I opened my eyes and scanned the unfamiliar room that I appeared to be lying in. As I tried to prop myself up, sharp pains circulated my body. I turned my head to look at the door oddly. It looked oddly familiar, similar to the crown prince's chamber door. A thought rushed into my head.
Am I in His Highness's chambers? Then, I should leave quickly.
Once again, I summoned all of my strength to move my wounded body, but I failed again. Why does my body refuse to respond to my will?
[Edmond]: Patients should obediently lie down.
I turned my head towards the window and saw him sitting on the ledge of an open window. He was sipping from a glass of wine.
[Alex]: Your Highness, how did I get here?
[Edmond]: James brought you here. Fighting him like that takes bravery, but you demonstrated impressive skills. I haven't seen him wounded like that in a while.
[Alex]: I failed in the end. If I was not able to defeat him, who knows what unconquerable threat may lie in the future?
[Edmond]: Who said that you'll fight alone when that time comes? You should focus on training more so that you will not lose again.
[Alex]: Your Highness, I must leave. The contact will be waiting.
He then reached inside his pocket and threw a small, leather sack at me. Upon opening it, I saw green leaves. I stared at him with a blank expression.
[Edmond]: Take that with water. It will temporarily numb your pain and help you regain your ability to walk.
[Alex]: Thank you, Your Highness.
Next to me, a cup of water sat on the bedside table. I stuffed a pinch-full of the leaves in my mouth, then sipped a mouthful of the water. A sour taste quickly
filled my mouth. With my utmost willpower, I stopped myself from spitting the leaves out and vomiting.
[Edmond]: Hahaha, I forgot to mention that they are very sour, but you handled them like a champion.
I looked at the young prince, who was snickering, but then he turned serious all of a sudden.
[Edmond]: Make sure that the female mercenary is capable. Tell her that, if she fails to protect her, then she'd better die with her.
Behind those words, I could sense malicious intent. I never imagined that a noble could be capable of emitting such an aura. I'd better not upset him, or I would have lost my life, too.
After letting the medicine take effect, I left the room and returned to the knights' quarters with some bandages. I washed my wounds, then applied some medicine to them. As I treated my wounds, I stared at my scarred body, wondering if any girl would ever like a body as marred as mine. Once done, I napped for a couple of hours, then got up and prepared to go out.
Outside, I made my way to my rendezvous at the old bar inside the city. As I walked, I admired the sky, which was filled with the dark orange of sunset. Before long, darkness engulfed the whole city. I made some quick turns around sharp corners to make sure that no one is following me. Finally, once again, the old bar emerged in front of me. As usual, the street was quiet, until a person suddenly flew out of the window. I stared at the unconscious person on the ground, then casually entered the bar. Inside, the bartender stood in his usual position, serving drinks. As usual, the customers sat at their usual tables, playing their tabletop games. As before, I sat at the counter. Like last time, a figure sat there, waiting for me.
[Mercenary]: You took long enough. Please, take her with you, or else she might destroy the bar.
[Alex]: Where is she?
[Mercenary]: At the table in the back.
* * * * *
The fact that my client kept me waiting annoyed me. This client must've been either brave or foolish. Either way, I planned to charge him extra for this bullshit. After waiting for three hours, I saw a figure approach a man sitting at the bar, then finally walk towards my table. His scarlet eyes shone through the darkness. Soon, the tall figure stood before me. With his silver hair and red eyes, he turned out to be quite handsome.
[Alex]: Are you the contact?
[Erza]: That depends on who is asking.
[Alex]: Your new employer. Will that be enough for you?
[Erza]: That will do for now. So, what did you call me here for?
As he sat down on the opposite side of the table, he moved gingerly, as if he was injured from fighting ten royal knights. He stared down at the table, then requested for two drinks. When the drinks arrived after some wait, he slid one towards me. For a second, his smooth movement looked very cool, but then my mind snapped back.
[Erza]: Get straight to the point. Each moment wasted is another life lost or saved.
[Alex]: I will pay you any amount of money. For that, you have only one mission.
[Erza]: Interesting. Is that mission to kill a king or a general?
He chuckled at my question, then proceeded.
[Alex]: I wish it was that easy, but the person whom I work for wants you to protect a noblewoman.
[Erza]: What is so hard about protecting a fragile noble?
Fear painted his face, as if he remembered a bad dream. He then raised his head and looked at me.
[Alex]: If you accept this job, it could possibly be your last job.
[Erza]: What do you mean?
[Alex]: My employer said that, if you failed to protect her, then you should be lying next to her.
[Erza]: Is that a threat? Did you know that I am capable of killing your employer tomorrow?
[Alex]: You won't even be able to pass his butler.
[Erza]: You're wasting my time.
[Alex]: Do you accept or decline?
[Erza]: I cannot reject easy money, so I'll accept this mission for now. However, if you try to pull any tricks on me, I will kill you and your employer.
He laughed at my declaration, then stood up.
[Alex]: You have no idea how long I have waited to die. Now that we've completed our negotiations, I shall inform our employer. Even so, someone might be tempted to test your strength, so watch yourself. My name is Alex, by the way.
[Ezra]: Call me Ezra.
He walked three steps forward, stood still, then suddenly collapsed. I quickly stood up and approached his unconscious body. A quick check revealed bloodstains all over his clothes. I found that he wore unique clothing, but the hooded jacket covered his outfit. Apparently, he didn't bandage his wounds properly. Should I leave him like this? But if he doesn't notify the employer, my deal will be off. I also didn't know his employer's, nor the noblewoman's, identities. Maybe I should at least help him until the deal is finalized.
With the deal in mind, I carried his body - in the princess style of romance novels - through the dark allies. But, as I did so, I sensed someone's gaze watching us. Even as I did my best to shake him off, I still sensed the gaze following us. Shifting the body's weight to my right arm, I turned quickly and threw a knife in the direction I suspected.
[Erza]: Who are you?
[James]: What is with you people and throwing knives