When Oriana left the inn, she was sobered up enough to take full control of her body. She had asked an errand boy for a glass of water before departing. Though she suffered from a slight headache, she could walk with no trouble anymore.
To go back to her village, she chose to take a detour, worried that Arlan’s interest in the ’pretty boy’ entailed having his n follow her ho.
As it was quite early in the morning, the marketplace was yet to beco crowded. The shop owners and storekeepers were busy opening their businesses, and at most, servants were sweeping the storefronts.
Oriana found herself slowing down when she found a group of suspicious people lingering on the alley in front of her.
She was about to avoid them and circle around them, but she changed her mind when she recognized one of them. It was a fellow herb collector whose na she forgot, but they were passing acquaintances. That man once helped her acquire a rare herb she needed for her Grandpa’s dicinal concoctions.
’Why is he with shady people? Could he be in trouble?’
They were whispering among themselves. When she saw them leaving, Oriana decided to follow them against her better judgnt. She told herself she would call for help and not personally intervene if that herb collector was indeed being maltreated.
The group of n reached the rear of what appeared to be a small inn and entered the backdoor. Tiptoeing, Oriana approached the rear of the inn, searching for a nook or cranny that could hide her slender figure.
She found one and peeked at the situation inside. Though she could not see their faces clearly, she heard those n talking to a man who seed to be their leader.
"Is it true that Oisin was murdered?"
"Yes, master. Their entire faction is annihilated. Everyone, even those not present in their hideout, was killed. There was no witness and the city guards rely did a cursory investigation before closing the case."
’Killed? Oisin...?’ Oriana tried to rember. ’Isn’t that the scary pig who is into smuggling goods? Who did he clash with to get killed?’
The leader then signaled another man to stay, while he dismissed the rest.
"What should we do now, Ron?" the leader asked the man next to him. Compared to earlier, he was speaking more formally, as if the man called Ron was not a subordinate but a person with a similar status to him. "Our next order was supposedly transfering that batch Oisin will be bringing from Selve. Without him, Master Finn has no one to coordinate with to bring a huge batch of black nightshade. Can you find a suitable replacent? We need a rchant whose ship will pass by Azures Island in two weeks.
The na of herb made her widen her eyes. ’’Black nightshade! the one I need to treat grandpa?’
’Finally, I am hearing news about it! The reason we moved near to Jerusha is precisely because the black market in this border city is flourishing!’
The more Oriana listened, the less her excitent grew.
They were no longer selling black nightshade!
A very important custor had swallowed all available rare herbs from the black markets not only of Jerusha, but throughout the kingdom. Since those goods were already paid in advance by that custor, she would not be able to get even a single stalk, even if she were to offer a higher than black market price.
"...Don’t worry, Mark. I will leave tomorrow. I will get there on ti and find a new rchant to coordinate with," Ron replied.
"Before leaving, et here at the sa ti," Mark instructed. "I have so important things to give to you which will help you get work done easily."
’Tomorrow morning?’ Oriana thought. ’The black nightshade is harvested from Azures island? I don’t know where that is but I can ask along the way. I need to get a ship leaving Selve Port before this man arrives. This might be my last chance to get that herb.
’First, I must find out who the seller is. I do not need much. I don’t mind even if it’s no longer fresh. Maybe I can buy five or six stalks. That would last Grandpa six months worth of dicine.’
Oriana listened into their conversation for a while more as she devised her plan. As she was about to leave...
Crack!
She stepped on a random branch that broke under her feet.
"Who’s there?" the man called Ron shouted.
’Damn it,’ she cursed and imdiately ran away from there. She even used her magic which stirred the air around, causing dust to fly up.
Mark and Ron rushed out of the cabin, only to be welcod by the strong gust of wind mixed with dust, dried leaves and small twigs.
Both closed their eyes and held their arms in front of their heads to protect themselves.
"Seems like it was just the wind."
"Hmm."
After all, to most humans, concepts like people capable of controlling wind were nothing more than a bard’s tale.
Oriana returned to her village. Even before she could enter the fence of her cabin, she was stopped by a no-nonsense voice.
"Where have you been the entire night, Orian?"
It was the voice of a person she had always been wary of, even more than her own Grandpa.
She put a smile on her face and looked at her good friend. "Good morning, Luke. Are you out chopping wood today—"
"Where were you?" he asked as he walked towards her.
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