"hik hik hik please stop. I'll do anything. I'll tell you what you want to know." The dwarven merchant bound to the chair quietly sobbed while pleading. Any form of resistance was shattered when his senses were overwhelmed by his captor. Like before, he was answered with silence. Only the quiet sobbing filled the entire basement.
"That's good. Where is he?" Sebastian wiped his dagger clean, giving Yokkun hope that it was going to be sheathed and put away.
"He's known here as Baron Neil. He lives in the outskirts of Klance City in his mansion." Yokkun felt weak once more and his head started to droop.
slap "Why is he in the outskirts? Is he expecting an attack?"
The unexpected slap brought Yokkun's consciousness back.
"He just recently became a noble so they didn't have space for him inside the central district. Though he didn't want to stay inside anyway. hik. He said he could fortify the mansion to his liking and to prepare for -" Yokkun didn't finish his sentence as he stopped mid-sentence and his head jerked up to face Sebastian.
"He told me to expect resistance from another Forgotten One. Would that be you? Did he meet you near Erimead Village?" His battered face now shone with curiosity and his eyes lit up with expectation. With his horrible visage, it almost appeared as if the dwarf was slowly sinking into madness.
"How is the gun production coming along." Sebastian didn't answer, choosing to tighten the grip on his dagger instead.
"AHAHAHA! So that's how it is! That's why you also call them guns! He's expecting you!"
BLAM!
The dagger's hilt found its way into Yokkun's cheek, further separating a few of his teeth from their sockets. He dropped his head down and allowed the blood and loosened teeth to fall out while chuckling.
"He killed your party member-"
BLAM! BLAM!
This time heavy kicks came to push the pummeled dwarf's jaw and arm. With the pain acting as a mask, he didn't notice that his left arm was already broken and useless. However, this didn't stop his grin and chuckle.
"Yoo can't go againtht him. He'th brutal and cunning. He knowth yer coming. Al make thure to tell him. Even uf I can't, my abthence will alert him." Yokkun's broken jaw and empty teeth sockets made speaking difficult and almost indecipherable. However, it didn't stop him from trying to threaten and agitate his captor now.
Sebastian's eyes glowed amber once more as he stretched his [Augment] to the limits. He was planning to use his mana-saturated state to visualise the mana tendrils and use it to further torture the grinning merchant in front of him when he stopped.
"Nate sed that he eelly enjoyed torchuring yoo an keeling her. Eet wath a femaye beathkin righ? He cald her a beetch. Tho-"
Sebastian couldn't hear and sense anything else, drowning in his own anger. Even in his rage, he could remember Becky being toyed around by Nate in front of him. He had seen this scenario multiple times in his nightmares and when he recalled the events that transpired then. He gripped the dagger tighter and ran multiple instances of [Augment] through his body.
"I'll fucking kill you!"
'[Augment] Hyper Sense, Max Physical Augment, Adrenaline Rush, Increase Mana Flow.' Spells stacked on top of one another, bulking his muscles and sharpening his senses. He suddenly found himself behind the dwarf.
When he turned around to face Yokkun, he was surprised to see Jin and Mel in front of him. Aima and Zes were both huddled over Yokkun.
Aima was almost shouting towards Zes with her panicked tone. "We can't let him die! I'll keep casting [Heal] while you support me. Stop the bleeding!"
Sebastian didn't understand what had happened and how the other party members arrived in the basement. He was sure that he still had time before they came. When he tried to take a step towards the now silent figure bound in the chair, Jin and Mel stopped him. He belatedly noticed that their weapons were drawn and pointing towards him.
"Mel? Jin? Wha-?"
"Don't move Sebastian. Drop your dagger now please." Mel pleaded with Sebastian while Jin remained stoic. He heard their magick weapons humming from being activated.
Sebastian looked at his dagger which was now bloodied, a startling difference from when he cleaned it earlier and sheathed it. He only remembered using the hilt to pummel Yokkun earlier, before he teased him into a rage.
clank
He dropped his dagger and cancelled his [Augment]. He only maintained his Steel Mind and Body subset, seeing as how he needed it to organise his thoughts soon.
