Chapter 131: Escort Missions (2/2)
The door opened and a well dressed man in his fifties entered. Gray hair and beard with black eyes. His hair was well taken care of, looking like either a butler to a noble house or rich establishment or perhaps a noble himself, trying to blend in a little more. Eve doubted it, rarely would it be required and even more rare was the benefit of a noble dressing down.
She was excited, her waiting had paid off. The man checked the room with trained eyes before he walked to the door and operated a small switch that activated different magical lights built into the ceiling. Eve’s eyes adjusted quickly, ready for any move on the man’s part but all that happened was him walking to the windows and closing the heavy red curtains.
He meticulously checked the whole room and cleaned some parts, dusting off the non existent dust from some of the furniture. Eve changed the visual of her corner a little to make it nice enough for him to ignore. His cleaning ended an hour later, all done in silence before he set the table. A red tablecloth was brought in and placed on top of it, as was an expensive bottle of wine including a glass. Expensive enough for Eve to at least consider revealing herself to taste the beverage, one of her few pleasures in life.
She controlled herself, the possible gains too high and perhaps they had more stored away somewhere. Her thoughts came to a close as she concentrated on the room again. The butler had left but Eve was rather sure he hadn’t left the house at least, not feeling the heavy door downstairs move.
She blinked and on the chair next to the wine bottle a woman was sitting. Black hair and an open back was all Eve could make out in the first moment. The woman was beautiful, her hair long and healthy, white porcelain skin showed on her arms and back where exposed. She wore a dress, a black dress that allowed for quite a bit of movement. This woman was either a passionated dancer, escort or according to Eve’s identify, a quite dangerous warrior.
[Warrior – lvl 230]
An elite human, truly Eve had made the right decision to come. Even here in Virilya it wasn’t common to see people above level two hundred, the occasion reserved for travelers and adventurers from far away or nobles that didn’t show themselves in the streets.
The woman quietly opened the bottle of wine, putting a nail into the cork and simply pulling it out before the glass was filled with red liquid, the heavy aroma drifting as far as to reach Eve. The glass was swayed in the woman’s hand, an occasional whiff of the smell deeply taken in.
It took only five minutes for the door to open. This time it wasn’t the butler but two people coming in, a woman and a man. Both below level one fifty, each a mage.
“Master.” the two said at the same time, bowing low to show their respect for the woman sipping her wine.
“Report.” she said in turn, simple and direct, her voice clear and controlled. She wasn’t a simple upstart, Eve thought, her composure and grace one built on experience. Though it would likely come to a bloody end Eve held a certain amount of respect for the woman sitting in front of her.
“The boy has been sighted in Virilya. Four more dead nobles, all minor. For names and further details the report.” the woman said, handing over a letter to the woman on the table who motioned to the table itself, where the letter was finally placed.
“A woman was sighted with him, the sources are questionably reliable but we have two reports and one more where other people were mentioned.” the man added after a moment, their master not reacting to the letter or anything they had said so far. His unease was showing on his face.
“The sister?” the woman on the table asked, finishing her glass of wine and putting it down.
“It’s a possibility but the sources descriptions didn’t match with what we know. Perhaps it’s the escaped prisoner.” the other woman said.
“Hmm, yes. Any leads or is this all?”
“Nothing more. They’re experienced and leave little evidence behind.” the man said, getting a gesture of dismissal in response.
“You may leave then. Continue as you have.” the woman said, the two people in front of her bowing again and leaving the room quickly and quietly.
“Aaaah, incapable subordinates. A pain.” the woman sighed, pouring herself another glass of wine before she started swaying the glass again. “Wouldn’t you say?” she asked and looked backwards right at Eve.
Her eyes opened a little wider but she stayed quiet otherwise, her magic still activated. Certainly impressed but not convinced, Eve simply waited, calming herself for a possible incoming fight. It wouldn’t be easy. The woman was a warrior and nearly twenty levels higher and should a fight break out, there was no factor of surprise on her side.
“Did I get the wrong corner? Oh well, doesn’t hurt to check, does it?” the woman said and suddenly appeared before Eve, a thin slightly curved blade in hand, she cut through the wall, right past where Eve was standing, the movement fluid and strong, the blade shaving through the wall with no noticeable resistance.
“Not here huh.” the woman said and appeared in the next corner, cutting into the wall again. A sudden pain shot out from Eve’s left arm. Looking at it without moving her head, she could see a deep cut. Blood slowly made its way outwards, soaking the cloth below her armor as she stayed quiet, her mind fighting against the pain and her body’s demand to scream. An experience trained and known.
It was only a matter of time for the first drop to land. Her reveal inevitable, Eve waited for the woman to appear in the next corner before a clone appeared and ran towards the window. The woman appeared near the clone immediately, her blade cutting through the air when Eve’s dagger closed in on her neck. Suddenly a shiver ran through Eve, her whole body shifting to the left by a couple centimeters, the blade of her dagger scratching the woman’s skin on her neck before the blade was brought towards the attacker.
The second dagger intercepted the enemy blade but still a cold impact could be felt on her chest, a line of red formed, deep enough to draw blood. The woman moved her blade upwards when Eve whistled. A loud deafening whistle startling the woman, a burst of mind magic pushing against her as she lifted her blade in defense. Eve didn’t question the move, assuming the woman had some way of defending as she moved past the table quickly, grabbing the letter and jumping through the window.
She created four clones in the air and landed, seeing one of them cut down by the woman who had appeared next to her outside. Again the woman teleported and smiled as she cut through the clone with a letter in her hand. Unfortunately for her, Eve had let go of the letter in her fall, near invisible and barely a meter away from the woman she aimed her dagger at the center of her target’s mass.
Her body shifted again but still her blade struck true, cutting through the surprisingly tough dress and into her lung. The dagger was let go as she created more clones, the woman appearing behind her but unable to swing her blade. She screamed as she tried to grab the dagger in her back, the cursed blade rotting its way through her flesh before a second dagger struck her stomach.
Eve stabbed and stabbed again, the woman resisting at first but soon her lifeless eyes stared back at her, the blade clattering to the ground. She had done it now. Eve ripped off a piece of the woman’s dress, grabbed the letter and ran off, her injuries too serious to engage the others in the house, likely rushing towards the noise in that very moment.
Four streets later Eve wrapped up her wounds with the cloth and started moving through the alleys more strategically, her magic working to mix up the trail of smell she left behind. Eve ran for two hours straight, not once sensing anybody behind her. She concentrated fully until she finally arrived in one of her hideouts she had in the capital, stumbling into the cellar and shutting the door behind as she fell on the stone floor.
She winced as the wounds continued to bleed, slowly moving towards a corner of the room, grabbing the health potion she had in every hideout. Stolen wares and sadly nothing compared to Ilea or another capable healer but it would hopefully do the job of stabilizing her. She undressed in silence, taking stock of the wounds and any infections or curses, luckily finding nothing. A poison was running through her but what Eve hadn’t ever mentioned to her team mates was that her resistance to that kind of attack was likely on par if not higher than their tank’s.
Finally the wounds were bandaged and Eve moved to the bed, stopping her meditation and iron mind skill, falling unconscious nearly immediately. The blood loss and strain to her body given free reign over her consciousness, still her sleep was plagued with nightmares.