It feels.... strange, you know? To be responsible for one's death. To put and end to a person's life means that you are cutting every connection it held, destroying every dream and aspiration, leaving behind those he held near, and some who might never know how or when the death occurred. It also meant you took away the chance for those who hadn't the chance to meet him yet, to do so in the future.
How can I describe it?
It is a feeling one can get used to.
That's why it is so strange. Dangerous.
That's why you should you should always keep in mind when you bare your blade, you are betting your own life on this dance. And the winner has the responsibility to live off the years left behind.
We didn't even bother to give those two a proper burrial, but we couldn't let them merely rot in open air, so we took everything they had and burned the corpses in a bonfire, maybe this was already respectful enough for such people. Nonetheless, the smell of charred fat and muscle was unfortunately similar to that of barbecue before turning into that of coal and carbon monoxide.
Fortunately or unfortunately, they didn't had much with them. A few coins, some strange vials with coloured liquids... nothing too noteworthy.
Or so I had thought, before Jasmine called out on us.
"Hey guys, take a look at this"
We approached each other while walking back to the trail. The Sun already shone upon us and we couldn't afford to stay immobile and serve as a prey.
As my eyes found way to her hands, I could see a bamboo piece, about the size of a finger. Nothing extraordinary.
My confused stare probably said much more than my mouth ever could.
She hit one end of the bamboo with her fingers, soft taps that emmited a muffled sound. The bamboo had something inside.
"I see... So, how do we open it?"
Her eyes lit with curiosity as she fiddled around the piece, tapping, grapping and feeling every nook and cranny "I have no idea, maybe there is some secret mechanism, or it requires a spell...."
Lucas slowly reached for the piece while she talked in high spirits, taking the object upon his hands "Or maybe you just don't need to overcomplicate simple things"
With a quick twist of his hand, he took out a cap out of the bottle shaped bamboo, revealing a roll of parchment inside.
Now there was no way to wipe that smug face off "See?"
He gladly showed us his achievement before turning the piece upside down, recovering the parchment inside
"Now, let's see what kind of snake is hidden under the rock?"
To outsiders, we must have been quite a laughing scene, a beautiful lady with two more-than-beaten-up boys, myself carrying my cart. Maybe she would be mistaken by a noble lady or the daughter of a merchant with poor servants. I should definitely take note of this, might work as a disguise in the future.
"So, smart boy, what does it say?"
I stumbled upon him, as he stood there, astonished with an open mouth, hands almost clutching hard enough to tear the paper, in a mix of rage and fear.
He passed on the letter to us with trembling hands
"You better read it by yourselves"
I looked to Jasmine and took the parchment in my hands.
I finally understood what happened.
It was no mere letter, it was a contract of service, hiring mercenaries to kill and loot any merchant loaded with war-related goods, be it weapons, potions, pelts and armor, whatever could be deemed remotely useful.
As if it wasn't severe enough, there was a friendly tone used by the writer, Mr. D and the receiver, Gustav, probably the red swordsman, as if they were more than used to do shady schemes such as this one.
The letter revealed that Mr.D was hoarding those objects in order to raise their value before reselling them in controlled quantities, thus achieving monopoly of the market.
However, if there is a hoard, there must a place to keep it. The letter described how to "deliver the requested goods" with inside help, a guard, the grumpiest one, by asking him where to buy flowers for a girl, and he would then proceed to direct the mercenary to the drop point.
The depth the roots of corruption have achieved left me astounded. How could the very guards that swore to protect the empire and it's people agree to such a monstrous attitude?
At least, I now know that the ambush wasn't something strictly personal, yet I can't be at ease knowing that there might already be casualties among the merchants and artisans. I pray for the safety of my parents.
Anxiety was building up inside me. "What will we do with this? Take to the guards?"
Jasmine assented with a scared remark in her eyes "It would be the best to allow them to deal with such dangerous schemes, we are still too weak"
"Have you gone crazy?" Lucas raised his voice in indignation "Can't you see that there is at least one guard involved? But there is nothing saying that there aren't more!"
He was right. I knew he was right, but merely accepting this as truth would be too much of a blow to take.
Lucas went on with his arguing "Delivering this to the guards would be the same as asking to get killed"
"What should we do then? Face them by ourselves?"
He looked up with eagerness burning bright in his eyes
"You know I am kidding, right? There is no way we can face those guys with just the three of us! We don't even know how many they are!"
My heart laid divided, I too felt eager for the adventure but this risk was simply unbearable to take.
"Lucas, this is madness!"Jasmine had to intervene, to try and put some rationality back into her beloved's mind
"Madness? No, this is justice for our people!"
Such a delusion will surely be his downfall someday.
"Well, let's focus on reaching the city before the lights die out again"
And so, we once again threaded our way up, back into the main road. Yet it felt... odd.
The usual movement was way weaker than before, less guards than the routine, even considering the estate of alert, or rather, even worse since we were under such alert, there should be more patrols.
The movement over the consolidate roads was thin, with small groups and caravans dotting the scenario all the way down the mountain, leaving huge gaps of empty space between. Such a scene was a desolation to those like me, who were used to climb the ways amidst bustling crowds and patrolling guards.
I could notice that the caravans were indeed low in cargo, a few black eyes and bruised limbs revealed that we weren't the only to be harassed. I wonder, however, how many ended up losing their lives as consequence for such cruel plan.
We arrived at the front gates before we could notice, partly due to the lack of the usual bustling noises that used to fill the wide streets of the Thousand Swords City, the other motive was our anxiety regarding how to deal with the letter that still rested on our hands.
