The group dispersed after the crier finished speaking, though they continued to talk. There was an underlying current of fear. Enyo could see it in their eyes, in their faces, in the way they walked and talked. The White Council, unlike the Dark Council, was a well-known group. They were cornerstones of society. For one of them to die from something other than old age or disease was nearly unheard of.
“Security is going to be tight from now on,” Fellis said.
Enyo didn’t disagree. “That’s going to make it difficult for us to move around.”
“What do you propose we do?”
At Fellis’s question, Enyo frowned and crossed her arms in thought. There wasn’t much they could do. They couldn’t afford to draw attention to themselves, which meant they only had one option right now.
“We need to blend in and wait until all the excitement has died down,” she said at last.
“There’s no telling how long that’s going to take,” Fellis pointed out.
“Then do you propose we catch the murderer?” asked Enyo. “That would not only put us in danger, but we might end up being exposed.”
They walked down another street. This one held several shops, mostly clothiers and blacksmiths. Enyo could see black smoke rising from some of the chimneys. As she peered into one of the shops, an idea sprang to Enyo’s mind.
“Let’s change our attire to blend in better,” she suggested.
Fellis raised an eyebrow. “Do we even have enough money for clothes?”
They did not. While she and Fellis had gone on several quests during their journey, most of that money had been spent on lodging and food. What little they had left was what she had saved up.
“Let’s find the nearest bar,” Enyo said. “I think I remember seeing a quest board at one of them. Let’s see if we can take a quest or two to earn more money.”
There was indeed a quest board located in front of the bars, one for each bar. Sadly, the quests offered were not those that paid well. They were not quests to slay monsters, protect caravans from bandits, or anything of the sort. These quests were simple. Ranging from courier quests to “find my lost pet” quests, they only paid, at most, fifty copper coins, enough for a single meal and nothing else.
Enyo and Fellis had split up to take on quests separately. Since they were so easy to complete, they could earn more by taking several quests at once and completing them on their own.
Most of the quests that Enyo had taken were quests to find missing pets, though there were a few that involved acting as a courier and one that even had her tending to a garden. In total, she completed sixteen quests for a total of eight silver coins.
Currency was relatively simple to work with. One hundred copper coins equaled one silver coin, and one hundred silver coins equaled one gold coin. A single silver coin was enough to stay at an inn for a single night.
Fellis had completed fifty-five quests and earned twenty-eight silver coins. Apparently, she had subtly used her magic to make other people work on her quests for her.
Since they had more than enough money thanks to Fellis, they traveled to a clothing store. By then, it was late in the evening. Curfew would be coming, so she and Fellis shopped quickly, buying clothing that was simple yet elegant.
Enyo, now wearing a simple black dress with a V-shaped cutout in the back and a slit on either side of her hips, sat at the bar, quietly nursing an ale that she only took an occasional sip of. Several feet away, Fellis was surrounded by several men who were cheering as she downed another mug of ale. She was, once again, having a drinking contest. Two men had already passed out, unable to keep up with the woman.
“Who’s next?” she called with a grin. Several cheers sprang up as one cocky soul sat in the chair across from her. Fellis grinned as she held a full mug of ale in her hands and clicked it against the man’s. “Bottoms up!”
Enyo sighed.
“Excuse me,” a voice said as a familiar figure stepped in front of her. It was the paladin from before. “I couldn’t help but notice that you look very familiar. Have we met before?”
Enyo played it cool. “I’m afraid I’ve never seen you before. Are you sure you’re not talking about someone else?”
“Hmm.”
The paladin leaned in closer. Enyo leaned back, but she tried to keep her expression nonchalant. After another moment, he stood back up and scratched at his head.
“I guess you’re right. Your eye and hair color is different than the person I am thinking of. My apologies.”
“It’s fine.” Enyo waved his apology off. “Who is this woman who looks like me? An old girlfriend?”
The paladin blushed at the mention of girlfriends. “I’m afraid not. The person I am looking for is a thief.”
Enyo shifted. The gate key, which she’d attached to a chain around her neck, rested comfortably within the valley of her bosoms, hidden by her dress. “A thief, you say?”
“Yes, a vile thief who stole something important from Queen Alice.” The paladin clenched his left hand and brought it up to his face. “That wretched woman… I can’t believe anyone would be so horrible as to steal from her majesty. It’s beyond reprehensible.”
“Is that so?” Enyo asked, her right eyebrow twitching.
“Just so.” The paladin nodded. “Sadly, I’ve not been able to continue my search.”
“Why is that?”
“Because I had to bring Jacob Stone to Alyssium,” he said seriously.
Enyo felt like someone had struck her with lightning magic. Her entire body jolted at the name. So this man really was the one who’d taken Jacob to Avant Heim, the reason that Jacob was in jail. She wanted to punch this man so hard. She held back, however, because she knew that they couldn’t afford to cause trouble.
“Jacob… you are speaking of the hero, right? The one who was accused of betraying the crown and sentenced to life imprisonment?”
“He might have betrayed the crown, but at one point, Jacob was one of the greatest heroes our people have ever known,” the paladin said seriously. “He used to go around rescuing all of the people who needed help, he journeyed through our land, righting wrongs and fighting for justice. He even defeated the Dark Lord, Alucard.”
