-----------------------------------------------------------

“What? What kind of a sorry coward sends children to the front?” said a red bearded man with braided hair. He was walking in front of the approaching group to meet Elias and the others.

Leona looked at Elias, giving him a hint to take point in the conversation, after all that was his group training exercise. 

Putting the last encounter aside, he walked forward a bit more reserved than before. The kick he received clearly had taught him a lot. “What do you want? Why are you blocking our passage?” the young noble finally said, forcing his confidence.

The man shook his head in disappointment. “So I will be talking to you then? Fine, I will be brief. Give us everything you have, and you can go back from where you came from” said the man loudly, wanting to be heard by everyone there. 

He then looked up and shouted to the one dressed as a merchant “You have too few warriors in your group. You are already an old man, but if you want to throw away the lives of these children, fine by me” he said, looking at the rest of the merchant’s caravan that stayed behind seeing if they would make a move.

Eileen and Leona unsheathed the weapons.

Noticing it Elias quickly took a step back and looked at Mark and Jonathan. He nodded toward them while unsheathing his sword as well.

The man smiled. “So be it… kill them!” shouted the man. The archers behind him began to prepare their arrows.

Noticing the imminent fight, Doris and Isabel who were behind Mark and Jonathan began to chant in elven language, concentrating their mana. Eileen immediately recognized the novice’s fire and ice spell chants and quickly moved in front of them for their protection.

Leona moved near Elias while Mark and Jonatan were right behind them. She stayed close to them but just as support. They would have to go to the front and receive the first attack.

Fear could be seen in all the Dracar hunters’ eyes, as they struggled to keep themselves focused as they noticed all enemy archers preparing to fire.

Herger quickly approached as well, with shield in hand waiting for the arrows to come.

Without notice, the archers released their arrows that went flying towards the group in the front.

With extreme dexterity and speed, Eileen deflected the few arrows pointed at her and the two girls in the back using the greatsword as a shield, the wide blade was easily acting as a shield in her hands.

Leona, noticing the greater number of arrows pointed at the front warriors, quickly stepped in as well. Like Eileen, she blocked all arrows as well..

Herger widened his eyes when he looked out of his shield and noticed that not a single passed  unstruck by Leona’s heavy sword.

Riou glanced at Therese. “That was impressive, Eileen really improved a lot under your guidance” Therese just smiled.

“Is it normal for the beastmen to be able to do these things?” He questioned.

Therese nodded her head “It requires a great ability and control, but it is not an uncommon skill”

Riou nodded and looked at Eileen “So how’s Eileen able to do it so quickly?”

“Her sword and magic affinity are outstanding… besides, she had a good teacher this time around”

Riou smiled agreeing, Therese was really good indeed.

Down in the fight area, Herger was still impressed by the demonstration and looked up at the Lioness, curious to her impression of the fight. But she was sitting there, unimpressed, watching the fight beside the boy.

The mercenary smiled to himself. “Unbelievable, so the stories about her are all true after all!”

Even the bandit group seemed shocked by that swordsmanship display. They looked above to where Herger was looking. “Could it be? Isn’t that the Great Lioness?!” one of them shouted.

After hearing such words and looking up, more than half of the bandits began to scatter in fear. Only a few loyal men remained with the red bearded man.

“Get a grip! Will you run like cowards from someone who is not even fighting?” the man said loudly to the remaining few who shouted in response.

They all rushed against the party in front to engage in melee combat.

As the bandits ran towards them, they were received with Fireballs and ice shards spells that were being hurled at them by the mage apprentices in the back.

The fireball was small and didn’t have any impact power, the flame was easily put down, barely burning anything. The Ice shards were equally weak, it didn’t even pierced their armors. Despite their effort, it wasn’t powerful enough to damage the enemy. Seeing such results the two girls fell on their knees, already exhausted, realizing their lack of power.

Elias noticing the spells' underwhelming effects on the enemy lowered the morale of his group. He promptly shouted to Mark and Jonathan to join him against the attacking bandits. It was their turn now.

Remembering Herger’s words, he took heart and rushed in to face the incoming enemy, in an attempt to inspire and lead his companions.

Noticing the young noble’s courage, Herger smiled and followed after him.

Each of them took one enemy head on, but the strength and weapon weight were too different than what the boys were used to. They all lacked the ability and sword technique to properly fight and deflect real swings from bigger opponents. All they could do was block and barely withstand their heavy blows.

Greatly pushed back, any mistake they did could cost their lives.

It didn’t take long for Elias to lose his footing and fall on his back against the ruthless enemy leader. The noble’s sword was already showing dents and cracks just after a few blows, he knew it wouldn’t last too much longer.

The red haired bandit leader smiled and raised his axe to finish the young Elias. As the axe came down, the Dracar hunter closed his eyes.

*Block*

The sound of the axe hitting a wooden shield. Elias opened his eyes to see Herger in front of him, blocking the enemy’s axe.

The other two Dracar Hunters were able to hold on, they were under pressure and completely on the defensive, but they still managed to stand against the enemy.

The enemy axe was stuck on the shield, the red haired bandit leader pulled it with all his strength, freeing the axe and destroying Herger’s shield in the process.

With that Herger and Elias gained some room “Stand up boy, there is no time to lay down now!” the leader of the bandits raised his axe to resume his attacks.

Herger moved forward to engage him, after a few exchanges, it was clear who was the better fighter. The bandit Leader realized he was at a disadvantage against that norseman.

