Valcroy stood silent for a moment. He didn't know what to say. Going out by themselves was dangerous. There were many variables that would end up spelling trouble for them, but before he could even get to the first one, he saw Erik opening the window, letting a gust of wind inside.
"Let's go."
After which he jumped down from it. Valcroy opened his mouth to say something before closing, not knowing what to say, he could only shut up and follow him, first he looked down and saw Erik waiting for him, leaving him no choice but to jump.
Thud*
Hitting the ground as he landed, his body was firm enough to absorb the impact, but it still was painful. He dusted himself off and followed Erik, who was walking near the outer wall. Valcroy followed and saw Erik easily scaling the wall, making him look at him in awe.
Before he could relish further, Erik held his hand out, Valcroy knew what to do. He moved back a little, ran toward the wall and, like running on a horizontal surface, he ran up a bit before jumping and grabbing Erik's hand. It was all done in one smooth motion, making one wonder whether they had done this before?
They jumped onto the other side as they could hear the footsteps of the guards nearing their location. Valcroy followed Erik with hurried steps, soon they were out of "danger" and after walking a little more, the scenery of houses changed, turning into a sea of people, walking from one door to another, some standing to the side of road, arguing with people, seems like it was over items the vendors were selling.
They were in the shopping district and crowd bustling, telling one that even if this was a dangerous land, life continued. Valcroy took this moment to check his pockets and found five silver coins in them.
The coins had a depiction of a mountain on one side and on the other side was a person whose visage were stern but had a regal feeling to it. He was the second most import ruler of the Ironhold Dominion, Emperor Kisma Blackstone, a ruler that was not of the royal lineage. The ruler who led the expansion of the Dominion and oversaw the Great war of the Highlands.
To pay him homage, The Dominion imprinted his depiction/image onto the silver coins.
Valcroy looked at the 5 silver coins in his hand and heaved a breath. This was his allowance for the trip and his time at Iron'Heits. He put them back in his pocket, his hand clenching them while he looked around.
Erik was walking, his pace slow as he looked around, searching for something? His expression was stoic, like someone froze his face so that he couldn't display any other emotion.
Valcroy, oblivious to this, stopped before a vendor; whose stall was by the roadside. He looked at a pair of necklaces, one small and one big, with a small teardrop shaped gem at the end of each. The chain seemed to be made of silver. It held the gem with a pair of hands, showcasing the intricate words of the maker.
Valcroy picked the delicate pair of necklaces, admiring the intricate designs of silver filigree. "How much for these?" he asked the vendor, a grizzled man with a shrewd look in his eye.
His words made Erik stop. He turned around and found Valcroy inquiring the vendor about the necklaces. His indifferent expression made Valcroy answer, as he knew he would soon ask, "For mother and sister."
Erik nodded, not bothering him anymore, he may seem emotionless from his frozen face but he was not heartless.
"Oh, young man, you have sharp eyes," the vendor replied with a smile, eyes shrewd, his voice sharp from years of market calls. "These are finely crafted pieces, straight from the forges of DeepForge. A rare find, indeed. I'd normally let them go for 12 silver coins, but for you, I'll make it 10."
Valcroy's heart sank a little. He only had 5 silver coins in his pouch. "10 silver coins? That's a bit too high, don't you think? I saw a similar set down along the way for half that price," he said, trying to sound confident.
The vendor chuckled, shaking his head. "Ah, but they wouldn't be as fine as these, I assure you. This is the real deal, young man. The other vendors sell cheap imitations. You wouldn't want to give your mother and sister anything less, would you?" He picked that up when he heard him telling Erik who they were for.
Valcroy frowned thoughtfully, as if considering the vendor's words. "I do, but 10 silver coins are more than I can afford. How about 4? That's all I have on me."
The vendor rubbed his chin, pretending to think it over. "Four is far too low, young man. I'd be losing money at that price. But I like you, and I can see these mean something to you. I'll lower it to 8, but that's my last offer."
Valcroy bit his lip, knowing he had to push harder. "You said it yourself. This would mean a lot to my family. But all I have are 4 silver coins. If you could let them go for that, I'll spread the word about your shop. It'll bring you more customers."
The vendor squinted at him, weighing the sincerity in his eyes. After a long pause, he sighed. "Alright, lad. You drive a hard bargain. Four silver coins, it is. But remember to tell everyone you know about my stall."
Valcroy grinned, handing over the coins. "You've got my word. Thank you."
The vendor nodded, handing over the necklaces with a small smile. "Take care of them, lad. They'll bring joy to your loved ones."
Valcroy tucked the necklaces safely away, feeling a sense of accomplishment as he walked away with a lighter pouch but a warm heart, only if he knew the vendor was snickering in his heart for selling a 50 bronze per-piece necklace for a price of 2 silver-per piece, he would've died of embarrassment.
Erik said nothing during this entire conversation, but in his heart, he reminded himself to never let Valcroy buy anything for him or himself.
After this brief pause, they continued their tour. Erik was walking in front, still searching for something, while Valcroy was wondering if he should send them by main or use the last silver coin and send it via express delivery. He opted to do none of the above, he'll give these to them when he returns home.
