Chapter XIV

 

The man in his dark robe emits a sound of pain as he is thrown by Rolf to the ground of the narrow alley. They find themselves between old Viran's butcher shop and the North stables. Fortunately for them, no one is around at this hour. That was precisely the reason they brought him here.

The man remains on the ground, quickly surveying his surroundings. Fear and anxiety are evident in his eyes, understandable given the situation he finds himself in.

"What do you want?" This isn't the first time he's asked this question since they cornered him in the street and started bringing him here.

Rolf and Blade wait for him to speak.

"What do you think? We want money," he doesn't even attempt to control the acidity in his voice, considering the stupidity of the question, after all, why does he think he's here?

Upon hearing the response, the man continues to look around before focusing on his interlocutor and starting to speak.

"I, I don't..."

Hearing their target trying to find a way to save his money, Mide decides not to waste his time and interrupts him.

"Look, we've been following you for a while. We saw you selling a bunch of stuff. So, hand over the money."

"That's right, hand over the money," Blade repeats, taking the opportunity to kick their target.

The man seems to carefully consider what he heard as he rubs the leg that was kicked.

"Fine, I'll give you the money, but I want you to take me out of the city. And as quickly as possible," hearing what the man just said and seeing the seriousness on his face, almost makes Mide burst into laughter. The audacity of setting conditions during a robbery is hilarious.

Blade quickly decides to correct the man's mistake, pulling out his knife. Holding the victim, he presses the knife against his throat to say, "You're really stupid. This is a robbery. Hand over the money and maybe I won't stab you."

Blade, despite being the youngest and looking the most harmless of them, is also the most aggressive everyone calls him Blade precisely because of his habit of always pulling out his knife and threatening to stab people. While Rolf may have the size many fully grown men can only wish for, he tends to be extremely passive.

So, Blade can always be relied upon to quickly and definitively convey a message like this. Unfortunately, the idiot turns around and addresses him, "Isn't that right, Mide?"

Hearing this idiot calling him by name and his real name, in front of the target, can only lead Mide to put a hand to his face in frustration.

But before he can even think about what to do now, the victim speaks up.

"You don't understand. I don't have much time. I need to get out of this city," the fear is audible in his voice, and his alarmed gaze surveys his three assailants. The odd thing about the situation is that despite being subdued by the knife, he seems to look more towards the entrance of the alley than being bothered by the knife.

Even considering how strange this is, Mide decides to proceed with the robbery. After all, he's here to make money, not to dwell on the oddity of his victims.

"Look, just give us the money. Otherwise, my friend here will have to open a new hole for you," it's a small threat, but one that Mide expects will make the man give them the money.

"You don't understand!" this time the man almost shouts. Blade gives him a tug on his clothes but doesn't harm him with the knife. Still, he seems concerned about something else. And continues to speak. "We don't have time. He could arrive at any moment."

This statement, though it seems to go unnoticed by his companions, worries Mide. What does the man mean by "We?"

Before Mide can investigate anything, the man's eyes widen, and he recoils towards the wall. Looking beyond Mide's group, he speaks hesitantly.

"I can explain..."

It is at this moment that Mide hears a noise behind him and turns exactly to where the victim has focused his gaze.

As he turns back, nothing could have prepared Mide for what he sees now. At the entrance of the alley stands a beggar, calmly eating an apple. At least Mide can only think of him as a beggar. Dressed in dirty rags, the dark-haired young man probably around the age of Mide's older sister, remains relaxed as he watches the scene unfolding before him.

"So, grumbler, making new friends?" the beggar simply asks.

"It's a robbery, I'm being robbed!" emphatically affirms their original victim.

"Hey, you, disappear from here!" Rolf says in his most assertive tone as he stands up straight to appear even more imposing.

But the beggar seems to ignore Rolf. In fact, he seems to ignore Mide's entire group altogether, and looking directly at the man, to calmly say.

"Is that so?"

Hearing this question, the man seems to grow paler and shakes his head. "Of course it's true. They approached me on the street and brought me here."

Finishing his statement, the man begins to look at Mide's group as if expecting them to confirm what he's saying. Mide, on the other hand, starts exchanging glances with his companions, reflecting on the strange situation. Especially looking at Blade still holding his knife in front of the man, while his expression almost begs for help.

"True, because it seemed to me that you wanted to flee. After all, you disappeared on me when I went to buy some fruit," says the beggar as he calmly chews his apple.

"What, flee?" the man exclaims loudly, seeming almost panicked. "Of course not. It's a robbery! They caught me when I strayed a bit." At this moment he gets up from the ground and states this passionately. As if his very life depends on what he says.

Seeing the ridiculousness of it all, Blade explodes and shouts, "What's going on here."

He then points his knife at the beggar and says, "You, disappear from here before I stab you." Turning towards the victim, he tells him, "And you, give us the money."

The man, on the other hand, simply looks back and forth between Blade pointing the knife at him and the beggar. To whom he seems to be asking for instructions.

