by Ennki Hakari
“Our trade ties are tenuous as it is. We can’t afford to risk that without at least some proof of foul play. Besides, inspectors can be bribed to keep quiet. I’ve temporarily prohibited any ships from entering or leaving the port, but I doubt I’ll be able to keep it up beyond tomorrow.”
Toreasa’s face darkened at this. Petros took her hand in both of his and stroked it gently.
Even as the lord of this town, Petros knew he couldn’t just indiscriminately inspect ships that belonged to foreign nobles. The only other option was to watch for any suspicious freight being loaded onto the ships, but that would also prove difficult if he didn’t yet have complete control of his forces.
For me, the question remained as to why a country across the sea needed so many slaves, even going so far as to kidnap people. I had to imagine it was some sort of massive public works project…or war.
“Why is Nohzan buying up so many slaves abroad?” I figured it couldn’t hurt to ask.
If this had been a contrived story plot in a novel, then there would be some sort of massive conspiracy underlying all these kidnappings, but it didn’t seem like that was what we were dealing with here.
Petros knitted his brow and shook his head. “Nohzan isn’t the one gathering up all the slaves. It’s the Holy Kingdom of Hilk. They claim they’re doing so to give sinners a chance to atone for their transgressions, but I think they’re using them as laborers in their mythril mines.”
“Ah, mythril mines?”
I was quite familiar with mythril, a magical metal that existed in the game. It was a mid- to high-class material there, and it seemed to be held in similar regard here. But even if the criminals were being used as laborers, something still didn’t sit right. Criminals or not, importing slaves from across the sea seemed like it would cost a fortune in transportation alone. I couldn’t imagine there was much profit in it.
I voiced my concerns to Petros, and he agreed.
“Temple knights from Hilk are apparently making their way through Nohzan, visiting towns and buying slaves along the way. Once they gather enough slaves, they ship them off to the mythril mines. The western part of Nohzan is currently suffering monster attacks on a massive scale, so they’re willing to buy magic-resistant mythril weapons at a high price.”
I understood. In that case, the merchants’ transportation costs would be offset by the higher premium on slave labor, which in turn would incentivize them to acquire slaves by any means. It also meant that Hilk was bearing the brunt of the transportation costs, at least upfront. Though it sounded like they were eventually passing that on to the people of Nohzan.
“To make matters worse, people have been fleeing western Nohzan, crossing the ocean, and coming here. But many of the refugees end up getting kidnapped and sent back to Hilk as slaves.”
I remembered the day before and the way that man had treated the mother and her young children. It seemed like a rift was beginning to form between the citizens and the refugees.
Toreasa spoke up again, her eyes pleading. “I’ve heard that dark elves have better sight and hearing than we do. I beg you, help me find my friend.” She bowed her head.
Petros, despite his noble status, bowed his head beside his wife.
“I have heard much of the prowess of elven warriors. I will reward you handsomely if you provide your assistance.”
Ariane turned back to me again, her golden eyes asking for my input.
“I will go along with whatever you choose, Miss Ariane.”
I was more than willing to provide my help, so it truly was up to Ariane. The look of determination in her eyes told me she’d already made up her mind.
“I don’t know if we’ll be able to find your friend, but we’ll certainly try.”
Toreasa and Petros were both overjoyed to hear this.
They told us what they knew of Frani’s situation before the chambermaid had disappeared three days prior. Even with every ship confined to the port, there were a lot of places in Lamburt she could have been taken to in that time, and that was assuming she was still in town.
The two went on to describe Frani’s notable features. When they’d finished, Ariane made to stand. But before she could, Petros put up a hand to stop her.
“I imagine you’re not very familiar with human towns.”
Petros looked back at the older gentleman who’d stepped up behind him and whispered something into his ear. The man bowed in acknowledgement and quickly left the room. A short time later, he returned with a well-dressed man.
The new arrival stood beside Petros’s chair, his gaze fixed on Ariane. He looked surprised for a moment before a soft smile appeared his face.
“This is Gio Clintos, second-in-command of my knights. He will serve as your guide.”
Once his introduction was complete, Gio bowed with curt military professionalism, the smile still on his face. He looked to be in his early thirties, with short-cropped, light brown hair and an ever-present smile—absolutely nothing like the brutish figure I would have envisioned as a commander of knights. He looked more like a civil administrator to me. However, he was quite tall, and very muscular.
“As the lord kindly stated, I am Gio Clintos. It is an honor to meet you.” After introducing himself, he stepped back behind Petros.
“With Gio at your side, you will have no problem getting into places that would otherwise be restricted. Now go, and please find Frani.”
Petros and Toreasa looked pointedly at Ariane, grave expressions etched on their faces. How much of that gravity got through to Ariane was unclear, but she nodded firmly.
Gio accompanied Ariane and me out of the castle. Ariane glanced up at me once we were back in the town proper.
I tilted my head and returned her gaze. “Something on your mind?”
She looked away. After a moment, she spoke in a low, timid voice. “I’m sorry for always dragging you into my own personal business.”