Expecting a smile from them was more than enough for him, and he very much wanted to be there to see it. Just when everything was going well and in peace.
Tremble*
The ground trembled, bringing Valcroy out of his dreamland, he staggered almost falling to the ground, but not even a second passed and they heard.
Booooom* Boom* ….
A series of explosions that rocked the entire city.
Ahhh* Waahh*
Blasts were occurring all over the city, engulfing everything in flames like it was the only right thing to do. Everyone ran around, screaming and yelling, like headless chickens.
Soon the clouds of dust, like a tornado, swept the shopping district, engulfing everyone in them. Valcroy clung to a pole next to him, as the shockwave passed through him, rattling his insides.
After the shockwave passed, everyone was either knocked out or laid on the ground, groaning in pain. The shockwave contained mana particles in them, enough to knock out a non-practitioner of the Ascendancy arts.
Cough* Cough*
Valcroy shook his head hard, getting rid of dizziness, and coughed out loud, while his mind tried to understand what was happening. Soon, he remembered…
"Young master."
His head moved out, panicking, but he forgot Erik was an intermediate realm practitioner, an entire realm above him. Who could blame him? Everything was confusing. One moment he was admiring his haggling skills and the next moment, he held on for his dear life.
Soon he found Erik, who was standing strong, like an immovable rock, his sight looking at a far distance sight, one of the epicenters, their house.
Valcroy turned back, following Erik's gaze, and found something that made his eyes open wide, filled with shock.
Erik didn't wait for him to sink into the feeling and ran. Valcroy, suppressing the foreboding feeling, hurriedly followed and after a while, they arrived at their residency. Soldiers running around, trying to put out the fire, while some knights jumping into the flames to rescue the workers.
"Alyssa!"
Valcroy remembered and ran toward the burning house, but didn't make it far before Erik grabbed his hand and asked, "What are you doing?"
Valcroy turned, looking at his stoic expression, not knowing what to expect from that frozen face. He struggled to free himself, but alas, he wasn't strong enough.
"Let them do their job. You'll get in the way."
Erik's words calmed Valcroy, and he stopped struggling, standing by his side, but his hands were still jittery, he looked around anxiously, hoping to find Alyssa outside, but the blazing fire before him snuffed that hope out.
Alyssa was Erik's personal maid, who tended to his everyday needs, from preparing food to making sure about everything that was required in his daily life. Valcroy met her 2 years ago when he was appointed as a squire for Erik. She was nervous around him at first, but then soon she got used to him and became good friends.
Erik, while not showing on his face, had his hands clenched tightly, worried about her.
"Alyssa!"
Valcroy cried out loud when he saw a knight carrying her out. Valcroy dashed to her side. He took her from the guard and raced away from the burning house.
"Someone help!"
He shouted out loud as he put her down, gently. She was unconscious. Erik looked toward a mage, who, upon getting the cue, ran toward her and checked her.
Valcroy waited by the side, jittery. He looked at her face, one side burned and it followed down, clearly the flames were a lot worse to her. He had no such thoughts in his mind, as her being alive was the first thing he cared about.
Cough* Cough*
Alyssa coughed, letting out a black puff of smoke that she inhaled.
Aww*
She cried out in pain; the burns causing too much pain. Fortunately, the mage was still here, and he soothed her pain and put her to sleep.
Erik called two guards and told them to send her to a good facility and tend to her, and he emphasized the word "Tend" more than anything.
Valcroy watched as they carried her away, his fists clenched, teeth gritting, eyes almost on the brink of tearing. His heart felt heavy and stuffy as Alyssa's condition kept appearing in his mind.
Erik didn't utter a word, but if one can read eyes, they should be able to tell that he was furious.
"Watch out!"
Argh*
Just as everyone felt that this was over, a shout and grunt filled with pain registered in their ears, making everyone turn toward the person who uttered it.
Valcroy saw where everyone was looking and realized that the owner of that shout and grunt was none other than himself. He had just pushed Erik away when he saw something flashing from the corners of his eyes, but it ended up hitting him.
He looked down, but before he could see, his eyesight started betraying him, turning everything blurry.
A knight next to him grabbed Valcroy, not letting him fall. Erik looked at the gaping hole in Valcroy's chest, his stoic expression nowhere in sight, dazed by this.
But soon after he came out of it, he was trained enough to know that now was not the time to think like that.
"The Fort is on fire."
He heard someone saying, making him turn his head around. Everywhere he looked, only flames greeted him.
"To the general's mansion."
Erik said to the knights and ran, and they followed.
"Make sure he doesn't fall or your head will fall with him."
"Eh?" Valcroy uttered, making Erik turn toward him, and he could see his eyes closing. He quickened his pace and barged directly into the mansion; the knight carrying Valcroy followed.
"Take cover."
Boom*
The guards outside the gate uttered as an explosion blasted a hole in the outer wall of the mansion. But Erik's focus was entirely on Valcroy, whose eyes were on the edge of darkness.
"Valcroy!"