Later that night, Zeno called me, John, and Theo to his office. When we entered, he was walking around, looking almost excited. And in my experience, this normally doesn’t bode well for at least one party. 

“You’ll be surprised,” he said energetically. “By narrowing down the location, along with the name of the middleman, my agents have discovered the warehouse where they’re conducting trade.”

“So we'll be striking tonight?” I asked. 

Zeno gave me a questioning look, implying that I had just asked a stupid question. “Yes. I’ve already started assembling a group of handpicked troops. I’d like you three to participate in the assault. The mission is dangerous, so much so that I advise using lethal force. However, I assure you that you’ll be rewarded handsomely. ” 

John was the first to speak. “I appreciate the reward, but I was intending to see this situation through regardless.” 

Theo’s response couldn’t be more different. “Sorry but I don’t believe I’m qualified for this. I’m just a hunter. I’m no soldier and I’m definitely no hero.”

I feel relieved that he declined. Even if I don’t like him very much, I don’t want him to die in a battle he wasn’t meant to fight. 

"I'll join too," I added. Even though I had agreed with Zeno beforehand, I'd rather not have my companions know about my agreement with Zeno behind closed doors. 

“How come Sekh isn’t here?” John asked. “She was the one who made this all possible. So shouldn’t she be given a choice to fight?”

“That’s certainly true,” Zeno replied. “But the mission isn’t a simple assault. We’re planning to have you disguise yourselves, enter the premise, and then act from there. Sekh is someone who can be recognized, so she might compromise the mission. That’s why I’m having her stay here.” 

John nodded silently. 

“If you don’t have any more questions, head to your rooms,” Zeno told us. “There you should find disguises on your beds. And remember to only bring sidearms with you so it doesn’t look suspicious.” 

Just like Zeno said, I found a party outfit on my bed when I got back to my room. The outfit was an indigo robe, felt shoes, and a masquerade mask with a bird’s beak. Typical attire for the weird mask balls that are popular among the elves and Iasor nobles. After changing my outfit, I put my sword and dagger on my waist. 

But before I could leave the room, I heard approaching footsteps. The door opened and Sekh was looking at me in complete confusion. 

“About this,” I began to explain. “The Doux said he wanted to host a party with some of his noble friends.”

“Uh huh,” Sekh replied with mild amusement. “Let me guess, the sword and dagger are part of the theme of the party? ”

“The party’s theme is based on the masked swordsman Occidentlee,” I responded after a brief pause.

Sekh narrowed her eyes at me, not a word coming from her mouth. 

“Sorry but I have to leave soon,” I said casually.

“Is it something to do with the Myalo trade?” Sekh asked me. “If it is, please let me know. I need to see this through.”

In contrast to before, Sekh’s face was filled with resolve. It wasn’t the sort of bravery that came from ignorance, but one that was brave despite the odds. 

Of all the possible emotions that a person can display, the ones I can recognize most easily are courage and fear. And Sekh’s courage was the real thing, something I truly admire. 

“Fine,” I conceded with a shrug. “I guess I owe you one. Me and a select group are going to attack the Myalo dealer hideout tonight. We’re using disguises to enter before we strike.”

“Then let me come with you,” Sekh replied. “I swear that I’ll help.” 

“I can’t do that,” I replied. “You might get recognized by someone and give away our identity.” 

“I… I see.” Her ears drooped and her tail looked limp. Even if she understands, I doubt it makes her feel any better. But is it really that risky that she goes? I doubt that the enemy has anyone with good enough night vision to pick out Sekh, especially if she covers herself well enough. Now that I think about it, does Zeno even have anyone with night vision? 

“Actually,” I began to speak. “Let me think of something.”

I stood there thinking, while Sekh gazed at me in confusion. Finally, I came up with an idea. “Let me talk to Zeno for a bit. Stay in my room until I come back, ok?”

“Oh, ok,” Sekh said in surprise. 

Shortly after, I arrived at Zeno’ office, though he didn’t seem all that surprised. 

“Something come up?” Zeno asked with raised eyebrows. 

“Do you have any personnel that have night vision?” I asked. 

“No, how come?” he answered. 

Well it looks like I have a chance in this case. “I think it might be prudent to bring that Sekh girl in this situation. Not only does she have better night vision than all of us, but she also has military experience.”

“What are you planning to have her do? Zeno questioned. “If it’s something stupid then I won’t permit it.”

“Don’t worry, I’m not having her as part of the main group,” I explained. “But she can provide excellent support if she tails us from a distance. I can have her bring medical supplies and other support equipment in that case. Plus she can assist in securing the perimeter from outside threats.”

Zeno gave me a good long stare before sighing. “That actually sounds reasonable, especially since we don’t have anyone that can really fill her role. Although I would complain about her being recognized, I'm pretty sure my troops are just as much at risk. Well, I’ll have a disguise prepared quickly for her in that case.”

