"...Kill them all."
As if Maurice waited for this, he charged at François. Energy loaded onto his mace. Before he could come close to his target, though, two guards intercepted him.
Maurice stood before them and held his mace horizontally, ready to hit, but as he was about to smash his first victim, who cladded himself fully in metal and energy, he suddenly swung past him and jumped up, holding the mace far above his head.
The energy became more violent and destructive as even cracks in the mace appeared. Maurice suddenly flung himself down, as if pulled by a string, to hit vertically against the guard's head.
The panther-kin, enveloped in metal, brought his sword over his head, holding the sword with one hand on the grip and the other the blade to protect himself. Smirking toward Maurice, he probably thought that there was no way to break through.
However, when Maurice hit, the blade bent momentarily and immediately snapped. Panic was seen on the guard's face, but only for less than a second as the mace landed fully on the head, forcing itself inwardly into the body. He died.
When Maurice landed, the floor cracked, creating a small crater and making the other guard lose balance. He immediately used the momentum to attack the other guard, too. He swang horizontally, with much less force, and this time, he got blocked when the guard intercepted with his sword, which was cladded in water, damping Maurice's already weaker hit.
However, Maurice immediately stepped back and charged, only to again get easily blocked. The guard smirked at him, "What's wrong, big guy, hehe."
Maurice sneered and pushed an enormous amount of energy and mana into his leg, lifting it up slightly while chanting. The leg started to bleed, and the violent energy ripped apart the pant leg. When he was done with the spell, he stomped, and the guard readied himself to regain balance quickly while ready to counterattack, obviously not knowing what was going on.
Yet, the floor was fine, and she looked confused at Maurice and wanted to laugh. But after another moment, a giant spike broke through the floor behind her and pushed against her left Achilles heel, injuring her and making her fall forward.
Maurice instantly aimed at her head, using another vertical hit, loaded with energy to the brim. Through the surprise spell, the guard did not have enough time to protect herself fully. It hit, and the little water surrounding the head became red until it dissolved. The guard's head was bashed in, and she was clearly dead.
Maurice stepped back, looking at the noble youths, ready for another round, but Aurum could see how exhausted he was. He could barely get any air, and the mace looked much heavier in his hands, barely fully functional as cracks were appearing on it.
On the other side, François and Ilusia panicked. They slowly stepped back while the leopard-kin siblings only found it amusing. Greg stepped forward, "I guess our guards were weak..." He shrugged, "... never mind, after I kill the mut, I will then cut off some of you..."
Everyone suddenly flinched as an almost pungent aura of madness invaded their senses. It came from behind Greg, and Aurum saw his old friend, Quill, flashing and cutting the leopard-kin noble in half at the waste. His energy surrounded his dagger almost perfectly, creating a much longer blade.
Aurum and Maurice immediately recognized such an aura, 'It's like Sarusos's just less crazy.'
After cutting him in half, he went immediately toward Mary, who could barely block him with her rapier. A maddened voice filled everyone with dread, "Sorry, sugar cheeks, I owe Aurum quite a bi' and also hate you. Can't really say wha' is more enjoyable fo' me, tho, hehe."
Mary looked at him full of hate, "You disgusting trash!"
Before the fight could go on further, Aurum suddenly felt cold metal at his neck, "Stop it immediately!"
Everyone looked toward Aurum, and he looked slightly to the side. The third guard sneaked beside him. François also saw this and became emboldened, "Like I said, trash. Thro..."
Before ending the sentence, the guard suddenly convulsed weirdly and was thrown into the air. He hung there, and multiple threads started appearing around him, squeezing him.
A sudden surge of killing intent came from the entrance to the restaurant. It was Ocilia in her cute pajamas and slippers, with her arms crossed over her chest, holding onto threads. She looked around, with enormous bags under her eyes, and, in the end, focused on Aurum, her voice tired and full of annoyance, "Kill?"
He only nodded, and only a moment later, there was a sudden surge of energy, and the threads caught fire, cutting through the guard and his energy like a hot knife through butter. After another moment, limbs and head all fell, separated from the body.
Ocilia looked around again at everyone as nobody did anything, suddenly screaming at Maurice, "Don't just stand around, you moron! Kill whatever they are!"
Maurice clicked his tongue, "Fine."