Now Mide recognizes the beggar, he had been with the target. They had assumed he was someone who had been hired to help carry the man's items for sale. However, this conversation reveals that their connection is different from what they had assumed.

"Fix it. Use your superior powers to resolve this.", the beggar says calmly before taking another bite of his fruit.

"What... How do you expect me to solve a robbery?" the man hurriedly responds before falling into thoughtful silence.

Amidst the chewing, the beggar seems to try to clarify things for the other, "But aren’t you supposed to be better than others? After all, these kids don't seem to know any magic."

With this statement, the situation becomes more serious. If indeed these two are mages, things could become more complicated. Everything could become more difficult, but even so, Mide's group maintains numerical superiority.

"I never said we're better. That was Seres' talk," the man says slowly, but still with some anxiety in his voice. Mide is increasingly thinking that very little of that anxiety is due to the robbery.

"And you, of course, disagree with your little friend," the beggar responds, raising an eyebrow slightly.

"I..." the victim begins to speak, quickly returning to silence.

"Your actions demonstrate how much you've always disagreed with the ideas of your little group of friends. Anyway, you should be able to handle these kids," the beggar replies, after narrowing his gaze to better see the shocked expression on the man's face. Continuing to speak, "You know how to fight them. Right?"

The embarrassed silence from their victim responds to the beggar.

"During the fight at your base, I thought you weren't using magic due to the shock. But now... Do you know any attack spells?" the beggar asks in a tone of complete incredulity, finally stopping chewing the apple. Once again, his only response is silence and a flushed face from the man.

"Good Lord, you're even more useless than I thought," grumbles the beggar.

But for now, Mide starts to get tired of this whole scene. Despite the risk, of them being mages. The fact that they're being ignored in their own robbery is irritating him, so he decides to speak.

"Look, your talk is all, very funny," here he turns to the original victim and gestures with his hand, saying, "But hand over the money. Before we get annoyed."

"And why should I let you have my money?" the beggar calmly asks. Confirming that he is the one in charge of the man in the dark robe.

"Because of my friend's knife.", Mide clarifies, pointing with a thumb to Blade. "And my other friend's fists.", he adds, indicating Rolf with the thumb of his other hand.

Mide feels confident with his companions. But the beggar makes a noise as if suppressing a laugh that wants to escape.

"Right, we should be very afraid of these dangerous criminals.", says the beggar with a smile, while taking another bite of the apple.

Before Mide can say anything, the beggar speaks again. "Too bad the worst criminal here is behind you."

Listening to this, both Mide and his friends turn to the man leaning against the wall. He has wide eyes and shakes his head from side to side. But he doesn't say anything, probably not wanting to contradict the beggar.

"I'm serious," says the beggar, taking another bite of his apple. "This city must have about a thousand or two thousand inhabitants."

"Hey, Dantar has almost six thousand inhabitants," Rolf interrupts, feeling clearly insulted by the beggar thinking his city is small—a feeling shared by Mide.

"Really! I need to rethink my population estimates," says the beggar before shrugging and continuing to speak.

"But that's not important. What I mean is, you three are young. And your city may have crime, but it's not big enough to be very serious."

Mide would like to interrupt here and assure this beggar that his city has big criminals. And if he disagrees, Mide can direct him to some gangs that could enlighten him better. But this strange beggar keeps talking.

"I doubt even the boy with the pocketknife. Has ever killed anyone. Even if I'm wrong, it must be impossible for him to have killed more than one or two people. The same can't be said of the grumbler over there," the beggar finishes speaking, nodding his head towards the man behind them.

The man in the dark robe starts talking quickly and in a shrill voice, "What... I never..."

Unfortunately for him, the beggar doesn't give him a chance to speak, interrupting him, "But of course, you and blondie never stabbed anyone. You just held them while others did the dirty work."

Here he starts shaking his head before continuing to speak. "I don't know about here. But where I come from, they don't make big distinctions between the two actions. Both are murder."

Upon hearing the heavy silence from the man, Mide and his companions start to become worried. The beggar is right, they have hurt people before, but killing... If that man has killed or helped to kill several people.

It's Blade who breaks the silence. Pointing his knife at the man in the robe and saying, "That's what you say. But it doesn't seem to me that this one here is capable of much."

Something that, looking at the pathetic man, leaning against the wall as if trying to disappear into it, Mide has to agree with. But his aggressive companion doesn't stop there, and turning the knife towards the beggar, he continues. "And you. You don't seem any better. So, hand over the money."

He shouts this last part. Although Mide largely supports his friend's position, the beggar worries him, he remains too calm. And the guy in the robe is too afraid of him. Either they're incredible actors or something here could be very dangerous.

And the beggar's reaction to Blade's words doesn't reassure him. The man sighs, to begin speaking.

"As I imagine the authorities here won't be of much help. I see I'll have to resolve the situation," he stops here and smiles calmly before continuing to say, "But before we start, with the stupidity. Can you answer me a few questions?"

The question further confuses Mide, leaving him unsure of how to respond. Drawing a knife to start fighting would be less surprising than the calm question from him. But before Mide or his companions can rethink the situation, the beggar continues his speech.

