Chapter 7: Going underground.

The atmosphere was suffocating, as I looked around for the exit. While some of the crowd of adventurers looked at me with confusion and fear, most of them looked at me with what can only be described as raw bloodlust.

Danger detected. Nanites overheating from increased pressure flow.

I shivered, as the crowd that cheered for me moments ago, are now filled with fear, anger, and malice.

“Hurry!” Suddenly, a voice called out to me, and with a small relief, I saw the familiar figure of Melissa and Jandel trailing behind her, pushing through the hostile audience until they reached me.

“I’m so sorry…” I whispered, as Jandel angrily yelled at the other adventurers to give way. Melissa made sure Bronsted was okay with all that wine in his belly, then immediately caught up to us, as we pushed through the endless waves of adventurers yelling at us, raising up their weapons against me, but just far away due to the barrier that Melissa created.

It was dizzying, as the roaring adventurers, the flashing lights from the staffs, and the gleaming swords pointed at me, drowning my senses, like the horrific feeling of sinking into the bottom of the ocean. I messed up.

By the time we finally got out of the guild’s doors, I collapsed on my knees and covered my face in shock, still comprehending what I had just done.

Jandel sighed, then whispered to Melissa.

“Look, Melissa, I don’t know what she is, but if we keep her alongside us, there will be more harm than good. I trust your judgement that she is a decent person, but ALL of the guild has seen her with those… black, demonic, horns. If she stays here then she will definitely be tortured in the name of exorcism, either by the adventurers looking for bounty, or by those with the church.”

Snap! I pulled both of my horns off, as they fell to the ground, and then melted, absorbed by the dirt path.

Nanites stabilized. Putting unnecessary pressure on nanites is highly discouraged in the future.

As I took a few deep breaths to calm myself and open my eyes again, I saw Melissa and Jandel’s surprised expression as they just turned around from their “quiet” discussion and saw that my horns were gone.

“Huh… Well, we all have secrets, don’t we? Well, I think we should take Nina to the Leceron city mayor then. Jandel, you are still on good terms with mayor Palsworth right? Let's go Nina.” She lifted me up, and we walked with a fast pace towards the better districts of Leceron city.

“Yeah, I was thinking the same thing too. Mayor Palsworth is a pretty influential but decent figure, hopefully he can help with the shit that she riled up in the city’s biggest-”

“Stop it Jandel! She is clearly not a demon. I believe she deserves a chance!” Melissa shouted at Jandel. As Jandel cowered down, I pulled at Melissa’s sleeves.

“It’s… not Jandel’s fault, Melissa. It’s my fault. I have been through some things, so I was too egoistic and not myself when I did that stupid stunt. I am sorry for all the troubles I caused.”

As I apologised profusely, Jandel sarcastically whispered to himself. “Tsk tsk. Melissa, in our line of work, innocence gets you killed. You know tha- OW!” He yelled, a red mark forming on his head.

“No whispering behind my back, Jandel. I knew the risks when I signed up for this.” She scoffed. “Alright, we are almost at the mansion.”

While many of the houses at this part of the district are much more luxurious, we ignored them and kept walking on the path until we reached what seems to be a cobblestone road for carriages, until we reached what we can only describe as a mansion, which was blocked off by a massive stone wall, decorated with what can only be described as various assortments of exotic plants.

We walked past the massive iron gate, guarded by a dozen knights with a blue insignia as their cape. After we circled around, we reached this small iron gate with a lone butler in front of it.

“Name? State what you want.” The butler asked, with a tone filled to the brim with boredom.

“Jandel, I’m here to ask for a favor from Mayor Palsworth.”

Followed by a sigh, the Butler used a key to unlock the door. “Just how many favors do you want to ask from Sir Palsworth… wait.” He stopped.

The butler looked at me, then raised his eyebrows. “This young lady here looks interesting. Guess this wouldn’t be for nothing after all.”

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

As the butler ushered me and Melissa through the gate, he whispered to Jandel, hoping that Melissa and I wouldn’t hear it.

Melissa didn’t seem to notice, but when I heard it, I covered my mouth.

“Jandel, I know you are smarter than many of the adventurers here, and contributed great things to this wonderful city, which is why as a former swordmaster, I must warn you that something weird has been happening recently.”

“Mysterious people. They wear strange outfits, and have strange contraptions. The mayor’s finest mercenaries have captured one of them, but until we can decipher their language, we have orders to stay clear of their way unless they threaten our safety.

“...Right.” Jandel yawned.

“You clearly aren’t listening, are you? The mayor still refuses to tell me about who they are, saying that he will reveal it to me once ‘the time is right’. But when I saw them for the first time, I could already feel it.”

“They are not from this world.”

I swallowed my gasp.

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“Well hello there Jandel! Did you think of a party name? Kind of stale to have the words ‘unnamed party’ hanging on the bulletin board in first place in the Rising stars section isn’t it?” A jolly man greets us as two maids open the door to a luxurious office, decorated with a variety of ancient timbers.

