A discreet knock at the door alerted Leonov to the visitor outside his room. As he was in a foreign country with no close allies outside his party, he’d kept his sword close at hand. He picked it up as he rose and padded softly to the door now. The door was a light wooden frame with a paper screen, which blocked out most of the light from the hallway while also obscuring him from voyeurs. Fortunately for him, he had found, it also showed a distinct outline of whoever was standing outside his door. A tall and broad figure.
“It is Taiki,” he heard in a low voice from the other side of the door. “The others are with me.”
He let out a low sigh. His nerves were stretched in this unfamiliar city, he thought and made him more suspicious than was needed. He set the sword, still in its scabbard, to lean against the wall and crossed to the door. When he was only a foot away, he heard another voice, one he didn’t recognize.
“Now.”
It was only his sharpened sense and fine instincts from years of service in the Attosian military that saved him. Just as he reached out with one hand to slide the door open, he saw a faint flicker of light on the other side of the paper screen, and his instincts told him to duck. He did so, dropping to the ground and throwing himself backward, and just in time. A roiling ball of flame burst through the paper, incinerated it instantly, and traveled in a straight line, directly over Leonov’s face. He felt the heat of it against his skin but was unharmed.
He hit the wood floor of his room in a long slide. The impact was hard enough to bruise his ribs, but it didn’t stop him. Before he’d come to a stop, he reached out with his left hand and snatched up the scabbard of his sword. He had the blade free before the attacker stepped through the ruined paper, his eyes narrowed to search the dim light of the room. He spotted Leonov at once but was too slow in reacting. With one powerful slash, Leonov’s blade sheared through the thin cloth armor the man wore, and he doubled over, crying out with pain.
Another flash, and a bolt of electricity arced around the corner. It struck Leonov in his thigh, burning a hole through his clothes and paralyzing him. Before he’d recovered, a second figure had appeared. They carried no weapons, but one foot flashed out in a stomp, connecting painfully with the wrist of his hand that held the sword. With a grunt, he was forced to drop the weapon.
“I don’t need that,” he growled. He felt his body coming back to his control. Instead of trying to recover the weapon, he simply rammed his shoulder into the monk’s chest, driving the enemy back through the ruined door and into the wall opposite. Judging by the muffled crack he heard, he’d broken a rib. He struck the monk with a searing uppercut from his right wrist, using the full strength of his rising body. It was an instant knockout, and the monk fell to the floor in a heap.
There didn’t seem to be any other enemies around that he could notice. Letting out a low, long breath, he cursed at the sight of his two defeated enemies. There was no doubt in his mind that they were connected to the unknown mage that they were hunting. How they knew that they were in town, he had no clue. It had only been a few hours, definitely not enough time for…
“The girls!” He cursed again. He couldn’t believe he hadn’t thought of them sooner. But just as he began running down the hallway to their room, he saw their door open. Roni’s head appeared, frowning at the commotion. When she saw Leonov and the unconscious figure, her eyes narrowed slightly, and she stepped clear into the hallway.
“Hold it,” she said, her voice cold as frost. Leonov saw that she’d brought her bow with her, and had an arrow drawn back to full length in seconds. “You could be an impostor.”
Leonov froze. Strangely, the same thought was going through his mind. “No more impossible than you.”
“I can prove myself,” Roni said. Then, after a moment or two tense silence, she gestured at him with the arrow tip. “How can you prove that you are Leonov?”
He searched his mind quickly, trying to come up with an answer that would satisfy her. It didn’t take long. “When we went to Sheran, I traded a mark of debt to a merchant in order to earn a Spellrend enchantment on my sword.”
“We were alone at that time,” she said thoughtfully. Then, nodding in satisfaction, she lowered her weapon. “My turn.”
Quick as a flash, her wood elf appearance faded, revealing the pale skin and hair of her true form. Her disguise was back as quickly as it had faded, but he’d seen it, and was convinced. He let out another long sigh. “Are the other two okay?”
“We’re fine,” Falynn’s voice sounded. “Roni’s blocking us in.”
The archer stepped to the side, her eyes now focused on the monk that Leonov had taken down. “Who was that?”
“I never got a chance to ask their name before they attacked me,” Leonov replied shortly. “But they spoke with Taiki’s voice.”
Falynn appeared, with Taiki behind her. Both women were wearing long nightgowns, and their hair was still damp from the baths. Falynn’s eyes widened as she saw the unconscious monk, and she quickly hurried over to Leonov. “Are you hurt?”
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“I’m fine,” he said gruffly. He turned back to Roni. “Do you know any magic that can mimic another’s voice?”
“Why are you asking me?” She replied, her eyes narrowed again. “I’m no mage. Ask Falynn.”
“He means your Changeling nature, Roni,” Taiki explained. She too glanced at the unconscious monk. “Was he your only attacker?”
“No. There was another, a mage. He’s dead in my room.”
“We heard the crash,” Falynn said, still a little breathless. “But Roni told us to wait while she checked it out. Why did they attack you?”