“Huh, you’re being surprisingly reasonable tonight,” I remarked. 

“I’m reasonable when you're not being ridiculous,” Zeno complained. “And although I’d like to talk more about this later, we have work to do.”

How cruel, he’s already shooing me away. After leaving his office, I went straight to my room to inform Sekh about the matter.

“Th-thank you,” Sekh stuttered excitedly when she heard the news. “I really appreciate this.”

“Now’s not the time to thank me,” I replied. “Right now you need to go to Zeno for your disguise. I also want you to bring as many first aid materials with you as possible, especially stitches and alcohol.”

“Alright,” Sekh responded, confidence flowing back into her voice. “I won’t let you down.”

A faint smile crept onto my face. “That’s good. I’ll be counting on you.”

In an alley outside the castle, John and I met up with eight of Zeno’s troops. Seven of them were regular retainers, the other was among Zeno’s prized battlemages. 

Our plan of attack was laid out by Zeno. Six of us would enter the building with me as the leader and speaker. Two regular guards are to secure the premise outside and prevent enemy reinforcements from showing up. 

“There’s been a change to the plan,” I announced. “I’m bringing reinforcements, one leopard-folk girl. She’ll be tailing us as a second pair of eyes as well as medical staff. The two of you stationed outside are not to obstruct her.” 

“Zeno already told us,” the battlemage pointed out after I had finished speaking. “I just let you speak on so we could confirm that the information was correct.”

Well I had expected Zeno to quickly update our forces. However, there was still the most minute possibility that he would forget. 

Half an hour later, we arrived. In front of us was an unassuming warehouse with solid walls and no windows. The entrance consisted of two large doors big enough for five people to enter at once. 

When I knocked on the door, a voice came from the other side.

“Password?” the voice uttered. 

I repeated what I was told by one of the Doux’s agents when I left the keep. “Even happiness has a price.” 

The doors began to creak open. Inside were three wary looking men, their hands gripping the swords at their waist. The room was desolate, just full of crates and other things you’d find in a warehouse. 

“We’ll be doing our deal downstairs,” the first man said as he began walking towards the back of the room.

I hadn’t expected this. Both me and Zeno had assumed the building would only have one floor. At this rate, I won’t be able to call for reinforcements outside. 

“How much does the Myalo here cost?” I probed. 

“I said we’ll talk downstairs,” the representative replied angrily.

This was all I needed. Me and Zeno had considered that the agents might have chosen the wrong building, so I had been told to find evidence before acting. And although he didn’t explicitly state that they were selling Myalo, he didn’t make any efforts to deny my accusations. 

I signaled with a hand behind my back to my men. It was a vague gesture and I could only hope they would understand.

As we reached the center of the room, I slid my sword out of its scabbard. I plunged the blade through the heart of the representative. John followed suit and swung his cleaver-like sword down on the man near him, while one of Zeno’s guards stabbed the last enemy on the first floor. 

“Stay here and secure the floor,” I commanded. “I’m calling our reinforcements from outside to help.” 

John and the others took off immediately. I silently moved back to the door and exited. The others stationed outside looked at me in bewilderment, as I gestured for them to come. “Change of plans, they have a second floor below. We’ll have to storm it by surprise.”

When I entered the room again, I signaled for our dispersed forces to meet me in the center of the room. “The strategy now is to rush downstairs to catch them off guard. Move as you see fit. As for the battlemage, do not attack recklessly. Only use magic if you have a clear shot. If you think you might start a fire or cause some other kind of serious structural magic, absolutely do not proceed.”

Everyone nodded and drew their weapons. Those of us who still had masks discarded them.  Now all that’s left is to descend into the bowels. 

The stairway down was narrow so that we would have to enter one by one. I put myself in the front, John behind me, and Sekh in front of the battlemage who stood at the rear. 

The people downstairs must have already noticed our footsteps or some sort of sign. I could already hear murmurs and scrambled footsteps below us. Our advantage wasn’t lost yet, but it had been compromised.

I leapt down the stairs, my legs buckling as they hit the ground. 

The second floor was noticeably smaller than the first. The surroundings were crammed with crates, shelves, and a large table in the center. There were ten occupants in the room, five in the middle, three in the rear and sides, and two approaching the staircase. 

Right in front of me was a bewildered looking thug. His mouth stood agape and the sword in his hand hung limply.

I swung my sword upwards in a silver arc, the blade slicing through his throat as if it were made of paper. 

Before he could collapse, I caught his body with my free arm and propped his body in front of me. 

Just then, a hail of crossbow bolts whirled towards me. Two impacted the corpse in front of me, causing no damage. But one bolt ripped through his torso and embedded itself deep into my left shoulder. 

