Chapter 42 Chapter 42 - A Compromise (1/2)
CHAPTER 42
A COMPROMISE
Suffocating air suffused the thick, earthen walls carved out into a half-spherical room. Occasional glint of a droplet flashed bright in darkness, splatting against the floor. The room was rather small, large enough only to fit a few chairs and a primitive, mud table at the very center. A single sphere of cyan light hovered above the table, ceaselessly spinning in circles while casting dim light over to the far edges of the table and the chairs beyond.
”... are you certain?” a hoarse voice asked while tapping sounds of finger against the table echoed out slowly. ”You sensed Qi yesterday?”
”It was very faint, but it was there,” a mellow and charismatic voice answered. ”One of the competitors, though I couldn't pinpoint which one.”
”... it seems we've already got friends in the city, he he. What do you think we should do?”
”Smoke them out?”
”No, no, you're thinking too simply,” the hoarse voice brimmed with excitement as it talked. Sin leaned his cloaked head over into the cyan light, his dark eyes glimmering faintly. ”It's too early. Fighting it out now wouldn't be beneficial. Misleading them, though... any ideas, m' Lady?”
”... that is your job,” a gentle voice replied. ”We were tasked with speeding the plans up. If you don't, well, you know what to expect.”
”... ah, as cold as always,” Sin said, smiling widely. ”You really know how to spin me in circles.”
”We can create a diversion by releasing some out into the open.” the mellow voice joined in again.
”... wasteful. I'll set up a massive formation beyond the north gate. Your job is to find them and bring them there. You have three days.” Sin said.
”They're clearly cloaking their Qi with something. How do you expect me to find them in three days?!” the mellow voice turned slightly angered as a young, handsome face of the Prince Yox came into view.
”You already have your first clue,” Sin shrugged his shoulders as he backed into the darkness. ”The competition.”
”I already know who it is,” a fourth, slightly ruff voice, joined in. ”It's the guy who got fifth place in the competition.”
”... hm? Him? Why?” Prince Yox asked.
”... I saw the weapon before he chipped it,” Shante said. ”It was well beyond anything ordinary smiths can do. I also think he made me out.”
”... is he strong?” Sin asked, frowning slightly.
”I couldn't tell,” Shante replied, sighing. ”I paid attention to him the whole time after he showed me the weapon, but I couldn't sense a whiff of Qi or anything coming from him... as though he wasn't even there.”
”He must be quite a bit stronger than you, then,” Prince Yox said. ”And me, in extension.”
”... m' Lady?” Sin looked toward the only person who hadn't stepped out of the darkness yet and asked.
”... we can't be drawing up any conclusions,” the voice replied. ”Other departments are ahead of schedule, only we're lagging behind. It's at point of no return now. Even if he's made her, it doesn't change much. They already know something's happening here. I'll do the scans more frequently. The rest of you be careful. Even if they hadn't sent anyone stronger than Purity Realm, Dying Roses bastards have strange methods.”
”What about your partner?” Sin asked.
”He's growing suspicious as well, but I have preventive measures against him. Don't worry about it, just focus on yourself. Dismissed.” a faint whizz echoed out, leaving the trio behind alone.
”... your mom's really something else, eh?”
”She's not my mother.”
”Whatever you say.”
”Gather up more information for the next week's meet. I'm going.”
”See ya'.”
Within a mere minute, Shante found herself walking down the familiar streets, moving toward her house while her eyes danced around with great alarm in them. She couldn't help it; something about that boy, besides his incredible crafting skills, threw her off yesterday. His attitude... stance... eyes... voice... words... none of it belonged to a simple sixteen-year-old kid trying his luck in the Capital. It belonged to someone who had a plan, purpose and reason to be here, at this specific time. She was just confused over why he had showed her that weapon in the first place, practically outing himself. He must have known that someone would have discovered him using Qi, yet he still used it. A whisper sounded out and Shante found herself frozen in spot, her vision growing dark. She only saw black cloak flash before her eyes before she lost her consciousness, drifting off into dreamless sleep.
Lino was leaning against the wooden bean, his arms crossed over his chest, staring at Shante who was tied to the chair. His eyes were out of focus as he tapped his leg against the floorboards in rhythmic fashion, doing so all the way until Shante groaned out in pain and slowly opened her eyes, looking around while trying to make sense of it. Her eyes quickly landed on Lino, causing her heart to start while her throat grew parched. She knew she was done, yet that scared her far less than what would happen until that end.
”... you guys are really impressive,” Lino smiled faintly as he crouched down, leveling their gazes. ”I had absolutely no way to follow you. Well, I technically had, but I would have gotten caught and chopped up. And I'm not really into that.”
”... who are you? Seeing as I'll be dead soon enough, I at least deserve to know.”
”... it doesn't matter who I am.” Lino said. ”And you're wrong about your prediction. I have neither the will nor the reason to kill you.”