Enyo narrowed her eyes as a strange sense of competitiveness welled up inside of her. “Speaking of Jacob’s journeys, did you hear about the time when he rescued a young woman who was dying from a fatal disease? He traveled deep into the Valley of the Dead, by himself, and brought back a rare flower that could cure it.”
“What about the time when Jacob had to rescue an entire city by traveling deep into a volcano to fight a monster made entirely of lava?”
“That’s nothing compared to when he journeyed through the Forest of Dreams for the sake of rescuing a single child.”
“Saving an entire city is far more incredible than saving a single life.”
“Saving one person shows that Jacob is willing to risk everything he has even for a single life. It shows his strength of character better than saving entire towns does.”
As she argued with the paladin, Enyo became more and more sure of it. This man was a love rival. His obsession for Jacob was strong, so he must have been a rival for Jacob’s affection. She’d heard about these, but she’d never expected to actually meet one—and to think that he was a guy to boot!
Their argument would have probably continued, and for hours at that, but the doors suddenly burst open and several knights walked in.
“Caslain!” one of them called out.
“What is it?” the paladin that she’d been arguing with asked. So his name was Caslain? She narrowed her eyes and engraved this name into her heart. She wouldn’t let this man defeat her!
“We need you to come with us,” the knight’s voice was grave. “There’s been another murder.”
***
Enyo found out the next day that the person who was killed was another member of the White Council, and it was actually a double murder this time. The
two people who were killed, Humility and Liberality, had been found dead in Humility’s mansion. The town crier didn’t say how they’d died.
Enyo suspected they’d been poisoned.
It was two days after the deaths of Humility and Liberality. The atmosphere of the city had changed completely. Where once there had been joy, now there was fear. People didn’t stay in the streets for long. Vendors closed shops early. It seemed as if no one wanted to be outside anymore, and this was in spite of how all the council members had been killed in their own homes.
While it was in poor taste, Enyo and Fellis had taken advantage of the fear to increase their revenue. The increase in fear meant there were more quests that asked for bodyguard details. While the knights did their best, they could not be everywhere, and Queen Alice had declared that she also had to protect the common people. This hadn’t endeared her to the nobles, but Enyo was thankful.
She and Fellis had made over fifty-five gold coins each for two days of protection detail. That was more than enough to last them for a few months. The person who had hired them was Alexander, the young noble who’d tried to woo Enyo. He still tried occasionally. However, Enyo shot him down every time. She did have to admire his persistence, though. It took a special kind of insanity to keep attempting the same thing over and over again and expect different results each time.
Three days after Humility and Liberality were killed, Enyo and Fellis were still acting as round the clock guards for Alexander.
The moon hung in the night sky. Enyo and Fellis had their own room to sleep in at Alexander’s mansion, which was a lot nicer than the inn they had been sleeping at previously. Their room was right next to their employer’s. That way they could arrive quickly if someone attacked him, though Enyo didn’t think that would happen. The attacker had been killing members of the White Council, not nobles.
Sitting on her soft bed, Enyo looked out the window, admiring the stars and moon as she contemplated her situation. Even though she was glad to have found a way to earn money, it didn’t bring her closer to her goal. She couldn’t rescue Jacob like this.
Security around the palace has increased. We wouldn’t be able to get within fifteen feet of the gates without getting arrested.
Jacob was somewhere inside of Avant Heim, locked away in a jail cell for treason. It was her fault that he was in there.
How am I supposed to rescue him?
Thinking on it, Jacob could probably have rescued himself, but he wasn’t for some reason. Was he waiting for her? Or could it be that the queen had countermeasures put in place against Jacob’s incredible strength? She wished she knew.
Lying on her own bed, which sat on the opposite side as Enyo’s, Fellis, who lay on her stomach and had been flipping through the pages of a book, suddenly sat up.
“Something wrong?” Enyo asked.
“I detected a strong magic just now,” Fellis said, marking the place in her book and standing up. “Come. Whoever is emitting that magic must be in trouble.”
“I’m way ahead of you, Fellis.”
Enyo threw on her clothing, dark black pants that fit her like a glove and were really comfortable, and a bodice that went over a black shirt. She also had a new set of vambraces, and the sheaths to her daggers were now around her thighs instead of her back. As she finished lacing up her boots, Fellis was already dressed and leaping out the window.
“H-hey! Wait for me!” Enyo shouted.
Clicking her tongue, she followed after Fellis, leaping out the window and landing on the ground in a crouch. Fellis was already several meters away. She put on a burst of speed, catching up to her companion. Together, they ran down the street, following where Fellis’s senses took them.
“The magic is disappearing,” Fellis announced as they rounded a corner.
“Then let’s hurry,” Enyo said.
Their race through the noble district took them to an empty park—almost empty, Enyo corrected when she noticed the figure lying on the ground and the creatures surrounding it. Wraiths.
Enyo didn’t hesitate.
“Lux. Lumin. Luminous. Accendo!”
