“So this is the assassin’s guild headquarters? It seems to be underground. But where is this place? It can’t be within the city.” Said Riou.

“It is,” Said Tullius, proudly despite his circumstances his confidence was slowly returning, “this place is not far from my house, and there are entries all over the vicinity for the agents,” said Lord Tullius.

“And This portal room you mentioned, where else does it lead to? I mean, how far can you go?”

“To the Tulip as I mentioned before, Allard and Lentie, the blue banner city. We never managed to find crystals big enough to take us further away.”

Riou looked around, the place was completely empty. Not a single guard could be seen or heard as they walked by.

“We have arrived…” Tullius showed an open room covered with a red carpet. At the center of it, a single stone pedestal. To the end corners, fancy boxes on cabinets, bookshelves with old books, and many other items and decorations. Many large tapestries were covering the walls, to both sides. Images of battles and especially mage spells.

Riou looked up and to the sides of the room, the stones forming the ceiling and the walls looked quite strange, they seemed foggy when compared to the remainder of the corridor, with a yellowish tone. He smiled and nodded.

“Let me guess… you brought me to the famous mage trap? You know you used this on Ursula and Lilly right? They told me about it.”

Tullius gasped, “Of… Of course not master Brahm! The gate crystals are on this pedestal; you can look at it yourself!”

Riou smirked at him and shook his head while walking forward at the stone piece in the center.

As he distanced himself from lord Tullius, he could see the lord getting more and more anxious and excited at the same time. Tullius stepped back and moved out of the room, and the moment Riou reached the center he shouted. “Now!”

The tapestry fell down revealing groups of mana run users activating some kind of magical artifact, a floating purple ball chained to the ground that quickly absorbed mana and powered the room with some spell.

The yellowish stone on the walls began to shine, taking up a more transparent appearance and changing into a red-yellowish color.

“Fool! This is Dragon’s blood crystal! The whole room is covered in it! Your magic is now drained! Anything you do will be consumed by it! Your whole mana will be drained completely in a few moments! And before you pass out, let me say this to you! You are mine! You will wake up in a nasty cell at the Tulip, where anyone will be able to fuck you up! You will be there until I’m satisfied! And then, I will let you be the plaything of the worst of the worst filth of the city! I will even pay them to come to see you! And I will watch and enjoy every moment of it!” shouted Tullius with a victorious tone.

Riou slowly turned to him and looked straight to his eyes, sending shivers down Tullius' back.

Without a word, Riou just began to casually walk to the back of the room, towards the cabinets and bookshelves as if the room was a normal one. Despite the trap being fully functional.

There, he looked around and picked one of the fancy boxes from a shelf. He opened it and took some papers from inside and threw them to the ground. “You wouldn’t mind if I borrowed this box, would you?”

A freezing sensation took over Tullius, “How? How can you move? This place is capable of sucking hundreds of mages dry, in an instant!.” his certain victory felt slipping away through his fingers. But he could tell, Brahm’s eyes showed no concern, no fright. He was in the deepest part of the trap and yet, he seemed completely unaffected.

“This is not the first time I’m dealing with a Dragon's blood Crystal… But I guess a demonstration is in order, let me show you what happens when I let some of my mana interact with it, just a bit.”

Tullius began hearing a cracking sound and looked up, the crystal layer of the room began to show small cracks that were increasing in size every passing moment.

Riou sighed and began walking back with the box in hand. “I think you should have realized by now. There is no escape for you.” Riou then raised his hand and snapped his finger, the transparent part of the ceiling floor suddenly shattered at once, becoming millions of pieces that fell to the ground like a sparkling powder.

“That’s impossible…” said one of the assassin agents that was powering the room from the hidden chamber as the artifact shut down.

“Fuck! What are you waiting for! Get him!” shouted Tullius as he turned around to flee. The assassins that were waiting outside and the ones in the chambers rushed inside to trap the enemy on the corner.

In a blink of an eye, the room was filled with assassins, cornering Riou. Some were weapon specialists, daggers, swords, short swords, bows, and crossbows. Others were clearly mana altered, gathering mana from the runes in their body giving him almost the same level as a mage.

“You know you can’t escape!” Riou shouted with a smile as Tullius started to ran away from the room and through the corridor. A mana wave emerged from Riou expanding quickly in all directions hitting everything and everyone inside the room. The moment they touched the mana wave, tears of blood began to drop from their eyes that became red. Their teeth fell from their mouth as their gums withered and their skin became dry and cracked autumn's leaves.

Tullius could hear the screams and wailings of the assassins. He stopped and looked back at the corridor. Riou emerged from the corner unscathed, walking towards Tullius with a box in hand and leaving behind footprints of blood.

“You are a monster!” shouted Tullius as he turned away to run.

Riou raised his hand and force choked Tullius, slowly pulling him back and towards him.

“Did you forget where we are going? Come on, which way is the Tulip gateway?”

Galan had entered the hidden tunnels that led towards the underground base of the Assassin’s guild. The assassins were moving about in a hurry, it seems they were preparing an ambush.

The assassin moved quickly through the long corridors and went towards his room, picking up his things and savings. As he was going out, he noticed movement on the headmaster chambers as he passed by it.

He peeks inside and sees the Headmaster sitting on a chair, applying a healing salve to a burned shoulder.

The headmaster sees him “Galan? Are you alive?”

He enters the room and nods, “I Almost died. The enemy was much stronger than I anticipated, I failed to gauge his power.”

