Chapter 118
Under the Moonlight
It had been a couple of days since Erin’s group had arrived at Cliffdrop City. During that time, Lexton had set up his shop in order to gather money for their travels and had been doing fairly well. Thanks to the high quality of his products, the kobold was able to sell his potions quite well, earning their group some much needed credits.
While Lexton was busy doing business along with Erin and Arkay as his assistants, Durge was taking care of information gathering along with Zeldana. They went around looking for rumors and other talks in regards to Rayleen appearing nearby, hoping to learn more. What they were most interested in were the locations where she was sighted and if there were any other people associated with her that might have been seen nearby.
With every important job covered, Ryle was left with almost nothing to do, except practice her skills during the time the others were away. The blonde was hoping to reach the same level of combat as Durge, which she had set up as a goal for herself.
However, even if she couldn’t help with gathering information or in selling Lexton’s products, there was still a few smaller jobs she was able to do. One was guarding their place of stay and vehicle, just in case somebody got the idea of trying to rob them. Another one was helping Lexton in carrying the stuff he bought for some of his projects, which was something the blonde wasn’t all too fond of doing. This was something she had made very clear, such as now.
“Why the hell do I have to be your personal mule for carrying all this crap!?” Ryle complained as she and Lexton got back to the hotel room the group was staying at. “I don’t get it! Why can’t you just use your golems for this!?”
“Are you actually telling me to waste my precious golems for something like this? Especially when I can put you to good use for once?” Lexton asked in return. “Think about it a bit! My golems are very expensive and hard to make! Why would I waste them on a menial task like this!? Besides, this the perfect job for an idiot like you, since you’re no good for much else.”
“I’m good for kicking your ass, if that’s needed!” the blonde yelled.
“Would you two mind and try behaving for once when you’re together!?” Erin angrily asked her two bickering companions. “Seriously, every time. EVERY. SINGLE. TIME! You two get together for more than five seconds and you get into a goddamn argument, like it’s automatic! Would it kill either of you two to at least try and act like adults!?”
“DON’T LOOK AT ME! THAT’S THE ONE WHO’S AT FAULT!” both Ryle and Lexton shouted at the same time while pointing at each. Noticing this, they turned to look at each other with frowns on their faces. “MY FAULT!? YOU’RE THE ONE ALWAYS STARTING IT!”
“ENOUGH!” the redhead shouted furiously, putting a stop to the argument. “No one here wants to deal with whatever crap you’ve got going on this time, so just drop it or you’re both sleeping on the streets tonight!”
“But-!” both Ryle and Lexton tried to argue, but Erin was not having it.
“DROP IT OR YOU GO THE STREETS! GOT IT!?” the redhead shouted.
“Y-YES!”
“I swear, the two of you are like overgrown children at times!” Erin said as she rubbed her temples, feeling a headache coming. “Is there a kindergarten where I can just dump both of you, so I don’t have to deal with this crap?”
“I doubt there’s any institution that’s willing to deal with their crap,” Durge said. “Unless we’re talking about a zoo.”
“Ha freaking ha. You guys are real comedians, you know?” Ryle said sarcastically.
“If it makes you feel better, I find your arguments with Lex much more amusing,” Zeldana said.
“NOBODY ASKED YOU!” Erin, Ryle, Lexton and Durge shouted at the same time.
“...I was just saying,” the elf mumbled.
“Of all the things… Anyways, we should get down to business finally and see how much each of us has been able to accomplish so far,” Erin said. “As far as I can tell, Lex’s business has been doing very well, so we should have a decent amount of cash accumulated by now. Would it be correct for me to assume this, Lex?”
“But of course! You’re talking about the products made by the great yours truly here!” Lexton replied happily. “If they didn’t sell well, I’d die from shame! With the amount of money we’ve accumulated so far, all of our monetary woes are solved! At least until we have to put a stop to my business dealings…”
“Well, that’s certainly good to hear,” the redhead said. “Mind sharing with the rest of us just what the money we’ve earned has been spent on?”
