Seclusion [Old Version | Dropped]

Soooo, I really thought that the information I gathered would help me maneuver within the city. It didn't. I'm not lost or anything; I just don't know where to go first...ok, fine, that's a lie. Damn these alleys that look all the same. At least put some signs up so that you actually know where you are. 

You may ask, why did you not follow the main road? One word—boooring! I was hoping for some thugs lurking in the shadows trying to rob or do something worse with me. But these back alleys are empty and way too clean. Who the hell cares about cleanliness in such a society...? 

I should have gone to the slums. Who would've known that the area between the eastern and royal district is actually safe? I, for one, thought that there would be at least some scumbags trying to kidnap women for some of their noble masters as playthings. Well, it might be outdated...aah, I remember my first time being kidnapped; one of my favorite memories. 

But enough of good ol' days. Since nothing worth of time is happing in these alleys, I head back to the eastern road. One might ask, why am I even here, but the answer is simple: more information. Those that I already gathered may seem helpful at first glance, but they're not really useful in the long run. What I need is real intel...and money, lot's of it. 

Money and intel go hand in hand—money gives you intel; good intel will make you rich. So the first thing I need to do is find a place where I can get information about a way to obtain money or, more precisely, gold. And what couldn't be a better spot for this than an area where you find taverns, inns, brothels, and hopefully secret underground facilities. These locations are perfect for information gathering. Why? Because these places often harbor drunkards. They always have some slip of the tongue. And why brothels and their lower-class siblings are great places for information is something I hopefully won't need to explain, not that there is anybody else here besides me. Still, never underestimate courtesans, prostitutes, harlots, or whores; you might regret it.

Back at the eastern road, I follow a stream of people. Even if this area is suitable for gathering the things I need, it's also a hot spot for people. And before somebody might ask, I WAS NEVER LOST. I am just a bit rusty, nothing more.

I spot a group of youths that look like they know where they need to head. The one in the front has a smug face. The one behind, clad in some kind of fancy white armor, is smiling. Two more follow them, but they are covered by long cloaks. Their stature doesn't tell me if they're male, female, or something else. Not that it does matter at all. Still, being cautious is never wrong.

I am actually a bit surprised by how busy this street is. Well, one reason will be that most of the residential buildings are not directly at the beginning of the roadsides but one row behind. This helps to reduce noise pollution for the dwelling population but also puts the stores in the spotlight. Even if this is not the craftsmen's district, many weapons and armor stores are represented. Also, I see herbal shops, pharmacies, magic tool shops, and other workshops of that kind. If they are still open at this hour, it must be really profitable for them. Huh, it's a capital, after all. I wonder what the royal district looks like. 

Nonetheless, I really hope these four soon reach their destination. Even though nobody cares enough to look at me, I'm still feeling nauseous. But I truly do not stand out at all, with so many oddly dressed people walking alongside me. They carry big axes, broadswords, swords with funny gems that glow mysteriously, and wear colorful robes, clothes, or armor made of materials I've never seen before. With this kind of diversity, my gorgeous totally plain black and dark blue victorian style militia dress paired with a witch's hat of some sort is entirely inconspicuous. Absolutely nobody looks at me, NO-BO-DY! These stares are one hundred percent imaginary. They don't look at me; they look at something behind me. 

Aaanyway, it seems like the youths finally managed to reach their goal—a big fat luxurious and at the same time shabby-looking house. A well-made sign adorned with a sword, shield, and wand hangs over the entryway. Beneath it is written something with golden letters in a language that my earring has not yet deciphered. I suspect it to be the same as the spoken one...I really need access to a local library or bookstore. 

Melodious music and rowdy voices coming from within the building. A steady stream of people walking in and out. Most of them are groups of three or four. The youths follow suit and go in. 

The interior design of this building is like a mix of addiction, entertainment, and seriousness. The left side is built like a tavern, with many tables, chairs, and a bar. But there is a small stage where bards are playing. On the right side is a giant bulletin board with many notes on it—no clue what's it for. Some groups pick one of these pinned notes and go to the counter in the middle of the building. It's nearly ten meters long. Five people, or from the looks of it, receptionist, stand behind it. The queue isn't that long, but I think it differs depending on the time of day. What is this place anyway?

Mr.Smugface lines up with the waiting folk while the rest of his group settles down in a rather poorly lit corner at a tavern area. Luckily, a table for two near them is still unoccupied—it's the one farthest away from the stage. I sit down and eavesdrop on their conversation. They don't pay me any attention. 

White armor speaks first, "What do you think how much gold we get? I mean, we got like twenty extra parts."

