storm hill city (part two) murk water cave
the auctioneer took the gold bag greedily then began to count it one by one with a perverse look upon his face before waving them off and walking away. ana watched this all with widened eyes, a guard came up from behind and cut her ropes lose then left. Leonel walked towards her and took his helmet off then pushed it into the crystal space. ana upon seeing his cerulean blue eyes finally let it all go as the floorworks were let loose. he took her into his arms and let her cry onto his cold steel armor.
"let's get out of here and then you can tell me all that happened alright?" he said only receiving a weak nod. he led her by hand towards Sarabi who gently wrapped her tail around the exhausted girl and placed her atop her back. soon after they were at the inn they had reserved for their stay in the city. Sarabi occupied the large space next to the bed as she slept. Leonel sat at the bed circulating and manipulating his mana trying to increase his control over the archaic energy.
soon after the bathroom door opened, and Ana stepped out now in fresh new clothes although the dead look upon her eyes never left. Leonel tapped the space next to him as she sat down. "Tell me, what happened, I was only gone for a week" he said giving her his full attention. she did not meet his eyes, afraid of his would-be reaction to the story. "Karka village... is gone" she dropped the bomb. "...what" he asked confused. "it's gone... bandits came and... killed almost everyone... those who weren't killed where... raped then left to die... I'm only alive because those slavers found us, no one else but me made it through the days after, Lia... killed herself" she said in-between sobs.
he felt like someone had just stabbed him directly in his heart, everyone he ever knew and loved... dead. mana boiled within him asking to be unleashed upon those responsible. a crystalline tail upon his shoulder helped him keep cool. he didn't have parents nor siblings as far as he knew. all he had back at the village was a small dingy hut gifted to him by the elder and some friends including ana. still, it hurt, moons it hurt, he snatched the crying ana and pulled her close letting her cry on him for the second time this day and this time he joined her.
Sarabi watched over the two sleeping kids, tear stains upon their clothing with a sad look. she knew this was just one of the many terrible things that would happen to him yet all she knew was that she would be there to help him through it no matter what. Ana woke up the next day alone in a foreign bed, panic set in until yesterday's memories resurfaced and calmed her down. she heard the clashing of steel upon stone and got up towards the nearby window and looked down to see Leonel sparring against Sarabi. she smiled a bit happy to see that at least she wasn't the last member of Karka village, she then frowned, that name only brought pain.
she headed down towards the courtyard the two were using and sat at a bench mesmerized at their skill in combat. soon after they finished and separated Sarabi laid down basking in the sun's rays and Leonel sat next to ana. "Hey, I'm currently working as a mercenary, I have a mission due by the end of the week and will have to leave to finish it" he was cut off by a finger. " i understand, I'll go into the city and find work maybe I can buy myse-" she was stopped by the same tactic she did to him. " Relax I'm not saying that you have to fend for yourself, I'm supposed to eliminate a bandit group in murk water cave, today well go and buy a house here in the city and get settled in, afterwards once I come back well look into who was responsible for what happened to our home" he said.
her smile was a sight to see for sure, they headed down to the ramen stand got something for breakfast and the house hunting began. they spent half a day until they found a good one in the noble's section of the city. a large courtyard at its center and plenty of land alongside a couple dozen rooms. a small mansion compared to the ones around it, yet it was far more than enough for them. he hired security and maids soon after, ana never having seen anything like this went through a whole lot of trouble adapting to a noble lifestyle. Leonel spent quite the coin on the place, but it was more than worth it to see some glimmer of happiness within her eyes.
" Ana you're not a fighter and you know this, when we were little, you were scared to hurt bugs whenever we played so leave it to me, instead how about I get you some tutors and have them teach you about the mind and its power for commerce, you were always good with numbers" he suggested at the dinner table. "...but won't that cost even more money? Leo, I know your job earns you plenty but this-" she was cut off by a chicken drumstick being placed on her mouth. "Money serves no purpose if it sits in a vault doing nothing, I rather spend it helping you become the best you, besides should you do well in your future career you'll earn more than enough to pay me back no?" he asked trying to trick her into accepting.
she sighed and slowly nodded then a soft smile bloomed before she gave him a quick peck on the cheeks and continued to eat. the next day came quick, and she was introduced to two people, one was an older noble lady who decided to tutor young noble ladies in the way of finance. lady song was nice to ana almost as if a mother figure, she was paid to live with her and teach her all she knows in finance, but she gladly taught her etiquette alongside all manner of things belonging to a noble lady. the other person ana met was an old knight of the crucible, large in size like his brothers but a gentle soul.
