Mila studied her girlfriend in surprise. It was hard to see in the torchlight, but there was something on Isabel’s leather armour that looked suspiciously like blood. And it worried her greatly.

“You see…” Isabel tried to speak.

“You know each other?” The redhead Mila had rescued interrupted. She looked behind, trying to see if anyone was coming after them. “Uh, can we move?” She entered the tunnels and then addressed Mila. “You, um, coming?”

“I am.” Mila stepped inside the tunnel and let the woman close the entrance. She studied Mortimer and Vatim, then turned her attention to the pale, dirty and visibly malnourished girl.

Isabel hurried to introduce the girl before Mila could ask. “This is Kanna. She is Vatim’s sister. We, uh…”

But Isabel was once again interrupted. This time by a sleepy-looking beggar who crawled out of one of the side tunnels. “Move along.” He yawned. “You are interrupting my sleep.”

The redhead bowed slightly. “Sorry, Ywar. Is Naran here?”

“Should be. Not like Naran has other places to be these days.” He glared at Mortimer, who let out a nervous laugh. “Did I say something funny, boy?”

“N-no?” Mortimer quickly retreated behind Isabel.

“Then fucking move already,” Ywar growled at Mortimer.

Mila slowly walked closer to Isabel. The signs of battle were there. Not only was Isabel covered in splashes of blood, but the shield on her back was dented, and her sword was chipped. “I think we have to sit down and talk for a moment. Catch up. See what we have been up to.”

And while Mila was studying Isabel’s appearance, the brunette did the same. “You have blood on you.” She noted.

“So do you, my dear.” Mila retorted. She hadn’t been away for that long. How did this happen?

“Ahah, yeah, I-” Isabel scratched her head. “I ran into some trouble.” She admitted.

Now Mila stood in arms reach of Isabel. She studied her girl’s expression and noticed the strain it had. Most likely, lives were lost in whatever fight she had been in. At least Isabel was safe.

“Um,” Kanna pulled Vatim behind Isabel, joining covering Mortimer. “Should we run?”

Mila shifted her attention to the girl. She was clearly gone through a misfortune. The poor thing reminded Mila of her own condition back on Earth. At least the girl was now free from whatever shackles had held her. And with the flow of mana in the girl’s body, she still could work towards a bright future. “Kanna, was it? I am glad you are fine. My name is Mila.” She introduced herself while moving closer.

The trio behind Isabel shrunk back even more, making Mila raise an eyebrow. Well, that wasn’t important. She threw the extras out of her mind for a moment.

Mila looked into Isabel’s eyes. Her girl looked away. It wouldn’t do. She stepped closer and carefully wrapped her arms around her girl. “I am glad you are safe.” She expressed her relief.

It was awkward. Isabel was feeling guilty, or so Mila guessed. She ran one of her hands up to Isabel’s face and turned it back towards her. “See? Everything is fine.”

“You are still angry,” Isabel murmured. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have gone alone.” She moved her free hand and put it on Mila’s back.

“I am not angry.” Mila disagreed and tried to smile. “And I am glad you are here. Everything else can wait.”

“So who is this?” The redhead behind Mila interrupted the moment. “You looked like you were about to bite her, and now you are pouting?”

Was she? Mila schooled her face, but it felt stiff. She caressed Isabel’s cheek a moment longer before letting her girl go.

Disappointment flashed on Isabel’s face before she looked at the redhead. “I have to ask the same. Who are you?” She returned.

That was a good question. Mila turned to study the redhead properly. The young woman was around the same age as her - if better filled out and healthier looking. Her red hair gave the woman a wild look, while the freckles peppering her face counteracted it by making her look sisterly.

“Unfortunately, nobody.” The redhead replied. “The name is Cecilia.”

The sleepy men nudged Cecilia by poking her side. “Move on. I assume people will soon come to look for you, Cici.”

Cecilia sighed. “Or sometimes people call me Cici. We should go. Guards and other groups know about his place. Ywar will keep them out, though.”

Ywar let out a hoarse laugh. “They are cowards. They are not paid enough to bother us here.”

“Shall we?” Mila offered Isabel a hand, which her girl fumblingly took. She intertwined their fingers and started to walk, letting the rest of the group follow. “I have to say, Andrew will not be happy about our little ventures. I saved Cecilia here from rather unfortunate circumstances in a back alley.” She explained to Isabel.

“Uh-huh,” Isabel nodded while fingering Mila’s palm.

“It got rather bloody, mayhaps you can tell.” Mila gestured to where her cloak was tainted by the blood. “I won’t pry on what happened to you, but do know I am always there to lend an ear.” She reminded.

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“Yeah.” Isabel squeezed Mila’s hand as she trembled. “Thanks.”

“You sound like her Mom, Mila,” Cecilia remarked from behind. “It’s very amusing.”

These words made Mila stumble. She hurried to look at Cecilia, then Isabel. “T-that certainly wasn’t my goal. A-and I didn’t, right?”

“You didn’t.” Isabel comforted before she glared at Cecilia, who just shrugged. “And I am fine. Thank you again, Mila.”

Mila chose not to continue the rather awkward attempt at cheering up her girl. The peanut gallery behind them made it hard for her to get into the right mindset.

Normally, Mila would have powered through. After all, Isabel’s mood was more paramount than anyone’s thoughts on her methods.

But Mila noticed the current tunnel was about to end in a larger room. And there was someone rather dangerous waiting for them ahead.

With Mila and Isabel in the lead, they stepped out of the tunnel into a large, well-lit chamber. One of the walls was covered in wooden crates and bundles of various sizes.

