“Right this way, please. Thal Goldur is expecting you.”

The dwarf that had led Lilly and Drake throughout the compound opened the metal door, gesturing for them to go inside the office. She couldn’t help but raise her brow upon hearing the dwarf say the word ‘thal.’ ‘That’s a new one,' she thought, recalling Wade’s brief rundown of dwarven culture. ‘Must be some sort of honorific beyond rhet.’

After they had left the foreman’s house, Drake had insisted that they talk to the dwarf that Mr. Pike had mentioned. For the life of her, she couldn’t understand why he had been so adamant about strolling into a place swarming with dwarfs. Especially when taking into account the fact that rounding up other players had been the dwarven sport of choice these past few days. But seeing that he wouldn’t budge, she just sighed and resigned herself. She did at least want to see what he had in mind.

Approaching the tall, smooth walls that surrounded the mining compound, a couple of dwarven guards had immediately descended upon them. Their threatening tone had subsided the moment Drake raised his hand, willing that ring of his to glow that bright shade of blue. From there, it took little effort on his part to convince one of the guards to escort us to the dwarf in question.

Straight lines and sharp angles defined the massive, windowless building that the guard had guided them to. Now standing in front of the polished, metal door, they crouched, careful to not hit their head on its short frame. Unlike the barren stone halls that had led them there, several shelves and cabinets lined the walls of Goldur’s office. To the side, centered in front of the room’s right wall, stood an ornate desk. And seated on the other side of its dark, glistening surface was a stern-faced dwarf.

When he saw the two of them enter, the dwarf took off his heavy rimmed glasses, knitting his brow as he rubbed his right temple. “What time is it?” he mumbled as he then hoisted himself up to get a better look at a clock mounted on a wall just above a shelf packed full of books and scrolls. “I beg your pardon,” he said, bowing his head almost imperceptibly before leaning over his desk and extending his hand towards them. “I am Bhyr of house Goldur, the head of Harkon’s mining operations.”

“The name is Drake,” she heard the young man say as he shook the dwarf’s hand, nodding in a similar fashion. “I’m an adept serving under Roy Darkeye, master of the Mages Guild’s Bord branch. And this is my companion, Lilly.”

The moment the dwarf heard mention of the master’s name, his eyes narrowed, lingering on Drake for just a moment longer as if to gauge his words. However, the dwarf then turned and extended his hand towards Lilly as well. She rushed to return the gesture in a stiff, albeit equally firm, manner as he then invited both of them to sit down as well.

“Please excuse the lack of hospitality,” said the dwarf, closing a ledger in front of him and sliding it to the side of his desk, “but I was not expecting any company. Much less one of the Mages Guild’s adepts. So please, tell me, what can I do for you?”

As she expected, Goldur measured his words carefully. ‘Definitely not a fan of us waltzing in here without notice.’ Trained on Drake with an almost eerie intensity, the dwarf’s tired, emerald eyes afforded him a much more youthful presence, despite the wrinkles framing his features. Not to mention the fact that, until now, most of the dwarfs that Lilly had seen differed quite a lot from the notion inside her head. They were, indeed, a couple of heads shorter with proportionally wider frames. However, their strong jawlines and large, straight noses made them appear significantly more… stoic and intimidating.

“We were just hoping to get a few answers,” said Drake, meeting the dwarf’s gaze head on. “And what with the Arrival and Strangers popping up everywhere, you must surely be busy, so we’ll do our best to not take up too much of your time, Mr. Goldur.” Merely nodding, the dwarf remained silent as he waited for the young man to continue.

Lilly frowned. ‘Great… he’s more guarded than a hare in a wolf’s den…’ Cutting off the young man, she pressed the issue. “Speaking of Strangers, how much of an influence have they had on Harkon and your operations? If you don’t mind me asking, that is.”

“Not at all,” Goldur replied, taking a moment to think, his voice just as impassive as his eyes. “I will admit, we’re not really sure what to do in this situation. We have already lost a couple of guards to a group of Strangers. And while I’m sure they’re just a vile minority, I’ve given rhet Khadar, the captain of the guards, the order to escort any and all Strangers out of Harkon. At least for the time being.”