“You failed indeed… but no wonder, that man is a monster, I never saw anything like him in all my years. There is nothing we could’ve done, but your return can be quite helpful, hurry and apply this healing salve to my back, I don’t have much time.”

The headmaster turned and showed his back to Galan.

Galan swallowed hard at the sight, the damage on the Headmaster’s back was moral, he couldn’t believe he was still alive. Not only that, the burned flesh seemed to be still spreading as if there was a fire burning inside of his body, slowly cooking him from the inside out.

“How does it look?” asked the headmaster.

“Bad.”

“But I will survive, now help me stand up.” With pain, the headmaster stood up and walked towards a chest in that room.

“There is a run key behind that book, give it to me,” he asked Galan, who picked up a small brownstone with a blue symbol and gave it to the Headmaster.

He unlocked the chest with it, disabling a magic trap that was ready to spring on anyone that dared to touch the chest.

From inside, he pulled a ritualistic bone dagger, a circlet with a sapphire on it, and a large piece of sheepskin.

“Yes, yes… Now I’m ready to face that man. Come on Galan, you stay with me. We both and a few remaining brothers of the guild should be sufficient to get that man once he triggers the Mage trap.”

Galan stepped back and shook his head “I’m afraid that I can’t help this time around.”

“What do you mean? You will do as I say.”

“If I listen to you, I’m dead, if I don’t… I’m dead too, but later. So I pick the latter.”

The headmaster's eyes become bloodshot red of rage, but his movements were suppressed by the pain he was in. Otherwise, he’d certainly try to eviscerate Galan where he stood for daring to state such words.

Galan knew the state the headmaster was in, all the cold sweating, completely still, skin pale, and controlled breathing. He was using all his fortitude to fight against that pain and that was the only reason why he decided to speak openly to him.

The headmaster sighed, containing his anger, “A shame, you were my best student, so promising. I had high hopes for you.”

“You have Ciram, you don’t need me.”

“Ciram is dead, your friend killed him.”

Galan nodded, “Another reason then for me to go as far as away as possible if he finds me here, he might think I’m still helping you.”

The headmaster looked at his eyes, “I was wrong in letting you out of my sight for that long. But thought the time away would teach you a lesson. Instead, the one that learned the lesson was me… but I will tell you this, you will die before you can leave these halls”

“Well, you are fucked up and do have a bigger fish to catch right now, I kinda like my chances.”

“No, you will be of use, one way or another!” The headmaster grabbed the bone dagger strongly. In an impulse, the hunter armed the bow and shot a quick arrow at the headmaster.

The arrow traveled fast, the headmaster smiled as his defensive portal activated once again, pulling him away from harm.

Galan looked around and couldn’t see the headmaster anymore. “Shit! Damn you and your dirty tricks, old man.” He quickly grabbed his things and rushed out of the room.

Something hit him and wrapped around his arms and chest, pushing him against the walls of the corridor.

He looks up and sees the headmaster approaching with great difficulty. The circlet on his head, dagger on his hand, and sheepskin attached to his belt. “I said, you will serve me one way or the other!” The headmaster raises the dagger and a red mana thread forms from it to Galan.

“I got this from your last job, I was supposed to receive three more of these artifacts once you completed it, but you said our patrons disappeared on us. Luckily, only one group could have such artifacts and I know exactly where to find them.”

“You know the council?”

Another mana thread left the dagger handle, wrapping around the headmaster’s arm and moving up to his chest.

The moment the thread connected to the headmaster’s chest, and energy began to be siphoned from Galan and transferred to the headmaster. At each pulse, the headmaster gained strength, his injuries began to heal and even his white hair become black while his physique improved.

Galan on the other hand felt his life force being sucked away. His skin paled and his hair turned whiter at each pulse.

“Yes! Yes! With this, I can rule the guild forever! Took a long time, but they finally delivered it to me! Immortality is at an arm's reach! I just need one more artifact from them!” he looks at his hand, noticing his skin getting younger at every passing moment.

Galan's ears twitched when he heard that, he was very tired, he could barely keep his eyes open. “Umbra…” he whispered. “The council, it’s the Twilight council… didn’t your brother mention them before? Isn’t that why he is here?”

A hand emerges from the shadow and snips the mana thread with its black nail releasing Galan.

The headmaster felt the backlash of the pain since the connection had been forcefully severed, as he looks up, there is a woman in a black dress standing beside Galan.

“I knew you wouldn’t let me die.” Said Galan with closed eyes and a smile, exhausted.

Umbra just glanced at him but kept her attention on the headmaster who was intrigued by her presence there.

“Let me guess, you are the sister I heard so much about?” The headmaster got concerned and quickly positioned for a fight.

“You said you know someone from a group called the Twilight Council. Tell me what you know about them”, said Umbra.

He smiled, “You are also interested in them? I should’ve known, someone that powerful would have ties with them. You also don’t know where they are? Well, I can tell you with fair certainty the name of one of them. The one that gave me this because I’ve been tracking them down for a long time, and recently they made a move back to this city.”

“Tell me then,” said Umbra quite calmly.

“Not so fast… what do I gain from this exchange? You know, information is a highly valued commodity. And since you are that monster’s sister, I bet you are not too different from him.”

“You flatter me, but I’m very different from him, in every aspect.”

The headmaster nodded, “It’s hard enough to have one monster like that, two? Doubt it. And that’s why I will take my chances here! See you soon, Galan.” the portal began to appear and pull the headmaster inside of it.

