRYING TO BEAT ME UP!” He shouted with all his strength!

Even in the slums… someone will do something?! Right?

He could hear a soft thud, and Alphonse was visibly shaken, but still held his ground.

He muttered something to his posse that got them to stop backing off, then shouted “Hey girl, just mind your own business! Take your pet and go stick your nose in someone else’s business! Do you even know who I am?!”

Alphonse puffed his chest in an attempt at Bravado.

A girl? Shit… I’m still out of… luck?

“I just heard someone calling for my help… sooo… I don’t really care who you are!” A sweet, melodic voice echoed in the alley.

Before any of Alphonse’s friends could move, Kristoff felt the shadows twist a little around him.

Fast.

That was all he could think, as this girl, perhaps slightly younger than himself, blitzed in front of Alphonse.

Alphonse attempted to shout something, as his eyes widened in shock, but all the voice was immediately knocked from his throat.

*Kheuk!*

No hesitation.

The girl’s fist slammed into Alphonse’s stomach, blasting him into another large crate a little further down.

“So who else wants to rough house a little!” A wild grin split her face, as she stared down the posse. Followed by the sudden resumption of the pattering he heard earlier.

“It’s the she-devil! Run!”

“She’ll feed us to her pet!”

The other kids immediately turned around to flee, as a large, white blur sprinted past.

“NO CLOVER! SIT! YOU CAN’T HURT PEOPLE!”

The girl grabbed forcefully onto the blur, and heard an audible crunch of feet dragging across the cobblestone for a moment.

“Good boy! Now stay!”

Did they say… the she-devil? Kristoff gulped.

He might not get along with most of the other kids, but even he had heard the rumors.

What should I do? How should I act? She won’t really eat me… will she?! Should I run while I can?

There wasn’t much chance for him to ponder these questions, as this girl wearing a very nice purple dress, blocked his only exit.

“Hey, you really wedged yourself in there. Let’s get you out!” With a smile, and a little strain, she shoved the two huge crates further aside, completely exposing his corner.

“Hey hey hey! No worries! I’m coming out! See? I’m fine now!” he nervously spouted back.

The girl grinned wider. “Of course your fine! Because I just saved you!” She also didn’t move an inch.

“S-so you’re gonna let me go now, right?”

The girl looked like she was thinking for a moment, and then leaned in further, causing Kristoff to scramble as far back as he could go.

“Of course! But because I saved you, first you need to promise me a few things, new friend! Oh, and my name’s Diane! AND, you need to tell me something fun you always wanted to do!”

“Well… I always wanted to see outside the city and… wait? What do you want me to promise you?!”

Kristoff felt like, in a moment, he was completely thrown off. This wasn’t how he imagined the situation would turn out in the slightest. There was also a taller girl waving frantically at him, but he couldn’t really see around Diane.

Maybe I’ll just play along for now? It should be fine, right?

----------------------------------------

Kristoff couldn’t help but grin wildly as he felt the rush of wind through his hair, as a loud, hearty laugh escaped his lips!

There was a certain… satisfaction to seeing crowds of people desperately parting way in the path of a Sabertooth blitzing down the main road. Especially since he was riding on the Sabertooth! Sure, it was a little crowded with Diane and Emily squished on behind him, and it was just a little concerning that while practically still a kitten, it was not only large enough to carry the three of them, but act as if they weren’t even a burden. But! HE WAS RIDING A REAL, LIVE SABERTOOTH! Compared to anything else he had done before… hell, compared to anything anybody has done that he has met, this was so much cooler!

As they rapidly approached the gate, the crowd began to thicken considerably, and people were having a much harder time moving out of the way, and the chorus of angry shouts increased.

“Hey Diane, do you think-“

“Clover, up!”

Diane cut him off before he could finish his sentence, and the boy was forced to suddenly grip Clover’s fur extra tightly, as he felt the sudden force of the cat leaping from the street on to the nearest balcony, and then again up on to the roof.

Kristoff closed his eyes tightly.

Ok… maybe were going a little too fast, a little too high up!

He peeked an eye open as he tried to look back to tell Diane to slow Clover down, but seeing how far down the ground was made his stomach churn.

