- AMAGHIEL -
Among the group of women were three young women and two older women who were heavily armored from neck to toe.
One of the two older women had a longsword strapped to her belt and a large shield was holstered on her back, while the other woman fashioned a pair of battle axes on the belt around her with a similar shield adorning her back.
The young women were styled with much lighter armor, Darrel noted one of the younger women had a longbow placed on the table in front of her, she appeared to be the long ranged expert, however, she too carried a shield on her back, and had a pair of daggers strapped around her thighs.
The last young woman in the group wore a thick dark leather coat that descended to her legs, she was positioned in the immediate center of her party, and her extravagant staff stood beside her at the table as though declaring her authority.
'Shieldmaidens?'
Darrel wondered.
"I have never seen this one around before Wienfrei?" One of the older women stated.
Darrel stood in their gaze as the innkeeper made his way toward the shieldmaiden in the coat.
"You need the help and he needs the coin, right?" Wienfrei tried to negotiate.
"Look at him."
Darrel watched as the shieldmaidens sized him up, he could tell none of them took him seriously, especially with the worn-out and cheap garbs he had on. Darrel had been through too much to pass up an opportunity to earn some coin, perhaps even some reputation to his name.
"I don't need too much from the reward, just enough to get me out of this city." Darrel exclaimed.
The shieldmaiden garbed in armor snorted.
"You are new in the city right? Do you even know what kind of job this is kid?" The shieldmaiden rose from her chair and approached Darrel. "And why would you want to leave Amaghiel?"
Darrel stood firm and did not let her intimidate him.
"That's for me to know." Darrel replied defiantly.
"Hahaha well said." The shieldmaiden bellowed with laughter. "But if you won't talk, I am sure your steel has something better to say."
Wienfrei rolled his eyes and exhaled with a glum look on his face, the other maidens appeared to be in agreement with their peer. Leaving through the back door of the inn, Darrel followed the maidens to a reclusive area within the city.
The area appeared to be a dumping site for the coin factory's waste products, mounds of ash and various metallic fragments littered the area causing the grass and flowers to wither.
"Alright kid, time to test your metal."
Amused by the pun in her words, Darrel unintentionally snorted. Hearing this, the shieldmaiden leered at Darrel with an aggressive look, while the younger maiden carrying the bow chuckled as she approached him.
"Get on with it."
The older shieldmaiden beckoned them to begin their sparring match.
"I thought I'd be fighting you ma'am." Darrel stated suddenly as the young shieldmaiden drew her bow.
The older shieldmaiden waved Darrel's words away without saying a word. Darrel proceeded to draw his shortsword and held it in his hand with a reverse grip, the young shieldmaiden looked surprised by Darrel's stance.
"What is your combat profession Dar-rel?"
"Huh, me?"
The question came as a surprise to Darrel, he already knew that this world had various professions and each one possessed a unique combat stance. Greyan was a crusader, a tough brawler meant for the front lines, Luca was a ranger, and Orimik a scout, both were capable of melee combat but preferred to keep their distance from their foes.
Darrel on the other hand had no idea what profession he belonged in. Even after training for three days and three nights to figure out his strengths and weakness, Darrel had yet to choose the combat attributes that he desired.
While lost in thought as he mused on the question, the young shield maiden drew her bow and let an arrow loose.
However, before the arrow could hit its target, Darrel cut it from the air and the pieces fell to the ground at his feet. With his sword pointed downward, Darrel loosened his index and middle fingers from his grip, and from between them a bolt of shock magic shot out.
Too stunned to move, the shieldmaiden raised her arms in a defensive manner to withstand the attack, but before it could reach her, a barrier appeared in front of the young maiden to protect her.
"A spell sword?"
"Not necessarily." Darrel responded. "I am a Magi-Blade."
"A magi-blade? So you are versed with magics and keen with your... blade?"
Darrel nodded.
"Looks like we have our fifth member." The leader of the shieldmaidens finally stated. "Meet us back at the inn's basement at the wolf's hour."
"Midnight?"
