Somewhere in Nightmond, in a dark office dimly lit by a faint flickering candle. Two figures that couldn't be seen faced one another. One of them was sitting on the chair behind a wide desk, his gaze unwavering, studying the starry sky beyond his window.
The sounds of waves crashing against the shore echoed through the window as a salty cool breeze entered the room.
The other figure was standing with both hands clasped behind his back, fidgeting with sheer nervousness.
The sitting figure who was seemingly lost in his thought, suddenly woke up from his reverie and calmly asked, "So what did you want to tell me?" However, noticing his subordinate clear fear and hesitation, he knew it would be nothing good.
"Sir, I.." The standing figure spoke stuttering, "Did you happen to see the news board today?"
"Hmm?" Mumbled the other, unsure of where that was going, "I heard about some murders in the slum, but I don't know exactly what. Why?"
Clenching his fists in anger, the other person cursed internally. That was precisely what he was afraid of, to be the first person to relay the bad news. "You remember about that thing you told to me to do a few days ago?"
A sudden loud noise that almost made him jump in fright reverberated through the room before his boss's voice reached his ears dripping with impatience, "Don't play with me. I tell you to do all kinds of things, get to the point."
Audibly gulping, he gritted his teeth and informed, "That slum kid is the one responsible for that slaughter in the news." As he said that, he felt his heart tighten in his chest and he anxiously held his breath.
A long silence ensued, at first it was calm, but after the sitting figure connected the dots, he swiftly stood up, his clothes bellowing behind him. His gaze locked on his subordinate's eyes, who in turn quickly averted his eyes and studied the wooden floor's craftsmanship.
"WHAT. HAPPENED?" Yelled the boss, his voice laden with fury as he enunciated each word very slowly.
The subordinate's figure immediately began to shake after hearing that, and he began pleading, "Sir, please just give me a day I will fix it. Please, I swear I saw him getting stabbed with a poisoned dagger with my own eyes. I made sure to check his pulse, his heart was no longer beating, he die..."
"But he's still alive." The voice cut him off, "Listen," he commanded, "Use everything at our disposal to eliminate him. Everything. If news got out, I will be finished, finished."
Heart thumping in his chest, the subordinate began bowing in both forgiveness and understanding before he ran out of the office. The moment he heard the door close shut behind him, his agitated state of mind began to slightly calm down.
He emerged in a well-lit hallway, revealing the appearance of a middle-aged man with dry skin, sunken eyes, and a small mustache. His figure was stall and skinny, as he wore a black vest and pants, and long brown shoes.
His right hand's fingers forcefully dominated one another as cracking sounds were heard, and his previously terrified expression had long been replaced by a vicious one.
His brown shoes echoed through wooden floors as he traveled down from it, his right hand clenched into a fist as his left hand continued the cracking sounds. At the end of the hallway, he made a sharp left turn into another hallway filled with rooms, and at the end of that, he emerged into some shabby wooden stairs leading downward.
After walking down only a few steps through the creaky and dark stairs, sounds of thunderous laughter echoed from underneath. As he continued his journey down, his surroundings became well-lit again before the narrow stairwell gave way to a big cleared space.
Barrels and crates of fish filled the place. At the center of it all, was a group of men surrounding a table playing a card game with big bottles of booze around their feet.
Their wild laughter sounded even more fiercely as they teased one another, however, the moment they heard the rhythmic thumps of shoes behind them, they instantly quietened down and turned back to look.
Usually, they would have continued sitting down even if he had come, but after noticing his deathly glare, no one dared. The group of seven men all stood up at the same time and waited for his approach with bated breath before the table.
However, one of them realized something very dangerous, their boss's terrifying gaze was only on him. His lips slightly parted in shock, and he felt his palms getting sweaty.
"One question." Mumbled the man after he stopped a short distance before them, with a calm voice that proved to be a stark contrast to how he actually appeared, "Depending on how you answer it, you'll wake up to either your friends or the gods."
Hearing such an ominous phrasing, the short stocky bald-headed man was mortified. He felt as if his heart was stuck in his throat, and even swallowing his saliva proved to be a challenge. Pushing himself, he spoke with difficulty, "B .boss Me?"
His friends had all heaved sighs of relief knowing this didn't concern them, but they still kept at attention and didn't make a peep.
Not bothering to answer such a stupid question, the tall skinny man asked, "Did you, or did you not, take a fire mage to burn the bodies after you threw that kid in there?"
Although the question sounded cryptic to the others, he who had the most context out of all by virtue of being the one who was tasked with that job shivered in fright, his eyes couldn't help but widen.