The moment the portal closed and the headmaster found himself in a different room of the guild. Shadows erupted from his own shadow, evolving him instantly. When they vanished, the Headmaster saw himself in the exact same spot, with Galan and the lady in front of him. He looked around quite in disbelief. He tried to escape again, but the same result followed, the shadows and he was again at the same spot.

“Now, before we talk, let’s return what you took from my servant.” Umbra raised her hand elegantly towards the headmaster. Shadows formed between her hand and his body, slowly condensing more and more on her hand, forming a dark sphere with a red center. The physiognomy of the headmaster changed abruptly as he looked at the sphere, the gained vitality vanished in an instant, a decrepit old man with no muscles was left behind. His hair turned white and even fell off his head completely.

She then raised her finger up with the sphere on top of it “Vitality and lifetime are connected, but not in the way you think.” The sphere then floated towards Galan, entering his chest, quickly rejuvenating all the lost vitality and more.

“You are also... full of surprises,” said the headmaster sitting down out of breath. “But no matter, even if I fall here today, someone will take my mantle and fulfill our code. Someone shall avenge me. Hear my words, Galan. Years from now… we will be there and you will remember this moment.”

Umbra looked away for a moment towards the corridor, “No, there isn't anyone left.” She looks at the headmaster and smiles, “Now, do tell what you know about this council. Tell me everything, I’m quite curious to know more about them.”

“I’d rather die than tell you anything.”

“You will, it’s a matter of how rather than when.”

Galan, who recovered himself, laughed “I thought you were just an observer, but you are actively helping him now, aren’t you?”

“Who said I’m helping him?”

“You are interested in his enemies… to tell him about them, right?”

“I will tell him nothing, I’m just curious.”

“Really?”

“Now, if someone else decides to tell him about it, I will not pass judgment on it.”

Galan chuckled and looked at the headmaster, “Between dragons and serpents, I begin to wonder which is best.”

“Dragons, certainly.” she begins to vanish into the shadows, leaving the two alone once again.

Galan sighed, “After all, it seems I have one more job to do before I can leave this place for good. And you, headmaster, will be able to see first hand how well I learned your lessons.”

A portal formed in the VIP lounge on the Tulip, a bell rang with a melody as Lord Tullius stepped into the place, followed by Riou and his box.

The manager appeared immediately looking for him. “My lord? What are you doing here at such an hour?” He looks at Riou by him and gets quite confused, waiting for the lord to explain the situation.

“I, I will be opening the floors for Lord Brahm, prepare everything for us.”

“My lord?” he asked, unsure of what he just heard.

“Don’t make me repeat myself!”

“As you wish my lord.” The manager rushed to the cabinet holding the stones and promptly opened all the boxes without a delay.

“He had the keys all along?” asked Riou, glaring at Tullius that forced a smile.

“Open the third underground floor first,” ordered Tullius. The manager opened the cabinet and the box, picked up the crystal, showing it to Riou and Tullius before proceeding to open the portal for them.

“You first…” said Riou to Tullius.

As both of them crossed, Riou found himself in a very wide room, about the size of a whole story of the Tulip, but with just pillars every now and then. But it was a completely empty space.

He nodded at himself, “Let me guess, the fourth floor is also like this, empty?”

“I told you, my lord, there is nothing down here,” said Tullius, “It’s a myth that helps bring in customers, you see? A forbidden place, a hidden secret. Everyone comes wondering about these rooms, and the secret is that there is no secret. They are just empty”

“Right...” Riou looked around and saw the door on the wall. He pointed Tullius towards it.

“Open it.”

“But of course.” Tullius quickly walked to the door, picked a key hanging by the wall, and casually opened the door from inside. On the other side, the staircase just like always.

“Let’s return to the manager in the lounge,” said Riou.

“Good, let’s get back to the portal and…”

“Through the stairs please, I’m suddenly in need of some exercise.”

“My lord? Oh, the stairs… if you insist, of course.” said Tullius, quite concerned.

They went up a few floors and by two doors, but when they were about to return to the tulip, they suddenly stopped. They lead to a closed wall.

“How strange… I could swear that this is not how stairs should work. Don’t you agree, Lord Tullius?”

“Yes… very strange indeed. Perhaps some misunderstanding might have occurred.”

“Perhaps. Let’s return to the portal, and this time, let’s avoid any misunderstanding.”

“It probably was the manager, he must have switched the portals, I had no idea he’d do such a thing! You have to believe me!”

“Of course, now, let’s return.”

Back to the VIP lounge, Tullius got really angered. “What did you do, Manager? I told you to open the correct portal to the third floor! How can you take the liberty and send us to a fake floor?”

“My apologies, my lord.” The manager's eyes glanced at Riou.

“Now open the correct one!”

“Very well,” he went back to the cabinet, and using a key on a hidden hole, a compartment opened with just a piece of a crystal appearing between the cloth. The manager touched the tip of a crystal and a portal opened.

Riou just looked at Tullius, indicating him to move.

Riou then glanced at the manager, “You too, you can join us, so that way there will be no more surprises.”

The manager looked at Tullius for guidance, but the lord just nodded to him.

“You two first.” Riou was still holding on to the box. As the manager joined Tullius he immediately whispered.

“What's happening my lord? Are you being blackmailed? Want me to take care of him?”

“Shh! Just do as I say!” replied Tullius quite concerned that Riou had heard that, looking back at him.

“Are you really taking him to those floors?” added the manager.

“I don’t have a choice…” he said as they crossed the portal, Riou went right after them.

