Chapter 31: Overflow

Leo activated [Sprint], lunging and shoving Irving away just before Fergus’s axe could come cleaving down.

They landed in a heap, and Leo coughed, spitting out dirt and hurrying to get back on his feet. Beside him, Irving looked dazed, his cane having fallen a foot away, but from a cursory glance the man didn’t seem injured at least.

Leo spun around to face Fergus, glaring at the Hound, who frowned down at him with narrowed eyes. His arm was still half raised, axe suspended in the air.

“I thought there were three more days,” Leo spat. Fergus sneered.

“I was just giving the old fart a little scare.”

Leo heard Irving shift, and he moved to help the man up. The [Fisherman]’s hands were shaking, and his fingers held his cane in a vice grip when Leo handed it back to him. “Thank you,” he muttered, and Leo grunted in acknowledgement, not taking his eyes off the Hound.

“Fergus!”

Ivan’s eyes blazed with fury. He stepped closer, unflinching. “Stand down.”

The older man simply snorted. “Or what?” He pointed the axe at Irving, who froze. Leo placed himself between the man and the blade, one hand moving to the dagger sheathed at his waist.

“I’m just doing my job. Someone’s gotta get the info and clearly all of you are too busy sitting around waiting.”

“Do you have any idea what Sonia will do when she hears about this?”

For a brief second something like hesitation seeped into the man’s expression, but his eyes quickly hardened.

“So what? She’s just using us to get the fragment anyway. Making us do all the dirty work while she walks away with the prize.”

Behind Leo, Irving shifted, attempting to step back to his home. The [Fragmentholder] gritted his teeth. It would be better to keep going backwards into the street to put more distance between them, but for some reason Irving seemed intent on returning to his home even if it meant going around Fergus.

Carefully, Leo moved as well, keeping guard of Irving as Fergus’s attention was drawn to Ivan.

By now, a crowd was beginning to gather, curious faces watching carefully from a distance, a few passing Hounds stopping in their tracks to stare. Leo noted Fergus’s eyes flitting to them, his grip on his axe tightening as more and more people gathered.

“So that’s it.” Ivan’s voice was cold. “You want the fragment for yourself.”

Fergus laughed, the sound rough and sharp. “Don’t we all?” Dark eyes gleamed in the light. “We’re not all mindless little dogs.”

Ivan’s nostrils flared. He reeled his arm back, and a violent gust of wind rushed past them, Leo flinching a little as it passed. That wind rose, swirling and gathering around his open palm while the Hound’s gaze remained fixed on Fergus. Magic? Spells before Tier 1 were incredibly rare, and yet, when Leo turned on [Judgement], it was unmistakable.

[Ivan has activated the [Gust] spell]

For a moment something like fear flashed in Fergus’s eyes, but it just as quickly dissipated into a sneer. He didn’t back away even as the wind grew stronger, kicking up dust and causing his cloak to billow.

And yet, even as the wind continued to swirl around his hand, Ivan didn’t lunge, simply glaring in Fergus’s direction. Leo hurried to use [Judgement]’s new ability, attempting to place himself in Ivan’s perspective. The mirrored notifications appeared, and it soon became clear what the problem was.

[ERROR: Target is a party member]

[Override party limitations?]

Leo cursed. Of course. The Hounds were in a party, and probably a closed one too. They couldn’t actually attack each other without facing severe System backlash.

The two Hounds glared at each other, neither one looking away or moving. Tense seconds passed, and then Leo felt the whipping wind begin to die down.

Slowly, Ivan lowered his hand. His fingers clenched into a fist, so tight that it shook. His eyes were ablaze, burning with fury and disgust, and Fergus had a smug look on his face. There was nothing Ivan could do right now to get in the man’s way, and they both knew it.

Leo’s mind churned. By now, a larger crowd had gathered, but he noted that none of the Hounds around seemed inclined on stopping Fergus either. No, based on the gleam in some of their eyes, there were quite a few in agreement with his actions. If they weren’t careful, the Hounds could all decide to attack Irving at once.

Leo felt something bump into shoulder, and his head jerked around. He met eyes with Allan, the [Healer]’s expression grim. He nodded over at Irving, still trying to inch away but unsuccessful now that so many more people were blocking the way. The [Fragmentholder] nodded subtly, and Allan’s eyes flashed in understanding. He shifted, carefully holding onto Irving to help guide the man to safety while Leo turned back to Fergus.

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Ivan still seemed to be trying to de-escalate the situation, though his shoulders remained tense.

“ —cut it out,” Ivan was saying. “You might still be able to get away if you back down now.”

It was the wrong thing to say, because Fergus clenched his jaw. His eyes darted around to the growing crowd. He wouldn’t be able to get out of this at all, with how much attention they’d drawn, and he seemed to come to that realization.