Hearing the dwarf’s line of thinking, Lilly raised an eyebrow. ‘Reasonable enough… is what I would say if this captain of yours hadn’t already tried to drag me away via those two dwarfs. And whatever they were doing, it was definitely not trying to escort me out of Harkon…’ She tried to put the thought aside as she spoke. “Mr. Goldur, if you could humor a notion for me. While I am certainly not suggesting that this is the case, let’s assume for a moment that either the captain or some of his guards disobeyed this order of yours. That they went so far as to take matters into their own hands. If this actually was the case, what would happen to the captain and those guards?”

She could see Drake’s eyes widen slightly at her bold line of questioning. The dwarf’s expression, however, remained unchanged. “If that were the case,” replied Goldur, his tone betraying only the subtlest hint of a threat, “depending on their actions, it could range from them being stripped of their positions and exiled, to them just being executed.”

Neither Drake nor Lilly expected this level of candor from the dwarf, much less the unflinching way in which he said it.

“As I said,” Goldur continued, “we’ve already had Strangers killing guards. Retaliation for getting caught trying to rob a store. And then again the day after, when they… resurrected. We are doing everything we can to keep the townspeople safe and the situation under control. But I would like to know what the Mages Guild is doing to help maintain the peace.”

At first glance, the man’s poorly veiled accusation had some merit to it. But as Lilly saw Drake lowering his head, she quickly shot him a message, hoping that the dwarf wouldn’t pick up on it.

Don’t forget! The kingdom runs this place in theory only. They wouldn’t intervene and risk tensions with Troria.

Cold swear ran down the back of Lilly’s neck as Drake’s head jerked slightly. But the thin smile on the young man’s lips made her sigh in relief.

“As far as I know,” he said, coming to meet the dwarf’s cold, emerald gaze, “there haven’t been any sort of major incidents in Bord. And, for now, it does look as if you and your men also have a solid grasp of what you need to do, Mr. Goldur. However, should you require the aid of the Mages Guild, I would be more than happy to relay your request to the master himself.”

“I will keep that in mind,” the dwarf replied curtly. “For now, we’ve already requested for the guards’ next relief shift to be sent in advance. But that still leaves me none the wiser as to the motive behind your visit. So, tell me, Drake. What exactly brought you here to me?”

Without blinking, Drake stared Goldur down as he slowly spoke. “Are you aware of any recent disappearances within Harkon?”

“Disappearances?” the dwarf repeated, leaning back into his chair and frowning. “I’m afraid not. The townsfolk and my people are all accounted for, as far as I know.”

“I’m not talking about them,” said Drake. “I’m talking about two other adepts that came to Harkon a few days ago, only to vanish without a trace.”

“Now that’s news to me,” said the dwarf, raising his brow at the young man’s words. “I’ll tell the captain to put together a search party for them. Although, if I were to hazard a guess, I’d say that there’s a decent chance for those Strangers to be the ones behind it.”

Drake nodded. “Thank you. Your help in the matter is most appreciated,” he said, before narrowing his eyes. “But while you’re at it, would it be too much for you to ask your men to also keep an eye out for any sort of suspicious activity?” Just as Goldur opened his mouth to speak, the young man continued. “Before their disappearance, those two adepts came to Harkon in order to investigate reports of Conclave activity.”

For the first time since their impromptu meeting had begun, Lilly noticed a new expression on Goldur’s face: genuine surprise.

“The Conclave?!” the dwarf spat out as he rushed up from his chair, slamming his hands on his desk. “What sort of reports? And why am I only hearing about this now?”

Raising his hand gently, Drake motioned Goldur to take it easy. Once the dwarf had sat down again, crossing his arms and sighing loudly, the young man continued. “The Guild wishes to keep things under wraps for the time being. We’ll fill you in on everything we know tomorrow morning, once we’ve had the chance to look around a bit ourselves. Would that be acceptable to you as well?”

“Fine,” Goldur grumbled. “Those fanatics and their hogwash have never had a place here in Harkon. Though I don’t understand why you’d want to delay this discussion.”

“It’s something my master requested,” replied Drake as brought up his other arm, revealing the Link Sphere clutched within his palm. “If you’ve heard any of the rumors surrounding Roy Darkeye, I’m sure you can understand.”

