“Ar.. Arenvolt? Arni…”
“It’s Archibald! Sir Greenwood, for the likes of you!”
It seed my inability to rember his na only served to further aggravate him.
“Sorry, I don't rember every minor noble I t.”
Yeah, I rembered my forr resolution to avoid aningless conflict. But, on the other hand, there was no use crying over spilled milk. Plus, I'd lie if I said this guy wasn't pissing off to an unusually high degree.
As expected, the ntion of ‘minor noble’ caused the young master to clench his teeth.
However, unlike his friend - the other young master - back in the guild, he did not lose his cool.
His personal attendant, the (half) dwarf whose na I couldn't rember, stood beside him, silently, as the young man spoke, his words filled with malice.
“You haven't answered my question, lowborn scum.”
“Sorry, I’m sowhat new to the city.”
The motion of scratching my head was even more theatrical than my voice.
“Does the minor nobility here have so special privilege? Sothing that entitles them to answers?”
Archibald’s left eye twitched, but, again, this was the extent of his visible rage.
“There’s no way soone like you would have a right to be here. Not on a day like this.”
The answer to his words, filled with disdain and suspicion in equal asure, I just smiled.
“And, yet, here I am.”
“Indeed. Here you are…”
His words trailed off, and his contemplative tone gave pause.
Suddenly, his hand darted for his pocket. By the ti it reached whatever was inside, my hand was already on the hilt of my sword, and my legs were ready to dodge. The half dwarf was already reaching for his weapon, as well.
For a mont, all three of us stood, frozen.
“You’re going to attack here? In broad daylight?”
There was no emotion in my voice, beside a small note of astonishnt. I knew nobles had certain privileges in this kingdom, but not even them - apart, perhaps, from the ruling family - could hope to attack a person in the middle of the street, in this district, and get away with it.
The first to react was the young master – not with panic, or rage, but a most disdainful scoff.
“Pfff. I wouldn't expect much more from a barbaric commoner. You would dare draw your weapon here?”
“I haven't drawn it. And you're the one reaching for a contraption.”
At my words, a smile slowly spread across his face.
“I am within my rights. And – don't you worry. Unlike you, what I'm doing is far from illegal. The opposite of that, in fact.”
At those words, I felt a faint ripple rush through the Tides. It was a bit similar to the attack yesterday, but much, much fainter. I wouldn't even detect it, had my instincts for such Tide movents hadn't been honed back then.
“What did you do?”
I narrowed my eyes, slowly removing my hand from the hilt – albeit, my legs were still ready to move out of harm's way, if need be.
“You’ll find out..”
His eyes shifted to the left, towards the northern part of the street.
“..very soon.”
Following his gaze, I spotted a pair of guards, running straight this way.
The young noble waved his hand at them, while giving a shit-eating grin.
I narrowed my eyes.
“What do you think this is going to accomplish?”
Archibald laughed, calling my presud bluff.
“You might have no obligation to answer my question... Them, however…”
His intentions were clear. Either the guards would arrest , if I really were here illegally, or I'd have to explain myself to them – and him, by proxy.
“Sir, what seems to be the issue?”
As they noticed us ‘peacefully’ standing, their pace slowed down, and the first guard to reach us addressed the young noble, respect evident in his voice.
“I’ve seen this suspicious commoner in the Guild before. He shouldn't have access to Central, let alone on a day like this. And he refuses to explain himself.”
The guard that spoke turned his gaze towards . Unlike before, it was cold, lacking even the basic modicum of respect.
“Is that true?”
“I owe him no explanation.”
“Well, you owe us an explanation.”
I glanced at the other guard, who was silently gazing at with narrowed eyes.
I knew I could easily resolve this by showing Anne's token. However, that token was easily identifiable by the multiple crests, one on each side, accompanied by the collateral bloodline's ‘number’. Or perhaps it simply belonged to the estate? I wasn't sure.
“You heard him, filth. Out with it.”
Regardless, the last thing I was going to do was give Archibald what he wanted.
“Alright.”
I turned to the guards.
“Take in.”
“What?”
The guard was visibly confused. At the corner of my eye, I saw the young master, taken aback, as well.
“According to protocol, you need to take in for questioning. I'm surrendering. Take in, and you'll get your answers.”
One again, I could see the anger returning to Archibald’s eyes.
“You can't just take him in! He..”
He tried to object, but words failed him. Which wasn't surprising, as I learned of similar protocols from Alrox, during my patrol.
While those were general guidelines, at the very least, the regular city watch followed them, and even we would have to follow them back then, had we identified a potential suspect that decided to co peacefully.
“I apologize, but he's right.”