On the other side, a long corridor. To the right side, many doors on a long wall with exquisite details just like a fancy Inn.

To the left, Riou’s blood froze as his eyes saw the place.

Prison cells filled with children of all ages. All wearing rags, thin and sickly looking. Approaching them, the children averted their eyes, the ones that still had them and still could see.

Riou could see many wounded, laid down in poor beds on the cold floor. To the corner, a pile with recently dead bodies.

They were many, way too many for such a small prison cell.

The manager looked concerned to Tullius, but the lord just looked at the lord Brahm with a frightful and anxious expression.

But Riou didn’t say a word. He just turned and walked to the right side, opening the first door.

Inside, a luxurious bedroom with everything one could desire in a room. And a young blond boy was wearing a well-fit knight uniform. At the tables, plenty of food and fruits of all kinds were served. To the shelves on the wall, many bottles of wine and other spirits.

The boy immediately lowered his head greeting Riou and moved to stand by the bed without saying a word.

Riou closed the door and continued to the next. And then the next and so forth. One by one, revealing well-fed and well-dressed kids. Until it, all changed.

The last rooms were different, they were not a bedroom, but a perverted and sadistic medieval torture chamber with many devices and machines, blades and whips.

“Call your servants to this floor, open all cages and doors, treat the wounded and feed the starving. Get the best healers here today, I want everyone checked and healed. Now!” Riou spoke and just began returning to the portal.

The manager frowned and looked at Tullius, “What are you waiting for! Call them already!” said the Lord rushing after Riou.

The manager could not understand, “Lord Tullius?” he asked as they returned to the main lounge.

“Don’t question, just do it already!”

The manager was not pleased but left the room for a moment and then returned with them. The servants were holding bandages, water, and food. He guided them through the portal. “The healers are being called… they should arrive shortly.”

With a quick wave of his hand, a green mist began to rise from the floor and cover the children there. Riou spoke coldly, turning away and quickly moving back to the portal. “There is one more floor, open it.” His voice was emotionless, which greatly concerned Tullius.

The manager glanced at Tullius and moved after the lord that was quickly following Riou.

Back at the lounge they just glanced at Tullius while going towards the portal cabinet. Not even bothering with the fancy run-locked box, he just reached with a key for another hidden keyhole that couldn’t even be seen by him. Once the key turned, another hidden crystal was revealed in the cabinet.

Once he touched it the last portal opened.

“Go…” said Riou with a dry voice, moving after them towards the portal.

A similar room opened up, cages to the left side, rooms to the right at first. But at the end of the corridor, there was a large door and a split of the corridor to the sides.

But from the portal exit, he could see to the left, inside the prison there were Beastmen, males, females, and children, some half breeds, some mixed-race between themselves. And all of them had slave crests drawn somewhere on their bodies.

The rooms to the right side, differently than the floor below, were all bedrooms mixed with torture chambers, each with different machines, objects, and even beds.

Riou walks silently through the main corridor looking at the slaves and the rooms. The beastmen, differently than the children, showed hateful eyes at him. The anger and fury towards humans could be felt through their piercing gazes. Certainly, let loose, they’d kill any human they could put their hands on.

“Isn’t lord Brahm tired? I believe we have seen enough… These beasts aren’t worthy of your attention. So, maybe we should call it a day?”

“Shut up, if you are not talked to, shut the fuck up,” said Riou harshly and in an angered manner.

Tullius swallowed hard and remained silently following.

By the end of the corridor, he stands at the large door. He looks at the new corridor and sees 2 more independent rooms on each side of it, making a total of 5 special rooms counting the one at the center.

He steps forward and the door reacts to him, protective runes immediately activate. He nods and then turns to the left side of the corridor and walks towards the very last room there. He stands by the door, not noticing a single defense there.

Tullius was apprehensive but didn’t dare to speak again.

He puts his hand on the handle and opens the door. It was unlocked.

A foul smell quickly hits him, looking inside, he sees a luxurious room worthy of a king. But the food and wine there were spoiled and spilled over the ground. Close to the turned table, chained to the walls was the body of a naked beast woman, a little human girl, and a boy. All of them died.

On the ground, not too far from them, Rioou sees another body that he easily recognized.

“I didn’t expect to find them here… a shame you already died, you escaped easily from this.” He speaks to the body of a fat man with a red beard completely filthy. The body was getting bloated as it had been dead for a while now.

Riou turned away and closed the door. “I want the names of anyone that had access or knew about these two floors. Every single one of them,” he spoke looking straight at Tullius' eyes.

“My lord Brahm, you don’t think we gave asylum to these traitors, right? I didn’t even know he was here. I bet the manager also wasn’t aware, maybe someone else let them in? Why don’t we go get our good knight captain to get an investigation team ready and…”

Riou just walked back silently while he spoke as he passed the manager and Tullius and just glanced at Tullius for a moment. The lord froze in his speech, feeling that a word more could cost him his life.

Riou stopped by the second room on that side of the corridor and put his hand on the handle.

“What are you waiting for? The list, I want it now,” he said, opening the door.

“Lord Tullius?” asked the Manager, still unsure as to why the lord was listening to Brahm so obediently.

“Shit, shit, shit! Just do as he says, you have a pen and paper, right? Start right now! You know everyone by heart, don’t you? Do that as I try to think!”

“Why don’t you let me handle this?”

“Because you can’t handle shit!”

“I hope all this whispering is about the names of the people you are writing to right now.” Said Riou looking inside the next room while taping the box on his leg quite impatiently.