Only when they saw the dagger drop did they breathe a sigh of relief. However, Jin and Mel still maintained their drawn weapons.
"Have a seat first. The chair is beside you." Mel once again directed Sebastian with her gentle tone.
Sebastian turned around to find the chair now beside him. He could have sworn that he sat on this chair opposite Yokkun when he was still interrogating him. He had a nagging feeling that they had been in the basement for quite some time.
After a lengthy silence, Jin spoke first, reassuring his theory and shocking him once again. "When we arrived we saw you behind Yokkun. Your dagger was drawn and you cut both of his arms off."
"Huh?" Sebastian couldn't make sense and was unable to form words from the shock.
"Sebastian. Look at me. Remember what you taught me before? Take deep breaths. We'll answer your questions shortly." Mel reassured him once more, reminding him to use the deep breathing techniques he himself taught her before.
'[Augment] Steel Mind and Body, Steel Mind and Body.' After taking deep breaths and calming himself down after stacking his [Augment] skill to the maximum, he then opened his eyes to look at Jin and Mel. Aima and Zes were still huddled over Yokkun. They didn't cast [Heal] anymore, but they were still applying pressure on the stumps where his elbows previously connected with his arms. The merchant obviously lost a lot of blood and was now unconscious and deathly pale he was still breathing, albeit slowly.
"It seems that I flew into a rage." Sebastian looked down at his lap, unable to lift his head to face the party members in front of him.
"That seems - to be a huge understatement." Jin forced a smiled while patting his shoulder. "We were more scared that you wouldn't come back and you permanently blinded yourself with rage."
Mel produced a cup of tea from seemingly nowhere and handed it to Sebastian. He didn't drink it, only cupping it in his hands. He was absorbing the cup's warmth using his hands and used it to ground his senses.
This time Aima broke the awkward silence. She had beads of sweat on her forehead and her breathing came in rasps. "We've stabilised him for now, but the stumps are still trickling. He'll die from blood loss soon. We can't bring him to the monastery for obvious reasons. Any bright ideas?"
The uncomfortable silence that followed seemed to stretch on for quite some time. Only Aima's and now Zes' laboured breathing filled the basement.
Sebastian stood up from his chair and placed the teacup down. "I have a suggestion if you'll let me. I promise I won't harm him anymore." He didn't move forward, waiting for the other party members to decide whether they could trust him after they witnessed the aftermath of his aggression.
Jin once again spoke while moving in between Sebastian and Yokkun. "Let us know what your plan is first before we decide."
"I understand. I'm going to use Fulgur to stop the bleeding. We call it cautery in my previous world. I'll activate the sword's properties while placing it over his stumps. The heat and electricity should stop the bleeding. It will be painful for him, but in this circumstance, it's his only way to avoid bleeding to death."
Jin looked at Mel and Aima while blocking Sebastian. After everyone nodded did he step aside. Zes immediately handed Sebastian his magick sword.
"Thank you. I'll stand beside him and only place it on his stumps. Then I'll use just a small amount of mana. Enough to stop bleeding." Activating Fulgur while applying his makeshift treatment, Sebastian then stepped aside to show he didn't mean any further harm.
When Aima and Mel checked on the mangled dwarven merchant, they breathed another sigh of relief. Aima wiped the sweat off her brow while exclaiming. "He's finally stable for now. Though I'm not sure if he will wake up - ever."
Everyone finally relaxed their shoulders. They then looked at Sebastian as if waiting for an explanation for these brutal turn of events. While keeping an eye on Yokkun's thready lifeline, Sebastian shared their conversation earlier and what drove him to the edge with almost dire results. The rest of the party simply listened to the explanation without saying anything.
Aima was the first to speak up and break the awkwardness. "If I was in your position I would have also done the same. Even if this bastard doesn't wake up at least we have a solid lead to follow."
Jin nodded as well before adding. "Using Nate's language from his journals we read before - we're going to fuck him up good."
With that, everyone unanimously agreed that they wouldn't bother with Yokkun's condition. Even if he were to succumb to his injuries they wouldn't bat an eyelash. Everyone was more concerned that his death would be recorded in Sebastian's adventurer tag. If that happened then he would undoubtedly draw the attention of investigations and rumours.