Herger smiled as he noticed that the enemy realized the imminent defeat. He then quickly assessed the situation. Strangely enough, there were only 3 enemies left. The leader and the 2 fighting with Mark and Jonathan.

As he quickly glanced around in a larger radius, he noticed that Eileen and Leona were just watching. Not even the remaining enemies had realized it at that moment,  but they were all that were left from the attacking party.

Around Eileen and Leona, Herger saw the enemy force, unconsciously laid on the ground.

The mercenary leader smiled at himself, losing all will to fight. He loses his poise and stands up. “Damn it, and I thought I was good… how can I get all serious after seeing that?” he said with a big smile.

The red haired man did not understand his attitude and kept watching for his next move while approaching slowly with his axe ready.

Herger turned back to Elias that was already up “You rested long enough already, it’s your turn now” and Herger went back to his horse in the back..

Elias raised himself up with some difficulty. He took poise and swallowed hard.

The red haired man frowned, he couldn’t understand why the blond man was so relaxed and was again putting the worst fighter against him.

In the bandit’s mind, with their numbers, they should overrun their defense any moment now.

But then he noticed that something was not right, he quickly took a look around. To his surprise, there was no one else from his band standing up behind him.

He could not believe that they lost to a bunch of kids.

Enraged by the shame he had suffered, the bandit leader lunged at Elias, wanting to at least take one life from them. With a powerful swing he threatened to cut the noble in half.

Whether Elias had a sword or not, the young noble would not be able to withstand such a swing with his battered weapon and poor skill.

Herger was too far away to do anything… Still, he tried to rush towards Elias as he noticed the intent of the enemy.

The mercenary leader then stopped, a blurred image was already heading towards Elias. The light blond hair suddenly moved with the wind after the heavy impact from the axe on her blade.

Eileen expertly deflected the big man’s strike to the side, saving Elias' life.

The leader of the Dracar hunters couldn’t help but be amazed at the sight. His heart stopped for a moment, his eyes couldn’t leave her, captivated by her beauty and strength. ‘It’s a goddess…a goddess just saved me’

As the motion ended, Herger sighed in relief. The enemy weapon was thrown far away by a blond warrior.

Powerless, the man fell down on his knees after the strong impact still echoing in his hands.

Noticing that their leader had given up, the other two stepped back and dropped their weapons as well.

Eileen didn’t say a word to Elias or the man, and just walked back towards her horse. Leona did the same shortly after.

Herger made a long acute whistle sound. “That was fast… are you ok boy?” he said, approaching Elias, who was still perplexed with Eileen’s movements, he was following her with his eyes.

The mercenary leader smiled. “Well, you are fine.” He turned around to his men. “The playtime is over, you bastards. Grab their weapons and armor. Leave them nothing but their inner clothes. And smack some sense into them while at it, maybe they’ll think twice before attacking someone again!”

As Eileen joined Riou and Therese back in the caravan, she noticed that the Lioness was strangely happier than usual. However, before she could ask anything, Riou spoke to her.

“That was fast! Didn’t know you could be that fast already. You were not kidding about those hellish training methods”

The princess smiled, glad by the compliment.

-------------------------------------------  

The Shadows gathered once again. “Gilliath’s body was found amongst the charred orcs” said one of the shadows. 

“Have we found Maximilian’s body?” another shadow questioned, but no one answered.

“We also still need to identify the mage helping Allard. How come such a mage is still unknown to us?” said another shadow questioning.

“A mage able to fight Gilliath on equal terms? I know a few mages in Allard that could do so, but my sources tell me that all of them were elsewhere when the battle took place,” said another Shadow.

The dark entity on the throne flickered, an ethereal dark voice echoed in the room as all others silenced.

“Tessai... speak,” said the master shadow.

“Yes my lord… with the proper incentive, our pawn has finally set the plan in motion. The first victims should appear in the next few days. The land will be in chaos soon enough.”

“Very well, I hope you have better results than your predecessor. Our deal with Harmon of Argos depends on it. To the others, find the magus, he is not dead. He must be the one hiding what we are after!”

------------------------------------------------  

They finally reached the city of Kelig, the cold weather intensified as they traversed the norse lands.

The arrival was at night and the caravan went directly to the first inn near the gates.

The city was dark and the only guards were patrolling the main road inside the city. It resembled a village in architecture but at a much larger proportion. The city seemed very rural and nothing like Allard’s capital, Brigantium or even the city of Gufa. 

Already settled, Riou was talking to Eileen, Leona and Therese at the inn’s table when their food was brought by a waitress with a strong physique and a very round face. The common folk in the north seemed to be much bigger people than the Allardians, not all of them were that big. But some sure were, Riou now could see where Syldis’ size came from.

All mugs were filled with mead as water was never served in any tavern in the north.

‘Well, I think it’s the standard serving here… let’s see if it’s any good,’ thought the boy.

As he grabbed the mug and suddenly felt someone slithering behind him. A soft hand touched his right shoulder and continued its way through his back and neck. 

Eileen’s eyes followed the person’s every move with quick attention. Riou already knew who it was by the subtle approach.

He turned towards the rogue to see what she wanted.

Noticing the boy’s gaze, the thief quickly spoke. “I was just missing you… it seemed like you forgot all about me these last few days,” said Viki, resting her hand on Riou’s shoulder and glancing at Eileen.

Riou smirked. “As if there was anything to remember to begin with.”

Viki pouted and frowned at Riou for such a cold remark.

