181 Durthang, the Free City (1/2)
”So scary. To think that someone was so stingy that he didn't even properly maintain the cage designed to contain the monsters.”
”Say that for yourself. I still remember tasting your Green Coast vine. I still don't know what you gave me, but I at least know it was not something from Genablum.” The one answering had a far tanner skin than the other, making quite a contrast compared to the white skin of the other trader. With a look, it was easy to see that one came from this part of the world while the other was definitely from the South.
The two merchants were happily discussing as they could see nearby the lifeless body of the monster that ran havoc in the city in the last minutes. Behind the corpse, one could see the bloodied street, filled with human body parts. Now that the danger had been dealt with, numerous families or friends came back to search for the missing people they knew.
”That's still a bit of a shame for such a thing to happen here. At the same time, it is almost funny to notice where the accident happened.” Hearing the words of his friend, it was only then that the second merchant raised his head to see the extremely tall building nearby. And as much as he tried to see through the windows on it, he knew that it was useless.
”Well, there is a reason why no stores are located near it. I would bet that it was not the first time such a thing happened.”
”How much the bet?”
”1 gold coin.”
”Bah. Stingy.”
Laughing at that number, the two seemed strangely unaffected by the desolation that happened in front of them. But one look at the surroundings would make it obvious that they were not alone in that case. Besides a small glance at the brutal carnage, most of the humans passing by didn't even try to help or do something. Even the owner of the restaurant where the two merchants were having a meal barely lifted an eyebrow while grumbling about losing some clients because of this.
”So, concerning our deal. Is the price low enough for Synnada?” Grabbing the glass that was not empty, he didn't have the time to put it on his lips before a violent shock made the wine taint his white skin. From afar, the red color almost made him look like he was part of the previous massacre. However, neither he, the other merchant or anyone in the street, in fact, cared about that. All began to search why this earthquake was happening.
”WHAT THE …” All the stares turned to see the guard still covered with the blood of the monster pointing a finger at the Tower of the Archmage. And if at first none notice anything strange, the illusion that kept the secrecy of the mages was beginning to be dispelled. In an instant, they all saw the tall tower crumbling on itself, sending countless rocks flying in all directions. Even from where the two stood, which was quite a few streets away, they still had to hastily enter the restaurant by fear of those deadly projectiles.
The eeriest thing about it was the complete lack of sound, as they couldn't hear the building being destroyed before their eyes. In fact, if they were not seeing it, almost no one would have believed what was happening. And if the entire thing barely lasted more than a few seconds, for the bystanders, it looked like an eternity.
Cough cough
Using their hands or their clothes to prevent the stone dust from entering their mouths, all the humans looked with stupor at where the Tower once stood. They could see the illusion still present in someplace, making it weird to see some part of the roof floating dozens of meters away from the ground. But the rest had definitely been destroyed, even if the dust was making it a bit harder to see.
”What is happening?”
”How the hell am I supposed to know? I deal with food, not with the Archmage!” Both still shocked by what they just saw, they didn't keep arguing, preferring to just stare at the blank space in the sky. Now, nothing of the magic that lasted for probably thousand of years remained. Before they could even do something else, they heard the rumble of a heavily armored troop approaching with great speed.
THUMP THUMP THUMP
The golden armors of the guards of Durthang were not as shining as before, but it was the first time the two saw so many of them in the same place. Approaching the group that was frozen near the corpse of the monster, they quickly began to interrogate them. And if the two traders tried to hear what they were seeing, their behaviors quickly caught the eyes of an officer. Even if the mind of the later was in a panic, he still knew very well what to do now.
”CHECK THE IDENTITY OF EVERYONE! FOR THE STRANGERS, IMPRISON THEM!” As soon as it was said, most of the curious inside the crowd began to quickly flee in panic. However, they met another group of guards that was waiting for them behind. Staring at some of their acquaintances being beaten to the ground, the merchant from Synnada grabbed the bottle he paid for and began to drank everything.