"As I imagine you guys know the guards of this city well. You should be able to answer at least this question," the beggar asserts, maintaining his increasingly intriguing smile. After all, how can he know that Mide has a relationship with the guards?

Well, more accurately, the gang that Mide and his friends belong to. They have contacts with the guards. The gang pays the guard captain's son to help solve any problems that may arise. But few people know that. How can this beggar, who seems to be an outsider, know that?

"As such, how long will it take for them to appear when houses around here start burning?" the beggar says as if it were nothing. But the strange question sends shivers down Mide's spine as he thinks what a strange question for the beggar to ask. And what it might mean.

Behind Mide, in a low murmur, "What? What is he going to do? Damn, damn!"

It's the man behind them who murmurs, he went to the farthest point of the wall from them. There's a look of panic on his face as he looks around. As if he were an animal trying to find an escape when facing a predator he can't defeat.

"And what could be the reaction of the authorities, if after amidst the flames they find... let's say some burned bodies?" while Mide focuses on the attitude of the man in the dark robe. The beggar has continued to speak, asking another question.

"What does that mean?" asks the normally silent Rolf. Despite his question sounding as calm as everything else he says. Rolf must be uneasy with the beggar's questions. Considering he normally doesn't speak, letting his physicality speak for him.

But whatever the beggar’s response would have been, it is interrupted by a desperate shout. "What about me?"

Before Mide can turn his attention back to the man who had just shouted, the beggar merely shrugs and says, "Honestly. I'm not very concerned about you. I'm more worried that innocent people around might lose their homes because of a bunch of idiots."

This is the most concerning thing said so far. It seems clear to Mide what the two are implying. And the end result also seems clear.

The beggar grabs the apple core and looking intently whispers, "The Will of Flame." With that said, the core bursts into a blue flame.

But before Mide can even comprehend what happened, he feels a shove on his shoulder. And sees, Blade being thrown to the ground. While a dark figure rushes towards the beggar.

Having taken a few more steps, the man they had tried to rob throws himself in a leap that brings him crashing down next to the beggar. As he hits the ground, he curls up into a ball, as if trying to protect himself from something.

With the man on the ground, the beggar lets out a small cry of pain and drops the burning core.

"Strange, this spell never burned me before," the beggar states, looking at his fingers. "On the other hand, I never used it on an apple. I'm even surprised it worked."

His expression truly reveals some surprise as he continues to look thoughtfully at his hand.

Blade jumps off the ground with fury, obviously angry at being thrown to the ground. Seeing this, Mide can only have one reaction. He puts his hand on his friend's shoulder and says with all the force of his voice, "Stay put."

The beggar also starts speaking, but in his case, his voice, although somewhat hesitant, seems calm. "It wasn't a bad idea. If I had cast what you were thinking. You might have survived."

And this comment solidifies Mide's decision regarding the situation they're in.

At the very least that beggar is a mage. And by the actions of the other man, he must be a dangerous and powerful mage. What only means trouble.

His ragged attire had made Mide doubt the story initially. But now there can’t be many doubts, not after seeing him cast a spell.

Mide remembers a conversation he had with his father when the old man was alive. In that conversation, his father had told him to be careful with mages, as they are all rich. When Mide, in his innocence, had asked him if being a mage made them rich. His father had explained to him that it was the other way around. To be a mage, one must first be rich. Only then could they have the time and resources to become mages.

That disconnect was what had made Mide hesitate, but now he can only make one choice.

"Well, gentlemen, as it seems our business today is finished. We'll be going," Mide says this to declare that this robbery is over. And so, he and his friends leave, without further incidents.

And from the smile that appears on the mage's face, it seems to work.

Blade seems to disagree. "Come on, Mide, we can handle them."

The best response, which comes to Mide considering that his friend continues to use his name is, "Enough, Bernard. Let's go."

Immediately Blade becomes sulky upon hearing his real name. But fortunately obeys. Not that Mide doesn't think they stand a chance against the mage.

Seeing a mage looking like a beggar had seemed ridiculous. But now it has become something worrying. For someone rich and capable to be in this state. In Dantar the simplest explanation is that this mage is an adventurer who had bad luck in the forest.

That wouldn't make him worrisome, after all the gangs have some experience fighting adventures, even mages. At this short range, they should have a chance. But considering the rest he said that chance must be very small. He most likely is a bounty hunter. Making the guy they caught his prey.

Suppose he's a bounty hunter who just took down a group of bandits. And is here with the survivor. In that case, despite the state he is in he should very dangerous indeed.

So, it's best for them to give up.

Has they leave the alley and see the man lying on the ground and the mage looking calmly at them. Mide becomes even more certain of his decision. Between the still-visible fear in the man in the dark robe. And the calm but concentrated expression of the mage. Who keeps his hands ready to undoubtedly cast a spell on them if they try to attack him.

When they are out of the alley and start running on the deserted street, they hear the mage say.

"Come on, get up. I found something interesting to buy."

At least Mide will count this as a day when they escaped a fight for their lives.