We ran out onto the first level. I hurled streams of water, freezing the guards in place with ice, while Kaus and the red-haired woman simply knocked them to the floor with a single blow.
We went up to the second level. The office of that very captain was located there. Groans could be heard from behind the door.
"Kid, wait here," the old man ordered.
I stayed in the corridor, listening as they went inside. Screams rang out, then silence fell. When they ca out, their arms were elbow-deep in blood. Kaus patted
on the shoulder, leaving a crimson print.
"There was no other way," he said briefly.
We took the bunch of keys and went downstairs. Pulled out Shren and the second person Kaus pointed to. In total, there were five of us.
"And why don't we free the rest?" I asked, while they were hiding the bodies of the guards in the basent.
"If the guard figures out that a whole crowd is missing, they will summon soldiers," the old man answered. "They'll start searching every house and will chase us until the end of our days. Because of every single fugitive."
The red-haired woman silently threw the bunch of keys into the cage next door.
"The rest will make their escape tomorrow," she said.
But lastly, the woman walked up to the first cell.
"Well, rat?" she pronounced, opening the door.
She beat the informant to death.
"For Ronnie," she said coldly, wiping her hands.
We got out through the window and changed clothes.
"You said that we could shake the tail," I reminded the old man.
"There's nothing complicated here," Kaus answered. "We'll pay a visit to the head of the city. In his stash lie papers with records of their dirty deeds and bribes. The old fox trusts no one and collects compromising material on his own accomplices. We'll simply break into his house, take the papers, and scatter them into the crowd. Chaos will erupt, and they won't have ti for us."
"True, we need to leave the city before tomorrow's sunset," Shren added.
"Why?"
"Because tomorrow by evening a ssenger with a letter will show up here. He'll step inside, see the corpses, and they'll kill him. Then they'll imdiately notice that the postman is missing. Then the gears will start turning."
The city head's house turned out to be quite chic.
"Three floors, his own stable," Shren said quietly, appraisingly looking over the facade.
We snuck inside. Kaus and Riana acted like shadows—they deftly and silently eliminated the guards. Watching their honed, deadly movents, I began to clearly understand: this is not just a street gang.
We went up to the second floor and quietly opened the massive doors of the bedroom. A portly man was sleeping on a huge bed, and next to him—three young girls.
Riana and Kaus stepped forward. Two short swings of blades—and the girls parted with their lives, not even having ti to wake up. Everything happened so cold-bloodedly that my breath caught. Kaus roughly grabbed the awakened mayor and slamd him into the wall, putting a knife to his throat.
"Is there anyone else in the house?" the old man asked in an icy tone.
At that mont, Shren ca down from the steps of the third floor. He looked absolutely devastated.
The head of the city began to shake: "Please... I'll tell you everything! Leave
alive! The children... the children are on the third floor, I beg you, don't touch them... we'll give you everything!"
Kaus shifted his gaze to Shren. The lockpicker, without raising his eyes, rely gave a short nod.
My heart began to pound frantically. They... they killed the children?
"We'll spare your life. And the lives of your children too," Kaus lied without blinking an eye. "But tell , where is the safe."
Suddenly a quiet "ow" sounded behind my back. I had forgotten about Shish—the cat had sneaked in after us and was now sitting unperturbed on the carpet.
With a trembling hand, the mayor pointed to a large painting on the wall. Riana yanked the canvas off, and Shren imdiately set to work on the complex chanism. Kaus, anwhile, continued to hold the master of the house by the throat with a death grip.
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"And now the main question," the old man forcefully pressed the blade into the skin, letting out a thin trickle of blood. "WHERE IS HE? Where is Zevlud Storkhin?!"
The mayor shook his head from side to side, his eyes widened in terror: "No... if they find out I told, they'll kill !" "Speak!" Kaus pressed him even harder. "He... the last ti I heard, he went back to the south! To Hork!"
As soon as the words left the mayor's lips, Kaus ran the blade across his neck without the slightest hesitation. The man wheezed, grabbing his slashed throat with his hands, slumped to the floor, and began to choke on his own blood.
About twenty minutes later, Shren finally defeated the lock. A click sounded, and the safe door opened. While they were raking out the necessary papers and gold from there, I decided to inspect the cabinets—to look for what the mayor might have hidden not in the iron box, but closer to himself.
In the folds of spare blankets, I felt a thick leather folder. Opening it, I ran my eyes over the lines and felt a chill run down my spine. These were dossiers.
Kaus. 52 years old. Robber, swindler. Child trafficking. Killed: 13 people.Shren. 42 years old. Lockpicker, Kaus's accomplice. Killed: 4 people.Riana. 25 years old. Killed: at least 120 people. Punishnt: death penalty.
I froze, clutching the sentences of the people with whom I had just escaped from prison.
Heavy breathing from Kaus was heard behind . He walked up to , holding my sword and musket, which they had taken from the guard captain's office.