The boy somehow managed to clench even tighter on to Clover’s fur.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

The guards at the gate saw Clover and the kids sprinting across the rooftops towards the wall (in all honesty, they truly couldn’t miss such a sight), and began shouting and waving towards them. Diane recognized one of them, and waved for a moment, before shouting “Faster Clover, faster!”

The queasiness in his stomach suddenly developed into an intense feeling of vertigo, as for a few moments Kristoff could no longer hear Clover’s footfalls and had the distinct impression that he was sailing through the air, before he finally felt a real solid thud, followed by the sound of crackling brush.

I can finally open my eyes again!

Forest.

I’m in the forest! I’m outside the city! I…

“I gotta get off!” Kristoff practically barfed out.

Clover, immediately noticing his own predicament, promptly halted with such suddenness as to send Kristoff careening into the nearest bush. Luckily enough for him, face down.

Even as he emptied his heart and soul into that bush, Kristoff still managed to grin again.

I’m outside the city! I really am!

Diane, between fits of her own laughter as she hopped down off of a very satisfied and slightly winded Clover, and with Emily looking nervously around behind her, gave Kristoff an unfortunate reality check.

“Don’t take too long making friends with your bush, cuz were not going too far from town, and were coming back well before dark!”

“I- I’m ok now, I’m ok, I’m-“

*blergh*

Just… just a little more, I- I’ll be fine!

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“Someone needs to discipline that shitty brat! She is absolutely a menace!”

“Why yes, Karen! You should absolutely give her family a piece of your mind!”

“I should, shouldn’t I, Careen?”

“I dare say, first thing… tomorrow!”

“Ah, but tomorrow I have… I have to take care of my brother’s kids! So… can you go let them know for me Careen?”

“Oh… well, how about we go tell her off next week then? I just remembered I’m also busy tomorrow, haha…”

D smiled with a sly, pearly grin as he watched Diane and her growing motley crew leap over the wall. He cocked a subtle glance to the two comely ladies discussing this, frankly, ridiculous scene as if it was just another, normal everyday occurrence.

The genius of it, truly. If you do something wild and extreme often enough, of course it will become normal to the people who witness it on the regular. No different than that of Noble’s recklessly riding their carriages or being served something that was not quite what you ordered.

Another glance towards the guards at the gate, and with his height it was easy enough to see the additional chaos on top of preventing people from leaving the city.

Oh?

A cold glint of light caught his eye.

Far-sight.

Cold iron armor… as I thought. It seems as though this woman is planning to go after the girl? Perish the thought!

D deftly navigated through the crowd, much as water filtering through small cracks in stone. Diffuse presence.

Swiftly, he even slipped past the barricade of guards without anyone so much as batting an eye.

“Brunhilde! We’re under strict orders to maintain this barricade! Even if you’re going out to bring someone back, you know those nobles of the Baron’s Oathbound faction will press this as insubordination and treason! They will certainly try to replace you with one of theirs!” One of the male guards was passionately trying to stop Brunhilde from heading out.

Sure, I may have perfected this skill to be able to hunt the terrors of the night… but even so, it is never a reassuring moment when one can so easily pass through a secured area.

“Look Sven, the guild also posted an order to retain all adventurers in the city! How well do you think we would do if something happens to her because we couldn’t stop her from leaving?! Even with her reputation, I know Diane is a good girl! I can’t have it on my conscience if anything were to happen to her! So just stop trying to stop me!” Brunhilde’s eyes were shining with determination, as she tried to push past Sven.

D sighed deeply, as he reached out a white-gloved hand and placed it on Brunhilde’s shoulder. At the sudden touch, Brunhilde instinctively went for her sword… only for her to find a firm grip atop her hand, preventing her from drawing her blade.

“A little hasty, aren’t we?” D smiled wide, as he spoke as suavely as he could, making his voice a deep melody. The other guards, suddenly aware of his presence, quickly turned towards D as they tried to draw their weapons.

Manifest. Lesser Image.

“Intruder! Surrender and identify yourself!”

“Careful now, let all be calm! I am here on Authority of the King, mind you!”

With a snap of his finger, a royal seal practically materialized in his hands.

