“I’m Dantë Biyu, the Royal Marshal’s Fifth Officer of Brevity. It’s a pleasure to meet you all!” The officer had his peaked cap in his hand. He knelt down towards Asya and put it on the child’s head. “Mind if you take this, boy?”

All of us stood at the entrance to Gariyuchi Terrace, almost frozen in place. Here in front Asya cowered as Dantë Biyu strolled by him, meeting us face to face. Every living being silenced themselves to the sway of the officer’s uniform. A warning cloud shaded the sun in orange. I could barely process the man in white. The Royal Marshal was here. He’d been with us for a while now. An Officer of Brevity.

The more I thought about it, it became obvious. We didn’t use Ruri’s Masking during our time in Koroné, and he knew our names before we even met. I cursed my sense of perception. I let someone like this slip under the radar. But something else wasn’t right. This didn’t go well with how our interactions went, and the actions Dantë Biyu undertook. I rubbed my arms until they reddened. A tingling feeling lurked in my throat.

“You bastard!”

Sorah took out a kitchen knife and summoned his chart. In a split second he thrust it forward like a javelin. Ice molded the small blade into a spear. The air began to chill. The knife javelin dissipated into a thousand pieces.

“Sorah!” Ruri tried to run to him but Kahokayo Biyu stopped her. “Let go of me!”

I looked towards where the weapon shattered. Dantë had not a scratch. Instead a magical shield floated in front of him, as he continued to walk forward.

“How rude of you to interrupt our conversation.” He opened his arms wide. Sorah rushed forward only to be stopped by a barrier separating them. “How has my sister been? She volunteered to help you, after all.”

She held Ruri in a brace with a gleaming stare. “Brother…This is why I was hesitant for you to assist us.”

Itchiro shoved us aside. He tried to flank Dantë’s barrier with no effect. The officer protected himself and kept Asya hostage. Sorah and his father cried and yelled. They pounded and pounded, summoned their charts and hurled numerous skills to no avail. The shield did not show any sign of faltering.

My head began to spin. What was the relationship between the siblings?

“Why did you do this?” I called out to Dantë, who directly faced me. “You used your own sister for us to end up here.”

He moved and swept the two Totshigui’s backward. “Forgot to answer my question first, Kawari. But since you asked, I do care about my sister, unlike you and your brother. He knew that I was an officer yet kept quiet about it. Talk about putting your little sibling in danger.”

I arched my head to Yodomi. He simply folded his arms and shrugged. Why did this happen?

“Yodomi—”

“...”

Ruri broke free from Kahokayo’s grasp after wrestling hands. She fell to the stony floor, her hair messy. Sorah and Itchiro watched on.

Sunlight struck a boiling feeling into my body. I wanted to think we couldn’t trust strangers anymore. I should’ve been aware—no, in the end I wished to blame myself. I just simply hated the Royal Marshal. If we didn’t trust anybody then Tursun and Yuanyuan wouldn't have lent their generosity. We only made it this far based on trust.

I looked towards the sky, clear blue with the sun’s inviting warmth. My mouth opened and my face twisted. I made a sound resembling quiet laughter. Here in the terrace we set ourselves a deal with the Biyus and paid the price for it. So that was it.

“Tagging along with us, disguising yourself as Asya using an illusion skill, helping us find Itchiro, making us believe we were still searching for Asya when you had him hostage the entire time…just what do you—the Royal Marshal…want from me?!”

Everyone stared at me as if I were deranged. Those glares did not help the revelations flooding into my mind. I felt like shouting but my voice kept quiet. I just kept staring at that blue sky. Even the clouds didn’t want to see my pathetic face. I didn’t know if everything was okay. Who’s fault was it? What could I do? My nails dug into my sides.

Suddenly Dantë met me parallel, and placed his hand on my shoulder. “I want the two ‘otherworlders’ in one spot where I can see them. Loi—”

“Get your hands off me!”

I could use Interdimensional Gate right now and disappear from this world. I pondered the thought even with frustration flowing within me. But if the officer intended to kill us then he would’ve done it earlier.

“Since we’re in Koroné, let’s make a deal.” His voice shot through my mind as I lowered my head. I turned around. Dantë’s eyes made my knees buckle like locks. My vision narrowed and my sweat coldened. “I helped you find Totshigui Itchiro. It’d be rude to not follow the societal value of indebtedness in this nation, no?”

“...”

“Here are my terms—duel me in a week's time in Yubiyubi, twin city of the west. If you win against me, then I am obligated to release Asya and whatever future endeavors you wish me to do.”

The proposition hung in the air like a heavy fog. The others looked to me, pleading for guidance. Sorah's expression contorted between anguish and rage, while Ruri glanced at the floor.

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“Are you really going to do it, Kawari?” Sorah muttered and fell to his knees.

“No way he is! Because he’s…” Yuanyuan stopped her sentence midway, covering her own mouth. I already knew what she meant. I was Level 0, and this guy expected me to fight him? Li Châtelier was a hundred times my level.

I took a deep breath. The first thing to do was to stabilize. I couldn’t panic now. I’d faced a similar situation before in Kucha. I had to think logically. This man conned me from the very beginning. “And what happens if I lose?”

“...Ah, my sincerest apologies. I may have overlooked that part of our deal. You and Yodomi will go to La Plage with me if I best you in the arena.” Dantë smirked with a bow, the corner of his lips curling upward. He gestured for Asya to come near. The child trembled towards him, until Dantë plucked the peaked cap from his tiny head. “This boy is mute. Unable to voice his cry for help, unable to unlock the blessings of the system, unable to fight back against the cruelty of this world. So, what do you say?”

