By the time Eugene had stocked up on the supplies he believed was enough to last him through his journey across the desert, only one ring was still empty. He had packed a lot of food that did not easily degrade over time. Things that would last him for however long he had to wander in the desert.
"Young master, let me come with you!" The maid suddenly said as Eugene turned to leave.
"What? No, it's too dangerous to go with me. You will probably be better off on your own. Go and find some merchants that are leaving the city and travel with them. Become a merchant or something. I'm a wanted man now." Eugene instantly refused her and turned to go.
He creeped up to the door again and cracked it open to look into the hall. Finding it empty, he quickly dashed across the hall and pressed the obscure part of the statue to open the secret passage.
The maid was obviously scared, and as she stepped out of the kitchen to find her way out of the palace, the sound of a group of men suddenly came from the other end of the hall. Eugene took one look at her pitiful self and made up his mind.
"Come here!" He grabbed onto her arm and pulled her into the secret passage just before the statue moved back in place.
"Young master?" The maid exclaimed with shock.
"What's your name?" Eugene ignored her shock and asked her.
"I-it's May, Young master." The maid, May, replied with a bow of her head.
"Okay, May. Follow me for now. If those men had seen you, then your fate would not have been any better than if I had not saved you earlier." Eugene told her as he picked up the light crystal and began walking again. This time, his destination was the palace stable. There, he would get a ride that would take him away from the Blazing Sun City and to a different place.
'If Gustavo is able to win and suppress the traitors, then he will send people out to search for me. If not...' Eugene thought glumly.
With May behind him, the two of them quickly moved through the tunnels. The blond girl was constantly shaking and fidgeting, maybe out of fright, but Eugene did not pay any attention to her. He needed to get out quickly.
Eventually, they arrived at the secret door that led to the stable. However, from the sounds that they could hear from the other side, it was not empty.
Eugene studied the voices and what they were saying for a few moments before deducing that they were not soldiers of the Blazing Sun City.
'I will have to fight them if they discover me sneaking about.' He realized with a frown. The secret passage was obscure hidden, so it would not be seen when they emerged. However, if they were found before they could get to their ride out of the city, then he would need to fight. He turned to May.
"Be quiet and follow me. Walk where I walk, look where I look." He whispered sternly to her.
"Yes, Young master." May whispered and nodded with tears in her eyes.
"Good, let's go." Eugene turned around and opened the passage door. The sound of the grating stone door was shadowed by the roaring laughter of the assassins. It seemed like Lady Luck had looked Eugene's way this one time.
Eugene grabbed onto May's hand and pulled her after him. The maid was startled, but suppressed her gasp and followed after Eugene.
They quickly navigated through the stable and came before a particular vehicle. May could not help but look up in shock as she stood before the personal vehicle of the city lord. It was the only one of its kind in Blazing Sun City, as it was extremely expensive.
Eugene flicked his wrist and a small object the size of an eye appeared in his palm. It carried the insignia of the Sandwall Family, and was something only the city lord and some certain people close to him would ever come in contact with. As Eugene was the son of the city lord, it was only normal for him to possess one of the items. The small coin shaped item was the key to the vehicle. He pressed it against a small indent on the door's handle.
Click.
With a small smile, Eugene opened the carriage and climbed in with May. It seemed Lady Luck had looked his way for a short moment, as they had been able to get here without anyone seeing them.
"Wait here for me, I have to get the fuel for it." Eugene instructed May before climbing back out of the carriage and closing the door behind him. He looked around and when he confirmed there was no one close, he quickly stalked to the back of the stable where the spare parts and other things were stored. It was in a shed that was locked tightly. Eugene had to use his glaive to break the lock of the door.
"Hold on, I think I heard something." A voice suddenly said from the front of the stable where the assassins were gathered. Eugene's spine tensed when he heard those words and he hurriedly hid himself in the shed.
'Dammit. Did she make noise?' Eugene thought that it might have been May who caused some noise and drew the attention of the assassins.
"Oi, boys! Look what it is, a fucking golden goblet!" The assassin that had spoken earlier cheered as he called the attention of the others.
From a crack at the edge of the door, Eugene kept his vision trained on them. There were five of them from what he could count. The one who had spoken earlier was a short man. He was holding up a golden goblet with a greedy grin on his face.
'How did that get there?' Eugene wondered, only to be surprised by a sudden flash of light.
Swish!
Splat!
The bodies of all five assassins were sliced apart as a familiar figure appeared.
'Gustavo!'