The manager nodded, “What’s that box? Is that his trump card…” The manager put down the pen and paper and moved closer to the door.

Tullius was lost in his own thoughts and didn’t even notice the movement of the manager.

The room was completely empty, there was no one there nor it seemed to have been used recently. To be sure, he stepped inside for a moment to look at it better and then returned to the corridor.

As he leaves the room, the Manager attacks. With a quick movement of his arms, he tried to hit Riou in the face, and at the same time, he slapped the box from Riou’s hand.

Riou easily waved his head back to avoid the hit but didn’t bother protecting the box. With the hit, the box fell to the ground not too far away. The manager then took another attacking stance.

Finally noticing the event lord Tullius became despaired “What are you doing?!” shouted the lord at the manager.

Riou just stepped back and turned his back to the manager that was rushed by the lord.

“Are you crazy! You bastard! You want to kill me!?”

“I… I don’t understand. Is there someone else blackmailing you too? That’s why I can’t take him out? But we can kill him here and then plan something. There is no need to…”

“Shut up! You have no idea what you are talking about!” he looked at Riou moving to the other doors. “Master Brahm! Master Brahm, please forgive this fool! Master Brahm?”

Riou stopped by the last door first, just like he did on the other side.

The manager was left speechless for a moment and rushed to take the box and open it.

“Is it empty? The box is empty?”

“Shut up Manager! Shut the fuck up or I will kill you myself!” Tullius turned to Riou “I apologize, but I have nothing to do with this man’s actions! You understand, right? Good help is so difficult to find, don’t you agree?” pleaded Tullius to a silent Lord Brahm.

“The names… are they ready?” said Riou with his hand at the handle.

“Manager?! Where is the list with the names!?” Tullius walked back and towards him.

The manager shook his head and moved quietly to where he left the pen and paper to continue it.

The manager whispered, “My lord, I could easily dispose of him, we could call the headmaster here too and seize all his friends.”

“There is no headmaster anymore! There is no Guild for fucks sake! You don’t get it, don’t you? He killed them all!”

“He killed?”

Riou’s voice startled them, “The list! This is the last time I will ask nicely. And you better have it fully filled, not a single name missing or I will make sure you wish you hadn’t forgotten it.”

Tullius urged the manager, “Just shut up and write the names… all of them, you understand? Maybe if we give him something now, we might escape this problem alive tonight, maybe even make some deal with him and then getaway, we need just an opportunity!”

The manager just nodded and continued filling the list.

Riou opened the door and smiled. Inside he sees another familiar face. “I knew you wouldn’t be far away from your friend. Long time no see, Lord Rodrick, and by the way, I see it, life has been good to you since you tried to kill an entire city by spreading a plague.”

Rodrick had a similar kingly room.

“Who dares…” says Rodrick standing up from the bed where he was watching 4 human servants dancing and singing for him while a fifth was feeding him in the mouth.

His face goes pale the moment he recognizes who was at his door. “You? You are dead!”

“You wish...” he then turns to the servant woman there. “Out… all of you.” But none of them dare to move. Riou glanced at Tullius.

The lord rushed to the door and shouted “Out he said! Move, move!” all the girls quickly left the room.

“Lord Tullius? What’s the meaning of this!” asked Rodrick quite shocked.

Riou smiles and as the last one leaves the room he says to him, “You stay put over there, enjoy the room for a little longer, alone this time. Because I’m sure Bhalrom will be more than happy to show you new accommodations soon and I’m sure you need to get used to some alone time.” he steps back and begins closing the door.

“Wait!” Rodrick quickly ran to the door and put his hand on the handle, but the door didn’t respond. He tried to kick it down, shoulder bash it, but all his effort could not put a dent in the door. It just didn’t move at all.

As Riou closed the door, a magic rune appeared on it. “Do not try to open this door, it will only respond to Bhalrom, do you understand?” He speaks to Tullius and the manager.

“Of course… of course, now. Take a look at this my lord Brahm. See? We can cooperate!” Tullius takes the list from the manager and promptly shows it to Riou.

“Is this all of it?”

“Just as you asked! See, we can be civilized here. So, why don’t we go downstairs and discuss our problem again, now that we are on more amicable terms? I’ve seen the issues with my behavior, your teachings have been eye-opening! I must say I’m a completely new man now!”

Riou was still looking at the list. “So many names, many of the influential lords from all cities, even from the Norse are listed here. What about lord Gilles? Why is his name not here? I hope that’s not a mistake?”

“No, far from it, lord Gilles had never come to the Tulip, he says it could affect his image as an auction holder. He doesn't like to mix pleasure and business like the others.”

“I see… Another thing, you can get all these names that are on Iris, can you get them to go to the auction tomorrow?”

“With a single word of mine, my lord, they will be there.”

“Then you will do so.”

“Of course, I will prepare the messengers at once.” He looks at the Manager and nods.

Riou walks by and stops by the second door on the right corridor. Tullius takes a deep breath.

He tried to open it but it was locked.

“Why is this locked?”

“My lord, if I may… this door has been shut for quite a while, I don’t think we can budge it.”

“That’s not what I asked.”

Lord Tullius looked around and at the manager, but there was nothing he could do.

Riou stretched his arm towards the box, and it came flying to his hand.

“Shit, shit, shit wait, wait… just give me a moment!” Tullius pulled out a keyring with many keys, he shakenly moved through some of them and finally opened the lock. He stepped back and joined with the Manager.

