ILIAS VAN PAYNE
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There were finally seven of us and we got to that number way sooner than expected. We woke up early. The plan was to have breakfast before setting for the farming village. Making camp was the only thing we’d stop for.
According to the farmers, the journey to their village would take four days.
If I told myself to wake up at a certain time, my body was disciplined enough to act as an alarm. Before the sun even began to shine its first rays of light, I had already dressed up and packed our things.
Jaime, of course, stayed up late and begged to sleep in.
“Get up,” I told her. “They’re going to leave without us.”
She pulled the blanket over her head. “I’ll skip breakfast. Let me sleep some more.”
“We won’t be stopping until the sun falls.” I pulled her out of bed and dressed her up. “Your stomach will be growling the entire day.”
By the time the sun was halfway up, her energy had risen with it. She marched onto the streets. “Come on! Let’s get eating!”
“Is your hair green because you’re some sort of plant?”
Everyone was waiting for us at the rendezvous. Jaime took responsibility for our punctuation and apologized.
The streets of Shoya were empty. We were greeted by business owners who were getting ready to open up shop. Tony was a mild celebrity and a known adventurer. He was familiar with the town and took us to a cheap tavern to eat at.
Along the way, Hanzo stood frozen at a bulletin board filled with job requests, news, and wanted posters. None of us had even noticed he stayed behind until his friends called him out.
“Hanzo!” Ritsu shouted. “You staying?”
Hanzo kept silent for a moment and pointed at the board. “It’s their posters. The elf, the two women, and the captain are right there on the wall.”
Askeladd grabbed the posters. We didn’t talk about them until we got a table at Tony’s tavern.
“Montgomery Gucci,” Ritsu said, reading out the name on one of the posters. “Are you sure this is the captain of the bandits?”
Hanzo nodded. “Yes, I remember him distinctly. I told you all that the captain was a beast person that’s part otter. This Montgomery guy also has the same emblem on his armour.”
Mondatta raised a hand. “Quick question. Beast people’s last names are the settlement they were from. I’ve never heard of a settlement called Gucci.”
“It could be a new settlement,” Roxy suggested. “Or a small hamlet.”
“Or his father could’ve been one of the other four races,” Askeladd explained. “If a beast person has an offspring with someone from the other four races, the offspring will always look like the beast parent. It doesn’t matter if it’s the mother or the father. But, they will have their father’s last name if the father is one of the other races.”
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
“Do you think he knows jynx?”
“Probably a few spells. But more likely than not, he has his own alchemy ability or a cursed artifact of some sort. He’s the leader after all. The only successful military leader that didn’t use anything jynx related is Decan and that’s because he physically couldn’t.”
Roxanne took the poster. “It says here that he’s the leader of a group of fifty or so bandits. They’ve been wreaking havoc on settlements north of the Great Sand Sea ever since the White Whale forced many soldiers to head to Headrig’s Pass. They call themselves the Eagles.”
Askeladd studied one of the other posters. “Messina Versace. Are you sure this was the elf that was with them?”
The gunslinger, who was next to him, studied the poster, inhaling tobacco and blowing the smoke away. “Does he look familiar, Boss?”
He shook his head. “Never heard of a Messina or the family name Versace. Just because I’m an elf doesn’t mean I know every single one.”
“He looks a bit like you.”
Hanzo nodded. “But much younger, skinnier, clean-shaven, and with spikier hair.”
“Maybe he’s family,” Roxy pondered.
Askeladd shook his head. “Definitely not. I can count my living family all on one hand.”
“Did he look strong?” Jaime asked Hanzo.
“He felt strong,” the farmer said. “I don’t know how to explain it, but the aura coming off of him was murderous. He felt more dangerous than anyone there.”
I poured myself a cup of juice. “That must be the mana emitting from his gates. If it’s strong enough, your mana can manifest as the emotions you’re feeling. You guys must’ve done something to provoke him.”
“We don’t even know who he is.”
“Did any of them show any abilities?”
Hanzo shook his head. “No, they just talked for a bit then left.”
“What about the two girls that Messina was with?” Mondatta read the posters, “Florence Cavalli and Vienna Armani. Anything on them?”
“The same strong aura was coming off them, but it wasn’t murderous. They were just strong. I don’t think they have the same intentions as Messina.”
Mondatta nodded. “Just as I thought. They’re probably a trio of mercenaries people can hire. The bandits might’ve hired them.”
“Or they volunteered to help out for free,” Hanzo suggested. “The captain said they’re only raiding the village for food. But he said something about Messina having it to himself right after.”
“How were they dressed?” Askeladd asked. “You can tell a lot about someone by the clothes they wear.”
“Messina was wearing light armour that had plates connected by leather straps. Florence was dressed like Tony, but with a tighter outfit and no hat. Vienna was wearing nothing but armoured underwear and a robe.”
“Armoured underwear?” Tony chuckled. “I want to see that.”
“Tony, do you think Florence is a gunslinger?” Askeladd asked.
“I don’t know. I dress like this to stay cool and protect my skin from the sun. Did you see a gun on her hip, chest, or hanging from her neck?”
“No.” Hanzo shook his head. “I’m sure of it. The only ones that had guns were the bandits.”
Tony rubbed his chin. “Could be a cursed artifact. I ran into a kid with a pistol he can summon at will.”
I nodded my head. “What about Vienna? What did she have on her?”
“Nothing,” Hanzo said. “She was wearing nothing and carrying nothing.”
“She could have alchemy—her own unique ability. Something that works better the less clothes she has.” An image of a cat woman who liked to wear the bare minimum flashed in my head. “I know someone who dressed like her.”
“Maybe it’s just a fashion thing,” Tony chuckled.
“Definitely not. It makes more sense to wear a lot because you can always remove articles if it’s hot. But I’m surprised she’s not cold so far north.”
We stopped our conversation when the servers came by to drop off our meals.
“Has your village ever dealt with bandits before?” Mondatta asked while we ate.
“No.” Ritsu shook his head. “There were soldiers from Shoya who stayed at our village. But they all left to deal with the white whale.”