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“I have,” said the dwarf, his emerald eyes fixated on the crystal orb within Drake’s hand. “Alright… far be it from me to stand in the way of master Darkeye’s wishes.”

The chair beneath the young man creaked as he got up. “Once again, your assistance is greatly appreciated, thal Goldur,” he said, taking a solemn bow in front of the dwarf before extending his hand. “If you need to get in contact with us before tomorrow, we’re currently staying in the inn within the eastern district. Simply leave a message with the innkeeper and we’ll swing by immediately.”

“Understood.” Goldur shook Drake’s hand and then Lilly’s. He then tapped the surface of a glowing stone embedded into the side of his desk as the door to his office swung open and one of the guards entered. “Please escort our guests out of the compound.”

As soon as they were outside and a fair distance away, Lilly turned towards Drake only to see him sigh out loud and slump his shoulders. She smiled and patted him on the back. “You handled that a lot better than I would’ve expected.”

“Only because you tried to help me,” he said, taking a deep breath and straightening his back.

“Come on,” she grinned, “give yourself some credit! I only tripped him up a bit. Oh, and I did give you one pointer.”

“Yeah, that’s what reminded me of this” he smiled, turning his palm up to reveal the Link Sphere in his hand. Only this time, a faint, blue glow radiated from its center. “My teacher, Arthur, says hi!”

****

The air hissed by Bane’s face as Vala’s mace narrowly missed him. Again, he jumped back, unable to get past the dented kite shield rushing towards him. His amber eyes scanned the taur’s stance and her stamina bar. While the yellow bar beneath her health hadn’t gone down by even a third, his had already dipped below half. ‘Seriously… There’s no way for me to get close, let alone fight back because of that blasted shield.’ Until now, it’d taken him everything just to dance around Vala’s attacks. ‘If I could only–’

Raising her shield, the taur had charged him. He sidestepped to the left, barely able to avoid getting rammed back. Vala then angled her shield up, clearing the way for a vicious horizontal swing, straight into his right arm.

You have been hit! -36 HP.

The sheer force of the blow sent Bane toppling to the side. He grit his teeth and rolled away, doing his best to ignore the momentary pain as he put a bit more distance between himself and the terrifying shield maiden. It took another moment for him to completely regain feeling in his right arm. ‘Crap, three or four more blows like that and I’m done for.’

“So,” Vala grinned, “you plan on doing something else in this duel, or just cardio?”

“Bite me,” Bane growled. “How the hell are you so freakishly quick with that huge frame of yours?!”

A disappointed sigh resounded from the side, prompting him to glance in that direction.

“Bane,” said Mia, shaking her head, “it’s not nice to imply that a lady is… big-boned.”

“The hell?” he groaned as Vala burst into laughter in front of him. “I only meant that she’s tall!”

The taur smirked, wiping away a tear. “It’s okay, Mia. He’s just confused that I’m able to keep up with him, even though he’s technically faster.”

“How’s that even fair?” Bane asked, narrowing his eyes at the kite shield in front of him. ‘Got to do something about that. Whenever I charge her, she always… wait.’

Staring straight at him, Vala began to approach as he stepped back, maintaining the distance between them. But the moment he saw the taur raising her shield, he dashed towards her. Vala widened her stance, readying herself. A desperate smile flashed across his face as he kicked off the ground, launching himself feet-first towards the shield maiden.

His boots failed to even make contact with Vala’s shield as she spun to the side, her mace already raised above her head.

You have received a critical hit! -77 HP.

The blow crashed into Bane’s chest, knocking the air out of him as he tumbled to the ground like a ragdoll. His head spinning, he hoisted himself up only to see the second before Vala’s shield rammed him back down, followed by her mace hammering into his chest once more.

You have been hit! -23 HP.

Dazed by opponent’s Shield Bash.

Movement impaired for 1 second.

You have been hit! -40 HP.

“Mending Light! Radiant Vigor!”

The ringing in Bane’s head and the pressure in his chest vanished as the light from Mia’s spells surrounded him, bringing his health back above the halfway mark and steadying his breath. “Y’know?” he said, looking up at the woman that had mercilessly pounded him into the ground, “I think you went a bit overboard towards the end there…”

“You did cut it a bit too close,” said Mia as she looked above Bane’s head. “That last attack of yours took him below five percent…”

“Heh,” Vala chuckled, “I prefer to think of it as hands-on experience. Now I know for sure that he won’t try to pull a move like that again. Especially not against an opponent that’s actually aiming to kill him.”