Light burst from Enyo’s body as she felt a tug on her navel. It was like a brilliant star exploding. Illumination emitted from her body in a bright pulse that washed over the wraiths, who screeched in horror as they tried to run. Unfortunately for them, they were already trapped within her magic’s sphere of influence. Their bodies turned to dust seconds before her attack ended.
Enyo knelt beside the inert figure. It was a woman with bronze skin. There were numerous lacerations covering her body, which emitted a dark purple miasma. It seemed her body had been contaminated with dark magic.
Chanting a healing spell under her breath, Enyo barely paid attention to Fellis as she placed her hands over the woman.
“How does she look?” Fellis asked.
“She’s been poisoned,” Enyo said. “There are two poisons running through her system. One is from dark magic, from the wraiths attack I’m guessing, but it seems there’s another poison running through her bloodstream. It’s going to take some effort to rid of them both.”
Enyo frowned as she felt the constant drain on her magic. She’d cleared the miasma from the woman’s body, but the poison was taking a lot longer. It must have been strong, or maybe it had simply been circulated through her body so much that it took time to extract it. Enyo sat on the ground, slowly healing the woman, until, with an exhausted sigh, she sat back.
“I’m done. Help me carry her to Alexander’s.”
“Okay.”
Fellis scooped the woman up. Standing, she adjusted the female, who swayed limply in her arms. The bronze-skinned woman’s head tilted back, forcing Fellis to readjust her again so it rested on her shoulder.
They journeyed back to Alexander’s mansion, entering through the front door instead of a window. Enyo locked the door behind them. Then they traveled up to the bedroom that they shared and set the woman on the bed.
With the lighting from the fairy lamps providing a gentle illumination, Enyo was able to study the woman better. She was an exotic-looking woman. Her skin was dark bronze, and her lithe figure reminded Enyo of the dancers she sometimes saw at bars. Her clothing, a semi-translucent gown thrown over a pair of puffy pants and a strange cloth around her bust, also didn’t strike her as something a noble would wear.
“I wonder who this woman is,” Enyo said, frowning.
Fellis shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine.”
Since it was late, Fellis and Enyo went to bed. The woman was in Enyo’s bed, so she and Fellis shared the other one. Sleep came easily. Enyo was exhausted.
When morning came, Enyo woke up to find that Fellis wasn’t with her. The woman who she’d rescued was also gone. Standing up, she frowned upon realizing that she’d been sleeping in her clothes, which were now horribly wrinkled. As she stepped outside and wandered down the hall, she tried to smooth them out with little success.
Fellis was in the kitchen. The woman they’d rescued was with her. Both of them appeared to have been talking about something, but they stopped upon noticing her enter.
“Enyo,” Fellis greeted. “It’s a good thing you’re awake. Kindness and I were talking about what happened last night. You should join us.”
“Kindness?” Enyo questioned.
“Her name—well, her title,” Fellis corrected.
“Uh huh.”
“Kindness is the title that I go by,” Kindness said. “I am a member of the White Council. Last night, someone managed to poison our water. All of my soldiers are dead. I only survived because I realized what was happening and used my magic to help counteract the effects, but then the wraiths attacked me. Speaking of which, I would like to extend my gratitude to you and Fellis for saving me. Had you not, I would have surely perished.”
“You’re welcome,” Enyo said as she sat down. “Do you know who might have done this?”
“I have a hunch. However, I cannot talk about
that here.” Gesturing to Fellis, she continued. “Fellis has told me that you two are being employed here as bodyguards. I would like to hire you myself, should you be willing.”
Enyo shrugged. “I don’t mind, though you’ll want to at least speak to our employer.”
“That is fine,” Kindness said. “When he wakes up, I shall demand that he relinquish your contract. Then we’ll be off to Avant Heim.”
It took everything Enyo had not to show her surprise. “We’re going to the castle?”
“Yes, I have a matter of grave importance that I wish to discuss with Queen Alice,” Kindness told her.
Enyo tried to contain her excitement. She would be going to Avant Heim, the place where Jacob was being held prisoner. Finally. Finally, she would be able to save him.
Hold on, Jacob. I’m coming.
That day, the world appeared just a little brighter.
***
Alexander had been quite flabbergasted when he’d come down that morning to discover Kindness sitting in his kitchen. After freaking out, which involved a lot of bowing, he’d told the woman that she could hire Enyo and Fellis. The woman had not hesitated and quickly employed the two as her bodyguards.
Which was how the two found themselves sitting in a carriage that would take them to Avant Heim.
Enyo was still somewhat dumbfounded—everything had happened so fast!—but she was also excited. She had been worried about how they were going to get into Avant Heim. It was truly good fortune that they had saved Kindness when they did.
They had already passed the front gate and were now being driven through a large garden. An array of flowers, green grass, and several bodies of water dotted the landscape. Glancing forward, Enyo glimpsed the massive spires and flying buttresses of Avant Heim.
“We’ll be coming up on Avant Heim shortly,” Alexander’s butler said as he drove the carriage.
While everyone else seemed relatively calm, Alexander was shaking. Enyo didn’t know if it was from nerves or something else, but she really thought he should calm down, lest he die of overexcitement.
Journey of a Betrayed Hero- Volume 2 Page 9