An eruption of applause sounded. I looked at where it was coming from and saw that there was a performance going on. Interested, I stepped towards it and soon enough, I saw them. It was fun. They jumped and tumbled as if they were running on rooftops, walking on tightropes that were thinner than a spider web. I was surprised that that sort of material even existed.

The performance continued, and it seemed that it was going to end when a woman stepped up. She bowed towards us, and for a moment we crossed eyes. I froze, feeling like a feline predator set their eyes on me. It was for a moment, and yet it felt like an eternity to me.

She smiled at me for a second and then turned away as she was about to start her performance. I breathed in, realizing that I was holding my breath. I looked closer and saw that she was no longer gazing back at me. She was staring at the whole audience, as she performed her act.

Luckily I'm back at the front door of the bar and quickly open it to hide away safely, only to see Mr. Samuel was in a languid position drinking beer while Amy was rubbing some beer glasses with a white cloth. Mr. Frank was drinking at a table nearby and didn't appear to notice my arrival.

She blew fire, acting as if she was a dragon. The fire matched her red dress I might add. She then pulled out a sword and started a sword dance. I know what it was since my sister often did in the dead of night under the moonlight. I never understood why she did that. I suspected that she did it because she was bored.

And as her performance drew a close, she jumped in the air and was about to do something spectacular. I did not know what it was at the end. It was because of a simple reason. I felt that someone was watching me, with unknown intent, and I knew because it was a familiar feeling back home.

I then looked away from the performance and started walking in a particular direction. I thought that the pair of eyes watching me were just passing by, an interest of sorts on their part. But the feeling did not vanish. It was still there and it was becoming intense. I walked faster, the anxious feeling welling inside me rising. I knew that looking back was a terrible thing to do since you would be letting the enemy know that you knew, but I did it anyway since I wanted to know who was following me.

It was soldiers.

Our eyes collided, and it was then that I broke out into a run. I looked forward and ran with all my might. I heard voices behind me. Shouting at me to stop, but I didn't concede. Why would I?

I then made a right turn, disappearing inside the dark alley. In a few seconds, the soldiers caught up with me. The three soldiers looked around the dark alley, their eyes indicating pure confusion. They talked with one another but I did not hear their words. The fast beating of my heart silenced their conversation in my ears. They seemed to have agreed on something as two of them departed.

The solider seemingly wanted to leave but checked one more time. He looked around the alley, taking a few steps into the alley and once again our eyes met. I held my breath, feeling my heartbeat quicken, my legs shaking as they wanted to give out. He then looked away, as it seemed that he heard his allies call, with clear annoyance on his face. But I did not breathe. I waited for several seconds, and just when I was sure that they were gone, I breathed in.

My body slid against the wall, as I sat on the ground, feeling weak and tired. The sequence of events did not even surpass five minutes, yet it felt like a pure eternity on my part. I sat my hands down on my legs and realized that they were still shaking. I wanted to cry, but I held it in as I feared that those soldiers might come back and would hear my sobbing.

It took half an hour. Time spent trying to calm down my chaotic thoughts. My legs were still shaking, but it was endurable that I could still walk. I stood up and made my back to the bar.

Once I was back on the streets, I made sure to stick to the crowd, using it to disappear in plain sight. With a somewhat calm mind, I thought back to the situation.

It was risky. As the situation could have worsened so fast that I would not have been able to react. The only reason why those soldiers did not see me was due to my clothing. I inspected my clothes and thanked Mr. Samuel for the unexpected assistance. I was dressed in full black, allowing me to blend in the darkness if done right. Or at least, that was what Mr. Samuel said when he gave me these clothes.

I was skeptical at first, like how could clothes hide your appearance. But my skepticism was then erased earlier, as I was in a desperate situation, and I needed a desperate solution, so I chose to believe Mr. Samuel. It paid off, thankfully.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Soon, I was back. I was in in front of the door, hesitant to open it since the deal that Mr. Samuel offered me was well... I was uncomfortable to accept it. It was Assassination. The taking of a life. And I can't just do that. It's wrong. That's what my parents told me. This may also be a desperate situation, but the killing of another life was not something I was willing to do to survive.

With that said, I decided on my decision. I grabbed the handle and opened it. It was then that I halted my steps and froze. Pure shock overcame my body.