I tore my shoulder aside, and broke off half the bolt that was still lodged in my left side.

At that point, the other thug near the stairway seized the opportunity and swung down at me with his sword. I deflected his blade to the side with my own sword before I stabbed him through the heart.  

Behind me, the rest of my companions had just descended down the stairs. One soldier, who took a crossbow bolt to the gut, was already being treated by Sekh.

The eight remaining outlaws began to rush towards us, but were instantly assailed by our battlemages. The very air in the room began to sizzle as streaks of lightning surged towards the mass of thugs. One thug collapsed within seconds, paralyzed by pain.  

I ran to meet them along with John and six other men. 

The opponent facing me was a burly orcish warrior hefting a military cleaver. He swung at my face, the blade screaming as it sliced through the air. I parried with both my hands, my left shoulder seared with pain as the force reverberated through my arms. 

I tried to kick the orc as we locked swords, but my opponent tackled me, sending both of us to the ground, my head almost colliding with a large crate. 

For a few seconds, we grappled around on the floor like a couple of bickering children. I was slowly overpowering him, but I was unable to make a decisive move. 

Hoping to swing the situation, my opponent reached towards the knife at his waist. Before he could pull out the blade, I grabbed his right arm with my left. With his attention diverted, I began to further leverage my advantage. Yet as I was trying to pry my opponent off, a blade plunged down at the two of us.

In a split second, my opponent diverted my own momentum to swivel me into the sword’s downward path. 

But before the sword sunk into my ribs, it swerved aside and stuck into the orc’s chest. Standing above me was Sekh. 

“Thanks,” I said as I shoved away the now dead orc. 

“I told you that I would help,” Sekh said confidently. 

The rest of the fight had pretty much ended. Two of the remaining enemies had surrendered, while the rest were dead or dying. Of our group, no one was dead. However, one man had nasty gash on his chest and was now being stitched up by one of his comrades. 

“Anyone who isn’t wounded or tending to the wounded is to secure the prisoners and any evidence that can be found,” I ordered. 

I pulled the fabric obscuring my left shoulder and pulled out the remainder of the bolt. The wound was deep and I could feel the pain in my muscles. 

Without needing to be asked, Sekh had already gotten out materials and began cleaning and stitching up my injury. Despite her sloppy sowing, my wound was painlessly closed up within a short time. 

Shortly after, a pair of soldiers had called in additional men from the watch who were to assist with inspection. It was still night when we commenced the majority of our search, no doubt additional investigators would be brought in for a deeper sweep later.

In a short period of time, we arrived back at the castle to give our report. The report followed standard procedure, we gave him the evidence we found and explained what happened. Then Zeno praised us for our bravery and gave promises of reward. Very typical dangerous mission stuff. 

Well it was that until Zeno dismissed everyone but me. 

“Why’d you bring the girl along?” he asked me, his eyes tingling with amusement. 

I scratched my chin for a bit to formulate a coherent answer. “Well I have a few reasons. First, she seemed really suitable for the job. She was also the most determined person here, apart from you. And I guess I felt a bit bad for making her upset.”

“You felt bad for making a girl cry?” Zeno laughed. “I’d never thought I’d hear something like that come out of your mouth.”

“I’ve grown as a person,” I argued. 

“Honestly, I thought you brought her along so you could sleep with her later,” Zeno remarked. “It wouldn’t even be the most absurd thing you’ve done to get laid either.”

“What was the most absurd thing then?” I quipped back. 

“I don’t remember at this point,” Zeno said tiredly. “But I do remember the time you raced on foot against an actual racehorse. Was it even worth it?”

Once again I had to crawl into the depths of my memory to retrieve the answer. “No. Definitely not worth it. Pretty sure that event led me to abandon my bad habit.”

“You never fail to amaze me,” Zeno sighed. “Anyways, I have a request for you. I want you to help me with cleaning up the Myalo situation.”

“What are the conditions?” I asked. 

“I want you to investigate and arrest the stragglers,” Zeno told me. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of liquidating seized assets and dealing with victims and bystanders. But I’d like to have you out in the field.”

What a pain. Ever since I met him during the Stygian campaign this man has been assigning me work left and right. “How come you need me to help? Didn’t you have some talented staff officers?”

“I had,” Zeno corrected disappointedly. “But most of them are currently up north dealing with the Cerdan border. And the other one retired.”

“Fine, let’s talk pay then,” I proceeded. “I’m not taking the job if I don’t get properly compensated.”

“I’ll help you get with the leopard girl,” Zeno offered. 

“Declined,” I shot back.

“How about another 30 denarii on top of your payment for assaulting the warehouse?” Zeno continued.

“I’m open to negotiating,” I said curtly.

“I’ll let you use the hot baths and you can have some of the alcohol in my cellar,” Zeno suggested.

“When does work start then?” I replied with a smile.