She then looked at the three on the table. “It’s polite to share, you know?” she said, especially looking at Eileen who was not amused by her interaction.

Viki smiled looking at the food in the table “Well, it seems you are busy now, but I’d like to talk to you a bit later on” She paused for a moment before continuing in a rather sad tone “This will be my last night with the caravan and there is something I’d like you to know” She finishes the sentence looking directly at Riou eyes.

Therese and Leona immediately turned to Eileen that just kept listening in a very calm and unchanging manner.

From beside him, she grabbed his mug from his hand and took a slow sip from it before putting it back on his hand. “Don’t drink too much, I need you sober later on.” She smiled briefly and winked with one eye to him. She courteously, and yet very provocatively, nodded her head to everyone at the table before leaving.

‘I can’t figure it out… What is she planning now? She doesn't think she can use me for some shady business. There is no way that’s gonna happen,’ thought the boy unsure of her angle.

The meal continued normally. It was not great food as it lacked flavor, but it was too late to go cook in the kitchen something else.

Riou liked the mead, the honey taste was not that bad and the alcoholic grade was light.

Once they were done eating, Eileen, Leona and Therese went to their room earlier, they planned to get some training going in the next morning while the merchant sold his goods.

Riou, on the other hand, joined the mercenaries for a last round of drinks and to listen to Herger’s story of the previous fight. Each time the mercenary leader told it, his own part of the story increased by leaps.

“And so, barehanded I told the mongrels! Throw your weapon aside if you want to live! I shouted as the red haired giant trembled in fear… falling to his knee sobbing like a child” Said the mercenary leader unable to stand still completely drunk. “Then I told my man… take their armors and weapons, but let their loin cloths… it was getting cold after all and we are not that desperate for coin”

The folk listening laughed and cheered him.

Elias quickly approached Riou as the story finished “Riou…” said the young noble shyly sitting beside the boy.

“Hey Elias, what’s up?”

“You talk to Eileen frequently, you must know a lot about her” continued Elias “She is the princess of Allard, right?”

“Pfffft!” Riou almost spilled all his mead.

The nobleman continued “Her name and appearance… she must be her”

Riou quickly approached him “Shh, keep it quiet ok? She don’t want to be recognized”

Elias nodded vehemently “Of course, of course! I don’t mean to expose her or anything. I just… Do you know if she has someone she fancies? Does she have a fiance? Last time I heard she was still single… so I was wondering...”

Riou smiled in surprise, “I don’t think she does” replied the boy for an overjoyed Elias. And noticing the young noble intentions, Riou couldn’t help but make some fun of him “But you know she is completely out of your league right?” 

Elias nodded with a sad expression “She is a goddess, no mortal is worthy of her beauty or love”

Riou widened his eyes in surprise and finally nodded “Well, you ain’t wrong on that remark, Romeo.”

“Romeo?” asked Elias, but Riou just dismissed it as nothing.

It was more than late and Riou started to feel a bit tired and drowsy. He thought he drank too much and it was time to rest. He bid good night and left the noble to his thoughts about his muse.

The boy’s steps began to feel heavy and his eyes began to lose focus as he walked towards his room. A strange sensation of lightness filled his head as he was losing his balance.

Something was wrong, but before he could do anything, he was already falling down. And yet, someone seemed ready to pick him up, promptly holding him.

Riou looked slowly towards the person and noticed Viki supporting him.

“I’m sorry…” said the rogue as his eyes began to close and his consciousness completely faded away. 

------------------------------------- Viki’s perspective  

‘He must be some noble’s son, or even the king’s bastard for all I care… To be given such a powerful item, his family must be filthy rich. That’s why he kept a secret his name, to hide himself from kidnappers and thieves like me.’

Despite his age he proved to be too clever to fall to her seduction attempts, even at night he always managed to lock or block his door. After all, he had plenty to hide and to lose.

She realized that to succeed, she’d need a different approach. Something that could not fail, something he’d not expect.

With her mind set on the plan, she roamed the nights after the right plants, roots, seeds and insects to carefully craft a very specific poison.

The Nightshade essence was an extract so powerful that a single drop would put a grown man to sleep for a whole day in just a few moments.

The days passed by as the travel continued and she roamed and gathered the ingredients whenever she could. And while she was at it, the image of the boy never left her head. He was stuck in her mind from the moment she woke up to the moment she went to sleep. That necklace was everything she needed.

Besides that, the boy also intrigued her.

She couldn’t believe that someone so young would not fall for her normal tricks. And the fact that he could see right through her since the first moment he laid eyes on her clearly bothered her.

How could he treat her so coldly and yet have such enticing eyes at the same time. How come  he always replied to her banters managing to always be the one on top of their discussions.

She didn’t want to admit it to herself, but she loved those interactions… his quick comebacks and witty remarks were always taking her by surprise.

A strange sense of affection began to sprout in the rogue. But as a professional she was, it was quickly suppressed. A major rule for rogues and thieves was to never have any feelings towards a target.

And after many days, the Nightshade essence was ready.

All she needed now was a way for him to ingest it. Something difficult to achieve against someone that could sense her approaching from a distance.

She knew he would be very wary of her every movement. So taking that into consideration she devised a plan. Using another plant extract known for its oily nature, she created a protective envelope around the nightshade drop using that oil.

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Viki then attached it to the side of her index finger and safely pushed it against any surface to release its contents, a mug would be perfect for that.

All that was needed now was an opportunity.

