Chapter 171: The Bait
They really were a mercenary company, though they'd taken on a strange commission — word had it Hollingburton might be mining a magic gemstone vein somewhere on Shrimp Peninsula, and someone had hired them to investigate. The pay was generous, with a promise: find solid proof, and the gems would be theirs.
Arriving, they'd understood well enough that if Hollingburton really was mining gemstones out here, defenses would be formidable. So they'd decided to wait along the road instead, hoping to piece together the truth from travelers passing through — a sensible choice, given how few ordinary people ever ventured deep into Shrimp Peninsula. Only adventurers came this way, along with Hollingburton's own people, and anyone emerging from that stretch of forest, whatever their business, was bound to know something worth learning.
That was why they'd chosen to wait here, and they'd been careful about it too — if not for running into Evan, the plan might well have succeeded. They'd fielded real strength, after all: mages, mage-archers, and several ability-users who'd already achieved sword-force.
The commission itself struck Evan as strange. From what the souls had revealed, word of the magic gemstone vein had already leaked — though whoever had hired these mercenaries still couldn't confirm the vein even existed. Someone on Mikoyan's end must have let something slip carelessly.
But who stood behind this mysterious commission? Evan turned the question over. The Norma Empire itself seemed the obvious first candidate — but if it really were the empire, there'd be no need to act through shadows at all; they could simply send an official inspector openly. Which made them, oddly enough, the least likely suspect.
So who, then? Evan had no answer, though he felt certain of one thing: whoever it was, it had to be some organization or financial consortium, hoping to profit from the discovery without drawing Norma's official attention — which left far too many candidates to narrow down easily.
Evan let the four souls pass on to their rest rather than crystallizing them into soul gems — capable of it as he was, he still couldn't bring himself to disregard the dignity of a life entirely.
He searched each body thoroughly, coming away with a decent haul of weapons, each worth a few silver up to a gold coin apiece, along with two enchanted bows of middling quality, several magic arrows, some thirty-odd gold coins, a scattering of silver and copper, and a magical storage ring.
Evan gathered the bodies together and split the earth open with a gesture, swallowing them whole.
He turned to Erik. "Let's continue on."
Erik gave Evan a frightened glance, still shaken. Evan, unbothered, cast a calming charm over him, and the man steadied enough to climb back aboard. The two of them resumed their seats in the carriage.
The carriage rolled on at its same unhurried pace while the two of them conversed through their mental link, both finding the whole affair suspicious. Evan pulled out paper and pen from his ring, murmured an incantation, and the pen began moving across the page entirely on its own, recording the full account and their speculations. He sealed the letter, chanted again, and cast it into a black portal that opened before him — the moment the letter passed through, the portal vanished.
Mikoyan looked up to find a black portal opening before him, recognizing at once that someone was sending word. A letter drifted out, unfolding itself before him with an indescribable elegance — the envelope spreading open in four directions, the paper inside floating free and settling flat, words rising into view across its surface.
For a moment, his mind wandered to the geometric shapes of the gemstones he'd been cutting lately — the same kind of beauty, he thought. Perhaps this was simply what magic's beauty looked like.
But once he'd read through the letter's contents, all sense of beauty vanished at once. His face darkened, grim enough to wring water from. Whatever appreciation he'd felt a moment ago was gone entirely now. He took the letter, considered it, then resealed it and pressed his own personal seal against the envelope.
The seal gave off a faint, lovely glow, coating the whole envelope in a strange radiance. He rose and made his way to the transport array. "Send this to Hollingburton."
Then he added, "Tighten security at the gem mine. Split our strength — send half over there."
"Won't that leave this location undermanned?"
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"It's fine. I'll stay here myself. Hollingburton will send people soon enough," Mikoyan said.
After several more days of travel, Evan and Jessica finally cleared the forest and reached Luhu Town, a settlement at the northern edge of Shrimp Peninsula's woodland. The atmosphere here felt entirely different — noticeably more adventurers about. Not a large town, but considerably bigger than the one on Shrimp Peninsula itself, with inns, taverns, even a chapel, and carriages passing regularly along the main street.
Evan paid Erik, who offered a respectful bow before turning the carriage around and heading back the way they'd come, snapping his whip.
Jessica said, "Shame we don't have time to ask around here — I wonder if any of these adventurers know something about Hollingburton's gemstone mine."
Evan didn't answer right away, his eyes still scanning the surroundings. Then he smiled. "Might not take much time at all, actually. Come on, let's find somewhere to eat first."