"STAND IN LINE FOR INSPECTION" Thundered the voice of one of the guards that guarded the gates
There were already plenty of people in front of us, some with a remarkable dissatisfied face, others with obvious joy and anticipation. It was strange, nonetheless, to see such active inspection right at the gates of the city, I would guess that the attacks at the road and the conscription order played a major role in this.
It didn't take long for my theory to be proven correct, many of the incommings were asking the guards for help, reporting assaults and raids, meanwhile some precocious adventurers were already enlisting themselves to go with the guards and "purge the evil out of our lands".
What was most astounding was the fact that the reports and bursts of patriotism kept repeating, some way too exaggerate, others way too weak to even be put into consideration, some spoke of a tall woman with a spear, others of a shield bearer, a red bearded swordsman... each encounter had a different antagonist and a different approach, some had a direct challenge, some survived fleeing from an assassination attempt, others were cleanly robbed.
The evening lights already grew shy by the time we finally managed to enter the city of marble, after a delay that was very short after we explained we were answering the call of conscription and Jasmine said my cart were our travel supplies, thus avoiding to draw more attention upon us.
We parted ways at the entrance, Lucas still had some fighting spirit in him that compelled him to investigate while I still had some goods in me to deliver, and few time to spare.
My cart made its way in the wide marbled road, while I did my best to avoid prying eyes and somehow avoid the feeling that I was being followed by something that wasn't the forbidden fruits of the red light houses.
Thankfully, at each point that I made a deliver, a few pieces of leather here, some herbs there, spices and fruits, the presence of the followers would thin more and more, maybe under the impression that those miscellaneous goods were everything I had.
"You know they are looking for you right? Why not form an ambush?"
Darkness seemed extremely bored this time around
I didn't change my pace nor my tone, the veil of the night was already growing heavy and soon I would need to find a place to rest if I couldn't deliver those weapons to the shoppers in time.
"I am tired and still far away from a breakthrough because a certain moron keeps draining my meridian. There is no way for me to deal with a group alone"
Sadly, even my most honest efforts of cultivating were wasted on Darkness, as his black hole drained more and more, to a point where I have to strain myself merely to keep up at the same stage.
I can't even wonder how hard it will be for me to advance into a superior one-star, imagine turning into a lower two-stars cultivator.
I feel a smooth touch upon my shoulders, a small hand pulled me into a back of a dark alley by surprise, and even before I could react, a familiar face showed up
"What are you doing, my boy, do want to get yourself killed?"
"MADAM-
A solid fist in my guts was enough to make me quiet
"Hush your voice, boy. Come with me, you have already atracted too much attention"
I assentend with my head, still inhaling deeply with my nose while covering my mouth.
As we walked through the moldy alley, I had retracted my cart to the size of a wheelbarrow, although still heavy, it was much easier to carry through the tight spaces.
I tried to inquire her with my eyes, but she simply gestured for me to be as quiet as possible. The tension built up higher. Things were changing too fast for me to adapt. I went from a delivery service to being hunted in a fraction of second.
After goddess-knows how much time creeping through dark corners I could never have imagined were a part of the city, we arrived in front of a small shack, with a lush green garden filled with herbs and fruity scent, completely displaced from the marbled city surrounding it, almost as if a piece do the forest was transported all the way in.
It kind of made me think of home.
Madam Chai pulled me in and quickly closed the door behind, locking every noticeable entrance. The wooden interior had a rustic feeling, with smooth wood, herbs and leaves hanging from pots and ropes tied to the ceiling and columns. A great large table filled with glass flasks and pots, a burner and some books that seemed older than me, while others were obviously being written right away.
While still astonished with my surroundings, a slap flew over my face
"Are you trying to get yourself killed, boy? Didn't you know that thugs have been running rampart over merchants? The guards can barely keep them all in check!"
I could see the worry, deeply carved in her eyes and frown
Her hands ran all over my face
"And you are all covered in cuts and bruises, did you fight a bear when climbing the mountain?"
"Well.... I.... Actually, you know? Had to face some..... bandits?" I tried to find the best wording, but there was no use trying to hide things from her
She looked at me with desolate eyes, and I could almost hear the sound of something shattering inside her, but such a moment lasted no more than a fraction of a second before she regained her usual composure of superiority and austere airs
"I... see. I am surprised. Even more so that you decided to plainly carry everything in such open paths, you looked like bait. Probably that's why they took so long to attack you"
I don't know if I am supposed to take this as a praise, but I will do so.
"...I am actually impressed that your airhead saved you this time"
Ok, that definitely wasn't a praise
"Anyway, Madam Chai, why did you drag me here? Where are we?"
I looked around once again. There was something oddly familiar with this place...
"Is that how you thank me for saving your life?"
...
She stared at me, as one who expects proper payment
Alright, time to concede.
I bowed deeply
"Thank you for finding time to save this humble one, Madam Chai"
A broad smile shone once again in her face as a look of contempt drew itself
"Now, that's more like a polite kid. Now pick yourself up, we don't have time to lose"
"What do you mean, Madam Chai?"
"Look around kid, this is my workshop. I heard you were going to enlist yourself, so I took upon my kind heart to teach you a few tricks"
A pure excitement started to brew inside me, as one of my dreams was turning into reality right in front of me.
I might have to face a demon inside my heart, assassins in the street, and the heavens above, but screw them all! Things are finally working out for me!