Aurum wanted to stop him, as every guard was dead. Yet, Maurice had barely any stamina but charged nonetheless at François and, without much force, struck his head horizontally. He also didn't need any, as Aurum could clearly hear the skull cracking and an enormous wound appearing. François also died immediately.
At the same time, he saw how Quill stabbed Greg's sister in the stomach with a hidden throwing knife, "Huh? I thought you woul' be stronger, hehe. It seems tha' you had too goo' of a life, sugar."
She looked surprised, not believing what happened, "Do you think argh!..." Quill walked slightly back while putting his dagger back into the inner pocket of his suit. Mary, on the other hand, suddenly smirked at him, "...do you want to flee? I will survive this little scratch and..."
Mary held onto the dagger, which was inside her stomach, and was ready for another round. Quill raised an eyebrow and sounded relaxed, "You ar' mistak'n, suga' cheeks. Not the knife will kill ya, but the venom on it, hehe."
She sneered at him, not taking it seriously, but as she was about to say something, blood gushed out of her mouth like a waterfall. Her eyes turned inside out, and she fell, convulsing and bleeding out of every orifice, only stopping after a giant puddle of blood and other fluids was under her, the venom probably draining her. Quill turned her around with his foot and clicked his tongue, "Damn shame. She look'd pretty, " pulling his throwing knife nonchalantly out.
Aurum screamed to end this madness, "Stop! No killing anymore!"
Quill turned to him in confusion, only to laugh shortly after, "Haha! Look around you! Who is even left to kill? That bitch Ilusia?" He then walked to her, smirking and analyzing her much more closely, "Oho, wha' do you wanna do with her?"
Ocilia walked beside him, "Don't talk like a thug if you want the job."
He chuckled, "Hehe, sorry, my bad. It's hard to stay sane with this stench around me. Don't know how you can do it."
While Ocilia and Quill bickered, Aurum suddenly remembered that there was someone else. He looked for Ariana and found her after a bit. He walked toward a curtain and saw a lizardy tail sticking out of it, "Hey, are you fine, Ara?"
Without any forewarning, she started to cry, "Heuk... ahhh! I am sorry, please don't kill me!"
Aurum frowned and ignored her for now. He understood that she was in a lot of distress but didn't care much at the moment. He had something else to do with Ilusia, to which he walked and spoke confidently, "So, you tried to kidnap me and get some ransom. Let me welcome you to Moorgrel. We are all a bit crazy, I guess?"
Even though Maurice, Quill, and Ocilia surrounded her, she started yelling at him, "You fucking waste! I can't believe I tolerated an avian-kin who was, in the end, even a Moorgrelian and no less someone from such a disgusting household! You deserve nothing less than being hanged for what you are!"
Aurum frowned. It was evident that many to whom he sent the letter wouldn't take it well when they learned that he was actually a member of the Leonandra household. Almost all of them didn't answer back; others sent him death threats, and some promised to do everything in their power to revoke the credentials he got from the school. He cared little for them and thought the ones who showed interest didn't care for the petty fights the nobility had—a view he now deemed naive.
Aurum crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow, "Aha, nice point of view. However..." He looked at all the corpses and back at her, "...all Moorgrelians are fine..." He smirked at her, "...you though, the central nobility, are dead. Not so sure though what to do with you."
She smiled at him viciously, "I would be careful what you say next. While they were only from Baron households, I am the daughter of a Viscount. If you even touch me, I can promise you that you will not survive the night!"
Aurum opened his eyes and started laughing hysterically, "Hahaha!"
"You think playing crazy will bring you out? Don't forget that my household serves the honorable Marquise Lopon. If you beg and give me all..."
Aurum wiped a tear away and tried to catch air, "I can't believe you are this stupid, hehe."
Ilusia's face became fully red, "Repeat it, you vermin..."
Aurum stared at her, not believing what was happening, "Then what?!..." He came over while picking up a sword from the floor, "...tell me, you little shit? Do you want to compare status? My Master is the son of a meritious druid and the current Lady of the Leonandra household, while my Mother is the head accountant. You..." He pressed the sword against her neck while killing intent escaped him, "...are nothing but the daughter of a failed Viscount and the third one at that..."
He suddenly realized something and wanted to confirm if it was actually true. It was an out-there idea, but how they acted, it was possible, "Lopon, you said? Wasn't there one guy, the previous Lord of your household, whom Scarlett J. Leonandra ripped to shreds together with the firstborn and his wife?"