She waited for them to reach the last city before Thanes, a place where she had a safe haven.

Viki knew what to do. She waited for the boy to order and approached him, ready to deliver the poison.

As she dismissively talked to the group to misdirect them, she already targeted the boy’s mug, tactically positioning herself in a way to be able to get to it.

She stood beside him, her heart beating faster than usual. She was moments from her plan to come to fruition.  Viki quickly grabbed the mug and sipped a bit of it to dismiss any suspicion towards her action and as she brought it back to his hand, she gently pressed her index finger, that held the nightshade essence, against the inner wall of the mug releasing the substance into the mead.

Viki quickly left the group after some more misdirection, and waited. It shouldn’t take long now for them to take him to bed..

From a distance, the rogue watched the boy with care. He drank from the mug and a smile appeared on her face, despite the weight on her heart.

But then he ate, talked and even drank another mug. Nothing had happened. The boy didn’t even show signs of being poisoned. After some more time, even the trio went to their rooms and Riou was still drinking, listening to the stories that were being told in the hall.

‘Didn’t he drink the mead? I’m sure he did... he should be out cold by now, did I mess up with the ingredients? No… I’m sure it was right, I’ve done it a thousand times’ thoughts raced through her head as time passed on and nothing happened to him.

She was about to give up on her plan when suddenly she noticed that his head seemed heavier and his eyes were blinking much more slower than normal. It was finally taking effect.

He stood up and walked towards his room but the nightshade was kicking in fast now. She knew it was the moment to act.

When he was about to fall, she grabbed him. Viki held him up and dragged him to his room without anyone noticing.

She quickly brought him inside and dropped him on the bed. She gently closed the door and turned to him.

Her hands quickly went towards his necklace, but stopped half way. She hesitated.

Viki took a deep breath and looked at the necklace again, she nodded a couple times to herself and carefully removed it from his neck.

With the so awaited prize in her hands she looked satisfied at it. “I’m sorry, but I need this more than you do… you can get back home to your dad now and everything will be fine.”

Snapping out of it and putting her game face on, she continued her job, since she was stealing the necklace, she had to get everything else too.

Viki took the twin blades from his back and was reaching for his dagger when she noticed his money pouch. It was much thinner than before, he surely had not spared any expenses during the trip.

‘He spent so much, saving clearly isn’t a necessity for him’ She thought as her hand diverted its path to grabbing the pouch.

She stored it and continued towards his dagger in his back.

But he was laid down on top of it, to get it, she needed to move him and it was not an easy task from that position. 

The view of the boy completely out, unconscious on his bed as she moved him around like a doll struck her once again. The thought of what he’d think of her quickly crossed her mind.

It was not like her to have such strange thoughts. After all, he was a target, nothing more than that.

‘I don’t get it, why do I have to go to this extent to get these? A boy his age should be licking the earth I step on… still, no subtle or direct approach worked on him. How come he didn’t even flinch when I tried to get him flustered? Has he not fantasized about me? Not even for a moment?’ she thought to herself ‘No… he knew all along about my intentions, but he underestimated my resolve. He lowered his guard, this is all his fault’ thought the rogue while looking at the boy sleeping, defenseless in the bed.

Convincing herself it was the way things were, she leaned in towards the boy's waist and slowly removed the dagger from his belt.

With everything gathered, she finally stood up from his bed “Unfortunately, this is the last time I will see you. It was… interesting.”

She smiled at him in the bed, “In the end, you were right about me” She finally walks away towards the door, glancing at him one last time before leaving the room.

---------------------------------- Riou’s perspective

Riou opened his eyes to find himself shaken by a very concerned Eileen.

He was lying down on the bed. A bit drowsy he smiled at the good sight he was having, thinking it was some dream. When suddenly the recollection of the last events assaulted his mind.

Noticing he was awake, Eileen moved back giving him space. A terrible headache kicked in as he stood up, he immediately put his hand on his head.

Strange words were coming from the princess's mouth, he turned towards her to realize she was trying to talk to him, but he couldn’t understand a word she said.

With widened eyes his hand quickly went for his neck. ‘Shit, it’s gone’

His hand continued to search as his eyes followed its path. He looked around but none of his things were there anymore. ‘Fuck! The crystal and the black stone are gone! God Dammit!’ He struck the bed with his fist as his anger grew. ‘That damn rogue… I can’t believe she drugged me!’

Therese and Leona quickly barged inside the room in a hurry. Eileen looked at them surprised by their strange action.

Eileen talked to Therese for a moment and then their attention turned towards him. He sat down on the bed and pointed to his missing necklace and weapons.

“Viki, thief,” he said plainly.

Therese nodded towards him acknowledging she had understood what he meant. The lioness began to talk to Eileen and Leona once again in their strange language.

Riou looked outside of his bedroom door, he could see the sunlight in the hall. ‘It’s already this late in the day, Shit! How long have I been sleeping?’

He stood up from the bed. There was no point in trying to explain anything to them now. Besides, he knew time was of essence. He needed to act quickly if he wanted to find his things.

As he went for the hall the 3 promptly went after him.

Noticing their intentions of following him, Riou shook his head and showed his palm telling them to stop. He pointed down to the inn’s floor as if telling them to stay there.

Therese stepped forward.

‘Is she asking to go with me? Seems like it… well, she knows I don’t have time to lose today’ Riou looked at her. “Therese,” he said, getting her attention. ‘At least names they seemed to understand.’ He nodded towards her.