“There is no need to worry over little old me here, you see, and fortunately for both of our situations… I have a certain interest in that girl, Diane, you said?”

Brunhilde’s eyes widened for a moment, before she reached over and snatched the seal from D’s hand.

“Oh, it is quite real, I assure you. And I most humbly would have to request you keep my presence here quiet, hmm?” D continued, hardly missing a beat and without a hint of any concern whatsoever.

“Hmph. Walking straight into a secured barricade without warning, waving around a royal seal amidst this crowd and you want us to keep it quiet, what do you take us for?” Brunhilde countered.

“Why, I dare say, I don’t believe anyone else has noticed a thing!” D smiled wide, letting all his charm flow out as he glanced once across the crowd, and their utter lack of reaction.

Much too easy. Our forefathers would be ashamed of us today.

Brunhilde offered up a surprised glance as she too noticed the odd lack of attention. She clucked her tongue, before handing back the seal.

“It’s real. You promise you’re going to bring her back then?” Brunhilde’s eyes glinted dangerously.

D smiled once again, confident as ever.

“Most assuredly, safe and sound!”

Brunhilde waited a few more moments, as she stared intently towards D’s eyes, as if she was trying to pierce through his reflective glasses.

“Fine. Sheathe your arms! Open the side gate!”

With a click, a small yet heavy door aside the main gate clicked open. D stepped through while promptly readjusting his hat, his confident smile having never wavered.

Brunhilde glanced between the gate and the waiting crowd, who still didn’t seem to react to anyone being allowed to leave, with her confusion plastered on her face.

The hunter sniffed the air deeply, turning to look towards the forest adjacent the wall, yet waited until he heard the door shut tightly once more.

Cancel magic.

The best spells are always the one’s your opponent’s never see coming. Even if the cost is higher, if you have the mana to spare, you would usually be foolish to do otherwise!

He let out a hearty laugh, having spied the fresh trail of the Sabertooth just outside the wall.

Much too easy.

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It didn’t take him long to catch up to the children. Thankfully, since one of them had to dismount, the others followed suit and were moving that much slower for it.

While I may have promised to bring them back safe, I never did specify *when*. And, I have yet to come to a conclusion on *if* she should be brought back safe.

Using a combination of concealment, and diffuse presence, as well as careful navigation of the forest, D quietly continued to follow Diane.

He pulled out his notebook to quickly write down additional notes on her behavior.

She is certainly the most suspicious. But I still can’t rule out involvement from other actors. Priest Donelly- one of the lower priests in the temple of Ishtar, yet he appears to have various high level connections amongst the nobles in the upper districts. Some who appear to be involved in some unconfirmed illicit trade.

Guard Captain Ross of the nightshift. His carelessness verges on absolute dereliction of duty, yet he maintains a surprising amount of backing, particularly from the top nobles and the Baron himself. Investigation here should be conducted with absolute caution, but if anything would be your usual corruption over any Demon involvement.

Then there is the guild branch manager, Baal. Another case where absolute caution is warranted. Of the guild branches, his is, by far, the most secretive. His objectives seem mixed, and often unclear. The amount of influence his branch exerts seems abnormal, and its performance and resource utilization far exceeds its apparent staffing.

D tilted his head slightly, as he continued watching Diane.

There it is again… that strange movement… why is she still using that? What is it?

He carefully increased his pace to get a little closer, and to hopefully hear a little better.

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“How come I can’t do that?!” Kristoff asked, dismay etched across his face as he failed once again to emulate Diane’s movements.

“I dunno. I just like to practice it every day! It’s like my own little secret art! Just… use your mana in your steps and try to move like I do!”

With a careful swish, Diane slipped from the shadow of one tree to the next, looking almost like she slightly compressed as she moved.

“Like that! I still don’t have it perfect myself though.” Diane smiled with a hint of disappointment.

At least I’ve been making progress!

She spotted another odd looking plant, with large orange bulbs and a sweet aroma.

“Is that another one of those plants you know about?” She asked. Emily walked up to it, and smiled widely for the first time in a long while, with a little drool coming out of the corner of her mouth.