I gazed at the counter and saw four people dressed in Golden Armor. Three of those people were the soldiers that were chasing me earlier. I was about to make a break for it again, and just when I turned around, I heard a voice.

"Halt."

My body followed. My mind willed my body to move, but it refused its command. I gulped down, as I felt that I could not hide away this time.

"Come here."

It was a deep voice that seemed to have come from the depths of a mountain. Laced with pure authority and will, I had no choice but to follow. I turned around and saw that the three soldiers were looking at me, their eyes cold and alert. I felt that if I tried escaping once more, I would be cut down where I stood. The fourth person, apparent that he was their commander, still had his back turned to me.

The man had white hair, seemingly indicating that he was an old man. But it could not be further from the truth. He was huge. His body was seemingly a walking mountain. I faced him with my back straight, eyes looking straight ahead at him. If I was going to die, I at least wanted to know the face of my killer.

He turned around, and his piercing grey eyes were seemingly able to see through me like glass. I saw his face and realized that he was not an old man at all. He was sort of old, with a few wrinkles on his face but that was it. Someone from farther in the distance would mistake him for a young man.

I wanted to look away, but it was like his very presence commanded attention and nothing else.

"Who are you."

It was a question, but it felt like more of a command.

"C-Cosmo, Cosmo L-Le Str- ange."

I tried speaking my name, but even that was hard under his presence.

"What is your business here."

"I dont... know."

"You don't know."

I didn't speak and instead nodded.

"I see. Where are you from."

"The Eastern Continent."

This time, the man did not reply immediately. He looked at me with analytical eyes, as if he was still trying to pry out even more secrets from within me. It was useless though. He just needed to ask and I would answer with complete honesty.

"Are you telling the truth?"

"Yes."

The man looked away, prompting him to instead look at his pint of beer. It was still full. He looked at it for a few more seconds, and seemingly decided on something. He pushed the beer away from him.

He stood up, as he then grabbed my arm with a firm grip, and started tugging me away out the front door.

"Wha- Where are we going?

"You under arrest."

"On what grounds?! I did not do anything."

"Because you have entered the country illegally, and are suspected of espionage."

"What?! I'm not a spy. I swear! I was simply transported here without my consent. Please, you have to believe me."

The man did not reply, and it seemed that he wasn’t even listening. He continued dragging me away. He then opened the door, and just when I gave up on all hope, I saw that someone was blocking the entrance. I smiled, as I then saw my savior.

"He's mine William. This is none of your business."

"He is an individual suspected of international espionage. He made it my business."

The two no longer spoke. Opting to instead gouge each other out.

"Leave him, William. And I will owe you this once."

"No. This situation has gone beyond our interests. Now move or you will be made to move."

The three soldiers behind the man named William materialized their spears from out of nowhere. Pointing it towards Mr. Samuel.

Mr. Samuel did not bat an eye and was instead amused. He snapped his fingers, and it was then that from the dark recesses of the bar, shadows seemingly came alive and erupted from their places. They surrounded William and the three, their eyes glaring with bloody red eyes. The amount of blood lust dyed the room as if an ocean of blood was about to be spilled if the soldiers did not back down.

The three soldiers were intimated, as the spear that they were holding was shaking. Their eyes though betrayed any sort of fear that was apparent in their body. It was like that they had complete faith that they would make it out alive. And I saw why.

William was indifferent. He looked around without an ounce of fear, as his eyes shot back to Mr. Samuel.

"Do not force my hand, Samuel. We are on the same side. There is no need for this."

"Oh, I believe there is a need for this. For you see, I need that kid for my plans. And even though we may be 'allies' in a sense, my interests go far beyond that of the Empire."

"By the Great Emperor's will, I command you to move."

"Oh, it's funny you should say that."

A golden aura then erupted from William, as it threatened to crush Mr. Samuel into a bloody paste. I thought at that instant that I would be crushed first, but I did not feel that I was being crushed. Instead, I felt that the aura spilling out from him was enough to cause my body to go into shock.

I felt my body going cold. I had difficulty breathing, as an anxious feeling rose within me that was becoming as tall as the Tower of Babel. As I was about to pass out, I felt that the golden aura vanished but it was too late from my perspective.

My consciousness drifted into slumber at that moment.