Therese turned to Eileen and Leona and spoke a few words with them. The two nodded as Therese began walking to Riou’s side. Leona and Eileen remained standing there nodding, as if they were tasked with something else.

‘I will get that damn rogue’  He looked seriously towards Therese. “Viki” he said once again. The lioness nodded and both left the inn in a hurry while Leona and Eileen went back to Riou’s room.

The first thing in his mind was to assess if she had already left the city. Luckily there were only 2 gates in the whole city, so they went to the nearest in the south. ‘Therese will be a good help after all, she will be able to question the guards.’

As they arrived he looked at Therese who took the cue and promptly talked to the guards.

She then looked at him and shook her head. ‘Damn it, did they not know or did she not leave?’

He took a deep breath and began to think about it.

‘If she didn’t leave through here to go back, could she have left for Thanes then? he thought as he noticed Therese signaling him to follow her. ‘It’s unlikely… She is from Iris and Allard, makes no sense for her to go to Thanes. So, she went back to sell the stuff or she is hiding here until it's safe to move the goods. After all, she must know I will look for her’

They stopped once again at the inn where Leona and Eileen were waiting at the entrance.

Therese spoke with them for a few moments and looked at Riou again. She shook her head briefly.

‘No clues it seems…’ he looked at them. “Eileen, Leona. Stay” he said pointing at the inn once again. “Therese,” he said, turning around and walking towards the street.

The lioness spoke a few words with the two and quickly followed after him.

As they couldn’t communicate, Riou didn’t care much about what Therese was doing. She was a big girl and knew how to take care of herself, if she wanted to follow another lead, he didn’t see a problem with that.

He walked at a fast pace towards the gate at the north, while his head tried to devise a plan to find the hidden Rogue. His eyes were sharply looking with intent at every possible corner, looking for clues that could tell something about thief activities in the city, anything that could point him in the right direction.

As he roamed the streets, he noticed that in the south part of the city was where most poor people lived. The lack of products in the small stands, bad clothing were evident.

As they approached the center of the city, they found well-dressed people on the streets . He remembered Askjell clothes as he saw many well-dressed men walking on the streets. ‘Probably warriors or hunters’ guessed the boy. But despite the nobles and better commerce there, it was nothing compared to Guffa, as both cities seemed completely different places.

While walking there, something caught Riou's attention while in the Main Street. Following one of the nobles there, he saw two men with just scraps of clothes and bare feet, very malnourished, carrying heavy crates. Riou stopped for a moment to look at them. On their ankles he noticed a black circle with thorns. From a distance, it seemed like a tattoo, nor an actual item.

The sight troubled him. The men were not young, but clearly had been suffering for a long while. 

Therese watched Riou in silence while he looked at the slaves with piercing eyes.

The man leading the slave entered an alleyway and vanished from sight.

Riou gathered his thoughts and resumed his search, but there were no signs of Viki anywhere. Even at the north gate as well there was no way of telling if she had left or if she was still there.

The boy began to realize that just looking would not be enough. The city was too big, there were too many places to cover. He needed a better approach.

Once again, he focused his mana to his eyes. Altering the spell, he managed to see people through them. Not that he could see exactly through walls but could get a rough image of how many people were behind them inside a house.

After a while looking with the spell to no avail, they went back towards the center of the city.

AS the night approached, the general population was back to their homes and the streets became empty.

Riou walked slowly while carefully watching his surroundings. Every passing moment he could feel his anxiety building up as he felt his belongings slipping away.

Weapons and money could be easily replenished, but the necklace would be a problem, as he did not know how to get another one without Max. Not to mention the portal crystal, his ticket back to Allard.

‘The black stone! Perhaps I can sense its magic? Well it’s worth a try’.

The boy stood still for a while as he expanded his mana in an attempt to sense the stone’s dark power. Like an aura, it expanded everywhere in a large radius.

‘Nothing…’ he thought after a few moments. ‘I will keep this up, perhaps if I get near it I will be able to sense it better’

After some searching, his senses pointed in a direction. A small surge of death magic could be felt, Riou rushed towards it.

Near the source he recognized the dark alleyway. ‘Isn’t this the same place the slaves went in? This can’t be a coincidence…’ 

Riou quickly walked towards it, focusing his mana towards his eyes.

-------------------- Therese’s perspective

The boy was pissed off, that was all Therese could tell. She felt like following after a hungry wild beast that was relentlessly tracking a wounded prey. She could feel sudden anger surges coming from the boy from time to time. But she could only wonder what was on his mind.

Another thing that was curious to her, was how he was tracking the rogue. His movements and decisions were beyond her knowledge at that point.

He was a completely different person now that he couldn’t talk. The image of a calm and easy going boy was completely gone. His body language changed drastically in her eyes as well, he wasn’t playing around..

Nonetheless, she followed despite her urges to lead the investigation, but she just knew she couldn’t get in his way in that state.

Especially because she had no clues to follow at that point.

Her desire was to go back to the inn and find tracks or a scent, anything physical to go on by. But the boy clearly didn’t care for her opinion, he continued on his own path independently of what she did. Even when she tried to take another way, he didn’t even bother to take a second look at her. 

She knew that if she went on by herself, he wouldn’t follow her.

At least his behavior and body language was easy for her to understand, it was an implicit rule now.

As she knew the truth about his capabilities, he didn’t have to pretend in front of her anymore. Since they couldn’t talk to set on a plan, the only thing she could do was silently follow, something she was not used to.

