Three years later, the laughing and cheering at a nearby bar doing little to hide the cloaked man, who sat at a table in the corner of the bar. He watched as drunken men walked past, laughing with mugs full of beer. He listened to a table with nearby drunks who talked about a battle.
"Y-Y'know, I-I witnessed the Spirit of Arogia, right in the middle of battle, with t-the cursed blades o-of Buh-Buh-Bellum," He said, with a hiccup. The other man shushed him, looking around.
"Are you crazy?! If anyone hears you, they will arrest you. You know he's wanted!" He said, taking a sip from a mug. The man laughed and looked at him.
"Oh yeah, l-like the S-Spirit of Arogia is listening right now," He said, laughing. The cloaked man stopped listening as he pulled up his sleeve, hiding his scars. He looked back at his mug when someone walked up to his table, pulling up a chair. He looked up to see a girl with a crimson cloak and eyes, her black hair partially covering her eyes. She held a metal staff with a red crystal on the top, it shorter than her. She looked at him with curiosity and a little bit of fear. He sighed through his nose and looked at his mug.
"Spirit of Arogia?" She whispered, looking around to see if anyone heard her. She looked back at him as he swirled his mug.
"You know, names are dangerous. Especially these parts, young lady," He said, taking a swig from his mug, She sighed through her nose and sat down, reaching into a satchel to pull out a old poster with an image of a man with two Kusari-Gamas wrapped around his wrists.
"I know who you are, Nick," She said, making his blood run cold. He smiled and pulled his hood off, reveling a scar across his chin.
"You know, your quite smart for a little lady," He said. She looked at him with a tiny smile as she held her hand out.
"Stella Fresca," She introduced. He chuckled and grabbed her hand, shaking it when he suddenly pulled her close, pressing a Kusari against her throat, making everyone in the bar go silent. He raised an eyebrow at her as she laughed, holding her hand out as a staff flew in her hand. She spun it, knocking the Kusari out of his hand as she pointed the staff at him, yelling a spell.
"Pulso!" She yelled and he was knocked backwards along with the table. He was pressed against the corner when he threw his Kusari at her, knocking her staff out of her hands and he charged her, tackling her, the cloak flying off of him to reveal his arms, chains burned into his flesh. He pressed the Kusaris against her throat, pinning her to the ground. One guy looked at him in shock as he yelled his name.
"Spirit of Arogia!" He yelled and everyone fled the bar, leaving Nick alone with Stella. She laughed as he released the pressure off of her throat, looking now at the empty bar.
"Great, now the guards will be here," He mumbled angrily. She stood up, coughing, as the staff flew to her hand. She looked at him when three guards walked in, shields in front and curved swords pointing at him.
"Spirit of Arogia, by the order of the Shadow King, you are hereby charged with murder and are to come with us for a fair trial," One of the warriors said. Nick rolled his eyes and pulled out his Kusaris.
"Yeah, so you can execute me like the rest of them?" He asked. The soldiers pressed forward when he swung the Kusaris, hooking around one of the warrior's shields, pulling as hard as he could, the shield flying out of the warrior's hand. He swung the shield and knocked the warrior out with his own shield. He then ducked as another warrior swung his sword, him hooking the warrior in the chest and swung him through the building, making a nice sized hole to the night. He was about to get struck from behind when Stella pointed her staff at the warrior.
"Saxum!" She yelled and the warrior turned to stone. He turned to look at her and she smiled, breathing heavily.
"You alright?" He asked and she nodded.
"Sorry, I usually don't use those powerful spells all the time," She said. He looked at her, frowning slightly.
"You're a priest?" He asked and she shook her head.
"Witch," She corrected.
"You know witches are kill on sight, right?" He asked and she nodded again. He rolled her eyes when he heard yelling down the street.
"Great. Now I have to get out of here," He said, grabbing his cloak when he looked at Stella, who was frowning at him. He sighed through his nose and grabbed her arm.
"Come on," He said, then he ran out of the bar and into the dark woods.