“Not at all. Apart from the daily necessities that are to be covered, there have been some other things that the money has been spent on,” the kobold began to explain. “These include ingredients for other potions, such as the ones I sell later to make more money and the ones we use during our travels. I’ve also bought materials for some of my own combat equipment and things that I need to finish Durge’s new weapon.”
“Seems like you’re spending an awful lot of cash on yourself,” Ryle said in an accusing tone. “I really hope that’s not all that you’ve been using the money for.”
“You do realize that most of the stuff I’ve bought is something that helps us all out, dumbass? It’s not like I’m going on a personal shopping spree with the group’s money,” Lexton said as he glared at the blonde. “Besides, I’m not just spending it all on stuff that I build. I’ve also gathered some books that should help Arkay and Erin develop their abilities in magic. I know how to be considerate, you know?”
“Could have fooled me,” Ryle mumbled.
“Okay, that’s enough of that! Good work, Lex!” Erin quickly said, hoping to move on with the conversation. “The other thing we were hoping to achieve was information, especially in regards to Raylee. How has that worked out, Durge?”
“Well, I was able to confirm one thing. She really is here,” the orc replied. “It turns out that she has been making nightly appearances every now and then on the northern side of the city. She has been spotted hovering over the steep cliff that’s over there, almost like she’s trying to get somebody’s attention.”
“So the rumors were true then?” Zeldana asked. “Were you able to see her yourself and confirm this with your own eyes?”
“Not by actually seeing her, but I was able to see a photo someone took,” Durge replied. “From the way I see it, if it wasn’t Rayleen herself in it, then she has to have an identical twin. There’s no way that it was just some body double.”
“Good to know that we didn’t come here for nothing then,” Erin said. “Since Rayleen’s presence here has been confirmed, I suppose we might as well try and look what she is up to.”
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“What have you got planned?” Lexton asked.
“Nothing major. Just some basic spying,” the redhead answered. “I’m gonna go and try to find her myself. Once I do, I’ll follow her movements as closely as possible. With any luck, she might reveal what she’s doing here or even go to her base of operations.”
“Now hang on a second! You are NOT doing something like that on your own!” Ryle suddenly said in protest. “It’s way too dangerous for you to follow a warlord of all people alone! If you’re found out, she will certainly beat your ass all over the city! You’re going to need us with you in case things go south!”
“I appreciate the concern, but that’s out of the question,” Erin said. “The more of us try to follow her around, the easier it will be for her to spot us. Not only that, but some of us aren’t exactly suited for this type of work. No offense meant towards those individuals, of course.”
“Meh. It’s a fair assessment,” Durge said with a shrug.
“I know my weaknesses all too well, so I don’t feel the need to be offended,” Lexton said.
“Glad that at least went over well… My point still is that something like this doesn’t work well with a large group,” Erin said. “In order for us to stay out of sight, we must not draw as little attention to ourselves as possible. With all of us that won’t just be difficult, but near impossible. The best solution is for me to go at this on my own in order to avoid detection.”
“Oh, so suddenly some sort of a master spy and all? The rest of us are not on your level? Is that what you’re saying?” Ryle asked in an accusing tone. “I’ll have you know that I’ve done plenty of jobs that require sneaking around and I was like a shadow! Don’t think that you’re the only one that’s good at sneaking around!”
“Hey, I’m not trying to say that you’re not skilled or anything! I’m just stating the fact that this operation works better with a much smaller group!” the redhead said defensively. “Besides, if we all go, that just means we might all get captured or killed at the same time! It’s better for me to go on my own, so that you guys can come help me, if something does go wrong.”
“That’s only if you’re left alive, so somebody can help you! And considering who we are dealing with, I DON’T THINK THAT’S LIKELY!” the blonde said angrily. “Like it or not, you’re not doing this solo! At least one of us is going to come along!”
“But I-!”
“Erin, the blonde imbecile is right about this one,” Lexton said, ignoring Ryle’s hateful glare directed at him. “The fact of the matter is that you going on your own is pretty much suicidal. If we are to believe that you’ll actually have any chance of survival, you’re going to need some company with you. Not just to help you fight, but possibly come here and inform the rest of us what has happened.”