"Maybe like ten or fifteen and some silver coins. Would've been way more if this idiot," the bearer of the feminine voice points at the other hidden figure, "didn't use these fucking explosion spells. Seriously, what is it with you and these explosions?"

In a shy, barely understandable voice, the unknown person answered, "B-But e-explosions are great..."

"Really? Now you're abashed? You literally just screamed a few hours ago, 'WUAHAHA, DIE DIE DIE YOU LITTLE ANTS! FEEL THE POWER OF—'"

The other one jumped up and pressed her hands on the mouth of her group member, "Pleeease stooop!" she whines.

"Come on, Fara, don't tease her so much," said Whitey.

"Okay, okay, I stop. Let's get us some beer!"

"Finally, something I can agree with."

"Y-yeah..." mumbled the pipsqueak. Yes, I call her that—she's relatively tiny; maybe a dwarf?

They ordered some, and after a wench brought their liquor, four mugs full of something that looked like beer but smelled more like mead, they changed to another topic.

"Have you heard about the sightings outside of the capital near the Black Forest?" said Fara and took a big gulp of her brew. 

"Ah, yes, I've heard...something about wendigos," answered Whitey skeptically. 

"Wendigo's'? Like more than one? Is that even possible?"

"Dunno, but honestly, it creeps the shit out of me. So, let's be on the safe side and don't take any quests near that area."

"Forewarned is forearmed..." mumbled the totally not dwarven girl.

"'Totally right, Mai!'" her peers answered in unison, laughed, and took another big swig of the honey swill. 

"Aaaah—I love this shit!" declared Fara, then lifted her mug again and spoke in an already slightly tipsy tone, "A toast for being adventures; let's make way more money and live a good life!"

"'Aye!'"

-------

After a while, Mr.Smugface came back with a much smugger face than before. I don't know why, but I want to kill him. 

"Woah, rude; you didn't wait for me!"

"Whoever comes too late is punished by life," Mai replied curtly. 

The newcomer gave her the stink eye. "Ha-Ha, very funny, Mai. Don't forget your words when we're at the inn later."

Mai blushed in a deep red. Fara just rolled her eyes and emptied the rest of her brew in a single gulp. Moments before, they had taken off their hoods, and you could finally recognize the faces of the two women or rather girls. They looked no older than eighteen but could be younger or much older than their looks suggest since neither were human. Fara, the girl, was an elf—the long pointed ears, silver hair, and pale skin identified her as one of the moon tribe.

Smuggy looked at her with a predatory look, "You know, maybe it's time for you to join our evening fun."

She looked at him with disgust but said nothing. 

"Thought so," he grinned and touched her smooth skin with his fingers. Fara shivered in fear. Then he leaned closer and whispered in her ear, "You're just an elven slave, and you'll never be something else."

For a second, I glanced over at her and saw the agony in her eyes. As if she were begging me to rescue her. Gone was the young woman who had just been full of life, replaced by someone who wanted nothing more than freedom. 

The Smugface noticed my glance and turned his head to me. "Mhh, who do we have here, another elven bitch? You eavesdropped on our conversation, didn't ya? Maybe I should buy you too, just like this whore."

I tried to stifle my laughter but to no avail. I laughed louder and louder. In the beginning, it still sounded amused until it exploded into a burst of maniacal howling.  

"G-Gosh, o-oh gosh, you humans are so ridiculous. Haaa, I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard."

The bastard looked at me with an agape mouth and a startled expression. Actually, most of the people present stared at me in shock. Even the bards had stopped playing. 

"Well, I think I've overstayed my welcome..." my eyes went over to Fara, "but before I go, let me help you out with this low-life."

I snapped my fingers. In an instant, blood, innards, body parts, and clothes spread everywhere. What happened? Well, Smuggy here had the pleasure of what it feels like to first implode and then explode. One of my favorite spells against fucktards. Naturally, I made sure that he got the full experience until the end. Simultaneously with the other spell, I cast invisibility magic. You think I fucked up? Na-ah, this was the only proper reaction. I mean, he called me an elf, a motherfucking elf. It's like comparing a goddess to an ant; honestly, if he had said that I look like a human, you would only find scorched earth instead of a town. 

Leaving this establishment with swift moves is kinda easy. Sometimes I do love this spell, even if it, unfortunately, exhausts me more than I would like to admit. Casting magic in which you have absolutely no affinity and therefore have to downright subjugate is draining, especially if, like me, you used this magic the last time before going into seclusion. Still totally worth it. 