What happened that day could be described as one word, an usual working day. He killed some slum runt with a poisoned dagger, and understanding their arrangement with a certain group of Captain Guards at night, he disposed of the body in the irredeemable pit and returned.
Originally, he was tasked with hiring a fire mage to burn through the pit, but he didn't. Not only was a fire mage already tasked by the city to periodically clean there, but the corpse couldn't be further from being dead.
He, the murderer, of all people understood just how dead that kid was. Not only did he pierce a dagger laden with vicious poison into his stomach, but he watched his eyes until life went out. He carried his limp lifeless body around the city for hours, and then when the timing was right he carried him back to the pit.
Naturally, he wouldn't waste a few gold coins because of the groundless worries of his superiors, and so with additional gold in his pocket, he just threw him there and returned.
At the same time, he was confused, 'Did he pass by there on accident and see that the body was still there?' This only raised even more questions, after all, why would he be so angry about such a small matter?
Though terrified, he quickly thought all of that and debated whether to tell the truth or not. "I.." A swift knee to the stomach cut him off, he flew back like a broken kite and landed on several fish crates as rhythmic steps closed on him.
"Kael, you incompetent fool." Yelled the tall skinny man, "I know that you didn't get the fire mage, that boy is still alive."
"Impossible!" Mumbled the man who fell, Kael, somewhat reflexively due to how certain he was of that fact.
"Then what is this?" scoffed the skinny man after he bent down his legs and looked at him, holding a piece of paper with Jacob's face, "This is the news from this morning." Although he had it all of this time, he didn't want to show it to his boss, at the risk of further angering him.
Going through the title of the news, Kael immediately knew what the article would be about, and his eyes were glued to the face drawn as they widened in shock. His lips quivered up and down several times, trying to say something but he couldn't. "No.." He protested, "It's impossible, look Boss Alden.. I swear.. Listen.." he stuttered, doing his best to stand up.
"You have to listen to me, that is his twin brother or something. It's impossible." He yelled, voice dripping with certainty, and more so disbelief at the news, "It can't be possible, you saw how dead he was. And I kept carrying that body for hours, and I threw it with my hands, boss, it's impossible."
Hearing his words, Alden's conviction was shaken and he began to doubt himself, 'I indeed saw him with my own two eyes, how could it be?' At first, he was just shocked when he saw the news and fear gripped him, he knew that if the boy was still alive then the information in his possession would doom his boss to a gruesome death, and indirectly his own as well.
Seeing the boss quiet and calm down a bit, Kael took advantage of this situation and continued, "Who's not to say that he had a twin?"
Alden's previous chain of thoughts crumbled when he heard that, and what replaced them was something even more nerve-wracking for him. He had just realized at that moment that he had made a glaring issue, and if his boss found out about it he would be done for.
He didn't even check the boy's background too much, he just knew that he was some slum trash and he dealt with him right then and there. But who could blame him, under those circumstances when he had to act, there wasn't much need to check. Now, on the other hand...
'He had several other boys with him.' He pondered as his mind had already zoned out everything that was happening outside of him, intensely focusing on his thoughts as his right hand fumbled with his eyebrow's hairs out of habit. 'I need to get rid of all of them, and I need to make sure whether it's really him or he had a twin, it won't be that difficult.'
He turned around and met Kael's terrified gaze, but he just harrumphed and dashed to the stairs using his utmost speed, leaving everything behind. As for killing that incompetent guy, he wasn't serious, the boss was in a vulnerable position in the family now, and they couldn't waste any other manpower, especially one that he painstakingly raised.
A self-aware thought suddenly barged into his mind, 'Aren't I the incompetent one here?' He understood why Kael behaved in the way that he did, but his behavior was objectively less bright.
Alden's steps continued their rhythmic beats as he zigzagged through the halls of the building before he emerged into a wide door and exited. His advance didn't stop after closing the door shut behind him, one street after the other he moved in the bustling streets of Upper West Nightmond.
After another turn, he found himself in a dimly lit blocked alleyway. At the very corner of it, was a big Tavern from where most of the lighting was coming from. His gaze reflexively glanced at the sign, and seeing the intricately drawn black rose dripping with red blood, he stepped foot inside.
His eyes quickly danced over the room in search of something, and soon they were focused on a particular direction, unwavering as his legs moved once again.
The tavern's layout was very standard, like most in the city. A bar, tables and chairs, a stairwell leading to the next story, and booths at the edge.
Cruising through the tables with the thick fragrance of wine and ale wafting through his nostrils, he approached one of the booths where two young people sat, one man and a woman. They were both wearing simple attires, a simple robe, and arm guards.
Upon witnessing Alden's approach, the young man whispered something to the woman's ear after gently caressing her lower back before she stood up and left to sit by the bar counter.
