The first impulse was to run across the street and chase after the man. To attack him and reclaim the lost pride.

Mila swallowed the bitter feelings. It was just a loss. She had failed in a fight before. Against older opponents who could wield more mana and power, but…

“Shit!” Mila looked up to the sky. There were no excuses to use. It was her skills that had failed. The issue wasn’t power or intricate magic. Her fighting skills just were not on par with the assassin.

Simple as that. Mila knew it was. And it hurt.

Mila had thought she would never see the man again. Or if she did, she would have grown and could have shown her superiority. But there he was. Just a short distance away.

And Mila had not grown. Not nearly enough. The loss had injured her self-worth, and the meeting had torn the scabbing injury wide open.

So what now?

The inner struggle made Mila hesitate. She watched the entrance where the man had vanished with hunger. The need to go and prove her superiority was so palpable it hurt.

But Mila couldn’t. How could she? It would be just throwing her life away. Just that one man was already more than she could handle and…

A shadow dropped from the roof of the building Mila had avoided. She watched as a cloaked figure slipped over the open street and vanished inside the mansion.

Soon after, the fighting noises intensified again. There were screams and weapon clashes. From time to time, more exotic sounds reached Mila. They had casters with them as well.

Of course, they did. Mila had no reason to think the man’s companions were any less impressive than he was. The shadow who had detected her proved it.

The question remained - so what now?

A group of seven unknown people of great strength had intruded the mansion. They were not equipped to deal with that. There was no way.

Throwing away their lives for Tiff and Kefo was not worth it. They had to abandon the mission.

It would hurt. The uncertainty of what had happened to Tiff and Kefo would eat them from the inside.

But they would be alive. There was no need to rush into danger. They didn’t have to do it. They could wait. The group of unknown intruders would reach their goal and leave. There was no reason to think they wouldn’t.

Mila repeated the many reasons why acting against the group was a bad idea again and again. Her mind struggled to accept it. She had grown a little since that encounter. Not enough, but maybe… There was hope. Perhaps…

“No, no, no…” Mila shook her head. The intrusive thoughts didn’t vanish despite the effort. “I… I have to go back. Yes. That’s a start.”

Talking to herself aloud helped. Mila moved her sluggish legs and headed back. She still kept herself to the shadows, but her mind kept returning to the group.

Who were they? What were their goals? Where did they come from? Should Mila even care about it? It was just her pride. It wasn’t…

“So frustrating!” Mila exclaimed, startling a man who was hiding behind a large crate. When had she become a creature of pride? It WASN’T important.

It was an element that was the downfall of many. Mila refused to become another number in that statistic. And yet, her emotions didn’t oblige the logic.

The demanding feeling of wanting revenge didn’t magically vanish. Mila looked ahead and found her group standing at the corner of the street, across the main gate that led inside the mansion’s territory.

Mila hurried towards them. Their threatening presence made the area around the group empty, as strugglers didn’t want to invoke their wrath.

“So?” Helly was the first one to speak. Her palm was on her chest, where she fingered the pendulum that pointed towards the mansion.

Mila studied the little pendant, wondering about its true nature. A welcome distraction from her own dark thoughts. She gave a quick rundown of the situation and the pros and cons.

“Does sound like shit.” Helly gave a frank evaluation.

And Mila agreed. They moved to the side to talk about what came next. “We have to retreat.”

“I kind of agree with Mila.” Isabel looked at the mansion. Her gaze was hard and full of ill-concealed anger. “Or maybe we could ambush them when they return?” She wondered.

“No.” Mila shut down the idea immediately. “The person on the roof spotted me before I did him. I am sure of it.” Then, she leaned closer to Isabel and whispered. “It is sweet you want to beat him up, but it’s not the time.”

“He hurt you.” Isabel hissed. “I want to carve-”

“We are staying.” Helly didn’t let Isabel finish the vow. She hid the pendulum under her armour and unsheated her sword.

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“What do you mean by ‘we’?” Mila furrowed her brows. She glanced at Mortimer, who hid behind Andrew’s back, then at her friend. “Andrew?”

“I am going with her.” Andrew glared back.

“What the fuck, Andrew?” Isabel’s anger was rekindled. “What does this bitch have on you?”

“Hey, hey!” Helly lazily waved her sword at Isabel. “No need to be nasty. It was a fair transaction.”

“The hell it was! Andrew, that’s fucking stupid!” Isabel took a step closer to her friend but was stopped by the wolf’s growl.

“Easy there, Termi,” Andrew patted his bonds back. “It is what it is. I am sure it will be fine.”

“Baseless claim.” Mila disagreed. “You are aware of the danger just one of them possesses. And there are six more people with him. I agree with Isabel. It is a bad idea.”

“But it’s my decision.” Andrew joined Helly’s side. “Let’s go.”

To which the woman nodded. Helly ignored Isabel’s attempt to block her path and pushed ahead. Mila desperately tried to find a solution. They couldn’t fight here and had to stop Andrew. She opened her mouth to stop Isabel from raising her newly acquired hammer.

“Bad time?”