Once outside, I look around. A crowd has formed in front of the building; guards, just like soldiers, try to make their way through them. Shouts and crying can be heard from inside the building. Few have already made it outside. Some of them are covered in blood, others got away with splashes on their face, and still others are just distraught. I have to smile at this sight. One may think that I have completely destroyed my plan, but I got exactly the information I needed. From where? You don't think I was just eavesdropping on one group, do you? In truth, I 'overheard' several, as well as the receptionists. The friendly people behind the counter talked about some people in the red-light district who were found completely lifeless. Lifeless in the sense of, physically ok, mentally just a shell. The guards suspect a demon but can't agree on what kind, or if it's really just a sick bastard. They asked to put up a note on the bulletin board; whoever solves the problem will be well rewarded. There was also a talk about what rank the so-called quest should be, but I had already started to stop listening by then.

"Well, well, a demon...I think I found what I need to get closer to my goals." 

I hummed and headed towards the red light district, the location of which I'd previously learned about through some very drunk people at the bar.

 

---

 

"This freaking bitch," I shouted. She did it again; I can't believe it! 

I run around in the red-light district and try to find her. She's ruining my whole plan. How can someone be this obvious? Don't kill anyone, and if you do, don't throw the husk in a place where everybody can find them. Because of this shit, I've guards sniffing around in my turf; it's way too early for me to fight them again. The last conflict took almost all of my energy. I've been working over the previous three months to get it back. 

It's not that working as a prostitute isn't enjoyable; however, my strength has not yet fully recovered. Till then, I'm doomed to work in these run-down bawdy houses since the high-class brothels have placed wards that can detect my demonic aura. In addition, the customers who go there are also able to see through my weakened glamour, which puts me in a precarious position. 

The overall situation isn't bad. I can live with these circumstances for a while, but I can't live with somebody else on my turf who puts on a goddamn show for the folks here so that everyone knows something is wrong. The consequence is that many people avoid the back alleys or those places where fewer people are. Try to hunt in the shadows when nobody goes near them. Yes, I can also lure them away; however, people got cautious, they would recognize that something is wrong if a friend of theirs goes in one of these back alleys with a woman but doesn't come back. And I am by far not strong enough to charm more than one and erase their memories. Otherwise, none of this shit would bother me. 

All of this ends today! My plan was to pinpoint where this bitch would attack again in my turf, pull her in one of these back alleys and make sure she will never enter my hunting grounds again. Either she turns tail or dies by my hand. The next step is staying low for a while, so everybody thinks that the culprit moved on. Then start the rehabilitation all over again and finally be strong enough to gain some real political influence.

So, I know where she is, but getting her is another matter. I need to catch her red-handed; only then will my plan have a real chance to succeed. 

I creep through the dark alleys, and narrow passages—a whiff of soul magic is in the air. 

"I must be close by..." I murmur. 

I turn left, then right, left again, following the trail as it gets stronger and stronger. The moon shines high in the sky, giving the places where it manages to break through the rooftops and illuminate the paths something mysterious and dangerous at the same time.

Then there is a wail, a plea. A woman's voice cries for her life; she asks to be spared; she just wanted to try something out. She wanted to know if a woman can truly love another woman, emotionally as well as physically. But everything she said probably fell on deaf ears. I had to hurry, or the victim would die, leaving another husk, and the damn bitch would run for the hills.

However, I managed to storm around the next corner just in time. I rammed my body against the attacker, whereupon she released the woman who had been pushed against a wall and fell to the ground. The harlot looked at me perplexed; she had probably forgotten, full of greed, that someone has come closer and closer. I pressed my hand against her throat and looked at her with fury. She, on the other hand, had only a victorious grin on her face. Ohh, how I want to kill her...

But before I even had a chance to do anything, my body froze. I could not move. The intruder looked at me in horror; she obviously didn't know what was happening either. Then I heard something.

Clack. Clack. Clack. 

Footsteps—they came closer and closer.

Clack. Clack. Clack.

I tried to lift my head with all my might and looked in the direction where the previous victim had run. At the end of the alley, illuminated by the moon, stands a person. She is wearing a luxurious militia uniform, one I have never seen before. Fear spreads through me. Could she belong to the High Guards' new 'secret' special unit that handled special civil affairs within the city? Or is she a demon hunter who would soon take home extra trophies? 

Clack. Clack. Clack.

She came closer and closer but said nothing. Each closing step felt like an eternity—something inescapable. Then she walked through another moonlit part of the path. 

With eyes that resembled a vixen, a grin that revealed her fangs, and ears that would otherwise only be seen on elves, she took another step towards us. 

I tried to use my high-level skill [Appraise].

[Target invalid]

W-what?

I tried again.

[Target impermissible]

Again!

[Error]

...

[ErRoR]

...

[eRrOr]

"Whatever you're trying to do, please stop. It's annoying!"

I stared at her in disbelief. She gave me an assessing look and spoke again, "Now, what exactly do we have here?"