Somewhere in Nightmond, in a dark office dimly lit by a faint flickering candle. Two figures that couldn't be seen faced one another. One of them was sitting on the chair behind a wide desk, his gaze unwavering, studying the starry sky beyond his window.
The sounds of waves crashing against the shore echoed through the window as a salty cool breeze entered the room.
The other figure was standing with both hands clasped behind his back, fidgeting with sheer nervousness.
The sitting figure who was seemingly lost in his thought, suddenly woke up from his reverie and calmly asked, "So what did you want to tell me?" However, noticing his subordinate clear fear and hesitation, he knew it would be nothing good.
"Sir, I.." The standing figure spoke stuttering, "Did you happen to see the news board today?"
"Hmm?" Mumbled the other, unsure of where that was going, "I heard about some murders in the slum, but I don't know exactly what. Why?"
Clenching his fists in anger, the other person cursed internally. That was precisely what he was afraid of, to be the first person to relay the bad news. "You remember about that thing you told to me to do a few days ago?"
A sudden loud noise that almost made him jump in fright reverberated through the room before his boss's voice reached his ears dripping with impatience, "Don't play with me. I tell you to do all kinds of things, get to the point."
Audibly gulping, he gritted his teeth and informed, "That slum kid is the one responsible for that slaughter in the news." As he said that, he felt his heart tighten in his chest and he anxiously held his breath.
A long silence ensued, at first it was calm, but after the sitting figure connected the dots, he swiftly stood up, his clothes bellowing behind him. His gaze locked on his subordinate's eyes, who in turn quickly averted his eyes and studied the wooden floor's craftsmanship.
"WHAT. HAPPENED?" Yelled the boss, his voice laden with fury as he enunciated each word very slowly.
The subordinate's figure immediately began to shake after hearing that, and he began pleading, "Sir, please just give me a day I will fix it. Please, I swear I saw him getting stabbed with a poisoned dagger with my own eyes. I made sure to check his pulse, his heart was no longer beating, he die..."
"But he's still alive." The voice cut him off, "Listen," he commanded, "Use everything at our disposal to eliminate him. Everything. If news got out, I will be finished, finished."
Heart thumping in his chest, the subordinate began bowing in both forgiveness and understanding before he ran out of the office. The moment he heard the door close shut behind him, his agitated state of mind began to slightly calm down.
He emerged in a well-lit hallway, revealing the appearance of a middle-aged man with dry skin, sunken eyes, and a small mustache. His figure was stall and skinny, as he wore a black vest and pants, and long brown shoes.
His right hand's fingers forcefully dominated one another as cracking sounds were heard, and his previously terrified expression had long been replaced by a vicious one.
His brown shoes echoed through wooden floors as he traveled down from it, his right hand clenched into a fist as his left hand continued the cracking sounds. At the end of the hallway, he made a sharp left turn into another hallway filled with rooms, and at the end of that, he emerged into some shabby wooden stairs leading downward.
After walking down only a few steps through the creaky and dark stairs, sounds of thunderous laughter echoed from underneath. As he continued his journey down, his surroundings became well-lit again before the narrow stairwell gave way to a big cleared space.
Barrels and crates of fish filled the place. At the center of it all, was a group of men surrounding a table playing a card game with big bottles of booze around their feet.
Their wild laughter sounded even more fiercely as they teased one another, however, the moment they heard the rhythmic thumps of shoes behind them, they instantly quietened down and turned back to look.
Usually, they would have continued sitting down even if he had come, but after noticing his deathly glare, no one dared. The group of seven men all stood up at the same time and waited for his approach with bated breath before the table.
However, one of them realized something very dangerous, their boss's terrifying gaze was only on him. His lips slightly parted in shock, and he felt his palms getting sweaty.
"One question." Mumbled the man after he stopped a short distance before them, with a calm voice that proved to be a stark contrast to how he actually appeared, "Depending on how you answer it, you'll wake up to either your friends or the gods."
Hearing such an ominous phrasing, the short stocky bald-headed man was mortified. He felt as if his heart was stuck in his throat, and even swallowing his saliva proved to be a challenge. Pushing himself, he spoke with difficulty, "B .boss Me?"
His friends had all heaved sighs of relief knowing this didn't concern them, but they still kept at attention and didn't make a peep.
Not bothering to answer such a stupid question, the tall skinny man asked, "Did you, or did you not, take a fire mage to burn the bodies after you threw that kid in there?"
Although the question sounded cryptic to the others, he who had the most context out of all by virtue of being the one who was tasked with that job shivered in fright, his eyes couldn't help but widen.