A strange feeling of ineptitude grew inside her. She felt something that was forgotten to her for a long time. She wasn’t of any help.

Despite that, she smiled to herself, as it was rather a pleasant, nostalgic feeling she was having that day.

To be led by a powerful being was a rare opportunity. ‘How long has it been since I wasn’t the one to lead?’ she thought unable to remember.

The night began to fall, as she continued to follow Riou silently, obediently. She tried to understand his reasoning but she wasn’t able to do so. ‘Why can’t I understand his approach, this is a hunt… I should be able to understand his ways, and yet… why can’t I? He doesn't seem lost. What clue has he picked up that I did not see?’

When they finally reached the main street once again Riou stood still watching it, Therese wondered what he was looking for now.

He walked slowly while watching the people, very carefully.

But suddenly, from behind her, a strange feeling assaulted her senses.

She recognized it, something was watching from the shadows once again.

She quickly turned around looking with her guard up.

Nothing but a few people wandering without concern, and nothing else could be seen.

Taking a deep breath with her guard up, but it was gone as quickly as it appeared.. 

Still concerned, she hurried to follow Riou, who was moving on his own again. But something else assaulted her now. This time was different, far away and concealed. Her instincts told her something of an evil in nature had appeared.

She looked in the direction of it and noticed that Riou was smiling and moving towards it quickly. ‘Did he felt it too?’

-------------------------------------------------- Riou’s perspective

At the end of the alleyway a robust wooden door could be seen. Riou walked towards it while looking around. There were no other entries to that house.

It was a big house, inside he could see many heat silhouettes through the walls with his spell. 

‘There are far too many people… by the size of them, mostly men’  by continuing looking he could see some of the heat signatures were not as bright. They were down the street level at what seemed to be the basement of the house.

He dismissed the spell and looked at the door. The handle remembered a rose stem and at the door’s upper right side, a rose was carved on the wood.

Riou squinted his eyes and frowned looking at it, the Merchant’s story came to mind seeing that. Not liking it one bit, he gently knocked at the door.

-------------------------------------------------- Viki’s perspective

“This dagger is outstanding… This metal is the best grade I’ve ever seen” said a skinny bald man in his 40’s, sitting down on a chair behind his desk in an office room. His clothes were very expensive, much better than the clothes used by the people on the streets.

“I did good to keep this one to myself as payment, where did you say you got it from?” he asked, handling the dagger with his long thin hands.

“I didn’t,” replied Viki, who sat down on a wooden bench while opening a small pouch.

“Well it doesn’t matter… The important thing is that necklace. If it does half of what you told me, it will fetch a huge fortune in Iris. Ah, and I sent the twin blades you brought as well, just to get a little extra.”

Viki nodded “With the money I will be able to buy everyone’s freedom, right? Be sure to tell that to the boss, the money is reserved already.” said Viki seriously.

“Of course… of course” said the man in a rather dismissive way. “But first we will have to sell it to be sure the amount is right.” He smiled at the girl. “In any case, you will have to stay here until the dust settles. Once it’s safe, we will go to Iris to see how much profit we made.”

Viki kept silent while looking at the pouch in her hand. She took from something wrapped in cloth and a crystal cut in half.

“Do you know what this is?” she questioned, showing the strange crystal.

“Let me see…” said the man extending his hand expecting her to bring it to him.

As she approached he noticed the strange old cloth protecting something in her hand. “Let me see that as well” he said as his curiosity was sparked.

With both hands he looked at the translucent crystal “Hmm, this seems to be some magic crystal, but I do not know what it does. Luckily for you I’ve spent a year at the magic academy to learn how to inspect such items.” he said proudly pouring his mana in the crystal that didn’t react to it.

“I think it’s broken…” said the man putting it down.

He then proceeded to carefully open the thing wrapped in the cloth. Inside it he saw a strange, roundish black stone with a red rune inscribed on one of the sides.

“I never seen anything like this before” said the man as he grabbed the stone and dropped the cloth on the table. “You should have shown me these things earlier, we could have sent it with the courier” said the man with curious eyes, looking at the stone.

Not able to contain himself he tried to force his mana into the stone to see if he got a reaction.

A sharp and acute pain stung his hand where he was touching the stone. He dropped it at the table immediately.

A dark dot appeared in his hand at the place where he was feeling the pain, the man looked at it while opening and closing his hand in an attempt to make the pain subside.

“What is that? What happened?” questioned the rogue looking at the strange black dot in the man’s hand.

“I don’t know, but it's starting to burn now… shit, doesn’t matter I will send it tomorrow to Iris, this is clearly magical as well” said the man, clearly showing signs of discomfort. “Who did you rob, girl?”

Viki kept silent and just sat down once again on the bench and began to count the coins in the pouch, as the man leaned back on his desk preparing to write on a big book the new item he had acquired.

After a few moments passed, his hand seemed to bother him more and more. Viki saw him constantly moving it and scratching. 

As she was counting the coins the door of the room began to open slowly.

Viki and the man immediately looked towards it confused. Nobody should enter without being called.

To their surprise, a boy with messy brown hair and dark blue eyes silently entered the room.

“What’s this? I didn’t call for anyone,” said the man, looking at the boy.

Viki’s eyes were completely widened in surprise, but she noticed that he was not mad as she’d expected him to be. When he looked at her, he had this strange look, a mixture of sadness and disappointment directed at her.