The shieldmaiden nodded before they made their exit.
Later that night, Darrel made his way back to the inn using the dark corners to conceal his movements in case he was being followed. Weinfrei quietly greeted him at the door before letting him in.
The shieldmaidens had already gathered in the basement, Darrel noted that there was more equipment in the room than when he had come earlier. When the maidens saw him descend the stairs, they all gathered around the table to start the planning.
"This is Sognie, she's our mother bear, next to her is Ceriek the most fierce among us." The young shieldmaiden stated as she introduced the group to Darrel. "Emeriel is my name, I keep watch from heights above, and finally our esteemed leader, Larea. Master of-"
"That's good enough Emeriel, now won't you enlighten Dar-rel on the task at hand."
Larea interrupted her young colleague and kept her from giving away what was more than necessary, Darrel understood their leaders' caution he too would not be eager to trust a stranger so hastily.
"Our job tonight is to rob the coin factory."
Darrel's jaw dropped and for a moment he had no words to say as Emeriel briefed him on the plan and assigned him the task he was to handle throughout the job.
Larea would infiltrate the factory from a different angle than the rest of them, Ceriek would stealthily make her way in and meet Larea inside the factory. The two would then proceed to extract the necessary loot and make their way out of the factory without triggering any alarms.
This was a near-impossible task, however, Sognie would perpetually cause distractions outside the factory thereby drawing more and more of the guards toward her as the two withdrew.
Initially, Emeriel was to support Sognie from the building tops guiding Sognie through the maze-like streets of Amaghiel, but it would prove to be difficult if she too was spotted and pursued. That's where Darrel came into the picture, he would act as Sognie's backup in case she ended up trading blows with the guards, Darrel would have to step up and assist her in fighting them off.
Once the discussions were completed the shieldmaidens set off for their positions, Ceriek dashed through the streets using the shadows as cover. Darrel and Emeriel took to the rooftops and observed Sognie as she openly made her way toward the factory through the streets.
Larea on the other hand had told the others to go on ahead, she needed a few minutes to prepare before she could make begin her infiltration.
Using the rooftops Darrel and Emeriel quietly made their way to the coin factory, while keeping an eye out for Sognie, they made sure to warn her if any patrols were heading her way, Sognie was not supposed to encounter any guards until she got to the factory's entrance.
Ceriek had already arrived and she was standing on a building opposite the one Darrel and Emeriel stood on. She was waiting for Sognie to create the necessary distraction for her to sneak into the factory.
"Could have been faster if she took the high ground too." Darrel suggested.
"She can't."
Emeriel responded without explaining further, Darrel assumed it was a weakness the large shieldmaiden possessed.
At the entrance, two guards stood with stern faces gazing into the night. Regardless of their vigilance, Darrel could see the bags under their eyes, and that was the evidence Emeriel needed to begin their plan.
Emeriel spawn a pair of pebbles in her hand and flung them near the guards at the factory's entrance, one of the guards noticed the disturbance and immediately investigated the noise.
"Out of my way you!" Sognie suddenly bumped into the guard and sent him tumbling to the ground.
"Hey! Who are you?!"
Seeing this the other guard rushed toward the commotion and in turn, Ceriek leaped over to the next building and quietly made her way through the unguarded entrance.
[Whistle]
While arguing with the guards Sognie heard the light whistle and proceeded to de-escalate the argument.
"You are not supposed to be here miss."
"Out of my way, I am going home!" Sognie exclaimed crazily. "My kids are waiting for me!"
"Okay, but this isn't your home."
Sognie burped in the guard's faces and that's when they realized she had taken some alcohol.
"Uugh she must be drunk, I hate dealing with drunks."
"We can't leave the entrance unguarded, but someone has to escort her to wherever she came from."
"Alright, call Jerl to cover the rest of my shift. I will handle... this."
Sognie staggered in her movements as the one guard tried to place her arm over his shoulder, Darrel and Emeriel watched as Sognie displayed a masterful act of deceit to buy Ceriek time to find an entryway into the factory.