“I will never haggle with you around,” he muttered.
“Same here.” Vaust chuckled, “You are a noble one, aren’t you, Devol?”
“I think it is an exemplary show of character,” Nauru stated calmly in an attempt to bolster the boy.
“Of course you would. You are the grand mistress of the Templar Order,” Vaust replied and took a sip. “It would be bad form for you to think otherwise.”
“And it is not the same for my men and women?” she retorted and her eyes narrowed at the mori, their blue depths smoldering.
“Of course it is,” he stated with an easy smile. “I’m merely the exception. My specialty is killing, after all, so what’s a little scheming on top of that?”
She sighed and brushed him off. “Please remember we have young ones with us and set a positive example,” she muttered and turned to address the three friends. “Black-marked quests can be the most difficult but if they have no stars, that typically means we have no confirmed details for them. In such cases, they are automatically marked black and are only able to be taken by the most experienced members of guilds and mercenaries. That is the reason why this will be an official mission for Wulfsun with you as his subordinates.”
“Young comrades,” he corrected, his gaze on Devol, “Although we may have to put that on paper for practical reasons.”
“Okay, I understand all that,” the swordsman acknowledged and held two fingers up. “I have two questions, though.”
“Go ahead,” Nauru told him.
He lowered one finger. “So if we complete this mission, we’ll be sent to the trials?”
She shook her head. “This is a final observation to see if you would qualify for the trials in our eyes. Technically, you could take part in them if you happened to stumble upon them.”
“Pardon?” Asla asked but the woman remained silent and merely gave her a small smile.
“Okay, then,” Devol said, shrugged, and lowered his hand, “Then can we get back to what Wulfsun said before?”
“What about?” the captain asked and frowned as he tried to recall what this might be.
The boy pointed to the magical map. “You said this could ‘zap two critters with one spell.’ I assume one of the critters is getting this qualification from you, but what is the other?”
The man looked at the map and nodded. “Ah…right! I almost forgot to mention that.” He looked at Nauru, who granted her permission with a nod for him to continue. “Well, boy, we have no anchors that take us directly to Levirei, so we’ll have to take a train there.”
“A train?” Devol inquired and understanding lit his eyes. “What—oh. A train would take us through—”
“Aye, lad.” Wulfsun smiled broadly. “We’ll take the train to Levirei from your home city, Monleans.”
Chapter Ten
Far away from the order, in a darkened forest in the corner of the Britana Kingdom, was an old, neglected manor that had stood for more than three centuries. At one point, it was a prized abode, built by an earl who had made a fortune selling specific curios during a fad period all those years before. He had only lived in the house for a few years and was eventually driven away by his paranoia, or so the townsfolk from the nearby village said—or at least they did when they had lived there. The village had been abandoned a good many years earlier.
It was in this darkened mansion that Salvo stood, his jaw clenched as he shut the front doors behind him and walked into the main lobby. Dark wood, rickety floors, and a few vases and statues left behind when the earl had fled his home created a dismal scene, most of them in various states of disrepair. He walked past the curved stairs and into a long hallway, although he paid little attention to his route. Resentment seethed within him as he considered what he should do next. Ever since the failed mission, he had been given busy work—tasks meant for the underlings, not him.
But it wasn’t only pure frustration and feeling cheated that made him so bitter. If it were only that he would have simply burned the manor down and left his employer, although he had almost done exactly that on a few occasions. For once, his annoyance was eclipsed by something else—disappointment in himself. He felt he had let down one of the few people—perhaps the only person—he respected more than himself.
Footsteps ahead intruded and Salvo’s instincts were still keen enough to snap him out of his brooding. He looked at a familiar face, although it seemed foolish to call it that given that the person it belonged to could change it on a whim. Koli strolled casually up the hall and smiled at his partner in amusement.
“Well, hello there, Salvo,” he said cheerfully as thunder cracked outside. “You missed the rain. Good fortune seems to be following you.”
“Like a geist, Koli.” he retorted, his voice low and harsh. “Are those maniacs in?”
“Do they ever leave?” his partner responded and held his nose for a moment. “I’m beginning to wonder if hygiene is a foreign concept to them.”
Salvo shrugged and prepared to move past. “It makes no difference to me. I’m only here to pick up spare bodies.”
Koli raised an eyebrow. “Is that so? You have good timing. The next batch won’t be here for a few weeks from what I understand. Are you going somewhere?”
He stopped and straightened as he fixed the trickster with a firm look. “I am done simply waiting for orders and being the others’ errand boy. I’m going to go and find them, Koli.”
“Oh. You’re showing initiative. Who are you looking for?” As much as Salvo’s current demeanor simply begged to be prodded, he was genuinely curious at what plan his former partner’s mind had concocted over these last few boring months.
“The ones who took the box,” Salvo stated and clenched his fists as he shoved his hands