“Guards! What are you doing? Why did you let this boy come in? Guards!” shouted the man towards the door.

There was no response. Viki swallowed hard. ‘How? This could not be possible, there is no way he could have found me.’

“Guards!? What the hell is going on out there? Are you all sleeping?” Shouted the man in an angrier manner scratching his hand furiously.

He then pulled a small dagger with a rose stem handle and thorns from his belt and stuck it on the table to frighten the boy. “Do you know where you are? Perhaps you have a death wish?” he said menacingly to the strange boy that just looked at the black rose dagger stuck at the table.

“Ho, so you do recognize the dagger. You stuck your nose where you don’t belong… kill him Viki” said the man, ordering the Rogue. But she didn’t move.

“Kill him Viki!” shouted the man once again. But she just watched the boy in silence with widened eyes. She couldn’t understand how he was there.

Suddenly she asked loudly “Why are you here? Do you want to die? There are dozens of people in this house and you lost the necklace, you can’t defend yourself… why have you come?”

Viki then finally noticed he wasn’t alone, there was someone else by the door. “Therese!” she said looking at the Lioness standing there.

The thief now understood how the boy got there. The blond woman had a stern and serious face as she entered the room.

‘But there was no sound of fighting. Even Therese couldn’t get there without any alert.’ The rogue still tried to logically understand what was going on, but she couldn’t explain. Nothing made sense.

“Who is that now? Is there a party in this house that I’m now aware of? Why are the guards not coming? Some heads will roll because of this!” shouted the lousy man with his hand bleeding from the frenetic scratching.

The boy didn’t bother to answer anyone, he noticed his dagger and the crystals on top of the table. Not seeing the necklace he approached Viki who was now standing up/

With a dead serious, unmoving expression he extended his hand towards her, clearly expecting it to be returned.

A sudden anger assaulted her, she moved forward to him and very close to his face she began to speak loudly at him.

“What?! Why do you look at me like that? Your precious necklace is gone! You are too late” she shouted.

The boy didn’t move, nor change his expression.

She got even more bothered by it.

“You, who lived a good life, with plenty of money and powerful friends to support you… you can’t possibly understand what it is like to the rest of us. I hate people like you who live in a perfect world, just caring for traveling and visiting friends, with everything granted to you in a silver platter! I bet you are a son of some Lord, that necklace probably was a gift for your birthday from some master mage wasn’t it? But it’s long gone now, you were too late! You lost!”

Tears suddenly burst from her angry eyes as she began to lose control at the unchanging face of the boy. “The rest of us don’t have such luxury! Now go away! Leave before the guards come!” 

The boy kept his same look, unmoved by the words or tears.

Clearly shaken, she continued, “Then I will kill you if you don’t go away! I don’t care if the lioness herself is here… move! or I will end your life!”

“Yes! Kill them, I will speak of your deeds to the boss! I will even pay myself for your sister's freedom if you kill these bastards now!” said the man using the opportunity to convince the Rogue.

She looked at him with wide open eyes for a moment and turned back to the boy, that proposal clearly weighed heavily.

In a sudden move she took from her belt a dagger and quickly brought it towards Riou, pressing it against his neck.

Despite the pressure and intent, the boy didn’t even budge, not a muscle moved, not even his expression changed.

“You are nothing without your necklace! And it’s gone now!” shouted the rogue once again in anger. But she couldn’t see any sign of fear in his eyes which bothered her greatly.

His eyes showed nothing but a huge disappointment. But he knew how she was, why would he be disappointed now? It made no sense to her and it was driving her crazy. He knew she’d rob him, but still why does he look like this then.

Looking at those eyes felt like having a knife pressed against her own chest.

Viki knew the boy was done for if so she wished. Just a bit more pressure on his neck, and she  would kill him.

‘Why isn’t he concerned? Why doesn’t he say something, why does he look at me like this? Does he think the Lioness can save him even at this point?’

She then glanced at Therese by the door. And to the rogue’s surprise, the Lioness didn’t show any concern either. Not only that, the lioness was leaning at the wall with crossed arms looking down, not even paying attention to what was going on.

‘Will she let him die?’ thought the rogue as she couldn’t believe nor understand what was going through her mind.

“Will you let him die?” Viki finally questioned her, unable to understand the Lioness' behavior.

In response, Therese just closed her eyes and sighed.

Viki shook her head in disbelief, her tension grew even more by such an attitude displayed by them.

Her cold nerves were long gone by that point, she could feel her arm shaking while holding the dagger against the boy’s throat. ‘She won’t stop me? Why?’ 

“Kill them already, you stupid girl!” screamed the man holding his bleeding hand against his chest, he was in a lot of pain by that moment.

Viki looked at Riou once again. He didn’t show signs of wanting to move nor his expression changed. His deep dark blue eyes wouldn’t look away from her.

Looking at him like that… somehow, her anger began to subside, her hand lost its strength, her resolve faltered.

Her dagger fell to the ground. 

She could not kill him and was now emotionally exhausted.

“It’s gone now… I’m sorry, but I had to save my sister” said Viki in a low tone stepping away from him.

Riou then watched her for a moment and then walked towards the table. He looked down at the black rose dagger and picked it up showing it to her before letting it fall to the ground, he shook his head from side to side.

She finally began to understand the source of the disappointment in his eyes.

What was really bothering him was the fact that she was working for the black rose.

The boy’s eyes brought up some old memories from her past, tears flowed down her face.

