Chapter 8: Prison Break I

The halls were empty as they ran past. Leo’s eyes kept moving, scanning every corner and curve and shadow. Their footsteps sounded too loud in his ears, too obvious, but so far no one had appeared.

His gaze moved back to the [Executioner] behind him. It seemed like her knowledge of the prison’s guard rotations had been accurate, after all.

Spade, for her part, didn’t look remotely nervous. But then, he supposed if they were caught she could probably come up with a decent enough excuse. Pretend like she was trying to recapture him.

Leo’s eyes narrowed. He still didn’t trust her at all, but he had to admit that he wouldn’t have gotten out without her help.

The [Thief] peered down the hallway. The Sindrey prison was constructed out of flat, hard stones lined together in sharp corners. The grid pattern and lack of distinguishing details made it easy to get lost in, but there were just enough little cracks and chips in the walls and uneven torches to make do. He turned right. Based on what Spade had said, their destination should be just past that bend.

Leo slowed his pace, pressing his back against the wall and carefully peering around the corner. A single door lay at the end, two flickering torches bordering it. The warden’s office.

“Hey, does this prison keep any class crests? Like for guards and stuff?”

Spade raised an eyebrow. “The warden has a few in his office, I believe.”

Leo quieted at that, mind churning as he weighed his options. It would be safer to run, but at the same time, this might be the last “easy” chance he got to get those crests. He’d be a wanted criminal after this, and getting around and stealing would be much harder. The idea of simply leaving with nothing to show for it didn’t sit right with him.

And, if he was being completely honest with himself, there was a part of his brain still caught up on that little line of words on the warden’s stat sheet. [Fragment in possession].

The [Thief] swallowed and clenched his fingers into a fist. The fragment almost certainly wouldn’t be in the office, but if there was any chance the warden had more information about that notification, about the fragments…

…Well, he couldn’t let that opportunity slip by.

Leo met Spade’s gaze. “Do you know where his office is?”

If Allan were here, he’d definitely yell at him. Leo smiled a little at the thought, then focused again.

The [Thief] crept forward towards the door, keeping his footsteps light and stopping just outside the office.

The door was made out of sturdy dark wood reinforced with a metal frame, and it had a heavy padlock wrapped around the handle in addition to the normal lock. Leo carefully pressed his ear against the door, listening.

A second passed. Then another.

Nothing.

Leo pulled out his lockpick and began with the padlock. He felt a little less bad about using those points on [Lockpick Proficiency] now. The process was a little faster, and any amount of time saved was valuable.

With the faint clanging of chains, the padlock came loose. Leo held his breath, but the inside of the office remained silent. He worked on the door lock next, which was much easier.

Finally, he stashed the lockpick away and gripped the knob. He glanced behind him.

Spade hadn’t left from the corner, simply leaning against the wall and occasionally scanning the hallways. The [Executioner] met his eyes and raised an eyebrow, still unmoving. Leo understood the unspoken message. The [Thief] was on his own once he stepped through those doors.

Leo turned back around, inhaling to calm his nerves. And then, a little at a time, he turned the doorknob and pushed the door open a hair.

Through the thin opening, he could just barely make out a well lit office, cream colored walls contrasting the grey of the prison, and the corner of a desk and a chair. He opened the door a little wider, and sure enough, it was empty.

Leo slipped inside, scanning the space. It was larger than he’d thought, and tall shelves lined the walls next to cabinets of paper stacks and files. Vases of vibrant flowers decorated the space, and there was even a proper bed near the back.

The desk stood in the center of the room facing the door. Leo could see a stack of documents and a half signed note resting under a smooth ink pen.

The [Thief] moved to the desk, eyeing the drawers. He tugged them open one by one, revealing more files and prison records. And then, on the last one, the drawer didn’t budge. Locked.

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Compared to the door, it was easy to get the drawer open. Leo grinned.

Inside were five first class crests. Five. The [Thief] didn’t hesitate, swiping them and depositing them into his bag. They could sell the other three, and that money would last them years if they were wise with it.

[You have successfully stolen [5] first class crests]

[You have gained experience! Experience shared with [1] other party member]

[Progress towards next level: 98%]

That was really close. Leo had forgotten just how much experience he got from stealing crests.

The [Thief] didn’t waste time thinking, though. He shut the drawer and locked it again, then squinted at the documents on the desk, searching for anything mentioning the fragments.

Sitting at the top of the stack was a paper requesting the “removal” of a list of prisoners, and Leo’s eyes widened as he scanned just how long the list was. The prison was low on space, and apparently this was their solution. His jaw clenched. Better to just kill the trash and make sure they’re gone for good.

The document underneath that was an edited guard schedule to go into effect the next week. Leo set it aside and moved on to the next document.