“But… But I…” Erin tried to argue her position while looking around at her companions, only to see that none of them were in agreement with her. She could tell just by the looks she was getting that they all agreed with Ryle and Lexton. “...I’m not going to win this, am I?”
“No, you certainly are not,” Durge said with a small chuckle. “Don’t get me wrong. The things you said were true in a sense. Moving with a large group will only make it easier for Rayleen to spot us and some of us, like yours truly, are not suited for these types of missions. However, you can’t deny that going solo isn’t much of a better option. At least one or two of us should come along with you.”
“T-That’s right! And it’s not like we are looking down on your skills either!” Arkay said. “We are just worried over what might happen to you, since you’ll be on your own! We care about you and don’t want to see you get yourself hurt!”
“Thanks, Arnie,” Erin said with a small smile. “Well, since I’m going to be joined by others in this, who am I going to be going with then?”
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Later that night, the redhead was walking down the city’s empty streets along with two of her companions. They were heading towards one of the spots where Rayleen had been spotted a few times, hoping that they would be able to see the warlord for themselves tonight.
The two that were accompanying Erin were Ryle and Arkay, as they were the most suited for jobs that required stealth. Ryle had experience in being sneaky from her work as a bounty hunter, when she would have to follow targets without being noticed, and Arkay had been a very skilled thief back in Moonstone City, so he knew how to keep himself hidden. With Erin having been trained by professional assassins in the art of stealth, they had gathered the best members of their group for the task at hand.
Heading towards the northern side of the city, the trio came to a very large and steep cliff that the city had been named after. The local geography was formed in such a manner that there was a sudden drop from where the city was built, with the much lower area continuing for miles in all directions. This lower area’s ground was made of very soft dust that was difficult to move in, which made anyone foolish enough to venture there easy prey to the beasts that lived in that area.
From what Erin could remember, the backstory of this place was that it had once been the central metropolis of the whole Western Continent, until a horrible disaster caused most of it to sink into the ground, leaving behind nothing but a large and deadly wasteland. Cliffdrop City was the only remaining part of that long forgotten metropolis and was only a very small portion of what used to stand there.
Apparently, there were rumors about a grand quest hidden somewhere in the game, where you would discover not only the ruins of this old city, but also what caused it to sink. There were all sorts of theories ranging from strange experiments and gigantic monsters living underground as to what had been the cause. Yet despite numerous players trying their best, no one had been able to discover said quest. Even Erin had tried to, along with Devin and his friends, but with no success.
However, now wasn’t the time to be thinking about rumors involving a game. The redhead needed to focus on learning more information about their next target in order to come up with a plan to take her down.
Arriving at the northern edge of the city, the three assassins hid in the shadows of nearby buildings. They were situated almost at the edge of the cliff with only a simple guardrail between themselves and a drop that would lead to certain death. The moon shined down brightly from the night sky, allowing them to see the area where Rayleen was supposedly spotted, but not into the deep abyss below.
“So this is where our warlord likes to make herself seen, huh?” Ryle asked, while keeping her eyes open for any movement ahead of them. “Doesn’t look like there’s much here that’s worth seeing, though. I mean, you literally cannot see anything beneath you from there! Why would she come here at all?”
“That’s what we are here to find out,” Erin said. “Whatever it is that keeps bringing her here is, we need to figure out what it is. After all, someone of her caliber wouldn’t come here just to see the sights. Or… the lack of sights, I suppose…”
“I don’t know… Isn’t the view of the night sky and the moon more than enough reason to come here?” Arkay asked as he gazed at the stars above them with a small smile. “I wouldn’t mind coming here to do that. Since this isn’t a place with a lot of people going about, you’d be allowed to do so in peace as well. Being able to take in such sights without being disturbed sounds almost too good to be true.”
Both Erin and Ryle turned towards their young friend with surprised looks on their faces. The cat boy was often so nervous and awkward that neither of them would have expected him to just open up like this all of a sudden.