Ilusia clenched her teeth and didn't answer. However, now that Aurum had confirmed it, he suddenly better understood why everything happened, "Wait? It wasn't about ransom..." His smile widened, "...you wanted to have a better position by fucking over a Leonandra household member and thus get on the good graces of the Marquise, so your loser of a Father would have to merit you something..."
He turned around and looked at the corpses, "Wait..." He tried to remember everyone's household and to which higher noble they were connected. Something clicked inside his mind, "...you are all Lopon nobles? I can't believe it." He was dumbfounded.
Ilusia was visibly afraid, but her ego and pride were unbreakable, "So? Did you now realize your situation? Get..."
Aurum interrupted her, not caring what stupid shit she was about to say, "I can't believe that I tried to hire some morons."
Ilusia became full of rage, screaming, "An avian-kin, one of the lowest beast-kin subraces, tries to insult my intelligence! Did the air of this rotten place..."
Aurum had enough. Without warning, he stabbed her leg, "Argh!" She screamed out of pain, looking at him. This time, no pride or arrogance was seen—only the loathe of his very being.
He didn't know why he tried to ignore this side of his alumni, but they always detested him for being a swan-kin. They truly hated him and saw him as something lesser, something that needed to crawl in front of their feet.
For some reason, he thought after telling them that he was someone of relatively high standing that they would be more cordial toward him. He was wrong on so many levels, beginning from the race, toward their hate for Moorgrel and his mistake in believing that they changed because of their low position inside their households, a miserable future, and partly his belief that they were too juvenile while being students, to understand the implications of their conduct.
Then it clicked in his mind, and he started to feel what pure horror meant. Were all the death threats in the letters actually meaningful? Was the hate pointed towards him other than some floundering? It was not out of fear, no. It was that he saw the future rulers and felt dread for Mal-Gil.
Aurum couldn't accept that they thought like this as it implicated that the future rulers were something he didn't want to imagine. He dearly hoped that Ilusia would show even now remorse. His voice became filled with desperation and frustration, trying to persuade her, "You only needed to work honestly, make a massive amount of gold, and..." He turned the sword as he got overly emotional. She clenched her leg as the pain got to her, "...not to get overwhelmed by the ambitions, which are minuscule compared to what I was ready to give you, didn't you know better?"
If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.
Ilusia looked at him maliciously, speaking through clenched teeth, "You bastard... after learning with us, I can't believe you dare go against our household. What we did for you at school, protecting dirty commoners and Moorgrelians—we could've slaughtered all of you immediately but decided against it out of our goodwill..." Her eyes slowly became reddish. He could feel her aura full of hostility and disgust, "...hiring me? Don't make me laugh. You deserve nothing more than being a slave, you son..."
Without waiting for her to finish the sentence, he had enough, putting his rather weak and rough energy into the blade and stabbing through, cutting the bone, "Ahhhh! You damn barbarian!"
Aurum looked at her, finding it comically, almost maddened by her delusion, "Let's ignore your insults since they mean nothing and focus on what you did for us, the dirty, dirty diiiirty commoners."
He looked to the side, "Ariana!..." She flinched behind the curtain, and her aura almost begged not to touch her. She was frightened beyond belief, "...tell me honestly, did you enjoy being harassed in every way possible by them?"
She shook her tail in distress, and a barely audible "No." was heard.
Aurum looked deep into her eyes and saw what Ocilia described as a vermin, understanding her better, "You bullied the only three commoners to no end and only stopped after I talked with the principal, threatening our little shitty school to kill every one of you should it not stop..."
He turned the blade, making her fall, and while falling, the blade ripped through part of her leg, making her scream in agony. He ignored her and became slowly more despaired as it slowly dawned on him what the implications meant that there was truly noble youth like this, ready to take the reign.
Yet, even after all this, there was hope inside of him. Hope that he could reach her and she would see her mistakes as he couldn't believe what he witnessed, "Forget Moorgrel. Forget the fucking nobility. As mentioned in the letters, you could have wealth and respect if you just worked in central Mal-Gil with the charity later on. So, this means that your juvenile plan to kidnap me only to get into the good graces of a failed Marquise stems from something else. I can't believe this is because I am a swan-kin, commoner, or Moorgrelian..." He became hopeless and put one hand over his chest, "...just tell me. What is it that truly forced you into this? Was it your parents? Siblings? What?!"
