The bossman, a landlord who adorns himself with jewels and finery, comes to collect tribute every month. Messengers and bodyguards and fanfare clamor outside the estate walls. He expects good service whenever he visits, so the servants prepare a party for him, pitching a carnival tent in a courtyard.

In the middle of a feast, at the announcements of expected earnings, the bossman expresses outrage. "What do you mean you're two boatloads behind schedule? Have you guys gotten lazy over the summer?"

"We are deeply sorry, your liege." A servant bows with his hands clasped together. "There was a murder."

The bossman loses color from his face. Most workers die from accidents, not homicide. Foreign raiders, unscrupulous nomads and all sorts of undesirable people had to be dealt with swiftly.

He finishes his visit by draining all the good wine. His entourage buzzes around him like planets to a star, as he departs to check and feed on another unfortunate farmstead. Life continues uneventfully, until one day, a witchhunter shows up.

While scrubbing a series of cutting boards lined against the slaughterhouse walls, Timo catches a glimpse of the hired professional. The witchhunter dons a high-collared black coat, covered in relics and leather pouches. A lock of white hair drapes over his sunken face. Slung over both shoulders are leather straps, fastened in the center with a circular metalwork that sits over his chest. When his unclasped coat flutters, the inner buttons twinkle like the night jewels, and so does the pommel of a bladed weapon snug against his hip. On his back, he carries a crossbow, made of light basiliskwood, lacquered and shining like snake scales, riveted with cast-iron screws. There's no denying it: this guy is awesome!

"If you wouldn't mind, I'd like to watch for the day," the witchhunter says.

"Be my guest," Kazerus says.

"Don't worry, I only want to get a feel for the area. I've been observing the whole farm."

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So that's what a bounty hunter looks like? Where does he come from? Can I be his sidekick-- Timo pinches his cheeks. If he associates with the witchhunter, he would put himself in danger. The safest option is to play innocent and wait for the investigation to go cold.

Timo stares at the soap suds leaking out of the sponge. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. A witchhunter only shows his face when something terrible happens. It might be the last time he'd ever meet one. He needs to know the rules of the game, and at least he should gather information on the strange visitor to satiate his curiosity. What are his accomplishments, his abilities, and his motivations? His scrubbing grinds to a halt and he drops his sponge.

Timo saunters over to the men. "Sir Hunter?" he says.

"Hello young lad," the witchhunter replies. He waves, wearing thick gloves and sleeves with bulky cuffs.

"What's your name?"

"I am called The Scorpion." His voice booms, rich yet hoarse, compared to Timo’s wimpy kid noises.

"The Scorpion, I hope you catch the bad guy soon." Timo makes a cutely serious face. "If there's any way I can help--!"

Scorpion laughs. "What are you called?"

"Timo!"

"I will beseech you when I need to, how does that sound?" He gives a crooked smile, some of the teeth shy.

Timo blushes and beams. "Can I really make a difference?"

"If you see anything suspicious, let me know. I'll take all the help I can get."

Ah, The Scorpion is so cool! Timo smiles sheepishly and his eyes glitter. He would love to befriend such a guy; it would be absolutely thrilling!

"Alright, back to work youngin," Kazerus says.

Scorpion is a real hero, here to catch criminals! When Timo used to live with the other kids, his favorite game was (and still is) manhunt. There are many variations: knights and bandits, ghosts and exorcists, vampires and villagers.

In the vanilla version, there's a dungeon area where the bandits could tag other prisoners to free them while distracting the warden.

In the vampire version, the 'villain' got special powers. Vampires could convert others, but once they got tapped by a stake or had holy water splashed onto them, they were out of the round.

In the ghost version, the starting ghost picked another to be a ghost. The first ghost could only harass people, while the second ghost could knock people out of the game with a special handshake. The round ends when enough people chant the exorcism while encircling the second ghost, but it also knocks out anyone innocent.

The fun memories wrench his heart. Was separating from the other kids a good idea after all?

Kazerus scolds Timo for leaving the boards a mess, unsatisfying streaks of grime still gripping the edges, but the words barely register.

The game of 'childhunt' has just begun.