“Wow, Arnie, I never took you for someone who enjoyed gazing at the stars,” Erin said. “Where did this all come from?”
“Well, the village I grew up at wasn’t exactly rich. We all had to work hard almost every day in order to keep things going. Not only that, but I also had to study academic skills and magic as well, so there was very little time for playing around or relaxing,” Arkay explained. “It was often only at evenings that I was done with all the work. One of my favorite things to do was sit down on the ground and look up at the sky to see the stars. Sometimes my mom or my dad or even both would join me, telling me about stories related to the stars. Those are some of my best memories I have of them.”
While Erin was happy that the cat boy had decided to share this part about his life with them, she couldn’t help but feel a bit sad over his fate. Arkay had lost both of his parents and most likely everyone he knew while growing up at a very young age, which forced him into a life of crime. Now the closest thing to a family he had was their group, assassins trying to take down the most powerful people in their world. The redhead considered it unfair that a person as gentle and kind as him would have to go through such a life.
However, while she couldn’t help with what had already happened to Arkay, Erin could help with how his life would turn up from this point forward. She was determined to not just keep the cat boy and her other friends safe, but to also make sure that they felt like they belonged into the group. This was something she was especially going to do when it came to their group’s youngest member. He head been a tremendous help to them, so it was the least she could do.
“Hey, Arnie… If you-”
“If you wanna go gazing at the stars, you can call me anytime!” Ryle said, cutting off Erin. She put an arm around Arkay’s shoulders and pulled him close with a grin on her face. “I’m always available for a good time, so no need to hesitate to call me! In fact, spending a night under the glow of stars sounds real fun…”
“O-Oh! Thank you!” Arkay said with a small blush on his face. “You don’t need to force yourself to do that, though. I can go and do that on my own.”
“Don’t go saying stuff like that now! It’s no problem for me at all! Like I said, it sounds like it would be fun!” the blonde said. “After all, fewer things are as romantic as two people spending their time together underneath the night sky, so- OW!”
Ryle was suddenly cut off by a punch to the back of her head from Erin. The redhead had even made sure to use her metallic hand, so that the strike was as painful as possible.
“Would you mind and keep your mind out of the gutter for once!?” Erin asked angrily as she glared at the blonde. She then turned her attention back to Arkay. “You know, Arnie, if you ever need something from any of us, whether it’s a person to talk to or someone to spend time with, you can come to any of us. There’s not a single person among us who wouldn’t mind doing that for you.”
“...Thank you, Erin,” Arkay said with a smile. “I honestly appreciate that.”
“Yeah, I completely agree with her on every point, except for one,” Ryle said as she glared at Erin. “Did you really have to knock me on the back of my head!? You could have at least used your normal hand for that!”
“Like that would get through your thick skull!” the redhead shot back.
While Ryle and Erin were getting into an argument, Arkay looked over to where the edge of the cliff was and noticed something fly past the moon. At first, the cat boy thought that it had been just a bird or some other flying creature, but upon seeing it appear again he was able to see the more human figure it had. His eyes went wide, as he realized what it most likely was.
“Guys, I think Rayleen is here!” Arkay whispered to his companions who immediately stopped their argument. “I just saw her fly past the moon!”
Knowing that their target was there, the trio of assassins went into hiding, using the shadows to their advantage. Just as they had hidden themselves, the figure that Arkay had seen came into full view by swooping down from high, before taking a stationary position hovering over the pit below. Erin listened and could hear windows of nearby buildings open and people scrambling to the roofs as well. It seemed like they weren’t the only ones who had come to see the warlord.
Under the light of the moon and stars, every onlooker was able to recognize the figure before them. The large black wings, the bright blue hair and the intimidating armor were clear signs to the identity of the person that had appeared. There was no mistaking that Rayleen, one of the three warlords of the Western Continent, stood before them.
Erin, Ryle and Arkay steeled their hearts for their mission, not realizing the danger they were getting into.
image [https://i.ibb.co/xGqs95T/Ch-118-Pic-1.jpg]