Ilusia smiled at him through her clenched teeth and laughed, "Hehe, your little bird brain can't comprehend this. Helping the poor? Eradicating the hunger? Educating the masses? Don't make me laugh..." She turned her head, looking at Ariana, frightened and shivering, "...why should I invest my valuable time to help trash like her achieve something she doesn't deserve and..." She turned back and looked down at Aurum, even though lying on the floor, "...why should I degrade myself to work for vermin like you?" She didn't sound mad or insane; it was her true rationale, which he could feel. It was full of hate and disgust, but it was her honest opinion.
Aurum looked at Ariana, and he heard her crying almost silently. He felt true misery, his mind becoming foggy. Could he change Ilusia's mind with an emotional appeal? It was impossible, seeing what she did to Ariana in the past.
Was she like a corrupt noble who wanted to be bribed so he could help commoners? There was no selfishness or greed. Otherwise, she would take the job offer and become immensely wealthy.
Was it the right to rule? Also, not really. She didn't lead or command Ariana, Quill, or him at school. All she did was degrade them.
What about logic? Also, no. The moment she accepted that she was something better and that every commoner should be happy to serve her while it was under her to help anyone, there was a disconnection. It was a rationale not built on the same foundation as how he saw the world.
All Aurum could see in Ilusia was pure and unadulterated pride of her birth, which she used to make her see as something better. Something no commoner should reach - straight delusion.
She was out of reach for him, and her ideals were poison to his.
He felt suddenly enlightened and knew what to do. Aurum pulled out the sword, making Ilusia concentrate her energy on the wound, trying to close it. He looked at her, now entirely emotionless, "I got it. You are all waste that doesn't deserve to live." Aurum heaved the sword over his head and stabbed down at her.
However, it stopped when he was about to hit her head. Threads curled around the blade, and he came out of his episode, hearing Quill, "Good job, sugar!"
Aurum looked back and saw how Ocilia rolled her eyes, "Shut up..." She walked toward Aurum, "...first, calm down. We can kill her later if you want, but now we can get her for... what was the crime called again? Master once told me about this."
A barely audible voice came from where Ariana was. She stood up and walked slowly toward them, shivering, "Co... Conspiracy... inside Moorgrel, they can't get their privilege of being nobility, and if they try what they did... did... now, execution is the outcome."
Quill came over to Ilusia, who emitted animosity till the end. However, she now also shivered as she barely escaped death. He looked at her and scratched his head, "I think killing her would be easier, no?"
Maurice nodded, "Agree."
Quill looked at him and winked, "My man!"
As the discussion continued, Aurum didn't know what to think anymore. Everything made no sense as his thoughts went from chaotic to lunacy, almost killing Ilusia. This thought alone made his heart beat faster. Panic and resignation seeped in.
He wanted a better world, and she stood in his way. Wasn't a world where everyone could live better lives much more preferable? Shouldn't he kill her for a better world for everyone? She had the mindset that poisoned the world, infecting it with its dastardly ideals.
Worst, she was like him. Her ideals were pure. In his mind, though, they were also evil that needed to be pulled out. He looked at her eyes, ignoring the squabble around him. Something inside of him saw her now as what she was: A pest. He wanted to help every impoverished soul, giving them a hand to better themselves, but she would push them back into the mud so they could lie under her feet and beg for crumbs.
'To eradicate such scum, ideals will not of help.'
He straightened up, his panic slowly subsiding as he thought of his Master. He gradually understood his coldness and calculativeness toward commoners. There was no other way if he wanted to reach a certain point. He needed to think further, forgetting his juvenile plans and optimistic assumptions. Everything needed to be planned out and far away from his emotions, which led him, in the first place, to the mistakes he made, 'I understand now.'
Aurum heard his system but ignored it entirely, 'I need to speak.'
Aurum released the sword, approached Ariana, and held his hand toward her, "Come..." He nodded towards Quill, "...follow me too."
She took his hand, and they walked toward the small stage he prepared for a speech to convince the noble youth. He went up and looked down at the disaster he created through his misjudgment.
Aurum needed to talk, even though only corpses and a noble filled with contempt towards everything he believed in listened. There were also his colleagues, but they knew how he thought. But there was something inside of him he needed to say, even if only one person listened.
He opened his arms and wings, and something inside of him, like stoicism, seeped through his body, making every following word or gesture much more thoughtful than before. He mostly talked through his heart, but now it became like he was a new person, seeing every action he wanted to take, a reaction to it.
