The world swam around her as she tried to come to terms with this newest revelation. The former bright and bustling village, even if it had been a bit more hierarchical-based than she would have enjoyed, was gone. In its place was a town shrouded in darkness, with evil and deceit lurking in every corner. Alice shivered; it was difficult to put a finger on the emotion she was feeling. The thought that she had been an inch away from falling for this trap…if not for Blanche’s ominous warnings, she wouldn’t have been on guard and would most likely have fallen prey.
Some might say she was being overly dramatic—that as long as she was cautious, the nobles couldn’t do anything to her. But if there was anything she learned at all throughout her time in the wild, it was that in this world, money and magic reigned supreme even more than she’d first anticipated. And Alice was heavily lacking in the former category, and her latter needed to be developed on.
“Come on, Lily, let’s get out of here.” Alice ordered, tightening her grip on the elf and beginning to lead her away. Now that she knew the truth of the village, it was paramount that she got Lily away from the public eye as quickly as possible. She felt like every cursive glance, every wandering gaze was filled with greed and lust.
Elves were a very valuable resource for humans; though Alice despised referring to them as such, it was impossible to deny that elves were widely hunted to exploit and abuse. Not only did their beauty make them a highly-sought after item, they were also naturally more gifted than humans in magic. If one was able to place a binding deal onto an elf that favored the contractor, they’d essentially have an endless source of magic.
Alice could already see the looks shooting their way, looks that were beginning to get an inkling of what a precious opportunity stumbled into their grubby reaches. Most of them were aimed at Lily, but some of them were looking at Alice instead. No doubt they were sizing her up, pondering on the odds of stealing Lily for themself.
If she was a noble, even a child noble, they would be much more considerate of their actions. Alice believed there was an unspoken agreement between nobles; there had to be, otherwise it would descend into chaos. There needed to be a rule, a code to keep the balance and make sure no one family grew too strong. Above all, nobles were prideful. They’d never allow someone else to become stronger if they could help it.
But Alice wasn’t a noble, and nobody would mistake her for one. She was wearing ragged clothes and she was covered head-to-toe with scratches and bruises from traipsing through the forest. Her time in the carriage had done wonders in healing her wounds, another reason why they were the greatest invention ever created, but she still had a long way to go before she was back to full health. Besides, even if she got tidied up and somehow managed to afford clothes befitting that of nobility, it was doubtful anyone would truly believe she was one of them, if just because of the hatred in her eyes.
The day I pretend to be a noble is a dark day indeed. Alice thought to herself. Out loud, she whispered, “Lily, wear your hood.”
She complied, sullenly covering her face, and more importantly, her ears, with the hood. All of a sudden, Alice spotted several people shoving their way through the crowd, and it was unmistakable that their current trajectory would land them in a direct collision course.
I see. Now that I covered up her ears, it’s confirming she really is an elf and you’re not going delusional? Or maybe it’s because I just made sure that I don’t want to let her go and I’m not open to bargaining? In that case, they’re going to try to dispose of me and take Lily by force. Will we be safe as long as we stick in this crowd? Depends on how powerful the noble is; if they’re sufficiently powerful enough, they can buy out the rest of the people here and make them look the other way. I can’t rely on safety in numbers; I need to locate a place where I have the upper hand. I need to protect Lily and defeat the nobles all at the same time. Alice cursed under her breath as she pulled Lily along. I have no choice. In this scenario, I may be forced to kill. If it comes down to that…if I have to choose between Lily and then…I can’t afford to hesitate.
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She flashed back to her conversation in the carriage with Blanche. He’s right. If someone like Baron wasn’t able to make a difference, how can I accomplish it? I have the Devil’s powers but that’s not enough if I constantly hold myself back. I didn’t want to kill because I didn’t want to disappoint Charlotte but she’s not here right now, is she? In that case, it’s fine, right?
Alice threw a glance over her shoulder to see how far away their pursuers were and her heart palpitated when she didn’t see them anymore. Instinctively, she slowed as she continued scouring the heads of the crowd for them. Where the hel—ow!
Alice stumbled backward, nearly losing her grip on Lily before reasserting her stance. She quickly glowered at whatever she ran into, and he raised his hands in surrender.
“Woah, peace! That was my bad, I didn’t mean to run into you with this armor. Though, it was kind of your fault as well,” he chuckled, rubbing the back of his head. Alice was so taken back by the sight of children that it took a moment for her frenzied brain to get back on track. Frantically, she turned and scanned the crowd for the nobles but still failed to locate anything.
“Whatcha looking at?” an airy voice murmured next to her ear. Alice shrieked and lashed out with her arm, hoping to land a blow on the arrogant boy’s face. He merely sniggered and took a couple of steps back, out of her range. As she glowered in anger, she didn’t miss the opportunity to examine the boy.
He had messy blond hair, highly uncharacteristic of a noble. His electric purple eyes were a bit of a phenomenon, but could just as easily be a result of a foreigner ancestor. He wore battered armor, but they were a far cry from the fine material nobles used in battle. Alice’s eyes went down to his leather belt where his sword was strapped against his waist. He couldn’t even afford a sheath, and had been forced to resort to sliding the blade in between the leather straps and praying it wouldn’t slip through. This made it all the easier to see how scratched and chipped the blade was.
Lily tugged on her sleeve and Alice glanced at her in surprise; this was the first voluntary motion she’d taken in a while. The elf motioned towards the boy and Alice realized he’d apparently been talking for a while now before learning she hadn’t been listening, and was now pouting.
“Sorry, what?” Alice tried for her most charming smile but it was difficult to muster when she was constantly surveying her surroundings for any sign of the nobles.
The boy seemed aware of her worries because his brows furrowed and he leaned forward, a hand reaching out. “Are you okay? You look really pale?”
Alice opened her mouth to generate some random excuse before taking Lily and leaving when she heard an oily voice behind her that sent shivers down her spine.
“Young miss. I’d like to have a talk with you, regarding your elf. If you’d be so kind?”
She whirled around and punched.