Gagging the comatose dwarf for good measure before they left, they then proceeded to the adventurer's guild. They used the excuse to update their tags, but they simply wanted to update Sebastian's tag and to send a confidential message to Leo, explaining what had happened. Even if Sebastian would be found out, they imagined that Leo would be able to explain his side to a degree. After that, Sebastian was to avoid taking on quests from the adventurer's guild and to keep his tag away from the guild's employees.
*
Back at the inn, everyone immediately washed up due to the gruesome event they partook in before they had dinner. Mel stood up immediately after the meal, which was quick since she didn't eat much. She contributed it to the fact that they just amputated a dwarf and burned his stumps. With a solemn face, she looked at Sebastian. "Please come with me outside for a walk, I need to talk to you."
Seeing a serious side of Mel, the rest of them were taken aback. They couldn't imagine what would have stirred the meek Mel to an extent.
'[Augment] Steel Mind and Body, Hyper Sense'
Out of habit, Sebastian immediately used [Augment] to sharpen his senses when he couldn't understand what was happening. Mel saw the golden flicker in his eyes before they resumed their brown hue. She clicked her tongue under her breath. The others couldn't hear it but to Sebastian who had heightened senses, he was able to hear it even with all the pub's ruckus around them. He didn't let Mel wait any longer as he stood up and turned around to face the rest of the party.
"You guys go ahead, we'll go for a walk. Zes, please escort them."
"Understood Sebastian." Zes gave a large nod which almost looked like a bow.
Outside the pub, Mel was already walking a bit ahead when Sebastian came out of the pub. He ran to chase her in the cold winter night, with the snow crunching under their feet to accompany the silence between them. They walked for a while before Mel started to talk.
"Earlier when you were in rage I seriously thought that we would have to hurt you before you would come back to your senses."
"Ah, that time. I'm sorry Mel, I didn't know what was happening until after everyone came. Thank you though for bringing me back to my senses and reminding me about the deep breathing technique."
"That's what also bothered me. The rest of us arrived at the same time. Aima and Zes were supposed to be with you but they got delayed and in the end, Jin and I managed to catch up with them."
"If you're wondering why then Aima and especially Zes would have told you -"
"A well-prepared lie." Mel continued to walk in front of the dumbstruck Sebastian who couldn't reply. Instead, he allowed Mel to simmer in her frustration. Even without circulating his mana, Sebastian felt warm and uncomfortable under his winter clothes.
"Listen, Mel. I'm sorry you saw that side of me but I simply started with the interrogation earlier than expected. If he didn't provoke me to such ends then it would have been different."
"Does that explain the wounds he suffered then? He was badly beaten and his nails ripped out. He even smelled like piss when we found arrived. I overlooked the thugs you previously interrogated and killed because they came after Aima and I didn't know what happened to them, which might have been better. Now that I have personally seen your methods - I just can't stomach it. You of all people Sebastian should know that this is wrong."
She stopped walking and took a couple of deep breaths. With each deep breath, her shoulders started to quiver. Shaking her head as if to throw the unnecessary thoughts away, she resumed her pace with Sebastian following her.
"I get agitated when I hear something about Nate. I know that he came from Earth like me and I know that he also has another lifetime of knowledge. Seeing him use this knowledge to harm this world and kill Becky is too much. From his journals, we may have even crossed paths before when I was helping in war-torn cities back in Earth. He may have funded those wars with his weapons."
"Don't you think I know that? I personally saw your state when Becky died. How you lost the will to live and blamed yourself for everything. I wanted to support you through those dark times because you were also there for me when I suffered from my mental trauma. Seeing you lose yourself time and time again when Nate is involved, what will happen in the future? Will you simply throw everything away for vengeance? Are we expendable in that regard?"
Silence followed the two adventurers as they continued their meandering walk. They didn't have any destination or design. They simply wanted to alleviate their frustrations from recent events. As if to reflect the mood between them, the snow had stopped falling that day. In a world with stable seasons and months, it signified that spring was approaching just around the corner.