"Now you are free, kid," the old man said, holding out the weapons to .
"Interesting sword you have. Lost the second one, did you?" "And the musket is generally excellent," Shren added, walking up.
Kaus wiped the bloody knife on the drape. "Now we are all free. We'll take a horse each in the stable, ride out of the city, and there our paths can diverge. But... don't you want to co with us? We could really use a sensible mage."
I tightly gripped the hilt of the returned sword. "I don't do business with murderers."
"And what do you think this sword and this musket were created for?" Riana responded coldly. "Isn't it to kill? We don't take lives just for the sake of it. Everything has a reason."
"I ca to these lands to earn a na for myself by a righteous cause," I answered firmly, looking them in the eyes. "Not to stain it with the blood of the innocent."
Kaus sighed heavily. "Well, kid... At the very least, right now our goals are quite noble. Let's do this: on the way, I'll tell you our story. And then you decide for yourself—stay with us or go your own way."
I sized up the old man, then looked at Riana and Shren. I still had no choice at the mont. I nodded silently.
We mounted the horses, and soon the lights of Karvi were left far behind, dissolving into the night darkness. Only when we had ridden to a safe distance did the old man break the silence.
"Kid, at least tell
what your na is?"
"Art," I answered briefly.
Kaus sighed heavily, looking at the road ahead. "You know, Art, I used to do things that make
sick of myself just from the mories. In my youth, a war was raging with might and main. I was severely wounded in the leg and shoulder. I miraculously survived and deserted. And what is a cripple to do when a war is still going on all around? I only knew how to kill. And everyone wants to eat well. I was young, and I had goals that simply disgust
now."
He fell silent for a mont, as if gathering his thoughts. "I quickly rose up through child trafficking and earned dirty money. We had a huge gang of bandits. Shren, by the way, was with us too. We felt like kings until we were smashed to smithereens. The Fear Demons did it. They... they are just monsters. That's when I decided to leave. Gathered everything I managed to save up and moved very far away. I even got a family. Children. Sotis, true, due to a lack of food, I had to return to the old ways and do a little robbery. That's where I t Riana. You probably don't know, but there are sects of cultists who pray to the Fear Demons. Well, Riana was raised by them. However, she'll tell you herself if she wants to."
The old man gripped the reins tighter. "One day I went to the city on business. I return—the village is blazing. I rushed at full speed to my house, and there... a monster stands there. Almost two ters tall, broad in the shoulders like a closet. And it was an elf. His eyes were filled with pure, concentrated fury. At his feet lay my child, and a huge sword, almost as tall as the elf himself, was stuck into the body. He turned around and imdiately lunged at . I didn't even have ti to react—so heavy and fast were his blows."
Kaus slightly bowed his head and lifted the gray hair on the back of his head, showing
a terrible, ugly scar. "He left
alive. Said that I must spread the na of his patron around the world —the Demon of Immortality."
Kaus clenched his fists so hard his knuckles turned white. "Nine years have passed since that day. The only thing I managed to find out during this ti is his na. Zevlud Storkhin. His relative, Alren Storkhin, told
this. I tortured everything out of him, and then killed him. I am driven only by revenge, Art. Yes, I am a man who has committed many terrible deeds, seeking justice. I don't know how, but I will get my revenge. The problem is that this creature doesn't sit still and moves too fast."
"And what about the Demon of Immortality himself?" I couldn't resist. "Isn't he your main target?"
"I don't give a damn about his patron!" Kaus's voice broke into a hoarse growl. "My family was killed by his hands. I only need his death. And, Art... you have no idea how strong the Fear Demons are."
He cast a quick glance at Riana. The red-haired woman pulled up beside
on her horse and looked at
attentively with her piercing green eyes.
"Listen, kid," she began. "They say the color of eyes and hair is an indicator of how gifted a person is from birth. This, of course, is not always reliable, but still. You rarely et soone with such hair and eyes. You wouldn't happen to be an elf, would you?"
"There are no elves in my family," I answered levelly.
"Really?" she rely smirked. "Well, excellent. You know, Art, the only thing I know how to do in this life—is kill. And I always enjoyed the process. But one day I t an opponent who turned out to be much stronger than . That was the first ti I understood what it was like—to be weak and helpless."
She looked at the night sky, as if recalling that mont. "After that, sothing dawned on . I learned to put myself in the place of those who are dying. In short... I started to value life. Wow, what a vocabulary I have now!" she suddenly laughed. "I guess I didn't read books for nothing after all."
"Yeah," Shren's voice ca from behind. "She used to not be able to string two words together properly."
I listened to them and couldn't understand how to react. On the one hand, they had a hard fate. But on the other hand, they themselves had killed so many people that their arms were elbow-deep in blood. They are murderers. Criminals.
But... what would have happened to
if I had been in their place? If I hadn't been born into the Helvard family.
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