The moon was hanging bright in the sky but the forest was eerily dark. The dried leaves made cracking noises whenever Brenden Burns took each step. The wind howled from time to time drowning out the cicada's singing.
He had finally found a middleman arranged by the 'Robin Hood' this noon. After arranging enough gold, he had come to buy the antidote. Brenden was smart and an excellent son to inherit the viscounty, but he had no ambition. Though he didn't feel a strong sense of familial bond with his father, he didn't want his old man to pass away. Specially so, since he didn't want to inherit the title anytime soon. The old man who was always busy had been poisoned and he was suddenly put in a difficult position.
Brenden just wanted to pass his days away as the heir. That way, the only thing he had to do was handle some minor tasks and he could enjoy his leisurely life as always. Though war was looming over the distance, he couldn't do much about it and frankly, he didn't think it would affect him too much. After all, the lords went to war quite frequently and he had already experienced it when he was young. If anything, the peace that lasted for almost a decade was out of the norm rather than the war.
Now, all he needed to do was secure the antidote and heal his father. That way, he could continue with his life and his mother wouldn't be worried about her husband anymore. He stopped when he saw a symbol carved into a tree. The knife marks made out a rough figure of a bow and an arrow nocked in it.
"Come out! I have the gold." Brendet shouted while facing the darkness.
"Your guards are too close for my liking. I believe you were told to keep them at least 300 yards away." A rough voice replied. The voice resounded from every corner and Brenden couldn't make out the direction.
A magic to make the sound come from every direction. What an annoying situation. Does he have a wizard helping him? Is he one? Or could it be a magic gear? If it is a magic gear, it would be incredibly difficult to make one with such a function. It would also mean that this Robin Hood most likely has a big organization behind him.
"They are just here to guard me. Don't worry, they won't make any moves. I have the gold you want and you have the antidote. Let's get this over with." Brendet replied in a calm manner. He would never agree to have his guards any further than this. Who knows what the other party might do if he let his guard down. The guy had already shown his despicable ways with the poisoning and no one would trust him. Gazing at a spot that was dark even for the forest in the night. "Besides, you seem to have uninvited guests. I believe it is in your best interests to complete our deal as soon as possible."
"Just a little rat. You don't have to worry about it. Place the gold in the sack behind the tree."
"How about you hand over the antidote first?"
"THE GOLD FIRST! Or else you can go back the way you came." The rough voice was raised a notch or two higher. The impatience in his voice could clearly be felt and Brenden decided against testing the guy any further.
Reaching behind the tree, he found a cloth sack there as mentioned by 'Robin Hood'. Opening it up, he placed four gold bars inside it. A gold bar weighed about a kilo and was roughly as valuable as 500 gold coins. Placing the sack back on the ground, he spoke, "The antidote. Hand it over."
Twang!
Followed by the distinct sound of an arrow being loosed, a sharp whistling sound of a projectile flying through the air reached his ears.
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F*ck! This guy is crazy. If he kills the first guy trying to buy the antidote, no one will trust him. Is he crazy? I can't even differentiate the direction of the attack because of the stupid magic.
Ducking low, he covered his head as sweat trickled down his temple. Looking up, an arrow embedded into the tree came into his sight. A small pouch was tied to the end of the arrow. "Couldn't you have handed it over in a more normal manner?"
Listening to the panic stricken voice of the man who had come to buy the antidote, Reuben silently clicked his tongue. This wasn't the situation he wanted as well. His boss had told him that there would be third parties present in the scene. He was also assured that no one would interfere and that the third party would only be there to observe. Even though he had great trust in his boss, he couldn't help but feel uneasy. They were robbing an entire region's every feudal lord and such a crazy undertaking came with huge risks.
Right now, he felt like a rat being observed by cats. Brenden was only a tier two warrior and had only noticed the closest presence. Reuben on the other hand, was a tier four warrior and had much keener senses. He could feel at least half a dozen parties surrounding him and there might still be other parties that he missed. His head could fly off any moment and the tension did nothing but make him act unnatural.
"Take it and leave. The transaction is complete."
"How can I be sure that this antidote is genuine?"
"Tsk. It is genuine. Just feed it to your lord. If he does not get cured, then I wouldn't be able to sell off the rest of the antidotes." The annoyance was much more apparent in his voice this time. After dropping his line, he pretended to be calm and collected as he took off at his top speed.
Are they following me? I don't sense anyone. Was boss right? Are they really gonna let me go just like this? Phew... looks like I am safe.
After confirming that he was indeed all alone. He took out a magic gear in the shape of a brooch and activated it. Soon, all traces of him vanished from the spot. Even the best tracker wouldn't be able to track him down. The magic in the gear helped him conceal all of his presence. Not even footprints or his smell was left behind after the activation of the gear.
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"Did you get the antidote?"
"Yes, I did. You can relax now mother. Father will be fine after he ingests the antidote." Brenden replied in a soft, gentle voice. The bags under his mother's eyes had grown more pronounced and it looked like she still hadn't gotten any sleep.
"Summon the apothecary. He will test the poison and the antidote. After confirming that it is indeed genuine, we will administer the antidote."
"Of course. I will get to it immediately. Meanwhile, you should take a good rest. Your complexion looks terrible." Brenden ended the conversation and headed for the apothecary's room. The man had been stationed right next door in case of anything untoward happening.
"Master Grit, I have brought the antidote. Please confirm if it is real."
"Certainly, young lord Brenden. Could you please arrange for a rabbit? I need a test subject. I wouldn't mind a rat, but I think you would have an easier time finding a rabbit." The apothecary replied in a groggy voice. It was almost midnight and he had already retired to bed only to be woken up so late.
Brenden frowned at the mention of rats. The critters lived in disgusting places and smelled horrible. He didn't want to look at the sickening creatures. "I will arrange for a rabbit to be brought here immediately."
Soon, a rabbit was brought over by a servant. The fluffy creature was chewing on a small carrot oblivious to what was gonna happen to it. Grit took a small carrot and dabbed a little bit of the poison he had extracted from the scotch on it. The poison was tasteless and odorless, so it freed him from the troublesome process of removing the smell of the solution.
Brenden watched with bated breaths as the rabbit ate the carrot. Not long after, the rabbit started writhing and moving erratically inside its cage. Grit on the other hand, observed the creature with great focus. After ensuring that he had administered the right dosage, he fed very little of the antidote to it. Soon, the critter regained its mobility and started moving around in fear and confusion.
"The antidote seems to be genuine. At least, to some extent. I will observe the rabbit for a few more hours. By tomorrow morning, I will have a more concrete answer. You should retire to bed for now, young master Brenden." Grit spoke in a casual manner.
"Of course. I shall be expecting good news when I wake up tomorrow. You have worked hard, master Grit." Brenden likewise, replied in a similar tone and went to sleep.