“Wait! Don’t eat that, it’s a Faux Goldenlion plant! It makes people nautious!” Kristoff shouted a little too late, as Emily already snatched and swallowed one of the large orbs.

“Emmmm! Spit it outttt!!” Diane rushed over, failing utterly to get Emily to cough up the orb, and found herself grappling against her to stop her from eating another.

“Odd… the effects should have been immediate?” Kristoff walked up to the plant, and immediately began feeling nauseous.

“Nope! This is it! They’re just the weird ones!” He backed off again, before turning to go towards a nearby stream.

“Hey Kristoff, wait up! Don’t start wandering off like that! Not to mention…” Diane looked up at the fades of orange forming across the sky. “It’s getting late. We are getting a little far. It’s time to go back.”

“Not yet! We still have some time! I want to see what’s up this stream! We’ve found so many cool things I’ve only read about, I know there will be something else over here!” Kristoff was absolutely focused, the fun of his first foray out of the city was intoxicating.

“Absolutely not! I told you the rules, and you need to follow them! It is time for us to go back!” Diane stormed up to Kristoff and grabbed him by the cuff of his shirt, her attitude having suddenly snapped.

“What the hell is wrong with you!? It’s just a little bit up the stream! Stop being so controlling!” Kristoff snapped back, as he tried to swipe Diane’s arm off him.

She spun him around easily, if not forcefully, before shouting back.

“You idiot! These are the rules to keep things SAFE! Doing things like that is how people die! Do you even have any idea where we are? Right up that stream has been restricted to Adamantium difficulty! Do you know how many people I have seen die out there! Do you-“ Diane suddenly froze, her head cocked to the side.

Kristoff tried to argue back, but as soon as he opened his mouth, Diane shoved her hand inside it and hissed “Shut up and listen you idiot!”

Devil’s Sight. Demonic Sense.

She glanced behind her, her eyes widened a little as she stared straight into D’s eyes as he hid behind a nearby tree. As she locked eyes with him, his eyes widened a little too, as if in surprise.

Not it!

She snapped her head in the direction of the stream, and then the restricted area. Her eyes sharpened, before she screamed.

“RUN! EVERYONE, RUN NOW!”

The fell wind came first, gusting through the trees, followed by terrible shrieks dancing across the air, sucking away the fading light of the day. Diane was dragging Kristoff, who was practically frozen in place, as she tried to get him back to Emily and Clover. The tall man she saw earlier had pulled out his crossbow and had loaded it with a silver stake off a concealed bandolier, muttering as he aimed it towards something behind them, before firing.

*clang!*

Diane turned her head to see behind her… at the thing that just smashed through a blessed bolt, a Daemon. It was huge, covered in blood and wounds, spell scarring and broken arrow shafts. It was at least 8 feet tall, its hulking muscles covered in thick hide and tattered armor. It wielded a massive green blade like a hunk of iron stained with blood, and simmering with some kind of fell enchantments. Its oddly human face was distorted by two large, curling horns like those of a ram, with disturbing goat-like eyes. And… it hardly seemed interested in them.

A Grendel had blitzed ahead, and leaped out in front, trying to cut off its path, and was brutally sliced in half for its efforts. As the Daemon continued charging off, it sounded almost like it was trying to yell something to them, sounding almost apologetic in tone.

Not that it would have mattered. Diane shoved Kristoff on to the ground behind her, turning to face the coming threat.

“Unto the Great Divines, I call upon you! May your light drive away the Darkness, Protection From Evil!” D sprinted up to Diane, placing his hand upon her back as he cast.

Reinforced Strike! Swift Strike! Precision Strike!

Diane drew her rapier and quickly focused, before striking into a massive axe hurtling out of the approaching supernatural darkness. The dark cloud seemed to turn, chasing after its prey. As it turned, more shrieks screeched out of it, again, and again, and again!

Even if others couldn’t… Diane could see what was inside that darkness. She could see what was coming for them. Her blood ran cold, her eyes pupils contracting into near pinpricks, and her breath began to stagger.

“Ruuun…. We… we need to run… or we’ll all die….”

Diane’s voice turned meek, as the Demons emerged from the darkness.