The days of travel were behind them and they finally had the time to rest and plan, but restlessness gnawed at Seraphina's mind. She had arrived in Vesta, a bustling city filled with life and opportunities, but the sense of freedom was fleeting.
The inn was comfortable enough, yet it felt stifling, like a gilded cage with eyes all around them. Edwin and Samuel were resting upstairs, trusting her to do the same, but her thoughts wouldn't let her sleep, she had other plans for the night.
With her hood pulled low, Seraphina slipped out of the inn quietly, trying her best to avoid the eyes of anyone who could follow her. The streets of the main district were lively even at night, lanterns casting a warm glow over merchants finishing late deals and adventurers sharing tales of their exploits.
The air buzzed with activity, but Seraphina avoided the main roads, she blended in with alleyways and took paths less traveled to make her way into the other parts of Vesta.
She ventured to the underbelly of the Vesta, the lively hum of the center fading into a still quiet, with only the rustling of the homeless and wary moving about in the streets.
The slums of Vesta were a stark contrast to the thriving heart of the city, it was as though this part of Vesta was a world apart, deliberately ignored by its wealthier neighbors.
The buildings here were little more than shacks, cobbled together from scraps of wood and metal, their walls leaning precariously as if ready to collapse.
The streets were narrow, littered with garbage, and the stench of rot hung in the air— filth was clear, the bodies of people littering the streets, some of them couldn't even be called alive.
Figures moved in the shadows— vagrants, orphans, and the desperate remnants of society with nowhere else to go, crime seemed to fester openly here. Everyone fighting to survive.
Men whispered harshly in darkened alleys, exchanging goods that no doubt were not legal. A woman with hollow eyes clutched a bony child to her chest as she hurried past, avoiding Seraphina's gaze.
This was a place where survival trumped morality and where friendship wasn't cheap.
For a moment, Seraphina paused, taking in the desolation of the area, she wondered how something so different could exist in the shadows of a prosperous city.
Her violet eyes scanned the broken streets, and she could feel the despair and desperation that each of the people lived with, she even felt a sense of pity for them.
But, this was the perfect place to begin her plans— if she was going to build a network, she needed people who had nothing to lose— those who would cling to her for salvation, for purpose.
She walked further into the slums, she made sure to avoid getting too close to anyone, avoiding crowds of places that could be dangerous; she even ignored the people holding out their hands, begging for scraps from her.
The deeper she went, the more apparent it became that the slums operated with their own harsh rules. Small groups huddled around makeshift fires, their conversations hushed, children darted through the streets, their faces grimy but their eyes sharp, watching everything.
As she rounded a corner, the muffled sounds of shouting reached her ears and drew her attention. Almost instinctively, Seraphina pressed herself into the shadows, her hand reaching out and resting on the hilt of her blade.
Peering ahead, she saw a small group of men gathered in a filthy courtyard of scraps and junk; they seemed to be two different groups that were arguing with each other. Their argument seemed to be escalating quickly, as she could tell something might happen.
As she observed them, she spotted another small group of men approaching from the other side, they moved with a sense of security she hadn't seen in the slums before. They carried an air of, power and authority, their armor pieced together but functional, and their weapons clearly well-made.
Having been training for quite some time now, Seraphina could tell almost instantly, they were Apprentice knights.
Seraphina's heart quickened as she watched them take their positions and surround the arguing men, the way they carried themselves was different— disciplined.
They weren't true knights, but they were leagues above common thugs.
The first group shouted threats, but the apprentices didn't flinch, they didn't even seem to care. Instead, their leader, a man with a cruel smirk and a jagged scar across his cheek, raised his hand, signaling his men forward.
The fight began almost immediately.
The courtyard erupted into a chaotic mess almost instantly as the fight began.
The apprentice knights moved with an accuracy she expected from such people, their strikes were deliberate and efficient, but she could tell they lacked raw power.
One of the opposing gang members charged, swinging a rusted blade wildly, but the apprentice sidestepped easily, bringing his weapon down with brutal force. Blood sprayed across the cobblestones as the man collapsed, his weapon clattering uselessly to the ground.
Seraphina stayed hidden, her breath steady as she watched the skirmish unfold.
She had no intention of intervening— this wasn't her fight and she had no plans of making it hers. Instead, she observed, taking mental notes of their strengths, capabilities, and most importantly their faces, so that she could use this later on.
The apprentices weren't fully trained and it was clear the knight method they were using wasn't very good, but they were organized, using their skill and equipment to dismantle the disorganized thugs.
It was clear this gang wasn't just some back-alley group; their leader's commands hinted at a larger force backing them and she was curious about that.
'Who runs the slums?'
As the last of the opposing gang fled, the apprentices sheathed their weapons, laughing like hooligans at the fleeing men, their leader surveying the scene with satisfaction.
He barked orders to his men, who began looting the bodies and collecting anything of value, as well as dragging away the corpses to do, who knows what, to them.
Seraphina took this chance and slipped away before they could notice her presence, she had seen enough to know that the slums were far more complex than she had anticipated.
By the time she returned to the Amber Hearth, the streets of the main district were quieter, most of the merchants having packed up for the night.
The inn's common room was still lit, the faint sounds of laughter and music drifting in the air, but she paid no mind to that and simply moved passed them.
Seraphina climbed the stairs to their room, her footsteps light to avoid waking anyone, but as soon as she entered she spotted Edwin. The man looked up from where he sat by the window, his silver eyes narrowing slightly.
"Out for some air?"
He asked, his tone neutral.
Seraphina nodded, lowering her hood and taking it off.
"Just needed to clear my head."
Edwin studied her for a moment before leaning back in his chair, he didn't press further, but his gaze lingered, as if he could sense there was more to her outing than she was letting on.
Samuel stirred from his bed, the conversation waking the man up it seemed, rubbing his eyes as he sat up and spoke in a tired tone.
"Find anything interesting?"
"Just the city."
Samuel grunted and lay back down, seemingly satisfied with her answer. Seraphina moved to her own bed, her mind still buzzing with what she had seen.
The apprentice knights had been a revelation, she never expected the slums to have such people, they were as strong as her, if not stronger. Whoever controlled them was a power worth noting— whether as a potential ally or an obstacle to overcome.
As she lay down, staring at the wooden ceiling above.
'I need to start training more, I should try and become a Knight soon.'
She needed more power for her plans, and becoming an official knight was the only way; so with that thought in mind, she drifted off to sleep.