Another had an expansive selection of weapons for viewing, sitting neatly on the racks. Most of them looked well used but well taken care of. Also, a small altar to honour Gods, covered in candles and plants, was tucked in the corner.

The third wall had tables and chairs thrown about near it. Most of the chairs had men and women sitting on them, playing cards, eating, drinking or simply talking.

And the wall from which they had come had three tunnels sitting next to each other, feeding the chamber with everything necessary.

At the centre of the chamber was a large round table at which sat a single aged man who looked a few years in his forties. His sharp eyes scrutinised the new arrivals while his only hand was holding his chin.

Covered in expensive-looking, brown leather armour and with a purple cloak over his shoulders, he left a stately and stern impression. His expression lightened when he noticed Cecilia but quickly turned dour when Mortimer stepped inside the chamber.

Mila gave Isabel a sign that the man could pose a danger to them. He reeked of battle experience. Despite lacking the left arm, she didn’t doubt the man’s ability to wield the rapier at his side.

As the man rose on his feet, he opened his mouth and spoke in a restrained bariton. “Now look at what we have here.” His voice naturally gathered the attention of everyone in the chamber. “Came to offer your head, did you?” He started to walk towards the group, or more specifically, Mortimer.

“N-no, I-” Mortimer kept standing behind Isbel, which irritated Mila to no end. “I-I helped the kids here a-and… W-we needed a place t-to hide, Sir Vakano.”

“I am no Sir anymore, boy!” Vakano’s voice rose in strength. “Your father took that from me. And he dared to die before I could challenge him to a duel and reclaim my honour! Are you here to stand in your father’s place? Can you?”

The situation seemed to escalate. Mila let Isabel’s hand go and contemplated how she should act.

Despite Sir Vakano’s words and tone, he didn’t radiate much hostility. All it did was scare Mortimer, who fell on his stomach and started to grovel in front of the imposing man.

“P-please, S-sir Vakano!” Mortimer begged. “W-we-”

“You.” Mila stopped Mortimer. “Not we.” She didn’t want him to pull them into his messes.

“I-I-I-” Mortimer couldn’t even speak as Sir Vakano now towered over him.

Mila noticed the older man’s was somewhat regretful of his outburst. His eyes were now on Vatim and Kanna, who were trembling next to Mortimer.

“Now, that should be enough, wouldn’t you agree, Sir Vakano.” Mila stepped closer to the men and curtsied. This would give the owner of the place a reason to stop scarring the children. “I am sure a magnanimous man such as yourself can deal with young Mortimer at a later point.”

Sir Vakano let out a bark that could only be his attempt at a laugh. “You can call me Naran, missy. I am just a bandit now.” He bowed. “And I have to apologise to all of you kids. Mortimer and I have some history between us. Something rather unpleasant. Since he is here, we will find a moment to talk about the good old days, won’t we? Right, Mortimer?”

Mortimer started to shake his head but quickly changed it to an energetic nod when Naran began to frown.

“Then, we won’t bother you for long.” Mila watched Cecilia walk next to Naran and start whispering into his ear. “We have other business to attend, after all.”

“Is that so?” Naran’s eyes now focused on Mila. He shooed Cecilia away. “Bring us something to drink.” He ordered. “Now, while I understand you must be busy, I would like to invite you all to a cup of…”

“Tea!” Cecilia, who was halfway towards a wide counter, shouted. “Or wine. We have some beer.”

“Tea it is!” Naran bowed again and, with his only hand, gestured towards the round table in the centre. “After all, what kind of host would not offer anything.” He smiled.

Mila hesitated. The man wasn’t hostile. In fact, he felt rather amiable, all things considered. But, “Unfortunately, we still have another place to be. One of our friends is currently out and, at this point, waiting for me. I wouldn’t want to leave him on the streets, looking for me. They are rather dangerous these days.”

“That they are.” Naran sighed. “Regretfully, Stilag is not the safest city. Not for children anyway.”

At this point, Isabel felt comfortable enough to join the conversation. “Um, mister Vakano? I saved this girl,” She motioned towards Kanna. “From what looked like a prison. Mortimer said it was textile fabric, but…” Her fists clenched. “She was not treated like a worker.”

“Sounds familiar. Where was this?” Naran asked.

“I-” Isabel paused. “I am not sure. Mila and I just arrived this morning.”

Naran nodded in understanding, then waved at one of the men in the background who was animatedly discussing something with other people filtering in and out of the place. “Barcy! Come here!” He ignored Mortimer, who was still too afraid to get up from the floor.

“What is it, Boss?” Barcy - an unassuming man in his thirties - hurried to join them.

“Anything new happening outside?” Naran started with a general question before giving a specific one.

“Oh, definitely.” Barcy happily started to talk. “Cici already told me about this gal-” He nodded towards Mila. “-taking care of Hacho’s men. She killed them good. Old Brandy is spitting fires. Then, there was this raid on Brandy’s slave pit. Someone broke in and killed some of the guards. Slicky tried to stop them but got crushed in the middle of the street. No clue what Brandy will do now. That must have hurt him. Some peeps on the street got burnt as well. There is now a fire spreading through the area.”

“Is that so?” Naran thoughtfully hummed while studying Isabel with renewed interest.

Mila saw Isabel hang her head in shame. She gently massaged her girl’s back and gave her a reassuring smile. But before they could claim the deed as theirs, Barcy was already continuing.

“-And then there was this guy at the Beast Tamer Registry who trashed it after some ashole claimed the beasts were slaves and-”

That caught Mila’s attention immediately. “Pardon me,” She interrupted. “Can you tell us more about it?”