His head jerked in Irving and Allan’s direction, now halfway to the door. Leo saw the man’s fingers tighten around the axe, and the second his arm began to move he didn’t think.

Unsheathing the dagger, Leo threw it at the Hound with all his might.

It flew past the man, only managing to cut a thin line across his cheek, but it was enough to get his attention.

Fergus whirled around, furious, and Leo noted Allan urging Irving to move faster. He silently prayed for them to travel quicker or to just go the other way. Why was Irving so insistent on going back to his house?

He didn’t have time to think on the matter, because in the next moment Fergus charged straight at him.

Leo jumped to the side, easily dodging the axe swing. The man was slow, he noted. Even unarmed, he should be able to keep avoiding him for long enough for Irving to get to safety.

Fergus wrenched the axe out from where the blade had dug into the earth, and a few spectators gasped and backed away. Leo spun around, purposely placing himself further into the street and away from Irving’s home.

“That all?” he taunted. Fergus’s eyes narrowed, and he surged forward. Leo tensed, readying to dodge.

At the last second he leapt out of the way. Compared to the prison warden, this was easy, he thought. He could keep this up, then—

Something warm splattered onto Leo’s arm. He blinked.

The axe hadn’t hit him. He’d dodged it entirely, not even his clothes cut, and yet red dripped down the blade.

It was the same shade of red that now stained the clothes of a villager who’d been standing behind the [Fragmentholder].

For a moment everything seemed to still. Even Fergus froze, and the villager, a thin boy who couldn’t be past his teens, coughed. More red leaked out, and as he tumbled to the ground time started again.

Someone screamed. The crowd burst into a frenzy as people shoved each other to get out of the way and others froze, wanting to get closer to help the boy but unable to with the Hound and the axe still present. Fergus’s face paled and he backed away, but Leo didn’t have time to think about his reaction because his eyes were still fixed on the boy bleeding out on the ground.

“Allan!” Leo yelled. He barely recognized the sound of his own voice.

The man in question stood on the other side of the street, staring at the chaos. Leo spun around to face him, hazel eyes wild. “Heal him!”

The call was enough for Allan to snap out of whatever stillness he’d fallen into. He hurried over, leaving a stunned Irving just outside his home’s door.

Leo crouched down, heart pumping, and attempted to assess the extent of the injury. The axe had slashed into the boy’s abdomen, and his breaths were shallow. There was too much blood. His skin was quickly losing color.

“It’s too deep,” Allan murmured, eyeing the wound. “I can’t heal it all at once.”

“Do it in sections then,” Leo urged. “As long as you stop the bleeding.” That’s the only way he might survive, were the unspoken words.

The [Healer]’s brows furrowed, hesitant as he scanned the messy, bloody cut. It looked worse up close, a nightmarish mix of torn fabric sticking to viscous red and gaping flesh. It was hard to even know where the wound began.

“I don’t—”

“Here.”

A low, steady voice rang out above the crowd’s roar. Leo looked up to see Spade standing behind Allan, the [Executioner]’s grey eyes keen as she scanned the wound. She reached over the [Healer]’s shoulder, pointing to a specific section of the abdomen.

“This part needs to be closed first.” Her voice was perfectly calm. Allan frowned and met her gaze with furrowed brows. Something unspoken passed between them that Leo couldn’t decipher. Allan slowly nodded.

Inhaling, the [Healer] placed his hands just above the area, and they began to glow a rich ultramarine.

[Allan has activated the [Mend] spell]

Threads of light separated out from the glow, weaving towards the gash and beginning to sew the flesh together. The wound was too wide to close entirely, the magic struggling to stop the flow of blood.

Leo watched, his own nerves still heightened, as Allan carefully worked. His brows were furrowed, and sweat was beginning to form on his forehead from the exertion of repeated healing. The whole time Spade remained in place, guiding the [Healer] with an even, calm voice.

Slowly but surely, the bleeding began to slow down. Leo exhaled in relief.

The [Fragmentholder] spun around, glaring venom at Fergus. To his surprise, the man didn’t look smug or triumphant or even angry.

Instead, his expression was one of unmistakable fear.

Leo frowned. Did he regret hurting the boy? He hadn’t seemed like someone who would care about that.

The real source of Fergus’s reaction, however, soon became clear when shouts rang out among the crowd. The lingering spectators—villagers and Hounds alike—hurried out of the way, and the blood drained from Fergus’s face.

Through the parting crowd, Ivan hurried forward, hair frazzled and out of breath. Leo wasn’t focused on him, though.

Instead, hazel eyes were fixed on a familiar figure stepping forward in confident strides, icy blue eyes scanning the street with a cold, detached sharpness. The Hounds leader came to a stop.

Sonia had arrived.