Perhaps the guard would have bent the rules, had it been for the son of one of the city's most influential families – however, for a random minor noble? Not a chance.
“Alright, follow us.”
As the first guard began to turn, I flashed a montary smile back at the young master, whose face was gaining a new hue in real ti.
However, before I could take a step…
“Wait.”
It was the second guard, who remained silent until now, carefully observing . Right now, his eyes were finally wide open, and his expression was that of recollection.
“I rember him.”
All three of us - four, counting the (half) dwarf - turned our questioning gazes towards the tall, brown-haired man.
“He’s been at the station earlier. Latter half of the morning shift.”
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not ant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
My expression remained stalwart, but my insides tensed up.
‘Maybe he just saw getting off the-’
“He did look suspicious back then, so we followed him, from a distance.”
‘Fuck.’
“However, he ended up being clean. In fact, he visited that estate. Been there til now, I recon.”
As his hand motioned to the nearby gate of Anne's estate, I involuntarily rembered Harold, the Guild branch ‘leader’ from Pine Harbor. My expression right now might have matched so of his most colorful ones.
“We don't need to go all the way back. Just pay old miss Silver a visit, get a verbal-”
“Not necessary.”
Now that the cat was out of the bag, there was no longer a reason to drag this. Last thing I wanted was to get the old lady involved in this. No more than she already was, that is.
“That’s!..”
Although Archibald was the only one to voice his surprise, the looks on the guards' faces weren't much different from his.
“O-one mont.”
The first guard hastily took out an identification sphere - quite an expensive tool, for regular patroln, and this one looked different than the standard ones - and stretched his hand forward.
Pressing the token against it brought no satisfaction, even though my imaginary charges were now cleared.
“Sorry, sir! Please, enjoy your stay.”
Realizing there was nothing to be gained from participating in this dispute, the first guard basically ran away, with his partner not far behind him.
However, those guys disappeared from my mind even before they left my view.
“You.. disgusting…”
I decided not to pay the noble brat and his bodyguard no mind, turning my back to the duo, returning to my stride towards the stairs.
“So that’s how a lowborn trash like you finds its way here.”
I hastened my pace.
“Through a lonely, old hag’s bedsheets.”
My body halted, before my mind could even realize it did.
“What did you say?..”
I slowly turned around.
The disgust on Archibald’s face, albeit theatrically exaggerated, seed to be genuine at its core.
“You think it’s such a mystery? You visit that old, nasty woman nobody likes, and suddenly, you get a pass to Central?”
‘Hey! Restrain yourself!’
I realized my hand had crept halfway to the sword hilt, already.
anwhile, that bastard’s mouth curved in a malicious smile.
“A dog might step into a noble’s manor, but that does not make it human.”
I realized my teeth hurt – my jaw was clutched too tightly.
“You’ll never belong here – even if you make it under that pitiful old hag’s-”
“ARCHIBALD!!!”
Both and that bastard were startled by the roaring voice of his bodyguard, whose hand was now clutching his shoulder so tightly it’d probably leave marks.
I realized it’s the first ti I’ve actually seen him angry – and the first ti I heard him call the ‘young master’ by his na.
“She. Is. A. Silver.”
The subsequent words were said in a hushed tone, yet each and every one carried weight.
For a mont, the two of us stood in silence, looking at each other with equally cold expressions.
“It’s fine, Kornred. I’ve wasted enough of my ti on this nobody as-is.”
I haven’t even waited to see them walking off, having already turned back, making my way to the tram stop.
‘Why are you this upset at soone who has no bearing on you?’
Ignoring Sebastian’s voice in my head, I walked down the stairs.
‘Instead of-’
‘Shut up. Yes, you’re right. Just…’
I shook my head.
Even though there obviously wasn’t an ounce of truth in his repulsive claims, the words themselves stung way more than they should have.
‘Why? Honestly, he really isn’t sobody whose opinion I’d care about.’
In fact, the words of the dirtiest, most disease-ridden bum in the slums were more likely to matter to than those of this ‘young master’.
‘So why-’
‘It’s not what he thinks about you. It’s what others will think about your teacher.’
I didn’t answer his claim. Perhaps, deep in my heart, I already knew the answer.
‘You shouldn’t let those aningless things affect your focus.’
I knew he was right. But, still…
‘Why does it even matter? Let them think what they wish.’
‘You wouldn’t understand. Except for your father, you never had “others” to worry about.’
Unlike my spoken words, thoughts were much faster. Far less filtered. It took two whole seconds to register the full weight of my reply.
‘I.. I’m sorry. Let’s just drop this.’
For at least a dozen seconds, I stood in silence atop the empty platform.