Bane sighed and hoisted himself up. Ambling towards the nearest tree, he sat down and leaned against its rough bark. Bringing up his furred hands, he stared at them while the other two began chatting with one another. “You’re okay with us taking a break for a couple of minutes, right?”

“Sure,” winked Vala. “That’ll at least give Mia enough time to heal you back up for round two!”

Ignoring her taunt, Bane looked back at his gray fur and frowned. ‘Could’ve sworn it was lighter in color than this.’ He shuddered as he recalled the dark feeling enveloping his arms, from back when they fought and killed Mel’Hakath. The fact that he had gotten a passive skill meant to boost darkness spells and abilities without even knowing a single one also struck him as odd. ‘There’s got to be more to it than that. How the hell did Drake say it went?’

Shutting his eyes, Bane took a deep breath and focused on that otherworldly feeling again. A strange, vexing sensation spread across his hands, pulsing in sync with his breathing. Pushing everything away… and then pulling it all towards him. Push, pull. Push. Pull.

Around his hands, thin, scintillating threads of darkness came into existence, causing his fur to shimmer in the wind, like the pitch-black surface of a lake. His arms felt heavier, denser. And just as quickly, the feeling faded as the shadowy threads dissipated.

You have learned Dark Burden (Active Skill)!

Dark Burden (Active) Rank:ApprenticeLevel:1 (0.0%) Magic School:Darkness You have learned to harness a small portion of the power of darkness, thus allowing you to infuse your targets with it. Doing so increased the weight of the targeted entity or equipment for a short period of time.

Weight Increase: +100%

Duration: 3 seconds

Mana Cost:1/Target Weight(Encumbrance)

‘Heh, with this, I might just have a chance!’

“What’re you grinning about?” Vala asked as she turned to look at him.

“Oh, I’m just weighing my options,” Bane chuckled. “Mia, think you can top me off?”

The blond woman smiled as the light she called danced around her hands and then surrounded him. With both his health and stamina recovered, the two half-beasts walked towards the center of the clearing again. With just his longest dagger unsheathed, Bane leaned forward, ready to strike.

“Begin!” Mia yelled.

His muscles coiled as he took off, his gaze fixated on the taur’s shield.

“Haven’t you learned… your lesson yet?!” Vala roared, swinging her mace at him.

But right at the last moment, Bane slammed his foot and vaulted to the side, dodging the blow and rolling in front of Vala’s shield. The taur’s eyes lit up as she prepared to ram him over.

Right on cue, Bane slammed his hand against the shield and yelled, a shimmering darkness doubling the fur on his arm as it then spread towards Vala’s shield. In the moment it took her to process what had just happened, Bane grabbed Vala’s arm and flooded it with the remainder of his mana.

The taur’s knees buckled as he kicked her in the back. And as his second dagger materialized, Bane angled them down and plunged them into the base of Vala’s neck. But while his gamble had paid off, it had only managed to shred half of her health. A chill ran through him as the taur slid her leg back, kicking one of his feet from underneath him. She then spun up, shaking Bane off of her as she then crashed the tip of her shield into his stomach.

You have received a critical hit! -61 HP.

Stunned by opponent’s Shield Strike.

Movement impaired for 2 second.

With him unable to move, it only took Vala another second to drop his remaining health below twenty percent.

“Now THAT, I didn’t expect!” the taur laughed as she cracked her neck. “So, I guess that means you’re paying! Also, getting stabbed in the neck… wouldn’t recommend it.”

“Oh, come on!” Bane groaned again. “How sturdy are you even?!”

****

Down the hall from Dhek’s cell, another door creaked open. He could barely keep his eyes open as his consciousness faded in and out. His starved body also lacked any sort of strength.

“Quite the pitiful state you’re in, Dhek,” he heard someone say in front of his cell. And as two pairs of arms grabbed him by his shoulders, yanking him up, the voice continued. “Khadar wants to have a word with you now.”