"Now, tell me, what do you see? Misery? Stupidity?..." He smiled, but his eyes became teary, "...all I wanted was to help the deprived! The ones which we, as the privileged, should help to bring on our level... but no!" He stomped his foot, and tears started to run down his cheeks.
"All I got was some stupid conspiracy, and now, out of six educated youths, three died, and two were the only ones who wanted to help truly! What a waste! What a shame! Did you truly believe that, even if your plan worked, it would be worth it? Instead of following the path of what a true noble is, you choose one of greed!"
He looked Ilusia deeply into her eyes, and some emotion he had never experienced before befell him, even pushing through the stoicism he was experiencing, "I almost killed you, dirtying my hands with the blood of nothing more than a shadow of a noble whose only accomplishment was to be born!"
Aurum beat his chest where his heart was and became overly emotional, but something else made it much more calculative, like he knew what to do instead of just doing what he felt, "Are you truly someone who is fit to rule? Someone who has compassion and loyalty toward their ideals, ready to die for their subjects? You..." He opened his arms and wings wider, and it was like he not only talked to Ilusia but saw through her all the nobles who would never see his point of view and would rather rule impoverished and unfortunate subjects, "...are nothing more than filth, which will at some point die, leaving a legacy of tyranny..." He shook his head inwardly, knowing he would go too far if he continued.
He turned to Ariana and Quill, "However, while they are nothing more than fakes, trying to suck the blood of commoners to live better lives, I serve someone who is a true noble. Someone who would do all this even without me and someone who would go to great lengths to achieve his ideals! Our ideals!"
He reached his hand toward them, "Do you want to serve with me together, Alexander K. Leonandra, a true noble, and make the world a better place for everyone?"
Quill nodded at him and smiled. He was the first to answer, "If not, I wouldn't be here, but..." He looked at the corpses and back at Aurum, rubbing his thumb on his middle and index finger, "...I want more, you know, since the competition is practically gone."
Aurum smiled at him, "You get double since it looks like finding people who are not morons is hard today."
Quill grabbed his hand with a cheeky smile, "Deal."
He shook his hand and looked at Ariana, "What about you? Do you wish to dabble in a world where you do nothing but cower in fear in front of nobility who does nothing but speak empty words, or do you want to do something meaningful, something much more!"
Ariana looked to the side and mumbled, "Triple and I find your concept... not good."
He started to laugh, "Haha! I can't believe all I needed to do was get the commoners..." He turned to her and shook her hand, "...fine with me, and if you have better ideas, we can talk with my Master later. For now, it is what it is."
She nodded but was visibly frightened, "G... good."
Aurum turned to Maurice, "Get the damn guards here and say clearly who we are. If our little Ilusia thinks she has power, we will see when the Earl arrives."
...
30 Minutes Later
Aurum stood before the captain of the guards and the current Earl of Wolfsteeth, explaining what had happened, "That's pretty much it."
The Earl rubbed his chin and sighed, "Well, by law, they are at fault, and nothing will happen as long as you don't enter the central region, but we are not allowed to hang them even though they conspired."
Maurice came from the side, "Just killing them would be easier."
The Earl, a dog-kin (Terrier), frowned, but before he could reprimand him, the guard captain, Barry, an Ox-kin, nodded, "He is right, but there are imperial laws we need to follow. We need first to send a ransom notice to their household, and if they pay, they will be sent back."
Aurum frowned, "What if not?"
Barry drew a line with his thumb over his throat, "That's pretty much it..." He shrugged, "...yet, they usually pay as it would be seen as an embarrassment if we hanged them, especially for crimes like conspiracy."
Aurum nodded, "I want to put them through a lie detection test, and I want someone to interrogate them. I want every little piece of information documented."
The Earl sighed, "This will be done either way..." He rubbed his temple, "...can't believe Mr. Alexander's retainers would be like this."
"What do you mean..." However, Aurum heard a slap from the side before he could end the sentence. He turned around and saw how Ocilia slapped Quill and walked away.
Quill only smiled, and he could hear his mumble, "Hehe, I love feisty girls..." He walked behind her, "...hey wait! Can you do some other things with those threads of yours? You know what I mean."
Without turning around, Ocilia responded angrily, "What? Cut your throat?"