What happened that day could be described as one word, an usual working day. He killed some slum runt with a poisoned dagger, and understanding their arrangement with a certain group of Captain Guards at night, he disposed of the body in the irredeemable pit and returned.
Originally, he was tasked with hiring a fire mage to burn through the pit, but he didn't. Not only was a fire mage already tasked by the city to periodically clean there, but the corpse couldn't be further from being dead.
He, the murderer, of all people understood just how dead that kid was. Not only did he pierce a dagger laden with vicious poison into his stomach, but he watched his eyes until life went out. He carried his limp lifeless body around the city for hours, and then when the timing was right he carried him back to the pit.
Naturally, he wouldn't waste a few gold coins because of the groundless worries of his superiors, and so with additional gold in his pocket, he just threw him there and returned.
At the same time, he was confused, 'Did he pass by there on accident and see that the body was still there?' This only raised even more questions, after all, why would he be so angry about such a small matter?
Though terrified, he quickly thought all of that and debated whether to tell the truth or not. "I.." A swift knee to the stomach cut him off, he flew back like a broken kite and landed on several fish crates as rhythmic steps closed on him.
"Kael, you incompetent fool." Yelled the tall skinny man, "I know that you didn't get the fire mage, that boy is still alive."
"Impossible!" Mumbled the man who fell, Kael, somewhat reflexively due to how certain he was of that fact.
"Then what is this?" scoffed the skinny man after he bent down his legs and looked at him, holding a piece of paper with Jacob's face, "This is the news from this morning." Although he had it all of this time, he didn't want to show it to his boss, at the risk of further angering him.
Going through the title of the news, Kael immediately knew what the article would be about, and his eyes were glued to the face drawn as they widened in shock. His lips quivered up and down several times, trying to say something but he couldn't. "No.." He protested, "It's impossible, look Boss Alden.. I swear.. Listen.." he stuttered, doing his best to stand up.
"You have to listen to me, that is his twin brother or something. It's impossible." He yelled, voice dripping with certainty, and more so disbelief at the news, "It can't be possible, you saw how dead he was. And I kept carrying that body for hours, and I threw it with my hands, boss, it's impossible."
Hearing his words, Alden's conviction was shaken and he began to doubt himself, 'I indeed saw him with my own two eyes, how could it be?' At first, he was just shocked when he saw the news and fear gripped him, he knew that if the boy was still alive then the information in his possession would doom his boss to a gruesome death, and indirectly his own as well.
Seeing the boss quiet and calm down a bit, Kael took advantage of this situation and continued, "Who's not to say that he had a twin?"
Alden's previous chain of thoughts crumbled when he heard that, and what replaced them was something even more nerve-wracking for him. He had just realized at that moment that he had made a glaring issue, and if his boss found out about it he would be done for.
He didn't even check the boy's background too much, he just knew that he was some slum trash and he dealt with him right then and there. But who could blame him, under those circumstances when he had to act, there wasn't much need to check. Now, on the other hand...
'He had several other boys with him.' He pondered as his mind had already zoned out everything that was happening outside of him, intensely focusing on his thoughts as his right hand fumbled with his eyebrow's hairs out of habit. 'I need to get rid of all of them, and I need to make sure whether it's really him or he had a twin, it won't be that difficult.'
He turned around and met Kael's terrified gaze, but he just harrumphed and dashed to the stairs using his utmost speed, leaving everything behind. As for killing that incompetent guy, he wasn't serious, the boss was in a vulnerable position in the family now, and they couldn't waste any other manpower, especially one that he painstakingly raised.
A self-aware thought suddenly barged into his mind, 'Aren't I the incompetent one here?' He understood why Kael behaved in the way that he did, but his behavior was objectively less bright.
Alden's steps continued their rhythmic beats as he zigzagged through the halls of the building before he emerged into a wide door and exited. His advance didn't stop after closing the door shut behind him, one street after the other he moved in the bustling streets of Upper West Nightmond.
After another turn, he found himself in a dimly lit blocked alleyway. At the very corner of it, was a big Tavern from where most of the lighting was coming from. His gaze reflexively glanced at the sign, and seeing the intricately drawn black rose dripping with red blood, he stepped foot inside.
His eyes quickly danced over the room in search of something, and soon they were focused on a particular direction, unwavering as his legs moved once again.
The tavern's layout was very standard, like most in the city. A bar, tables and chairs, a stairwell leading to the next story, and booths at the edge.
Cruising through the tables with the thick fragrance of wine and ale wafting through his nostrils, he approached one of the booths where two young people sat, one man and a woman. They were both wearing simple attires, a simple robe, and arm guards.
Upon witnessing Alden's approach, the young man whispered something to the woman's ear after gently caressing her lower back before she stood up and left to sit by the bar counter.