he guarded her with his life, first it was for the money but as he got to know her Bram quickly took to her like a daughter. he taught her hand-to-hand combat much to her disagreement, but she knew it was best to know it and not need it than to need it and not know it. the old man was also a perfect sparring partner for Leonel as whenever he wasn't guarding ana he was tossing the young knight around like wet clothes. four days passed like this, and it was time to head for murk water cave, Leonel stood outside the mansion. "Relax ana ill only be gone for two days at most, take care of those old people for me, will you?" he asked. two sets of tears dripped down her face as she nodded before he pulled her into a hug and then they separated "be safe" she whispered.
he exited the city gates and breathed in the cool morning air before heading off towards the cave. it wasn't far from the city, only a couple of hours really but the woods before it was filled with all manner of beasts, perfect to get plenty of experience fighting beasts. he planned to camp inside the forest for a day or so and spend it fighting anything that moved before heading to the bandit's hideout. he entered confidently and several hours later he was chased out of it by a pack of giant bears. 'Have you learned your lesson of overconfidence cub?' Sarabi asked. ' yes yes yes I have Sarabi PLEASE go faster' he pleaded.
the bears eventually left them, and defeated Leonel decided to just go towards the cave. sometime later he was atop a small hill overlooking the rather large camp of bandits. ' Fourteen outside and possibly more inside, what do you think Sarabi' he asked as he watched over the wooden walls and into the camp. ' I say we wait for nightfall, there will be less out on patrol then and we could possibly even pick them off silently' she suggested. 'Sounds good, then I'll go meditate until then' he said Sarabi only laid next to him, but she never dropped her guard. night fell after some time and the mission could commence.
he stood up and enhanced himself via spirits that way he can get a jump boost and land quietly. Like a wraith he jumped over the wall and drew a crystalline dagger. with extreme silence the two began to cut down all sleeping bandits and all guards who stood outside simply did not see what killed them before it was too late. soon enough fourteen bodies laid upon the soil enriching it with their blood. 'Good job cub, the spirit enhancement is best used for speed and stealth, and you used it perfectly' Sarabi complemented.
'Thank you Sarabi, I say it's time to enter the cave' he said. he entered first with the spirit enhancement still up. the cave was well lit, plenty of torches alit on the walls, it was a system of long and winding halls. some halls where dead ends and some actually led to living quarters although those in it no longer held any life. 'This is the final path, hopefully these are the last of them I don't want to scour the forest for the rest' he said within his mind. 'Afraid of the forest now cub?' Sarabi asked in amusement. he didn't reply and opened the last door, inside it was a spacious hall lavish in design. expensive rugs upon its flooring and a soft smell of incense permeated the room.
at the end of it a large man with two giant hammers at his waist stood behind a woman laying upon an expensive looking sofa. beauty could only be her description, caramel skin and long flowing purple hair accenting her purple eyes. "So, you were the rat killing my boys? no matter rufus deal with him then go get more boys from ross" she said. the giant of a man ripped off his cloak revealing his rippling muscles then brandished his dual hammers. Leonel upon seeing this immediately got ready. he summoned his halberd startling the woman greatly upon seeing the technique, but the man was already before him swinging down.
he blocked the hit with a strong mana enhanced kick surprising the duelist greatly then sent a halberd swipe leaving a nasty gash upon the duelist's arm. the duelist acted like he didn't even feel it and rushed him again except this time a crystalline tail pierced his knee dropping him to the ground and then a halberd strike beheaded him. Leonel looked upon the corpse greatly confused, duelists where great warriors yet since the moment he saw him standing behind the wall he knew the man was incredibly weak which is why he had the audacity to match the hammer with a kick. "don't be so surprised dear, a proper slave mark turns even the strongest of warriors into the meekest of cats" the woman said as she stood up, yet he knew she was terrified right now by the softly shaking legs.
he felt he should just kill her off and claim the bounty but something within him, call it a hunch told him that there was a far better option. he looked down onto the body of the duelist and saw a necklace which had fallen off once he decapitated the man, yet he distinctly remembered that there was only a tattoo where his neck was before. 'that's very likely his slave mark cub, the hunch you feel is very likely one of my brothers or sisters trying to tell you something, follow it cub' Sarabi said. he picked up the necklace much to the horror of the woman. every step towards her sent absolute fear down her spine. "Wha- what are you doing kid- no please" she was stopped by his sudden rush towards her as the necklace was coiled around her neck.
he watched it slowly sink into her skin leaving a tattoo, the process wasn't painless it seems as she trembled on her knees gasping for air. once it ended, she took large gulps of air in greedily before looking up to him in utter adoration and devotion, a look he felt utterly disgusted with. he turned to Sarabi with anger in his eyes once the gravity of the situation finally dawned on him. ' Relax cub, this woman led a bandit group against who knows how many innocents and is very likely a prominent supplier of the slave trade, interrogate her and see for yourself' she defended herself. he turned to the woman and did just that.