Her life was harsh, from an early age living with her sister in the slums to the slavery and thievery of her adult life.

The only affection and kindness she ever knew was taken away in front of them.

The woman that was the closest thing to a mother was captured alongside her and her sister, used and abused before being murdered in captivity. Viki hated the black rose with all her being, nonetheless it was the only path she could follow if she ever wished to free her sister as well.

A darkness took over her heart, survival was all she thought about.

The black rose kidnapped poor girls and beautiful women to sell them as slaves. They paid the authorities to turn a blind eye on the matter as it was a very profitable endeavor.

The children that were kidnapped were conditioned since young into the servitude life. And when they were older enough, they’d make expensive slaves or brothel prostitutes depending on their beauty.

Viki’s fate was sealed if not for the darkness that grew within her heart. Using it she learned to trick and even kill to survive. She made a deal with the black rose, and from that point on, she worked for them with the promise to buy her sister’s freedom.

And so the years passed, the debt increased and the jobs were never enough.

Viki snapped back to the present as Riou moved once again.

After looking at the quiet Viki for a few moments, he turned around and looked at the room as if searching for something.

Wiping her eyes she told him once again “I told you already, it’s gone!” 

He didn’t care to listen. He just ignored her completely and kept going.

Riou looked at Therese as if asking where his necklace was, the Lioness just shook her head.

The boy turned back and went towards the front of the desk where the man was standing. Not bothered by him in the slightest.

He moved to pick his dagger up and noticed the man’s hand and arm were completely black by that moment. Seemed like a darkness was consuming him from the inside, as black veins were already appearing in the man’s neck as well.

The man just stepped back in a lot of pain, trying his best to withstand it while the boy stared at him.

Riou finally grabbed his dagger and put it back where it belonged. He then grabbed his transparent crystal and used the cloth to enveloped the black stone once again. After picking everything up he walked toward the bench and took his pouch that Viki had left there.

He then turned and left the room as silently as he entered it.

Viki looked at the door unable to understand his behavior. She felt her chest even heavier now than before.

She looked at Therese as she began to move after him.

“I don’t understand,” said Viki to the Lioness. “Why would you let him die? Did you know I wouldn’t do it?”

Therese just smiled faintly.

Viki was even more confused.

“What about the necklace? Don’t you want to know where it was sent from? Won’t you go after it? Why didn't he even ask me anything? Why didn’t he yell at me? Why didn’t he hit me or try to kill me... Why didn’t he do anything?” she said with a consuming pain in her chest.

The lack of action and words of the boy was even worse than suffering his ire.

Therese sighed, clearly Viki words and saddened expression moved her somehow. “I don’t know if you got too involved, or if you are just a bad thief. You spent all this time around him and still are unable to see it?”

Viki frowned. “I’ve seen enough… to be traveling with so much money and high grade weapons, all alone at that age. He depended on the necklace power to defend himself. A necklace that some important mage must have given him after his rich father paid a lot for it… so I don’t understand why he didn’t ask about it” the rogue said once again in anger.

Therese sighed once again. She didn’t intend to address the rogue, but she felt the need to set the girl straight.

“You are wrong about him”

Viki was confused.

“He has no family or riches, that boy is as poor as one can be, not even the clothes on his body belongs to him”

Viki was doubtful of those words.

Therese nodded “He is not from these lands and was left to his own luck just a couple months ago.”

Viki widened her eyes in surprise.

Therese continued “What you’ve taken today, was all that he owned” She then turned towards the door and before leaving she added.

“And he was silent because he can’t speak without the necklace you stole, it is enchanted with the elven rune of the common tongue, so don’t expect it to be worth too much.”

Therese smiles and puts her hand on the door frame. “He didn’t need any help” she finished her words and finally left the room after Riou.

Viki just couldn’t believe what she had heard and sat down on the bench looking down, thinking about all that the lioness had said.

The bald man quickly rushed to the door to look outside as Therese was gone, looking for the guards.

But the pain was unbearable by that point.

Viki saw him fall down on the ground as he gripped his clothes tightly squeezing them near his heart. He struggled for a bit and suddenly stopped, his heart seemed to have exploded inside his chest.

The rogue moved out of the room and began to slowly walk through the corridors. She saw every one of the black rose agents down. The slaves were gone and she was the only one left standing in the whole house.

---------------------------------------- Back to Riou’s perspective.

Riou was already walking back towards the inn and was quickly joined by Therese that catched up with him.

‘Damn, the necklace and the twin blades are gone… and by Therese’s look it’s already far away. Viki must have sent it somewhere to sell, probably back to Allard and with half a day of advantage. If only I knew who was taking it. Damn I feel like I was too soft on her, but discovering that she was dealing with the black rose. Fuck that really threw me off, how could her do that?’

‘But what should have I done? She seemed so desperate. Damn it, I hate not knowing what is going on’

He sighed. ‘I can’t cry over spilled milk… what’s done is done. I’m closer to Max now, he will know how to get another necklace. Until then I will try to learn a few words of this damn language at least.’

Riou put his hand over his pouch ‘And most importantly, I got the crystal and that damn stone back’  the image of the man dying to the dark spell taking over his body came to his mind. ‘I could see that dark magic creeping towards his heart… I just don’t understand why. Perhaps the necromancer had a secret way of using it? I feel lucky now that I didn’t touch that damn thing.’

As Riou reached the inn he could see Eileen and Leona sat down on a table waiting for them. The princess seemed concerned about something.