‘Focus on your mission.’
Judging by the coldness in his tone, I had a feeling I wouldn’t be hearing from Sebastian for a while.
Haaa…
All the excitent from less than 15 minutes ago had vanished, as if it was never there.
My journey back to the tavern passed by in a blur. I didn’t even think about spells, repeating the new patterns in my mind, which would be the most natural thing for to do.
Silently nodding back at the tavern keeper, I sat at one of the tables. Ordered sothing for dinner. Didn’t even rember what it was, besides the fact it cost 5 silver, and was so kind of at-and-potato stew, with bread and salad.
Going back to my new room, I took a better look around. As expected, it actually did have a functional sink, and a shower, albeit neither was too spacious.
‘...’
Under the flowing stream of lukewarm water, my mind began to clear.
‘Whatever. If I let this distract from training, the terrorists win.’
While I couldn’t just magically cheer myself up, what I needed to do wasn’t sothing I needed to be cheerful for. It was sothing I needed to do to survive.
After getting out of the shower, I slumped onto the bed, taking out a few crumpled pages. On those pages, of course, were my own hand-drawings of the relevant spell arrays.
Taking out the books themselves would be a strict violation of multiple laws and regulations, both of the relevant guild and the city (and probably kingdom), too.
However, scribbling down a few sigils, drawn by my own hand, was a gray area.
Technically, I could have drawn the spells I was practicing from mory, which wasn’t strictly forbidden, just frowned upon.
Well, if anybody did discover spell formulas in my possession, drawn by my own hand, it would raise a lot of uncomfortable questions in-and-of itself, but this wasn’t sothing that’d implicate anyone else.
‘Alright. Ti to get this ward going.’
Of course, I probably wouldn’t manage to master a whole new cantrip by day’s end. Likely not by the day after, either.
But that wouldn’t stop from trying.
After all, one thing remained constant – the countdown was ticking.
And I would find a way to make it stop ticking, before it was too late.
No matter what.
***
“Master.”
The woman who spoke was clad in tight, dark leather armor. Two blades, a dagger and a shortsword, were resting inside the two swathes on her waist, made of matching leather.
Her hair, tied in a short ponytail, barely reaching her shoulders, was the sa dark-brown hue as the armor, and, in fact, sowhat similar to her sharp eyes, who were only a tinge lighter.
Despite her equipnt, the quality of the clothes underneath - the light-gray fabric of her shirt and pants, as well as the sowhat sharp, expensive-looking leather boots - suggested she was more than a random Pathless adventurer, or so back-alley snake.
“Report, Thelma.”
If the woman's garnts were simply of high quality, the dressings of the man in front of her would betray his identity as a noble at a single glance. The fabric of his white suit was firm, yet almost seed flowy. The velvet strings adorning it, their color reminiscent of red roses, were of similar hue to his sharp, cold eyes.
The woman bowed her head, in a clear show of respect.
“The young man you asked to find. I found him.”
The man showed no visible reaction to her words, his face akin to a ceramic mask.
“Where?”
“Central.”
“...Central?”
The man raised his eyebrow, finally showing a hint of emotion.
“Not Northern?”
“I’m almost certain he left the Temple after the attack, for whatever reason. It would appear he’s still staying sowhere in Northern. Regardless, he was in Central today. And two days ago, as well.”
“Indeed?..”
The man’s voice sounded intrigued.
“Do you know where he’d been?”
The woman nodded.
“Not far from this estate, master. Farther up the street, then a five-minute walk north from the intersection. Silver estate number seven.”
For a few dozen seconds, silence reigned supre in the specious, luxurious room. The woman silently stood, as the man’s expression reflected deep contemplation.
“Have you established a pattern yet?”
“Not yet.”
The woman bowed her head in silent repentance.
“That’s acceptable. Good work, Thelma.”
“Thank you, master.”
The woman slowly raised her head.
“Continue the search for his whereabouts in Northern. But, if he visits the estate again, prioritize monitoring his movents there. His Awareness might be exceptionally high – at least mid-2nd realm. Maintain maximum distance. If he enters that estate again, feel free to leave one of the servants in your stead.”
“Should I monitor the old woman who lives in that estate, as well?”
A few more seconds of contemplation – before the man subtly shook his head.
“She is irrelevant.”
The woman bowed once again.
“As you say, master.”
The man decided to speak once more, perhaps more to himself than to his head maid.
“This boy, Sebastian… we will find out his secret. Sooner, rather than later.”
His crimson eyes shone with a complex emotion.
Anticipation. Malice. And a hint of thrill.
The thrill of his pursuit bearing fruit, at last.
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