There, in elegant, curling inked letters, was a note from the governor. Leo carefully lifted it up. It must have been sent using some sort of teleportation spell to get here so fast, because when he scanned the contents, he immediately saw that it was about the fragments.

His eyes moved rapidly, taking in the words.

—notice from the Council of Avel—

—confiscate any fragments found—

—announcement tomorrow noon—

—Colorless Lands empty—

—confirmed true—

Confirmed true. True. Leo’s hands shook a little, the paper trembling in his hands. The notification was real, and the [Administrator] was gone. Not only that, but it sounded like Avel would soon crack down on those in possession of fragments, likely to use for their own purposes.

Of course, he thought with a hint of bitterness. The Council wouldn’t want anyone around who might be able to challenge their power.

Leo set the page down, eyeing the half written note beneath it. It looked like the warden had been in the middle of writing a response, the letters dark with bleeding ink. The [Thief] narrowed his eyes. Nowhere did the response mention that the warden himself had a fragment.

A brief look at the rest of the documents revealed nothing noteworthy, and Leo carefully placed the pages back where they’d been.

He turned to leave, but paused. He glanced back, and after a moment of hesitation, he pulled open the top drawer. The inside was lined with a few small, unmarked vials. He took one and stuffed it into his pouch as well, right beside the crests.

[You have successfully stolen [1] middle grade bottle of Spiderslake]

[You have gained experience! Experience shared with [1] other party member]

[You have leveled up! 200 points rewarded]

[You have gained a new skill: Sprint]

[Progress towards next level: 9%]

Leo physically recoiled when he saw that first message. He stared down at the vial with disgust.

Spiderslake, when ingested, functioned as an aphrodisiac and a sedative. It was cheaper and less safe than other options, and a favorite in the slums. He felt filthy even having the bottle on him.

Luckily, the theft was enough to get him to the next level, and he’d even finally managed to get the [Sprint] skill.

Leo immediately put 100 points into leveling it to level 2, then spent the remainder on raising his mana up twice. [Sprint] was very useful, but it cost a lot of mana to use, and he had a feeling he’d need the skill soon.

As for the vial, he’d get rid of it once he was out. He had no need for it, and he wasn’t comfortable selling it, either, when he knew what it would probably be used for.

Leo moved over to the door, listening outside for the metal footsteps of guards, but he heard none. A part of him was tempted to stay longer and take something else, but he couldn’t carry much else on him and needed to get out of here. He’d dawdled long enough.

The [Thief] pushed the door open and relocked it. He frowned, pausing when he saw that Spade was no longer in the hallway. He moved over to the corner, but he couldn’t see her in the longer corridors either. The [Executioner] was nowhere to be found.

Unease bubbled in his stomach. He hadn’t heard anything from inside the office, so there couldn’t have been a scuffle. She must have left on her own. But why?

Leo’s fingers clenched, and he eyed the hallways again, remembering his location and how to get to the exit. The cold air bit at his skin, and the longer he stayed here, the more wrong everything he felt. He needed to get out of here now.

The [Thief] hurried forward, switching out his [Lockpick Proficiency] passive skill for [Acrobatics] instead. He already had [Stealth] equipped, and he ran as fast as he could while not making a sound. Around him, the light of the torches seemed brighter and more harsh against the cold grey stone.

The next corner came up ahead, the path splitting into four different directions. Through the dim lighting, Leo could see a group of four guards approaching from the right.

He cursed internally and skidded to a stop. He had to use his injured hand to grip the wall and avoid falling from the momentum, and pain shot up his fingers. Leo exhaled, pressing back against the wall and activating [Fade into Background]. He made himself as small as possible, holding his breath as the sounds of metal footsteps approached.

“—went crazy,” one guard was saying as the group drew near. “He’s always been paranoid, but I think he’s gone and truly lost his mind this time.”

Leo saw them pass the corner, and he sank even lower to the ground as they strode casually across the intersection.

“I dunno, you see that crowd outside? Maybe he’s got a point.”

“I’ll say, those prisoners were damn near rioting.”

They were halfway across now, and they hadn’t turned in his direction. Leo waited, muscles tense, silently praying for them to move faster.

The second guard scoffed.

“I don’ blame them. That notification…” He shuddered. To Leo’s dismay, he slowed down, and the other guards did the same.

“You think it was real, then?” the first guard whispered, her voice echoing a little in the narrow halls.

“I think we’re in for a load of trouble is what I think.”

“Enough.” The fourth guard finally spoke. His voice was low and commanding, crackling like flames. “We’ve got no time for petty gossip.”

He strode forward past the other three and turned back to address them, his features drawn into a disapproving frown.

“If the warden were to hear you—”

He cut himself off. Leo stilled and held his breath.

The guard was staring straight at him.