Quill only laughed at this and kept on following her, "Haha! I like funny girls!" Aurum, though, thought she truly meant it, 'He really has no experience with Moorgrelian girls. Hope he survives.'
Aurum suddenly wondered if hiring him was the right decision. Yet, he was loyal, even while getting attacked by those fake nobles. There was also something else: They talked about their dreams, and Quill shared his vision even though he didn't believe they could change anything, but he also knew that his old friend wouldn't stay if he didn't get compensated well. Aurum understood it as he came from poverty, and securing himself was more important to Quill than helping others.
He wanted to continue talking to the Earl and guard captain, but they had already walked further away, speaking with each other, 'Well, how do I explain this to Mother? That is the bigger question. Master would probably only say that I should've... what would he say, actually?'
From the side came a soft voice, interrupting his thoughts, "Ehm, Aurum? Sir?"
He turned around and saw Ariana flinching, "Calm down... sir? We are here in Moorgrel, and I am not a knight. I can barely hold a sword straight, hehe..." He tried to smile at her more softly, "...I also thought we were friends. Please, be more casual, okay?"
She nodded and became slightly flustered, "Of course we are friends!..." But somehow, her own outburst frightened her, and she flinched again, "...O... Okay... I am just... frightened. I am not acquainted with such..." She looked at the dastardly scene, "...practices."
He nodded and understood her. She needed time to calm down, "So, what do you want to ask? Please do so freely."
Ariana nodded, "I read the contract, and I am fine with it, but is there a reason why it is so harsh?"
Aurum nodded back, "We will talk tomorrow about it. For now, just read through it, and don't forget to read the plan of what our charity wants to do."
Her eyes suddenly sparkled, her fear almost entirely gone, "Yes! About that, I think it would be much better to open up something like a branch and centralize..."
He interrupted her, "Tomorrow..." and pointed with his chin toward the pile of corpses, "...as you can see, I have some stuff to do. However, room, food, and pocket coins are there for you. So simply relax for now. In the end, you will stay here either way, and we have more than enough time to discuss everything you want."
She didn't even look at the corpses but at the contract and became much more giddy, "Aurum, who is this, Mr. Alexander? Is he a peer?..." She suddenly blushed, "...he is truly a noble who... you know."
He knew her too well. Like Quill, she also wished for the same as him. However, like Quill, she didn't believe that a noble existed who would actually do it, 'Well, she will be a little surprised the moment she sees Master...'
He smiled at her, "You will see him at some point, and yes... about being a peer and true noble..." he was interrupted by the Earl, "...Aurum, I need some of your time, and we also need to interrogate your friends as well..." Looking around, he couldn't find Quill, "...all of you."
Aurum shrugged, "Fine with me, but so you know..." He looked at Ariana, who seemed fine with it, but also couldn't find Quill, "...they are with me, Mr. Alexander's servants, so treat them like you treat me."
The Earl nodded, and they talked for a few minutes when the interrogation would be. They didn't fear that any of them would actually run away as Aurum gave his word, knowing he wouldn't be wrong again after all that happened. They went through so much that they wouldn't run away, especially since he would protect them and, if the need arose, ask his Master to help him.
When they talked, Ilusia limped beside him in chains, a collar, and two Wolfsteeth guards bringing her to jail. Yet, her hateful gaze felt refreshing. For some reason, he started to love it. He increasingly understood his Master and why he always became more prideful and arrogant when someone hated him, as was the case with Lorient's former servants. He couldn't describe why it was like this, but there was a unique feeling of satisfaction he experienced. He began to like it.
As she limped beside him, she said, "Moorgrelian trash."
Bang!
Before he could answer, though, he heard a bang, and Quill broke through the wall from where the hotel was, crashing into the ground and sliding a few meters through the hall. To him, it looked like the air pressure spell.
He heard Ocilia's voice and felt slight killing intent, "If you touch me again, I will cut your balls off!"
Aurum looked at Quill, who licked his lips while lying on the ground, smirking, "How feisty..." He looked then at Aurum, "...hey, I need a healer. She broke some ribs."
He sighed and rubbed his temple, 'This will be exhausting.'
Fortunately, he saw Ariana quickly running to him while taking out a healing potion from her sling bag, 'Oh, she is responsible and...'
Before he could end his thought, she tripped and fell, breaking the cheap flask and cutting her hand, "Ah! I need a healer, too!"
Aurum frowned, 'Too good to be true.'