Personally, I had no complaints about her decision, though I felt a certain degree of guilt about the fact that I was looking forward to playing detective.
“Our objective merely changed from finding Toreasa to finding Frani.”
My nonchalant response caused Ariane’s lips to curve up ever so.
“Thank you, Arc.”
Even if it was just a small gesture of appreciation, her smile still warmed my heart.
Men truly were like animals, when you got down to it. If a pretty woman asked for a favor, we’d jump at the chance to help. Deep in my heart, I felt that perhaps I finally understood that famed, third-generation thief.
***
Lamburt was located on the Gulf of Bulgoh, its port poking out into the middle of the water. This was the closest spot between the Rhoden Kingdom and its neighbor across the sea, the Nohzan Kingdom. If you were to head due west from the port, you’d find the island known as Bis, which traditionally served as the center for trade between the two kingdoms.
Looking out across the sea from where we stood in the port, I could just barely see the outline of the island on the horizon. Gio explained that it was about a two-hour trip by boat.
Two immense piers jutted out from the port, where numerous ships of all shapes and sizes were docked. Since Petros had prohibited any ships from leaving or entering, however, there were pretty much no ships anywhere else.
There were quite a few soldiers in the area, keeping an eye on everything, though their work ethic seemed questionable at best. As soon as Gio had appeared, however, they quickly got themselves in line and went back to their duties.
It had been two days since the travel restrictions were put in place, and it seemed unlikely that they could reasonably continue much longer. Nevertheless, the port seemed vibrant and full of life, though I could still sense an uneasy tension in the air. Among the crowds around the port, I spotted a large group of people dressed in dirty clothes grouped together, somewhat detracting from the serene, seaside scene.
Ponta also seemed to notice them and
hopped down from its usual place atop my head to wrap around my neck like a scarf.
Gio spoke in a low, troubled voice, his eyebrows deeply furrowed.
“Due to the troubles the Nohzan Kingdom has been facing in the west, there’s been a massive influx of refugees, leading to an increase in crime in Lamburt. The current movement restrictions on the port have done something to limit the flow, but the number of refugees will likely increase again as soon as it’s lifted. To make matters worse, there have been sightings of ghost ships off in the bay, causing the residents to panic even more.”
His usual calm demeanor returned as he began leading us through the port.
“Is the Nohzan Kingdom doing nothing to prevent people from leaving?”
Considering that the refugees had to cross a great expanse of water just to reach Lamburt, the danger they were facing must have been on an immense scale. It was hard to imagine that the country was simply doing nothing. It suggested that the king had little control over the country.
“From what we hear from the refugees, temple knights from the Holy Kingdom of Hilk are coming in to deal with the monster crisis, but it’s all they can do to hold back the tide.”
Considering their proximity to Nohzan, Hilk was in no position to ignore the monsters. But were they the only country trying to quell the problem?
I asked Gio about this, but he only shrugged in response. Apparently, he didn’t have any additional details.
Unlike the world I’d come from, where information was at everyone’s fingertips, most people here seemed to have a very limited understanding of the whole picture. Gathering and recording massive amounts of information was a huge undertaking, so it was likely that only a select few had a full understanding of what was going on within another country’s borders.
Or maybe Gio was just being tight-lipped about the whole situation. Either way, I had no means of learning any more.
Petros had mentioned that the Holy Kingdom of Hilk was buying up all these slaves. But I couldn’t help but wonder if mythril mining was their true purpose. Sure, they would need slave labor to speed up the production of mythril-based weapons, but the sheer cost of it all still didn’t make sense to me.
I continued mulling this over as I turned to Ariane. She was fidgeting a bit beneath her cloak, her hood pulled low as usual.
“Did you find something?”
She put a finger to her lips, her golden gaze locked onto me. “Several people have been watching us for a while now.”
I tilted my head within my helmet, careful not to move too much, and looked around. I spotted a suspicious man watching us, just as she’d said, though he kept his body carefully turned away. I couldn’t see anyone else however.
Were all elf warriors able to pick up on such things? Or was it unique to dark elves? Or just Ariane?
In any case, her senses were far more fine-tuned than a human’s.
But what was the purpose of watching us? Sure, we might stand out a bit, but I couldn’t recall anyone keeping an eye on us in any of the other towns we’d visited. Perhaps it had something to do with Frani. Perhaps they were spies, working with a group of abductors… But who even knew we were looking for her aside from Lord Petros and Lady Toreasa?
I turned my gaze toward Gio, walking in front of us.
As the second-in-command of Lord Petros’s knights, he was probably closely watched by those involved in the underground markets. Perhaps he was the one our shadows were keeping an eye on.
I stopped and looked over at Ariane. “Do you think they’re watching Gio?”
Ariane shook her head. “No, their attention seems to be focused on us.”
I was impressed that she could tell. No one would ever get the jump on her. But this still left the question of why we were being watched.
Gio realized we were no longer following him. He turned around and walked back to us.
“Is something the matter?”
Ariane gestured with her eyes. “We’re being followed.”
Gio was about to turn his head to look, but he stopped himself, instead letting his eyes wander across the scene.