Whispering to him, “This might set him on us, but help me survive this night and I will make you a rich man. I just need to get away from him long enough to send the army against the king. That will take his attention away from us, we will be able to breathe and think on what to do next.”

The manager nodded.

Riou opened the door and sighed, “You really can’t help yourself regarding the royal family, can you? Did you have to kill him too?” Riou walked forward, entering the room.

“He is alive… he is alive! I promise you!” said Tullius, forcing himself to smile.

Riou walked towards the center of the room, a man with badly cut blond hair was hanging by his wrists in chains attached to the ceiling, a palm high above his own excrement. His arms were torn by flesh wounds and bleeding down his body.

He was wearing a thin and very short red women's dress that was completely filthy. His back, legs, and face were full of scars. He was thin, clearly starved and his left eye was completely closed up from a recent beating.

Riou approached him from the side, but all the man did was murmur and wiggle a bit, despite being completely exhausted he showed clear signs of fear from someone approaching him.

The man was alive. But was far from the same person he once met.

With a better look on his face, Riou sees a slave crest carved with iron crest and fire on his forehead.

Around him, lots of those torturing devices, and every single one of them seemed to have been used very recently.

“Do I have to say it?” asked Riou glancing back at the door.

“Of course not… Manager, call the healers here as well. Prince Kasius needs urgent and special attention!”

“I hope you have a way to deal with all these illegal slave crests, don’t you?” Asked Riou.

“They will be undone, all of them right away!”

Riou nodded and began to leave the room. Tullius moved back and realized that only one room was left. Desperate, he began talking to Riou the moment he left the room, “My lord, this might take some time, there are so many to heal and free… so please, let’s go back to the lounge where it is more pleasant so we can coordinate the efforts! We will get this done at once and when my lord is refreshed, everything will be done and fulfilled!”

“The manager can go and get that settled, meanwhile, we still have one more room to open.”

The manager looked at Tullius, but the lord just nodded, confirming it. “Go, go at once. Do as he says… and remember what I just told you!” The manager nodded and left in a hurry.

“So, he will bring reinforcements, is that it? I don’t mind… you can bring everyone you want so I can kill them all at once like I should’ve done from the start.”

Tullius swallowed hard, “Of course not my lord, nobody can go against you, you should be the king! You should be the one in charge of every kingdom!”

“That’s precisely why I didn’t want to take matters into my own hands. I don’t want to overshine the ones that want that damn job… I don’t want to be given it.”

“You don’t wish to be king? To control all the land and its subjects?” Tullius asked, quite shocked.

“No Tullius, I do not and I’ve been trying really hard not to stand out too much.”

“That’s why the princess went to see the soldiers and Bhalrom came to me… you were trying to let them get the respect and influence of resolving the situation? My lord, now that I understand your goals It has become clear to me. I was blind but now I see! Let me help you, my lord! I can do everything you wish to become true!”

“Then open the last room, Tullius.”

Tullius sweated profusely as Riou was already walking towards while his words had no effect on the lord Brahm.

“Wait, wait! That’s an empty room, my lord, I promise you. It was created to test the great locksmith and rune makers of the past. This is just a piece of magical craftsmanship now. That’s all. It’s just a trophy door that has never been used, nor opened.”

“Then open it and let it be done with it.” “But nobody could open it, it has been closed for centuries now.”

“Open it, or I will break it open.”

“My lord I would if I could… but you have to understand, the man who created these runes and locks is long dead! He was a genius, no one from his legacy can get near the level of excellence he achieved in his runecrafting prowess.”

Riou contained his anger and threw the box away with such force it shattered on the stone floor, “Let me make this clear. I’m trying to see if there is any shred of humanity inside of this pile of shit you call yourself. I’m trying to see if there is still a soul on that thin shell of yours and reply after reply, you are making it really difficult for me to find an excuse to allow you to live just a little longer because it would be a crime to everyone else if I just ended your miserable life myself, so stop pushing it.”

“But if you kill me the army…” he looks at the box pieces.

“After what I saw in here is indicative of what the soldiers have been doing under your orders, then I’d say they don’t deserve to be saved either. If anyone or anything dares to take a single step out of this city’s walls in the direction of the capital, I will make them regret it, dearly.”

“But the princess? She would…”

Riou went furious “Don’t you dare speak of her.” He said cutting him off in the middle of the sentence. “Do you think I forgot what you did to her? Do you? I’d kill you a hundred times for luring her into your house. And now you think you can bring her into this conversation to try to manipulate me? Really? Why don’t you try mentioning her one more time? Just to see what will happen to you, try it.”

Tullius swallowed hard went silent.

Riou nodded at him “My patience has been exhausted, one more shit that comes out of your mouth and you will wish to be dead.”

Tullius looked down in complete silence.

“Now, open this door.”

But Tullius just shook his head and stepped further back from him.

Riou just shook his head, “Then I will do it.” He put his hand on the door. The many runes on it began to flare at once, ready to retaliate. But before a single spell could manifest, the runes began to fade away, the metal bars started to melt like ice cream on a hot summer day. The locks opened on their own and the hinges fell off their places.

The massive door fell forward as nothing held it in place anymore.

“Impossible… this can’t be!” said Tullius watching but not believing.

Riou steps inside. At first sight, it was a normal room, with many bookcases, a dresser, and a bed. To the side of a door with a side room, where he could see a bathtub.

A woman suddenly walks from it and moves towards the center of the room quite surprised to see Riou there. She had a strange beauty, a delicate face, and frame, and an almost divine-looking figure. She wore a long light dress and she stopped at the center of the room, staring at Riou first and then at Tullius, frowning her eyes at him.