The officer grabbed Asya by the shirt and lifted him up. Sorah stood up and banged his feet on the barrier. “Don’t!... Don’t do this…”

At this point, I had to make a decision. Nothing could be done by overthinking it.

“Fine,” I uttered with a slight rasp, surprised by the confidence spilling out of my voice. I held my first towards Dantë. “I accept your deal. But I hope you’ll actually keep your promises. When I beat you, you will be in my ‘debt’.”

Dantë, unamused, gave a light smile as he put his white cap back on. “There you go, Kawari. Pretty easy. Although I have to make a slight revision—only you, Yodomi, and my sister shall go to Yubiyubi. The rest of your crew can stay.”

“What? That wasn’t a part of the deal!”

“Currently you’re in the palm of my hand, so I get to decide the dance.” He shrugged with a chuckle. Then the officer picked up the boy and began walking towards the end of the alley. “Totshigui Sorah, Totshigui Itchiro, Qawasumi Ruri, Kang Yuanyuan. If any of you dare to follow, there will be consequences. Especially Sorah, please think of the best for your family. Your brother’s safety should be prioritized at all costs.”

And just like that, Dantë Biyu summoned his chart, murmured a chant, before disappearing into thin air along with Asya. Just as quick as he came. What came after was ever mounting silence. A lone cloud finally arrived overhead to shade Gariyuchi Terrace. Not a word escaped from our mouths, holding our breaths, until the ambient sound of pedestrian traffic resumed.

“Kawari, you don’t have to fight him.” Sorah approached me, his brows tense and face pale. Ruri stood up and joined him.

“That’s right. We could sneak in where that officer is staying at and—”

I lightly shook my head and wiped the sweat on my forehead. “It’s no use. This is an Officer of Brevity we’re talking about, like Guiral and Châtelier.”

“But even still,” Yuanyuan interrupted me, “If we banded together…”

Kahokayo Biyu folded her arms as if she were cold. Her dog ears arched down. She stared at the floor. “Even as the second newest Brevity Officer, my brother is cautious. If only I had not been so careless I could have prevented this predicament—”

“Why did you trust all these people?!” Itchiro cut through. He stomped towards her only to be stopped by Yodomi.

“I won’t allow Miss Biyu to be harassed.”

Kahokayo fixed her hair. “...Yodomi, I brought this on myself. If I have wronged somebody, I ought to listen to their grievances!”

Itchiro moved forward but Yodomi remained in his way. Then one of them shoved. It turned into a scuffle as the two men thrusted arms and fists at each other.

“My family’s life was ruined by the Royal Marshal! We’ve been on the run for months on end only for this to happen?”

“So what’s that got to do with anything? The Biyus were generous enough to lend their help! You are indebted to them!”

Sorah attempted to intervene but ended up being knocked to the floor. Itchiro messed up Yodomi’s hair. They began to tear each other’s garments. Yodomi kicked him in the shin. Itchiro fell on one knee. He tightened his fist and screamed. But Kahokayo got in between the two.

“Stop!” She took Itchiro’s punch at full force. It smashed into her cheek and sent her stumbling backwards into Yodomi’s arms, before regaining balance. “Now it is not the time to hit each other. I know you are frightened and confused…however I hope you will place faith in—”

“Your brother? He’s an Officer of Brevity, nothing more than a soldier for the Royal Marshal!”

“She means me, I think.” I put my hand on Itchiro’s shoulder and made him turn around. “All of us can head back to the inn for today. Starting tomorrow, Yodomi, Miss Biyu, and I will leave for Yubiyubi. Is everyone alright with that?”

My reason for accepting Dantë’s deal wasn’t because I answered on a whim. I already knew who I wanted to meet. With just that one person I hoped I could somehow gain an advantage. For now, the situation here needed to be diffused.

Nobody objected to my suggestion.

At first light, I spent my hour eating breakfast and packing my sack. I could barely sleep that night, and in the early morning just waited at the lobby of the inn. The receptionist had checked on me numerous times, but I brushed them off. I stared out the window once again until everyone else came down.

Finding myself stretching on the wooden chair and shaking the table, I got up. “Sorah, Mister Totshigui, Ruri, Yuanyuan. Good morning.”

Everyone’s faces did not look happy at all. More like disbelief. A faint sense of awkwardness lingered, with avoiding glances and embarrassed sighs.

“...” Sorah walked to me. He hugged me, patting my back. “You better return. Had I not been so careless, I would have rescued Asya myself…”

“No need to worry, Sorah. I promise I'll be back in one piece.” I gripped my travel sack from the table which was a bit heavy.

Itchiro raised a brow at the bag. “If I recall, you wanted me to work on that golem core?”

He actually remembered? Sorah let go of me and I nodded. Whether Dantë had set me up for Itchiro’s encounter was a mystery. Or maybe it was a real coincidence. “Yeah, back in Miéki Honu.”

“I’ll go back there to fix something up for you while you’re gone.”

“Mister Totshigui…”

“I messed up. First for running from you in the forge, second for tussling with your brother. You don’t need to pay me.”

I couldn’t argue with that. After Itchiro and I shook hands, I shouldered the lighter weight of my travel sack, and headed to the front doors. My ear picked up a few whispers from Ruri.

Kahokayo and Yodomi should be waiting for me already.