He lowered his voice. “Is that so?”
Ariane nodded. “I don’t know what they’re hoping to do, but they’ve been following us since the port.”
Gio frowned. “We can’t say for certain that they’re involved with the people who took Frani.”
“Where exactly was she last seen?” I asked.
Chambermaids generally spent the vast majority of their time within a castle’s walls. I didn’t know the specifics, but I had to guess it would be rather difficult to abduct someone like Frani. If she’d disappeared while in the castle, that would change our search entirely.
Gio stared at his feet. “It’s all my fault.” His voice dropped even lower, as if he were choking on the words. “I asked her to run an errand outside the castle walls. I could just as easily have asked one of my soldiers to do it, but she told me she had some errands of her own. That’s why I asked Lord Petros to allow me to serve as your guide. I want to help find her. It’s the least I can do.”
“Hmm. In that case, would you mind leaving us here?”
The already-melancholy Gio looked as if he’d been punched in the gut when I said this. His eyes darted between Ariane and me.
“Why?! I want to help—”
Ariane put up a hand to silence Gio’s shocked tirade.
“We’re going act as decoys to draw the men away, isn’t that right?”
I nodded. “You’re rather well known around this town, Gio, so it would be best if you left us for a bit while we draw the people following us in.”
“B-but…” Gio mumbled a bit, struggling to find words.
Ariane spoke in defense of my plan. “We don’t have much time, right? We need at least some sort of information to work with.”
The tone of her voice left no room for discussion. Gio hesitated a moment before nodding, letting his head hang.
“I understand. I’ll make my rounds through the port area and show my face in some popular spots.”
“All right then. Let’s meet back here in an hour.”
We parted ways with Gio. After walking for a bit, I turned to Ariane.
“Do you think they’ll fall for it?”
Ariane shot me a cool, challenging smile. “If the two of us together don’t work, then we’ll just have to separate.”
Granted, Ariane and I could both easily handle a fight on our own. But I hoped we’d be able to lure one of our followers in together. Either way, we couldn’t afford to let our guard down.
Ariane and I wandered around the port, occasionally stopping to talk with ship’s hands or other people milling about to ask if they’d seen anyone matching the chambermaid’s appearance. It seemed like some people had the information we were after, but they either gave vague responses or wouldn’t talk to us at all. They probably wanted to avoid all the infighting Lord Petros had alluded to.
Coming up empty-handed, we decided to lead our watchers down to the warehouse district at the southern end of the port. There was a fair amount of foot traffic on the main street running along the front of the district, but this dwindled to a trickle as soon as you went even one street beyond that. The warehouses back here were quite far from the docks and looked rarely used.
A few homeless people sat by the side of the road and eyed us suspiciously, but otherwise kept to themselves.
I broke the silence. “So, how did we do?”
Ariane’s golden eyes glinted eerily in the depths of her hood, and her lips curled into a smile.
“There are six people approaching us from behind. Another ten or so are coming in from parallel streets to surround us.”
I looked up to see a group of men in the distance, sneers on their faces as they watched us approach. Behind, I spotted another group blocking the street we’d just come down. The homeless people I’d seen earlier had vanished. They must have sensed the violence in the air.<
br />
All told, it looked like we were surrounded by as many as twenty men.
“Well, this certainly is a lavish welcoming party.”
Ariane let out a dramatic sigh. “And yet, it doesn’t look like any of them will present much of a challenge.”
This elicited a derisive sneer from one of the men ahead. “Why doncha say that to my face, so I can beat the hell outta you two? You think your helmet can take summa this?”
The man wielded some sort of blunt instrument that looked like a mace. As he jeered at us, the men around him burst into bouts of laughter.
A sinister-looking man with short-cropped hair spoke up, licking his lips. “That one in the armor might be an elf, so don’t rough ’im up too bad! And whatever ya do, don’t leave any injuries on the lady. She’s the one we’re after!”
He didn’t look like the type of person who might head up an abduction ring. But I’d bet he was sent by the person who did. Regardless, now we knew that they were after Ariane.
“Hehehe! Can you believe our luck, boys? A dark elf, here in our town! I’m excited just thinking about how much we’ll sell ’er for!”
“I’m gettin’ excited, too, but in a different way, if ya know what I mean!”
Ariane drew back her hood eliciting even more jeers and leering stares from the men surrounding us.
She was rare, even among elves. It made sense that these humans, who saw elves only as a commodity, would be drawn to her. I’d allowed myself to slip into a false sense of security, to forget how dangerous this world could be, thanks to how well the humans in Branbayna and even Lamburt had treated us.
“At the end of the day, I guess all humans are the same. I’ll make you regret coming after me.”
Ariane’s golden eyes burned with rage. She drew the Sword of the King of Lions from her waist. The men sneered. Either they’d forgotten that elves were incredibly gifted fighters, or they were overconfident in their own abilities.
I let out a sigh, pulling the shield off my back and muttering to Ariane.
“I have some questions for these guys, so try to not kill them all.”
She seemed eager for the upcoming fight. I wanted to make sure she showed some restraint.