“You? I know you, you are not dead yet? But I can tell your time is nearing, you grew much older since the last time I saw you. Pathetic humans, so you decided to come and torment me once more before you draw your last breath in your short lifespan?” she says while locking eyes with Tullius by the door.

Paying more attention, Riou noticed pale skin, long blond hair, and what really got his attention was the pointy ears. “An elf?” he says, turning to Tullius with anger in his voice. “You imprisoned an Elf?”

“Boast more, human! Because no matter how long you keep me here, nor what you try to do to me. It will never work, I will outlive you all and someday break free from this prison! But it's been a while since I saw a human die, so please, I welcome any tries at me!” She showed him her arms where two round circles with intricate designs could be seen in a dark blue color.

Tullius went silent and stepped back, he didn’t dare to enter the room. But Riou stepped forward and towards her while looking around the room with more attention now. To the corner, he sees a book writer desk, a pile of paper, and book covers. “You make books?” he spoke while walking forward. Behind her, there was an open book on the table.

She just smiled with bad intentions as he approached, waiting for him to touch her body. But Riou casually walked right past her, paying her no mind and going for the book on a table in the back instead.

Quickly stepping back, she blocked his path. “What do you think you are doing? You are not worthy of even looking at this relic! I will not allow any step further!”

“Relic?” he asked, trying to get a peek at it.

“You filthy human, avert your eyes! Your small mind is not capable of comprehending the wisdom of this book, if it was the original one, the mere sight of it would burn your eyes out of your skull!”

“So it’s a copy?”

“And still is above your intellect! Refrain yourself from even glancing in its direction!”

“I’m not like most humans,”

“Said like a true human, I know that all you think about is copulating and multiplying your disgusting selves, do you think I don’t hear what happens outside of these walls? You are short-lived beasts! I wonder why the gods ever allowed your existence for this long! They should've purged you long ago!”

“So, this is a book about the gods, interesting. I’ve been looking for information on them.”

“You who worship the children of the elements cannot begin to fathom the gods!”

“But you, an elf do… right? You must know a lot about the gods!”

“Of course I do, I heard stories of them first hand, but someone that has been there in their golden age! But my knowledge is not for the simple-minded like you. Now leave me be, human! Or I shall strike you down!”

“Why haven’t you escaped yet? You are an elf, you clearly have great magical knowledge and stuff, right? Why are you still here then?”

“You speak as if you don’t know. She points to the ground and ceiling while concentrating her mana briefly, a massive ritual circle shines through the ceiling and the floor, covering the whole room.

“A magic circle trap?”

“Not any trap, an old Abyssal circle designed to kill Elves. If I leave this room, or if I cast an elven spell, I die.”

“But then, what about these?” he points to the runes on her arms.

“These are not elves, it’s protection created by my father. I have no control over them, but they do work in this place, so I dare you to try to harm me. Come, touch me and see what happens to you!”

“I see… so, how long have you been here?”

“Ask that human, it was his kin that imprisoned me first, I don’t recall how many generations ago.” “How did they capture you?”

She went silent and looked away, a sentiment of shame and embarrassment could be felt from her.

Riou sighed, “ Fine… I will be direct, lady Elf, I need your help with some information. So pick what you need from this place and come with me.”

“My lord Brahm! You can’t free her! If the elves discover she was alive all this time and in captivity here, there will be war. They think she died many centuries ago. If they discover she was a prisoner of Allard, they will attack us! And the elves can’t be beaten in regards to magic!”

“No Tullius, you kept her prisoner. Not Allard.” Riou walked towards him outside and pointed his finger to his chest.

“I saw what I wanted to see… but don’t think I’m done with you.”

“What are you doing?”

“Listen to me and listen closely. You will enter that empty room and wait for Bhalrom arrival there, you won’t communicate with anyone else until he comes to pick you up. You will not speak of what happened in this place with anyone until then and if the manager does not fulfill your orders of freeing and helping everyone down there, well… let’s say you will find out that it will be painfully deadly to not listen to these instructions because now, you are my prisoner Tullius.”

From Riou’s finger, a dark smoke flew towards Tullius' chest. The lord began to feel a strange searing pain there and opened his coat and shirt to see. A dark vine with thorns appeared on his skin, right by where his heart was located.

“You are warned, go against me to discover agonizing pain followed by death,” he speaks to Tullius and begins walking away from him and towards the exit portal.

“Elf lady, hurry up, pick your belongings and follow me already.”

“Stupid human! Have you forgotten about the magic circle that prevents me from…” she looked down and the circle had vanished. She looked up and the same thing happened there.

She then tried to conjure a simple light spell. It worked. She chuckled in disbelief.

“Come on, don’t need to pick everything, just the most important. Tullius will be sending them all to my Inn later on today, Right Tullius?”

An excruciating pain attacked his chest, the lord fell to the ground with his hand on his chest in enormous pain, nodding vehemently and shouting “Yes! Yes!” After that, the pain disappeared.

“I hate using this curse because it’s not subtle at all, anyone with half a wit would be able to tell you are being controlled. But since we came to this point, there is no reason to not go all out, right?”

“Please, my lord! You are my master already! So please, spare me this pain!” the searing pain started again.

Riou smiled and crouched near Tullius moving his index finger from side to side, “You can’t lie to yourself either. This curse is inside your heart, so it knows when you are being truthful or not. So I advise you to have a true change of heart if you don’t want it to burst from the excess of pain and stress it’s now under.”