I expected the mayor to be some rich aristocrat, but for all the eye-catching artefacts displayed in the room, Palsworth himself isn’t in any interesting attire. He does have a funky silver mustache that will surely leave an impression on anyone who saw him.

“We need some privacy first.” Jandel said, as we walked inside. The fireplace on the side of the desk calmly burned with a bluish hue, and paintings hung on the walls. Behind the man was a massive blue flag with white symbol which I assume to be the emblem of the city, signifying the power he holds over this city.

“I think I can guess the gist of it already, but do tell me.” The mayor, Palsworth, gestured at the maids, and they swiftly closed the office door behind us.

“So, we met this girl-” Jandel gestured towards me “-who is called Nina, when we were escorting a merchant carriage on the northern path to Leceron, near the forest of Vannimei.”

“We are hoping if you can give Nina a place to-” Melissa interrupted him, but mayor Palsworth raised his hand and motioned her to stop.

“The city guards have raised concerns of a possible ‘demon’ within the city, and it was… her doing, right? The guildmaster told me all about it already.”

I scrunched up my face, remembering what I just did.

The mayor sighed, then continued on. “If you look closely at this young lady’s clothing, you will realise that it was of a texture that you have never seen before. She is of an otherworldly origin, I’m sure of it. Can she speak in our tongue?”

“...Yes, I can.” I replied.

“Oh! That surprised me. Nina was it? Good to meet you, outsider.”

He held out his hands, and while I hesitated a little, I realised that he just wanted to shake hands as a greeting.

As we exchanged greetings, he looked at me, his eyes clearly curious, but maintained this serious look deserving of a man with power.

“I am a lenient person, but more so, I am this city’s mayor. While I have many questions, I decided to hold them off so I can ask for an… assistance. If you assist me with this task, I will help you integrate into the culture of the wonderful nation of Laski, and make sure that you remain safe within my city. What do you think, outsider?”

“Well, that depends on what you want. Mayor Palsworth.” I replied.

“Right, it is only fair to know what you are going to do. Come with me then. Open the doors!” He yelled, and the maids waiting outside pulled them open slowly, just wide enough that the doors didn't hit the bookshelves behind.

The mayor turned around to face Melissa and Jandel. “I don’t want any of you adventurers to know of this yet, as the royal family and us high in the position are still investigating. You encountered outsiders like her though, so I feel like it is only fair for you to stay.”

He twirled a set of keys of all shapes and sizes, some sparkly and socketed with gems, some rusty and unassuming.

“If you really want to know, then follow us. Otherwise, my maids can guide you out of the mansion.” He gestured towards the maids who were closing the door behind us, as we walked out of mayor Palsworth’s office.

“You know me, mayor Palsworth! You can trust us with secrets.” Jandel bragged, Melissa rolling her eyes with his remark.

“Alright then, come with me. But don’t say I didn’t warn you…” Palsworth grumbled, as we stopped at the end of the hallway, where four knights greeted us.

“Greetings mayor Palsworth. May I ask what are you entering the mansion cellar for?” The one who seemed to be the leader of the knights asked the mayor. The other knights half-drew their swords, preparing to retaliate if something were to go wrong.

The leading knight also proceeded to chant something, and a light orange wave washed over us.

Abnormal wave readings detected. Did not affect any operation. Anomaly logged.

“Since you are sure that it is me now, take me to the prisoner we captured yesterday. Mullon.”

The knight captain called Mullon looked at us, then looked back at the mayor. Finally content, he waved his hands, and the other three knights pushed their swords back down their sheathes.

“The one the mercenaries you’ve hired caught last night? He is still getting interrogated by the royal investigators.” Mullon said, as he stepped away from the locked stone door behind him.

Palsworth raised his eyebrows. “Since yesterday?”

“Since yesterday.”

“Such impatience… hmph.” The mayor complained, and finding a small, rusty key from his ring of keys, he unlocked the stone door. Mullon then led us through the entrance.

What greeted us was a staircase made out of stone, and as we walked down the flight of stairs, the warm and cozy smell of the mansion was replaced with the smell of moss and water.

We reached the bottom of the stairs and kept walking forwards, the entire hallway made up of stone slabs. Every diverging junction was guarded by a knight, and even though there was a lantern every few meters hanging on the wall, it was still dim.

“Here we are.” The knight captain said, as we reached the end of the hallway, with only a door in front.

It is a wooden door reinforced with iron, and seems to be in good condition despite the slightly damp air around here.

The mayor pulled out his set of keys again, and unlocked the door…

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TRANSMISSION DETECTED

TRACES.OMNI

Yet another trace, found.

They run, they hide.

Each time, just out of reach.

But when we come through before they can close it…

They fall, they die.

Two steps forward, and one step back.

We will catch up soon enough.

END TRANSMISSION