“I can only assume that they’re allies of the mage that we’re hunting,” he guessed. “But it doesn’t matter now. That one won’t be waking up for a while, and the mage is dead, as I said. We can’t find out just yet what their goal was.”
“I know one way to check,” Taiki said quietly. She brushed past Leonov and Falynn, walking over to the monk. She slid one hand into the monk’s robes, obviously looking for something. “Ah. Here we are.”
She returned to them holding a folded piece of parchment. “I recognize the sigil on his robes. He belongs to a group called the Diamond Eyes.”
“Diamond Eyes?” Roni asked, letting out a soft snort of derision. “What kind of name is that?”
“They call themselves thieves and mercenaries on the right side of the world,” Taik explained, unfolding the parchment. “Their name means that they see through the facades and illusions of the world, and know the true purpose of life.”
“And attacking me was part of the true purpose?”
“Their true purpose,” Taiki explained, frowning as she read the parchment, “Is to kill and sabotage people for money. The richest criminals in the world use their services to hunt enemies down. I knew it.”
She lowered her arm, and they all glanced at the paper. Whatever the message was, it was in Nihon-Jan, so they couldn’t decipher it. But Taiki’s face showed a familiar sense of building rage. Leonov was the first among them to voice the question. “It’s the mage, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
“Why do you look pleased?” Falynn asked. “I mean, I’m glad that Leonov isn’t hurt either. But there’s an enemy right over there, and another one in his room. When the people of this city find out that he killed someone, they’re going to drag us all into a cell.”
“They won’t,” Taiki said. “They were the only two operatives. It says so here in the note, and we can use this to prove that we’re innocent when the guards question us.”
“That’s why you’re happy?”
Falynn stepped forward, coating her hand in mana and wiping it across her eyes. When she took the note and looked at it herself, her eyes whizzed side to side, and she let out a gasp. “A name!”
Taiki nodded in agreement. “I have that bastard’s name.”
Leonov frowned. The events of this night were progressing far too quickly for his liking. It was becoming increasingly difficult to keep up with the changes. Deciding that they should take it one step at a time, he raised his hands for their attention. “What does the note say?”
Falynn read aloud. “You are instructed to kill the foreigners currently residing in the Nestled Inn of Minato Harbor. Capture the warrior known as Taiki Sato, but do not be noticed. Disguise yourself.”
“Well, they failed at that last part,” Leonov scoffed. “They nearly fooled me with the voice, but I sensed the attack in time to avoid it.”
“I agree,” Roni said. “They don’t seem particularly experienced.”
“Local ignorance,” Taiki sneered. “They assumed that, because you are foreigners, you would be no trouble.”
Leonov scoffed again, disgusted. “This is what happens when a country spends so long not fighting a war. The people have gone soft without a viable threat to their safety.”
Taiki narrowed her eyes slightly at the comment but didn’t have a chance to reply. Falynn cleared her throat. “There’s a name signed at the bottom. We know it’s a real name too because we’ve met him.”
“Who is it?” Leonov asked at once. “Is it that noble woman?”
“No,” Taiki said. Her anger was missing now. In it’s place was a hungry sort of grin. Not a smile. It was more the way a wolf bared its fangs at its prey before striking. “It’s her nephew. Mitaka Shimonseki.”
-
The lone Nihon-Jan man cringed where he knelt, his hands over his head, as if warding off an attack. Not that it wasn’t long in coming. Mitaka Shimonseki stood over him, his face pale with anger and his lips pulled back in a snarl. He held his sword, still in its scabbard, in one hand, and brought it down to smack into the kneeling man’s shoulder.
“What do you mean the attack failed?” He yelled, every word radiating his outrage. “The Master does not tolerate failure!”
“I am sorry, Master Shimonseki!” the man whimpered, cringing away as Mitaka raised the sword again. “We underestimated the Attosian’s strength! He killed Naka and Rato so quickly! I had to run, sir!”
“Sniveling coward,” Mitaka cursed, kicking the man. “Get out of my sight, Haruka. Do not leave the compound until I’ve decided whether or not to kill you.”
Haruka did as he was told, scrabbling on hands and knees. Only once he was out of the sword’s reach did he rise to his feet and hurry out of the room, closing the door softly behind him. Mitaka cursed again and began pacing back and forth. Those damn foreigners had to be taken care of. They were here to hunt the Master! But he couldn’t be spotted, or he’d be forced to flee the town. And if he wasn’t at the lady’s side at all times, he would not be useful. And if he wasn’t useful, he would be dead.
“Damn Haruka,” he snarled, though he kept his voice low. “What should I do now, Master?”
“Wait for them to leave the town. When they are in the wilderness, hunt them down yourself. Finish the job without relying on weaklings.”
Mitaka fingered the ribbon that had been tied around the scabbard of his sword. At his master’s words, he could feel his fear and uncertainty leaking away. “Yes. That is a much better idea. Thank you, Master.”