“My lord! Argh!!! My lord! Ugh! Mercy! Aaahhhh.”

The Elf lady watches from the door with a few books in her hands with a devilish smile on her face. “Maybe I misjudged you, Human, you do know how to treat your brothers.”

“This is no brother of mine. So? Are you done? Then come on, there is something I wish to know.”

As her feet touched the corridor outside her room she smiled and laughed. “I’m out! I’m really out of that damned room!” And she stops moving, releasing her books to the ground.

Riou looks back and sees her strange smile.

“I should thank you, human,” she said, “For freeing me of that wretched prison, but now that I’m out. I will not be a prisoner of anyone else. I will kill you and everything in this place so I can go on my own way, truly free!” She began casting a spell, lights began to gather around her, vivid bright lights of pure mana, showing the user’s ability on controlling them while amassing a vast quantity of it.

“No,” Riou snapped his finger and the massive spell that was forming was blown away instantly.

“I’m sorry lady elf, but I do need to know more about these gods of yours and you are the only source I found so far. So, before you go on your merry way, as a courtesy, I expect that you will indulge this selfish request of mine.” He spoke to her in a very unfriendly manner.

“You? How did you stop my spell? It was one of my father’s original creations, I should be able to obliterate you and this wretched place with you.” She shakes her head, getting herself back from the shock, and begins once again conjuring the spell. Balls of living light began to appear everywhere, quicker than before and larger, they were dangerous looking and threatened to attack at any moment.

Riou snapped his finger at her again and the spell was gone. “I understand your hurry to return, but you owe me a conversation at least. Now, chop, chop, let’s go, elf lady, I had a really long day now and I really don’t have the patience for a tantrum.”

“Tantrum? I’m older than you!” She conjured massive mana energy with all her powers instantly shooting it at Riou.

“I don’t care if you are 5 or 500, right now you are acting like a spoiled little brat! I let you free and I said that I would let you go on your way after a little talk!”

“I won’t be imprisoned again! I won’t be fooled by you humans ever again!”

He pointed his palm at the incoming spell and engulfed it into his mana, sending the spell into nothingness in the next moment. “I said I’m freeing you, which part of that didn’t you understand?”

“How? How can you counter an original Elven spell? And so easily?”

Riou sighed and closed his eyes, “You… Fine, do you wanna know? Then come with me.” He shows her the way to the portal.

“I will fight to the death if I have to!”

“You actually went crazy in there, didn’t you? Or only Dark Elves know how to show gratitude?”

Her eyes widened and her face showed surprise, “What did you say?”

“You know nothing about gratitude.”

“No, the other part…”

“That you went crazy?”

“Stop fooling with me! What did you say about the elves?”

“That the dark elves do know how to show gratitude.”

“How do you know about Dark Elves?”

“I met one.”

“Don’t lie!”

He noticed her interest, “I'm being honest, his name is Garus of the Shilen Order, this tall, white hair, dark-colored skin, speaks beastmen and common language quite well. Also, he loves to make protection barriers and camp inside undead-infested cities. Nice dude, but can’t cook for shit nor give direction properly.”

She was clearly shocked “How do you know that name? How do you know those things? That’s a piece of lost knowledge, even for us Elves. And you said you met him? Is he in this realm?”

Riou smiled, “Oh, so now you are interested in talking to me? Good, then how about we go have a good talk then?”

She looked at him with confusion and uneasiness. She grabbed her books tightly and glanced back at her prison for a moment. “Fine! But I want my treasure back!”

“Sure, pick it up, and let’s go.”

She put up her superior airs again and looked at Tullius with disdain. “His kin stole it from me when I was captured! I want it back now!”

Riou looked at Tullius, “Fine, give it back to her.”

“I… I can’t, it’s gon… Arghhh” painful spasm afflicted the lord on the ground. A smile appeared on the elf’s face each time that happened.

“I just told you that you can’t lie. Keep doing that and you will kill yourself.”

“I don’t have it! I don’t have it, not with me! It’s in the guild’s Vault! The Vault! It’s there!”

“Then stand up and let's get it for the lady here. And let's do it quickly, please.” Riou walked towards him and pulled the Lord up, forcing him to walk towards the portal.

“Come on elf lady, we will get your treasure back and leave this place so we can talk in peace.”

She nodded and moved after him.

Back to the lounge, many servants and healers were moving around. The children had been moved to rooms in the tulip and were being treated.

The manager, seeing Lord Tullius back, rushed to him, but Riou forced him to open the portal back to the guild hideout.

“He will be right back,” said Riou pushing Tullius through the portal, followed by the elf lady.

The manager and everyone else in the room watched the elven woman moving with widened eyes, none of them had ever seen anything like her before.

Back to the empty guild hideout, Tullius quickly guided them back to the vault, Tullius stared at an open chamber inside the vault with desperate eyes. “It was here, I swear! It was here!”

But there was nothing inside the chamber. Whatever item there, it was long gone.

“Who took it!?” Asked the elf quite angered.

“It must have been the thief and the princess! They came through here when they escaped!”

“Lies! I shall kill you!”

“That’s easy to verify.” Riou opened a portal back to the inn. “If he is lying, then you can kill him tomorrow, he won’t be going far away with that thing on his heart.”

The elf nodded, not too satisfied, but walked through the portal.

Riou looked at Tullius, “Behave wisely while I'm not around, don't go killing yourself foolishly. Nobody would want that.” And then walked through the portal back to the inn.