A new voice interrupted the tense situation. Mila turned around to face Viola, only for her brain to come to a halt. “What? She uttered.

“What, what?” Viola blinked far too slowly for it to be natural. “Is there something on my face?”

Of course, it wasn’t Viola that was the problem. It was who stood behind her. Mila kept her face perfectly still, not betraying the turmoil she was experiencing. It wasn’t that bad. The ‘Iron Swords’ didn’t know she and Isabel had… killed… the… siblings. “Ah…”

“Nice hammer.” Laura’s cold voice seemed to chill the street. “I wonder where you got it.” The group behind the woman put their hands on their weapons.

The complex situation had made Mila completely miss this group's approach. Countless possibilities kept racing through her mind - none of them gave her much hope.

“Ah, I… I,” Isabel stuttered. “I found it?”

Now that Laura stood so close, Mila felt overwhelmed. The woman was extremely dangerous. Just the amount of mana Laura possessed placed her as one of the most potent persons Mila had met. Around the strongest City’s guard officers? Somewhere around there. Far too powerful for Mila or her group to handle.

“Is that a joke?” Laura revealed her teeth. “Because I don’t think it’s funny. Right, Verte?”

“Right.” The man quickly affirmed his leader's words. The rest of the group also growled in agreement.

There had to be a way out. On instinct, Mila moved in front of Isabel. Only after the fact she realised her girl was the sturdier one. Mila served as a poor wall in front of this threat. “I feel a mistake has occurred.” She licked her dry lips.

“You must be the maiden.” Laura’s eyes now fell on Mila. “Such a pleasant meeting, isn’t it?”

“I would agree if not for the hostility I sense.” Mila glanced towards Viola, who was looking at their interactions with interest.

“Oh, me?” Viola realised Mila was questioning the Iron Sword’s presence. “I hired them.” She smugly revealed. “So, Miss Setany, no attacking my friends.”

“I wouldn’t dare.” Laura dryly replied. She switched back to Isabel. “I want the hammer back.”

“No.” Isabel didn’t even hesitate to deny the request.

“No?” Laura’s mood plummeted again.

But Isabel wasn’t easily intimidated. “Liton left in my hands.” She simply stated. “I won’t give it away.”

This was news to Mila. She looked at her girl with suspicion, but it appeared Isabel was telling the truth. Mila hadn’t been there for the final moments of the siblings. It explained Isabel’s sudden interest in the hammer.

And Isabel’s words did give a pause to Laura. “Is that so?”

“She might be lying.” A woman with a bow on her back inserted her thoughts. “Besides, they got Grant and Paula.” She added.

Mila knew it was better for her to stay quiet. Nothing she could say would justify them in the Iron Sword’s eyes. Instead, she looked at Viola.

“You signed a contract.” Viola smiled. “And I heard you are trustworthy. Isn’t that the most important thing for a mercenary? To be trustworthy?” She walked to join Mila’s side.

For a moment, Mila thought the opposing group would attack, but instead, Laura backed down. She gestured for her subordinates to do the same. “You are right.” Laura then stood in silence, looking around for any danger.

“What’s this about?” Isabel wanted to know. She pushed Viola further away from Mila.

“They were free after the fallout with the ‘Hatchet’ and scooped them up,” Viola explained. “Cost us a lot of money, but my nose tells me it is worth every coin.”

Mila knew better than to doubt Viola’s nose. And if Laura stood at their side, the chances of them all getting out of Stilag improved drastically.

Unfortunately… Mila looked back at where Helly was leading Andrew and the wolf away. “We are not done, Andrew.” She reminded him.

“What's up with them?” Viola noticed the strange behaviour as well.

‘It’s complicated’ would not suffice. But there was no time to explain. Mila followed Andrew, which meant Isabel followed her. And Viola did the same with her newly recruited help in tow.

“Andrew!” Isabel called out. “You are an unreasonable asshat. You know that?” It earned her a glare from Andrew, but he didn’t stop. “What? Got something to say? I am here. Common! Come and tell me what you think!” She taunted in hopes of him stopping.

While Andrew refused to answer, Helly did. “We are going to get what I need. No need for you all to follow.”

“That is foolish.” Mila refused to listen. “Are my words so easily dismissable that you refuse to listen?”

“No. But this is important. And not just for me. Isn’t that right, Andrew?” Helly threw a question to Andrew, who grimly nodded.

“But why?” Isabel wanted to know. “Can’t you just tell us?”

Finally, Andrew turned around. “I already did. It’s about crossing to another place.” He kept his words vague on purpose.

“But that’s…” Isabel wanted to argue but was stopped by Mila.

“What do you mean?” Mila looked at the mansion. “Don’t tell me… But…”

What if… Mila’s mind spun. She tore her eyes away from the mansion and looked at where the Noble district was, then at Helly.

Wasn’t Helly the granddaughter of someone who came from another world? Didn’t she collect information and artefacts pertaining to that other world? And she had come to Stilag to get something. And the way Andrew acted…

It sounded like a wild guess, but… Were the nobles trying to summon someone?