The group's arrival at Cradle was not without a small amount of tension.

As they stepped off the train, they found that there may have been more people around them than ants or cracks on the old, stone walls. These were busy, frantic times, given that the recent repair of the train meant many people were conducting their business in Cradle now since they hadn't been able to before.

And that meant that the chances of there being some mage who could see through Xhez's illusion were that much higher.

[If I remember correctly, Elisa said that most mages tend to stay around the Eternal Library. We should be fine, but I'll still keep an eye out.]

Taking gentle hold of Xhez's hand, Rin made sure to keep her guard up just in case anything happened. Keeping her eyes peeled, however, made it so that Rin saw some things she would rather have not.

Some beastborn slaves were being pulled up onto the back of a truck. A fairy was guiding them onto it, while some guy in a suit scribbled on a notepad.

To Rin, this was like something out of another world. A nightmarish one, to be frank. To the people passing that group of slaves by, this was normal.

[... Just how things are around here,] Rin thought. [Nothing I can do for them.]

However, she guessed that if she somehow ended up finding Xhez being loaded up onto one of these trucks, the amount that she could do might change.

Letting it go, Rin walked ahead.

And the group went straight to the guild.

---

Once more, Rin found herself standing in front of the Adventurer's Guild. This time, Rin had two more friends with her, and Miri's reassurance that her brother's ex-girlfriend would be waiting for her.

Rin reached into her purse and pulled out the letter Miri had sent her around a week ago.

[Ava,] Rin read, folding it back up and putting it into her purse once more. [Well, if I leave without at least looking at the stuff my brother left behind, I'm going to be pretty damn frustrated.]

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Even if she did get to see what had been hidden from her, though, Rin wasn't sure what she was hoping she'd find.

She had no delusions about him still being out there, but at the same time, she wished it was possible.

[Maybe I'll be able to bring something back for my mom. That'd be nice.]

"So, are we just gonna pose dramatically out here all day, or what?" Eve asked.

"Sorry, I was, uh, getting ready. Let's go in."

Hearing that, Sara took the lead, opening the door as though she was still acting the role of Rin's bodyguard.

The four of them walked in.

Rin was immediately surprised.

The last time she came here, she'd found the place packed with adventurers. Men and women all dressed in leather or steel plates, conversing around the flaming pit in the middle of the room.

This time, there were just three individuals here. A couple of young adventurers and a woman wearing something that resembled a maid outfit, with a black skirt, a white shirt, and stockings.

Even though there weren't many people here, Rin was still cautious.

[The Scorned have some connection to the guild. Brine's involvement with them was proof of that. I should keep my guard up.

The instant that she appeared, the woman in the maid outfit walked over to her.

Sara tensed up, putting a hand on her sword. Rin calmed her down, though, gesturing for her to relax as the lady approached.

She had short, bobbed black hair and tired blue eyes, that felt like they were burning a hole through Rin's face.

There was a hint of sadness in them as well as she asked:

"I take it you're Rin, right?"

Her voice was a little too quiet.

"Yeah," Rin replied. "Ava, right? Nice to meet you."

"Come," she said curtly.

Coldly, Ava took Rin across the room, striding to a door by the back-left corner.

Rin and the others shared a look.

[Glad to know I'm not the only one who's kinda weirded out by how she's acting. Whatever, though. This is the best shot I'm gonna get to find out a bit more about what happened to Tristan. I'll just go along with this. Besides, Xhez probably would have told me if she sensed anything "dark" here.]

And so, Rin followed the woman into the small, tucked-away room.

The others did so as well, and Ava closed the door behind them.

It was an office of some sort. Clearly not one that belonged to anyone of importance, as the only items here were one bookshelf and a desk, but that wasn't what Rin focused on.

No, her eyes were taken by the bag at the back.

Ava extended a hand toward it.

"These are your brother's things. I," she sighed, "I understand you're going to want to ask a few things, but... I didn't exactly get permission to give you this stuff. So, you can ask me whatever you want but it's best if you take it and leave as soon as possible."

Rin blinked.

[What? Wait, no, no, that makes sense. Of course, the grandmaster wouldn't just change her mind out of nowhere.]

Some questions popped up. How had she gotten this stuff, without anyone noticing? What was her position within the Guild? And, would anyone come looking for these things back at Libera?

But, as Ava had made clear, Rin had a limited amount of time to work with. So, she asked:

"What do you know about how my brother went missing?"

Sara looked at Rin from the side, surprised.

Ava cleared her throat, sitting on the desk.

"Not much, but, here's all I can say..."