Jessica, puzzled, glanced around as well and noticed two adventurers watching her, greed flickering plainly in their eyes. She frowned — not the leering kind of look, but genuine, naked avarice. She hadn't shown any wealth openly... then she glanced down and understood. They'd noticed the necklace at her throat. But catching sight of Xiaoshuang perched on Evan's shoulder, their expressions shifted to disappointment.
They knew Evan for a mage, and robbing a mage's belongings was hardly worth risking one's life over.
Evan, meanwhile, was murmuring quietly to Xiaoshuang. Xiaoshuang, can you go invisible? Stay out of sight in this town for a while.
Why?
Because I need people to want to rob us. Oh, and Xiaoshuang — let me borrow your gemstone necklace and earrings for a bit.
Why that too? Hearing she'd have to give up her jewelry, Xiaoshuang's mood soured at once. She thought it over. "Fine. But it'll cost you a gold coin."
Evan couldn't help a rueful laugh. "Are you a fairy, or some legendary dragon hoarding treasure? When did you turn into such a miser?"
"Deal's off, then," Xiaoshuang said.
"Fine, fine, you win. Consider it a rental fee — one gold coin, agreed." Something occurred to Evan, and he let the thought drop, focusing on the task at hand.
By then they'd turned a corner, and with no one in sight, a leather case appeared in Evan's hand — his spare clothing. Xiaoshuang vanished from his shoulder at once, replaced by the gemstone necklace and earrings, which Evan tucked into the case alongside the gold coins and jewelry.
They found a decent-looking restaurant. At the door, Evan sensed the upstairs private rooms were already full, and stepped inside regardless.
"Innkeeper, anything better available upstairs? Money's no object," Evan said, a note of entitlement in his voice.
"Honored lady and gentleman, I'm afraid the upstairs is fully booked. Would downstairs suit you?" the innkeeper said, all smiles.
Evan glanced at the ground floor, crowded with adventurers, a flicker of distaste crossing his face. "Well, we'll just have to make do here," he told Jessica. "We need to press on this afternoon anyway."
Jessica, curious, had watched Xiaoshuang vanish and then seen Evan pull out a case, stuffing gold and jewelry into it — she hadn't overheard the exchange with Xiaoshuang, but something about it all suggested a plan taking shape, though she couldn't quite guess its purpose.
Seeing Evan look to her for agreement now, she simply nodded. Evan took a seat and told the server, "Quickly now — bring us the most expensive dishes you have. We need to be on our way soon."
The adventurers exchanged glances, careful to show nothing on their faces — though their expressions had already told Evan everything he needed to know. He and Jessica, dressed in plain clothes rather than mage's robes, gave off exactly the impression of wealthy travelers. They'd already caught someone's attention.
The meal went quickly. Afterward, Evan reached for payment, patting himself down and coming up with only a few copper coins and a single silver — clearly not enough. The server's face showed open contempt. Evan pretended not to notice, setting the case on the table and opening it to reveal jewelry laid out first, gold coins stacked neatly beside it. He pulled out a single gold coin and handed it over.
"Hurry up with my change," Evan said, playing the miser to perfection, not so much as mentioning a tip. He'd staged the whole display deliberately, giving the watching adventurers every reason to feel justified in robbing him — even a sense of righteous satisfaction about it. He caught, from the corner of his eye, the naked greed lighting up in their eyes.
Evan and Jessica left, and the same adventurers settled their own bills shortly after and followed them out. The server spat. "Serves him right to get robbed. Cheapskate."
The innkeeper sighed. Nothing he could do about it — Evan had flashed his wealth carelessly enough to bring it on himself.
They'd gone barely a hundred cubits before Evan felt the group closing in behind them, bold as anything. Clearly law and order ran thin in this town — Evan had expected them to wait for somewhere quieter, but apparently they felt confident enough to act in the open.
He stopped and turned. Six men had followed openly, with others lurking somewhere out of sight. He shook his head. "Gentlemen, what exactly are you following us for?"
"Leave the case behind, and we'll let you walk," the leader said, gripping a greatsword, voice full of menace.
Evan's expression cooled. He set the case on the ground — then, the instant it touched down, his face changed, and his cane snapped out toward an empty patch of air behind and to the left. There was a clang, and a figure materialized — a thief, it turned out, who'd tried to slip in invisibly and snatch the case in the confusion.
Forced out of hiding by that single strike, regret flashed across the thief's face — the plan had been sound enough, ruined now by one unlucky blow. The leader's expression shifted at the sight of him. "Sloor? What are you doing here?"
Before he could finish, Sloor's mouth fell open, blood spilling out, his body sagging slowly to the ground, the light already gone from his eyes.